Mazmur 89:19

89:19 Then you ¹  spoke through a vision to your faithful followers ²  and said:

“I have energized a warrior; ³ 

I have raised up a young man ⁴  from the people.

Yesaya 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ⁵ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ⁶  for the nations. ⁷ 

Matius 12:18

12:18 “Here is ⁸  my servant whom I have chosen,

the one I love, in whom I take great delight. ⁹ 

I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

Lukas 23:35

23:35 The people also stood there watching, but the rulers ridiculed ¹⁰  him, saying, “He saved others. Let him save ¹¹  himself if ¹²  he is the Christ ¹³  of God, his chosen one!”

Efesus 1:4

1:4 For ¹⁴  he chose us in Christ ¹⁵  before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished ¹⁶  in his sight ¹⁷  in love. ¹⁸ 

[89:19]  ¹ tn The pronoun “you” refers to the Lord, who is addressed here. The quotation that follows further develops the announcement of vv. 3-4.

[89:19]  ² tc Many medieval mss read the singular here, “your faithful follower.” In this case the statement refers directly to Nathan’s oracle to David (see 2 Sam 7:17).

[89:19]  ³ tn Heb “I have placed help upon a warrior.”

[89:19]  ⁴ tn Or perhaps “a chosen one.”

[42:1]  ⁵ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ⁷ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[12:18]  ⁸ tn Grk “Behold my servant.”

[12:18]  ⁹ tn Grk “in whom my soul is well pleased.”

[23:35]  ¹⁰ tn A figurative extension of the literal meaning “to turn one’s nose up at someone”; here “ridicule, sneer at, show contempt for” (L&N 33.409).

[23:35]  ¹¹ sn The irony in the statement Let him save himself is that salvation did come, but later, not while on the cross.

[23:35]  ¹² tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text.

[23:35]  ¹³ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[23:35]  sn See the note on Christ in 2:11.

[1:4]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “just as.” Eph 1:3-14 are one long sentence in Greek that must be broken up in English translation. Verse 4 expresses the reason why God the Father is blessed (cf. BDAG 494 s.v. καθώς 3).

[1:4]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “in him.”

[1:4]  ¹⁶ sn The Greek word translated unblemished (ἀμώμους, amwmous) is often used of an acceptable paschal lamb. Christ, as our paschal lamb, is also said to be unblemished (Heb 9:14; 1 Pet 1:19). Since believers are in Christ, God views them positionally and will make them ultimately without blemish as well (Jude 24; Eph 5:27; Col 1:22).

[1:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “before him.”

[1:4]  ¹⁸ tn The prepositional phrase ἐν ἀγάπῃ (en agaph, “in love”) may modify one of three words or phrases: (1) “chose,” (2) “holy and unblemished,” both in v. 4, or (3) “by predestining” in v. 5. If it modifies “chose,” it refers to God’s motivation in that election, but this option is unlikely because of the placement of the prepositional phrase far away from the verb. The other two options are more likely. If it modifies “holy and unblemished,” it specifies that our holiness cannot be divorced from love. This view is in keeping with the author’s use of ἀγάπη to refer often to human love in Ephesians, but the placement of the prepositional phrase not immediately following the words it modifies would be slightly awkward. If it modifies “by predestining” (v. 5), again the motivation of God’s choice is love. This would fit the focus of the passage on God’s gracious actions toward believers, but it could be considered slightly redundant in that God’s predestination itself proves his love.