Bible Commentaries

Psalms 104:1 — PSALM CIV The majesty and power of God manifested in the creation of the heavens and the atmosphere, 1-3; of the earth and sea, 4-9; of the springs, fountains, and rivers, 10-13; of vegetables and trees, 14-18; of the sun and moon, 19; of day and night, and their uses, 20-23; of the riches of the earth, 24; of the sea, its inhabitants, and its uses, 25, 26; of God's general providence

Psalms 136:1 — PSALM CXXXVI An exhortation to give thanks to God for various mercies granted to all men, 1-9; particularly to the Israelites in Egypt, 10-12; at the Red Sea, 13-15; in the wilderness, 16-20; and in the promised land, 21, 22; for the redemption of the captives from Babylon, 23, 24; and for his providential mercies to all, 25, 26. NOTES ON PSALM

Psalms 28:1 — supplication to God, and complains of the malice of his enemies, 1-4; whom he describes as impious, and whose destruction he predicts, 5. He blesses God for hearing his prayers, and for filling him with consolation, 6, 7; then prays for God's people, 8, 9. NOTES ON PSALM XXVIIIThis Psalm is of the same complexion with the two preceding; and belongs most probably to the times of the captivity, though some have referred it to David in his persecutions. In the five first verses the author prays for support

Psalms 36:9 — Verse Psalms 36:9. For with thee is the fountain of life — This, in Scripture phrase, may signify a spring of water; for such was called among the Jews living water, to distinguish it from ponds, tanks, and reservoirs, that were supplied by water either received

Psalms 48:1 — PSALM XLVIII The ornaments and the privileges of the Church, 1-8. The duty of God's people, 9-14. NOTES ON PSALM XLVIIIThe title: A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah. To which the Vulgate, Septuagint, AEthiopic, and Arabic add, for the second day of the week; for which I believe it would be difficult to find a meaning. It is evidently of

Psalms 49:1 — PSALM XLIX All men are invited to attend to lessons of wisdom relative to the insufficiency of earthly good to save or prolong life; to secure the resurrection frown the dead, 1-9. Death is inevitable, 10. The vain expectations of rich men, 11-13. Death renders all alike, 14. The psalmist encourages and fortifies himself against envying the apparently prosperous state of the wicked, who are brutish, and die like beasts, 15-20.

Psalms 7:1 — PSALM VII The psalmist prays against the malice of his enemies, 1, 2; protests his own innocence, 3-5; prays to God that he would vindicate him, for the edification of his people, 6-8; prays against the wickedness of his enemies, 9; expresses strong confidence in God, 10; threatens transgressors with God's judgments, 11-13; shows the conduct and end of the ungodly, 14-16; and exults in the mercy and lovingkindness of his Maker, 17. This Psalm is entitled, Shiggaion of David, which

Psalms 74:4 — All the ensigns and trophies were those of our enemies; our own were no longer to be seen.The fifth, sixth, and seventh verses give a correct historical account of the ravages committed by the Babylonians, as we may see from 2 Kings 25:4; 2 Kings 25:7-9, and Jeremiah 52:7; Jeremiah 52:18; Jeremiah 52:19: "And the city was broken up, and all the men fled by night by the way of the gate. They took Zedekiah, and slew his sons before his eyes; and put out his eyes, and bound him with fetters of brass,

Psalms 78:57 — backward." It was a good bow, one on which he could depend. Hosea, Hosea 7:16, compares the unfaithful Israelites to a deceitful bow; one that, when bent, would suddenly start aside and recover its former position. We may find the same passage in Jeremiah 9:3. And this is precisely the kind of bow mentioned by Homer, Odyss. xxi., which none of Penelope's suitors could bend, called καμπυλα τοξα and αγκυλα τοξα, the crooked bow in the state of rest; but τοξον παλιντονον, the recurred bow when prepared for

Psalms 90:1 — PSALM XC The eternity of God, 1, 2; the frailty of the state of man, 3-9; the general limits of human life, 10; the danger of displeasing God, 11; the necessity of considering the shortness of life, and of regaining the favour of the Almighty, 12; earnest prayer for the restoration of Israel, 13-17. NOTES ON PSALM XCThe

Ecclesiastes 12:4 — be; he slumbers rather than sleeps; and the crowing of the cock awakes him. And so much difficulty does he find to respire while in bed, that he is glad of the dawn to rise up and get some relief. The chirping ot the sparrow is sufficient to awake him.9. All the daughters of music shall be brought low — The VOICE, that wonderful instrument, almost endless in the strength and variety of its tones, becomes feeble and squeaking, and merriment and pleasure are no more. The tones emitted are all of

Isaiah 2:1 — CHAPTER II Prophecy concerning the kingdom of the Messiah, and the conversion of the Gentile world, 1-5. Great wickedness and idolatry of the unbelieving Jews, 6-9. Terrible consternation that will seize the wicked, who shall in vain seek for rocks and mountains to hide them from the face of God in the day of his judgments, 10-17. Total destruction of idolatry in consequence of the establishment of Messiah's kingdom,

Isaiah 43:1 — under heaven, and bring them safely to their own land, 1-7. Struck with astonishment at so clear a display of an event so very remote, the prophet again challenges all the blinded nations and their idols to produce an instance of such foreknowledge, 8, 9; and intimates that the Jews should remains (as at this day,) a singular monument to witness the truth of the prediction, till it should at length be fulfilled by the irresistible power of God, 10-13. He then returns to the nearer deliverance - that

Isaiah 50:6 — offered. See the note on Isaiah 7:20.I hid not my face from shame and spitting. — Another instance of the utmost contempt and detestation. It was ordered by the law of Moses as a severe punishment, carrying with it a lasting disgrace; Deuteronomy 25:9. Among the Medes it was highly offensive to spit in any one's presence, Herod. i. 99; and so likewise among the Persians, Xenophon, Cyrop. Lib. i., p. 18. "They abhor me; they flee far from me; They forbear not to spit in my face." Job 30:10. "And

Isaiah 63:8 — Verse 8. - 9. So he was their Saviour. In all their affliction - "And he became their Saviour in all their distress"] I have followed the translation of the Septuagint in the latter part of the eighth, and the former part of the ninth verse; which agrees with the

Jeremiah 17:1 — people of Judah had to idolatry, with the fatal consequences, 1-4. The happiness of the man that trusted in Jehovah is then beautifully contrasted with the opposite character, 5-8. God alone knows the deceitfulness and wretchedness of the heart of man, 9, 10. The comparison of a bird's hatching the eggs of another of a different species, which will soon forsake her, is highly expressive of the vanity of ill-acquired riches, which often disappoint the owner, 11. The prophet continues the same subject

Ezekiel 18:1 — every ligament that at present connects societies and nations together shall be dissolved, and each person receive according to his work, and bear his own burden. This is illustrated by a variety of examples: such as that of a just or righteous man, 5-9; his wicked son, 10-13; and again the just son of this wicked person, 14-20. Then a wicked man repenting, and finding mercy, whose former wickedness shall be no impediment to his salvation, 21-23; and a righteous man revolting, and dying in his sins,

Hosea 10:1 — full of sublimity and pathos, 5-8. God is now introduced complaining of their excessive guilt; and threatening them with captivity in terms that bear a manifest allusion to their favourite idolatry, the worshiping the similitude of a calf or heifer, 9-11. Upon which the prophet, in a beautiful allegory suggested by the preceding metaphors, exhorts them to repentance; and warns them of the dreadful consequences of their evil courses, if obstinately persisted in, 12-15. NOTES ON CHAP. XVerse Hosea

Hosea 8:1 — their toil shall have no recompense; or if it should have a little, their enemies shall devour it, 7. They themselves, too, shall suffer the same fate, and shall be treated by the nations of Assyria and Egypt as the vile sherds of a broken vessel, 8, 9. Their incorrigible idolatry is again declared to be the cause of their approaching captivity under the king of Assyria. And as they delighted in idolatrous altars, there they shall have these in abundance, 10-14. The last words contain a prediction

Micah 4:1 — subject; predicts the restoration and future prosperity of Israel, 6-8; and exhorts them not to be discouraged at their approaching captivity, as they should in due time not only be delivered from it, but likewise be victorious over all their enemies, 9-13. These last verses, which evidently contain a prediction of the final triumph of Christianity over every adversary, have been applied to the conquests of the Maccabees; but the character and beneficial results of their military exploits, as far as