"I will publish the name of the LORD" (Deut. 32:3)—Among the Jews the term "shem" (meaning literally "name") was very often employed as equivalent to "character" or "nature," much in the same way that we, in English, speak of a man's "good name" in the sense of his "reputation" or "reputed character." Moffatt suggests: "I proclaim what the Eternal is."

"A God of truth and without iniquity" (Deut. 32:4)—The Hebrew term here rendered "truth" means literally "firmness, steadfastness, fidelity"; while other possible renderings are "faithfulness, honesty, security," in addition, of course, to "truth." In Habakkuk 2:4 the word is translated "faith." In Deuteronomy 32:4 the American Standard Version has: "faithfulness."

"Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending" (Rev. 1:8)—The book of Revelation was written in Greek, and since "Alpha" and "Omega" are the first and last letters, respectively, of the Greek alphabet, it is readily seen how they could be used metaphorically with reference to "the beginning and the ending."

"I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways" (Isa. 45:13)—The Hebrew word translated "direct" has the primary meaning of "make smooth or straight," but is sometimes employed in the sense of "lead straight along," and so "direct." Smith prefers: "All his ways will I level;" while the Revised Version has: "make straight."

"Man became a living soul" (Gen. 2:7)—The Hebrew term which is here translated "soul" is used in a number of different senses, according to the context in which it is found, and can mean not only "soul" or "life," but also "self, person, appetite, desire," and so forth.

"The LORD God . . . made . . . a woman, and brought her unto the man" (Gen. 2:22)—The word here literally translated "the man" is "haadam," which, in the following verse and in many other passages, is rendered "Adam" in our Common Version. It may be noted that Moffatt, Smith, and other modern translators retain the rendering "man" or "the man" throughout, instead of using the form "Adam," which is simply a transliteration from the Hebrew.

"The serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field" (Gen. 3:1)—The word translated "subtil" is used in various senses according to its context. It can mean "prudent," as in Proverbs 12:23, or "shrewd," as well as "subtle" or "crafty." Compare Jesus' advice to his followers that they should be "wise as serpents" (Matt. 10:16).

"All cattle" (Gen. 3:14)—The Hebrew word "behemah," while sometimes meaning "cattle," in the more restricted sense of the term, is often used in a wider meaning to refer to all sorts of living creatures other than man, and could thus include the serpent. Moffatt translates: "all creatures"; and Smith: "all animals."

"The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free" (Rom. 8:2)—Moffatt renders: "The law of the Spirit brings the life which is in Christ Jesus, and that law has set me free;" while Weymouth (Fifth Edition), accepting a slight change in the punctuation of the verse, has: "The Spirit's law—life in Christ Jesus—has set me free from the law of sin and death."

"Wisdom crieth without" (Prov. 1:20)—The word which is here translated "wisdom" is really in the plural (literally, "wisdoms"), a fact which has the effect of intensifying the meaning of the word, in accord with a familiar Hebrew idiom. This explains the note found in the margin of the Authorized Version: "Wisdoms, i.e. Excellent wisdom."

"Art thou he that should come?" (Luke 7:19, 20)—The words rendered "he that should come" are "ho erchomenos," literally, "the coming one," and so "he that cometh" (compare also John 1:15). Scholars contend that this was one of the regular phrases used by the Jews when referring to the Messiah; indeed, in the Septuagint version of Psalms 118:29 we find the words: "Blessed is 'ho erchomenos' (the Coming One) in the name of the Lord."

"How much then is a man better than a sheep?" (Matt. 12:12)—The Greek verb which is here rendered "be better than" has the more literal sense of "differ from"; though it was often used to express a difference in value. Hence Moffatt translates: "How much more is a man worth than a sheep?" Weymouth has: "Is not a man, however, worth far more than a sheep?"

"A desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida" (Luke 9:10)—This Bethsaida was more exactly described as Bethsaida Julias, and was situated to the north and slightly to the east of the Sea of Galilee, outside the territory of Herod (compare verse 9), and should be distinguished from the Galilean Bethsaida, the home of Peter and Andrew, which was on the northwestern shore of the Galilean lake, and close to Capernaum.

"His raiment was white and glistering" (Luke 9:29)—The term rendered "glistering" comes from a verb which means literally "to flash out like lightning," and so "to shine or be radiant." A verb from the same root is used by Paul to describe the dazzling light which shone upon him at the moment of his conversion on the Damascus road (Acts 22:6). Goodspeed renders: "His clothes turned dazzling white."