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Isaiah 60:1-6
New English Translation

Zion’s Future Splendor

60 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor[a] of the Lord shines on you!
2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers[b] the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor[c] appears over you.
3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
4 Look all around you![d]
They all gather and come to you—
your sons come from far away,
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
5 Then you will look and smile,[e]
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride.[f]
For the riches of distant lands[g] will belong to you,
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
6 Camel caravans will cover your roads,[h]
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba[i] will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord.[j]

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 60:1 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).
  2. Isaiah 60:2 tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
  3. Isaiah 60:2 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”
  4. Isaiah 60:4 tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”
  5. Isaiah 60:5 tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
  6. Isaiah 60:5 tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”
  7. Isaiah 60:5 tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.
  8. Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”
  9. Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”
  10. Isaiah 60:6 tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”
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Isaiah 59
Isaiah 61
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Ephesians 3:2-12
New English Translation

2 if indeed[a] you have heard of the stewardship[b] of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that[c] by revelation the mystery[d] was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly.[e] 4 When reading this,[f] you will be able to[g] understand my insight into the mystery[h] of Christ 5 (which[i] was not disclosed to people[j] in former[k] generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by[l] the Spirit), 6 namely, that through the gospel[m] the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members[n] of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. 7 I became a servant of this gospel[o] according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by[p] the exercise of his power.[q] 8 To me—less than the least of all the saints[r]—this grace was given,[s] to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ 9 and to enlighten[t] everyone about God’s secret plan[u]—the mystery that has been hidden for ages[v] in God[w] who has created all things. 10 The purpose of this enlightenment is that[x] through the church the multifaceted wisdom[y] of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms. 11 This was according to[z] the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and confident access[aa] to God[ab] by way of Christ’s[ac] faithfulness.[ad]

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Footnotes

  1. Ephesians 3:2 sn If indeed. The author is not doubting whether his audience has heard, but is rather using provocative language (if indeed) to engage his audience in thinking about the magnificence of God’s grace. However, in English translation, the apodosis (“then”-clause) does not come until v. 13, leaving the protasis (“if”-clause) dangling. Eph 3:2-7 constitute one sentence in Greek.
  2. Ephesians 3:2 tn Or “administration,” “dispensation,” “commission.”
  3. Ephesians 3:3 tn Or “namely, that is.”
  4. Ephesians 3:3 tn Or “divine secret” (see Eph 1:9).
  5. Ephesians 3:3 tn Or “as I wrote above briefly.”sn As I wrote briefly may refer to the author’s brief discussion of the divine secret in 1:9.
  6. Ephesians 3:4 tn Grk “which, when reading.”
  7. Ephesians 3:4 tn Grk “you are able to.”
  8. Ephesians 3:4 tn Or “secret.”
  9. Ephesians 3:5 tn Verse 5 is a relative clause, subordinate to the thought of v. 4, but it is also parenthetical, interrupting the thought of vv. 4-6. This has been indicated by the parentheses in the translation.
  10. Ephesians 3:5 tn Grk “the sons of men” (a Semitic idiom referring to human beings, hence, “people”).
  11. Ephesians 3:5 tn Grk “other.”
  12. Ephesians 3:5 tn Or “in.”
  13. Ephesians 3:6 sn The phrase through the gospel is placed last in the sentence in Greek for emphasis. It has been moved forward for clarity.
  14. Ephesians 3:6 tn Grk “and fellow members.”
  15. Ephesians 3:7 tn Grk “of which I was made a minister,” “of which I became a servant.”
  16. Ephesians 3:7 tn Grk “according to.”
  17. Ephesians 3:7 sn On the exercise of his power see 1:19-20.
  18. Ephesians 3:8 sn In Pauline writings saints means any true believer. Thus for Paul to view himself as less than the least of all the saints is to view himself as the most unworthy object of Christ’s redemption.
  19. Ephesians 3:8 sn The parallel phrases to proclaim and to enlighten which follow indicate why God’s grace was manifested to Paul. Grace was not something just to be received, but to be shared with others (cf. Acts 13:47).
  20. Ephesians 3:9 tn There is a possible causative nuance in the Greek verb, but this is difficult to convey in the translation.
  21. Ephesians 3:9 tn Grk “what is the plan of the mystery.” Earlier the author had used οἰκονομία (oikonomia; here “plan”) to refer to his own “stewardship” (v. 2). But now he is speaking about the content of this mystery, not his own activity in relation to it.
  22. Ephesians 3:9 tn Or “for eternity,” or perhaps “from the Aeons.” Cf. 2:2, 7.
  23. Ephesians 3:9 tn Or perhaps “by God.” It is possible that ἐν (en) plus the dative here indicates agency, that is, that God has performed the action of hiding the mystery. However, this usage of the preposition ἐν is quite rare in the NT, and even though here it does follow a perfect passive verb as in the Classical idiom, it is more likely that a different nuance is intended.
  24. Ephesians 3:10 tn Grk “that.” Verse 10 is a subordinate clause to the verb “enlighten” in v. 9.
  25. Ephesians 3:10 tn Or “manifold wisdom,” “wisdom in its rich variety.”
  26. Ephesians 3:11 tn Grk “according to.” The verse is a prepositional phrase subordinate to v. 10.
  27. Ephesians 3:12 tn Grk “access in confidence.”
  28. Ephesians 3:12 tn The phrase “to God” is not in the text, but is clearly implied by the preceding, “access.”
  29. Ephesians 3:12 tn Grk “his.”
  30. Ephesians 3:12 tn Or “to God through faith in him.” A decision is difficult here. Though traditionally translated “faith in Jesus Christ,” an increasing number of NT scholars are arguing that πίστις Χριστοῦ (pistis Christou) and similar phrases in Paul (here and in Rom 3:22, 26; Gal 2:16, 20; 3:22; Phil 3:9) involve a subjective genitive and mean “Christ’s faith” or “Christ’s faithfulness” (cf., e.g., G. Howard, “The ‘Faith of Christ’,” ExpTim 85 [1974]: 212-15; R. B. Hays, The Faith of Jesus Christ [SBLDS]; Morna D. Hooker, “Πίστις Χριστοῦ,” NTS 35 [1989]: 321-42). Noteworthy among the arguments for the subjective genitive view is that when πίστις takes a personal genitive it is almost never an objective genitive (cf. Matt 9:2, 22, 29; Mark 2:5; 5:34; 10:52; Luke 5:20; 7:50; 8:25, 48; 17:19; 18:42; 22:32; Rom 1:8; 12; 3:3; 4:5, 12, 16; 1 Cor 2:5; 15:14, 17; 2 Cor 10:15; Phil 2:17; Col 1:4; 2:5; 1 Thess 1:8; 3:2, 5, 10; 2 Thess 1:3; Titus 1:1; Phlm 6; 1 Pet 1:9, 21; 2 Pet 1:5). On the other hand, the objective genitive view has its adherents: A. Hultgren, “The Pistis Christou Formulations in Paul,” NovT 22 (1980): 248-63; J. D. G. Dunn, “Once More, ΠΙΣΤΙΣ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥ,” SBL Seminar Papers, 1991, 730-44. Most commentaries on Romans and Galatians usually side with the objective view.sn By way of Christ’s faithfulness. Though Paul elsewhere teaches justification by faith, this presupposes that the object of our faith (Christ) is reliable and worthy of such faith.
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Ephesians 4
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Matthew 2
New English Translation

The Visit of the Wise Men

2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, in the time[a] of King Herod,[b] wise men[c] from the East came to Jerusalem 2 saying, “Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose[d] and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod[e] heard this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem[f] with him. 4 After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law,[g] he asked them where the Christ[h] was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet:

6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,
for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”[i]

7 Then Herod[j] privately summoned the wise men and determined from them when the star had appeared. 8 He[k] sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and look carefully for the child. When you find him, inform me so that I can go and worship him as well.” 9 After listening to the king they left, and once again[l] the star they saw when it rose[m] led them until it stopped above the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star they shouted joyfully.[n] 11 As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down[o] and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense,[p] and myrrh.[q] 12 After being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,[r] they went back by another route to their own country.

The Escape to Egypt

13 After they had gone, an[s] angel of the Lord[t] appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod[u] is going to look for the child to kill him.” 14 Then he got up, took the child and his mother during[v] the night, and went to Egypt. 15 He stayed there until Herod[w] died. In this way what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet was fulfilled: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”[x]

16 When Herod[y] saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became enraged. He sent men[z] to kill all the children in Bethlehem and throughout the surrounding region from the age of two and under, according to the time he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud wailing,[aa]
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she did not want to be comforted, because they were[ab] gone.”[ac]

The Return to Nazareth

19 After Herod[ad] had died, an[ae] angel of the Lord[af] appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” 21 So[ag] he got up and took the child and his mother and returned to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus[ah] was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod,[ai] he was afraid to go there. After being warned in a dream, he went to the regions of Galilee. 23 He came to a town called Nazareth[aj] and lived there. Then what had been spoken by the prophets was fulfilled, that Jesus[ak] would be called a Nazarene.[al]

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 2:1 tn Grk “in the days.”
  2. Matthew 2:1 sn King Herod was Herod the Great, who ruled Judea (with the support of Rome) from 37 b.c. until he died in 4 b.c. He was known for his extensive building projects (including the temple in Jerusalem) and for his cruelty.
  3. Matthew 2:1 sn The Greek term here, sometimes transliterated into English as magi, describes a class of wise men and priests who were astrologers (L&N 32.40).
  4. Matthew 2:2 tn Or “in its rising,” referring to the astrological significance of a star in a particular portion of the sky. The term used for the “East” in v. 1 is ἀνατολαί (anatolai, a plural form that is used typically of the rising of the sun), while in vv. 2 and 9 the singular ἀνατολή (anatolē) is used. The singular is typically used of the rising of a star and as such should not normally be translated “in the east” (cf. BDAG 74 s.v. 1: “because of the sg. and the article in contrast to ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν, vs. 1, [it is] prob. not a geograph. expr. like the latter, but rather astronomical…likew. vs. 9”).
  5. Matthew 2:3 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.
  6. Matthew 2:3 tn Here the city (Jerusalem) is put by metonymy for its inhabitants (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 579).
  7. Matthew 2:4 tn Or “and scribes of the people.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateus) as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.
  8. Matthew 2:4 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”sn See the note on Christ in 1:16.
  9. Matthew 2:6 sn A quotation from Mic 5:2.
  10. Matthew 2:7 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.
  11. Matthew 2:8 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
  12. Matthew 2:9 tn Grk “and behold the star.”
  13. Matthew 2:9 tn See the note on the word “rose” in 2:2.
  14. Matthew 2:10 tn Grk “they rejoiced with very great joy.”
  15. Matthew 2:11 tn Grk “they fell down.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
  16. Matthew 2:11 sn Frankincense refers to the aromatic resin of certain trees, used as a sweet-smelling incense (L&N 6.212).
  17. Matthew 2:11 sn Myrrh consisted of the aromatic resin of certain shrubs (L&N 6.208). It was widely used in the ancient Near East by the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans as perfume, as incense, and for medicinal purposes (W. Michaelis, TDNT 7:457). It was also used in preparing a corpse for burial (cf. John 19:39).
  18. Matthew 2:12 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.
  19. Matthew 2:13 tn Grk “behold, an angel.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).
  20. Matthew 2:13 tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 1:20.
  21. Matthew 2:13 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1. Herod the Great was particularly ruthless regarding the succession to his throne.
  22. Matthew 2:14 tn The feminine singular genitive noun νυκτός (nuktos, “night”) indicates the time during which the action of the main verb takes place (ExSyn 124).
  23. Matthew 2:15 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.
  24. Matthew 2:15 sn A quotation from Hos 11:1.
  25. Matthew 2:16 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1. Note the fulfillment of the prophecy given by the angel in 2:13.
  26. Matthew 2:16 tn Or “soldiers.”
  27. Matthew 2:18 tc The LXX of Jer 38:15 (31:15 ET) has “lamentation, weeping, and loud wailing”; most later mss (C D L W Γ Δ 0233 ƒ13 33 565 579 700 1241 1424 M) have a quotation in Matthew which conforms to that of the LXX (θρῆνος καὶ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὀδυρμός; thrēnos kai klauthmos kai odurmos). But such assimilations were routine among the scribes; as such, they typically should be discounted because they are both predictable and motivated. The shorter reading, without “lamentation and,” is thus to be preferred, especially since it cannot easily be accounted for unless it is the reading that gave rise to the other reading. Further, it is found in the better mss along with a good cross-section of other witnesses (א B Z 0250 ƒ1 lat co).
  28. Matthew 2:18 tn Grk “are”; the Greek text uses a present tense verb.
  29. Matthew 2:18 sn A quotation from Jer 31:15.
  30. Matthew 2:19 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1. When Herod the Great died in 4 b.c., his kingdom was divided up among his three sons: Archelaus, who ruled over Judea (where Bethlehem was located, v. 22); Philip, who became tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis (cf. Luke 3:1); and Antipas, who became tetrarch of Galilee.
  31. Matthew 2:19 tn Grk “behold, an angel.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).
  32. Matthew 2:19 tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 1:20.
  33. Matthew 2:21 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s instructions.
  34. Matthew 2:22 sn Archelaus took after his father Herod the Great in terms of cruelty and ruthlessness, so Joseph was afraid to go there. After further direction in a dream, he went instead to Galilee.
  35. Matthew 2:22 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.
  36. Matthew 2:23 sn Nazareth was a very small village in the region of Galilee (Galilee lay north of Samaria and Judea). The town was located about 15 mi (25 km) west of the southern edge of the Sea of Galilee. According to Luke 1:26, Mary was living in Nazareth when the birth of Jesus was announced to her.
  37. Matthew 2:23 tn There is no expressed subject of the third person singular verb here; the pronoun “he” is implied. Instead of this pronoun the referent “Jesus” has been supplied in the text to clarify to whom this statement refers.
  38. Matthew 2:23 tn The Greek could be indirect discourse (as in the text), or direct discourse (“he will be called a Nazarene”). Judging by the difficulty of finding OT quotations (as implied in the plural “prophets”) to match the wording here, it appears that the author was using a current expression of scorn that conceptually (but not verbally) found its roots in the OT.
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