¹ sn Ezekiel’s contemporary, Jeremiah, also stressed the importance of obedience to the Sabbath law (Jer 17).

¹ sn The name given to the place, Hill of the Foreskins was an obvious reminder of this important event.

² tn Heb “and he, divining, divines with it.” The infinitive absolute is emphatic, stressing the importance of the cup to Joseph.

¹ sn The gate. In an ancient Near Eastern city the gate complex was the location for conducting important public business.

³ tn The disjunctive clause draws attention to an important fact: He may have crossed the stream, but he was limping.

³ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.

¹ tn The disjunctive clause describes an important circumstance accompanying the birth. Whereas Esau was passive at birth, Jacob was active.

¹ tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause introduces the audience to Laban, who will eventually play an important role in the unfolding story.

⁴ tn The disjunctive clause gives important information parenthetical in nature—the promised land was occupied by Canaanites.

³ tn Heb “who makes himself out to be important,” “who feigns importance,” or “to boast.” The verb is a Hitpael participle from כָּבֵד (kaved), “to be weighty; to be honored; to be important”). See BDB 458 s.v. כָּבֵד Hitp.2 and HALOT 456 s.v. כָּבֵד.

⁴ sn The verbs “collected…and blessed” emphasize the continuing effect of the past actions, i.e., Melchizedek’s importance.

² sn This comparison is somewhat awkward to express in English, but it reflects an important element in the argument of Hebrews: the superiority of Jesus Christ.

³ sn Mitylene was the most important city on the island of Lesbos in the Aegean Sea. It was about 44 mi (70 km) from Assos.

² sn The iron gate shows how important security was here. This door was more secure than one made of wood (which would be usual).

² sn This is the one time in all the gospels that a figure in a parable is mentioned by name. It will become important later in the account.

¹ sn It is important to note that the following remarks are not just to disciples, but to the large crowds who were following Jesus.

³ sn Hearing and doing the word of God is another important NT theme: Luke 6:47-49; Jas 1:22-25.

² sn Mention of the heart shows that Jesus is not interested in what is done, but why. Motives are more important than actions for him.

³ tn Or “town.” The translation “city” is used here because of its collocation with “of David,” suggesting its importance, though not its size.

⁴ sn Reference is made to incantations and amulets, both of which were important in Mesopotamian religion. They were used to ward off danger and demons.