Bible Commentaries

Genesis 42:15-17 — need of food, and therefore he sent them all home except Simeon, their sacks laden with grain, and their money returned, as related at once by the sacred author. "By the life of Pharaoh" This was a common oath, corresponding to an expression found in 2 Kings 2:4, "And Elisha said, As Jehovah liveth." In Egypt, Pharaoh was considered a god, but Joseph's early training had taught him the name of the true God, a truth he had not forgotten, despite his using the usual Egyptian expression here.

Exodus 23:25-27 — the Word of God. "I will send my terror before thee" This dreadful fear of God was most effective in bringing Israel into Canaan. It is seen in the case of Balak and the Moabites. "Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many" (Numbers 22:3), and again in the instance of Rahab the harlot who confessed that, "The fear of you has fallen upon all of us" (Joshua 2:9; Joshua 2:11).

2 Kings 15:8-12 — the word of Jehovah which he spake unto Jehu, saying, thy sons to the fourth generation shall sit upon the throne of Israel. And so it came to pass." LaSor dated this brief reign in 753 B.C., only about thirty one years before the fall of Samaria in 722 B.C.The New Bible Commentary, Revised, p. 359. The most important thing about this man was the fact of his terminating the dynasty of Jehu as related in 2 Kings 15:12. This, of course, had been prophesied by the Lord in 2 Kings 10:30. His violent overthrow

2 Kings 4 overview — feebleness that are absolutely puerile."Ibid. In addition to the remarkable evidence of the supernatural in these events, we believe there are spiritual implications of tremendous importance; and we shall attempt to point out some of these. This section of 2 Kings (2 Kings 4-8:6) is not arranged in chronological order but is arranged so as to show how Elisha continued the work of Elijah in proving to Israelites the superiority and excellence of the God of Israel as contrasted with all the Canaanite gods

Proverbs 11:24 — "There is that scattereth, and increaseth yet more; And there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth only to want." "One gives away, and still he grows richer: Another keeps what he should give, and is the poorer."Ibid. This corresponds exactly with the promises of God in the New Testament (2 Corinthians 9:6-11).

Isaiah 29 overview — There are five paragraphs in this chapter: (1) Jerusalem is warned of the siege by Sennacherib (Isaiah 29:1-4). (2) A divine promise of relief (Isaiah 29:5-8). (3) Prophecy of the hardening, or blinding, of Israel (Isaiah 29:9-12). (4) Israel's warnings repeated (Isaiah 29:13-16). (5) Israel's promises renewed (Isaiah 29:17-24).

Hosea 9:9 — will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins." "As in the days of Gibeah" Following most of the modern commentators on this place, Hailey thought the reference here to Gibeah recalled, "the conduct of their fathers as recorded in Judges 19-20, when one of the tribes was all but exterminated because of its wickedness."Homer Hailey, op. cit., p. 166. However, as Ward has pointed out, there were two important events in Israel's history associated with Gibeah: (1) the intertribal war over Benjamin's

Obadiah 1:10 — announced. It was not because of some single act of passion, but for an entire history of hatred and opposition to God's purpose. They had refused to allow the Israelites passage through their territory into the promised land in the times of Moses (Numbers 20:14-21). They warred against Saul (1 Samuel 14:47); David conquered them and established military garrisons in their land. Solomon controlled their territory when he made Ezion-geber the seaport from which his ships sailed to Ophir (2 Chronicles 8:17-18),

Nahum 3 overview — God even to contempt of self… There are but two kinds of human society, which we may call two cities. One is of such as will live only for the flesh; the other of such as will live after the Spirit."Albert Barnes, Notes on Minor Prophets Vol. 2 (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1950), p. 148. Of this city of the evil world, Nineveh is a type. We have already observed in Nahum 2 that Nineveh is particularly important because of its status as the second head of the Scarlet Beast of Revelation

Zechariah 14:8 — references to the universal, worldwide sweep of the Christian religion. "In summer and winter" There shall never be any cessation of the preaching of Christ and the benefits of serving him. As Paul said to Timothy, "Be urgent in season and out of season" (2 Timothy 4:2). Robert C. Dentan's comment that, "The provision of an adequate supply of water in a land in which the water supply was a chief problem,"Robert C. Dentan, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VI (New York City: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 1111.

Matthew 9:14 — saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? At this point, the disciples of John were already beginning to be jealous of the rising popularity of Christ (John 4:1-3). The use of the participle "were fasting" in Mark 2:18, show that this feast in the home of Matthew probably took place on a Monday or Thursday, when the Pharisees and disciples of John the Baptist were observing their customary feasts. The appearance of John's disciples at that moment shows that the

Mark 1:33-34 — at the door. And he healed many that were sick with divers diseases, and cast out many demons; and he suffered not the demons to speak, because they knew him. Here it was Matthew who provided the sparkling details that: (1) all the sick were healed; (2) the demons were cast out by a word; and (3) there was here a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy (Isaiah 53:4). This is contrary to the view that Mark more fully reported material common with the other synoptics. Luke more fully reported the incident

Luke 4:7 — The arrogance of Satan in such a proposal as this is staggering. Here indeed the prince of evil appeared "as a roaring lion," the guise in which he often assails men. He is designated the devil, the beast, and the false prophet (Revelation 20:10). He appears in three guises: a serpent (Revelation 20:2), a lion (1 Peter 5:8), and an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). These three guises of Satan, thus arranged, are in the ascending order of power, exactly the order in which Luke presented

Judges 10:1-2 — Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried in Shamir." It is somewhat unusual to find the names of BOTH the father and the grandfather in this type of account, and here it might be due to the fact that Dodo was one of David's "mighty men" (2 Samuel 23:9; 2 Samuel 23:24 and 1 Chronicles 11:12; 1 Chronicles 27:7). Also, if the reference here is to one of David's mighty men, it would indicate a long skip in the genealogy between Dodo and Puah, as is customary in Biblical genealogies. "Shamir"

Revelation 16:11 — and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they repented not of their works. See notes on Revelation 16:9, which is very similar. The fact of the bowl-judgments being collective is seen in this mention of their sores, which are associated with the first bowl (Revelation 16:2).

Revelation 20:11 — throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw a great white throne … Is this God, or Christ? We should probably read it as Christ, to correspond with Matthew 25:31-46, and also with the truth that God has committed judgment unto the Son of man (John 5:22). From whose face the earth and the heaven fled away … Note that very similar things were written in Revelation 6:14; Revelation 16:20; Revelation

1 Samuel 25:1 — insertion by some later hand, but there is no solid evidence whatever to back up such opinions. Keil remarked that, "The death of Samuel is inserted here, because it occurred at that time."C. F. Keil, Keil and Delitzsch's Old Testament Commentaries, Vol. 2b, p. 238. Also, present-day scholars of the highest rank confirm that understanding. "Chronologically, Samuel died while David and his men were at Engedi,"John T. Willis, p. 242. and this accounts for the fact that, immediately, "David thought that

1 Samuel 25:14-17 — cannot speak to him." This passage reveals that David and his men indeed had guarded Nabal's flocks of sheep for a long while, giving them marvelous protection. "We know of raids on two walled towns in this south country, one by the Philistines (1 Samuel 23:1-5) and one by the Amalekites (1 Samuel 30:1-2). How much more, then, must the shepherds in the open country have been in constant danger from marauders, unless they had someone like David to be a wall of protection to them."The Interpreter's Bible,

2 Samuel 12:10-12 — shall never depart from thy house" Three of David's sons would be murdered: Amnon by Absalom, Absalom by Joab, and Adonijah by Solomon; but the punishment did not stop with that generation. The long, bloody history of the house of David continued (See 2 Kings 11:1, etc.) until the end of his earthly dynasty. "I will take your wives, before your eyes, and give them to your neighbor… in the sight of this sun" Absalom, the king's son, lived near the king and was therefore "a neighbor." One of Absalom's

2 Samuel 9:1 — kindness for Jonathan's sake.'" In answer to this question, David learned that a son of Jonathan, Mephibosheth, the five-year old lad who had been crippled in his feet upon the occasion of the family's flight following the death of Saul, was still living (2 Samuel 4:4). The events mentioned in this chapter took place long afterward, because, in the meanwhile, Mephibosheth had grown up, married and had become the father of a young son Mica (2 Samuel 9:12). "For Jonathan's sake" The background of David's