Bible Commentaries

Genesis 15:18 — for the totality of the Canaanites) would, in time, be destroyed and the land repopulated by Israel. (4)    In the 400 years preceding the ultimate possession of the land by Israel, the people would undergo slavery and affliction. (5)    The nation that would thus subject them would be severely judged. (6)    The Jews would finally leave the land of their oppression with great wealth. (7)    The actual boundaries of Israel's

Genesis 2:2 — understanding the thought to be that "God declared to be finished" His work on the seventh day. The verb here may also be translated, "had finished,"Thomas Whitelaw, The Pulpit Commentary, Genesis, Vol I (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 35. according to John Calvin and many other distinguished scholars. We do not see any problem at all with this. As a matter of fact, God is still working, as indicated by John 5:17; and, therefore, what is undoubtedly meant is that God rested

Genesis 2:5-6 — from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground." "The making of the heaven and the earth in Genesis 2:4 b, above is not described, but assumed,"John Skinner, International Critical Commentary, Genesis (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1910), p. 51. indicating that these verses refer, "not to origins of the heavens and the earth, but the sequel thereof."Meredith G. Kline, The New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 83. "When they were created"

Genesis 4:2 — Critical Commentary (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1910), p. 103. but it should not be pressed. Also, it appears that the names of these two brothers were "bestowed by the mother,"Ralph H. Elliott, The Message of Genesis (St. Louis: Bethany Press, 1961), p. 53. which is another hint of the matriarchate, when a man left his father and mother and went to live with his wife, at a time long prior to later customs when the right of naming children was the prerogative of the father. This is another indication

Genesis 45:9-11 — between Port Said and Suez known in modern times as the Wadi Tumilat. It is called `the land of Rameses' (Genesis 47:11), possibly because Rameses was the leading city of the area.John T. Willis, Genesis (Austin: Sweet Publishing Company, 1979), p. 425. "It is still spoken of as the best pasture land in Egypt."John Skinner, op. cit., p. 489. "Thus saith thy son Joseph" We are thankful for Willis' perceptive comment on this expression: "This was a customary way of sending a message orally. Jacob used

Exodus 26:7-14 — in the inner tent, the three colors of blue, purple, and scarlet, and in the "rams' skins dyed red," in which one may find a suggestion of that "Great One," traveling in the greatness of his strength and wearing the blood-red garments" (Isaiah 63:1-5).

2 Kings 16:5-6 — Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him. At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drove the Jews from Elath; and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there, unto this day." "2 Kings 16:5 here is practically identical with Isaiah 7:1."International Critical Commentary, op. cit., p. 457. In fact, Isaiah probably is the author of a great many passages in Kings. From the account in Isaiah we learn the reason for this war against Judah.

2 Kings 2:15-18 — Spirit and power of God, as Elijah had been."C. F. Keil, Vol. 3a, p. 298. "Till he was ashamed" "The New English Bible renders this `had not the heart to refuse.'" "Elijah's work was done; it was a fierce work of judgment that became symbolic (Malachi 4:5-6), even idealized (John 1:21) and seen again at the end of the Jewish era in the person of John the Baptist (Matthew 3:1-10). After the work of Moses and Elijah, God had nothing whatever fundamentally new to say to his rebellious people, - UNTIL the

Psalms 103 overview — Psalms 103:16. Some of the critical writers would assign this psalm to the times of the exile, or afterward, depending upon the occurrence of certain Aramaisms; but as Leupold observed, "Aramaisms are never a sure index of date."H. C. Leupold, p. 715. As Paul T. Butler, a distinguished Christian Church scholar of Joplin, Missouri, wrote in 1968, "Aramaisms cannot be made a criterion for determining date, because they are found in both early and late Old Testament books. Also, the recently-discovered

Psalms 62 overview — GOD, THE ONLY REFUGE FROM TREACHERY AND FALSEHOOD Superscription: For the Chief Musician; After the Manner of Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. Jeduthun. In 1 Chronicles 25:1-4, we learn that Jeduthun and five of his sons were among the honored singers of Israel, having charge of the music. A Psalm of David. As Leupold said, "There is nothing in the psalm which makes it difficult to accept the authorship of David."H. C.

Psalms 71 overview — psalm in his old age. He was beset by many enemies and so near death that he could feel himself sinking into the earth. He was an old man (Psalms 71:9; Psalms 71:18); but old age had not dried up his hope or weakened his religious spirit (Psalms 71:5; Psalms 71:15; Psalms 71:20)."George DeHoff's Commentary, p. 165. Matthew Henry also declared that, "David penned this Psalm in his old age; and many think it was in the times of the rebellion of Absalom, or during the insurrection of Sheba."Matthew

Leviticus 2:4-10 — fire." Whereas the first paragraph described the food-offering as a batch of fine flour, this paragraph describes the offering as having been cooked by one of three different methods: (a) in the oven (Leviticus 2:4), (b) by the baking-pan (Leviticus 2:5), or in a frying-pan (Leviticus 2:7). Interesting as all these different methods of cooking most assuredly were, especially if we could know exactly how each was done, we shall simply pass over them here with the general observation that the meal-offering

Isaiah 49 overview — even while he was in the womb of his mother (Isaiah 49:1). He was the chosen instrument through whom God chose to be glorified (Isaiah 49:3); his earthly work would appear to fail (Isaiah 49:4); his future success, however, would be glorious (Isaiah 49:5-6). He would gather in the righteous remnant of the old physical nation of the Jews; but he would also become a light to the heathen of all nations, bringing salvation to the ends of the earth. II.    Jehovah directly promises the

Malachi 1 overview — This chapter begins with a statement of the name of the prophet and the identification of his message as the Word of God Himself (Malachi 1:1). The next four verses (Malachi 1:2-5) develop the thought that "God had loved Israel, a truth then denied by the people, but proved by God's citation of what he "had done" for them, illustrating it by a comparison of their state with that of Edom. We reject the notion that this is the

Deuteronomy 32:44-47 — from the will of the Creator. If one lives out his days on earth without coming to know God, "having tasted of the heavenly gift, and made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and tasted the good Word of God, and the powers of the age to come" (Hebrews 6:4-5), then such a person might as well have never lived at all!

Luke 6 overview — Luke's account in this chapter reveals: (1) how Jesus refuted the false charge of sabbath-breaking (Luke 6:1-5); (2) that he angered the Pharisees by healing a man with the withered hand on the sabbath day (Luke 6:6-11); (3) Jesus' appointment of the apostles after a night of prayer (Luke 6:12-19); and gives (4) the content of one of Jesus' sermons (Luke 6:20-49). Luke

Acts 7 overview — the only thing they objected to was his application of it! STEPHEN'S ADDRESS The name "Stephen" means "wreath" or "crown," Herbert Lockyer, All the Men of the Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1958), p. 321. and it is appropriate that the first to win the martyr's crown should have worn such a name. It is said of Stephen in the New Testament that he was a man: Full of faith (Acts 6:5). Full of grace (Acts 6:8, English Revised Version). Full of

Judges 13:21-25 — mentioning that hundreds of examples of this same phenomenon utterly contradict and destroy the critical fairy tale about the Pentateuch's being a late production. Gideon was also familiar with the same teaching (Judges 6:22), as was Isaiah (Isaiah 6:5). "If Jehovah were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt-offering and a meal-offering at our hand" The good sense of Manoah's wife prevailed here and removed their fears. "And the woman bare a son" It would have been wonderful if the

1 Samuel 28:1-2 — promise that David would assist in the war against Israel… Judging from his previous actions, it would have been against his conscience to fight against his own people."C. F. Keil, Keil and Delitzsch's Old Testament Commentaries, Vol. 2b, p. 259. It was a special providence that caused Achish to accept David's words here as a pledge of loyalty to the Philistine king. The second special providence was in the fact that the contemporaries of Achish overruled his order for David to accompany them

2 Samuel 16:15-19 — because the Lord had commanded that. "Any man who lies with his father's wife… shall be put to death" (Leviticus 20:11). The apostle Paul spoke of this particular sin as so detestable that it was not even named among the Gentiles (1 Corinthians 5:1). "The entire history of the East affords only one parallel to the infamous outrage by Absalom."Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary, p. 205.