² tn Heb “brothers” (so NASB, NIV); NRSV “Your own people”; NLT “Your close relatives.”

³ sn These two troubling types, the slacker and the destroyer, are closely related.

² tn Heb “do not let the well close its mouth upon me.”

² sn Wickedness and destruction. These terms are also closely associated in Ps 7:14.

⁴ tn Heb “and thus you may stay close with.” The imperfect has a permissive nuance here.

¹ sn On the close relationship between Ishmaelites (v. 25) and Midianites, see Judg 8:24.

² tn Or “sincerity.” The two terms translated “pure motives” (ἁπλότης, haplotēs) and “sincerity” (εἰλικρίνεια, eilikrineia) are close synonyms.

³ sn A quotation from Ps 62:12; Prov 24:12; a close approximation to Matt 16:27.

⁵ sn Watching…closely is a graphic term meaning to lurk and watch; see Luke 11:53-54.

¹ sn That is, an expert in the interpretation of the Mosaic law. They worked closely with the Pharisees.

¹ tn Grk “And closing.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

¹ tn The verb could be understood as a precative (“Hear my plea”) parallel to the following volitive verb, “do not close.”

¹ tn Heb “in his bosom” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV), an expression which reflects closeness and protective care.

² tn Instead of צָר (tsar, “closely”) the LXX has צֹר (tsor, “stone”) to say that the seal was rock hard.

⁴ tn This Hebrew word literally means “to bow oneself close to the ground.” It often means “to worship.”

² tn Heb had completely closed up every womb.” In the Hebrew text infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.

¹ sn The Arvadites lived in the city Arvad, located on an island near the mainland close to the river El Kebir.

⁴ sn The imagery here suggests that the things close to the sinners are contaminated by them, presumably during the process of sinning.

² tn On this use of ἐργασία (ergasia), see BDAG 390 s.v. 4. It is often the case that destructive practices and commerce are closely tied together.

² tn Grk “in the bosom of” (an idiom for closeness or nearness; cf. L&N 34.18; BDAG 556 s.v. κόλπος 1).