Bible Commentaries

Psalms 132:11-18 — His enemies shall I clothe with shame; But upon himself shall his crown flourish." This paragraph is the inspired psalmist's announcement of God's answer to the dedicatory prayer; and, as inspired men often did, he used material already in the Bible (2 Samuel 7:11-16), supplementing it with inspired revelations of his own. "Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne" "If thy children shall keep my covenant… their children also shall sit upon thy throne" (Psalms 132:12). These are the

Proverbs 1:1-7 — not begin with God, the fountain of wisdom; and he whose mind is influenced by the fear and love of God will learn more in a month than others will in a year."Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (London: T. Mason and G. Lane, 1837), Vol. III, p. 702. "The fear of Jehovah" This is not a reference to abject craven fear, or terror, but to the awesome respect, honor, and deference to God and his will which automatically come to every mind that contemplates the omnipotence, glory, and holiness of Almighty

Song of Solomon 7:10-13 — the field" (Song of Solomon 7:11). This could not possibly refer either to a palace or to a harem. "Let us lodge in the villages" (Song of Solomon 7:11). The Shulamite is definitely not speaking of Jerusalem. "Let us get up early" (Song of Solomon 7:12). Even a fool knows that farmers get up early; kings don't! "Let us see whether the vine hath budded, etc." (Song of Solomon 7:12). The employment mentioned here is that of rural dwellers, not that of urbanites. "There will I give thee my love" (Song

Isaiah 14:1-2 — a solemn truth emphasized especially in the prophecy of Hosea. There were, of course, some new things in this second "choice" of the Israel destined to receive all of God's promises. This also is spelled out in Hosea (See my comments on this in Vol. 2 of the Minor Prophets Series). The Israel to be honored in this "second choosing" would not apply to any race whatever but would be equally applicable to Jews and Gentiles alike. Gomer, the wife of Hosea, it will be remembered, was bought back from

Daniel 5:1-4 — and of stone." The date of this remarkable banquet was the night in which Babylon fell, usually given in the history books as in 538 B.C. A Babylonian text (presumably of Herodotus) was cited by Millard, which gave the date of this event as October 12, 539 B.C.A. R. Millard, The New Layman's Bible Commentary, Daniel (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing Company, 1979), p. 913. "Belshazzar the king" It was at one time the arrogant assertion of Biblical enemies that there never was any such king as Belshazzar

Hosea 3:1 — such guesses at the meaning here carry any conviction whatever. The woman here is undoubtedly Gomer. Many scholars have discerned this: The woman was evidently Gomer.Homer Hailey, Commentary on the Minor Prophets (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1972), p. 145. Hosea is urged here to continue loving a woman, Gomer.Jacob M. Myers, Layman's Bible Commentary, Vol. 14 (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1959), p. 20. In the light of the meaning of the symbolism, who could the woman be but Gomer?James Luther Mays,

Joel 1:15 — rejection and crucifixion of the Messiah. From this, it is clearly seen that other great historical judgments upon such wicked cities as Tyre, Sidon, Nineveh, Babylon, Sodom, and Gomorrah were exactly the same type of visitation that fell upon Jerusalem. (2)    The ultimate meaning of "day of the Lord" identifies it with the final and terminal destruction of the entire posterity of Adam and Eve upon the great occasion of the eternal Judgment Day, when the dead shall be raised, the righteous

Mark 14:12 — … The Jewish Passover always began at sundown on the 14th of Nisan, the following day, the 15th of Nisan, actually being the Passover day. The first day of unleavened bread was the preceding day, the 13th of Nisan (beginning at sundown on the 12th of Nisan). Since Christ died at the same hour the paschal lambs were being slain, that is, at 3:00 p.m. on the 14th, the event Mark mentioned here took place on the afternoon of daytime Nisan 13. Of course the meal that followed those preparations

Mark 3:28-31 — guilty of a sin that could never be forgiven. The final clause, "because they said, etc.," connects the eternal sin with their blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Jesus made a distinction between blasphemy against the "Son of man" (Matthew 12:32) and that against the Holy Spirit. A little further discussion of this sin is appropriate. (a)    What was their particular sin? It was the sin of reading the pure and holy life of Jesus Christ as satanic, the sin of viewing black

Mark 8:38 — because Jesus himself repeated the admonition in this context, or because it was an oft-repeated warning by Jesus which Mark considered to be appropriate in context. Either way, it is authentic and inspired. A similar warning was recorded by Matthew 10:32-33. That human pride should lead men to be ashamed of the sinless Son of God and his holy teachings is one of the mysteries of iniquity; yet the fact of its doing so is evident everywhere. Satan has indeed deceived and deluded men in whom such being

Luke 1:27 — betrothed … Among the Jews of that period the betrothal took place a year before the couple lived together; but in every other respect it WAS the marriage ceremony. The bride's infidelity during the betrothal period was a capital offense (Deuteronomy 22:23 f). The house of David … Commentators have sometimes troubled themselves over the applications of these words, whether to Joseph or to Mary; but they surely apply to both. That Mary was also of the house of David, as a comparison with Luke

Luke 19:35 — prophecy was literally fulfilled.Norval Geldenhuys, op. cit., p. 483. Spread their garments in the way … This was commonly recognized as an act of homage to a king or other royal person. The officers of Jehu's army paid such a tribute to him (2 Kings 9:13); and Spence says that "Agamemnon walked on costly carpets and tapestries when he entered his palace at Mycenae."H. D. M. Spence, op. cit., p. 139 Moreover, it must not be thought that there was anything unkingly about Jesus' riding

Luke 19:5 — down, and received him joyfully. Said unto him, Zacchaeus … "The Lord's perfect knowledge is clearly shown in this case. He knew not only the name of the man in the sycamore tree, but the state of his heart."J. C. Ryle, op. cit., p. 295. We are unable to find any grounds of accommodation with those who question whether or not the omniscience of Jesus is in view here, asking, "Did someone identify the rich tax collector in his unusual perch for Jesus?" nor with the conclusion

John 1:41 — been earnestly expecting and waiting for the Messiah and that they had been searching to find him, their attitude of expectancy having resulted from John the Baptist's preaching, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). Thus, the prior attitude of those first disciples accounts for their rapid progress. They first addressed the Lord as "Rabbi"; and, after only a day with him, they affirmed that he was the Messiah. Note that John again interpreted the Jewish

John 17:21 — world, Milligan said, "This would be to all thoughtful persons a moral demonstration that the Christian religion is not of men, but of God." Robert Milligan, Analysis of the New Testament (Cincinnati, Ohio: Bosworth, Chase, and Hall, 1874), p. 268. It is in disunity that God's church is most helpless in the present times. Nothing is more productive of infidelity and unrighteousness than the conflicting doctrines of professed followers of Christ. By multiplying divisions, Satan has hindered

John 2:8 — drunk in Palestine."Albert Barnes, op. cit., p. 193. And it is precisely this evident truth that rebukes any notion that this wine was merely the unfermented juice of grapes. On Pentecost, the apostles were accused of being full of new wine (Acts 2:3-15), to the extent of intoxication, a charge that Peter denied; but he did not deny that the wine common in those days was capable of producing intoxication; on the other hand, his defense tacitly admitted it. Also, the opinion of the ruler of the

Acts 10:44 — that Gentiles may be received into the church by baptism, even when they have not removed their uncleanness through circumcision and sacrifice. Beasley-Murray, G. F., Baptism in the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans, Publishers, 1962), p. 108. It is that "exceptional situation" mentioned by Beasley-Murray that must be emphasized here. The divine manifestation of the Holy Spirit falling on those Gentiles of Cornelius' household was not for the purpose of saving them, in

Acts 28:21-22 — letters from Judaea concerning thee, nor did any of the brethren come hither and report or speak any harm of thee. But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, it is known to us that everywhere it is spoken against. Acts 28:21 signals the end of any prosecution whatever against Paul in Rome, leading inevitably to his release from this first imprisonment. The speculation of some who would have it otherwise, to the effect that insufficient time had elapsed for the charges

Romans 1:5 — significant. Paul was about to write the most important document on the subject of faith that the world would ever have, in which, of necessity, there would be written some of those things which even an apostle would consider "hard to be understood" (2 Peter 3:16); therefore, it was a matter of gracious discernment upon his part that, in the very beginning of the letter, he made it clear that, throughout Romans, "faith" should be read "obedient faith." Evidence is totally lacking

2 Samuel 12:13-14 — regarding the nature of the forgiveness of sins that was available to worthies of the O.T. One of the greatest scholars of our times, John T. Willis, declared that, "Here and elsewhere the O.T. teaches that God forgave sins in O.T. times (Leviticus 4:26; Leviticus 4:31; Leviticus 4:35; Leviticus 5:10; Leviticus 5:13; Leviticus 5:16; Numbers 14:18; Psalms 103:3; Psalms 103:10; Psalms 103:12; Psalms 130:3-4)."John T. Willis, p. 353. Furthermore, it is a fact that the word "forgiveness" is used in all