Bible Commentaries

Amos 1:15 — shall go into captivity, his priests and his princes together” Jeremiah 48:7, he says as to Ammon, in the self-same formula and almost in the words of Amos ; “Malcham shall go into captivity, his priests and his princes together.” Zephaniah Zephaniah 1:5 also speaks of the idol under the same name Malcham, “their king.” Yet since Ammon had kings before this time, and just before their subdual by Nebuchadnezzar, and king Baalis Jeremiah 40:14 was a murderer, it is hardly likely that Jeremiah too should

Obadiah 1:12-14 — liability to ill, is the worst form of human hate. It was one of the contumelies of the Cross, “they gaze, they look” with joy “upon Me.” Psalms 22:17. The rejoicing over them was doubtless, as among savages, accompanied with grimaces (as in Psalms 35:19; Psalms 38:16). Then follow words of insult. The enlarging of the mouth is uttering a tide of large words, here against the people of God; in Ezekiel, against Himself Ezekiel 35:13 : “Thus with your mouth ye have enlarged against Me and have multiplied

Micah 5:3 — His brethren are plainly the brethren of the Christ; either because Jesus vouchsafed to be born “of the seed of David according to the flesh” Romans 1:3, and of them “as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever” Romans 9:5; or as such as He makes and accounts and “is not ashamed to call, brethren” Hebrews 2:11, being sons of God by grace, as He is the Son of God by nature. As He says, “Whosoever shall do the will of My Father which is in Heaven, the same is My brother

Nahum 1:14 — “Thine Almighty word leaped down from heaven, out of Thy royal throne; as a fierce man of war into the midst of a land of destruction, and brought Thine unfeigned commandment as a sharp sword, and standing up filled all things with death,” (Wisd. 18:15, 16), or else it may be, He gave command to the Angels His Ministers. God commands beforehand, that, when it comes to pass, it may be known “that not by chance,” nor by the will of man, “nor without His judgment but by the sentence of God” the blow

Habakkuk 3:19 — the Rock, look down on the whole world below their feet and upward on high. Even so when at the end of the world all shall fail, and the love of many shall wax cold, and the Church, which is likened to the fig tree the vine and the (Luke 13:6; Isaiah 5:1; 21:33; etc. Romans 11:17.) olive, shall yield no fruits, and sweetness shall be corrupted by vanities, and the oil of mercy shall be dried up, and lamps go out, and its promises shall fail and it shall lie, having “a show of goodness, but denying

Zephaniah 2:11 — His glory, and so every one ‘worshipeth Him from his place;’ and this is what is said, ‘As I live, saith the Lord, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord’ Numbers 14:21.” “The isles” are any distant lands on the seashore (Jeremiah 25:22, following; Ezekiel 26:15, following; Psalms 72:10), especially the very distant Isaiah 66:19; but also Asia Minor Daniel 11:1, Daniel 11:8 and the whole coast of Europe, and even the Indian Archipelago , since the ivory and ebony came from its “many

Zephaniah 3:11 — promise thee in the prophets and the Psalms, ‘There shall be a Fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness’ Zechariah 13:1; whence David also, exulting in good hope of the Holy Spirit, saith, ‘Thou shalt wash me and I shall be whiter than snow’ Psalms 51:7. For though he elsewhere saith, ‘they looked unto Him and were lightened, and their faces were not ashamed’ Psalms 34:5, yet in this mortal life, when the Day of My Resurrection doth not fully shine upon thee, thou art after some sort ashamed; as

Haggai 1:2 — He had that of Cyrus, requires the house to be built without the king’s decree. It was built in faith, that God would bring through what He had enjoined, although outward things were as adverse now as before. And what He commanded He prospered Ezra 5–6.There was indeed a second fulfillment of 70 years, from the destruction of the temple by Nebuchadnezzar 586 b.c., to its consecration in the 6th year of Darius 516 b.c. But this was through the willfulness of man, prolonging the desolation decreed

Haggai 2:18 — the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built,” not of the first foundation, but of the work as resumed in obedience to the words by “the mouth of the prophets,” Haggai and himself, which, Ezra also says, was Ezra 4:24; Ezra 5:1. “in the second year of Darius.” But that work was resumed, not now at the time of this prophecy, but three months before, on the 24th of the sixth month. Since then the word translated here, from, is in no case used of the present time, Haggai gives

Zechariah 11:12 — His grace alone we can choose Him; but we can refuse His grace and Himself. “Thou shalt say unto them,” He says to Ezekiel, “Thus saith the Lord God, He that heareth, let him hear, and he that forbeareth, let him forbear” (Ezekiel 3:27; add Ezekiel 2:5, Ezekiel 2:7; Ezekiel 3:11). This was said to them, as a people, the last offer of grace. It gathered into one all the past. As Elijah had said, “If the Lord be God, follow Him; but if Baal, then follow him” 1 Kings 18:21; so He bids them, at last to

Zechariah 11:14 — turns his prophecy straight to the God-opposed christ whom they expect, as they say. So said the Lord in the holy Gospels to them, “I am come in My Father’s name, and ye receive Me not; another will come in his own name, and him ye will receive” John 5:43. This the blessed Paul also prophesied of them, “Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved, God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie, that all might be damned, who believe not the truth, but

Zechariah 3:8 — days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a king shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth, and this is the name whereby He shall be called, The Lord our Righteouness” Jeremiah 23:5-6; and, “In those days and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David, and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land” Jeremiah 33:15. Of him Zechariah afterward spoke as, “a man whose name is the Branch”

Zechariah 6:11 — crown, that is, one crown uniting many crowns, symbolizing the many kingdoms of the earth, over which our High Priest and King should rule.Either symbol, of separate crowns “the golden at Rome.” Du Cang. Otto of Frisingen said that Frederic received 5 crowns; the first at Aix for the kingdom of the Franks; a second at Ratisban for that of Germany; a third at Pavia for the kingdom of Lombardy; the fourth at Rome for the Roman empire from Adrian iv; the fifth of Monza for the kingdom of Italy.” In

Matthew 24:21 — emotion for the living, but killed all they met, whereby they filled the lanes with dead bodies. “The whole city ran with blood,” insomuch that many things which were burning were extinguished by the blood.” - “Jewish Wars,” b. 6 chapter 8, section 5; chapter 9, section 2, 3. He adds that in the siege of Jerusalem not fewer than “eleven hundred thousand” perished (Jewish Wars, b. 6 chapter 9, section 3) - a number almost half as great as are in the whole city of London. In the adjacent provinces

Matthew 25:1 — similitude of a marriage, the church being represented as his spouse or bride. The marriage relation is the most tender, firm, and endearing of any known on earth, and on this account it suitably represents the union of believers to Christ. See Matthew 9:15; John 3:29; Revelation 19:7; Revelation 21:9; Ephesians 5:25-32.Ten virgins - These virgins, doubtless, represent the church - a name given to it because it is pure and holy. See 2 Corinthians 11:2; Lamentations 1:15; Lamentations 2:13.Which took their

Luke 16:9 — property so that he will not cast us off for abusing it.Everlasting habitations - Heaven, the eternal “home” of the righteous, where all our wants will be supplied, and where there can be no more anxiety, and no more removal from enjoyments, 2 Corinthians 5:1.

John 11:44 — separately. When they embalmed a person, the whole body and limbs were swathed or bound together by strips of linen, involved around it to keep together the aromatics with which the body was embalmed. This is the condition of Egyptian mummies. See Acts 5:6. But it is not certain that this was always the mode. Perhaps the body was simply involved in a winding-sheet. The custom still exists in western Asia. No coffins being used, the body itself is more carefully and elaborately wrapped and swathed than

John 5:23 — from Jesus Christ, who do not honor him even as they honor the Father, cannot be Christians.4. One evidence of piety is when We are willing to render proper praise and homage to Jesus Christ - to love him, and serve and obey him, with all our hearts.5. “As a matter of fact,” it may be added that they who do not honor the Son do not worship God at all. The infidel has no form of worship; he has no place of secret prayer, no temple of worship, no family altar. Who ever yet heard of an infidel that

John 5:26 — As the Father hath life - God is the source of all life. He is thence called the living God, in opposition to idols which have no life. Acts 14:15; “we preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities (idols) ‘unto the living God,’” Joshua 3:10; 1 Samuel 17:26; Jeremiah 10:10. See also Isaiah 40:18-31.In himself - This means that life in God, or existence, is not derived from any other

John 8:56 — toward its attainment with joy; and it expresses: 1.The fact that this was an object that filled the heart of Abraham with joy; and, 2.That he earnestly desired to see it.We have no single word which expresses the meaning of the original. In Matthew 5:12 it is rendered “be exceeding glad.”To see - Rather, he earnestly and joyfully desired that he might see. To see here means to have a view or distinct conception of. It does not imply that Abraham expected that the Messiah would appear during his