Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 7:10-17 — worthless, because it was not designed to do Ahaz any good. That evil man had already refused to see a sign from God; and the notion that God forced the issue and gave him a sign anyway is ridiculous. This sign was for "the House of David," not for Ahaz. 2.    The Virgin Birth of Jesus Christ the Son of God is the unique and only authenticated example of such an occurrence in the history of the human race; and it was verified by medical testimony and by the unanimous testimony of the

Zechariah 10:11 — connection with other scriptural passages (Exodus 14; Isaiah 11:15-16), there are two promises here: "Ancient miracles would be repeated to facilitate their journey home"; and "They would cross the Red Sea, the sea of affliction, in safety."Ibid. p. 828. Amen! And when were the ancient miracles of Moses repeated? When that Prophet like unto Moses, even Christ, appeared and did even more astounding wonders than those of Moses. And how do God's people cross the Red Sea in safety on the way home? 1 Corinthians

Zechariah 2:6 — to Babylon as "the north." It was by the northern route that Chaldaean invaders came to Jerusalem. The reason for this exhortation was: "A great number of the exiles had remained in Babylon, having established themselves there according to Jeremiah 29:5, and grown rich. They are now called upon to flee from their adopted country."W. J. Deane, op. cit., p. 17. The reason for this plea was twofold: (1) They were in eminent danger of adopting the philosophy, life-style, and even the gods of Babylon.

Malachi 2:5 — because it was already terminated by the Levitical priests who had wantonly broken it and rejected it. A similar use of the past tense occurs in Paul's reference to the Law of Moses, "The Law WAS our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ" (Galatians 3:23, KJV). Everything in the Bible, as well as all that is in this chapter and in this paragraph clearly indicates that what "this commandment," which God gave in the place of Levi's covenant means is the final termination of that covenant, on the basis

Malachi 3:4 — fundamental errors: (1) the earlier prophets did not depreciate ritual at all, but ritual insincerely practiced. The common critical opinion that God's prophets care for nothing except social justice is a ridiculous caricature of what they really taught. (2) The "offering" here refers to the "spiritual sacrifices" of the new covenant, which throughout the New Testament receive the most emphatic emphasis.

Matthew 16:2-3 — between their supposed sagacity in material things and their blindness to far more important spiritual things pertaining to the kingdom of heaven. What are "the signs of the times"? (1) The prophetic weeks of Daniel were about to expire. (2) The great herald of the new age, John the Baptist, had appeared according to prophecy, "in the spirit and power of Elijah." (3) The scepter had departed from Judah and the lawgiver from beneath his feet (Genesis 49:10). (4) Even a "sign

Matthew 21:31 — God: (1) The class composed of publicans and harlots were conscious of sins, whereas the Pharisees were not, as shown by Luke's account of the Pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:9 ff), indicating that no sin is greater than being conscious of none. (2) The publicans and sinners heard him (Luke 15:1), but the Pharisaical class refused to hear. (3) They believed him (Matthew 21:32). (4) They repented. (5) They were baptized (Luke 3:12; Luke 7:29-30). If the Pharisees had been willing to do this, they

Matthew 25:31 — Shall from the surface to the center shake, When, at the world's last session, The dreadful Judge in middle air shall spread His throne.Frank S. Mead, The Encyclopedia of Religious Quotations (Westwood, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1965), p. 260. This place does not teach that Christ will sit upon the throne of his glory only upon the occasion of his second coming, nor that he will only then begin to do so. He had already revealed to his disciples that he would sit on his glorious throne

Matthew 8:5 — Testament. A centurion was an officer in the Roman legions, having command of one hundred men, hence his title. Other centurions besides the honorable example before us include: (1) the one who said, "Truly, this was the Son of God" (Matthew 27:54), (2) the centurions who rescued Paul from the mob (Acts 21:32), (3) the centurion who bore Paul's message to the chiliarch (Acts 22:25), (4) Cornelius, the first Gentile convert (Acts 10:1), (5) Julius, who courteously treated Paul and saved his

Matthew 9:18 — upon her, and she shall live. This miracle of raising Jairus' daughter from the dead is the first resurrection recorded in the New Testament. There were three such wonders, forming a sequence: (1) Jairus' daughter had been dead only a very short time. (2) The son of the widow of Nain had been dead longer and was being carried to the tomb. (3) Lazarus had been dead and buried for four days (Luke 7:12; John 11). Christ considered raising the dead a part of his ministry (Matthew 11:5; Luke 7:22), and he

Mark 10:19 — that men do not have it in themselves to keep God's commandments perfectly, However, JESUS KEPT THEM PERFECTLY! Men are saved, therefore, by believing and being baptized INTO CHRIST. Thus, they are identified with Christ and AS CHRIST. (See Galatians 2:20). No man can be saved as John Doe; if ever saved at all, he must be saved "in Christ" and "as Christ." That Jesus was actually attempting to lead this young man into a higher understanding of the truth is implicit in the fact

Mark 10:52 — mentioned only one of the two blind men actually healed, as indicated in Matthew; Mark gave an account of the one who became a disciple. The use of this narrative as an example of how men are saved from sin is seen in: (1) the condition is a figure of sin; (2) the blind man believed in Jesus as the Messiah; (3) he cried out to the Lord for mercy; (4) he persisted in spite of the rebukes of many; (5) he answered Jesus' call; (6) he cast aside all hindrances (the garment); (7) he pleaded for mercy; (8) he

Mark 7:6-7 — prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoreth me with their lips, But their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, Teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men. The Scripture to which Jesus here referred is Isaiah 29:13. Jesus charged his critics with two violations of God's law: (1) they were hypocrites, pretending a piety they did not have, affirming a love of God they did not have, and voicing a religious concern which was non-existent within them; (2) they

Luke 2:13-14 — praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased. A multitude of the heavenly host … A host of angels is represented in the Old Testament as forming the bodyguard of Deity (Psalms 103:21; Daniel 7:10). As Boles said, "This praise was a proclamation of the newborn King and a confirmation of the glorious tidings to the shepherds, and through them to all people."H. Leo Boles, Commentary on the Gospel of Luke (Nashville: The

Luke 7:2 — "It is worthy of remark that in no case is there the slightest hint that the profession of a soldier is unlawful in the sight of God."J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, Luke (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House), p. 205. The list of centurions listed in the New Testament is: 1.    The one whose servant was healed (in this passage). 2.    The one who confessed Christ at the cross (Matthew 27:54). 3.    The

Acts 19:6 — was Pauline in character and owed its effectiveness largely to the ideas of Paul, learned through Paul's two disciples (Aquila and Priscilla). Sir William M. Ramsay, Pictures of the Apostolic Church (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1959), p. 216. Certainly the episode before us, so closely connected with Apollos' instruction by Aquila and Priscilla, casts Paul in the role of correcting those who had been inadequately taught, and whose baptism had been for a purpose other than that of bringing

Romans 1:19 — have been worshipped, and through the patriarchs were in direct communication with the Almighty. "Lamech, Noah's father, was born before Adam died." R. C. Bell, Studies in Romans (Austin, Texas: Firm Foundation Publishing House, 1957), p. 12. This means that no generation of history had any better knowledge of God than those generations from Adam to the deluge. Once again, in the family of Noah, the human race descended in a new beginning from a single source; and again the entire world

Romans 13:1 — casting great fragments of our civilization into collision with one another, and threatening by their attrition to break up and disappear altogether. Sir Stanley Baldwin, Address: Truth and Politics, delivered at Edinburgh University, November 6, 1925. Modern Essays of Various Types (New York: Charles E. Merrill Company, 1927), p. 213. Thus, Stanley Baldwin described the disastrous effects which always accompany the dissolution of states and the breakdown of authority. Paul's revelation that the

Romans 8:29 — not a passage in the New Testament where the word "know" does not above all contain the notion of "knowledge," for this is the first and fundamental meaning. The same is the case with the word "foreknow." … In Acts 2:23, "foreknowledge" is expressly distinguished from "the fixed decree" and consequently can denote nothing but prescience; and, as to Romans 11:2, "His people whom God foreknew," the idea of knowledge is the leading one

Revelation 13:18 — is the number of perfection. Six is the number of imperfection, of falling short, of forever being below what is perfect. The number 777 is said to be "the number of God, Christ, grace and salvation for men." R. C. H. Lenski, op. cit., p. 412. The number 666 is therefore the crowding out of perfection "in Christ," and the contradiction of all that is indicated in 777. Many scholars have stressed this line of thought. Our own conviction is that this "number" is not a literal