² tn Heb “hold back with you”; perhaps “hold back for yourself” (cf. NRSV “keep for yourself”).

² tn Heb “and my statutes you shall keep [or “watch; guard”] to walk in them.”

² tn Heb “he was not keeping it” or perhaps guarding or watching it (referring to the ox).

¹ tn The verb שָׁמַר (shamar) is repeated twice in this line but with two different senses, creating a polysemantic wordplay: “he who obeys/keeps (ֹֹשֹמֵר, shomer) the commandment safeguards/keeps (שֹׁמֵר, shomer) his life.”

² tn Heb “who keeps covenant and loyalty.” The syndetic construction of בְּרִית (b^erit) and חֶסֶד (khesed) should be understood not as “covenant” plus “loyalty” but as an adverbial construction in which חֶסֶד (“loyalty”) modifies the verb שָׁמַר (shamar, “keeps”).

¹ tn The covenant duties begin with this command to “keep well” what is being commanded. The Hebrew expression is “keep for you”; the preposition and the suffix form the ethical dative, adding strength to the imperative.

⁴ tn The words “hold to” are implied as a repetition of the participle translated “keep” (οἱ τηροῦντες, hoi tērountes).

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” in keeping with the parenthetical nature of this remark.

³ tn Here “and” has been supplied between the last two elements in the series in keeping with English style.

² tn Grk “what this parable might be” (an optative after a secondary tense, in keeping with good Koine style).

⁶ tn Grk “kissed his feet,” but this has been replaced by the pronoun “them” in keeping with contemporary English style.

² tn Heb “the wisdom of their wise ones will perish, the discernment of their discerning ones will keep hidden.”

¹ tn Heb “forever I will keep for him my loyal love and will make my covenant secure for him.”

² tn Heb “and until then, the majority of them were keeping the charge of the house of Saul.”

² tc In keeping with the form of the name in v. 15, the translation deletes the “and” found in the MT.

¹ tn Heb “Eli.” The pronoun (“he”) has been used in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.

¹ tn Heb “the Lord.” The pronoun has been used in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style to avoid redundancy.

¹ tn Heb “will keep with you the covenant and loyalty.” On the construction used here, see v. 9.

³ tn Heb “he has.” This has been converted to first person in the translation in keeping with English style.

¹ tn Heb “This is my covenant that you must keep between me and you and your descendants after you.”