Bible Commentaries

2 Kings 24:8-9 — that his father had done." It is amazing that so short a reign could have been marked by so much evil. Ezekiel described him as… a young lion who devoured men and also that he knew, i.e. ravished, the widows of those whom he murdered (Ezekiel 19:5-7). Keil commented that, "Jehoiakin did not confine his deeds of violence to individuals, but extended them to all who were left behind by his murders, viz., their families and possessions. Also, nothing is affirmed in Jeremiah 22:24; Jeremiah 22:28

Psalms 116:15 — SAINTS "Precious in the sight of Jehovah Is the death of his saints." Where is the minister of the gospel who has never used this passage as comfort for the bereaved at a funeral service? "The word `precious' here means `costly,' as in Psalms 72:14; 1 Kings 5:17; and 7:9-11, where the same Hebrew word is used."C. M. Miller, co-author with Anthony L. Ash, p. 380. "The sense is that Yahweh will not easily suffer his saints to perish; the cost of their death is too great. In other words, the godly need Yahweh's

Psalms 18:25-29 — merciful, the perfect, and the pure. God's lighting his lamp is a reference to the constant enlightenment available to the faithful in God's Word. The ability to "leap over a wall," according to McCaw, may be, "A reference to the incident in 2 Samuel 5:6-10."Leslie S. McCaw, op. cit., p. 462.

Psalms 45:2 — Christ, the Messiah, ever brought the grace of God to all men? "Therefore God hath blessed thee forever." This was clearly in the mind of Paul when he wrote: "Of whom is Christ, as concerning the flesh, who is over all, God, blessed forever" (Romans 9:5). Who is capable of accepting these words as applicable to any of the historical kings of antiquity, either Jewish or Gentile?

Proverbs 22:15 — "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; But the rod of correction shall drive it far from him." A number of proverbs deal with the discipline of children (Proverbs 13:24; Proverbs 22:6; Proverbs 29:15; Proverbs 29:21). Corporal punishment is mentioned here. Our current culture has rejected corporal punishment for disobedient and unruly children; and this should be evaluated in the light of this report from the front page of today's Houston Post,

Proverbs 28:23 — mean that the `afterward' would refer to misdemeanor; but as it is the word appplies to the time when the one who rebuked will find more favor. To rebuke one who deserves it is a courageous thing to do, and only one's true friend will do it. (See James 5:19). "The true friend says harsh things, but they are wholesome words that may lead to spiritual growth, and they show more real affection than the soft and flattering words of the fawning parasite."The Pulpit Commentary, op. cit., p. 538. Deane favored

Isaiah 50:5 — "The Lord Jehovah hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away backward." There is great solemnity of the sacred language. Note that the double name of Jehovah ([~'Adonay] [~Yahweh]) appears four times in Isaiah 50:4-5; Isaiah 50:7; Isaiah 50:9. The mission to which Christ was called involved the ultimate in hardship, rejection, hatred, persecution, torture and death; but unlike many prophets before Christ, our Lord was not rebellious, as was Jonah; he did not

Daniel 5:29 — ruler in the kingdom." DANIEL REWARDED According to the rules of courtesy in those times, it would have been improper for Daniel to have refused the honors bestowed upon him by Belshazzar; and Daniel's acceptance here of the gifts mentioned in Daniel 5:17, indicates that Daniel meant no disrespect whatever to the king in that passage. A very valuable comment on this is: "If Belshazzar was intended to represent Antiochus Epiphanes, certainly the portrait here is utterly unlike anything that we know

Amos 5:15 — the uncertainty which is indicated as to whether or not mercy would be extended did not derive from any unwillingness on God's part. "The prophet regarded it as dubious whether they would really repent."Ibid. Love the good" or "seek good," as in Amos 5:14 was not considered by Amos as one and the same thing as seeking God. "When he said in one place, `Seek the Lord,' and in another `Seek good,' he was not making them synonymous. Amos was not preaching just an ethical religion. The seeker of Yahweh

Numbers 4:17-20 — passage was given thus by Keil: "In order to prevent as far as possible any calamity from falling upon the Levites while carrying the most holy things, the priests are again urged by the command of God to do all that has already been prescribed (Numbers 4:5-15), lest through any carelessness on their part they should cut off the tribes of the families of the Kohathites, i.e., cause their destruction through their approaching the holy things before they had been properly wrapped by Aaron's sons."C. F. Keil,

Micah 7:1 — as appears in succeeding verses. Just as in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah, "There were not `ten righteous persons' for whose sake the city might have been spared!"Albert Barnes, Notes on the Minor Prophets, Vol. 2) (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953), p. 89. "Like Jeremiah, a century later (Jeremiah 5:1), he is unable to find a single godly person. He compares himself to a man wandering in the fields in search of something to eat."D. Elmo Scoggin, Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Broadman

Matthew 26:14 — events in this chapter certainly suggests that the events concerning the "waste" of the spikenard are definitely connected to the defection of Judas. Otherwise, the journey of Judas to the priests would have been mentioned in Matthew 26:1-5. Plummer wrote, "Evidently we are to suppose that the proposal (of Judas) was a consequence of that incident."Ibid., p. 354. Robertson concurs, saying, "Judas, stung by the rebuke of Jesus at the feast, bargains with the rulers to betray

Matthew 7:7 — Jonah, (3) by denial of the request, as in the case of Paul's thorn in the flesh, (4) by sending something other than was requested as in the case of our Lord's prayer for the cup to pass but which was answered by his receiving strength to drink it, and (5) after delay as in the case of Jairus' prayer for Christ to heal his daughter. This wonderful verse is easily memorized by aid of the acronym formed by the letters A-S-K. A-sk, and ye shall receive …S-eek, and ye shall find …K-nock, and

Matthew 9:22 — from the fact that she touched a particular part of his garment supposed to be especially holy. That was the tuft,Emphatic Diaglott, Matthew 9:22 (Brooklyn, New York: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society), p. 38. or tassel, which, according to Numbers 15:37, every Jew wore on the four corners of his cloak to remind him of God's commands, and which was considered the holiest part of his apparel. Jesus' action, as more fully given in Mark 5:25-34, and his plain words made it clear to the woman that he,

Mark 7:31 — Raphana, Scythopolis, Gadara, Hippos, Dion, Pella, Gerasa, and Kanatha. Damascus alone retains any importance today. It should be recalled that this area heard the publication of the news of Jesus Christ by the Gerasene demoniac whom Jesus had healed (Mark 5:20).

Luke 10:19 — (Matthew 28:20). Any presumption on the part of God's children is not to be grounded in these promises. While it is true that the apostles and prophets of the New Testament did actually take up poisonous serpents and were bitten without harm (Acts 28:5), there is utterly no example where any person ever did such things on purpose and presumptuously.

Luke 5:21 — allegation against him, is not contradicted by Luke's statement that "they began to reason." Both Mark and Matthew mention the fact of Jesus' reading their thoughts in this situation; and the same is evident a little later here in Jesus reply (Luke 5:22).

Luke 6:22 — Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. This is a variation of the same thought of Matthew 5:10-12. "Blessed are the persecuted for righteousness' sake." In such a pronouncement, Jesus had in view the antagonism between light and darkness, the inevitable hatred of the carnal man of all that is holy and spiritual. For the Son of man's

Luke 6:27-29 — also the other; and from him that taketh away thy cloak, withhold not thy coat also. These same teachings, phrased a little differently, were recorded by Matthew in the Sermon on the Mount. For a full discussion, see my Commentary on Matthew, Matthew 5:39-45. The principles taught here are non-resistance to evil, the overcoming of evil with good, and patient submissiveness to encroachment against one's personal rights. Ours is an era when men are screaming demands for their "rights"; but

1 Samuel 7:15-17 — here was in all probability the one near Jericho."Albert Barnes, Samuel, p. 20. "And there he built an altar to the Lord" Young's comment on the building of this altar gives an excellent explanation of it. "This deviation from the law of Deuteronomy 12:5; Deuteronomy 12:13, was probably occasioned by the public disorder of that period and the destruction of both the tabernacle and its altar. Jehovah sanctioned the erection of this altar by his acceptance of both the person and the service of Samuel.Wycliffe