Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 13:12 — destitute of their leader and all of his auxiliaries, collected from Asia Minor and other distant countries, shall disperse and flee to their respective homes."[11] Exactly the same things were prophesied of Nineveh (Nahum 1-3), especially Nahum 2:8).

Isaiah 37:5 — God promised would thwart and prevent Sennacherib's purpose toward Jerusalem. "First, God would put a spirit into him; secondly, he would hear a rumor; thirdly, he would return to his own land; and fourthly, in that land, he would fall by the sword."[2] "Servants of the king of Assyria ..." (Isaiah 37:6). Hailey tells us that, "The word from which `servants' is here translated is a term of disparagement, a term that Leupold translates as `lads' or `young chaps.'"[3] It leaves us with the thought

Ezekiel 19:7 — Jehoiachin, as it was the custom of ancient kings to display their captive kings, princes, and mighty men as caged captives in their ostentatious victory parades. "After his three months' reign, Jehoiachin was taken by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon in 597 B.C. (2 Kings 24:8-16)."[13]

Ezekiel 37:7 — me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceeding great army." EZEKIEL PROPHESIES AS COMMANDED "There was no breath in them ..." (Ezekiel 37:8). Like the great miracle in God's creation of Adam (Genesis 2:7), this one also was in two phases; the breathing of the "breath of life" appears as a separate action in both instances. "Prophesy unto the wind ..." (Ezekiel 37:9). "The Hebrew word [~ruwach] is translated `wind' (KJV), `spirit,' (Revised Standard

Hosea 12:2 — is to fall upon Jacob, a fitting title here for both Ephraim and Judah, since Jacob was the great ancestor of both. "The prophet pronounces his judgment upon both Israel and Judah."[4] "Jehovah hath also a controversy ..." "The language of Hosea 12:2 is technical."[5] Just as in Hosea 4:1, Hosea is presenting the case against all Israel (both houses) in the terminology of a formal indictment and trial, a trial at which the Lord is both the prosecuting attorney and the Judge. The use of the

Hosea 5:4 — "Their doings will not suffer them to return unto their God; for the spirit of whoredom is within them, and they know not Jehovah." Polkinghorne is correct in his discernment that this passage relates to "the mortal sin of Mark 3:29,1 John 5:16, etc. Hence they find that God has withdrawn himself so as not to receive their sacrifices (Hosea 5:15)."[10] The word Paul used to describe such a condition is "hardening"; and that is exactly what had happened to the northern

Hosea 8:11 — "Because Ephraim hath multiplied altars for sinning, altars have been unto him for sinning." The importance of this statement lies in the testimony which it furnishes to the existence of laws, or a code of laws, in Hosea's time.[20] Of course, that code of laws was none other than the one given by the Lord himself in the Pentateuch. Hindley pointed out that: At any one time, only one altar was to be set up for the nation in the place which God would choose (Deuteronomy 12:26f;

Joel 2:23 — and rejoice in Jehovah your God; for he giveth you the former rain in just measure, and he causeth to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain, in the first month. These verses, continuing the theme of the whole section (Joel 2:18-27), are the praise of God for the temporal and physical blessings which were given to mankind, and to Israel in particular, because they were the covenant people. Modern man supposes that he is above attributing any such physical benefits as rain

Joel 2:7 — turning aside neither to the right or the left, and even scaling walls and houses in their procedure, it has never been alleged by anyone that the locusts were definitely arrayed in "ranks" and "echelons." The prophecy throughout this section (Joel 2:4-11) moves beyond the locust plague to something more terrible. However, the locust plague was also terrible in its own right: When a wall or a house lies in their way, they climb straight up, going over the roof. When they come to water, whether

Amos 1:9 — indifference and cruelty of Phoenicia, the great slave traders of the day, in their dealings with the covenant people of God, ultimately issued in God's destructive judgment against them. The friendliness between Tyre and Israel is mentioned in the O.T. (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1; 9:11,14, etc.); and, although there is no mention of any formal treaty existing between them, the relationship, "doubtless had occasionally been cemented by formal treaty."[35] At any rate, there was a "covenant,"

Micah 2:8 — God! The particular crime in view in this verse was, "You strip the broad-dress-cloak from the upper garment, from those who pass by trustingly, turning away from war, peaceably disposed."[13] The whole verse is, "an allusion to Mosaic law (Exodus 22:25), according to which the coat taken from the poor as a pledge was to be returned before sunset."[14] Deane defended the the Hebrew text of the O.T. in this verse, stating that "there is no reason for altering it."[15] He also stressed the phrase

Habakkuk 1:10 — Sea-Beast (Rome, the Sixth head). "We have no king but Caesar," they cried. "Heapeth up dust and taketh it ..." On Assyrian monuments, one sees "representations of these mounds, or inclined planes, to facilitate the approach of the battering-ram."[22] "He scoffeth at kings ..." Jehoikim and Jehoikin, both kings of Israel, suffered the greatest indignities at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar (2 Chronicles 36:6; 2King 24:14,15; and Jeremiah 22:19).

Zechariah 10:3 — he-goats of the people led Israel in the rejection of their Messiah, the anger of God fell upon them and their city again, Jerusalem being utterly destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. That Zechariah certainly had that in mind is evident from Zechariah 12:2. "The he-goats ..." "These are the emblems of headstrong wantonness and offensive lust."[10] Our Lord spoke of the reprobate as "the goats" (Matthew 25:32). "House of Judah ..." Both this term and "Ephraim" used later are references to the spiritual

Acts 9 overview — This chapter reveals the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, the mighty persecutor (Acts 9:1-19), Paul’s first ministry at Damascus, ending in the Jewish plot to kill him (Acts 9:20-25), his journey to Jerusalem and departure for Tarsus (Acts 9:26-30), a brief summary of the continued prosperity of the church (Acts 9:31), and the account of two miracles by Peter, (a) the healing of Aeneas at Lydda (Acts 9:32-35) and (b) the raising

1 Peter 1:18 — redeemed, not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers; Ye were redeemed … This is one of the great ransom passages of the New Testament, along with Mark 10:45; 1 Corinthians 6:20; 1 Timothy 2:5, Revelation 1:5, and many others. Not with silver or gold … These are some of the corruptible things cited as examples; nothing of earthly value or merit made up the purchase price of Christians, but only the blood of Christ. From

1 John 4:18 — casteth out fear, because fear hath punishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love. The apostle John here presents one after another "all but impossible levels of Christian attainment";<footnote>Amos N. Wilder, op. cit., p. 286. </footnote> (1) the love of all people with a self-sacrificing love like that of Christ; (2) the living of a life free from every sin; (3) confidence in the hour of the final judgment when people are pleading for the rocks and the mountains

Revelation 10:4 — uttered, and write them not. Eller called this verse, "a puzzler, but a passage not to hang up on!"<footnote> Vernard Eller, The Most Revealing Book in the Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1974), p. 112.</footnote> As for the reason why the incident was given at all, see under preceding verse. Another possible view was given by Morris: The Revelation conveyed the messages to John himself, for he clearly understood them; and Paul speaks of such

Revelation 12:2 — during the long period of waiting for the birth of the Messiah. At times, there must have been many, like Elijah, who felt that they were utterly alone, and like the prophets must have prayed for God to "take away" their lives (1 Kings 18:22; 19:4). This was a time of "waiting for the consolation of Israel" (Luke 2:25). This dramatic verse brings us near the time of the fulfillment of Genesis 3:15, for the child about to be born was the Seed of Woman, the Incarnate Son of God,

Revelation 17:7 — 416.</footnote> The angel seems to have wondered at John’s wonderment, because "there were sufficient marks to identify the harlot,"<footnote> Ibid.</footnote> Very similar descriptions of Judah, a type of the church, in Jeremiah 2 and Jeremiah 3 should have made it plain to John. He should have been able to read in the vision the truth that just as the old Israel had apostatized and crucified the Christ, the church of Christ also, in the lapse of years, would fall from her high

Revelation 9:18 — "hyacinth" in this connection is interesting. The word has several meanings, and each one of them is suggestive of the terror here described: (1) It is a bulbous plant of the lily family having spike-like flowers, suggesting the weapons of ancient warfare. (2) It is the name of an ancient gem with a bluish-violet color, the color of smoke, which the word replaces in Revelation 9:17. (3) It is a plant frequently alluded to by the Greek poets, fabled to have born on its petals the words of grief. <footnote