"Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian" (Ex. 3:1)—We are informed in verses 18-21 of the preceding chapter that the name borne by Moses' father-in-law was Reuel; but this apparent contradiction is readily explained by the fact that many Biblical characters—such as Daniel in the Old Testament (Dan. 1:7) and Paul in the New (Acts 13:9)—bore two names (cf. Hastings Dictionary of the Bible, p. 465). Others, however, contend that the word rendered "father in law" had, as in Arabic, the more general sense of "a relative by marriage," and that while Reuel was indeed Moses' father-in-law, Jethro was Reuel's son, and so brother-in-law to Moses (cf. Rawlinson: "Moses: His Life and Times," p. 66).

"The backside of the desert" (Ex. 3:1)—Since it was customary among the Jews to face the east when computing their directions, the "backside" or "back" came to be used as a synonym for the "west"; moreover, the Hebrew "midbar" means "wilderness" rather than barren "desert," and is often used, as here, to denote great "tracts of land, used for the pasturage of flocks and herds" (Brown, Driver, Briggs: Hebrew Lexicon, p. 184). Consequently Moffatt translates: "The western side of the prairie." It may be added that since "the land of Midian" (Ex. 2:15) is supposed to have lain to the east of the peninsula of Sinai, close to the shore of the Gulf of Akabah, the eastern arm of the Red Sea, the reference to Mount Horeb as lying towards the west (Ex. 3:1), is strictly in accord with the geography of that region.

"The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death" (Rom. 8:2)—Weymouth, by a slight change of punctuation, offers the interesting rendering: "The Spirit's law—life in Christ Jesus—has set me free from the law of sin and death." Moffatt suggests: "The law of the Spirit brings the life which is in Christ Jesus, and that law has set me free...." Then Goodspeed, reading "you" instead of "me," translates: "For the lifegiving law of the Spirit through Christ Jesus has freed you from the law of sin and death."

"Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true" (John 8:13)—The verb translated "bear record" means more literally "to bear witness" or "testify," and the noun rendered "record" means more exactly "witness or testimony." Goodspeed translates: "You are testifying to yourself, your testimony is not true;" and Moffatt: "You are testifying to yourself; your evidence is not valid;" while Weymouth has: "You are giving evidence about yourself, ... your evidence is not valid."

"Ye judge after the flesh" (John 8:15)—Various renderings of the Greek phrase "kata ten sarka" (literally, "after [or in accordance with] the flesh") are possible, especially since "sarka" is often used to denote "mere human nature, the earthly nature of man apart from divine influence" (Thayer: Greek Lexicon, p. 571). Hence we might render: "You judge from a material basis." Moffatt translates: "You judge by the outside;" Weymouth: "You judge according to appearances;" and Goodspeed: "You judge by material standards."

"Do ye look on things after the outward appearance?" (II Cor. 10:7)—The Greek phrase "ta kata prosopon" (here rendered "things after the outward appearance") can also be translated, rather more literally, "the things before the face, i.e. open, known to all" (Thayer, op. cit., p. 551). Goodspeed's rendering is: "You look at things externally."

"He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (II Cor. 10:17)—The Greek verb "kauchaomai," here twice translated "glory," means literally to "boast" (cf. Abbott-Smith: Greek Lexicon, p. 243). Thus Weymouth has: "Whoever boasts, let his boast be in the Lord;" and Goodspeed: "Let the man who boasts, boast about the Lord" (cf. Jer. 9:24).

"What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee" (Ps. 56:3)—Literally, "The day I am afraid, I trust [or "will trust"] in thee;" so also Moffatt: "The day I, am afraid, I put my trust in thee." Smith, however, translates: "Far away is the day when I fear, for I trust in thee;" while the Septuagint translators, evidently rendering from a variant text, suggest: "They shall be afraid; but I will trust in thee."

"In God will I praise his word" (Ps. 56:4)—The Hebrew word "dabar," often translated "word," as here, has a wide variety of meanings which include "matter, affair, business," besides " 'cause, case' for legal investigation" (Brown, etc., op. cit., p. 183), while the preposition rendered "in" can mean "with, through, by means of, by the aid of" (ibid., p. 89). Thus Moffatt is justified in rendering: "By God's help I will maintain my cause" (reading "my" instead of "his" on the evidence of the Septuagint).

"In Solomon's porch" (Acts 5:12)—It seems that "Solomon's porch" was some sort of colonnade or portico which ran along the east side of the temple enclosure (Hastings: op. cit., p. 739). According to a Jewish tradition, recorded by the historian Josephus, who himself lived in the first century, A. D., it actually went back to the time of Solomon, and had thus "survived the various destructions and rebuildings" of the temple first erected by that famous ruler (see Plummer: St. John, p. 219).

"All that dwelt at Lydda and Saron" (Acts 9:35)—The Revised Version appears to express the meaning more correctly when it reads, "All that dwelt at Lydda and in Sharon." Lydda was a Judean town situated in the fertile plain of Sharon and about ten miles southeast of the port of Joppa, mentioned in verses 36ff (cf. Hastings: op. cit., III, p. 131).