Bible Commentaries

Jeremiah 41:1-3 — oblivion in which he was swallowed up. The concern and sympathy of the Jewish people for their noble governor who was cut down by the despicable Ishmael was crystallized and memorialized in the Jewish fast of "the seventh month" (October) (Zechariah 7:5; Zechariah 8:19), during the Inter-testamental period of their history. "Slew all the Jews that were with him" It is believed that this is a reference, not all the Jews in Mizpah, but to all of those at the meal during which Gedaliah was slain. Also,

Jeremiah 51:6-10 — commanded to "come out of her." (3) She has a golden cup in her hand. (4) The nations have become drunk with her wine. (5) Her judgment reaches all the way to heaven. (6) Her doom is like a stone cast into the river (see last paragraph of this chapter). (7) She is responsible for all the slain in the land (Jeremiah 51:49). See Vol. 12 (Revelation) in the New Testament commentaries (Revelation 17-18). "Babylon is suddenly fallen" It happened in a single night, the tragic night dramatically described in

Lamentations 3:34-39 — being mentioned here is to indicate God's disapproval of men's atrocities. "We have here a short catalogue of the oppressions visited upon God's people by their conquerors."Anthony L. Ash, Jeremiah and Lamentations (Abilene, Texas: A.C.U. Press, 1987), p. 356. The word that applies to all of these things is, "The Lord approveth not" (Lamentations 3:36). The fact of God's strong disapproval of the cruel and sadistic actions of Israel conquerors carried with it also a pledge of the ultimate severe

Ezekiel 39:17-20 — Supper will most certainly be present for this one, only they shall not be the ones who eat it; they shall be the piece de resistance! The picture here seems to be "Based upon Isaiah 36:6 and Jeremiah 46:10."Footnote is not available Also, Revelation 19:17-19 has another graphic presentation of this Great Supper of God. Feinberg's opinion that, "These events shall transpire at the end of the great tribulation, and just before the Millennial reign of Messiah,"Footnote is not available cannot possibly be

Ezekiel 6:8-10 — Jehovah: I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them." "Yet will I leave a remnant" The arbitrary, unsubstantiated, and reckless view of some critics that, "There is no doctrine of a remnant in Ezekiel,"International Critical Commentary, p. 70. is effectively refuted by this unequivocal declaration of the sacred text; and we are unwilling to allow evil men to re-write the Bible in order to prove their theories. As Matthew Henry stated it, "It is a preserved remnant and a penitent remnant";Matthew

Joel 1:3 — that it is seen as a prelude to the divine devastation the prophet envisions for the disobedient people of God, and those nations which have oppressed her.Paul E. Leonard, The New Layman's Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1979), p. 942. "Tell ye your children… etc." There is unmistakable allusion to Exodus 10:2, where the Lord charges Moses to tell Pharaoh that he will do signs,"C. F. Keil, Commentary on the Old Testament, Vol. 10 (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

Jonah 1:9 — postexilic dating of Jonah, long after the times when Jonah lived; but such allegations are completely refuted and contradicted by the fact that Abraham himself, the ancestor of all the Hebrews, refers to God in exactly these same words (Genesis 24:7). It is more charitable to charge Smart (in Interpreter's Bible) with ignorance than it is to charge him with a lack of integrity. "Who hath made the sea and the dry land" Such a confession on Jonah's part was calculated, whether by design or not, to

Habakkuk 2:20 — services and in places of assembly. Much more, however, is inherent in this magnificent passage. The "temple of God" in view here is no mere house of worship. The place of the Lord's residence or "being" is heaven (Isaiah 26:21; Psalms 11:4; Jonah 2:7; Micah 1:2). "God reigns in heaven, and fills heaven."Robert Jamieson, op. cit., p. 830. God's holy temple, therefore, "is not the shrine in Jerusalem, but heaven itself."W. J. Deane, op. cit., p. 28. The dramatic meaning of all this is simply that

Haggai 1:2 — rebuilding was not due to selfishness. They were preoccupied with personal matters to the the neglect of larger issues of importance to the whole community. In short, they had placed themselves before God."David A. Smith, Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, Haggai (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1972), p. 297.

Zechariah 11:14 — be remembered that this whole passage is dealing with times of the Messiah. The Church of Christ is called "the twelve tribes of the children of Israel" by Jesus (Matthew 19:28), by James (James 1:1), by Paul (Galatians 6:16), and by John (Revelation 7:4; Revelation 21:12); and in 1 Peter, that apostle pre-empted all of the titles that once applied to the old Israel and applied them to the Israel of God in the church! Thus, it appears certain that what happened in the breaking of Bands was the absolute

Zechariah 11:5 — they who said such a thing. In Hosea 12:8, the same class of persons, the leaders of Ephraim, as evil and crooked as any of the old Canaanites ever were, holding in their hands the "balances of deceit," and "loving to oppress" God's people (Hosea 12:7), attempted to justify themselves before God by the bold and arrogant assertion that, "Surely I have become rich, I have found me wealth: in all my labors they shall find in me no iniquity that were sin!" (Hosea 12:8). (See my full comment on this passage

Zechariah 2:5 — "For I, saith Jehovah, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and I will be the glory in the midst of her." As Ellis stated it. "This is one of the greatest texts of the Old Testament."John D. W. Watts, Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 7 (Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1972), p. 317. It is the Old Testament equivalent of the blessed promise of Jesus, "I will be with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:18-20). The blunt meaning of the vision is simply this:

Zechariah 6:15 — establishing the church of Christ throughout all the world for millenniums of time! This great revelation of the Christ as both Priest and King is one of the great passages of the Bible. It should be studied in connection with Psalms 110:4, and Hebrews 7.

Malachi 1:1 — is burden for those who are ashamed of it. (2) It is a burden for those who despise it, a burden that "will sink them to the lowest hell, unless they repent."Matthew Henry, Commentary, Vol. IV (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company), p. 1476. (3) It is a burden even for them that love and keep it, because of the obligations and duties imposed, as Jesus said, "My yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:30); but in this connection, it should ever be remembered that Jesus' burden

Malachi 3:3 — had this very passage in mind: "The proof of your faith, being more precious than gold… proved by fire… ye are built up a spiritual house… a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices to God by Jesus Christ, etc. (1 Peter 1:7; 1 Peter 2:5). The sacrifices "in righteousness" offered by the Christian include: our faith (Philippians 2:17), the love of God (Mark 12:33), our words, "the calves of our lips" (Hosea 14:2), our confession of Christ (Hebrews 13:15-16), our baptism

Matthew 16:1 — Sadducees was submerged and muted while they made common cause against the Lord of glory, a pattern often observed. Herod and Pilate became friends as a result of the common cause they made against Christ (Luke 23:12). Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:7); Tirhakah and Sennacherib (2 Kings 19:8), in spite of being enemies, made league against God's people. Again to quote Origen, "Those who hold the most divergent opinions appear to be of one mind that they may scoff at and attack Jesus Christ in

Matthew 24:15-17 — words apply to that far-off and final end of the world, no less than to the end of the Jewish economy which was accompanied by the shattering of the power of the holy people and the making of an end to "the continual burnt offering" (Daniel 12:7-11). The abomination of desolation is usually held to mean the encirclement of the Holy City by the Roman armies prior to its destruction. That the Christian might have the opportunity to flee after such a deployment as that might have appeared impossible,

Matthew 24:27-28 — Rome, to make an end of rebellious Jerusalem. Thus, the destroying power came from the east to the west, although it is said that Titus actually launched his attack from the western side of the city.Encyclopedia Brittanica (1962 edition), Vol. 13, p. 7. Whether this should be considered mere coincidence or not, it is a remarkable fact. Of course, the primary meaning of the prophecy would apply to the sensational, worldwide, glorious revelation of Christ at his second coming. Regarding the carcass

Matthew 27:32 — And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to go with them, that he might bear his cross. Executions inside the city were forbidden (Numbers 15:35; 1 Kings 21:13; Acts 7:58; Hebrews 13:12). The necessity for having someone bear Jesus' cross probably derived from his fainting from physical weakness induced by the scourging and long previous night of brutal abuse. Luke's detail that Simon was coming out of Cyrene, "out

Luke 6:10-11 — healing Simon's wife's mother (Mark 1:29); (3) healing of the man at Bethesda (John 5:9); (4) curing the man with the withered hand; (5) giving sight to the man born blind (John 9:14); (6) curing the woman with a spirit of infirmity (Luke 13:14); and (7) healing the man with dropsy (Luke 14:1).Richard Trench, Notes on the Miracles of Our Lord (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Co., 1953), p. 337. Before leaving this, we note the pseudocon arising from Luke's attributing the question, "is