Hebrews 6-12

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Hebrews 6:1 tn Grk “Therefore leaving behind.” The implication is not of abandoning this elementary information, but of building on it.
2. Hebrews 6:1 tn Or “basic.”
3. Hebrews 6:1 tn Grk “the message of the beginning of Christ.”
4. Hebrews 6:1 tn Grk “leaving behind…let us move on.”
5. Hebrews 6:1 sn It is clear from the context that the phrase “dead works” are works that need to be repented from and thus are sins. The same phrase occurs in Heb 9:14 in which the author of Hebrews states that our consciences need to be purified from them. As Bruce states, they are works “that belong to the way of death and not the way of life” (F. F. Bruce, Hebrews [NICNT], 138).
6. Hebrews 6:2 sn See Hebrews 9:10 and Mark 7:4 for other references to the Jewish practice of ritual washings.
7. Hebrews 6:3 tn Grk “and we will do this.”
8. Hebrews 6:6 tn Or “have fallen away.”
9. Hebrews 6:6 tn Or “while”; Grk “crucifying…and holding.” The Greek participles here (“crucifying…and holding”) can be understood as either causal (“since”) or temporal (“while”).
10. Hebrews 6:6 tn Grk “recrucifying the son of God for themselves.”
11. Hebrews 6:7 tn Grk “comes upon.”
12. Hebrews 6:8 tn Grk “near to a curse.”
13. Hebrews 6:12 tn Or “dull.”
14. Hebrews 6:14 tn Grk “in blessing I will bless you and in multiplying I will multiply you,” the Greek form of a Hebrew idiom showing intensity.sn A quotation from Gen 22:17.
15. Hebrews 6:15 tn Grk “he”; in the translation the referent (Abraham) has been specified for clarity.
16. Hebrews 6:16 tn The plural Greek term ἄνθρωποι (anthrōpoi) is used here in a generic sense, referring to both men and women, and is thus translated “people.”
17. Hebrews 6:16 tn Grk “by something greater”; the rest of the comparison (“than themselves”) is implied.
18. Hebrews 6:16 tn Grk “the oath for confirmation is an end of all dispute.”
19. Hebrews 6:17 tn Grk “in which.”
20. Hebrews 6:17 tn Or “immutable” (here and in v. 18); Grk “the unchangeableness of his purpose.”
21. Hebrews 6:18 tn Grk “have taken refuge”; the basis of that refuge is implied in the preceding verse.
22. Hebrews 6:19 sn The curtain refers to the veil or drape in the temple that separated the holy place from the holy of holies.
23. Hebrews 6:20 sn A quotation from Ps 110:4, picked up again from Heb 5:6, 10.
24. Hebrews 7:1 sn A series of quotations from Gen 14:17-19.
25. Hebrews 7:2 tn Grk “to whom,” continuing the description of Melchizedek. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
26. Hebrews 7:2 tn Or “a tenth part.”
27. Hebrews 7:2 sn A quotation from Gen 14:20.
28. Hebrews 7:2 tn Grk “first being interpreted,” describing Melchizedek.
29. Hebrews 7:2 sn These words are repeated from the quotation of Gen 14:18 in the previous verse.
30. Hebrews 7:4 tn Grk “to whom.”
31. Hebrews 7:4 tn Or “a tenth part.”
32. Hebrews 7:5 tn Or “the priesthood.”
33. Hebrews 7:5 tn Grk “from their brothers.” See BDAG 18-19 s.v. ἀδελφός 2.b.
34. Hebrews 7:5 tn Grk “have come from the loins of Abraham.”
35. Hebrews 7:6 tn Grk “the one”; in the translation the referent (Melchizedek) has been specified for clarity.
36. Hebrews 7:6 tn Grk “is not descended from them.”
37. Hebrews 7:6 tn Or “a tenth part.”
38. Hebrews 7:6 sn The verbs “collected…and blessed” emphasize the continuing effect of the past actions, i.e., Melchizedek’s importance.
39. Hebrews 7:10 tn Grk “in the loins of his father” (a reference to Abraham). The name “Abraham” has been repeated in the translation at this point (cf. v. 9) in order to clarify the referent (i.e., what ancestor was in view).sn The point of the phrase still in his ancestor’s loins is that Levi was as yet unborn, still in his ancestor Abraham’s body. Thus Levi participated in Abraham’s action when Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek.
40. Hebrews 7:11 tn Grk “based on it.”
41. Hebrews 7:12 tn Grk “of necessity a change in the law comes to pass.”
42. Hebrews 7:13 tn Grk “shares in.”
43. Hebrews 7:13 tn Grk “from which no one.”
44. Hebrews 7:16 tn Grk “a law of a fleshly command.”
45. Hebrews 7:17 tn Grk “for he/it is witnessed that.”
46. Hebrews 7:17 sn A quotation from Ps 110:4 (see Heb 5:6 and 6:20).
47. Hebrews 7:18 tn Grk “the setting aside of a former command comes to pass.”
48. Hebrews 7:18 tn Grk “because of its weakness and uselessness.”
49. Hebrews 7:20 sn The Greek text contains an elaborate comparison between v. 20a and v. 22, with a parenthesis (vv. 20b-21) in between; the comparison is literally, “by as much as…by so much” or “to the degree that…to that same degree.”
50. Hebrews 7:21 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
51. Hebrews 7:21 tn The words “did so” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
52. Hebrews 7:21 sn A quotation from Ps 110:4 (see Heb 5:6; 6:20, and 7:17).
53. Hebrews 7:22 tn Or “surety.”
54. Hebrews 7:23 tn Grk “they on the one hand” in contrast with “he on the other hand” in v. 24.
55. Hebrews 7:23 tn Grk “they were prevented by death.”
56. Hebrews 7:23 tn Grk “from continuing” (the words “in office” are supplied for clarity).
57. Hebrews 7:28 sn See Heb 5:2 where this concept was introduced.
58. Hebrews 8:1 tn Grk “the main point of the things being said.”
59. Hebrews 8:1 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1; see Heb 1:3, 13.
60. Hebrews 8:4 tn Grk “there are those who offer.”
61. Hebrews 8:5 tn Grk “who serve in,” referring to the Levitical priests, but focusing on the provisional and typological nature of the tabernacle in which they served.
62. Hebrews 8:5 tn Or “prototype,” “outline.” The Greek word ὑπόδειγμα (hupodeigma) does not mean “copy,” as it is often translated; it means “something to be copied,” a basis for imitation. BDAG 1037 s.v. 2 lists both Heb 8:5 and 9:23 under the second category of usage, “an indication of someth. that appears at a subsequent time,” emphasizing the temporal progression between the earthly and heavenly sanctuaries.sn There are two main options for understanding the conceptual background of the heavenly sanctuary imagery. The first is to understand the imagery to be functioning on a vertical plane. This background is Hellenistic, philosophical, and spatial in orientation and sees the earthly sanctuary as a copy of the heavenly reality. The other option is to see the imagery functioning on a horizontal plane. This background is Jewish, eschatological, and temporal and sees the heavenly sanctuary as the fulfillment and true form of the earthly sanctuary which preceded it. The second option is preferred, both for lexical reasons (see tn above) and because it fits the Jewish context of the book (although many scholars prefer to emphasize the relationship the book has to Hellenistic thought).
63. Hebrews 8:5 tn The word τύπος (tupos) here has the meaning “an archetype serving as a model, type, pattern, model” (BDAG 1020 s.v. 6.a). This is in keeping with the horizontal imagery accepted for this verse (see sn on “sketch” earlier in the verse). Here Moses was shown the future heavenly sanctuary which, though it did not yet exist, became the outline for the earthly sanctuary.
64. Hebrews 8:5 sn A quotation from Exod 25:40.
65. Hebrews 8:6 sn The Greek text indicates a contrast between vv. 4-5 and v. 6 that is difficult to render in English: Jesus’ status in the old order of priests (vv. 4-5) versus his superior ministry (v. 6).
66. Hebrews 8:6 tn Grk “he”; in the translation the referent (Jesus) has been specified for clarity.
67. Hebrews 8:6 tn Grk “to the degree that.”
68. Hebrews 8:6 tn Grk “which is enacted.”
69. Hebrews 8:6 sn This linkage of the change in priesthood with a change in the law or the covenant goes back to Heb 7:12, 22 and is picked up again in Heb 9:6-15 and 10:1-18.
70. Hebrews 8:7 tn Grk “no occasion for a second one would have been sought.”
71. Hebrews 8:8 tn Grk “for,” but providing an explanation of the God-intended limitation of the first covenant from v. 7.
72. Hebrews 8:8 sn The “fault” or limitation in the first covenant was not in its inherent righteousness, but in its design from God himself. It was never intended to be his final revelation or provision for mankind; it was provisional, always pointing toward the fulfillment to come in Christ.
73. Hebrews 8:8 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
74. Hebrews 8:8 tc ‡ Several witnesses (א* A D* I K P Ψ 33 81 326 365 1505 2464 al latt co Cyr) have αὐτούς (autous) here, “[in finding fault with] them, [he says],” alluding to Israel’s failings mentioned in v. 9b. (The verb μέμφομαι [memphomai, “to find fault with”] can take an accusative or dative direct object.) The reading behind the text above (αὐτοίς, autois), supported by P⁴⁶ א² B D² 0278 1739 1881 M, is perhaps a harder reading theologically, and is more ambiguous in meaning. If αὐτοίς goes with μεμφόμενος (memphomenos, here translated “showing its fault”), the clause could be translated “in finding fault with them” or “in showing [its] faults to them.” If αὐτοίς goes with the following λέγει (legei, “he says”), the clause is best translated, “in finding/showing [its] faults, he says to them.” The accusative pronoun suffers no such ambiguity, for it must be the object of μεμφόμενος rather than λέγει. Although a decision is difficult, the dative form of the pronoun best explains the rise of the other reading and is thus more likely to be original.
75. Hebrews 8:9 tn Grk “not like the covenant,” continuing the description of v. 8b.
76. Hebrews 8:10 tn Grk “putting…I will inscribe.”
77. Hebrews 8:10 tn Grk “mind.”
78. Hebrews 8:10 tn Grk “I will be to them for a God and they will be to me for a people,” following the Hebrew constructions of Jer 31.
79. Hebrews 8:11 tn Grk “they will not teach, each one his fellow citizen…” The Greek makes this negation emphatic: “they will certainly not teach.”
80. Hebrews 8:11 tn Grk “from the small to the great.”
81. Hebrews 8:12 sn A quotation from Jer 31:31-34.
82. Hebrews 8:13 tn Grk “when he says, ‘new,’” (referring to the covenant).
83. Hebrews 8:13 tn Grk “near to disappearing.”
84. Hebrews 9:1 tn Grk “the first” (referring to the covenant described in Heb 8:7, 13). In the translation the referent (covenant) has been specified for clarity.
85. Hebrews 9:2 tn Grk “the first,” in order of approach in the ritual.
86. Hebrews 9:2 tn Grk “in which [were].”
87. Hebrews 9:2 tn Grk “which,” describing the outer tent.
88. Hebrews 9:4 tn Grk “in which”; in the translation the referent (the ark) has been specified for clarity.
89. Hebrews 9:5 tn Grk “above it”; in the translation the referent (the ark) has been specified for clarity.
90. Hebrews 9:5 sn The cherubim (pl.) were an order of angels mentioned repeatedly in the OT but only here in the NT. They were associated with God’s presence, glory, and holiness. Their images that sat on top of the ark of the covenant are described in Exod 25:18-20.
91. Hebrews 9:6 tn Grk “the first tent.”
92. Hebrews 9:7 tn Grk “the second tent.”
93. Hebrews 9:7 tn Or perhaps “the unintentional sins of the people”; Grk “the ignorances of the people.” Cf. BDAG 13 s.v. ἀγνόημα, “sin committed in ignorance/unintentionally.” This term seems to be simply a synonym for “sins” (cf. Heb 5:2) and does not pick up the distinction made in Num 15:22-31 between unwitting sin and “high-handed” sin. The Day of Atonement ritual in Lev 16 covered all the sins of the people, not just the unwitting ones.
94. Hebrews 9:8 tn Grk “the first tent.” The literal phrase “the first tent” refers to either (1) the outer chamber of the tabernacle in the wilderness (as in vv. 2, 6) or (2) the entire tabernacle as a symbol of the OT system of approaching God. The second is more likely given the contrast that follows in vv. 11-12.
95. Hebrews 9:10 tn Grk “only for foods and drinks.”
96. Hebrews 9:10 tc Most witnesses (D¹ M) have “various washings, and external regulations” (βαπτισμοῖς καὶ δικαιώμασιν, baptismois kai dikaiōmasin), with both nouns in the dative. The translation “washings; they are…regulations” renders βαπτισμοῖς, δικαιώματα (baptismois, dikaiōmata; found in such significant mss as P⁴⁶ א* A I P 0278 33 1739 1881 al sa) in which case δικαιώματα is taken as the nominative subject of the participle ἐπικείμενα (epikeimena). It seems far more likely that scribes would conform δικαιώματα to the immediately preceding datives and join it to them by καί than they would to the following nominative participle. Both on external and internal evidence the text is thus secure as reading βαπτισμοῖς, δικαιώματα.
97. Hebrews 9:10 tn Grk “until the time of setting things right.”
98. Hebrews 9:11 tn Grk “But Christ, when he came,” introducing a sentence that includes all of Heb 9:11-12. The main construction is “Christ, having come…, entered…, having secured…,” and everything else describes his entrance.
99. Hebrews 9:12 tn This verb occurs in the Greek middle voice, which here intensifies the role of the subject, Christ, in accomplishing the action: “he alone secured”; “he and no other secured.”
100. Hebrews 9:13 tn Grk “for the purifying of the flesh.” The “flesh” here is symbolic of outward or ritual purity in contrast to inner purity, that of the conscience (cf. Heb 9:9).
101. Hebrews 9:14 tc The reading adopted by the translation is attested by many authorities (A D* K P 365 1739* al). But many others (א D² 0278 33 1739^c 1881 M lat sa) read “your” instead of “our.” The diversity of evidence makes this a difficult case to decide from external evidence alone. The first and second person pronouns differ by only one letter in Greek, as in English, also making this problem difficult to decide based on internal evidence and transcriptional probability. In the context, the author’s description of sacrificial activities seems to invite the reader to compare his own possible participation in OT liturgy as over against the completed work of Christ, so the second person pronoun “your” might make more sense. On the other hand, TCGNT 599 argues that “our” is preferable because the author of Hebrews uses direct address (i.e., the second person) only in the hortatory sections. What is more, the author seems to prefer the first person in explanatory remarks or when giving the logical grounds for an assertion (cf. Heb 4:15; 7:14). It is hard to reach a definitive conclusion in this case, but the data lean slightly in favor of the first person pronoun.
102. Hebrews 9:15 tn The Greek word μεσίτης (mesitēs, “mediator”) in this context does not imply that Jesus was a mediator in the contemporary sense of the word, i.e., he worked for compromise between opposing parties. Here the term describes his function as the one who was used by God to enact a new covenant which established a new relationship between God and his people, but entirely on God’s terms.
103. Hebrews 9:15 tn Grk “the promise of the eternal inheritance.”
104. Hebrews 9:15 tn Grk “a death having occurred.”
105. Hebrews 9:16 tn Grk “there is a necessity for the death of the one who made it to be proven.”
106. Hebrews 9:18 sn The Greek text reinforces this by negating the opposite (“not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood”), but this double negation is not used in contemporary English.
107. Hebrews 9:20 tn Grk “which God commanded for you (or in your case).”sn A quotation from Exod 24:8.
108. Hebrews 9:23 tn Or “prototypes,” “outlines,” referring to the earthly sanctuary. See Heb 8:5 above for the prior use of this term.
109. Hebrews 9:23 tn Grk “with these”; in the translation the referent (sacrifices) has been specified for clarity.
110. Hebrews 9:23 tn Grk “the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.”
111. Hebrews 9:24 tn Or “prefiguration.”
112. Hebrews 9:24 tn The word “sanctuary” is not in the Greek text at this point, but has been supplied for clarity.
113. Hebrews 9:25 tn Grk “and not that he might offer,” continuing the previous construction.
114. Hebrews 9:27 tn Here ἀνθρώποις (anthrōpois) has been translated as a generic noun (“people”).
115. Hebrews 9:27 tn Grk “and after this—judgment.”
116. Hebrews 9:28 sn An allusion to Isa 53:12.
117. Hebrews 9:28 tn Grk “without sin,” but in context this does not refer to Christ’s sinlessness (as in Heb 4:15) but to the fact that sin is already dealt with by his first coming.
118. Hebrews 9:28 tn Grk “for salvation.” This may be construed with the verb “await” (those who wait for him to bring them salvation), but the connection with “appear” (as in the translation) is more likely.
119. Hebrews 10:1 tn Grk “those who approach.”
120. Hebrews 10:2 tn Grk “the worshipers, having been purified once for all, would have.”
121. Hebrews 10:3 tn Grk “in them”; the referent (those sacrifices) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
122. Hebrews 10:7 tn Grk “behold,” but this construction often means “here is/there is” (cf. BDAG 468 s.v. ἰδού 2).
123. Hebrews 10:7 sn A quotation from Ps 40:6-8 (LXX). The phrase a body you prepared for me (in v. 5) is apparently an interpretive expansion of the HT reading “ears you have dug out for me.”
124. Hebrews 10:8 sn Various phrases from the quotation of Ps 40:6 in Heb 10:5-6 are repeated in Heb 10:8.
125. Hebrews 10:9 tc The majority of mss, especially the later ones (א² 0278^vid 1739 M lat), have ὁ θεός (ho theos, “God”) at this point, while most of the earliest and best witnesses lack such an explicit addressee (so P⁴⁶ א* A C D K P Ψ 33 1175 1881 2464 al). The longer reading is apparently motivated in part by the wording of Ps 40:8 (39:9 LXX) and by the word order of this same verse as quoted in Heb 10:7.
126. Hebrews 10:9 tn Or “abolishes.”
127. Hebrews 10:10 tn Grk “by which will.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
128. Hebrews 10:11 tn Or “daily,” “every day.”
129. Hebrews 10:12 tn Grk “this one.” This pronoun refers to Jesus, but “this priest” was used in the translation to make the contrast between the Jewish priests in v. 11 and Jesus as a priest clearer in English.
130. Hebrews 10:12 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.
131. Hebrews 10:13 tn Grk “from then on waiting.”
132. Hebrews 10:13 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.
133. Hebrews 10:15 tn Grk “after having said,” emphasizing the present impact of this utterance.
134. Hebrews 10:16 tn Grk “putting…I will inscribe.”
135. Hebrews 10:16 sn A quotation from Jer 31:33.
136. Hebrews 10:17 tn Grk “and.”
137. Hebrews 10:17 sn A quotation from Jer 31:34.
138. Hebrews 10:19 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.
139. Hebrews 10:20 tn Grk “that he inaugurated for us as a fresh and living way,” referring to the entrance mentioned in v. 19.
140. Hebrews 10:20 sn Through his flesh. In a bold shift the writer changes from a spatial phrase (Christ opened the way through the curtain into the inner sanctuary) to an instrumental phrase (he did this through [by means of] his flesh in his sacrifice of himself), associating the two in an allusion to the splitting of the curtain in the temple from top to bottom (Matt 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). Just as the curtain was split, so Christ’s body was broken for us, to give us access into God’s presence.
141. Hebrews 10:21 tn Grk “and a great priest,” continuing the construction begun in v. 19.
142. Hebrews 10:22 tn Grk “in assurance of faith.”
143. Hebrews 10:22 sn The phrase our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience combines the OT imagery of the sprinkling with blood to give ritual purity with the emphasis on the interior cleansing provided by the new covenant: It is the heart that is cleansed and the conscience made perfect (cf. Heb 8:10; 9:9, 14; 10:2, 16).
144. Hebrews 10:24 tn Grk “let us consider one another for provoking of love and good deeds.”
145. Hebrews 10:25 sn The day refers to that well-known time of Christ’s coming and judgment in the future; see a similar use of “day” in 1 Cor 3:13.
146. Hebrews 10:25 tn This paragraph (vv. 19-25) is actually a single, skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments for English idiom. It begins with several subordinate phrases (since we have confidence and a great priest), has three parallel exhortations as its main verbs (let us draw near, hold, and take thought), and concludes with several subordinate phrases related to the final exhortation (not abandoning but encouraging).
147. Hebrews 10:26 tn Grk “is left,” with “for us” implied by the first half of the verse.
148. Hebrews 10:27 tn Grk “zeal,” recalling God’s jealous protection of his holiness and honor (cf. Exod 20:5).sn An allusion to Zeph 1:18.
149. Hebrews 10:27 tn Grk “the enemies.”sn An allusion to Isa 26:11.
150. Hebrews 10:28 tn Grk “dies.”
151. Hebrews 10:28 sn An allusion to Deut 17:6.
152. Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “tramples under foot.”
153. Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “regarded as common.”
154. Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “by which he was made holy.”
155. Hebrews 10:30 sn A quotation from Deut 32:35.
156. Hebrews 10:30 sn A quotation from Deut 32:36.
157. Hebrews 10:34 tc Most witnesses, including some significant ones (א D² 1881 M), read δεσμοῖς μου (desmois mou, “my imprisonment”) here, a reading that is probably due to the widespread belief in the early Christian centuries that Paul was the author of Hebrews (cf. Phil 1:7; Col 4:18). It may have been generated by the reading δεσμοῖς without the μου (so P⁴⁶ Ψ 104), the force of which is so ambiguous (lit., “you shared the sufferings with the bonds”) as to be virtually nonsensical. Most likely, δεσμοῖς resulted when a scribe made an error in copying δεσμίοις (desmiois), a reading which makes excellent sense (“[of] those in prison”) and is strongly supported by early and significant witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western text-forms (A D* H 6 33 81 1739 lat sy co). Thus, δεσμίοις best explains the rise of the other readings on both internal and external grounds and is strongly preferred.
158. Hebrews 10:34 tn Grk “you yourselves.”
159. Hebrews 10:35 tn Grk “which,” but showing the reason.
160. Hebrews 10:36 tn Grk “the promise,” referring to the thing God promised, not to the pledge itself.
161. Hebrews 10:37 sn A quotation from Isa 26:20.
162. Hebrews 10:37 sn A quotation from Hab 2:3.
163. Hebrews 10:38 tn Grk “my soul.”
164. Hebrews 10:38 sn A quotation from Hab 2:4.
165. Hebrews 10:39 tn Grk “not…of shrinking back to perdition but of faith to the preservation of the soul.”
166. Hebrews 11:2 tn Or “the elders,” “the ancients.”
167. Hebrews 11:2 tn Grk “were attested,” “received commendation”; and Heb 11:4-6 shows this to be from God.
168. Hebrews 11:3 tn Grk “ages.” The temporal (ages) came to be used of the spatial (what exists in those time periods). See Heb 1:2 for same usage.
169. Hebrews 11:3 tn Grk “by God’s word.”
170. Hebrews 11:3 sn The Greek phrasing emphasizes this point by negating the opposite: “so that what is seen did not come into being from things that are visible.”
171. Hebrews 11:4 tn Or “through his sacrifice”; Grk “through which.”
172. Hebrews 11:4 tn Or “through his sacrifice”; Grk “through it.”
173. Hebrews 11:7 tn Cf. BDAG 407 s.v. εὐλαβέομαι 2, “out of reverent regard (for God’s command).”
174. Hebrews 11:9 tn Or “settled as a resident alien.”
175. Hebrews 11:9 tn Or “heirs with him.”
176. Hebrews 11:10 tn Grk “that has foundations.”
177. Hebrews 11:11 tn Grk “past the time of maturity.”
178. Hebrews 11:11 tn Grk “power to deposit seed.” Though it is not as likely, some construe this phrase to mean “power to conceive seed,” making the whole verse about Sarah: “by faith, even though Sarah herself was barren and too old, she received ability to conceive, because she regarded the one who had given the promise to be trustworthy.”
179. Hebrews 11:12 tn Grk “these”; in the translation the referent (children) has been specified for clarity.
180. Hebrews 11:12 tn Grk a collective “the sand.”
181. Hebrews 11:12 sn An allusion to Gen 22:17 (which itself goes back to Gen 15:5).
182. Hebrews 11:13 tn Grk “the promises,” referring to the things God promised, not to the pledges themselves.
183. Hebrews 11:13 tn Or “sojourners.”
184. Hebrews 11:16 tn Grk “now.”
185. Hebrews 11:17 tn Here “received the promises” refers to the pledges themselves, not to the things God promised.
186. Hebrews 11:17 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.
187. Hebrews 11:18 tn Grk “in Isaac seed will be named for you.”sn A quotation from Gen 21:12.
188. Hebrews 11:19 tn Grk “having reasoned,” continuing the ideas of v. 17.
189. Hebrews 11:19 tn Grk “in/by a symbol.”
190. Hebrews 11:21 tn Grk “worshiped on the top of his staff,” a quotation from Gen 47:31 (LXX).
191. Hebrews 11:22 tn Grk “coming to an end,” “dying.”
192. Hebrews 11:22 sn Joseph’s prophecy about the exodus of the sons of Israel is found in Gen 50:24.
193. Hebrews 11:22 tn Grk “about his bones,” which refers by metonymy to the disposition of his bones, i.e., his burial.sn The instructions about his burial are recorded in Gen 50:25.
194. Hebrews 11:23 tn Grk “Moses, when he was born, was hidden by his parents.”
195. Hebrews 11:26 tn Grk “the abuse [or ‘reproach’] of Christ.”
196. Hebrews 11:26 tn Grk “he was looking away to.”
197. Hebrews 11:28 tn Grk “the pouring out of the blood.”sn The sprinkling of the blood refers here to the application of the blood to the doorways of the Israelite houses (cf. Exod 12:7, 13).
198. Hebrews 11:30 tn Grk “after they had been encircled.”
199. Hebrews 11:31 tn Grk “did not perish together with.”
200. Hebrews 11:33 tn This probably refers to the righteous rule of David and others. But it could be more general and mean “did what was righteous.”
201. Hebrews 11:33 tn Grk “obtained promises,” referring to the things God promised, not to the pledges themselves. sn Gained what was promised. They saw some of God’s promises fulfilled, even though the central promise remained unfulfilled until Christ came (cf. vv. 39-40).
202. Hebrews 11:34 tn Grk “quenched the power of fire.”
203. Hebrews 11:34 tn Or “recovered from sickness.”
204. Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “received back their dead from resurrection.”
205. Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “to obtain a better resurrection.”
206. Hebrews 11:37 tc The reading ἐπρίσθησαν (epristhēsan, “they were sawed apart”) is found in some significant witnesses (P⁴⁶ [D* twice reads ἐπίρσθησαν, “they were burned”?] sy^p sa Or^pt Eus). Other mss have ἐπειράσθησαν (epeirasthēsan, “they were tempted”), either before “sawed apart” ([א] L P [048] 33 81 326 1505 sy^h), after “sawed apart” (P^13vid A D¹ Ψ 1739 1881 M lat bo Or^pt), or altogether in place of “sawed apart” (0150 vg^mss Cl). Since the two words ἐπρίσθησαν and ἐπειράσθησαν are so much alike in sight and sound, and since the position of “they were tempted” varies in the mss, it seems best to say that ἐπειράσθησαν is an accidental transcriptional error of ἐπρίσθησαν or an intentional change to a more common word (the root of ἐπρίσθησαν [πρίζω, prizō] occurs only here in the NT, while the root of ἐπειράσθησαν [πειράζω, peirazō] occurs 38 times). The best reading here seems to be “sawed apart” without any addition before or after. (See TCGNT 603-4, for a discussion of emendations that scholars have proposed for this difficult problem.)
207. Hebrews 11:39 sn The expression these all were commended forms an inclusio with Heb 11:2: The chapter begins and ends with references to commendation for faith.
208. Hebrews 11:39 tn Grk “the promise,” referring to the thing God promised, not to the pledge itself.
209. Hebrews 11:40 tn The Greek phrasing emphasizes this point by negating the opposite: “so that they would not be made perfect without us.”
210. Hebrews 12:1 tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”
211. Hebrews 12:2 tn Or “Because of”; or “Instead of.” The Greek prepostion can be understood either way. For discussion and sources see Wallace, ExSyn 367-68; cf. also BDAG 88 s.v. 1, “instead of, in place of” and s.v. 3 “(in exchange) for.”
212. Hebrews 12:2 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.
213. Hebrews 12:4 tn Grk “until blood.”
214. Hebrews 12:5 tn Or “disregard,” “think little of.”
215. Hebrews 12:5 tn Or “reproves,” “rebukes.” The Greek verb ἐλέγχω (elenchō) implies exposing someone’s sin in order to bring correction.
216. Hebrews 12:6 sn A quotation from Prov 3:11-12.
217. Hebrews 12:7 tn Grk “endure,” with the object (“your suffering”) understood from the context.
218. Hebrews 12:7 tn Or “in order to become disciplined.”
219. Hebrews 12:8 tn Grk “you are without discipline.”
220. Hebrews 12:8 tn Grk “all”; “sons” is implied by the context.
221. Hebrews 12:9 tn Grk “we had our earthly fathers as discipliners.”
222. Hebrews 12:9 tn Grk “the fathers of our flesh.” In Hebrews, “flesh” is a characteristic way of speaking about outward, physical, earthly life (cf. Heb 5:7; 9:10, 13), as opposed to the inward or spiritual dimensions of life.
223. Hebrews 12:9 tn Grk “and live.” sn Submit ourselves…to the Father of spirits and receive life. This idea is drawn from Proverbs, where the Lord’s discipline brings life, while resistance to it leads to death (cf. Prov 4:13; 6:23; 10:17; 16:17).
224. Hebrews 12:11 tn Grk “all discipline at the time does not seem to be of joy, but of sorrow.”
225. Hebrews 12:11 tn Grk “the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”
226. Hebrews 12:12 tn Or “straighten.”
227. Hebrews 12:12 sn A quotation from Isa 35:3. Strengthen your listless hands and your weak knees refers to the readers’ need for renewed resolve and fresh strength in their struggles (cf. Heb 10:36-39; 12:1-3).
228. Hebrews 12:13 sn A quotation from Prov 4:26. The phrase make straight paths for your feet is figurative for “stay on God’s paths.”
229. Hebrews 12:14 sn The references to peace and holiness show the close connection between this paragraph and the previous one. The pathway toward “holiness” and the need for it is cited in Heb 12:10 and 14. More importantly Prov 4:26-27 sets up the transition from one paragraph to the next: It urges people to stay on godly paths (Prov 4:26, quoted here in v. 13) and promises that God will lead them in peace if they do so (Prov 4:27 [LXX], quoted in v. 14).
230. Hebrews 12:15 tn Grk “that there not be any root of bitterness,” but referring figuratively to a person who causes trouble (as in Deut 29:17 [LXX] from which this is quoted).sn An allusion to Deut 29:18.
231. Hebrews 12:16 tn Grk “that there not be any,” continuing from v. 15.
232. Hebrews 12:16 sn An allusion to Gen 27:34-41.
233. Hebrews 12:17 tn Or a command: “for understand that.”
234. Hebrews 12:17 tn Grk “it,” referring either to the repentance or the blessing. But the account in Gen 27:34-41 (which the author appeals to here) makes it clear that the blessing is what Esau sought. Thus in the translation the referent (the blessing) is specified for clarity.
235. Hebrews 12:18 tn This describes the nation of Israel approaching God on Mt. Sinai (Exod 19). There is a clear contrast with the reference to Mount Zion in v. 22, so this could be translated “a mountain that can be touched.” But the word “mountain” does not occur here and the more vague description seems to be deliberate.
236. Hebrews 12:19 tn Grk “a voice of words.”
237. Hebrews 12:19 tn Grk “a voice…from which those who heard begged that a word not be added to them.”
238. Hebrews 12:20 sn A quotation from Exod 19:12-13.
239. Hebrews 12:21 tn Grk “that which appeared.”
240. Hebrews 12:21 tn Grk “I am terrified and trembling.”sn A quotation from Deut 9:19.
241. Hebrews 12:22 tn Grk “and the city”; the conjunction is omitted in translation since it seems to be functioning epexegetically—that is, explaining further what is meant by “Mount Zion.”
242. Hebrews 12:24 tn The Greek word μεσίτης (mesitēs, “mediator”) in this context does not imply that Jesus was a mediator in the contemporary sense of the word, i.e., he worked for compromise between opposing parties. Here the term describes his function as the one who was used by God to enact a new covenant which established a new relationship between God and his people, but entirely on God’s terms.
243. Hebrews 12:24 sn Abel’s shed blood cried out to the Lord for justice and judgment, but Jesus’ blood speaks of redemption and forgiveness, something better than Abel’s does (Gen 4:10; Heb 9:11-14; 11:4).
244. Hebrews 12:26 sn A quotation from Hag 2:6.
245. Hebrews 12:29 sn A quotation from Deut 4:24; 9:3.