Bible Commentaries

Genesis 9:28 — examples of this. (5)    It is not the big temptations alone that cause people to fail, but the little ones as well. Noah could withstand the scorn of the whole world, but he could not resist the over-indulgence of his appetite! (6)    Even the greatest and best of men are no substitute for Christ, who alone is the Perfect One and the Saviour of all people.

Nehemiah 6:15-19 — married one of their daughters and was the son-in-law of Shechaniah. Many of them were sworn allies of Tobiah and cooperated with Israel's enemies throughout the period of rebuilding the wall. Indeed, its completion was certainly wrought of God (Nehemiah 6:16).

Psalms 10:7-8 — wicked actions. These things are mentioned at once: (1) he is a profane swearer; (2) he is a planner of mischief and iniquity; (3) he lurks in secret hiding places near towns and villages; and (4) he is a murderer of innocent people. In Hosea 4:2; Hosea 6:9, that prophet mentioned similar bloody and violent conditions of society.

Psalms 118:18-20 — the gate of "righteousness" in another sense. God's presence was manifested in the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle; and, as Delitzsch pointed out, "The word `righteousness' comprehends within itself all of the attributes of God mentioned in Exodus 34:6 ff."

Psalms 130:3-4 — that if God kept a permanent record of all sins instead of forgiving them, no mortal could stand justified in the sight of God. The epic question of the Apocalypse is, "The great day of God's wrath has come, and who shall be able to stand?" (Revelation 6:17). "But there is forgiveness with thee" No greater insight into God's character is to be found anywhere in the Old Testament. Indeed yes, God has forgiveness; and, although it was not available in the absolute sense during the Old Covenant days, yet

Psalms 4:3-4 — sure that they confirm to the will of God. When one has retired to bed at night is a good quiet time for such consideration. David himself practiced what he here counsels others to do, namely, meditating upon God's will while reclining in bed (Psalms 63:6).

Psalms 45:16-17 — the earth… all generations… forever and ever." The universal, eternal kingdom of God alone fits such particulars as these. "Thy children made princes in all the earth." All of God's children are "kings and priests unto God" (Revelation 1:6) Also Peter wrote: "Ye are an elect race, a royal priesthood, etc." (1 Peter 2:9). The ability to make kings and royal princes "in all the earth" has never pertained to any one other than the Lord Jesus Christ. It is most appropriate, therefore, that

Psalms 5:9-10 — we dare not pray such prayers;"Ibid., p. 47. however, it is my personal conviction that such views are not justified. The prayers of the Saints in Heaven itself is represented as a cry for God to avenge their blood upon earth's wicked men (Revelation 6:10); and in that light, I cannot find anything wrong with the so-called imprecatory Psalms. God indeed hates and abhors those who have rebelled against him; and it is evident that a prayer for the destruction of the rebellious enemies of God should

Isaiah 55:12-13 — shall come up the myrtle-tree: and it shall be to Jehovah for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." When the Lord uprooted his vineyard, took away the hedge, broke the wall, and laid it waste, briars and thorns came up (Isaiah 5:5-6), the Old Israel suffered; but the New Israel under the New Covenant will be abundantly blessed. It should always be remembered that no individual of the old racial Israel is excluded from the New Covenant. Any or all of them may indeed be redeemed

Isaiah 55:4-5 — here (Isaiah 55:3) of a "covenant of peace" to appear in the future applies to only one covenant. "There is no more than one gracious covenant, whose substance is this: the Servant (Christ) himself is given to us as the covenant (Isaiah 49:8; Isaiah 53:6)."George C. M. Douglas, p. 377.

Jeremiah 51:41-44 — forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up; and the nations shall not flow any more unto him: yea the wall of Babylon shall fall." "How is Sheshak taken" This is an ashbash for Babylon. See under Jeremiah 51:1, above, and under Jeremiah 25:26. "The sea is come up upon Babylon" This is a metaphor for the destroying army, composed of many nations under the lordship of Cyrus. "I will bring forth out of his mouth" This reveals the true identity of the one who swallowed up Jerusalem. It was not

Amos 1:6 — The capture and sale of people as slaves was bad enough, but the deliverance of such captives to their worst enemies was an added touch of cruelty. Amos has in mind such carrying away of captives as occurred in the events recorded in 2 Chronicles 21:16. "These Philistines captured whole cities and areas of Hebrew people and sold them to Edomites and Phoenicians. The Phoenicians probably sold them, in turn, to the Greeks, as indicated by Joel 3:6."Paul T. Butler, op. cit., p. 282.

Amos 8:7 — meaning of the passage; but there is another view which also has much to commend it. McKeating wrote that Amos' intention here is "ironic. One swears by what is fixed and unalterable, hence, 'by Jacob's monumental pride.'"Henry McKeating, op. cit., p. 61. The Catholic Bible renders the place: "The Lord hath sworn against the pride of Jacob," etc.Catholic Bible, op. cit., p. 990. Harper supported the second view, thus: "Although Yahweh himself is Israel's glory (1 Samuel 15:29), the author of @@6:8

Micah 3:8 — validity of his words for millenniums has vindicated what he said. "The particular form of the declaration is without parallel in the Old Testament. There is no other first-person claim like it. The nearest parallel in time and language is Jeremiah 6:11."James Luther Mays, op. cit, p. 85. The three precious God-given gifts in Micah's endowment were power, judgment, and might. He spake through the influence of God's Holy Spirit, contrasting with the speech of the false prophets who were liars, declaring

Mark 15:23 — And they offered him wine mingled with myrrh; but he received it not. Cranfield noted that: It was a Jewish custom, based on Proverbs 31:6, to give wine drugged with myrrh to those who were about to be executed: in order to dull the senses. His refusal to drink may be explained as due to his vow in Mark 14:25.C. E. B. Cranfield, op. cit., p. 455. The view here is that Cranfield was certainly

Mark 4:2 — "A parable is a truth presented by a similitude, being of necessity figurative"; but a proverb may be "figurative, but not necessarily."E. Bickersteth. The Pulpit Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1962), Vol. 16, p. 156. The reason for Jesus' resort to the method of teaching by parables is complex: (1) He did so in order to fulfill prophecy. (2) He did so to confound the spies of the Pharisees. (3) He thus challenged his disciples to greater spiritual

Mark 5:27-28 — came in the crowd behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I touch but his garments, I shall be made whole. Having heard the things concerning Jesus … The woman might have been a citizen of Caesarea Philippi;J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 659. and, if so, this indicates the widespread knowledge of the mighty works of Jesus. Touched his garment … God had commanded Hebrew men to wear a border on their garments, "the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue" (Numbers 15:38),

Luke 1:72-73 — covenant with Abraham had envisioned the blessing of "all the families of the earth" through the glorious Seed (singular) which is Christ (Genesis 12:1-3). Moreover, God had confirmed the covenant promise to Abraham with an oath (Genesis 22:16; Hebrews 6:13-15). Just as God's promise to Abraham of a son was delayed of fulfillment until it seemed no longer possible, so also the establishment of Messiah's kingdom had been held in abeyance for centuries, the last voice of prophecy having expired

Luke 4:8 — and him only shalt thou serve. It is written … Jesus took no notice of the extravagant promise of the devil, rejecting it out of hand as being merely something which God had forbidden in the sacred Scriptures. The reference was to Deuteronomy 6:13. By his ignoring the promise, disregarding either its truth or falsity, Jesus' reply had the effect of saying, "Even if what you say is the truth, my answer is the same; I will not do what God has forbidden." In a world so filled with evil,

James 1 overview — Oesterley thought that "For the most part this epistle is a collection of independent sayings"; W. E. Oesterley, The Expositor's Greek Testament, Vol. IV (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1967), p. 408. but the viewpoint advocated here is that every portion of it fit beautifully and appropriately into the one theme of "Perfection" which ties every word of it into a cohesive whole. This theme was stated at the outset (James 1:4),