Bible Commentaries

Psalms 80:1-7 — are two prayers here (Psalms 80:1-3 and Psalms 80:4-7), but there are similarities. God is petitioned for salvation in both; He is requested to "Turn us again" in both (Psalms 80:3; Psalms 80:7); and the reference to the Aaronic blessings of Numbers 6:25, "Cause thy face to shine," is in both (Psalms 80:3; Psalms 80:7). The problem in these verses is the mention of Ephraim and Manasseh and Benjamin with no specific reference to any other of the tribes of Israel. Some have made this the basis of supposing

Proverbs 2:1-8 — be earnest and sincere, as indicated by these words."Ibid., p. 34. Furthermore, he must extend himself diligently and search for true wisdom with the same abandon and exertion that men devote to the seeking of earthly treasures. (See under Proverbs 2:6.) "How do men seek money? What will they not do to get rich? Reader, seek the salvation of thy soul as earnestly as the covetous man seeks wealth; and be ashamed of thyself, if thou be less in earnest after the true riches than he is after the wealth

Isaiah 44:1-5 — a future; she is still God's servant with a mission to perform. Her future will be one of material and spiritual prosperity, so much so that non-Jews will voluntarily attach themselves to Israel and to her God.The New Layman's Bible Commentary, p. 802. Yes, yes, this is true; but it should be noted that the blessings promised in no sense whatever applied to that fleshly Israel under the ban and condemned to captivity, but to their children of far distant generations, and particularly among those,

Isaiah 45:1-3 — means that Cyrus was consecrated to carry out the purpose of God in the release of the Jews and termination of their captivity. We agree with Dummelow that the "surname" God gave Cyrus refers probably to "Anointed (Isaiah 45:1) or to Shepherd (Isaiah 44:28)."J. R. Dummelow's Commentary, p. 443. "Subdue nations" "Xenophon gave the following list of nations conquered by Cyrus: The Syrians, Assyrians, Arabians, Cappadocians, Phrygians, Lydians, Carians, Phoenicians, and the Babylonians."Adam Clarke's Commentary

Ezekiel 38:1-6 — peoples with thee." The personification of Gog here as the leader of all those terminal nations of mankind suggests his identification with Satan, in the same way that Jesus said to Peter, on an occasion, "Get thee behind me, Satan." Also, back in Ezekiel 28, Ezekiel referred to Satan as the "king of Tyre," despite the ruling monarch's identification as a human being. Certainly the whole campaign of Gog was instigated and motivated by the Evil One. "Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal" "There is no evidence that

Luke 23:53 — Arimathea), and "Concerning the Cloths" in which the body was wrapped. See in my Commentary on John, under John 19:40 and John 19:41. Also, regarding the "Undisturbed Grave Clothes of Jesus," see in my Commentary on Matthew, Matthew 27:52, and in my Commentary on John under John 20:5. Where never man had yet lain … The Old Testament miracle of a man's having been raised from the dead by his body's being thrust into contact with the bones of a prophet (2 Kings 13:21) might

Luke 6:46 — for doing what Jesus commanded. A similar thought was included in the Sermon on the Mount, "Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21). WHY DO YOUR CALL ME "LORD, LORD" BUT DO NOT OBEY ME? This question should burn in human hearts until the deeds of men more nearly resemble the faith professed; for this question is not merely an interrogation; it is an indictment, charging

John 1:50 — those greater things Jesus promised that Nathaniel would see? (1) He had seen an example of Jesus' penetrating supernatural knowledge; but, in the future, he would see that knowledge employed in the achievement of human redemption, a far greater thing. (2) He had seen the truth that Jesus is the Son of God; but, in the future, he would see Christ also as the Son of man and the achiever of reconciliation between God and all humanity. (3) He had seen Jesus as King of Israel; but, in the future, he would

John 12:31 — cosmic victory over Satan would be won by such a thing as the death of Christ on Calvary is the mystery hidden before times eternal. The victory came through death itself, and that at the very moment when Satan might have thought that he had won (Hebrews 2:15). The words Jesus spoke here were in anticipation of that victory. The prince of this world … refers to Satan, called also the "god of this world," and "the prince of the powers of the air." The casting out will be accomplished

John 16:21 — anguish and rejoicing over the child correspond to the rejoicing that followed the Lord's resurrection. Most remarkably, Jesus never lost sight of the joy of saving sinners, the same being the motivation that sustained him upon the cross itself (Hebrews 12:2). These applications of the metaphor appear in the Lord's own explanation in the next verse.

John 5:33 — received in this context, because it was "from men." Ye have sent unto John … refers to the deputation (John 1:19) sent out by the priests and to the positive witness of Christ which was borne by the great herald (John 1:19-35; John 3:23-36). The hierarchy should have believed John's witness: (1) that Jesus is the Christ; (2) that Jesus is the Messiah; (3) that Jesus is the Bridegroom; and (4) that Jesus is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Also John declared that

Acts 12:5 — total surprise when it occurred, two things are pertinent: (1) It is not declared that they prayed for Peter's release. It could be that they were praying that Peter's faith would not fail, as it had so conspicuously failed when he denied the Lord. (2) If they were praying for his release, this being not at all unlikely, then the surprise would have been at the dramatic suddenness and manner of it.

Acts 13:34-35 — corruption of one in the grave. Paul next mentioned the fact that, since David's body had indeed decayed, the promise, therefore, did not apply to David but to David's greater Son, Jesus Christ. The apostle Peter used this same argument on Pentecost (Acts 2:29 f). Paul summarized this argument in the next two verses.

Acts 15:38-39 — went not with them to the work. And there arose a sharp contention, so that they parted asunder one from the other, and Barnabas took Mark with him, and sailed away unto Cyprus. For extended comment on John Mark, see in my Commentary on Mark, pp. 1-2. A sharp contention … Strong men with minds strongly made up often find disagreement between them; and the one redeeming note in this otherwise unhappy and regrettable episode is that neither party to the dispute permitted it to hinder the work

Acts 16:27 — was the place where "Cassius, unable to survive defeat, covered his face in the empty tent, and ordered his freedman to strike the blow." J. S. Howson, Life and Epistles of St. Paul (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans, Publishers), p. 237. Here his messenger Titinius held it to be a Roman's part to follow his master as a suicide; and here "Brutus bade adieu to his friends and ended the last struggle for the republic by self-inflicted death." Ibid. Not many suicides are mentioned

Acts 2:37 — whatever he bound on earth would be bound in heaven (Matthew 16:13 ff). There was no ambiguity in the announcement. What shall we do …? In the light of Peter's text, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21), the meaning of this question is "What shall we do to be saved?" It has no other possible interpretation.

Acts 4:11 — hath been made the head of the corner. It is remarkable how true are the speeches of Peter recorded in Acts to the epistles credited to this apostle in the New Testament. Peter had been present when the Lord first used this figure of himself (Matthew 21:42), and he developed the idea further in 1 Peter 2:4-6. For a dissertation on "Christ the Living Stone," see my Commentary on Romans, under Romans 9:33. Psalms 118:22 has a prophecy of the rejected stone becoming the head of the corner;

Acts 5:30 — The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew, hanging him on a tree. In this verse appears another instance of Peter's speeches, as recorded by Luke, stressing the same thought and expressing it in terminology similar (see 1 Peter 2:24) to that in Peter's epistles. Twice in Acts (Acts 5:30; Acts 10:39) Jesus' death is significantly called "hanging on a tree." This phrase points back to the Jewish belief that a man "hanged on a tree" was a man "accursed

Acts 6:3 — brethren, from among you seven men of good report, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. The traditional deductions from this episode, namely, (1) that the men here appointed were installed in the office of deacon, and (2) that the work of deacons is restricted to the church's "business" affairs, are by no means necessary. McGarvey was sure that "The deacon's office was here first created and supplied with incumbents"; J. W. McGarvey, op. cit., p.

Ruth 3:6-13 — kinsman to thee, as Jehovah liveth; lie down until the morning." "She came softly" "The word rendered `softly' here does not mean `secretly,' but `quietly,' so as not to be heard. It is used of David when he cut the skirt from Saul's robe (1 Samuel 24:4)."The Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, p. 288. "Spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaiden" This was a proposal of marriage, as indicated in Ezekiel 16:8; and Morris tells us that such a method of proposing marriage, "still exists among some