HEB 4:12 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 4:1–13: We must have faith in God and enter his rest

The word “rest” is used in 4:1, and it is the important topic that connects chapter 4 to chapter 3.It is the link between chapters 3 and 4, just as 2:1 was the link between chapter 1 and chapter 2, and 3:1 was a link between chapter 2 and chapter 3. The author used the word “rest” in a figurative way to refer to depending on God. God wants his people to rest from their own work, as God rested from his work on the seventh day after he created the world. In chapter 3, God promised the people of Israel a place to rest. In chapter 4, the author used a special time of rest as a symbol. This time was one day each week, which the people called the Sabbath Day (seventh day). Both the place and the time of rest are symbols of the rest that God’s people have when they depend on him for everything.

Two sentences in this section are especially important in stating this theme:

4:9	There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God. (BSB)
4:11	Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, (BSB)

The theme of this section is clear: God has planned a good life of rest for believers when they depend on him. We must be careful to believe and obey him so that we do not miss the life of rest that he promised. Some words that are connected to this theme in chapters 3 and 4 are “faith,” “believe,” “unbelief,” and “disobedience.”

Some other examples of headings for this section are:

God’s people can still experience God’s rest

We should trust God and receive his promise of rest

4:12a

For the word of God is living and active.

For the word of God is alive and powerful/effective.
What God says/speaks has life, and it accomplishes great things.
Remember that God is alive and powerful, so whatever he says/said

For: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates literally as For introduces a list of reasons why we must be diligent to obey God and enter his rest (4:11). These reasons are descriptions of the word of God. It is living, powerful, and discerning. It exposes a person’s secret thoughts. Introduce these reasons in a natural way in your language. In some languages a conjunction may not be necessary.

the word of God is living and active: This statement indicates that God’s word has power to accomplish what God intends. God used his word to create the world, and he uses it to affect what people believe and what they do. Some other ways to translate the statement are:

God’s word is alive and it does great things.

What God says has power to do/accomplish what he intends.

the word of God: The phrase the word of God refers to what God says. It includes the Scriptures. It also includes whatever God says, whether it is spoken or written. Jesus is also called “the word of God” (for example, in John 1:14). Hebrews 1:2 says that God spoke in (or by) a Son. Some other ways to translate the phrase are:

God’s word/message

the Word that God speaks (JBP)

living and active: The two words which the BSB translates as living and active have a similar meaning here. The author often used pairs of words with similar meanings to emphasize what he wanted to communicate. This pair indicates that God’s word has power to accomplish what God intends. God used his word to create the world, and he uses it to affect what people believe and what they do.

In some languages it may be more natural to emphasize the meaning in a different way. For example:

full of living power (NLT96)

it is powerful and it has resultsKankanaey back translation on TW.

Notice that there are other pairs in 4:12–13. Translate these pairs in a way that will emphasize the meaning in your language.

living: In this context the word living is used in a figurative way. It means “able to accomplish things.” Here it does not refer to breathing or to having physical life. See the preceding note for translation examples.

active: Here the word active means “effective.” It indicates that God’s word accomplishes what he intends.

4:12b

Sharper than any double-edged sword,

It is better than a sharp sword with two edges.
It penetrates a person’s thoughts more effectively than the sharpest knife.
will certainly be accomplished.

Sharper than any double-edged sword: This statement is a figure of speech. The author compared the word of God to a sword. A sword can be used to cut a person open, and then people can see what is inside his body. The Word of God can do this in a spiritual way. It can reveal a person’s mind and heart and cause him (or other people) to understand it. It reveals to a person what is right and what is wrong about his way of thinking.

Some other ways to translate this figure of speech are:

Use a simile. For example:
God’s word cuts better than a sword that is sharp on both sides.
God’s word is like a sword with two sharp edges.
Use a simile and also indicate the meaning. For example:
God’s Word exposes a person’s thoughts and motives, just as a sharp sword with two edges cuts into something and exposes what is in it.
Translate the meaning without using the figure of speech. For example:
God’s Word exposes our hidden thoughts/motives.

Use a natural way in your language to translate the figure of speech.

any double-edged sword: The Greek word used here for sword occurs only three times in the New Testament. A sword (or “dagger”) is a long knife. The word double-edged indicates that the knife has two sharp (cutting) edges. A double-edged knife is more effective than a knife that has only one sharp edge. That type of knife can cut into something and divide it accurately into parts.

Another way to translate double-edged sword is:

a long knife with two sharp edges

In some languages there is an idiom to describe this. For example, in Hebrew the idiom is literally:

a sword that has two mouths

any: The word any indicates here that there is no sword (even one with two edges) that is more effective than God’s word.

4:12c

it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit,

It pierces/exposes the most hidden parts of his soul and spirit,
His words reveal what is in the heart/thoughts of a person.

4:12d

joints and marrow.

as a sword can pierce even a person’s joints and bone marrow.
They reveal his most secret motives.

4:12c–d

it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow: This part of the verse continues to describe the word of God. In Greek the phrase even to dividing is literally “as far as (the place of) division.” It implies that God’s word enters even the part of a person where soul and spirit meet or where his joints and marrow meet.

In some languages a phrase like to dividing may wrongly imply that the Word of God separates a person’s soul from his spirit and separates a person’s joints from his marrow. For that reason the Notes uses the GW as the source text for 4:12c:

and cuts as deep as the place where soul and spirit meet, the place where joints and marrow meet (GW)

(GW) and cuts as deep as the place where soul and spirit meet, the place where joints and marrow meet: The phrase where soul and spirit meet is a figure of speech. The phrase place where joints and marrow meet is also a figure of speech. No one can tell exactly where a person’s soul and spirit meet or where joints and marrow meet.

Together these two figures of speech refer to every part of a person. Some other ways to translate this meaning are:

It penetrates even the inner-being and thinking of a person. Therefore no matter what a person’s motive is or what he intends, this word of God can reveal it.

It pierces into even our thinking and our purpose, and it shows us what God thinks about it.

(GW) soul…spirit: In this context the Greek words that the BSB translates as soul and spirit have similar meanings. In many scriptures the word soul refers to the inner part of a person which thinks, feels, and makes decisions. The word spirit refers to the person himself, especially to the essential part of himself that is responsible to give an account to God. Here the words soul and spirit are used together to refer to the hidden part of a person, his thoughts, and motives.

Other ways to translate soul and spirit here are:

our innermost thoughts and desires (NLT96)

a person’s inner-being and mind/thinking

Most English versions (except the NLT) use the words soul and spirit. See soul, sense A1(a), and spirit, sense A1(a), in KBT.

(GW) joints…marrow: The word joints refers to the material in the body that joins bones together. The word marrow refers to the substance inside the big bones of the body. Another way to translate the literal meaning is:

a person’s joints and the substance inside his bones

Here the phrase “the place where joints and marrow meet” is a metaphor to refer to a person’s secret thoughts and desires. It emphasizes the statement in 4:12c, which has the same meaning. In some languages the metaphor may not be natural, and you may need to translate the meaning in a different way. For example:

every part of a person

4:12e

It judges the thoughts

His word judges what a person thinks
God’s word shows whether his thoughts are good or evil,

4:12f

and intentions of the heart.

and what he plans in his heart/mind.
and it reveals whether what he intends to do is right or wrong.

4:12e–f

It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart: Here the author says that the word of God (It) is able to judge people’s thoughts and intentions. This is figurative language. It implies that God’s word causes people to know how God wants them to think and act. When a person reads it, it teaches him whether his thoughts are good or bad. Some other ways to translate this statement are:

it pierces into even our thinking, our breath, our purpose, and it shows us what God is thinking about it.Western Bukidnon Manobo back translation on TW.

God’s word judges a person’s thoughts and intentions. (GW)

It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. (NLT)

In some languages it may be necessary to translate the meaning without the figurative language. For example:

God uses his Word to show people whether their way of thinking and what they intend to do is right or wrong.

It judges: The Greek word which the BSB translates as judges can describe a judge in a legal case. However, it is often used in a more general way. Here it refers to the ability to distinguish what is right and what is wrong. People can use what God says to examine their thoughts and intentions and know whether they are pleasing to God or not.

Some other ways to translate this word are:

examines

discovers

causes…to be exposed

thoughts and intentions: The words thoughts and intentions are used together to describe what a person thinks. The Greek word which the BSB translates as thoughts refers to “the process of considering something, thought, reflection, idea.”ἐνθύμησις BDAG, page 336. It occurs only three other times in the New Testament: Matthew 9:4, 12:25 and Acts 17:29.

The word that the BSB translates as intentions is also rare in the New Testament. It occurs only once more, in 1 Peter 4:1. It refers to what a person thinks, his “thoughts, knowledge, and insights.”ἔννοια BDAG, page 337. The two Greek words that the BSB translates as thoughts and intentions here both begin with the prefix en- and are related in meaning. Their use in this verse is an example of the author’s frequent wordplay.

Some other ways to translate thoughts and intentions are:

what a person thinks and plans

our thinking and the purposes in our heartsUma back translation on TW.

of the heart: In both Greek and Hebrew the heart refers to the part of a person that thinks and feels. In some languages a phrase like of the heart may not be necessary in this context. The source of the “thoughts and intentions” may already be implied by referring to the person (or people) who think them. See the first example in the preceding note. For more information, see heart, sense 1(b), in KBT.

General Comment on 4:12a–e

In some languages you may need to make the comparison in this verse more explicit. For example:

God’s word is powerful and active. It exposes what people think and what they want/intend to do as precisely as a knife with two sharp edges cuts into skin.

God’s word is strong and does great deeds. Like a knife with two sharp edges, it cuts open a person’s thoughts and shows what he secretly thinks and wants to do.

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases

γὰρ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

The word For introduces a further reason for why we need to “be eager” ([4:11](../04/11.md)). If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces the basis for an exhortation. Alternate translation: [We should do that because]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ

the word ¬the ˱of˲_God

The word word refers to what someone says in words. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or plain language. Alternate translation: [the message of God] or [what God says]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ

the word ¬the ˱of˲_God

The author uses the possessive form to describe a word that: (1) God speaks. Alternate translation: [the word that God speaks] (2) is God. Alternate translation: [the divine Word] or [God the Word]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / personification

ζῶν & καὶ ἐνεργὴς & διϊκνούμενος & καὶ κριτικὸς

living_‹is› & (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

In these phrases, the author describes the word of God as if it were a person that was living and active and that could “pierce” and judge other people. He speaks in this way to show that God accomplishes these things through his word, that is, when he speaks. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the idea by making God the subject of these actions or by using analogy form. Alternate translation: [is from the living and active God … God uses it to pierce … and God uses it to judge] or [is like a living and active person … piercing like a person pierces … and able, like a person, to judge]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

τομώτερος, ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν μάχαιραν δίστομον, καὶ διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ

sharper (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

The author compares the word of God to a sword that has two edges. God’s word is even sharper than that kind of sword, which means it is even better at piercing. The author uses this figure of speech to show how good the word of God is at discerning and judging humans. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [is like a very sharp two-edged sword that pierces to the dividing] or [able to distinguish what is wrong from what is right, including even the dividing]

Note 6 topic: translate-unknown

μάχαιραν δίστομον

sword double_edged

The phrase two-edged sword describes a weapon or tool with two sharp edges. This kind of sword can “pierce” something better than a sword with only one sharp edge can. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable term or a descriptive phrase. Alternate translation: [blade with two sharp edges]

Note 7 topic: translate-unknown

καὶ διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καὶ πνεύματος, ἁρμῶν τε καὶ μυελῶν

The author refers to things that are hard to divide: joints and marrow are difficult to separate, as are soul and spirit. His point is that the word can separate things that are hard to separate, just like a very sharp sword can separate things. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use words or phrases that refer to cutting things into pieces. Alternate translation: [and slicing apart soul and spirit, joints and marrow]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ψυχῆς καὶ πνεύματος

˱of˲_soul (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

The words soul and spirit refer to two distinguishable aspects of the nonphysical part of a human. It is possible that soul refers primarily to life and personality, while spirit refers to how people relate to others and express themselves. However, the author is not primarily interested in what parts of the person to which these two words refer. Rather, he is focused on how soul and spirit always go together, and it is difficult to “divide” them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use words that refer to closely related aspects of the nonphysical parts of a person. Alternate translation: [of mind and spirit] or [of personality and mind]

Note 9 topic: translate-unknown

ἁρμῶν τε καὶ μυελῶν

˱of˲_joints (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

The word joints refers to the places where bones connect. The word marrow refers to the softer, center part of bones. The author is primarily interested in how the joints and the marrow are closely connected together, and it requires cutting a bone into pieces to separate them from each other. If it would be helpful in your language, you could refer to body parts that are very difficult to separate. Alternate translation: [of both tendons and muscles] or [of both ligaments and bones]

Note 10 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

ἐνθυμήσεων καὶ ἐννοιῶν καρδίας

˱of˲_˓the˒_thoughts (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ζῶν Γάρ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐνεργής καί τομώτερος ὑπέρ πασᾶν μάχαιραν δίστομον καί διϊκνούμενος ἄχρι μερισμοῦ ψυχῆς καί πνεύματος ἁρμῶν τέ καί μυελῶν καί κριτικός ἐνθυμήσεων καί ἐννοιῶν καρδίας)

If your language does not use abstract nouns for the ideas of thoughts and intentions, you could express the ideas by using verbs such as “think” and “plan.” Alternate translation: [what the heart ponders and devises]

Note 11 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

καρδίας

˱of˲_˓the˒_heart

In the author’s culture, the word heart refers to the place within us where humans think and plan. If it would be helpful in your language, you could refer to the place where humans think in your culture or express the idea plainly. Alternate translation: [of the mind] or [that people think]

Note 12 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

καρδίας

˱of˲_˓the˒_heart

The author is speaking of “hearts” in general, not of one particular heart. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a form that refers to “hearts” in general. Alternate translation: [of hearts] or [of human hearts]

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.

OET interlinear HEB 4:12

SR Greek word order (including unused variant words in grey)