1 Samuel 25:36-38

25:36 When Abigail went back to Nabal, he was holding a banquet in his house like that of the king. Nabal was having a good time ¹  and was very intoxicated. She told him absolutely nothing ²  until morning’s light. 25:37 In the morning, when Nabal was sober, ³  his wife told him about these matters. He had a stroke and was paralyzed. ⁴  25:38 After about ten days the Lord struck Nabal down and he died.

Keluaran 32:6

32:6 So they got up early on the next day and offered up burnt offerings and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and drink, ⁵  and they rose up to play. ⁶ 

Keluaran 32:17-19

32:17 When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, ⁷  he said to Moses, “It is the sound of war in the camp!” 32:18 Moses ⁸  said, “It is not the sound of those who shout for victory, ⁹  nor is it the sound of those who cry because they are overcome, ¹⁰  but the sound of singing ¹¹  I hear.” ¹² 

32:19 When he approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses became extremely angry. ¹³  He threw the tablets from his hands and broke them to pieces at the bottom of the mountain. ¹⁴ 

Keluaran 32:27-28

32:27 and he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Each man fasten ¹⁵  his sword on his side, and go back and forth ¹⁶  from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and each one kill his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’” ¹⁷ 

32:28 The Levites did what Moses ordered, ¹⁸  and that day about three thousand men of the people died. ¹⁹ 

Yudas 1:23

1:23 save ²⁰  others by snatching them out of the fire; have mercy ²¹  on others, coupled with a fear of God, ²²  hating even the clothes stained ²³  by the flesh. ²⁴ 

Yudas 1:2

1:2 May mercy, peace, and love be lavished on you! ²⁵ 

1 Samuel 13:1

Saul Fails the Lord

13:1 Saul was [thirty] ²⁶  years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty] ²⁷  years.

Yesaya 22:13

22:13 But look, there is outright celebration! ²⁸ 

You say, “Kill the ox and slaughter the sheep,

eat meat and drink wine.

Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” ²⁹ 

Daniel 5:1-4

Belshazzar Sees Mysterious Handwriting on a Wall

5:1 King Belshazzar ³⁰  prepared a great banquet ³¹  for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine in front of ³²  them all. ³³  5:2 While under the influence ³⁴  of the wine, Belshazzar issued an order to bring in the gold and silver vessels – the ones that Nebuchadnezzar his father ³⁵  had confiscated ³⁶  from the temple in Jerusalem ³⁷  – so that the king and his nobles, together with his wives and his concubines, could drink from them. ³⁸  5:3 So they brought the gold and silver ³⁹  vessels that had been confiscated from the temple, the house of God ⁴⁰  in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, together with his wives and concubines, drank from them. 5:4 As they drank wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.

Lukas 12:19-20

12:19 And I will say to myself, ⁴¹  “You have plenty of goods stored up for many years; relax, eat, drink, celebrate!”’ 12:20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life ⁴²  will be demanded back from ⁴³  you, but who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ ⁴⁴ 

Lukas 17:27-29

17:27 People ⁴⁵  were eating, ⁴⁶  they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage – right up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then ⁴⁷  the flood came and destroyed them all. ⁴⁸  17:28 Likewise, just as it was ⁴⁹  in the days of Lot, people ⁵⁰  were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; 17:29 but on the day Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. ⁵¹ 

Lukas 21:34-35

Be Ready!

21:34 “But be on your guard ⁵²  so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap. ⁵³  21:35 For ⁵⁴  it will overtake ⁵⁵  all who live on the face of the whole earth. ⁵⁶ 

Lukas 21:1

The Widow’s Offering

21:1 Jesus ⁵⁷  looked up ⁵⁸  and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box. ⁵⁹ 

Lukas 5:3

5:3 He got into ⁶⁰  one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then ⁶¹  Jesus ⁶²  sat down ⁶³  and taught the crowds from the boat.

Wahyu 11:10-13

11:10 And those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate, even sending gifts to each other, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth. 11:11 But ⁶⁴  after three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and tremendous fear seized ⁶⁵  those who were watching them. 11:12 Then ⁶⁶  they ⁶⁷  heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them: “Come up here!” So the two prophets ⁶⁸  went up to heaven in a cloud while ⁶⁹  their enemies stared at them. 11:13 Just then ⁷⁰  a major earthquake took place and a tenth of the city collapsed; seven thousand people ⁷¹  were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

[25:36]  ¹ tn Heb “and the heart of Nabal was good upon him”; NASB, NRSV “Nabal’s heart was merry within him”; NIV “he was in high spirits”; NCV, TEV “was in a good mood”; CEV “was very drunk and feeling good.”

[25:36]  ² tn Heb “and she did not tell him a thing, small or large.”

[25:37]  ³ tn Heb “when the wine had gone out from Nabal.”

[25:37]  ⁴ tn Heb “and his heart died within him and he became a stone.” Cf. TEV, NLT “stroke”; CEV “heart attack.” For an alternative interpretation than that presented above, see Marjorie O’Rourke Boyle, “The Law of the Heart: The Death of a Fool (1 Samuel 25),” JBL 120 (2001): 401-27, who argues that a medical diagnosis is not necessary here. Instead, the passage makes a connection between the heart and the law; Nabal dies for his lawlessness.

[32:6]  ⁵ tn The second infinitive is an infinitive absolute. The first is an infinitive construct with a lamed (ל) preposition, expressing the purpose of their sitting down. The infinitive absolute that follows cannot take the preposition, but with the conjunction follows the force of the form before it (see GKC 340 §113.e).

[32:6]  ⁶ tn The form is לְצַחֵק (lÿtsakheq), a Piel infinitive construct, giving the purpose of their rising up after the festal meal. On the surface it would seem that with the festival there would be singing and dancing, so that the people were celebrating even though they did not know the reason. W. C. Kaiser says the word means “drunken immoral orgies and sexual play” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:478). That is quite an assumption for this word, but is reflected in some recent English versions (e.g., NCV “got up and sinned sexually”; TEV “an orgy of drinking and sex”). The word means “to play, trifle.” It can have other meanings, depending on its contexts. It is used of Lot when he warned his sons-in-law and appeared as one who “mocked” them; it is also used of Ishmael “playing” with Isaac, which Paul interprets as mocking; it is used of Isaac “playing” with his wife in a manner that revealed to Abimelech that they were not brother and sister, and it is used by Potiphar’s wife to say that her husband brought this slave Joseph in to “mock” them. The most that can be gathered from these is that it is playful teasing, serious mocking, or playful caresses. It might fit with wild orgies, but there is no indication of that in this passage, and the word does not mean it. The fact that they were festive and playing before an idol was sufficient.

[32:17]  ⁷ sn See F. C. Fensham, “New Light from Ugaritica V on Ex, 32:17 (br’h),” JNSL 2 (1972): 86-7.

[32:18]  ⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:18]  ⁹ tn Heb “the sound of the answering of might,” meaning it is not the sound of shouting in victory (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 418).

[32:18]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the sound of the answering of weakness,” meaning the cry of the defeated (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 415).

[32:18]  ¹¹ tn Heb “answering in song” (a play on the twofold meaning of the word).

[32:18]  ¹² sn See A. Newman, “Compositional Analysis and Functional Ambiguity Equivalence: Translating Exodus 32, 17-18,” Babel 21 (1975): 29-35.

[32:19]  ¹³ tn Heb “and the anger of Moses burned hot.”

[32:19]  ¹⁴ sn See N. M. Waldham, “The Breaking of the Tablets,” Judaism 27 (1978): 442-47.

[32:27]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “put.”

[32:27]  ¹⁶ tn The two imperatives form a verbal hendiadys: “pass over and return,” meaning, “go back and forth” throughout the camp.

[32:27]  ¹⁷ tn The phrases have “and kill a man his brother, and a man his companion, and a man his neighbor.” The instructions were probably intended to mean that they should kill leaders they knew to be guilty because they had been seen or because they failed the water test – whoever they were.

[32:28]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “did according to the word of Moses.”

[32:28]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “fell.”

[1:23]  ²⁰ tn Grk “and save.”

[1:23]  ²¹ tn Grk “and have mercy.”

[1:23]  ²² tn Grk “with fear.” But as this contrasts with ἀφόβως (afobw") in v. 12 (without reverence), the posture of the false teachers, it most likely refers to reverence for God.

[1:23]  sn Joining a fear of God to mercy is an important balance when involved in disciplinary action. On the one hand, being merciful without fear can turn to unwarranted sympathy for the individual, absolving him of personal responsibility; but fearing God without showing mercy can turn into personal judgment and condemnation.

[1:23]  ²³ sn The imagery here suggests that the things close to the sinners are contaminated by them, presumably during the process of sinning.

[1:23]  ²⁴ tn Grk “hating even the tunic spotted by the flesh.” The “flesh” in this instance could refer to the body or to the sin nature. It makes little difference in one sense: Jude is thinking primarily of sexual sins, which are borne of the sin nature and manifest themselves in inappropriate deeds done with the body. At the same time, he is not saying that the body is intrinsically bad, a view held by the opponents of Christianity. Hence, it is best to see “flesh” as referring to the sin nature here and the language as metaphorical.

[1:2]  ²⁵ tn Grk “may mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.”

[13:1]  ²⁶ tc The MT does not have “thirty.” A number appears to have dropped out of the Hebrew text here, since as it stands the MT (literally, “a son of a year”) must mean that Saul was only one year old when he began to reign! The KJV, attempting to resolve this, reads “Saul reigned one year,” but that is not the normal meaning of the Hebrew text represented by the MT. Although most LXX mss lack the entire verse, some Greek mss have “thirty years” here (while others have “one year” like the MT). The Syriac Peshitta has Saul’s age as twenty-one. But this seems impossible to harmonize with the implied age of Saul’s son Jonathan in the following verse. Taking into account the fact that in v. 2 Jonathan was old enough to be a military leader, some scholars prefer to supply in v. 1 the number forty (cf. ASV, NASB). The present translation (“thirty”) is a possible but admittedly uncertain proposal based on a few Greek mss and followed by a number of English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT). Other English versions simply supply ellipsis marks for the missing number (e.g., NAB, NRSV).

[13:1]  ²⁷ tc The MT has “two years” here. If this number is to be accepted as correct, the meaning apparently would be that after a lapse of two years at the beginning of Saul’s reign, he then went about the task of consolidating an army as described in what follows (cf. KJV, ASV, CEV). But if the statement in v. 1 is intended to be a comprehensive report on the length of Saul’s reign, the number is too small. According to Acts 13:21 Saul reigned for forty years. Some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT), taking this forty to be a round number, add it to the “two years” of the MT and translate the number in 2 Sam 13:1 as “forty-two years.” While this is an acceptable option, the present translation instead replaces the MT’s “two” with the figure “forty.” Admittedly the textual evidence for this decision is weak, but the same can be said of any attempt to restore sense to this difficult text (note the ellipsis marks at this point in NAB, NRSV). The Syriac Peshitta lacks this part of v. 1.

[22:13]  ²⁸ tn Heb “happiness and joy.”

[22:13]  ²⁹ tn The prophet here quotes what the fatalistic people are saying. The introductory “you say” is supplied in the translation for clarification; the concluding verb “we die” makes it clear the people are speaking. The six verbs translated as imperatives are actually infinitives absolute, functioning here as finite verbs.

[5:1]  ³⁰ sn As is clear from the extra-biblical records, it was actually Nabonidus (ca. 556-539 B.C.) who was king of Babylon at this time. However, Nabonidus spent long periods of time at Teima, and during those times Belshazzar his son was de facto king of Babylon. This arrangement may help to explain why later in this chapter Belshazzar promises that the successful interpreter of the handwriting on the wall will be made third ruler in the kingdom. If Belshazzar was in effect second ruler in the kingdom, this would be the highest honor he could grant.

[5:1]  ³¹ sn This scene of a Babylonian banquet calls to mind a similar grandiose event recorded in Esth 1:3-8. Persian kings were also renowned in the ancient Near Eastern world for their lavish banquets.

[5:1]  ³² sn The king probably sat at an elevated head table.

[5:1]  ³³ tn Aram “the thousand.”

[5:2]  ³⁴ tn Or perhaps, “when he had tasted” (cf. NASB) in the sense of officially initiating the commencement of the banquet. The translation above seems preferable, however, given the clear evidence of inebriation in the context (cf. also CEV “he got drunk and ordered”).

[5:2]  ³⁵ tn Or “ancestor”; or “predecessor” (also in vv. 11, 13, 18). The Aramaic word translated “father” can on occasion denote these other relationships.

[5:2]  ³⁶ tn Or “taken.”

[5:2]  ³⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:2]  ³⁸ sn Making use of sacred temple vessels for an occasion of reveling and drunkenness such as this would have been a religious affront of shocking proportions to the Jewish captives.

[5:3]  ³⁹ tc The present translation reads וְכַסְפָּא (vÿkhaspa’, “and the silver”) with Theodotion and the Vulgate. Cf. v. 2. The form was probably accidentally dropped from the Aramaic text by homoioteleuton.

[5:3]  ⁴⁰ tn Aram “the temple of the house of God.” The phrase seems rather awkward. The Vulgate lacks “of the house of God,” while Theodotion and the Syriac lack “the house.”

[12:19]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “to my soul,” which is repeated as a vocative in the following statement, but is left untranslated as redundant.

[12:20]  ⁴² tn Grk “your soul,” but ψυχή (yuch) is frequently used of one’s physical life. It clearly has that meaning in this context.

[12:20]  ⁴³ tn Or “required back.” This term, ἀπαιτέω (apaitew), has an economic feel to it and is often used of a debt being called in for repayment (BDAG 96 s.v. 1).

[12:20]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” The words “for yourself” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[17:27]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “They.” The plural in Greek is indefinite, referring to people in general.

[17:27]  ⁴⁶ tn These verbs (“eating… drinking… marrying… being given in marriage”) are all progressive imperfects, describing action in progress at that time.

[17:27]  ⁴⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[17:27]  ⁴⁸ sn Like that flood came and destroyed them all, the coming judgment associated with the Son of Man will condemn many.

[17:28]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “as it happened.”

[17:28]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “they.” The plural in Greek is indefinite, referring to people in general.

[17:29]  ⁵¹ sn And destroyed them all. The coming of the Son of Man will be like the judgment on Sodom, one of the most immoral places of the OT (Gen 19:16-17; Deut 32:32-33; Isa 1:10).

[21:34]  ⁵² tn Grk “watch out for yourselves.”

[21:34]  sn Disciples are to watch out. If they are too absorbed into everyday life, they will stop watching and living faithfully.

[21:34]  ⁵³ sn Or like a thief, see Luke 12:39-40. The metaphor of a trap is a vivid one. Most modern English translations traditionally place the words “like a trap” at the end of v. 34, completing the metaphor. In the Greek text (and in the NRSV and REB) the words “like a trap” are placed at the beginning of v. 35. This does not affect the meaning.

[21:35]  ⁵⁴ tn There is debate in the textual tradition about the position of γάρ (gar) and whether v. 35 looks back to v. 34 or is independent. The textual evidence does slightly favor placing γάρ after the verb and thus linking it back to v. 34. The other reading looks like Isa 24:17. However, the construction is harsh and the translation prefers for stylistic reasons to start a new English sentence here.

[21:35]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “come upon.”

[21:35]  ⁵⁶ sn This judgment involves everyone: all who live on the face of the whole earth. No one will escape this evaluation.

[21:1]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “He”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[21:1]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “looking up, he saw.” The participle ἀναβλέψας (anableya") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[21:1]  ⁵⁹ tn On the term γαζοφυλάκιον (gazofulakion), often translated “treasury,” see BDAG 186 s.v., which states, “For Mk 12:41, 43; Lk 21:1 the mng. contribution box or receptacle is attractive. Acc. to Mishnah, Shekalim 6, 5 there were in the temple 13 such receptacles in the form of trumpets. But even in these passages the general sense of ‘treasury’ is prob., for the contributions would go [into] the treasury via the receptacles.” Based upon the extra-biblical evidence (see sn following), however, the translation opts to refer to the actual receptacles and not the treasury itself.

[21:1]  sn The offering box probably refers to the receptacles in the temple forecourt by the Court of Women used to collect freewill offerings. These are mentioned by Josephus, J. W. 5.5.2 (5.200), 6.5.2 (6.282); Ant. 19.6.1 (19.294); and in 1 Macc 14:49 and 2 Macc 3:6, 24, 28, 40 (see also Mark 12:41; John 8:20).

[5:3]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “Getting into”; the participle ἐμβάς (embas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[5:3]  ⁶¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[5:3]  ⁶² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:3]  ⁶³ tn Grk “sitting down”; the participle καθίσας (kaqisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[11:11]  ⁶⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[11:11]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “fell upon.”

[11:12]  ⁶⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[11:12]  ⁶⁷ tn Though the nearest antecedent to the subject of ἤκουσαν (hkousan) is the people (“those who were watching them”), it could also be (based on what immediately follows) that the two prophets are the ones who heard the voice.

[11:12]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “they”; the referent (the two prophets) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:12]  ⁶⁹ tn The conjunction καί (kai) seems to be introducing a temporal clause contemporaneous in time with the preceding clause.

[11:13]  ⁷⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[11:13]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “seven thousand names of men.”