Discovery BoxMatthew 2:13 
Context2:13 After they had gone, an 1 angel of the Lord 2 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 3 is going to look for the child to kill him.”
Matthew 3:11
Context3:11 “I baptize you with water, for repentance, but the one coming after me is more powerful than I am – I am not worthy 4 to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 5
Matthew 12:45
Context12:45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, so 6 the last state of that person is worse than the first. It will be that way for this evil generation as well!”
Matthew 17:20
Context17:20 He told them, “It was because of your little faith. I tell you the truth, 7 if you have faith the size of 8 a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; nothing 9 will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 18:8
Context18:8 If 10 your hand or your foot causes you to sin, 11 cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than to have 12 two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.
Matthew 21:32
Context21:32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe. Although 13 you saw this, you did not later change your minds 14 and believe him.
Matthew 23:23
Context23:23 “Woe to you, experts in the law 15 and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth 16 of mint, dill, and cumin, 17 yet you neglect what is more important in the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You 18 should have done these things without neglecting the others.
1 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).
2 tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 1:20.
3 sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1. Herod the Great was particularly ruthless regarding the succession to his throne.
4 tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”
sn The humility of John is evident in the statement I am not worthy. This was considered one of the least worthy tasks of a slave, and John did not consider himself worthy to do even that for the one to come, despite the fact he himself was a prophet.
5 sn With the Holy Spirit and fire. There are differing interpretations for this phrase regarding the number of baptisms and their nature. (1) Some see one baptism here, and this can be divided further into two options. (a) The baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire could refer to the cleansing, purifying work of the Spirit in the individual believer through salvation and sanctification, or (b) it could refer to two different results of Christ’s ministry: Some accept Christ and are baptized with the Holy Spirit, but some reject him and receive judgment. (2) Other interpreters see two baptisms here: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the salvation Jesus brings at his first advent, in which believers receive the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire refers to the judgment Jesus will bring upon the world at his second coming. One must take into account both the image of fire and whether individual or corporate baptism is in view. A decision is not easy on either issue. The image of fire is used to refer to both eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 25:41) and the power of the Lord’s presence to purge and cleanse his people (e.g., Isa 4:4-5). The pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost, a fulfillment of this prophecy no matter which interpretation is taken, had both individual and corporate dimensions. It is possible that since Holy Spirit and fire are governed by a single preposition in Greek, the one-baptism view may be more likely, but this is not certain. Simply put, there is no consensus view in scholarship at this time on the best interpretation of this passage.
6 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the concluding point of the story.
7 tn Grk “For truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.
8 tn Grk “faith as,” “faith like.”
9 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
10 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
11 sn In Greek there is a wordplay that is difficult to reproduce in English here. The verb translated “causes…to sin” (σκανδαλίζω, skandalizw) comes from the same root as the word translated “stumbling blocks” (σκάνδαλον, skandalon) in the previous verse.
12 tn Grk “than having.”
13 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
14 sn The word translated change your minds is the same verb used in v. 29 (there translated had a change of heart). Jesus is making an obvious comparison here, in which the religious leaders are viewed as the disobedient son.
15 tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.
16 tn Or “you tithe mint.”
17 sn Cumin (alternately spelled cummin) was an aromatic herb native to the Mediterranean region. Its seeds were used for seasoning.
18 tc ‡ Many witnesses (B C K L W Δ 0102 33 565 892 pm) have δέ (de, “but”) after ταῦτα (tauta, “these things”), while many others lack it (א D Γ Θ Ë1,13 579 700 1241 1424 pm). Since asyndeton was relatively rare in Koine Greek, the conjunction may be an intentional alteration, and is thus omitted from the present translation. NA27 includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.
