4:12a
For: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible 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.
-or-
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
-or-
the Word that God speaks (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
living and active: The two words which the Berean Standard Bible 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 (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
it is powerful and it has results
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: 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.
-or-
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–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 God’s Word 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 (God’s Word)
(God’s Word) 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.
-or-
It pierces into even our thinking and our purpose, and it shows us what God thinks about it.
(God’s Word) soul…spirit: In this context the Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible 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 (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
a person’s inner-being and mind/thinking
Most English versions (except the New Living Translation (2004)) use the words soul and spirit. See soul, sense A1(a), and spirit, sense A1(a), in Key Biblical Terms.
(God’s Word) 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–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.
-or-
God’s word judges a person’s thoughts and intentions. (God’s Word)
-or-
It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. (New Living Translation (2004))
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 Berean Standard Bible 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
-or-
discovers
-or-
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 Berean Standard Bible translates as thoughts refers to “the process of considering something, thought, reflection, idea.” It occurs only three other times in the New Testament: Matthew 9:4, 12:25 and Acts 17:29.
The word that the Berean Standard Bible 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.”
Some other ways to translate thoughts and intentions are:
what a person thinks and plans
-or-
our thinking and the purposes in our hearts
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 Key Biblical Terms.
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⌋.
-or-
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.
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