Genesis 33:1-20 
Context33:1 Jacob looked up 1 and saw that Esau was coming 2 along with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two female servants. 33:2 He put the servants and their children in front, with Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph behind them. 3 33:3 But Jacob 4 himself went on ahead of them, and he bowed toward the ground seven times as he approached 5 his brother. 33:4 But Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, hugged his neck, and kissed him. Then they both wept. 33:5 When Esau 6 looked up 7 and saw the women and the children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?” Jacob 8 replied, “The children whom God has graciously given 9 your servant.” 33:6 The female servants came forward with their children and bowed down. 10 33:7 Then Leah came forward with her children and they bowed down. Finally Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed down.
33:8 Esau 11 then asked, “What did you intend 12 by sending all these herds to meet me?” 13 Jacob 14 replied, “To find favor in your sight, my lord.” 33:9 But Esau said, “I have plenty, my brother. Keep what belongs to you.” 33:10 “No, please take them,” Jacob said. 15 “If I have found favor in your sight, accept 16 my gift from my hand. Now that I have seen your face and you have accepted me, 17 it is as if I have seen the face of God. 18 33:11 Please take my present 19 that was brought to you, for God has been generous 20 to me and I have all I need.” 21 When Jacob urged him, he took it. 22
33:12 Then Esau 23 said, “Let’s be on our way! 24 I will go in front of you.” 33:13 But Jacob 25 said to him, “My lord knows that the children are young, 26 and that I have to look after the sheep and cattle that are nursing their young. 27 If they are driven too hard for even a single day, all the animals will die. 33:14 Let my lord go on ahead of his servant. I will travel more slowly, at the pace of the herds and the children, 28 until I come to my lord at Seir.”
33:15 So Esau said, “Let me leave some of my men with you.” 29 “Why do that?” Jacob replied. 30 “My lord has already been kind enough to me.” 31
33:16 So that same day Esau made his way back 32 to Seir. 33:17 But 33 Jacob traveled to Succoth 34 where he built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place was called 35 Succoth. 36
33:18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped near 37 the city. 33:19 Then he purchased the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent; he bought it 38 from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money. 39 33:20 There he set up an altar and called it “The God of Israel is God.” 40
Mark 4:1-41
Context4:1 Again he began to teach by the lake. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there while 41 the whole crowd was on the shore by the lake. 4:2 He taught them many things in parables, 42 and in his teaching said to them: 4:3 “Listen! A sower went out to sow. 43 4:4 And as he sowed, some seed 44 fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 4:5 Other seed fell on rocky ground 45 where it did not have much soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep. 46 4:6 When the sun came up it was scorched, and because it did not have sufficient root, 47 it withered. 4:7 Other seed fell among the thorns, 48 and they grew up and choked it, 49 and it did not produce grain. 4:8 But 50 other seed fell on good soil and produced grain, sprouting and growing; some yielded thirty times as much, some sixty, and some a hundred times.” 4:9 And he said, “Whoever has ears to hear had better listen!” 51
4:10 When he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 4:11 He said to them, “The secret 52 of the kingdom of God has been given 53 to you. But to those outside, everything is in parables,
4:12 so that although they look they may look but not see,
and although they hear they may hear but not understand,
so they may not repent and be forgiven.” 54
4:13 He said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? Then 55 how will you understand any parable? 4:14 The sower sows the word. 4:15 These are the ones on the path where the word is sown: Whenever they hear, immediately Satan 56 comes and snatches the word 57 that was sown in them. 4:16 These are the ones sown on rocky ground: As soon as they hear the word, they receive it with joy. 4:17 But 58 they have no root in themselves and do not endure. 59 Then, when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately they fall away. 4:18 Others are the ones sown among thorns: They are those who hear the word, 4:19 but 60 worldly cares, the seductiveness of wealth, 61 and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, 62 and it produces nothing. 4:20 But 63 these are the ones sown on good soil: They hear the word and receive it and bear fruit, one thirty times as much, one sixty, and one a hundred.”
4:21 He also said to them, “A lamp 64 isn’t brought to be put under a basket 65 or under a bed, is it? Isn’t it to be placed on a lampstand? 4:22 For nothing is hidden except to be revealed, 66 and nothing concealed except to be brought to light. 4:23 If anyone has ears to hear, he had better listen!” 67 4:24 And he said to them, “Take care about what you hear. The measure you use will be the measure you receive, 68 and more will be added to you. 4:25 For whoever has will be given more, but 69 whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.” 70
4:26 He also said, “The kingdom of God is like someone who spreads seed on the ground. 4:27 He goes to sleep and gets up, night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 4:28 By itself the soil produces a crop, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. 4:29 And when the grain is ripe, he sends in the sickle 71 because the harvest has come.” 72
4:30 He also asked, “To what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to present it? 4:31 It is like a mustard seed 73 that when sown in the ground, even though it is the smallest of all the seeds in the ground – 4:32 when it is sown, it grows up, 74 becomes the greatest of all garden plants, and grows large branches so that the wild birds 75 can nest in its shade.” 76
4:33 So 77 with many parables like these, he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear. 4:34 He did not speak to them without a parable. But privately he explained everything to his own disciples.
4:35 On that day, when evening came, Jesus 78 said to his disciples, “Let’s go across to the other side of the lake.” 79 4:36 So 80 after leaving the crowd, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat, 81 and other boats were with him. 4:37 Now 82 a great windstorm 83 developed and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was nearly swamped. 4:38 But 84 he was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. They woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care that we are about to die?” 4:39 So 85 he got up and rebuked 86 the wind, and said to the sea, 87 “Be quiet! Calm down!” Then 88 the wind stopped, and it was dead calm. 4:40 And he said to them, “Why are you cowardly? Do you still not have faith?” 4:41 They were overwhelmed by fear and said to one another, “Who then is this? 89 Even the wind and sea obey him!” 90
Esther 9:1--10:3
Context9:1 In the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar), on its thirteenth day, the edict of the king and his law were to be executed. It was on this day that the enemies of the Jews had supposed that they would gain power over them. But contrary to expectations, the Jews gained power over their enemies. 9:2 The Jews assembled themselves in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to strike out against those who were seeking their harm. No one was able to stand before them, for dread of them fell on all the peoples. 9:3 All the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors and those who performed the king’s business were assisting the Jews, for the dread of Mordecai had fallen on them. 9:4 Mordecai was of high rank 91 in the king’s palace, and word about him was spreading throughout all the provinces. His influence 92 continued to become greater and greater.
9:5 The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, bringing death and destruction, and they did as they pleased with their enemies. 9:6 In Susa the citadel the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men. 9:7 In addition, they also killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 9:8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9:9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha, 9:10 the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not confiscate their property.
9:11 On that same day the number of those killed in Susa the citadel was brought to the king’s attention. 9:12 Then the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men and the ten sons of Haman! What then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? What is your request? It shall be given to you. What other petition do you have? It shall be done.”
9:13 Esther replied, “If the king is so inclined, let the Jews who are in Susa be permitted to act tomorrow also according to today’s law, and let them hang the ten sons of Haman on the gallows.”
9:14 So the king issued orders for this to be done. A law was passed in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged. 9:15 The Jews who were in Susa then assembled on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, and they killed three hundred men in Susa. But they did not confiscate their property.
9:16 The rest of the Jews who were throughout the provinces of the king assembled in order to stand up for themselves and to have rest from their enemies. They killed seventy-five thousand 93 of their adversaries, but they did not confiscate their property. 9:17 All of this happened on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. They then rested on the fourteenth day and made it a day for banqueting and happiness.
9:18 But the Jews who were in Susa assembled on the thirteenth and fourteenth days, and rested on the fifteenth, making it a day for banqueting and happiness. 9:19 This is why the Jews who are in the rural country – those who live in rural cities – set aside the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a holiday for happiness, banqueting, holiday, and sending gifts to one another.
9:20 Mordecai wrote these matters down and sent letters to all the Jews who were throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, 9:21 to have them observe the fourteenth and the fifteenth day of the month of Adar each year 9:22 as the time when the Jews gave themselves rest from their enemies – the month when their trouble was turned to happiness and their mourning to a holiday. These were to be days of banqueting, happiness, sending gifts to one another, and providing for the poor.
9:23 So the Jews committed themselves to continue what they had begun to do and to what Mordecai had written to them. 9:24 For Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised plans against the Jews to destroy them. He had cast pur (that is, the lot) in order to afflict and destroy them. 9:25 But when the matter came to the king’s attention, the king 94 gave written orders that Haman’s 95 evil intentions that he had devised against the Jews should fall on his own head. He and his sons were hanged on the gallows. 9:26 For this reason these days are known as Purim, after the name of pur. 9:27 Therefore, because of the account found in this letter and what they had faced in this regard and what had happened to them, the Jews established as binding on themselves, their descendants, and all who joined their company that they should observe these two days without fail, just as written and at the appropriate time on an annual basis. 9:28 These days were to be remembered and to be celebrated in every generation and in every family, every province, and every city. The Jews were not to fail to observe these days of Purim; the remembrance of them was not to cease among their descendants.
9:29 So Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew wrote with full authority to confirm this second 96 letter about Purim. 9:30 Letters were sent 97 to all the Jews in the hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the empire of Ahasuerus – words of true peace 98 – 9:31 to establish these days of Purim in their proper times, just as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had established, and just as they had established both for themselves and their descendants, matters pertaining to fasting and lamentation. 9:32 Esther’s command established these matters of Purim, and the matter was officially recorded. 99
10:1 King Ahasuerus then imposed forced labor on the land and on the coastlands of the sea. 10:2 Now all the actions carried out under his authority and his great achievements, along with an exact statement concerning the greatness of Mordecai, whom the king promoted, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Media and Persia? 10:3 Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Ahasuerus. He was the highest-ranking 100 Jew, and he was admired by his numerous relatives. 101 He worked enthusiastically 102 for the good of his people and was an advocate for the welfare of 103 all his descendants. 104
Romans 4:1-25
Context4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh, 105 has discovered regarding this matter? 106 4:2 For if Abraham was declared righteous 107 by the works of the law, he has something to boast about – but not before God. 4:3 For what does the scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited 108 to him as righteousness.” 109 4:4 Now to the one who works, his pay is not credited due to grace but due to obligation. 110 4:5 But to the one who does not work, but believes in the one who declares the ungodly righteous, 111 his faith is credited as righteousness.
4:6 So even David himself speaks regarding the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:
4:7 “Blessed 112 are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
4:8 blessed is the one 113 against whom the Lord will never count 114 sin.” 115
4:9 Is this blessedness 116 then for 117 the circumcision 118 or also for 119 the uncircumcision? For we say, “faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.” 120 4:10 How then was it credited to him? Was he circumcised at the time, or not? No, he was not circumcised but uncircumcised! 4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised, 121 so that he would become 122 the father of all those who believe but have never been circumcised, 123 that they too could have righteousness credited to them. 4:12 And he is also the father of the circumcised, 124 who are not only circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham possessed when he was still uncircumcised. 125
4:13 For the promise 126 to Abraham or to his descendants that he would inherit the world was not fulfilled through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 4:14 For if they become heirs by the law, faith is empty and the promise is nullified. 127 4:15 For the law brings wrath, because where there is no law there is no transgression 128 either. 4:16 For this reason it is by faith so that it may be by grace, 129 with the result that the promise may be certain to all the descendants – not only to those who are under the law, but also to those who have the faith of Abraham, 130 who is the father of us all 4:17 (as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”). 131 He is our father 132 in the presence of God whom he believed – the God who 133 makes the dead alive and summons the things that do not yet exist as though they already do. 134 4:18 Against hope Abraham 135 believed 136 in hope with the result that he became the father of many nations 137 according to the pronouncement, 138 “so will your descendants be.” 139 4:19 Without being weak in faith, he considered 140 his own body as dead 141 (because he was about one hundred years old) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 4:20 He 142 did not waver in unbelief about the promise of God but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God. 4:21 He was 143 fully convinced that what God 144 promised he was also able to do. 4:22 So indeed it was credited to Abraham 145 as righteousness.
4:23 But the statement it was credited to him 146 was not written only for Abraham’s 147 sake, 4:24 but also for our sake, to whom it will be credited, those who believe in the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 4:25 He 148 was given over 149 because of our transgressions and was raised for the sake of 150 our justification. 151
1 tn Heb “and Jacob lifted up his eyes.”
2 tn Or “and look, Esau was coming.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to view the scene through Jacob’s eyes.
3 sn This kind of ranking according to favoritism no doubt fed the jealousy over Joseph that later becomes an important element in the narrative. It must have been painful to the family to see that they were expendable.
4 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 tn Heb “until his drawing near unto his brother.” The construction uses the preposition with the infinitive construct to express a temporal clause.
6 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes.”
8 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
9 tn The Hebrew verb means “to be gracious; to show favor”; here it carries the nuance “to give graciously.”
10 tn Heb “and the female servants drew near, they and their children and they bowed down.”
11 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 tn Heb “Who to you?”
13 tn Heb “all this camp which I met.”
14 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
15 tn Heb “and Jacob said, ‘No, please.’” The words “take them” have been supplied in the translation for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse rearranged for stylistic reasons.
16 tn The form is the perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, expressing a contingent future nuance in the “then” section of the conditional sentence.
17 tn The verbal form is the preterite with a vav (ו) consecutive, indicating result here.
18 tn Heb “for therefore I have seen your face like seeing the face of God and you have accepted me.”
sn This is an allusion to the preceding episode (32:22-31) in which Jacob saw the face of God and realized his prayer was answered.
19 tn Heb “blessing.” It is as if Jacob is trying to repay what he stole from his brother twenty years earlier.
20 tn Or “gracious,” but in the specific sense of prosperity.
21 tn Heb “all.”
22 tn Heb “and he urged him and he took.” The referent of the first pronoun in the sequence (“he”) has been specified as “Jacob” in the translation for clarity.
23 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
24 tn Heb “let us travel and let us go.” The two cohortatives are used in combination with the sense, “let’s travel along, get going, be on our way.”
25 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
26 tn Heb “weak.”
27 tn Heb “and the sheep and the cattle nursing [are] upon me.”
28 tn Heb “and I, I will move along according to my leisure at the foot of the property which is before me and at the foot of the children.”
29 tn The cohortative verbal form here indicates a polite offer of help.
30 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Why this?’” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
31 tn Heb “I am finding favor in the eyes of my lord.”
32 tn Heb “returned on his way.”
33 tn The disjunctive clause contrasts Jacob’s action with Esau’s.
34 sn But Jacob traveled to Succoth. There are several reasons why Jacob chose not to go to Mt. Seir after Esau. First, as he said, his herds and children probably could not keep up with the warriors. Second, he probably did not fully trust his brother. The current friendliness could change, and he could lose everything. And third, God did tell him to return to his land, not Seir. But Jacob is still not able to deal truthfully, probably because of fear of Esau.
35 tn Heb “why he called.” One could understand “Jacob” as the subject of the verb, but it is more likely that the subject is indefinite, in which case the verb is better translated as passive.
36 sn The name Succoth means “shelters,” an appropriate name in light of the shelters Jacob built there for his livestock.
37 tn Heb “in front of.”
38 tn The words “he bought it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 19 is one long sentence.
39 tn The Hebrew word קְשִׂיטָה (qÿsitah) is generally understood to refer to a unit of money, but the value is unknown. (However, cf. REB, which renders the term as “sheep”).
40 tn Heb “God, the God of Israel.” Rather than translating the name, a number of modern translations merely transliterate it from the Hebrew as “El Elohe Israel” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB). It is not entirely clear how the name should be interpreted grammatically. One option is to supply an equative verb, as in the translation: “The God of Israel [is] God.” Another interpretive option is “the God of Israel [is] strong [or “mighty”].” Buying the land and settling down for a while was a momentous step for the patriarch, so the commemorative naming of the altar is significant.
41 tn Grk “and all the crowd.” The clause in this phrase, although coordinate in terms of grammar, is logically subordinate to the previous clause.
42 sn Though parables can contain a variety of figures of speech (cf. 2:19-22; 3:23-25; 4:3-9, 26-32; 7:15-17; 13:28), many times they are simply stories that attempt to teach spiritual truth (which is unknown to the hearers) by using a comparison with something known to the hearers. In general, parables usually advance a single idea, though there may be many parts and characters in a single parable and subordinate ideas may expand the main idea further. The beauty of using the parable as a teaching device is that it draws the listener into the story, elicits an evaluation, and demands a response.
43 sn A sower went out to sow. The background for this well-known parable, drawn from a typical scene in the Palestinian countryside, is a field through which a well worn path runs. Sowing would occur in late fall or early winter (October to December) in the rainy season, looking for sprouting in April or May and a June harvest. The use of seed as a figure for God’s giving life has OT roots (Isa 55:10-11). The point of the parable of the sower is to illustrate the various responses to the message of the kingdom of God (cf. 4:11).
44 tn Mark’s version of the parable, like Luke’s (cf. Luke 8:4-8), uses the collective singular to refer to the seed throughout, so singular pronouns have been used consistently throughout this parable in the English translation. However, the parallel account in Matt 13:1-9 begins with plural pronouns in v. 4 but then switches to the collective singular in v. 5 ff.
45 sn The rocky ground in Palestine would be a limestone base lying right under the soil.
46 tn Grk “it did not have enough depth of earth.”
47 tn Grk “it did not have root.”
48 sn Palestinian weeds like these thorns could grow up to six feet in height and have a major root system.
49 sn That is, crowded out the good plants.
50 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in the final stage of the parable.
51 tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:23; Luke 8:8, 14:35).
52 tn Grk “the mystery.”
sn The key term secret (μυστήριον, musthrion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17-23, 27-30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1-4; Heb 1:1-2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because it suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).
53 tn This is an example of a “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ExSyn 437-38).
54 sn A quotation from Isa 6:9-10. Thus parables both conceal or reveal depending on whether one is open to hearing what they teach.
55 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
56 sn Interestingly, the synoptic parallels each use a different word for Satan here: Matt 13:19 has “the evil one,” while Luke 8:12 has “the devil.” This illustrates the fluidity of the gospel tradition in often using synonyms at the same point of the parallel tradition.
57 sn The word of Jesus has the potential to save if it germinates in a person’s heart, something the devil is very much against.
58 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
59 tn Grk “are temporary.”
60 tn Grk “and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
61 tn Grk “the deceitfulness of riches.” Cf. BDAG 99 s.v. ἀπάτη 1, “the seduction which comes from wealth.”
62 sn That is, their concern for spiritual things is crowded out by material things.
63 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
64 sn The lamp is probably an ancient oil burning lamp or perhaps a candlestick. Jesus is comparing revelation to light, particularly the revelation of his ministry.
65 tn Or “a bowl”; this refers to any container for dry material of about eight liters (two gallons) capacity. It could be translated “basket, box, bowl” (L&N 6.151).
66 tn Or “disclosed.”
67 tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9; Luke 8:8, 14:35).
68 tn Grk “by [the measure] with which you measure it will be measured to you.”
69 tn Grk “and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
70 sn What he has will be taken from him. The meaning is that the one who accepts Jesus’ teaching concerning his person and the kingdom will receive a share in the kingdom now and even more in the future, but for the one who rejects Jesus’ words, the opportunity that that person presently possesses with respect to the kingdom will someday be taken away forever.
71 tn The Greek word εὐθύς (euqus, often translated “immediately” or “right away”) has not been translated here. It sometimes occurs with a weakened, inferential use (BDAG 406 s.v. 2), not contributing significantly to the flow of the narrative. For further discussion, see R. J. Decker, Temporal Deixis of the Greek Verb in the Gospel of Mark with Reference to Verbal Aspect (SBG 10), 73-77.
72 sn Because the harvest has come. This parable is found only in Mark (cf. Matt 13:24-30) and presents a complete picture of the coming of God’s kingdom: (1) sowing; (2) growth; (3) harvest. Some understand the parable as a reference to evangelism. While this is certainly involved, it does not seem to be the central idea. In contrast to the parable of the sower which emphasizes the quality of the different soils, this parable emphasizes the power of the seed to cause growth (with the clear implication that the mysterious growth of the kingdom is accomplished by God), apart from human understanding and observation.
73 sn Mustard seeds are known for their tiny size.
74 tn Mark 4:31-32 is fairly awkward in Greek. Literally the sentence reads as follows: “As a mustard seed, which when sown in the earth, being the smallest of all the seeds in the earth, and when it is sown, it grows up…” The structure has been rendered in more idiomatic English, although some of the awkward structure has been retained for rhetorical effect.
75 tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).
76 sn The point of the parable seems to be that while the kingdom of God may appear to have insignificant and unnoticeable beginnings (i.e., in the ministry of Jesus), it will someday (i.e., at the second advent) be great and quite expansive. The kingdom, however, is not to be equated with the church, but rather the church is an expression of the kingdom. Also, there is important OT background in the image of the mustard seed that grew and became a tree: Ezek 17:22-24 pictures the reemergence of the Davidic house where people can find calm and shelter. Like the mustard seed, it would start out small but grow to significant size.
77 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
78 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
79 tn The phrase “of the lake” is not in the Greek text but is clearly implied; it has been supplied here for clarity.
80 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the response to Jesus’ request.
81 tn It is possible that this prepositional phrase modifies “as he was,” not “they took him along.” The meaning would then be “they took him along in the boat in which he was already sitting” (see 4:1).
sn A boat that held all the disciples would be of significant size.
82 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
83 tn Or “a squall.”
sn The Sea of Galilee is located in a depression some 700 ft (200 m) below sea level and is surrounded by hills. Frequently a rush of wind and the right mix of temperatures can cause a storm to come suddenly on the lake. Storms on the Sea of Galilee were known for their suddenness and violence.
84 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
85 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
86 tn Or “commanded” (often with the implication of a threat, L&N 33.331).
87 sn Who has authority over the seas and winds is discussed in the OT: Ps 104:3; 135:7; 107:23-30. When Jesus rebuked the wind and the sea he was making a statement about who he was.
88 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
89 sn Jesus’ authority over creation raised a question for the disciples about who he was exactly (Who then is this?). This verse shows that the disciples followed Jesus even though they did not know all about him yet.
90 sn This section in Mark (4:35-5:43) contains four miracles: (1) the calming of the storm; (2) the exorcism of the demon-possessed man; (3) the giving of life to Jairus’ daughter; (4) the healing of the woman hemorrhaging for twelve years. All these miracles demonstrate Jesus’ right to proclaim the kingdom message and his sovereign authority over forces, directly or indirectly, hostile to the kingdom. The last three may have been brought together to show that Jesus had power over all defilement, since contact with graves, blood, or a corpse was regarded under Jewish law as causing a state of ritual uncleanness.
91 tn Heb “great”; NRSV “powerful”; NIV “prominent”; NCV “very important.”
92 tn Heb “the man Mordecai” (so NASB, NRSV).
93 tc For this number much of the Greek
94 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
95 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
96 tc The LXX and the Syriac Peshitta omit the word “second.”
97 tc The present translation is based on the Niphal form וַיּשָּׁלַח (vayyishalakh, “were sent”; so also NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT) rather than the reading of the MT וַיּשְׁלַח (vayyishlakh, Qal, “and he sent”). The subject of the MT verb would have to be Mordecai (cf. NAB, NIV, NCV), but this is problematic in light of v. 29, where both Esther and Mordecai are responsible for the letters.
98 tn Heb “peace and truth.” The expression is probably a hendiadys (see the note on 5:10 for an explanation of this figure).
99 tn Heb “written in the book” (so NASB); NIV, NLT “written down in the records”; NRSV “recorded in writing.”
100 tn Heb “great among the Jews” (so KJV, NASB); NIV “preeminent among the Jews”; NRSV “powerful among the Jews.”
101 tn Heb “brothers”; NASB “kinsmen”; NIV “fellow Jews.”
102 tn Heb “he was seeking”; NAB “as the promoter of his people’s welfare.”
103 tn Heb “he was speaking peace to”; NRSV “and interceded for the welfare of.”
104 sn A number of additions to the Book of Esther appear in the apocryphal (or deuterocanonical) writings. These additions supply further information about various scenes described in the canonical book and are interesting in their own right. However, they were never a part of the Hebrew Bible. The placement of this additional material in certain Greek manuscripts of the Book of Esther may be described as follows. At the beginning of Esther there is an account (= chapter 11) of a dream in which Mordecai is warned by God of a coming danger for the Jews. In this account two great dragons, representing Mordecai and Haman, prepare for conflict. But God responds to the prayers of his people, and the crisis is resolved. This account is followed by another one (= chapter 12) in which Mordecai is rewarded for disclosing a plot against the king’s life. After Esth 3:13 there is a copy of a letter from King Artaxerxes authorizing annihilation of the Jews (= chapter 13). After Esth 4:17 the account continues with a prayer of Mordecai (= part of chapter 13), followed by a prayer of Esther (= chapter 14), and an account which provides details about Esther’s appeal to the king in behalf of her people (= chapter 15). After Esth 8:12 there is a copy of a letter from King Artaxerxes in which he denounces Haman and his plot and authorizes his subjects to assist the Jews (= chapter 16). At the end of the book, following Esth 10:3, there is an addition which provides an interpretation to Mordecai’s dream, followed by a brief ascription of genuineness to the entire book (= chapter 11).
105 tn Or “according to natural descent” (BDAG 916 s.v. σάρξ 4).
106 tn Grk “has found?”
107 tn Or “was justified.”
108 tn The term λογίζομαι (logizomai) occurs 11 times in this chapter (vv. 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 22, 23, 24). In secular usage it could (a) refer to deliberations of some sort, or (b) in commercial dealings (as virtually a technical term) to “reckoning” or “charging up a debt.” See H. W. Heidland, TDNT 4:284, 290-92.
109 sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
110 tn Grk “not according to grace but according to obligation.”
111 tn Or “who justifies the ungodly.”
112 tn Or “Happy.”
113 tn The word for “man” or “individual” here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” However, as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, here it is “equivalent to τὶς someone, a person.”
114 tn The verb translated “count” here is λογίζομαι (logizomai). It occurs eight times in Rom 4:1-12, including here, each time with the sense of “place on someone’s account.” By itself the word is neutral, but in particular contexts it can take on a positive or negative connotation. The other occurrences of the verb have been translated using a form of the English verb “credit” because they refer to a positive event: the application of righteousness to the individual believer. The use here in v. 8 is negative: the application of sin. A form of the verb “credit” was not used here because of the positive connotations associated with that English word, but it is important to recognize that the same concept is used here as in the other occurrences.
115 sn A quotation from Ps 32:1-2.
116 tn Or “happiness.”
117 tn Grk “upon.”
118 sn See the note on “circumcision” in 2:25.
119 tn Grk “upon.”
120 sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
121 tn Grk “of the faith, the one [existing] in uncircumcision.”
122 tn Grk “that he might be,” giving the purpose of v. 11a.
123 tn Grk “through uncircumcision.”
124 tn Grk “the father of circumcision.”
125 tn Grk “the ‘in-uncircumcision faith’ of our father Abraham.”
126 sn Although a singular noun, the promise is collective and does not refer only to Gen 12:7, but as D. Moo (Romans 1-8 [WEC], 279) points out, refers to multiple aspects of the promise to Abraham: multiplied descendants (Gen 12:2), possession of the land (Gen 13:15-17), and his becoming the vehicle of blessing to all people (Gen 12:13).
127 tn Grk “rendered inoperative.”
128 tn Or “violation.”
129 tn Grk “that it might be according to grace.”
130 tn Grk “those who are of the faith of Abraham.”
131 tn Verses 16-17 comprise one sentence in Greek, but this has been divided into two sentences due to English requirements.
sn A quotation from Gen 17:5. The quotation forms a parenthesis in Paul’s argument.
132 tn The words “He is our father” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to show that they resume Paul’s argument from 16b. (It is also possible to supply “Abraham had faith” here [so REB], taking the relative clause [“who is the father of us all”] as part of the parenthesis, and making the connection back to “the faith of Abraham,” but such an option is not as likely [C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:243].)
133 tn “The God” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity.
134 tn Or “calls into existence the things that do not exist.” The translation of ὡς ὄντα (Jw" onta) allows for two different interpretations. If it has the force of result, then creatio ex nihilo is in view and the variant rendering is to be accepted (so C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:244). A problem with this view is the scarcity of ὡς plus participle to indicate result (though for the telic idea with ὡς plus participle, cf. Rom 15:15; 1 Thess 2:4). If it has a comparative force, then the translation given in the text is to be accepted: “this interpretation fits the immediate context better than a reference to God’s creative power, for it explains the assurance with which God can speak of the ‘many nations’ that will be descended from Abraham” (D. Moo, Romans [NICNT], 282; so also W. Sanday and A. C. Headlam, Romans [ICC], 113). Further, this view is in line with a Pauline idiom, viz., verb followed by ὡς plus participle (of the same verb or, in certain contexts, its antonym) to compare present reality with what is not a present reality (cf. 1 Cor 4:7; 5:3; 7:29, 30 (three times), 31; Col 2:20 [similarly, 2 Cor 6:9, 10]).
135 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
136 tn Grk “who against hope believed,” referring to Abraham. The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
137 sn A quotation from Gen 17:5.
138 tn Grk “according to that which had been spoken.”
139 sn A quotation from Gen 15:5.
140 tc Most
141 tc ‡ Most witnesses (א A C D Ψ 33 Ï bo) have ἤδη (hdh, “already”) at this point in v. 19. But B F G 630 1739 1881 pc lat sa lack it. Since it appears to heighten the style of the narrative and since there is no easy accounting for an accidental omission, it is best to regard the shorter text as original. NA27 includes the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.
142 tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here.
143 tn Grk “and being.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
144 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
145 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
146 tn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
147 tn Grk “his”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
148 tn Grk “who,” referring to Jesus. The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
149 tn Or “handed over.”
sn The verb translated given over (παραδίδωμι, paradidwmi) is also used in Rom 1:24, 26, 28 to describe God giving people over to sin. But it is also used frequently in the gospels to describe Jesus being handed over (or delivered up, betrayed) by sinful men for crucifixion (cf., e.g., Matt 26:21; 27:4; Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:33; 15:15; Luke 20:20; 22:24; 24:7). It is probable that Paul has both ideas in mind: Jesus was handed over by sinners, but even this betrayal was directed by the Father for our sake (because of our transgressions).
150 tn Grk “because of.” However, in light of the unsatisfactory sense that a causal nuance would here suggest, it has been argued that the second διά (dia) is prospective rather than retrospective (D. Moo, Romans [NICNT], 288-89). The difficulty of this interpretation is the structural balance that both διά phrases provide (“given over because of our transgressions…raised because of our justification”). However the poetic structure of this verse strengthens the likelihood that the clauses each have a different force.
151 sn Many scholars regard Rom 4:25 to be poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage.
