¹ tn Heb “a man by his own standard.”

³ tn Or “sins,” focusing on a violation of moral standards.

² tn Or “standard of justice.” See Ezek 7:27.

¹ tn Grk “each received a denarius.” See the note on the phrase “standard wage” in v. 2.

¹ tn Heb “a regulation of one”; KJV, ASV “one manner of law”; NASB “one standard.”

² sn The way probably refers here to God’s moral and ethical standards and requirements (see v. 10).

² tn Heb “the River” (also in v. 24). This is the standard designation for the Euphrates River in biblical Hebrew.

¹ tn Here and throughout the line is literally “[under] the standard of the camp of Reuben…according to their divisions.”

³ tn The sentence actually has “[those camping…are] the standard of the camp of Judah according to their divisions.”

³ sn See Lev 15:19-24 for the standard purity regulations for a woman’s menstrual period.

⁶ tn Heb “to make small the ephah and to make great the shekel.” The “ephah” was a unit of dry measure used to determine the quantity purchased, while the “shekel” was a standard weight used to determine the purchase price. By using a smaller than standard ephah and a heavier than standard shekel, these merchants were able to increase their profit (“sell less for a higher price”) by cheating the buyer.

¹ tn Grk “forty less one”; this was a standard sentence. “Lashes” is supplied to clarify for the modern reader what is meant.

⁴ sn Verse 41 in the English text is included as part of verse 40 in the standard critical editions of the Greek NT.

³ sn The greeting used by the soldiers, “Hail, King of the Jews!”, is a mockery based on the standard salutation for the Roman emperor, “Ave, Caesar!” (“Hail to Caesar!”).

³ sn Merchants would use a smaller than standard measure so they could give the customer less than he thought he was paying for.

⁴ tn Aram “60 cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 inches for the standard cubit, the image would be 90 feet (27.4 m) high.

⁵ tn Aram “6 cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 inches for the standard cubit, the image would be 9 feet (2.74 m) wide.

² sn In this verse the prophet denounces the perversion of moral standards. Darkness and bitterness are metaphors for evil; light and sweetness symbolize uprightness.

² tn Heb “his ways.” In this context God’s “ways” are the standards of moral conduct he decrees that people should live by.

² tn Heb “will grow fat.” Drawing on the standard comparison of fatness and abundance (Deut 32:15), the term means “become rich, prosperous.”