Bible Commentaries

Genesis 12 overview — fallen mankind to renew fellowship with their Creator and escape the judgment of death, the sentence already imposed upon Adam's rebellious race following the disaster in Eden. All of this began with the call of Abraham related in this chapter (Genesis 12:1-9). Genesis 12 also records a sinful lapse of the great patriarch in the events of his unwise trip down into Egypt (Genesis 12:10-20). THE CALL OF ABRAHAM Importance of. It would be nearly impossible to overestimate the importance of the call of Abraham,

1 Kings 7:13-22 — justified Solomon's placement of these pagan pillars in the Temple. They performed no useful function in its construction. "They did not support the roof of the temple hall, but were set up in front of the hall on either side of the entrance."Ibid., p. 102. "They were put there simply because such pillars were commonly found in front of other (pagan) temples in the East."The Layman's Bible Commentary, p. 35. There is no agreement whatever as to what they might have symbolized. Their names, Jachin and

Job 2:11-13 — Franklin Genung, in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Chicago, Illinois: The Howard-Severance Company, 1915), p. 934. "Bildad the Shuhite" The name Shuhite is supposed to be derived from Shuah, one of the sons of Abraham and Keturah (Genesis 25:2). "The Assyrian area of Shuhu was located south of Haran near the middle of the Euphrates valley and might have been the land of Bildad."Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 234. This second friend of Job gave an absolutely horrible picture of

Isaiah 33:17-24 — sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity." "The king in his beauty" Who is this? Some three different opinions are sustained by scholars. On account of the mention of Jehovah as the judge, lawgiver, and king in Isaiah 33:22, some believe the "king in his beauty" is a reference to Jehovah. Others suppose that the reference is to Hezekiah; and still others believe the reference is to the Messiah. We prefer the third interpretation; because (1) the Jerusalem of this passage

Isaiah 49:14-21 — doubtless felt by the exiles in Babylon; but the same feelings of frustration and sorrow were felt by the Son of God Himself, the True Israel of God, during his earthly ministry, a fact already mentioned in Isaiah 49:4, above, and suggested in Isaiah 42:4. One of the cries of Jesus Christ from the Cross, "My God, My God, Why hast thou forsaken me"? (Matthew 27:46) is proof of this. "Can a woman forget her sucking child" God here declared that such is possible; and every day's newspaper is the proof

Ezekiel 36:8-15 — of exactly when it will occur. The promise of God makes it as sure as if it had already happened. Pearson has summarized the promises of Israel's re-entry into Palestine as inclusive of: "(1) The wonderful fruitfulness and productivity of the land; (2) the re-population of Palestine; (3) the elimination of scarcity; (4) freedom from reproach; and (5) the security and prosperity of the nation in a degree even surpassing their former estate' and the time of their `beginnings.'"Anton T. Pearson in Wycliffe

Numbers 24:3-9 — pronounce blessings upon all who blessed Israel, and curses upon all who cursed them! Balak's patience was exhausted, and his anger kindled against Balaam, as indicated by his clapping his hands after the oracle was spoken. "Whose eyes were closed (Numbers 24:3 b)… having his eyes open" (Numbers 24:4). Well, which was it? Jewish interpreters came up with the amazing postulation that Balaam was blind in one eye and could see with the other!Rishfei Esh, Wellsprings of Torah, Vol. 2, Numbers (New York:

Luke 15:3-7 — still have ninety-nine left!" It should be the work of every Christian to become aroused over the fate of the lost brother. It is a brother who is lost, a man made in God's own image; to despise him, or set him at naught, is to despise oneself. (2)    The shepherd went himself; he did not merely send another. Men are wrong who suppose that they may merely send their minister or elder to seek out the lost. God has commanded: "Ye that are spiritual restore such a one"

Acts 10:1-2 — "cohort," usually the tenth part of a Roman legion; but a detached cohort, as this evidently was at Caesarea, usually had a thousand men. A. C. Hervey, The Pulpit Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans, Publishers, 1950), Acts, p. 332. The commander of such a regiment was called a "chiliarch," and his force was divided into hundreds, each commanded by a centurion. It is strange that the decimal system should have prevailed in that ancient army and that today the same system

Acts 14:5-7 — the Jews and their rulers, to treat them shamefully and to stone them, they became aware of it, and fled unto the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the region round about; and there they preached the gospel. The opposition mentioned in Acts 14:2 could be contained only for a time. The increasing success of the gospel finally precipitated the riotous and illegal action in view here. Ramsay referred to this impending mob action as "a riotous and illegal conspiracy"; Sir William M. Ramsay,

Acts 21:38 — mind, however, is revealed in such a comment as that of MacGreggor, thus: "This is another faulty recollection of Josephus on Luke's part." <footnote5> G. H. C. MacGreggor, The Interpreter's Bible (New York: Abingdon Press, 1954), p. 288. This snide little criticism is reproduced here, not because of its value, for it has none; but it is cited as another example of the crooked exegesis which is popular in our day. Here is what Josephus wrote: There was an Egyptian false prophet …

Acts 26:19-20 — with shouts of "contradiction." MacGreggor, while admitting the unusual construction of the Greek (a typically Pauline touch), nevertheless gives the typically knee-jerk response of the radical critic, affirming a contradiction of Galatians 1:22, G. H. C. MacGreggor, op. cit., p. 328. in which place Paul said that when Galatians was written he was still unknown by face to the churches of Judaea. It is therefore certain, then, that Paul did not use the word "first" here in any chronological

Acts 4:5-6 — Court, composed of the presiding officer, who was the high priest, and seventy others. It was the same body which had demanded and received the crucifixion of Jesus. It was the historical successor to the board of judges appointed by Moses (Numbers 11:16-25). In Jerusalem … The council chamber in which they met was traditionally in the temple; but about A.D. 30, they changed their meeting place "to a court on the east side of the temple mount … the meeting at the palace of the high

Acts 7:14-16 — fathers; and they were carried over unto Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver of the sons of Hamor in Shechem. Threescore and fifteen souls … This number has been seized upon as a contradiction of Genesis 46:27 which gives the number as "threescore and ten." But as George DeHoff observed: Jacob's children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren amounted to sixty-six (Genesis 46:8-26). Adding Jacob himself and Joseph with his two sons, we have seventy.

Acts 7:17-22 — claims usually made by the Jews with regard to the great lawgiver, some even claiming that he was the author of Egyptian civilization. The points here stressed are: (1) that Moses had been providentially incorporated into the royal family of Egypt, (2) that he was "exceeding fair," and (3) that he had been provided with the very best education possible. Exceeding fair … "This phrase is intensive, rather than a mere equivalent for the superlative, and means "fair unto God."

Acts 9:3 — was "between 130 and 150 miles, a journey of something like six days." E. M. Blaiklock, Cities of the Old Testament (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1965), p. 13. The time of this approach to Damascus was about noon (Acts 22:6); and from this it seems that Saul was pressing man and beast to the limit of endurance in his haste to execute his fury against the Christians. Wesley thought it probable that "they were traveling on foot"; John Wesley, New Testament Commentary

Romans 16:19 — is come abroad unto all men. I rejoice therefore over you: but I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple to that which is evil. The threat of evil teachers and their seductive operations was pointed out by Christ himself (Matthew 7:15-23), and the Saviour's description of such persons is still the fountain source of the true knowledge concerning them. They are wolves in sheep's clothing, being recognizable principally by their fruits. The minister, or other teacher, who scatters the

Romans 5:14 — with the water and with the blood (1 John 5:6). Satan seduced and deceived the bride of Adam; and in the long, wretched story of the historical church, it is evident that Paul's fear of the same fate for the bride of Christ was more than justified (2 Corinthians 11:3). It is clear, therefore, that Adam is to be considered as a type of Christ, more in the instance of contrasts than in similarities. Adam's one sin contrasts with Christ's entire life of perfect holiness. Death for all which followed

1 Corinthians 10:1 — requires the understanding that this section of the epistle is a continuation of the argument in previous chapters. See in the chapter introduction. I would not have you ignorant … was a favorite expression with Paul. He used it in 1 Corinthians 12:1; 2 Corinthians 1:8; Romans 1:13; Romans 11:25, and in 1 Thessalonians 4:13, as well as here. It is not likely that Paul thought his readers would have been ignorant of the history of Israel, but rather that they would not have been aware of the typical

1 Samuel 8:10-18 — for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day." "And Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people" L. P. Smith stated that, "This chapter contains the late account of the institution of the monarchy."The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 2, p. 917. How did she justify such an error? She did so on the basis that Samuel's description of the monarchy could not possibly have been foreseen by him but was evidently written by one who had observed the monarchy for centuries! This is another