Bible Commentaries

2 Kings 11:1-3 — And Athaliah reigned over the land." "God had assured David of the continuation of his family; and this cannot appear but a great thing… Here David's line was almost exterminated, and yet wonderfully preserved."Matthew Henry's Commentary, Vol. 2, p. 767. It was by no means all the posterity of David which was threatened with destruction by Athaliah, but only that portion of it that pertained to the dynastic kings. The near-total irrelevance of those wicked sons of David who sat on his earthly

2 Kings 16:13-16 — example, wrote that, "There was nothing in pre-exilic times to prohibit the king from performing all the functions mentioned here. It was only the post-exilic regulations which made Ahaz's actions illegal and improper."The Interpreter's Bible, op. cit., p. 275. Of course, this is untrue. Saul was rejected as king of Israel for doing exactly what Ahaz is here said to have done, only on a much smaller scale. The radical fairy tale that the Pentateuch was written after the Babylonian exile is only that, a

2 Kings 17:34-41 — sect."International Critical Commentary, op. cit., p. 477. However, there are overtones in the passage which must be understood as applicable to the entire nation of God's chosen people, Judah and Israel alike. "In some ways, this chapter is the heart of 2 Kings, completing the stage of history that was begun when Yahweh declared the division of Solomon's kingdom through Ahijah the prophet and by the agency of Jeroboam ben Nebat. The Northern kingdom was to serve as an example to the house of David; but

2 Kings 19:14-19 — kingdoms of the earth may know that thou Jehovah art God alone." "And Hezekiah… spread it (the letter) before Jehovah" "This was a symbolical action representing his prayer to Jehovah."John Joseph Owens in Broadman Bible Commentary (Isaiah), p. 292. However, this was in no sense such a thing as the prayer-wheels of the Buddhists, or the petitions written on tiny strips of paper and attached to sacred trees. "What Hezekiah meant by his spreading out that letter in the house of Jehovah is spelled

1 Chronicles 28:20-21 — in his love of God and his enthusiasm for building the temple shine in every word of these wonderful sentences. How tragic it is that his son Solomon failed so wretchedly to honor the admonition of this wonderful father. SPECIAL NOTE ON 1 Chronicles 28:5 "He (God) hath chosen Solomon… to sit upon the throne of the KINGDOM OF JEHOVAH over Israel" There is not a more preposterous statement in all the Bible than this one. David truly believed, as did all Israel, that the earthly kingdom that

1 Chronicles 5:25-26 — Joseph was nullified by the apostasy of North Israel,"The Anchor Bible, Chronicles, p. 36. and that the blessing of the leadership of God's people was transferred to Judah. "Pul, and Tilgath-pilneser" The name of this ruler is given as Tiglath-pileser in 2 Kings 15:29. The variation in name could have come about by different pronunciations in diverse languages, or by difficulties some copyist might have found in copying it! If the latter had anything to do with it, this writer can identify with the problem;

2 Chronicles 6:1-11 — God, was Solomon's father; and also, that Great Builder of the true Temple of God, namely, the Church of Jesus Christ, was one who would rise up after David. Solomon rose up with David and was co-regent with David for an unknown number of years. See 2 Samuel 8.

Esther 2:19-23 — chronicles before the king." "And when the virgins were gathered together the second time" This indicates the time when Mordecai discovered that plot against Ahashuerus. There were two gatherings of virgins for the king, the one mentioned in Esther 2:8, and a second one after that. "It was at that second collection of virgins that Mordecai had the good fortune to save the king's life."F. C. Cook, Barnes' Commentary Series, Esther, p. 494. It is incorrect to view any of these amazing events as mere

Job 25:1-4 — everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (Genesis 1:31). This means that the stars were pure in God's sight; thus Bildad's word here is another example of the fact that Job's friends had not spoken of God the things that were right (Job 42:7). It is believed by many scholars that much of this last half of Job is obscured by the imperfect preservation of the text, The critical analysis of these middle chapters takes special notice of, "(1) The extreme brevity of Bildad's speech, (2) the

Psalms 107:4-9 — to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, And the hungry soul he filleth with good." "They wandered… in a desert way… found no city" The antecedent of the pronoun `they' is the "redeemed" and "gathered" of Psalms 107:2-3, namely, the Children of Israel whom God returned to Canaan from Babylon. As Barnes noted, "These verses are a reference to the redeemed of the Lord, as having wandered,… been hungry and thirsty, etc."Barnes' Notes on the Old Testament (Grand

Psalms 144:12-15 — Happy is the people that is in such a case; Yea, happy is the people whose God is Jehovah." There is undoubtedly in this paragraph a brilliant word-picture of overwhelming domestic tranquillity and prosperity. (1)    Psalms 144:12 gives a picture of prosperous and happy families. There is some doubt among scholars as to the exact meaning of the metaphors here; but the idea is clear enough. Strong, vigorous sons, and beautiful efficient daughters adorn the primary unit of any

Psalms 49:5-8 — compensation in a future life (Psalms 49:13-15)."The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 8 p. 377. "None of them can redeem his brother" This is only one of many things that riches cannot do: (1)    They cannot bring the possessor happiness. (2)    They cannot enable their owner to redeem a brother, either from a fatal illness, or for the salvation of his soul. (3)    They cannot endow their possessor with power to redeem himself from a terminal illness,

Psalms 63:1-2 — where no water is. So have I looked on thee in the sanctuary, To see thy power and thy glory." "O God, thou art my God" "In the Hebrew, these words are: [~'Elohiym], [~'Eli]. [~'Elohiym] is plural and [~'Eli] is singular."Charles Haddon Spurgeon, p. 274. Spurgeon commented on this as, "Expressing the Mystery of the Trinity and the Mystery of their Unity, along with that of the Spirit of God."Ibid. "Early will I seek thee" This is the KJV rendition of this clause; and we have chosen it here because

Psalms 72:13-16 — Solomon. The only way we can understand such terminology as this is to ascribe it to the prayer of David, at a time when he was almost on his death bed, anticipating the reign of his son Solomon, and applying the prophecies spoken to him by Nathan (2 Samuel 7) to Solomon, whom David mistakenly supposed would be that "everlasting king" of God's promise through Nathan. Solomon never saved any souls, nor did he ever redeem anybody. "And they shall live" The marginal reading here makes more sense, i.e.,

Isaiah 25:9-12 — singled out, not as a single nation awaiting God's punishment, but as "A representative of all the obdurately hostile and unbelieving world whose God-resisting peoples shall be mowed down in the final destruction."Wycliffe Old Testament Commentary, p. 727 All of the figures that God uses in the Bible to describe the final punishment of the wicked are all repulsive: (1) the lake of fire; (2) the perpetual silence; (3) the outer darkness;, (4) where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth; (5) where the

Isaiah 38:4-6 — of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years. And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city." The parallel account in 2 Kings 20:4 reveals that Isaiah left Hezekiah and was on the way to departing from the palace, being as far as the middle court, when the Word of God came to Isaiah again, instructing him to reveal that the Lord had heard his prayers and was extending

Jeremiah 19:1-2 — words that I shall tell thee." Other occasions when the actions of Jeremiah became a part of his message are: the Marred Girdle (Jeremiah 13), his Abstinence from Marriage (Jeremiah 16), the Potter's Clay (Jeremiah 18), the Bonds and Bars (Jeremiah 27), and his Buying a Field (Jeremiah 32). See chapter heading above for the meaning of this symbol; but there are additional teachings evident here. The fact of the bottle's being "earthen" symbolized the humble beginnings of Israel; the delicate design

Jeremiah 5:4-6 — worship the Lord sincerely. As Thompson accurately noted, `Moral and religious evils are finally inseparable since they stem from a common cause.'"J. A. Thompson, The Bible and Archeology (Grand Rapid, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1972), p. 234. "They have broken the yoke… burst the bonds" "The bonds were the fastenings by which the yoke was securely fixed upon the neck of the animal."Scribner's Bible Commentary (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1898), p. 356. The meaning

2 Samuel 16:1-4 — each man."John T. Willis, p. 374. Understandable as David's decision is, "He had pronounced a rash and unrighteous judgment, inflicting a great injury upon the character and interests of a devoted friend."Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary, p. 205. "Two asses saddled" These had most likely been saddled for Ziba and for Mephibosheth; but the crafty Ziba left his crippled master behind and took them to David. "A skin of wine" "This was a large goat-skin vessel."Ibid. "Today,… Israel will

2 Samuel 2:1-4 — metropolis. "There they anointed David king over the house of Judah" There were three anointings of David as king: (1)    His first anointing was by Samuel (1 Samuel 10:1) which indicated God's secret purpose and ultimate intention. (2)    Here is the second anointing when the men of Judah elevated him over the house of Judah. (3)    His third and final anointing made him king "over all Israel" (1 Chronicles 14:8). The delay between David's