Keluaran 10:3-4

10:3 So Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh and told him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: ‘How long do you refuse ¹  to humble yourself before me? ²  Release my people so that they may serve me! 10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring ³  locusts ⁴  into your territory ⁵  tomorrow.

Keluaran 15:9-10

15:9 The enemy said, ‘I will chase, ⁶  I will overtake,

I will divide the spoil;

my desire ⁷  will be satisfied on them.

I will draw ⁸  my sword, my hand will destroy them.’ ⁹ 

15:10 But ¹⁰  you blew with your breath, and ¹¹  the sea covered them.

They sank ¹²  like lead in the mighty waters.

Keluaran 18:11

18:11 Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the gods, for in the thing in which they dealt proudly against them he has destroyed them.” ¹³ 

Keluaran 18:1

The Advice of Jethro

18:1 ¹⁴ Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, that ¹⁵  the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. ¹⁶ 

1 Samuel 2:3

2:3 Don’t keep speaking so arrogantly, ¹⁷ 

letting proud talk come out of your mouth!

For the Lord is a God who knows;

he ¹⁸  evaluates what people do.

Ayub 22:29

22:29 When people are brought low ¹⁹  and you say

‘Lift them up!’ ²⁰ 

then he will save the downcast; ²¹ 

Ayub 40:10-12

40:10 Adorn yourself, then, with majesty and excellency,

and clothe yourself with glory and honor!

40:11 Scatter abroad ²²  the abundance ²³  of your anger.

Look at every proud man ²⁴  and bring him low;

40:12 Look at every proud man and abase him;

crush the wicked on the spot! ²⁵ 

Mazmur 138:6

138:6 Though the Lord is exalted, he takes note of the lowly,

and recognizes the proud from far away.

Amsal 3:34

3:34 Although ²⁶  he is scornful to arrogant scoffers, ²⁷ 

yet ²⁸  he shows favor to the humble. ²⁹ 

Amsal 6:16-17

6:16 There are six things that the Lord hates,

even ³⁰  seven ³¹  things that are an abomination to him: ³² 

6:17 haughty eyes, ³³  a lying tongue, ³⁴ 

and hands that shed innocent blood, ³⁵ 

Amsal 29:23

29:23 A person’s pride ³⁶  will bring him low, ³⁷ 

but one who has a lowly spirit ³⁸  will gain honor.

Yesaya 2:11-12

2:11 Proud men will be brought low,

arrogant men will be humiliated; ³⁹ 

the Lord alone will be exalted ⁴⁰ 

in that day.

2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, ⁴¹ 

for ⁴²  all the high and mighty,

for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;

Yesaya 2:17

2:17 Proud men will be humiliated,

arrogant men will be brought low; ⁴³ 

the Lord alone will be exalted ⁴⁴ 

in that day.

Yesaya 10:8-14

10:8 Indeed, ⁴⁵  he says:

“Are not my officials all kings?

10:9 Is not Calneh like Carchemish?

Hamath like Arpad?

Samaria like Damascus? ⁴⁶ 

10:10 I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, ⁴⁷ 

whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem’s ⁴⁸  or Samaria’s.

10:11 As I have done to Samaria and its idols,

so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols.” ⁴⁹ 

10:12 But when ⁵⁰  the sovereign master ⁵¹  finishes judging ⁵²  Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I ⁵³  will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. ⁵⁴  10:13 For he says:

“By my strong hand I have accomplished this,

by my strategy that I devised.

I invaded the territory of nations, ⁵⁵ 

and looted their storehouses.

Like a mighty conqueror, ⁵⁶  I brought down rulers. ⁵⁷ 

10:14 My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest,

as one gathers up abandoned eggs,

I gathered up the whole earth.

There was no wing flapping,

or open mouth chirping.” ⁵⁸ 

Yesaya 16:6-7

16:6 We have heard about Moab’s pride,

their great arrogance,

their boasting, pride, and excess. ⁵⁹ 

But their boastful claims are empty! ⁶⁰ 

16:7 So Moab wails over its demise ⁶¹  –

they all wail!

Completely devastated, they moan

about what has happened to the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. ⁶² 

Daniel 4:37

4:37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all his deeds are right and his ways are just. He is able to bring down those who live ⁶³  in pride.

Daniel 5:20-23

5:20 And when his mind ⁶⁴  became arrogant ⁶⁵  and his spirit filled with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and his honor was removed from him. 5:21 He was driven from human society, his mind ⁶⁶  was changed to that of an animal, he lived ⁶⁷  with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like oxen, and his body became damp with the dew of the sky, until he came to understand that the most high God rules over human kingdoms, and he appoints over them whomever he wishes.

5:22 “But you, his son ⁶⁸  Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, ⁶⁹  although you knew all this. 5:23 Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. You brought before you the vessels from his temple, and you and your nobles, together with your wives and concubines, drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone – gods ⁷⁰  that cannot see or hear or comprehend! But you have not glorified the God who has in his control ⁷¹  your very breath and all your ways!

Matius 23:12

23:12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Lukas 1:52

1:52 He has brought down the mighty ⁷²  from their thrones, and has lifted up those of lowly position; ⁷³ 

Lukas 14:11

14:11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but ⁷⁴  the one who humbles ⁷⁵  himself will be exalted.”

Lukas 18:14

18:14 I tell you that this man went down to his home justified ⁷⁶  rather than the Pharisee. ⁷⁷  For everyone who exalts ⁷⁸  himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Lukas 18:1

Prayer and the Parable of the Persistent Widow

18:1 Then ⁷⁹  Jesus ⁸⁰  told them a parable to show them they should always ⁸¹  pray and not lose heart. ⁸² 

Pengkhotbah 5:5

5:5 It is better for you not to vow

than to vow and not pay it. ⁸³ 

[10:3]  ¹ tn The verb is מֵאַנְתָּ (me’anta), a Piel perfect. After “how long,” the form may be classified as present perfect (“how long have you refused), for it describes actions begun previously but with the effects continuing. (See GKC 311 §106.g-h). The use of a verb describing a state or condition may also call for a present translation (“how long do you refuse”) that includes past, present, and potentially future, in keeping with the question “how long.”

[10:3]  ² tn The clause is built on the use of the infinitive construct to express the direct object of the verb – it answers the question of what Pharaoh was refusing to do. The Niphal infinitive construct (note the elision of the ה [hey] prefix after the preposition [see GKC 139 §51.l]) is from the verb עָנָה (’anah). The verb in this stem would mean “humble oneself.” The question is somewhat rhetorical, since God was not yet through humbling Pharaoh, who would not humble himself. The issue between Yahweh and Pharaoh is deeper than simply whether or not Pharaoh will let the Israelites leave Egypt.

[10:4]  ³ tn הִנְנִי (hinni) before the active participle מֵבִיא (mevi’) is the imminent future construction: “I am about to bring” or “I am going to bring” – precisely, “here I am bringing.”

[10:4]  ⁴ tn One of the words for “locusts” in the Bible is אַרְבֶּה (’arbeh), which comes from רָבָה (ravah, “to be much, many”). It was used for locusts because of their immense numbers.

[10:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “within your border.”

[15:9]  ⁶ sn W. C. Kaiser observes the staccato phrases that almost imitate the heavy, breathless heaving of the Egyptians as, with what reserve of strength they have left, they vow, “I will…, I will…, I will…” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:395).

[15:9]  ⁷ tn The form is נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”). But this word refers to the whole person, the body and the soul, or better, a bundle of appetites in a body. It therefore can figuratively refer to the desires or appetites (Deut 12:15; 14:26; 23:24). Here, with the verb “to be full” means “to be satisfied”; the whole expression might indicate “I will be sated with them” or “I will gorge myself.” The greedy appetite was to destroy.

[15:9]  ⁸ tn The verb רִיק (riq) means “to be empty” in the Qal, and in the Hiphil “to empty.” Here the idea is to unsheathe a sword.

[15:9]  ⁹ tn The verb is יָרַשׁ (yarash), which in the Hiphil means “to dispossess” or “root out.” The meaning “destroy” is a general interpretation.

[15:10]  ¹⁰ tn “But” has been supplied here.

[15:10]  ¹¹ tn Here “and” has been supplied.

[15:10]  ¹² tn The verb may have the idea of sinking with a gurgling sound, like water going into a whirlpool (R. A. Cole, Exodus [TOTC], 124; S. R. Driver, Exodus, 136). See F. M. Cross and D. N. Freedman, “The Song of Miriam,” JNES 14 (1955): 243-47.

[18:11]  ¹³ tn The end of this sentence seems not to have been finished, or it is very elliptical. In the present translation the phrase “he has destroyed them” is supplied. Others take the last prepositional phrase to be the completion and supply only a verb: “[he was] above them.” U. Cassuto (Exodus, 216) takes the word “gods” to be the subject of the verb “act proudly,” giving the sense of “precisely (כִּי, ki) in respect of these things of which the gods of Egypt boasted – He is greater than they (עֲלֵיהֶם, ‘alehem).” He suggests rendering the clause, “excelling them in the very things to which they laid claim.”

[18:1]  ¹⁴ sn This chapter forms the transition to the Law. There has been the deliverance, the testing passages, the provision in the wilderness, and the warfare. Any God who can do all this for his people deserves their allegiance. In chap. 18 the Lawgiver is giving advice, using laws and rulings, but then he is given advice to organize the elders to assist. Thus, when the Law is fully revealed, a system will be in place to administer it. The point of the passage is that a great leader humbly accepts advice from other godly believers to delegate responsibility. He does not try to do it all himself; God does not want one individual to do it all. The chapter has three parts: vv. 1-12 tell how Jethro heard and came and worshiped and blessed; vv. 13-23 have the advice of Jethro, and then vv. 24-27 tell how Moses implemented the plan and Jethro went home. See further E. J. Runions, “Exodus Motifs in 1 Samuel 7 and 8,” EvQ 52 (1980): 130-31; and also see for another idea T. C. Butler, “An Anti-Moses Tradition,” JSOT 12 (1979): 9-15.

[18:1]  ¹⁵ tn This clause beginning with כִּי (ki) answers the question of what Jethro had heard; it provides a second, explanatory noun clause that is the object of the verb – “he heard (1) all that God had done… (2) that he had brought….” See R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 81, §490.

[18:1]  ¹⁶ sn This is an important report that Jethro has heard, for the claim of God that he brought Israel out of bondage in Egypt will be the foundation of the covenant stipulations (Exod 20).

[2:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “proudly, proudly.” If MT is original, the repetition of the word is for emphasis, stressing the arrogance of those addressed. However, a few medieval Hebrew manuscripts and some other textual witnesses do not reflect the repetition, suggesting that the Hebrew text may be dittographic.

[2:3]  ¹⁸ tc The MT (Qere) reads “and by him actions are weighed.” The translation assumes that reading of the Qere וְלוֹ (vÿlo, “and by him”), which is supported by many medieval Hebrew mss, is correct, rather than the reading of the Kethib וְלוֹא (vÿlo’, “and not”).

[22:29]  ¹⁹ tn There is no expressed subject here, and so the verb is taken as a passive voice again.

[22:29]  ²⁰ tn The word גֵּוָה (gevah) means “loftiness; pride.” Here it simply says “up,” or “pride.” The rest is paraphrased. Of the many suggestions, the following provide a sampling: “It is because of pride” (ESV), “he abases pride” (H. H. Rowley); “[he abases] the lofty and the proud” (Beer); “[he abases] the word of pride” [Duhm]; “[he abases] the haughtiness of pride” [Fohrer and others]; “[he abases] the one who speaks proudly” [Weiser]; “[he abases] the one who boasts in pride” [Kissane]; and “God [abases] pride” [Budde, Gray].

[22:29]  ²¹ tn Or “humble”; Heb “the lowly of eyes.”

[40:11]  ²² tn The verb was used for scattering lightning (Job 37:11). God is challenging Job to unleash his power and judge wickedness in the world.

[40:11]  ²³ tn Heb “the overflowings.”

[40:11]  ²⁴ tn The word was just used in the positive sense of excellence or majesty; now the exalted nature of the person refers to self-exaltation, or pride.

[40:12]  ²⁵ tn The expression translated “on the spot” is the prepositional phrase תַּחְתָּם (takhtam, “under them”). “Under them” means in their place. But it can also mean “where someone stands, on the spot” (see Exod 16:29; Jos 6:5; Judg 7:21, etc.).

[3:34]  ²⁶ tn The particle אִם (’im, “though”) introduces a concessive clause: “though….”

[3:34]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he mocks those who mock.” The repetition of the root לִיץ (lits, “to scorn; to mock”) connotes poetic justice; the punishment fits the crime. Scoffers are characterized by arrogant pride (e.g., Prov 21:24), as the antithetical parallelism with “the humble” here emphasizes.

[3:34]  ²⁸ tn The prefixed vav (ו) introduces the apodosis to the concessive clause: “Though … yet …”

[3:34]  ²⁹ tn The Hebrew is structured chiastically (AB:BA): “he scorns / arrogant scoffers // but to the humble / he gives grace.” The word order in the translation is reversed for the sake of smoothness and readability.

[6:16]  ³⁰ tn The conjunction has the explicative use here (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 71, §434).

[6:16]  ³¹ sn This saying involves a numerical ladder, paralleling six things with seven things (e.g., also 30:15, 18, 21, 24, 29). The point of such a numerical arrangement is that the number does not exhaust the list (W. M. Roth, “The Numerical Sequence x / x +1 in the Old Testament,” VT 12 [1962]: 300-311; and his “Numerical Sayings in the Old Testament,” VT 13 [1965]: 86).

[6:16]  ³² tn Heb “his soul.”

[6:17]  ³³ sn The expression “high/ lofty [רָמוֹת, ramot] eyes” refers to a proud look suggesting arrogant ambition (cf. NCV “a proud look”). The use of “eyes” is a metonymy of adjunct, the look in the eyes accompanying the attitude. This term “high” is used in Num 15:30 for the sin of the “high hand,” i.e., willful rebellion or defiant sin. The usage of “haughty eyes” may be illustrated by its use with the pompous Assyrian invader (Isa 10:12-14) and the proud king of the book of Daniel (11:12). God does not tolerate anyone who thinks so highly of himself and who has such ambition.

[6:17]  ³⁴ tn Heb “a tongue of deception.” The genitive noun functions attributively. The term “tongue” functions as a metonymy. The term is used of false prophets who deceive (Jer 14:14), and of a deceiver who betrays (Ps 109:2). The Lord hates deceptive speech because it is destructive (26:28).

[6:17]  ³⁵ sn The hands are the instruments of murder (metonymy of cause), and God hates bloodshed. Gen 9:6 prohibited shedding blood because people are the image of God. Even David being a man of blood (in war mostly) was not permitted to build the Temple (1 Chr 22:8). But shedding innocent blood was a greater crime – it usually went with positions of power, such as King Manasseh filling the streets with blood (2 Kgs 21:16), or princes doing it for gain (Ezek 22:27).

[29:23]  ³⁶ tn Heb “pride of a man,” with “man” functioning as a possessive. There is no indication in the immediate context that this is restricted only to males.

[29:23]  ³⁷ tn There is a wordplay here due to the repetition of the root שָׁפֵל (shafel). In the first line the verb תִּשְׁפִּילֶנּוּ (tishpilennu) is the Hiphil imperfect of the root, rendered “will bring him low.” In the second line the word is used in the description of the “lowly of spirit,” שְׁפַל־רוּחַ (shÿfal-ruakh). The contrast works well: The proud will be brought “low,” but the one who is “lowly” will be honored. In this instance the wordplay can be preserved in the translation.

[29:23]  ³⁸ tn Heb “low in spirit”; KJV “humble in spirit.” This refers to an attitude of humility.

[29:23]  sn The Hebrew word translated “lowly” forms an implied comparison: To be humble is like being low, base, earthbound; whereas pride is often compared to being high, lofty – at least in one’s own eyes.

[2:11]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and the eyes of the pride of men will be brought low, and the arrogance of men will be brought down.” The repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.

[2:11]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “elevated”; CEV “honored.”

[2:12]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] has a day.”

[2:12]  ⁴² tn Or “against” (NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[2:17]  ⁴³ tn Heb “and the pride of men will be brought down, and the arrogance of men will be brought low.” As in v. 11, the repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.

[2:17]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “elevated”; NCV “praised”; CEV “honored.”

[10:8]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[10:9]  ⁴⁶ sn Calneh … Carchemish … Hamath … Arpad … Samaria … Damascus. The city states listed here were conquered by the Assyrians between 740-717 b.c. The point of the rhetorical questions is that no one can stand before Assyria’s might. On the geographical, rather than chronological arrangement of the cities, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:264, n. 4.

[10:10]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “Just as my hand found the kingdoms of the idol[s].” The comparison is expanded in v. 11a (note “as”) and completed in v. 11b (note “so”).

[10:10]  ⁴⁸ map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[10:11]  ⁴⁹ tn The statement is constructed as a rhetorical question in the Hebrew text: “Is it not [true that] just as I have done to Samaria and its idols, so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols?”

[10:11]  sn This statement indicates that the prophecy dates sometime between 722-701 b.c.

[10:12]  ⁵⁰ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[10:12]  ⁵¹ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 16, 23, 24, 33 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[10:12]  ⁵² tn Heb “his work on/against.” Cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV “on”; NIV “against.”

[10:12]  ⁵³ tn The Lord is speaking here, as in vv. 5-6a.

[10:12]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “I will visit [judgment] on the fruit of the greatness of the heart of the king of Assyria, and on the glory of the height of his eyes.” The proud Assyrian king is likened to a large, beautiful fruit tree.

[10:13]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “removed the borders of nations”; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV “boundaries.”

[10:13]  ⁵⁶ tc The consonantal text (Kethib) has כְּאַבִּיר (kÿ’abir, “like a strong one”); the marginal reading (Qere) is כַּבִיר (kavir, “mighty one”).

[10:13]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “and I brought down, like a strong one, ones sitting [or “living”].” The participle יוֹשְׁבִים (yoshÿvim, “ones sitting”) could refer to the inhabitants of the nations, but the translation assumes that it refers to those who sit on thrones, i.e., rulers. See BDB 442 s.v. יָשַׁב and HALOT 444 s.v. ישׁב.

[10:14]  ⁵⁸ sn The Assyrians’ conquests were relatively unopposed, like robbing a bird’s nest of its eggs when the mother bird is absent.

[16:6]  ⁵⁹ tn עֶבְרָה (’evrah) often means “anger, fury,” but here it appears to refer to boastful outbursts or excessive claims. See HALOT 782 s.v. עֶבְרָה.

[16:6]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “not so his boasting.”

[16:7]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “So Moab wails for Moab.”

[16:7]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew text has, “for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth you [masculine plural] moan, surely destroyed.” The “raisin cakes” could have cultic significance (see Hos 3:1), but the next verse focuses on agricultural disaster, so here the raisin cakes are mentioned as an example of the fine foods that are no longer available (see 2 Sam 6:19; Song 2:5) because the vines have been destroyed by the invader (see v. 8). Some prefer to take אֲשִׁישֵׁי (’ashishe, “raisin cakes of”) as “men of” (see HALOT 95 s.v. *אָשִׁישׁ; cf. NIV). The verb form תֶהְגּוּ (tehgu, “you moan”) is probably the result of dittography (note that the preceding word ends in tav [ת]) and should be emended to הגו (a perfect, third plural form), “they moan.”

[4:37]  ⁶³ tn Aram “walk.”

[5:20]  ⁶⁴ tn Aram “heart.”

[5:20]  ⁶⁵ sn The point of describing Nebuchadnezzar as arrogant is that he had usurped divine prerogatives, and because of his immense arrogance God had dealt decisively with him.

[5:21]  ⁶⁶ tn Aram “heart.”

[5:21]  ⁶⁷ tn Aram “his dwelling.”

[5:22]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “descendant”; or “successor.”

[5:22]  ⁶⁹ tn Aram “your heart.”

[5:23]  ⁷⁰ tn Aram “which.”

[5:23]  ⁷¹ tn Aram “in whose hand [are].”

[1:52]  ⁷² tn Or “rulers.”

[1:52]  ⁷³ tn Or “those of humble position”

[1:52]  sn The contrast between the mighty and those of lowly position is fundamental for Luke. God cares for those that the powerful ignore (Luke 4:18-19).

[14:11]  ⁷⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context, which involves the reversal of expected roles.

[14:11]  ⁷⁵ sn The point of the statement the one who humbles himself will be exalted is humility and the reversal imagery used to underline it is common: Luke 1:52-53; 6:21; 10:15; 18:14.

[18:14]  ⁷⁶ sn The prayer that was heard and honored was the one given with humility; in a surprising reversal it was the tax collector who went down to his home justified.

[18:14]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “the other”; the referent (the Pharisee, v. 10) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:14]  ⁷⁸ sn Everyone who exalts himself. See Luke 14:11. Jesus often called for humility and condemned those who sought honor.

[18:1]  ⁷⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[18:1]  ⁸⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:1]  ⁸¹ tn Or “should pray at all times” (L&N 67.88).

[18:1]  ⁸² sn This is one of the few parables that comes with an explanation at the start: …they should always pray and not lose heart. It is part of Luke’s goal in encouraging Theophilus (1:4).

[5:5]  ⁸³ tn The word “it” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.