Bible Commentaries

Psalms 116:16-19 — will pay" There are three great reasons why men should love and serve God: (1) Because of who we are, i.e., His servants, purchased with the blood of Christ; (2) because of all the wonderful benefits that he has conferred upon us (Psalms 116:2); and (3) because we have promised so to do, in a sense, `vowed' to serve him. "In the presence of all his people" The importance of "public worship" is also in focus in this psalm. Psalms 116:14 and Psalms 116:18 are identical, both of them stressing that the

Psalms 144:1-4 — enjoy the prosperity of David's kingship. The whole paragraph here (Psalms 144:1-4) was paraphrased by Delitzsch: "Praise be to Jahve who teaches me to fight and conquer (Psalms 144:1-2), me, the feeble mortal who am strong only `in Him' (Psalms 144:3-4)."F. Delitzsch, Vol. V-C, p. 379. Baigent also has a beautiful word on this paragraph: "Such martial skills and exploits as he (David) achieved are gratefully traced back to God, their only source. `Every virtue' he possesses, and `every victory won'

Psalms 62:5-8 — of Psalms 62:1-2, with three variations. (1) Whereas, in Psalms 62:1 the psalmist's soul is said to rest in God; here it is commanded to do so. (2) The strong assurance of Psalms 62:2 seems to be slightly downgraded to "expectation" in Psalms 62:5. (3) "I shall not be greatly moved" (Psalms 62:2) becomes "I shall not be moved" (Psalms 62:6), meaning, "I shall not be moved at all." "Trust in him at all times, ye people" The significant thing here is that David usually addressed his subjects as "my

Psalms 64:1-4 — creatures compared with such a reptile. The devil himself might blush at being the father of so base an offspring."Charles Haddon Spurgeon, p. 279. "In this situation, the psalmist knows of his enemies but not when they may strike."Anthony L. Ash, p. 213. That is why he prays to be hidden (Psalms 64:2). Speaking of all that activity of the enemies mentioned in Psalms 64:3, Matthew Henry observed: "If they spent half that much energy in the pursuit of righteousness, it might serve to save them."Matthew

Ecclesiastes 4:4-6 — surpass his neighbor; this, too, is an empty thing and a clutching at the wind."The Anchor Bible Commentary (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, 1972), p. 24. In this paragraph the author returns to the question that he asked in Ecclesiastes 1:3, "What does man have to show for all his trouble"? In all such statements as this, Solomon's viewpoint is centered absolutely upon the present world, taking into account no thought whatever of God. Waddey's comment on this paragraph: "In a godless world,

Isaiah 18:6 — them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them." "At length the imagery is dropped. The `vine' is shown to be an army, slaughtered all together, and left a prey to kites and vultures, and to jackals and hyenas."The Pulpit Commentary, p. 305. As is often true in the Bible, every reference to any subject upon which God has spoken, always carries a wealth of new and pertinent information. It was already prophesied in Isaiah 17:14 that the predicted disaster regarding Sennacherib's invasion

Isaiah 26:7-10 — refusal to learn. Barnes rendered Isaiah 26:10, "He will not learn," indicating that the wicked have no desire to learn. As Christ saw it, "Light has come into the world, and men have loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil" (John 3:19). Satan would have us believe that men disbelieve because they are "smart"; but that is one of Satan's favorite lies. Men disbelieve because they are wicked. Here also we find the necessity for God's judgments. Isaiah 26:10 carries the idea that,

Isaiah 3:18-23 — shawls, and the satchels; the hand-mirrors, and the fine linen, and the turbans, and the veils." "These twenty-one items of finery make a little kingdom of their own, enough to occupy the whole mind, and utterly vulnerable."Derek Kidner. op. cit., p. 593. What a catalogue of feminine vanity is represented by a list like this! It carries a reminder of the court of Louis XIV. "Although these particular trivialities may seem remote, all generations of both sexes have their own solemn absurdities which

Isaiah 47:8-11 — thou shalt not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou knowest not." The various sins of Babylon are listed here: (1) her egotistical boasting; (2) her reliance upon the black arts of sorcery and enchantments; (3) her having given herself wholly to lustful, sinful pleasures; (4) her trusting in her wickedness; (5) her over-confident sense of security; (6) her reliance upon her own wisdom and knowledge; and (7) most importantly of all the attitude that is mentioned

Isaiah 54:9-10 — blessed."Ibid., p. 274. The glorious promises here certainly include the Divine Pledge that God's people will never again go into captivity; and some have complained that God did not keep this promise because Israel was destroyed, 1,000,000 of them murdered, and 30,000 of them sold into slavery in Egypt at the conclusion of the war in 70 A.D.; but God is faithful, and like all of his other promises, he has kept this one also. As Rawlinson explained: "Much as the Christian Church has suffered from the world, it

Isaiah 66:15-17 — the face of the Lord and form the glory of his might" (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). The heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men (2 Peter 3:7 ff). The Adamic race is on a collision course with disaster, due to their rejection of God and their preference for wickedness; and in these verses, we have the inspired account of how Almighty God will deal with the situation. His promises are certain

Jeremiah 51:6-10 — declare in Zion the work of Jehovah our God." The analogy between the literal Babylon here and the spiritual Babylon of Revelation is amazing. Note the following: (1) Both shall be utterly destroyed (2) God's people are 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

Ezekiel 27:12-15 — southern coast of Spain. "Javan, Tubal, and Mesheck" "'Javan' refers to the Ionian Greeks; `Tubal and Mesheck' are the names used by the Assyrians and Greeks for the nations dwelling in Cappadocia between the Black Sea and the Taurus mountains."WE, p. 381. This verse is important as the confirmation of the charge by Amos against Tyre (Amos 1:9) that these heartless old slave-traders had even sold Israelites to Edom; and also as the confirmation of the fact of the Greeks themselves having been involved

Ezekiel 6:8-10 — patriarchs and the coming of Messiah to redeem mankind would eventually be achieved, according to the eternal purpose of God. Plumptre noted that the thought here regarding the remnant is the same as that in Isaiah 1:9; Isaiah 10:20; Zephaniah 2:7; Zephaniah 3:13; and Jeremiah 43:5.E. H. Plumptre in the Pulpit Commentary, p. 102. "I have been broken by their lewd heart" Many scholars agree with the translation of this clause as, "I have broken their whorish heart which hath departed from me."B, p. 319, It

Daniel 3:13-15 — cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that god that shall deliver you out of my hands?" NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S RECEPTION OF THE CHARGES To this writer it appears to be significant that both in this passage and in Daniel 3:12, the matter of "serving" Nebuchadnezzar's gods is distinguished from worshipping the image which he had set up. From this it would appear that the golden image was not dedicated to any of his gods, but to Nebuchadnezzar himself. Despite his rage

Daniel 3:8-12 — the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up." THE CHALDEANS' CHARGE AGAINST THE JEWS "Brought accusations" (Daniel 3:8). Some translate this, "maliciously brought accusations"; and it would appear to be an accurate reflection of what happened. The Hebrew here has an idiom that reads literally, "ate their pieces."J. D. Davies, The Pulpit Commentary, Daniel (Grand Rapids:

Hosea 13:13 — be fatal to both mother and son. Not only is there no new being in the world; that one which did exist is taken away. Israel, in order to continue life, must be born again,' without such new birth, old Israel must perish."W. R. Harper, op. cit., p. 403. In the final sentence of the quotation just noted, the conception of the new birth is dramatically presented, since it is Ephraim which was compared to the fetal infant unable to be born. This absolute requirement of being "born again" was made mandatory

Joel 1:3 — his hand in all such visitations. For the believer, there are no second causes. The Lord has said, "I Jehovah create peace, and create evil." And he asks the question, "Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?" (Isaiah 45:7; Amos 3:6).H.A. Ironside, Notes on the Minor Prophets (Neptune, New Jersey: Loizeaux Brothers, Inc., 1909), p. 114.

Micah 1:2 — more repugnant either to Satan, or to evil men, than the Biblical doctrine of Eternal Judgment. "The Lord from his holy temple" "The holy temple here is not Jerusalem, but heaven; it is from there that the judgment emanates."Homer Hailey, op. cit, p. 193. A failure to discern the highly figurative import of this passage always marks the response of those who are unspiritual. "The language used (in Micah 1:3-4) is highly figurative, the sublimity of which must be conceded by all."H. A. Ironside, Notes

Micah 7:19-20 — identified here as the time when those precious promises would indeed be fully and completely realized. The casting of sins into the sea indicated that they would be put completely out of God's sight, "as far as the east is from the west" (Psalms 103:12), and remembered no more forever (Jeremiah 31:34), and "blotted out" (Acts 3:19).Ibid., p. 221. Before concluding this study of Micah, we again call attention to the "remnant" concept which appears on every page of it. McKeating stressed its importance