New Testament in a Year

Footnotes

1. Romans 9:16 sn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
2. Romans 9:16 tn Grk “So then, [it does] not [depend] on the one who desires nor on the one who runs.”
3. Romans 9:17 sn Paul uses a typical rabbinic formula here in which the OT scriptures are figuratively portrayed as speaking to Pharaoh. What he means is that the scripture he cites refers (or can be applied) to Pharaoh.
4. Romans 9:17 sn A quotation from Exod 9:16.
5. Romans 9:18 sn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
6. Romans 9:18 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7. Romans 9:18 tn Grk “So then, he has mercy on whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires.”
8. Romans 9:20 tn Grk “O man.”
9. Romans 9:20 tn Grk “On the contrary, O man, who are you to talk back to God?”
10. Romans 9:20 sn A quotation from Isa 29:16; 45:9.
11. Romans 9:21 tn Grk “Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make from the same lump.”
12. Romans 9:21 tn Grk “one vessel for honor and another for dishonor.”
13. Romans 9:22 tn Grk “vessels.” This is the same Greek word used in v. 21.
14. Romans 9:22 tn Or “vessels destined for wrath.” The genitive ὀργῆς (orgēs) could be taken as a genitive of destination.
15. Romans 9:22 tn Or possibly “objects of wrath that have fit themselves for destruction.” The form of the participle could be taken either as a passive or middle (reflexive). ExSyn 417-18 argues strongly for the passive sense (which is followed in the translation), stating that “the middle view has little to commend it.” First, καταρτίζω (katartizō) is nowhere else used in the NT as a direct or reflexive middle (a usage which, in any event, is quite rare in the NT). Second, the lexical force of this verb, coupled with the perfect tense, suggests something of a “done deal” (against some commentaries that see these vessels as ready for destruction yet still able to avert disaster). Third, the potter-clay motif seems to have one point: The potter prepares the clay.
16. Romans 9:23 tn Grk “vessels.” This is the same Greek word used in v. 21.
17. Romans 9:25 tn Grk “and her who was not beloved, ‘Beloved.’”
18. Romans 9:25 sn A quotation from Hos 2:23.
19. Romans 9:26 tn Grk “And it will be in the very place.”
20. Romans 9:26 sn A quotation from Hos 1:10.
21. Romans 9:27 tn Grk “sons.”
22. Romans 9:28 tc In light of the interpretive difficulty of this verse, a longer reading seems to have been added to clarify the meaning. The addition, in the middle of the sentence, makes the whole verse read as follows: “For he will execute his sentence completely and quickly in righteousness, because the Lord will do it quickly on the earth.” The shorter reading is found largely in Alexandrian mss (P⁴⁶ א* A B 6 1506 1739 1881 co), while the longer reading is found principally in Western and Byzantine mss (א² D F G Ψ 33 1175 1241 1505 2464 M lat). The longer reading follows Isa 10:22-23 (LXX) verbatim, while Paul in the previous verse quoted the LXX loosely. This suggests the addition was made by a copyist trying to make sense out of a difficult passage rather than by the author himself. tn There is a wordplay in Greek (in both the LXX and here) on the phrase translated “completely and quickly” (συντελῶν καὶ συντέμνων, suntelōn kai suntemnōn). These participles are translated as adverbs for smoothness; a more literal (and more cumbersome) rendering would be: “The Lord will act by closing the account [or completing the sentence], and by cutting short the time.” The interpretation of this text is notoriously difficult. Cf. BDAG 975 s.v. συντέμνω.sn A modified quotation from Isa 10:22-23. Since it is not exact, it has been printed as italics only.
23. Romans 9:29 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
24. Romans 9:29 tn Traditionally, “Lord of Hosts”; or “Lord Sabaoth,” which means “Lord of the [heavenly] armies,” sometimes translated more generally as “Lord Almighty.”
25. Romans 9:29 sn A quotation from Isa 1:9.
26. Romans 9:31 tn Or “who pursued.” The participle could be taken adverbially or adjectivally.
27. Romans 9:31 tn Or “a legal righteousness,” that is, a righteousness based on law. This translation would treat the genitive δικαιοσύνης (dikaiosunēs) as an attributed genitive (see ExSyn 89-91).
28. Romans 9:31 tn Grk “has not attained unto the law.”
29. Romans 9:32 tn Grk “Why? Because not by faith but as though by works.” The verb (“they pursued [it]”) is to be supplied from the preceding verse for the sake of English style; yet a certain literary power is seen in Paul’s laconic style.
30. Romans 9:32 tc Most mss, especially the later ones (א² D Ψ 33 1175 1241 1505 2464 M sy), read νόμου (nomou, “of the law”) here, echoing Paul’s usage in Rom 3:20, 28 and elsewhere. The qualifying phrase is lacking in א* A B F G 6 629 630 1739 1881 lat co. The longer reading thus is weaker externally and internally, apparently being motivated by a need to clarify.tn Grk “but as by works.”
31. Romans 9:32 tn Grk “the stone of stumbling.”
32. Romans 9:33 tn Grk “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.”
33. Romans 9:33 sn A quotation from Isa 28:16; 8:14.