Amsal 1:12-13

1:12 We will swallow them alive ¹  like Sheol, ² 

those full of vigor ³  like those going down to the Pit.

1:13 We will seize ⁴  all kinds ⁵  of precious wealth;

we will fill our houses with plunder. ⁶ 

Amsal 23:4-5

23:4 Do not wear yourself out to become rich;

be wise enough to restrain yourself. ⁷ 

23:5 When you gaze upon riches, ⁸  they are gone,

for they surely make wings for themselves,

and fly off into the sky like an eagle! ⁹ 

Amsal 28:20

28:20 A faithful person ¹⁰  will have an abundance of blessings,

but the one who hastens ¹¹  to gain riches will not go unpunished.

Yohanes 2:16

2:16 To those who sold the doves he said, “Take these things away from here! Do not make ¹²  my Father’s house a marketplace!” ¹³ 

Yohanes 6:26-27

6:26 Jesus replied, ¹⁴  “I tell you the solemn truth, ¹⁵  you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate all the loaves of bread you wanted. ¹⁶  6:27 Do not work for the food that disappears, ¹⁷  but for the food that remains to eternal life – the food ¹⁸  which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has put his seal of approval on him.” ¹⁹ 

Kisah Para Rasul 19:24-26

19:24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines ²⁰  of Artemis, ²¹  brought a great deal ²²  of business ²³  to the craftsmen. 19:25 He gathered ²⁴  these ²⁵  together, along with the workmen in similar trades, ²⁶  and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity ²⁷  comes from this business. 19:26 And you see and hear that this Paul has persuaded ²⁸  and turned away ²⁹  a large crowd, ³⁰  not only in Ephesus ³¹  but in practically all of the province of Asia, ³²  by saying ³³  that gods made by hands are not gods at all. ³⁴ 

Kisah Para Rasul 19:1

Disciples of John the Baptist at Ephesus

19:1 While ³⁵  Apollos was in Corinth, ³⁶  Paul went through the inland ³⁷  regions ³⁸  and came to Ephesus. ³⁹  He ⁴⁰  found some disciples there ⁴¹ 

Titus 1:6-10

1:6 An elder must be blameless, ⁴²  the husband of one wife, ⁴³  with faithful children ⁴⁴  who cannot be charged with dissipation or rebellion. 1:7 For the overseer ⁴⁵  must be blameless as one entrusted with God’s work, ⁴⁶  not arrogant, not prone to anger, not a drunkard, not violent, not greedy for gain. 1:8 Instead he must be hospitable, devoted to what is good, sensible, upright, devout, and self-controlled. 1:9 He must hold firmly to the faithful message as it has been taught, ⁴⁷  so that he will be able to give exhortation in such healthy teaching ⁴⁸  and correct those who speak against it.

1:10 For there are many ⁴⁹  rebellious people, idle talkers, and deceivers, especially those with Jewish connections, ⁵⁰ 

[1:12]  ¹ tn Heb “lives.” The noun חַיִּים (khayyim, “lives”) functions as an adverbial accusative of manner: “alive.” The form is a plural of state, used to describe a condition of life which encompasses a long period of time – in this case a person’s entire life. Murder cuts short a person’s life.

[1:12]  ² tn The noun שְׁאוֹל (shÿ’ol) can mean (1) “death,” cf. NCV; (2) “the grave,” cf. KJV, NIV, NLT (3) “Sheol” as the realm of departed spirits, cf. NAB “the nether world,” and (4) “extreme danger.” Here it is parallel to the noun בוֹר (vor, “the Pit”) so it is the grave or more likely “Sheol” (cf. ASV, NRSV). Elsewhere Sheol is personified as having an insatiable appetite and swallowing people alive as they descend to their death (e.g., Num 16:30, 33; Isa 5:14; Hab 2:5). In ancient Near Eastern literature, the grave is often personified in similar manner, e.g., in Ugaritic mythological texts Mot (= “death”) is referred to as “the great swallower.”

[1:12]  ³ tn Heb “and whole.” The vav (ו) is asseverative or appositional (“even”); it is omitted in the translation for the sake of style and smoothness. The substantival adjective תָּמִים (tamim, “whole; perfect; blameless”) is an adverbial accusative describing the condition and state of the object. Used in parallel to חַיִּים (khayyim, “alive”), it must mean “full of health” (BDB 1071 s.v. תָּמִים 2). These cutthroats want to murder a person who is full of vigor.

[1:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “find.” The use of the verb מָצָא (matsa’, “to find”) is deliberate understatement to rhetorically down-play the heinous act of thievery.

[1:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “all wealth of preciousness.”

[1:13]  ⁶ tn The noun שָׁלָל (shalal, “plunder”) functions as an adverbial accusative of material: “with plunder.” This term is normally used for the spoils of war (e.g., Deut 20:14; Josh 7:21; Judg 8:24, 25; 1 Sam 30:20) but here refers to “stolen goods” (so NCV, CEV; e.g., Isa 10:2; Prov 16:19; BDB 1022 s.v. 3). The enticement was to join a criminal gang and adopt a life of crime to enjoy ill-gotten gain (A. Cohen, Proverbs, 4). Cf. NAB, NRSV “booty”; TEV “loot.”

[23:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “from your understanding cease.” In the context this means that the person should have enough understanding to stop wearing himself out trying to be rich (cf. NRSV “be wise enough to desist”).

[23:5]  ⁸ tc The Kethib is הֲתָעוּף (hata’uf), “do your eyes fly [light] on it?” The Qere is the Hiphil, הֲתָעִיף (hata’if) “do you cause your eyes to fly on it?” But the line is difficult. The question may be indirect: If you cast your eyes on it, it is gone – when you think you are close, it slips away.

[23:5]  tn The term “riches” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation based on the previous verse.

[23:5]  ⁹ sn This seventh saying warns people not to expend all their energy trying to get rich because riches are fleeting (cf. Instruction of Amememope, chap. 7, 9:10-11 which says, “they have made themselves wings like geese and have flown away to heaven”). In the ancient world the symbol of birds flying away signified fleeting wealth.

[28:20]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “a man of faithfulness,” although the context does not indicate this should be limited only to males.

[28:20]  sn The text does not qualify the nature of the faithfulness. While this would certainly have implications for the person’s righteous acts, its primary meaning may be his diligence and reliability in his work. His faithful work will bring the returns.

[28:20]  ¹¹ sn The proverb is not rebuking diligent labor. One who is eager to get rich quickly is the opposite of the faithful person. The first person is faithful to God and to the covenant community; the second is trying to get rich as quickly as possible, at the least without doing an honest day’s work and at the worst dishonestly. In a hurry to gain wealth, he falls into various schemes and will pay for it. Tg. Prov 28:20 interprets this to say he hastens through deceit and wrongdoing.

[2:16]  ¹² tn Or (perhaps) “Stop making.”

[2:16]  ¹³ tn Or “a house of merchants” (an allusion to Zech 14:21).

[2:16]  sn A marketplace. Zech 14:20-21, in context, is clearly a picture of the messianic kingdom. The Hebrew word translated “Canaanite” may also be translated “merchant” or “trader.” Read in this light, Zech 14:21 states that there will be no merchant in the house of the Lord in that day (the day of the Lord, at the establishment of the messianic kingdom). And what would Jesus’ words (and actions) in cleansing the temple have suggested to the observers? That Jesus was fulfilling messianic expectations would have been obvious – especially to the disciples, who had just seen the miracle at Cana with all its messianic implications.

[6:26]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “answered and said to them.”

[6:26]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[6:26]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “because you ate of the loaves of bread and were filled.”

[6:27]  ¹⁷ tn Or “perishes” (this might refer to spoiling, but is more focused on the temporary nature of this kind of food).

[6:27]  sn Do not work for the food that disappears. Note the wordplay on “work” here. This does not imply “working” for salvation, since the “work” is later explained (in John 6:29) as “to believe in the one whom he (the Father) sent.”

[6:27]  ¹⁸ tn The referent (the food) has been specified for clarity by repeating the word “food” from the previous clause.

[6:27]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “on this one.”

[19:24]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 665 s.v. ναός 1.a states, “Specif. of temples: of replicas of the temple of Artemis at Ephesus 19:24…but here, near ἱερόν vs. 27…ναός can be understood in the more restricted sense shrine, where the image of the goddess stood.”

[19:24]  ²¹ sn Artemis was the name of a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus.

[19:24]  ²² tn Grk “brought not a little business” (an idiom).

[19:24]  ²³ sn A great deal of business. The charge that Christianity brought economic and/or social upheaval was made a number of times in Acts: 16:20-21; 17:6-7; 18:13.

[19:25]  ²⁴ tn Grk “gathering.” The participle συναθροίσας (sunaqroisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[19:25]  ²⁵ tn Grk “whom”; because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) has been replaced with a pronoun (“these”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.

[19:25]  ²⁶ sn Workmen in similar trades. In effect, Demetrius gathered the Ephesian chamber of commerce together to hear about the threat to their prosperity.

[19:25]  ²⁷ tn Another possible meaning is “that this business is an easy way for us to earn a living.”

[19:26]  ²⁸ tn Grk “persuading.” The participle πείσας (peisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[19:26]  ²⁹ tn Or “misled.”

[19:26]  ³⁰ tn BDAG 472 s.v. ἱκανός 3.a has “of pers. ὄχλος a large crowd…Ac 11:24, 26; 19:26.”

[19:26]  ³¹ map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[19:26]  ³² tn Grk “Asia”; see the note on this word in v. 22.

[19:26]  ³³ tn The participle λέγων (legwn) has been regarded as indicating instrumentality.

[19:26]  ³⁴ tn The words “at all” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[19:26]  sn Gods made by hands are not gods at all. Paul preached against paganism’s idolatry. Here is a one-line summary of a speech like that in Acts 17:22-31.

[19:1]  ³⁵ tn Grk “It happened that while.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[19:1]  ³⁶ map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.

[19:1]  ³⁷ tn Or “interior.”

[19:1]  ³⁸ tn BDAG 92 s.v. ἀνωτερικός has “upper τὰ ἀ. μέρη the upper (i.e. inland) country, the interior Ac 19:1.”

[19:1]  ³⁹ map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[19:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “and found.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the sequencing with the following verse the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.

[19:1]  ⁴¹ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

[1:6]  ⁴² tn Grk “if anyone is blameless…” as a continuation of v. 5b, beginning to describe the elder’s character.

[1:6]  ⁴³ tn Or “married only once,” “devoted solely to his wife.” See the note on “wife” in 1 Tim 3:2; also 1 Tim 3:12; 5:9.

[1:6]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “believing children.” The phrase could be translated “believing children,” but the parallel with 1 Tim 3:4 (“keeping his children in control”) argues for the sense given in the translation.

[1:7]  ⁴⁵ sn The overseer is another term for the same official position of leadership as the “elder.” This is seen in the interchange of the two terms in this passage and in Acts 20:17, 28, as well as in the parallels between these verses and 1 Tim 3:1-7.

[1:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “as God’s steward.”

[1:9]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “the faithful message in accordance with the teaching” (referring to apostolic teaching).

[1:9]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “the healthy teaching” (referring to what was just mentioned).

[1:10]  ⁴⁹ tc ‡ The earliest and best mss lack καί (kai) after πολλοί (polloi; so א A C P 088 81 104 365 614 629 630 al sy co), though the conjunction is found in several significant witnesses, chiefly of the Western and Byzantine texts (D F G I Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï lat). Although it is possible that some scribes omitted the word, thinking it was superfluous, it is also possible that others added the conjunction for clarification. Judging by the pedigree of the witnesses and the inconclusiveness of the internal evidence, the shorter reading is considered to be most likely original. NA²⁷ puts the conjunction in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[1:10]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “those of the circumcision.” Some translations take this to refer to Jewish converts to Christianity (cf. NAB “Jewish Christians”; TEV “converts from Judaism”; CEV “Jewish followers”) while others are less clear (cf. NLT “those who insist on circumcision for salvation”).