Bible Commentaries

John 11:11 — encouraging. (1) Sleep is a temporary thing; and so by this our Lord revealed that death too is not permanent. (2) Sleep refreshes and rejuvenates; thus in the resurrection this mortal shall put on immortality and this corruptible shall put on incorruption. (3) From sleep, men awaken; and the promise is secure in the Master's words that all that are in the tombs "shall come forth" (John 5:29). (4) Sleep is a time of rest; and the dead also "shall rest from their labors" (Revelation 14:13).

John 16:14 — leading Trinitarian passages in the New Testament. In it (1) the three persons are clearly distinguished; (2) their relative subordination is clearly taught, the Father giving his all to the Son, and the Son communicating his all to the Spirit; and (3) their equality of nature is distinctly affirmed, for the Son receives from the Father "all things whatsoever the Father hath," i.e., his whole nature and attributes, and communicates them to the Spirit. J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy

John 17:2 — Even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, that to all whom thou hast given him, he should give eternal life. Authority over all flesh … Jesus' use of the third person accounts for some strange expressions in the prayer (John 17:3), the reason for this being found in the Lord's mental and spiritual condition during the prayer. Here the God-man was caught up into a union with the Father so complete and intimate that, for the moment, his whole human nature was thought of by Christ

John 7:50-51 — came to him before, being one of them), Doth our law judge a man, except it first hear from himself and know what he doeth? Not all of the Sanhedrinists were evil men, Nicodemus being one of the notable exceptions. He had already been to Jesus (John 3:1 ff) and was obviously out of harmony with the satanic spirit prevailing in the Sanhedrin. Such men as Nicodemus, and there may have been a considerable number of them, were helpless regarding the policies of the organization. The members were divided

John 9:39 — blind" (Isaiah 61:1 f), and those stating that certain of the Israelites would be blinded spiritually, "And seeing ye shall see, and shall in no wise perceive" (Isaiah 6:9-10). See more on judicial hardening in my Commentary on Romans, p. 376. For judgment … In one sense Christ did not come for judgment, but in another sense he did. See under John 3:17, John 5:22 f, and John 12:47. In this reference, his actions were producing the hardening of Israel which had been prophesied, that

Acts 18:27-28 — development of a faction calling itself after Apollos (1 Corinthians 1:12). No doubt Apollos' work there was very successful, for Paul himself affirmed that "I planted, Apollos watered; but it is God who giveth the increase" (1 Corinthians 3:6).

Acts 3:22-23 — because there were many likenesses between Moses and Christ. Both were sons of virgin princesses, Moses by adoption, Jesus by the virgin birth, etc., etc. For a rather extended enumeration of these, please see my Commentary on Hebrews, under Hebrews 3:2, where nineteen likenesses and thirteen contrasts between Moses and Christ are presented. Significantly, Moses was rejected by Israel, but Moses ruled them despite that; and the inference from Peter's mention of this prophecy is that Jesus, despite

Acts 5:34 — Pharisees opposed. The influence of Gamaliel's advice reflects that situation. Everett J. Harrison, op. cit., p. 401. Furthermore, Gamaliel himself was a man of heroic stature among the Jews of that generation. Saul of Tarsus had been his pupil. (Acts 22:3); and he was widely hailed as the greatest teacher of the Law in his day. Lightfoot further embellished the reputation of Gamaliel by affirming that he was the son of that Simon who took the Saviour in his arms (Luke 2), and the grandson of the famous

Romans 11:8 — the greater wonders of Christ but had somehow failed to get the message. The great realities are morally and spiritually understood. Thus, when Jesus condemned unbelief, he made it the consequence of moral blame rather than of intellectual doubt (John 3:19). There was doubtless another point in Paul's introduction of this passage from Deuteronomy describing the lost generation of the wilderness. They themselves were another outstanding historical example of God's judicial hardening and destruction.

1 Corinthians 2:9 — God has already done for his children. "They certainly belong to the present state, and express the wondrous light, life and liberty which the gospel communicates." Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: Carlton and Porter, 1831), Vol. VI, p. 199. "While it is true that heaven will be so wonderful that we cannot comprehend it, Paul was talking about here, the present dispensation." George W. DeHoff, Sermons on First Corinthians (Murfreesboro, Tennessee: The Christian

1 Corinthians 7:18-19 — creation." Any reconciliation of these epic pronouncements with the Protestant heresy of salvation "by faith alone" is impossible. As the apostle John said, "And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments" (1 John 2:3). Let him not be circumcised … is an order applicable to all of every class who become Christians; and it may not be allowed that the practice of this rite, which is essentially racial and religious, could be acceptable under any circumstances

2 Corinthians 4:16 — day. Wherefore we faint not … has the meaning of "For the four reasons just cited, he was able to endure." Our outward man is decaying … This is not a reference to the "old man" (Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:9), having the simple meaning that his physical body, with all of its powers, was moving inexorably to its dissolution. All of the powers and glory of mortal life are like a flower that blooms and then crumbles into dust; and how sad it would be for

2 Corinthians 4:3 — not see it, it is his fault. "The veil (that prevents their seeing) is woven by their own prejudices and corrupt affections." James Macknight, Apostolical Epistles and Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1969), Vol. II, p. 350. As Jesus said it, "Men love darkness rather than the light because their deeds are evil" (John 3:19). Man's moral condition determines whether or not he will see the truth. Them that perish … The scholars insist that this is a mistranslation

Ephesians 4:25 — through Ephesians 5:20, the contrast between the two is dramatically presented: falsehood vs. truth (Ephesians 4:25). resentment vs. self-control (Ephesians 4:26-27). stealing vs. generosity (Ephesians 4:28). evil speech vs. edification (Ephesians 4:29-30). malice vs. love (Ephesians 4:31—5:2). impurity vs. chastity (Ephesians 5:3-14). imprudence vs wisdom (Ephesians 5:15-17). debauchery vs. joy (Ephesians 5:18-20). George E. Harper, A New Testament Commentary, Ephesians (Grand Rapids, Michigan:

Philippians 1:8 — Christ liveth in me. Paul is so united with Christ that he feels with the heart of Christ and loves with the love of Christ? B. C. Caffin, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 20, Philippians (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 3. Lightfoot paraphrased it as follows: Did I speak of having you in my heart? I should rather have said that in the heart of Christ Jesus I long for you. This is a powerful metaphor describing perfect union. The believer has no yearnings apart from his

Colossians 2:6-7 — cit., p. 106. Guthrie's significant analysis of these two verses is: To receive Christ is but the beginning. The following is to live in him, which is described as involving four aspects, the first three very similar: (1) rooted, (2) built up, and (3) established … from a building metaphor … The fourth aspect is abounding in thanksgiving, which echoes the apostle's own enthusiasm to give thanks. Donald Guthrie, op. cit., p. 1146. Abounding … This was one of Paul's favorite words.

Titus 1:9 — holding to the faithful word which is according to the teaching, that he may be able both to exhort in the sound doctrine, and to convict the gainsayers. As DeWelt noted, "This has been taken by many to be a commentary on 1 Timothy 3:2, in which Paul states that the elder must be `apt to teach'"; Don DeWelt, op. cit., p. 147. and that view would appear to be correct. The primary duty of elders, namely, that of watching over and protecting the flock of God, requires that they

James 1:21 — meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. Putting away … Paul also used this word in such passages as "putting away lying" (Ephesians 4:25), "when I became a man, I put away childish things" (1 Corinthians 13:11), etc. Overflowing of wickedness … "This is not to be understood as `more than is necessary'; because wickedness in the smallest measure is already excess." A. F. Harper, op. cit., p. 205. The implanted word … able to save

James 2:23 — … and the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. James here quoted exactly the same passage that Paul quoted in Romans 4:3, proving that his teaching concerned exactly the same kind of justification as that in view by Paul; it does, however, explode any possibility of "faith only" having been the grounds of that justification, even in the teachings of Paul. And

James 2:6 — them. Judgment seats … These were both Jewish and Roman courts. "Josephus speaks of the cruelty of the rich Sadducees to the poor in Jerusalem"; Quoted by J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 1035. and besides this, both Isaiah (Isaiah 3:15) and Amos (Amos 4:1) speak of the same thing.