Keluaran 15:25-26

15:25 He cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him ¹  a tree. ²  When Moses ³  threw it into the water, the water became safe to drink. There the Lord ⁴  made for them ⁵  a binding ordinance, ⁶  and there he tested ⁷  them. 15:26 He said, “If you will diligently obey ⁸  the Lord your God, and do what is right ⁹  in his sight, and pay attention ¹⁰  to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all ¹¹  the diseases ¹²  that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, the Lord, am your healer.” ¹³ 

Keluaran 16:4

16:4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain ¹⁴  bread from heaven for you, and the people will go out ¹⁵  and gather the amount for each day, so that I may test them. ¹⁶  Will they will walk in my law ¹⁷  or not?

Ulangan 8:2

8:2 Remember the whole way by which he ¹⁸  has brought you these forty years through the desert ¹⁹  so that he might, by humbling you, test you to see if you have it within you to keep his commandments or not.

Ulangan 13:3

13:3 You must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, ²⁰  for the Lord your God will be testing you to see if you love him ²¹  with all your mind and being. ²² 

Yudas 1:22

1:22 And have mercy on those who waver;

Yudas 1:2

1:2 May mercy, peace, and love be lavished on you! ²³ 

1 Samuel 24:1-2

David Spares Saul’s Life

24:1 (24:2) When Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, they told him, “Look, David is in the desert of En Gedi.” 24:2 So Saul took three thousand select men from all Israel and went to find ²⁴  David and his men in the region of ²⁵  the rocks of the mountain goats. ²⁶ 

1 Samuel 1:1

Hannah Gives Birth to Samuel

1:1 There was a man from Ramathaim Zophim, ²⁷  from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.

Amsal 17:3

17:3 The crucible ²⁸  is for refining ²⁹  silver and the furnace ³⁰  is for gold,

likewise ³¹  the Lord tests ³²  hearts.

Amsal 17:1

17:1 Better is a dry crust of bread ³³  where there is quietness ³⁴ 

than a house full of feasting with strife. ³⁵ 

Kolose 1:13

1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, ³⁶ 

Ibrani 11:17

11:17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac. He had received the promises, ³⁷  yet he was ready to offer up ³⁸  his only son.

Yakobus 1:12-14

1:12 Happy is the one ³⁹  who endures testing, because when he has proven to be genuine, he will receive the crown of life that God ⁴⁰  promised to those who love him. 1:13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted by evil, ⁴¹  and he himself tempts no one. 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires.

Yakobus 2:21

2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?

Yakobus 2:1

Prejudice and the Law of Love

2:1 My brothers and sisters, ⁴²  do not show prejudice ⁴³  if you possess faith ⁴⁴  in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴⁵ 

Pengkhotbah 1:7

1:7 All the streams flow ⁴⁶  into the sea, but the sea is not full,

and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again. ⁴⁷ 

[15:25]  ¹ tn The verb is וַיּוֹרֵהוּ (vayyorehu, “and he showed him”). It is the Hiphil preterite from יָרָה (yarah), which has a basic meaning of “to point, show, direct.” It then came to mean “to teach”; it is the verb behind the noun “Law” (תּוֹרָה, torah).

[15:25]  sn U. Cassuto notes that here is the clue to the direction of the narrative: Israel needed God’s instruction, the Law, if they were going to enjoy his provisions (Exodus, 184).

[15:25]  ² tn Or “a [piece of] wood” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, CEV); NLT “a branch.”

[15:25]  sn S. R. Driver (Exodus, 143) follows some local legends in identifying this tree as one that is supposed to have – even to this day – the properties necessary for making bitter water sweet. B. Jacob (Exodus, 436) reports that no such tree has ever been found, but then he adds that this does not mean there was not such a bush in the earlier days. He believes that here God used a natural means (“showed, instructed”) to sweeten the water. He quotes Ben Sira as saying God had created these things with healing properties in them.

[15:25]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:25]  ⁴ tn Heb “there he”; the referent (the Lord) is supplied for clarity.

[15:25]  ⁵ tn Heb “for him” (referring to Israel as a whole).

[15:25]  ⁶ tn This translation interprets the two nouns as a hendiadys: “a statute and an ordinance” becomes “a binding ordinance.”

[15:25]  ⁷ tn The verb נִסָּהוּ (nissahu, “and he tested him [them]”) is from the root נָסָה (nasah). The use of this word in the Bible indicates that there is question, doubt, or uncertainty about the object being tested.

[15:25]  sn The whole episode was a test from God. He led them there through Moses and let them go hungry and thirsty. He wanted to see how great their faith was.

[15:26]  ⁸ tn The construction uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense of שָׁמַע (shama’). The meaning of the verb is idiomatic here because it is followed by “to the voice of Yahweh your God.” When this is present, the verb is translated “obey.” The construction is in a causal clause. It reads, “If you will diligently obey.” Gesenius points out that the infinitive absolute in a conditional clause also emphasizes the importance of the condition on which the consequence depends (GKC 342-43 §113.o).

[15:26]  ⁹ tn The word order is reversed in the text: “and the right in his eyes you do,” or, “[if] you do what is right in his eyes.” The conditional idea in the first clause is continued in this clause.

[15:26]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “give ear.” This verb and the next are both perfect tenses with the vav (ו) consecutive; they continue the sequence of the original conditional clause.

[15:26]  ¹¹ tn The substantive כָּל־ (kol, “all of”) in a negative clause can be translated “none of.”

[15:26]  ¹² sn The reference is no doubt to the plagues that Yahweh has just put on them. These will not come on God’s true people. But the interesting thing about a conditional clause like this is that the opposite is also true – “if you do not obey, then I will bring these diseases.”

[15:26]  ¹³ tn The form is רֹפְאֶךָ (rofÿ’ekha), a participle with a pronominal suffix. The word is the predicate after the pronoun “I”: “I [am] your healer.” The suffix is an objective genitive – the Lord heals them.

[15:26]  sn The name I Yahweh am your healer comes as a bit of a surprise. One might expect, “I am Yahweh who heals your water,” but it was the people he came to heal because their faith was weak. God lets Israel know here that he can control the elements of nature to bring about a spiritual response in Israel (see Deut 8).

[16:4]  ¹⁴ tn The particle הִנְנִי (hinni) before the active participle indicates the imminent future action: “I am about to rain.”

[16:4]  ¹⁵ tn This verb and the next are the Qal perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutives; they follow the sequence of the participle, and so are future in orientation. The force here is instruction – “they will go out” or “they are to go out.”

[16:4]  ¹⁶ tn The verb in the purpose/result clause is the Piel imperfect of נָסָה (nasah), אֲנַסֶּנוּ (’anassenu) – “in order that I may prove them [him].” The giving of the manna will be a test of their obedience to the detailed instructions of God as well as being a test of their faith in him (if they believe him they will not gather too much). In chap. 17 the people will test God, showing that they do not trust him.

[16:4]  ¹⁷ sn The word “law” here properly means “direction” at this point (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 146), but their obedience here would indicate also whether or not they would be willing to obey when the Law was given at Sinai.

[8:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[8:2]  ¹⁹ tn Or “wilderness” (so KJV, NRSV, NLT); likewise in v. 15.

[13:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “or dreamer of dreams.” See note on this expression in v. 1.

[13:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

[13:3]  ²² tn Heb “all your heart and soul” (so NRSV, CEV, NLT); or “heart and being” (NCV “your whole being”). See note on the word “being” in Deut 6:5.

[1:2]  ²³ tn Grk “may mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.”

[24:2]  ²⁴ tn Heb “to search [for].”

[24:2]  ²⁵ tn Heb “upon the face of.”

[24:2]  ²⁶ tn Or “the region of the Rocks of the Mountain Goats,” if this expression is understood as a place name (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, CEV).

[1:1]  ²⁷ tc The translation follows the MT. The LXX reads “a man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite”; this is followed by a number of recent English translations. It is possible the MT reading צוֹפִים (tsofim) arose from dittography of the mem (מ) at the beginning of the following word.

[17:3]  ²⁸ sn The noun מַצְרֵף (matsref) means “a place or instrument for refining” (cf. ASV, NASB “the refining pot”). The related verb, which means “to melt, refine, smelt,” is used in scripture literally for refining and figuratively for the Lord’s purifying and cleansing and testing people.

[17:3]  ²⁹ tn The term “refining” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[17:3]  ³⁰ sn The term כּוּר (cur) describes a “furnace” or “smelting pot.” It can be used figuratively for the beneficial side of affliction (Isa 48:10).

[17:3]  ³¹ tn Heb “and.” Most English versions treat this as an adversative (“but”).

[17:3]  ³² sn The participle בֹּחֵן (bokhen, “tests”) in this emblematic parallelism takes on the connotations of the crucible and the furnace. When the Lord “tests” human hearts, the test, whatever form it takes, is designed to improve the value of the one being tested. Evil and folly will be removed when such testing takes place.

[17:1]  ³³ tn The phrase “a dry piece of bread” is like bread without butter, a morsel of bread not dipped in vinegar mix (e.g., Ruth 2:14). It represents here a simple, humble meal.

[17:1]  ³⁴ tn Heb “and quietness in it”; the construction functions as a circumstantial clause: “in which there is quietness” or “with quietness.”

[17:1]  sn The Hebrew word means “quietness” or “ease.” It represents a place where there can be carefree ease because of the sense of peace and security. The Greek rendering suggests that those translators read it as “peace.” Even if the fare is poor, this kind of setting is to be preferred.

[17:1]  ³⁵ tn The house is described as being full of “sacrifices of strife” (זִבְחֵי־רִיב, zivkhi-riv). The use of “sacrifices” suggests a connection with the temple (as in 7:14) in which the people may have made their sacrifices and had a large amount meat left over. It is also possible that the reference is simply to a sumptuous meal (Deut 12:15; Isa 34:6; Ezek 39:17). It would be rare for Israelites to eat meat apart from festivals, however. In the construction the genitive could be classified as a genitive of effect, the feast in general “bringing about strife,” or it could simply be an attributive genitive, “a feast characterized by strife.” Abundance often brings deterioration of moral and ethical standards as well as an increase in envy and strife.

[1:13]  ³⁶ tn Here αὐτοῦ (autou) has been translated as a subjective genitive (“he loves”).

[11:17]  ³⁷ tn Here “received the promises” refers to the pledges themselves, not to the things God promised.

[11:17]  ³⁸ tn Grk “he was offering up.” The tense of this verb indicates the attempt or readiness to sacrifice Isaac without the actual completion of the deed.

[1:12]  ³⁹ tn The word for “man” or “individual” here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” However, as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, here it is “equivalent to τὶς someone, a person.”

[1:12]  ⁴⁰ tc Most mss ([C] P 0246 Ï) read ὁ κύριος (Jo kurio", “the Lord”) here, while others have ὁ θεός (Jo qeo", “God”; 4 33^vid 323 945 1739 al). However, several important and early witnesses (̲³ א A B Ψ 81 co) have no explicit subject. In light of the scribal tendency toward clarification, and the fact that both κύριος and θεός are well represented, there can be no doubt that the original text had no explicit subject. The referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity, not because of textual basis.

[1:13]  ⁴¹ tn Or “God must not be tested by evil people.”

[2:1]  ⁴² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[2:1]  ⁴³ tn Or “partiality.”

[2:1]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “do not have faith with personal prejudice,” with emphasis on the last phrase.

[2:1]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.” Here δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

[1:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “are going” or “are walking.” The term הֹלְכִים (holÿkhim, Qal active participle masculine plural from הָלַךְ, halakh,“to walk”) emphasizes continual, durative, uninterrupted action (present universal use of participle). This may be an example of personification; this verb is normally used in reference to the human activity of walking. Qoheleth compares the flowing of river waters to the action of walking to draw out the comparison between the actions of man (1:4) and the actions of nature (1:5-11).

[1:7]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “there they are returning to go.” The term שָׁבִים (shavim, Qal active participle masculine plural from שׁוּב, shuv, “to return”) emphasizes the continual, durative action of the waters. The root שׁוּב is repeated in 1:6-7 to emphasize that everything in nature (e.g., wind and water) continually repeats its actions. For all of the repetition of the cycles of nature, nothing changes; all the constant motion produces nothing new.

[1:7]  sn This verse does not refer to the cycle of evaporation or the return of water by underground streams, as sometimes suggested. Rather, it describes the constant flow of river waters to the sea. For all the action of the water – endless repetition and water constantly in motion – there is nothing new accomplished.