Bible Commentaries

Ezekiel 3:1 — particular instructions to the prophet. It begins with repeating his appointment to his office, 1-3. Ezekiel is then informed that his commission is, at this time, to the house of Israel exclusively, 4-6; that his countrymen would pay little regard to him, 7; that he must persevere in his duty notwithstanding such great discouragement; and he is endued with extraordinary courage and intrepidity to enable him fearlessly to declare to a disobedient and gainsaying people the whole counsel of God, 8-11. The

Hosea 13:1 — ruin; a truth most visibly exemplified in the sin and punishment of Ephraim, 1-3. As an aggravation of their guilt, God reminds them of his former favours, 4, 5; which they had shamefully abused, 6; and which now expose them to dreadful punishments, 7, 8. He, however, tempers these awful threatenings with gracious promises; and, on their repentance, engages to save them, when no other could protect them, 9-11. But, alas! instead of repenting, Ephraim is filling up the measure of his iniquity, 12,

Micah 7:18 — Verse Micah 7:18. Who is a God like unto thee, c. — Here is a challenge to all idol worshippers, and to all those who take false views of the true God, to show his like. See his characters they are immediately subjoined.1. He pardoneth iniquity. This is the

Habakkuk 3:3 — twenty-eighth Prelection.I shall endeavour to show the facts in the deliverance from Egypt, to which the prophet refers.Teman — This was a city, the capital of a province of Idumea, to the south of the land of Canaan. Numbers 20:21; Jeremiah 49:7.Paran — Was a city which gave its name to a province in Arabia Petrea. Genesis 21:21; Deuteronomy 33:2.Selah — This word is not well known; probably it means a pause or alteration in the music. See it in the Psalms, and its explanation there.His

Malachi 3:1 — judgments which were to accompany that event, in order to refine and purify his people and his priests, 2-6. The following verses reprehend them for withholding the legal tithes and offerings, with large promises in case of their repentance and amendments, 7-12. The prophet expostulates with the people for their hard and profane speeches against the conduct of Providence, and declares God will one day make a fearful and final distinction between the righteous and the wicked, whose different characters are

Matthew 17:11 — Verse Matthew 17:11. Elias - shall first come, and restore all things. — Or will reform, αποκαταστησει; this word our Lord quotes from the Septuagint; who render the Hebrew והשוב לב אבות על בנים vehesheb leb aboth al banim, he will cause the heart of the fathers

Matthew 22:42 — Messiah; for to this title the emphatic article should always be added.Whose son is he? — From what family is he to spring?They say unto him, The son of David. — This was a thing well known among the Jews, and universally acknowledged, see John 7:42; and is a most powerful proof against them that the Messiah is come. Their families are now so perfectly confounded that they cannot trace back any of their genealogies with any degree of certainty: nor have they been capable of ascertaining the

Matthew 24:5 — deceived many: almost the very words of our Lord.4. A few years afterwards, under the reign of Nero, while Felix was procurator of Judea, impostors of this stamp were so frequent that some were taken and killed almost every day. Jos. Ant. b. xx. c. 4. and 7.

Matthew 26:2 — passover — A feast instituted in Egypt, to commemorate the destroying angel's passing over the houses of the Israelites, when he slew the firstborn of the Egyptians. See the whole of this business largely explained in the Notes on Exodus 12:1-27. This feast began on the fourteenth day of the first moon, in the first month, Nisan, and it lasted only one day; but it was immediately followed by the days of unleavened bread, which were seven, so that the whole lasted eight days, and all the eight

Mark 2:28 — Verse Mark 2:28. The Son of man is Lord — See on Matthew 12:7-8. Some have understood this as applying to men in general, and not to Christ. The Son of man, any man is Lord of the Sabbath; i.e. it was made for him, for his ease, comfort, and use, and to these purposes he is to apply it. But this is a very harsh,

Luke 16:7 — Verse Luke 16:7. A hundred measures of wheat. — εκατον κορους, a hundred cors. κορος, from the Hebrew כר cor, was the largest measure of capacity among the Hebrews, whether for solids or liquids. As the bath was equal to the ephah, so the cor was equal to the

Luke 22:44 — Verse 44. Prayed more earnestly — With greater emphasis and earnestness than usual, with strong crying and tears, Hebrews 5:7; the reason given for which is, that he was in an agony. Kypke well observes, Vox αγωνια summum animi angorem et dolorem indicat; et idem est, quod αδημονειν, Matthew 26:37; Mark 14:34. "The word αγωνια (agony) points out the utmost anguish and grief

Luke 5:7 — Verse Luke 5:7. They beckoned unto their partners — Had not these been called in to assist, the net must have been broken, and all the fish lost. What a pity there should be such envious separation among the different sects that profess to believe in Christ

Luke 9:1 — CHAPTER IX. Christ sends his apostles to preach and work miracles, 1-6. Herod, hearing of the fame of Jesus, is perplexed; some suppose that John Baptist is risen from the dead; others, that Elijah or one of the old prophets was come to life, 7-9. The apostles return and relate the success of their mission. He goes to a retired place, and the people follow him, 10, 11. He feeds five thousand men with five loaves and two fishes, 12-17. He asks his disciples what the public think of him, 18-21.

John 12:35 — ever, it is true; but he will not always be visible. When he shall depart from you, ye shall be left in the thickest darkness; in impenitence and hardness of heart. Then shall ye wish to see one of the days of the Son of man, and shall not see it, Luke 17:22. Then shall ye seek me, but shall not find me, John 7:34. For the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to the Gentiles, Matthew 21:43. If ye believe not in me now, ye shall then wish ye had done it, when wishing shall be for ever fruitless.Instead

Acts 13:52 — who fear God.2. His narrative of God's goodness to Israel: 1. In their deliverance from Egypt. 2. In their support in the wilderness. 3. In his giving them the land of Canaan. 4. In the judges and kings which he had given for their governors, Acts 13:7-22.3. His proposition, that Jesus was the Christ, the Saviour of the world, Acts 13:23.4. The illustration of this proposition, proving its truth: 1. From Christ's stock and family, Acts 13:23. 2. From the testimony of his forerunner, Acts 13:24. 3.

Acts 15:7 — Verse Acts 15:7. When there had been much disputing — By those of the sect of the believing Pharisees; for they strongly contended for circumcision, and at the head of these, tradition tells us, was Cerinthus, a name famous in the primitive Church, as one who

Acts 2:17 — Verse Acts 2:17. In the last days — The time of the Messiah; and so the phrase was understood among the Jews.I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh — Rabbi Tanchum says, "When Moses laid his hands upon Joshua, the holy blessed God said, In the time

Acts 8:33 — character of the criminal-whether there was any who, from intimate acquaintance with his manner of life, could say any thing in his favour? This circumstance I have noticed before, and it has been particularly remarked in the case of Stephen: see at Acts 7:60. In our Lord's case, this benevolent inquiry does not appear to have been made; and perhaps to this breach of justice, as well as of custom, the prophet refers; and this shows how minutely the conduct of those bad men was known seven hundred years

Acts 8:5 — vestige of it remaining. Herod the Great did afterwards build a city on the same spot of ground; but he called it σεβαστη i.e. Augusta, in compliment to the Emperor Augustus, as Josephus tells us, Ant. lib. xv. cap. 8, sect. 5; War, lib. i. cap. 2. sect. 7; and by this name of Sebasté, or Augusta, that city, if meant here, would in all probability have been called, in the same manner as the town called Strato's Tower, (which Herod built on the sea coasts, and to which he gave the name of Caesarea, in