Bible Commentaries

Genesis 12 overview — more to destroy the whole world with a flood, the necessity of taking some other action became acute. That other action was the call of Abraham. The First Call. God first called Abram while he was living in the pagan city of Ur of the Chaldees (Acts 7:2-4), and although the Bible does not give the specific nature of that call as first delivered, the exact nature of it was given in the second instance of it which came in Haran. It should not be thought strange that the call came twice. "The word of

Exodus 13:17-22 — narrative continues in an orderly and understandable sequence. "And Moses took the bones of Joseph" (Exodus 13:19). Jamieson and others have pointed out that not only the remains of Joseph, but those of other patriarchs, were also removed from Egypt (Acts 7:10).Robert Jamieson, Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary (Grand Rapids; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Reprint, 1983), p. 323. "The children of Israel went up armed out of the land of Egypt" There are three different renditions of this that

Job 38:1-7 — Commentary, Revised, p. 441. It is the conviction of this writer that the words cannot possibly apply to anyone other than Elihu. The reasons behind this conviction are: (1)    Applying the words to Job is a contradiction of Job 42:7-8. The advocates of that interpretation, however, are not bothered by the contradiction, "Because they assign the entire Epilogue to a different author from the poetic Dialogue, making it an argument for multiple authorship of Job."Tyndale Old Testament

Leviticus 11 overview — are deeply rooted in the prehistoric instincts of the human race. Against this background, the most significant thing about the whole mass of regulations laid down here is that Jesus Christ abolished it in its entirety, "making all meats clean" (Mark 7:19). An apostle elaborated this in saying that, "Every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it be received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified through the Word of God and prayer" (1 Timothy 4:4-5). Another apostle saw the heavenly

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 — long ago been; and God seeketh again that which has passed away." "The works of men are subject in their results to another will (God's) than that of the doer."Barnes' Notes on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, a 1989 reprint of the 1878 edition), Eccl., p. 95. Therefore, every human project should be initiated and pursued under the perpetual banner, "Deo Volente" (James 4:15). This amazing list of fourteen opposites must be interpreted in the light of Ecclesiastes 3:9. These opposites

Ecclesiastes 3:16-22 — books, we stressed the consummate wickedness of this evil man; but there are some things about the general interpretation of this paragraph that do not fit. Solomon believed in God; he had just stated that God would judge wicked men (Ecclesiastes 3:17); and he could not possibly have meant that God would judge them in this present life. Furthermore, as Grieve noted, "He here combats the idea that man's breath goes back to God who gave it, although he allows that as a fact in 12:7."Peake's Bible Commentary

Lamentations 2:1-10 — the cloud! Throughout this chapter there appears the screaming fact that it is God Himself who has brought all of the evil upon His sinful people. "That was the wormwood and the gall in their terrible affliction."Matthew Henry's Commentary, Vol. 4, p. 719. "Cast down from heaven unto the earth" What a change there was from the glory of Solomon to the very bottom of the social ladder. Israel at this point had become the slaves of the Gentiles. "He hath thrown down… the strongholds… of

Numbers 18:8-20 — fully successful campaign to possess it. "Of all" Plaut tell us that the Jews interpreted this to apply only to the seven principal fruits for which the land was famous: (1) wheat; (2) barley; (3) grapes; (4) figs; (5) pomegranates; (6) olive oil; and (7) dates (including honey).W. Gunther Plaut, Torah, a Modern Commentary (Philadelphia: The Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1979), p. 175. "Surely redeem… redeem" (Numbers 18:15). There are two different words here in the Hebrew, the stronger

Jonah 1:17 — nights in the tomb, DeHaan did not hesitate to affirm that, "Jonah was dead for three days and three nights, and then was resurrected and sent forth to preach."Dr. M. R. DeHaan, M.D., Jonah, Fact or Fiction? (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1957), p. 7. The event must be accepted as "a sign from heaven," no matter how it is understood, that is, whether Jonah was maintained alive inside the fish for that extended period, or if he was resurrected after the fish vomited him up. It really serves

Deuteronomy 20:1-4 — not, nor tremble, neither be ye affrighted of them; for Jehovah your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." "To the Israelites, horses and chariots were always objects of terror in war (Joshua 11:4; Joshua 17:16; Judges 1:19; Judges 4:3, and 1 Samuel 13:5)."W. L. Alexander, The Pulpit Commentary, Deuteronomy (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 230. Furthermore, all of the nations they would confront in Canaan were well supplied with

Deuteronomy 34:1-8 — and, as Adam Clarke said, "Some believe Ezra wrote it; some think Joshua did; and others think that the seventy elders wrote it immediately after Moses' death."Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Whole Bible, Deuteronomy (New York: T. Mason and G. Lane, 1837), p. 838. Clarke went on to say that he favored the opinion that Joshua wrote it, and that, "What now makes the last chapter of Deuteronomy was originally the first chapter of Joshua."Ibid. The divisions between books on the same roll were sometimes

Luke 18:11-14 — righteous (Romans 3:10); all have sinned (Romans 3:23); and all human righteousnesses are "as filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6). I.    These teach some vital facts about prayer. A short prayer is better than a long one (Matthew 6:7-8; Matthew 23:14). Also, prayers should be directed, not to ourselves, nor to the audience, but to God. Many prayers remind one of a quotation from Barclay, describing a certain prayer as "the most eloquent prayer ever offered to a Boston audience."William

John 3:16 — As Reynolds noted: The reply is that John used this great word because he had heard it on the lips of Jesus. He would not have dared use it otherwise; and he used it because he had heard our Lord thus express himself.H. R. Reynolds, op. cit., Vol. 17, p. 122. Furthermore, the connective, "for," at the beginning of the paragraph shows that there is no break. See below. For God so loved the world … "For" indicates that we do not have here a new section, but the continuation

Acts 11:25-26 — view. The disciples were called Christians … The importance of this makes it imperative to study more fully both the name "disciples" and the name "Christian," which replaced it. CONCERNING DISCIPLES "Disciples" occurs 72 times in Matthew, 44 times in Mark, 38 times in Luke, 77 times in John, and 30 times in Acts — 261 times in the first five books of the New Testament; but it is not used even once in the last 22 books of the New Testament. The significance of

1 Corinthians 13:8-10 — … shall be done away … This cannot mean that prophecies shall be contradicted by events, but as Hodge said, "The gift (of prophecy) shall cease to be necessary, and therefore shall not be continued." Charles Hodge, op. cit., p. 271. Tongues … shall cease … This means that the TRUE gifts of tongues would cease. In many generations after those days, the gift of so-called "tongues" would flourish at intervals throughout the history of Christendom; but Paul's

Joshua 17:7-13 — not utterly drive them out." "From Asher to Michmethath" Philbeck tells us that these cities marked "the northern and southern extremities of Manasseh's territory,"Ben F. Philbeck, The Teachers' Bible Commentary, Joshua (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1972), p. 146. but the trouble with that is that, "This place has not been identified. All that we know is that it is opposite Shechem!"Alfred Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Joshua (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 260. Due to

Hebrews 11:17-20 — in the words of Albert Barnes, "It is the strongest illustration of faith, undoubtedly, which has ever been evinced in our world." Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1963), Vol. Hebrews, p. 272. Abraham, being tried is a reference to the remarkable test of his faith recorded in Genesis 22:1 ff. It is said there that God did "tempt" Abraham, but the word "tried" is the true meaning. Although the word here rendered "tried"

Hebrews 6:4-6 — meaning can be exaggerated to the point of distortion when he is understood to say that for sins committed after baptism there can be no repentance. F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Hebrews (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1967), p. 122. The most difficult word in this passage is "impossible," which seems to perplex most of the writers. Macknight wrote that "The apostle does not mean that it is impossible for God to renew a second time an apostate; but that

1 Peter 1:1-2 — the outstanding things about this passage is that it takes words and conceptions which had originally applied only to Jews and applies them to Christians." William Barclay, The Letters of James and Peter (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1976), p. 165. These are elect, Chosen, Dispersion, and sojourners. "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ …" Peter was the beloved name that Jesus himself had bestowed upon this apostle, and is the Greek form of the Aramaic name meaning "stone"

2 Samuel 23:1-7 — A MESSIANIC PROPHECY AND A LIST OF THE 37 MIGHTY MEN; A PROPHECY OF THE MESSIAH "Now these are the last words of David: The oracle of David the son of Jesse, the oracle of the man who was raised on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel: `The Spirit of the Lord