Yeremia 7:3-7

7:3 The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹  says: Change the way you have been living and do what is right. ²  If you do, I will allow you to continue to live in this land. ³  7:4 Stop putting your confidence in the false belief that says, ⁴  “We are safe! ⁵  The temple of the Lord is here! The temple of the Lord is here! The temple of the Lord is here!” ⁶  7:5 You must change ⁷  the way you have been living and do what is right. You must treat one another fairly. ⁸  7:6 Stop oppressing foreigners who live in your land, children who have lost their fathers, and women who have lost their husbands. ⁹  Stop killing innocent people ¹⁰  in this land. Stop paying allegiance to ¹¹  other gods. That will only bring about your ruin. ¹²  7:7 If you stop doing these things, ¹³  I will allow you to continue to live in this land ¹⁴  which I gave to your ancestors as a lasting possession. ¹⁵ 

Yeremia 36:3

36:3 Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about all the disaster I intend to bring on them, they will all stop doing the evil things they have been doing. ¹⁶  If they do, I will forgive their sins and the wicked things they have done.” ¹⁷ 

Yudas 1:15-16

1:15 to execute judgment on ¹⁸  all, and to convict every person ¹⁹  of all their thoroughly ungodly deeds ²⁰  that they have committed, ²¹  and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” ²²  1:16 These people are grumblers and ²³  fault-finders who go ²⁴  wherever their desires lead them, ²⁵  and they give bombastic speeches, ²⁶  enchanting folks ²⁷  for their own gain. ²⁸ 

Yudas 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Jude, ²⁹  a slave ³⁰  of Jesus Christ and brother of James, ³¹  to those who are called, wrapped in the love of ³²  God the Father and kept for ³³  Jesus Christ.

Kisah Para Rasul 8:33-34

8:33 In humiliation ³⁴  justice was taken from him. ³⁵ 

Who can describe his posterity? ³⁶ 

For his life was taken away ³⁷  from the earth.” ³⁸ 

8:34 Then the eunuch said ³⁹  to Philip, “Please tell me, ⁴⁰  who is the prophet saying this about – himself or someone else?” ⁴¹ 

Kisah Para Rasul 8:2

8:2 Some ⁴²  devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation ⁴³  over him. ⁴⁴ 

Kisah Para Rasul 12:6

12:6 On that very night before Herod was going to bring him out for trial, ⁴⁵  Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, while ⁴⁶  guards in front of the door were keeping watch ⁴⁷  over the prison.

Yesaya 1:16-19

1:16 ⁴⁸ Wash! Cleanse yourselves!

Remove your sinful deeds ⁴⁹ 

from my sight.

Stop sinning!

1:17 Learn to do what is right!

Promote justice!

Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! ⁵⁰ 

Take up the cause of the orphan!

Defend the rights of the widow! ⁵¹ 

1:18 ⁵² Come, let’s consider your options,” ⁵³  says the Lord.

“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,

you can become ⁵⁴  white like snow;

though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,

you can become ⁵⁵  white like wool. ⁵⁶ 

1:19 If you have a willing attitude and obey, ⁵⁷ 

then you will again eat the good crops of the land.

Yehezkiel 18:21

18:21 “But if the wicked person turns from all the sin he has committed and observes all my statutes and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.

Yehezkiel 33:11

33:11 Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but prefer that the wicked change his behavior ⁵⁸  and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil deeds! ⁵⁹  Why should you die, O house of Israel?’

Yehezkiel 33:13

33:13 Suppose I tell the righteous that he will certainly live, but he becomes confident in his righteousness and commits iniquity. None of his righteous deeds will be remembered; because of the iniquity he has committed he will die.

Yunus 2:5-10

2:5 Water engulfed me up to my neck; ⁶⁰ 

the deep ocean ⁶¹  surrounded me;

seaweed ⁶²  was wrapped around my head.

2:6 I went down ⁶³  to the very bottoms ⁶⁴  of the mountains; ⁶⁵ 

the gates ⁶⁶  of the netherworld ⁶⁷  barred me in ⁶⁸  forever; ⁶⁹ 

but you brought me ⁷⁰  up from the Pit, ⁷¹  O Lord, my God.

2:7 When my life ⁷²  was ebbing away, ⁷³  I called out to ⁷⁴  the Lord,

and my prayer came to your holy temple. ⁷⁵ 

2:8 Those who worship ⁷⁶  worthless idols ⁷⁷  forfeit the mercy that could be theirs. ⁷⁸ 

2:9 But as for me, I promise to offer a sacrifice to you with a public declaration ⁷⁹  of praise; ⁸⁰ 

I will surely do ⁸¹  what I have promised. ⁸² 

Salvation ⁸³  belongs to the Lord!” ⁸⁴ 

2:10 Then the Lord commanded ⁸⁵  the fish and it disgorged Jonah on dry land.

Lukas 13:3-5

13:3 No, I tell you! But unless you repent, ⁸⁶  you will all perish as well! ⁸⁷  13:4 Or those eighteen who were killed ⁸⁸  when the tower in Siloam fell on them, ⁸⁹  do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who live in Jerusalem? ⁹⁰  13:5 No, I tell you! But unless you repent ⁹¹  you will all perish as well!” ⁹² 

[7:3]  ¹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God Israel.”

[7:3]  sn Compare the use of similar titles in 2:19; 5:14; 6:6 and see the explanation in the study note at 2:19. In this instance the title appears to emphasize the Lord as the heavenly King who drags his disobedient vassals into court (and threatens them with judgment).

[7:3]  ² tn Or “Make good your ways and your actions.” J. Bright’s translation (“Reform the whole pattern of your conduct”; Jeremiah [AB], 52) is excellent.

[7:3]  ³ tn Heb “place” but this might be misunderstood to refer to the temple.

[7:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “Stop trusting in lying words which say.”

[7:4]  ⁵ tn The words “We are safe!” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[7:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these (i.e., these buildings).” Elsewhere triple repetition seems to mark a kind of emphasis (cf. Isa 6:3; Jer 22:29; Ezek 21:27 [32 HT]). The triple repetition that follows seems to be Jeremiah’s way of mocking the (false) sense of security that people had in the invincibility of Jerusalem because God dwelt in the temple. They appeared to be treating the temple as some kind of magical charm. A similar feeling had grown up around the ark in the time of the judges (cf. 1 Sam 3:3) and the temple and city of Jerusalem in Micah’s day (cf. Mic 3:11). It is reflected also in some of the Psalms (cf., e.g., Ps 46, especially v. 5).

[7:5]  ⁷ tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.

[7:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “you must do justice between a person and his fellow/neighbor.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.

[7:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “Stop oppressing foreigner, orphan, and widow.”

[7:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Stop shedding innocent blood.”

[7:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “going/following after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for an explanation of the idiom involved here.

[7:6]  ¹² tn Heb “going after other gods to your ruin.”

[7:7]  ¹³ tn The translation uses imperatives in vv. 5-6 followed by the phrase, “If you do all this,” to avoid the long and complex sentence structure of the Hebrew sentence which has a series of conditional clauses in vv. 5-6 followed by a main clause in v. 7.

[7:7]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “live in this place, in this land.”

[7:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “gave to your fathers [with reference to] from ancient times even unto forever.”

[36:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “will turn each one from his wicked way.”

[36:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “their iniquity and their sin.”

[36:3]  sn The offer of withdrawal of punishment for sin is consistent with the principles of Jer 18:7-8 and the temple sermon delivered early in the reign of this king (cf. 26:1-3; 7:5-7).

[1:15]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “against” (κατά [kata] + genitive). English usage is satisfied with “on” at this point, but the parallel is lost in the translation to some degree, for the end of v. 15 says that this judgment is meted out on these sinners because they spoke against him (κατά + genitive).

[1:15]  ¹⁹ tn Or “soul.”

[1:15]  ²⁰ tn Grk “of all their works of ungodliness.” The adverb “thoroughly” is part of the following verb “have committed.” See note on verb “committed” later in this verse.

[1:15]  ²¹ tn The verb in Greek does not simply mean “have committed,” but “have committed in an ungodly way.” The verb ἀσεβέω (asebew) is cognate to the noun ἀσέβεια (asebeia, “ungodliness”). There is no easy way to express this in English, since English does not have a single word that means the same thing. Nevertheless, the tenor of v. 15 is plainly seen, regardless of the translation.

[1:15]  ²² sn An apparent quotation from 1 En. 1:9. There is some doubt as to whether Jude is actually quoting from the text of 1 Enoch; the text here in Jude differs in some respects from the extant text of this pseudepigraphic book. It is sometimes suggested that Jude may instead have been quoting from oral tradition which had roots older than the written text.

[1:16]  ²³ tn “And” is not in Greek, but is supplied for the sake of English style.

[1:16]  ²⁴ tn Or “going.” Though the participle is anarthrous, so also is the subject. Thus, the participle could be either adverbial or adjectival.

[1:16]  ²⁵ tn Grk “(who go/going) according to their own lusts.”

[1:16]  ²⁶ tn Grk “and their mouth speaks bombastic things.”

[1:16]  sn They give bombastic speeches. The idiom of opening one’s mouth in the NT often implied a public oration from a teacher or one in authority. Cf. Matt 5:2; Luke 4:22; Acts 1:16; 3:18; 10:34; Eph 6:19; Rev 13:5-6.

[1:16]  ²⁷ sn Enchanting folks (Grk “awing faces”) refers to the fact that the speeches of these false teachers are powerful and seductive.

[1:16]  ²⁸ tn Or “to their own advantage.”

[1:1]  ²⁹ tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ³⁰ tn Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  sn Undoubtedly the background for the concept of being the Lord’s slave or servant is to be found in the Old Testament scriptures. For a Jew this concept did not connote drudgery, but honor and privilege. It was used of national Israel at times (Isa 43:10), but was especially associated with famous OT personalities, including such great men as Moses (Josh 14:7), David (Ps 89:3; cf. 2 Sam 7:5, 8) and Elijah (2 Kgs 10:10); all these men were “servants (or slaves) of the Lord.”

[1:1]  ³¹ sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.

[1:1]  ³² tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”

[1:1]  ³³ tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.

[8:33]  ³⁴ tc ‡ Most later mss (C E Ψ 33^vid Ï sy) read “In his humiliation,” adding αὐτοῦ (autou, “his”) after ταπεινώσει (tapeinwsei, “humiliation”), while the earlier and better witnesses lack the pronoun (so Ì⁷⁴ א A B 1739 pc lat). However, the LXX of Isa 53:8 also lacks the pronoun, supplying motivation for scribes to omit it here. At the same time, scribes would also be motivated to add the pronoun both for clarity’s sake (note the similar impulse that led to the addition of δέ [de] by many of the same mss at the beginning of the next line) and to give balance to the lines (the pronoun is indisputably used five other times in vv. 32-33 in quoting Isa 53). On balance, the shorter reading is preferred.

[8:33]  ³⁵ tn Or “justice was denied him”; Grk “his justice was taken away.”

[8:33]  ³⁶ tn Or “family; or “origin.” The meaning of γενεά (genea) in the quotation is uncertain; BDAG 192 s.v. γενεά 4 suggests “family history.”

[8:33]  sn The rhetorical question suggests the insensitivity of this generation for its act against God’s servant, who was slain unjustly as he was silent.

[8:33]  ³⁷ tn Grk “is taken away.” The present tense here was translated as a past tense to maintain consistency with the rest of the quotation.

[8:33]  ³⁸ sn A quotation from Isa 53:7-8.

[8:34]  ³⁹ tn Grk “answered and said.” The redundant participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqei") has not been translated.

[8:34]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “I beg you,” “I ask you.”

[8:34]  ⁴¹ sn About himself, or about someone else? It is likely in 1st century Judaism this would have been understood as either Israel or Isaiah.

[8:2]  ⁴² tn “Some” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[8:2]  ⁴³ sn Made loud lamentation. For someone who was stoned to death, lamentation was normally not allowed (m. Sanhedrin 6:6). The remark points to an unjust death.

[8:2]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “mourned greatly for him.”

[12:6]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “was going to bring him out,” but the upcoming trial is implied. See Acts 12:4.

[12:6]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “two chains, and.” Logically it makes better sense to translate this as a temporal clause, although technically it is a coordinate clause in Greek.

[12:6]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “were guarding.”

[1:16]  ⁴⁸ sn Having demonstrated the people’s guilt, the Lord calls them to repentance, which will involve concrete action in the socio-economic realm, not mere emotion.

[1:16]  ⁴⁹ sn This phrase refers to Israel’s covenant treachery (cf. Deut 28:10; Jer 4:4; 21:12; 23:2, 22; 25:5; 26:3; 44:22; Hos 9:15; Ps 28:4). In general, the noun ַמעַלְלֵיכֶם (ma’alleykhem) can simply be a reference to deeds, whether good or bad. However, Isaiah always uses it with a negative connotation (cf. 3:8, 10).

[1:17]  ⁵⁰ tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The translation assumes an emendation of חָמוֹץ (khamots, “oppressor [?]”) to חָמוּץ (khamuts, “oppressed”), a passive participle from II חָמַץ (khamats, “oppress”; HALOT 329 s.v. II חמץ) and takes the verb II אָשַׁר (’ashar) in the sense of “make happy” (the delocutive Piel, meaning “call/pronounce happy,” is metonymic here, referring to actually effecting happiness). The parallelism favors this interpretation, for the next two lines speak of positive actions on behalf of the destitute. The other option is to retain the MT pointing and translate, “set right the oppressor,” but the nuance “set right” is not clearly attested elsewhere for the verb I אשׁר. This verb does appear as a participle in Isa 3:12 and 9:16 with the meaning “to lead or guide.” If it can mean to “lead” or “rebuke/redirect” in this verse, the prophet could be contrasting this appeal for societal reformation (v. 17c) with a command to reorder their personal lives (v. 17a-b). J. A. Motyer (The Prophecy of Isaiah, 47) suggests that these three statements (v. 17a-c) provide “the contrast between the two ends of imperfect society, the oppressor and the needy, the one inflicting and the other suffering the hurt. Isaiah looks for a transformed society wherever it needs transforming.”

[1:17]  ⁵¹ tn This word refers to a woman who has lost her husband, by death or divorce. The orphan and widow are often mentioned in the OT as epitomizing the helpless and impoverished who have been left without the necessities of life due to the loss of a family provider.

[1:18]  ⁵² sn The Lord concludes his case against Israel by offering them the opportunity to be forgiven and by setting before them the alternatives of renewed blessing (as a reward for repentance) and final judgment (as punishment for persistence in sin).

[1:18]  ⁵³ tn Traditionally, “let us reason together,” but the context suggests a judicial nuance. The Lord is giving the nation its options for the future.

[1:18]  ⁵⁴ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ⁵⁵ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “though your sins are like red, they will become white like snow; though they are red like scarlet, they will be like wool.” The point is not that the sins will be covered up, though still retained. The metaphorical language must be allowed some flexibility and should not be pressed into a rigid literalistic mold. The people’s sins will be removed and replaced by ethical purity. The sins that are now as obvious as the color red will be washed away and the ones who are sinful will be transformed.

[1:19]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “listen”; KJV “obedient”; NASB “If you consent and obey.”

[33:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “turn from his way.”

[33:11]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “ways.” This same word is translated “behavior” earlier in the verse.

[2:5]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “as far as the throat.” The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) refers sometimes to the throat or neck (Pss 69:1[2]; 105:18; 124:4, 5; Isa 5:14; HALOT 712 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 2). The water was up to Jonah’s neck (and beyond), so that his life was in great danger (cf. Ps 69:1).

[2:5]  ⁶¹ tn Or “the deep; the abyss” (תְּהוֹם, tÿhom). The simple “ocean” is perhaps too prosaic, since this Hebrew word has primeval connections (Gen 1:2; 7:11; 8:2; Prov 8:27-28) and speaks of the sea at its vastest (Job 38:16-18; Ps 36:6; 104:5-9).

[2:5]  ⁶² tc The consonantal form סוף (svf) is vocalized by the MT as סוּף (suf, “reed”) but the LXX’s ἐσχάτη (escath, “end”) reflects a vocalization of סוֹף (sof, “end”). The reading in Tg. Jonah 2:5 interpreted this as a reference to the Reed Sea (also known as the Red Sea). In fact, the Jewish Midrash known as Pirqe Rabbi Eliezer 10 states that God showed Jonah the way by which the Israelites had passed through the Red Sea. The MT vocalization tradition is preferred.

[2:5]  tn The noun סוּף (suf) normally refers to “reeds” – freshwater plants that grow in Egyptian rivers and marshes (Exod 2:3,5; Isa 10:19) – but here it refers to “seaweed” (HALOT 747 s.v. סוּף 1). Though the same freshwater plants do not grow in the Mediterranean, the name may be seen to fit similarly long plants growing in seawater.

[2:6]  ⁶³ tn Jonah began going “down” (יָרַד, yarad) in chap. 1 (vv. 3, 5; see also 1:15; 2:2-3).

[2:6]  ⁶⁴ tc The MT לְקִצְבֵי הָרִים (lÿqitsve harim, “to the extremities [i.e., very bottoms] of the mountains”) is a bit unusual, appearing only here in the Hebrew Bible. Therefore, the BHS editors suggest a conjectural emendation of the MT’s לְקִצְבֵי (“to the extremities”) to לְקַצְוֵי (lÿqatswey, “to the ends [of the mountains])” based on orthographic confusion between vav (ו) and bet (ב). However, the phrase קצבי הרים does appear in the OT Apocrypha in Sir 16:19; therefore, it is not without precedent. Since Jonah emphasizes that he descended, as it were, to the very gates of the netherworld in the second half of this verse, it would be appropriate for Jonah to say that he went down “to the extremities [i.e., very bottoms] of the mountains” (לְקִצְבֵי הָרִים). Therefore, the MT may be retained with confidence.

[2:6]  tn The noun קֶצֶב (qetseb) is used only three times in the Hebrew Bible, and this is the only usage in which it means “extremity; bottom” (BDB 891 s.v. קֶצֶב 2). The exact phrase קצבי הרים (“the extremities [bottoms] of the mountains”) is used in the OT Apocrypha once in Sir 16:19.

[2:6]  ⁶⁵ tn Some English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV) have connected the “bottoms of the mountains” with the preceding – “weeds were wrapped around my head at the bottoms of the mountains” – and connect “I went down” with “the earth.” Such a connection between “I went down” and “the earth” is difficult to accept. It would be more normal in Hebrew to express “I went down to the earth” with a directive ending (אַרְצָה, ’artsah) or with a Hebrew preposition before “earth” or without the definite article. The Masoretic accents, in addition, connect “ends of the mountains” with the verb “I went down” and call for a break between the verb and “earth.”

[2:6]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “As for the earth, its bars…” This phrase is a rhetorical nominative construction (also known as casus pendens) in which the noun הָאָרֶץ (ha’arets, “the earth”) stands grammatically isolated and in an emphatic position prior to the third feminine singular suffix that picks up on it in בְּרִחֶיהָ (bÿrikheha, “its bars”; see IBHS 128-30 §8.3). This construction is used to emphasize the subject, in this case, the “bars of the netherworld.” The word translated “bars” appears elsewhere to speak of bars used in constructing the sides of the tabernacle and often of crossbars (made of wood or metal) associated with the gates of fortified cities (cf. Exod 36:31-34; Judg 16:3; 1 Kgs 4:13; Neh 3:3; Pss 107:16; 147:13; Isa 45:1-2).

[2:6]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “the earth.” The noun אֶרֶץ (’erets) usually refers to the “earth” but here refers to the “netherworld” (e.g., Job 10:21, 22; Ps 139:15; Isa 26:19; 44:23; BDB 76 s.v. אֶרֶץ 2.g). This is parallel to the related Akkadian term irsitu used in the phrase “the land of no return,” that is, the netherworld. This refers to the place of the dead (along with “belly of Sheol,” v. 2, and “the grave,” v. 6), which is sometimes described as having “gates” (Job 38:17; Ps 107:18).

[2:6]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “behind me.” The preposition בַּעַד (ba’ad) with a pronominal suffix and with the meaning “behind” is found also in Judg 3:23. Jonah pictures himself as closed in and so unable to escape death. Having described how far he had come (totally under water and “to the ends of mountains”), Jonah describes the way back as permanently closed against him. Just as it was impossible for a lone individual to walk through the barred gates of a walled city, so Jonah expected it was impossible for him to escape death.

[2:6]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “As for the earth, its bars [were] against me forever.” This line is a verbless clause. The verb in the translation has been supplied for the sake of clarity and smoothness. The rhetorical nominative construction (see the note on the word “gates” earlier in this verse) has also been smoothed out in the translation.

[2:6]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “my life.” The term חַיַּי (khayyay, “my life”) functions metonymically as a first common singular pronoun (“me”).

[2:6]  ⁷¹ sn Jonah pictures himself as being at the very gates of the netherworld (v. 6b) and now within the Pit itself (v. 6c). He is speaking rhetorically, for he had not actually died. His point is that he was as good as dead if God did not intervene immediately. See Pss 7:15; 30:3; 103:4; Ezek 19:3-4, 8.

[2:7]  ⁷² tn Heb “my soul.” The term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”) is often used as a metonymy for the life and the animating vitality in the body: “my life” (BDB 659 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 3.c).

[2:7]  ⁷³ tn Heb “fainting away from me.” The verb הִתְעַטֵּף (hit’attef, “to faint away”) is used elsewhere to describe (1) the onset of death when a person’s life begins to slip away (Lam 2:12), (2) the loss of one’s senses due to turmoil (Ps 107:5), and (3) the loss of all hope of surviving calamity (Pss 77:4; 142:4; 143:4; BDB 742 s.v. עַטֵף). All three options are reflected in various English versions: “when my life was ebbing away” (JPS, NJPS), “when my life was slipping away” (CEV), “when I felt my life slipping away” (TEV), “as my senses failed me” (NEB), and “when I had lost all hope” (NLT).

[2:7]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “remembered.” The verb זָכַר (zakhar) usually means “to remember, to call to mind” but it can also mean “to call out” (e.g., Nah 2:6) as in the related Akkadian verb zikaru, “to name, to mention.” The idiom “to remember the Lord” here encompasses calling to mind his character and past actions and appealing to him for help (Deut 8:18-19; Ps 42:6-8; Isa 64:4-5; Zech 10:9). Tg. Jonah 2:7 glosses the verb as “I remembered the worship of the Lord,” which somewhat misses the point.

[2:7]  ⁷⁵ sn For similar ideas see 2 Chr 30:27; Pss 77:3; 142:3; 143:4-5.

[2:8]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “those who pay regard to.” The verbal root שָׁמַר (shamar, “to keep, to watch”) appears in the Piel stem only here in biblical Hebrew, meaning “to pay regard to” (BDB 1037 s.v. שָׁמַר). This is metonymical for the act of worship (e.g., Qal “to observe” = to worship, Ps 31:7).

[2:8]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “worthlessnesses of nothingness” or “vanities of emptiness.” The genitive construct הַבְלֵי־שָׁוְא (havle-shavÿ’) forms an attributive adjective expression: “empty worthlessness” or “worthless vanities.” This ironic reference to false gods is doubly insulting (e.g., Ps 31:7). The noun הֶבֶל (hevel, “vapor, breath”) is often used figuratively to describe what is insubstantial, empty, and futile (31 times in Eccl; see also, e.g., Pss 39:4-6, 11; 144:4; Prov 13:11; 21:6; Isa 30:7; 49:4). It often refers to idols – the epitome of emptiness, nothingness, and worthlessness (Deut 32:21; 1 Kgs 16:13, 26; Ps 31:7; Jer 8:19; 10:8, 15; 14:22; 16:19; 51:18). The noun שָׁוְא (“worthlessness, emptiness, nothingness”) describes what is ineffective and lacking reality (BDB 996 s.v. שָׁוְא; e.g., Exod 20:7; Pss 60:11; 127:1; Ezek 22:28). It is also often used to refer to idols (e.g., Ps 31:7; Jer 18:15; Hos 5:11).

[2:8]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “abandon their mercy/loyalty.” The meaning of חַסְדָּם יַעֲזֹבוּ (khasdam ya’azovu, “forsake their mercy/loyalty”) is greatly debated. There are two exegetical issues that are mutually related. First, does the noun חֶסֶד (khesed) here mean (1) “mercy, kindness” that man receives from God, or (2) “loyalty, faithfulness” that man must give to God (see BDB 338-39 s.v חֶסֶד; HALOT 336-37 s.v. חֶסֶד)? Second, the third masculine plural suffix on חַסְדָּם (“their loyalty/mercy”) has been taken as (1) subjective genitive, referring to the loyal allegiance they ought to display to the true God: “they abandon the loyalty they should show.” Examples of subjective genitives are: “This is your kindness (חַסְדֵּךְ, khasdek) which you must do for me: every place to which we come, say of me, ‘He is my brother’” (Gen 20:13; also cf. Gen 40:14; 1 Sam 20:14-15). Several English versions take this approach: “forsake their faithfulness” (NASB), “abandon their faithful love” (NJB), “abandon their loyalty” (NEB, REB), “forsake their true loyalty” (RSV, NRSV), “turn their backs on all God’s mercies” (NLT), “have abandoned their loyalty to you” (TEV). (2) This has also been taken as objective genitive, referring to the mercy they might have received from God: “they forfeit the mercy that could be theirs.” The ancient versions interpret חַסְדָּם in this sense: “they do not know the source of their welfare” (Tg. Jonah 2:8), “forsake the source of their welfare” (Vulgate), and “abandon their own mercy” (LXX). Several English versions follow this approach: “forsake their source of mercy” (NAB); “forfeit the grace that could be theirs” (NIV), “forsake their own welfare” (JPS, NJPS), “forsake their own mercy” (KJV, ASV), “forsake their own Mercy” (NKJV), “turn from the God who offers them mercy” (CEV). This is a difficult lexical/syntactical problem. On the one hand, the next line contrasts their failure with Jonah’s boast of loyalty to the true God – demonstrating that he, unlike pagan idolaters, deserves to be delivered. On the other hand, the only other use of חֶסֶד in the book refers to “mercy” God bestows (4:2) – something that Jonah did not believe that the (repentant) pagan idolaters had a right to receive. BDB 339 s.v. I חֶסֶד II takes this approach – “He is חַסְדָּם their goodness, favour Jonah 2:9” – and cites other examples of חֶסֶד with suffixes referring to God: חַסְדִּי (khasdi) “my kindness” = he shows kindness to me (Ps 144:2); and אֱלֹהֵי חַסְדִּי (’elohe khasdi) “the God of my kindness” = the God who shows kindness to me (Ps 59:18).

[2:9]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “voice” or “sound.”

[2:9]  ⁸⁰ tc The MT reads בְּקוֹל תּוֹדָה (bÿqol todah, “with a voice of thanksgiving”). Some mss of Tg. Jonah read “with the sound of hymns of thanksgiving” here in 2:9 – the longer reading probably reflects an editorial gloss, explaining תּוֹדָה (“thanksgiving”) as “hymns of thanksgiving.”

[2:9]  tn Heb “voice/sound of thanksgiving.” The genitive תּוֹדָה (todah, “thanksgiving”) specifies the kind of public statement that will accompany the sacrifice. The construct noun קוֹל (qol, “voice, sound”) functions as a metonymy of cause for effect, referring to the content of what the voice/sound produces: hymns of praise or declarative praise testimony.

[2:9]  ⁸¹ tn The verbs translated “I will sacrifice” and “I will pay” are Hebrew cohortatives, expressing Jonah’s resolve and firm intention.

[2:9]  ⁸² tn Heb “what I have vowed I will pay.” Jonah promises to offer a sacrifice and publicly announce why he is thankful. For similar pledges, see Pss 22:25-26; 50:14-15; 56:12; 69:29-33; 71:14-16, 22-24; 86:12-13; 116:12-19.

[2:9]  ⁸³ tn Or “deliverance” (NAB, NRSV).

[2:9]  ⁸⁴ tn Or “comes from the Lord.” For similar uses of the preposition lamed (לְ, lÿ) to convey a sort of ownership in which the owner does or may by right do something, see Lev 25:48; Deut 1:17; 1 Sam 17:47; Jer 32:7-8.

[2:10]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “spoke to.” The fish functions as a literary foil to highlight Jonah’s hesitancy to obey God up to this point. In contrast to Jonah who immediately fled when God commanded him, the fish immediately obeyed.

[13:3]  ⁸⁶ sn Jesus was stressing that all stand at risk of death, if they do not repent and receive life.

[13:3]  ⁸⁷ tn Or “you will all likewise perish,” but this could be misunderstood to mean that they would perish by the same means as the Galileans. Jesus’ point is that apart from repentance all will perish.

[13:4]  ⁸⁸ tn Grk “on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them.” This relative clause embedded in a prepositional phrase is complex in English and has been simplified to an adjectival and a temporal clause in the translation.

[13:4]  ⁸⁹ sn Unlike the previous event, when the tower in Siloam fell on them, it was an accident of fate. It raised the question, however, “Was this a judgment?”

[13:4]  ⁹⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[13:5]  ⁹¹ sn Jesus’ point repeats v. 3. The circumstances make no difference. All must deal with the reality of what death means.

[13:5]  ⁹² tn Grk “similarly.”