Bible Commentaries

1 Kings 14:12 — THE CHILD THAT WAS TOO GOOD TO LIVE ‘The child shall die.’ 1 Kings 14:12 Jeroboam has filled up the measure of his iniquity, and among the things that he has to suffer this is one of the greatest—that his child is to die. And this announcement is made to the one who can least bear it—to the mother; the one who

1 Kings 5:5 — A TEMPLE MOST COSTLY ‘An house unto the name of the Lord my God.’ 1 Kings 5:5 It is a matter of great interest that ere Solomon could proceed in his vast design, he had to call in the aid of Gentile hands. The opportunity for this was given to him when Hiram, the Phœnician king, who had ever been so friendly with king

2 Kings 9:2 — dreaming strange dreams of power from the first. There was a glow of daring on the youth that marked him out for high and desperate enterprise. And long ago (though Jehu never knew of this) God had told Elijah that this young guardsman would be king ( 1 Kings 19:16-17). His father’s name was Jehoshaphat, and his grandfather’s Nimshi; but we find Jehu commonly referred to as ‘the son of Nimshi.’ I suppose there were fathers then, as there are fathers now, whom the children would willingly forget; fathers

Amos 1:1 — THE MESSAGE OF AMOS ‘The words of Amos.’ Amos 1:1 To estimate the prophets’ message we must consider something of the times in which they lived and the circumstances under which they spoke. Let us do so in the case of the prophet Amos, from whose writings our lessons for to-day are taken. You will

Numbers 10:31-33 — GUIDES—HUMAN AND DIVINE ‘Be to us instead of eyes.… The ark … went before them.’ Numbers 10:31-33 I. Moses’ lack of faith.—When they were about to leave Sinai, Moses begged his father-in-law (or brother-in-law), Hobab, to accompany them. Moses did not like parting with him. Hobab’s help and counsel had been of invaluable service to him,

Mark 2:14 — CHRIST’S CALL ‘And as He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphæus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow Me. And he arose and followed Him.’ Mark 2:14 This incident is narrated also in Matthew’s Gospel ( Mark 9:9) and in Luke’s Gospel ( Mark 5:28). Luke adds that Levi (known to us at Matthew) not only rose up, but ‘left all’ to follow Jesus. From Matthew’s own account we should never have learned

Mark 7:33 — him into the eternal future, open the vistas, and show him the shore of the resurrection of the other side of the waves, and Jesus standing on the shore, and ourselves standing before the judgment-seat of Christ. Rev. Canon Rowsell. Illustrations (1) ‘There is wonderful blessing vouchsafed to those who come apart from the multitude and are alone with God. There was each morning, during the late General Gordon’s first journey in the Soudan, one half-hour during which there lay outside his tent a

Acts 9:3 — outward conduct went he was blameless ( Php_3:6 ). Doubtless he had a good deal to do with the murder of St. Stephen, because in Acts 7:58, it is stated the ‘witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet whose name was Saul’ (see also Acts 8:1; Acts 22:20). St. Paul also confesses that he compelled the Christians to blaspheme ( Acts 26:11). It is bad enough to sin oneself, but to cause others to sin is the very worst of sins. It is bad enough to be a drunkard, or a swearer, or a thief; but

1 Corinthians 11:28 — AUTO EXAMEN "Pero examínese cada uno a sí mismo, y coma así de ese pan y beba de esa copa". 1 Corintios 11:28 El pórtico del santuario es un autoexamen . Por lo tanto, consideremos cuidadosamente este importante y difícil tema del autoexamen, un deber en todo momento, pero especialmente esencial para una correcta recepción de la Sagrada Comunión. I.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 — Tres y uno 'Ahora hay diversidad de dones, pero el mismo Espíritu. Y hay diferencias de administraciones, pero el mismo Señor. Y hay diversidad de operaciones, pero es el mismo Dios el que obra todo en todos '. 1 Corintios 12:4 El texto trata de tres tipos de diversidades, trazándolas hasta sus respectivas unidades. La unidad encuentra su expresión en la diversidad, y la diversidad su vida y motivo en la unidad. Consideremos estas unidades y tripletes. I. Tres

2 Corinthians 5:17 — UNA NUEVA CREACION 'De modo que si alguno está en Cristo, nueva criatura es: las cosas viejas pasaron; he aquí todas son hechas nuevas. ' 2 Corintios 5:17 Si le hubieras pedido a San Pablo que definiera a un cristiano, habría respondido: "un hombre en Cristo". Si hubieras preguntado además qué quiso decir con estar "en Cristo", creo que habría dicho, unido a Cristo. Las propias palabras místicas de Cristo

1 Thessalonians 3:2 — EL CARÁCTER CRISTIANO ESTABLECIDO "Para confirmarte ... en cuanto a tu fe". 1 Tesalonicenses 3:2 Todas las epístolas están dirigidas al pueblo cristiano. Este hecho debe tenerse en cuenta cuando consideremos el contenido de alguno de ellos. I. El cristiano debe establecerse . Considere lo que esto significa: ( a ) Progreso .

1 Peter 2:17-18 — FRATERNIDAD 'Ama la hermandad' 1 Pedro 2:17 Esta es una instrucción que se recomienda a nuestra conciencia, pero que nos resulta difícil obedecer. El amor a los hermanos parece, en sí mismo, un requisito razonable; y es tan decisivamente demandado por nuestro Señor mismo (ver Juan

1 Peter 2:7 — LA PRECISIÓN DE CRISTO Por tanto, para vosotros los que creéis, Él es precioso. 1 Pedro 2:7 ¡Cuán indescriptiblemente precioso es Cristo 'presentado como una propiciación por el pecado' - '¡Quien Él mismo llevó nuestros pecados en Su propio cuerpo sobre el madero!' I. Por tanto, es para cada uno de nosotros una pregunta práctica:

Revelation 4:1 — LA VISION DEL CIELO Sube acá. Apocalipsis 4:1 Esta es la primera de una serie de visiones que tuvo San Juan en Patmos: la visión del templo en el cielo, la visión del trono de Dios y el Cordero, la visión de los siete ángeles con las trompetas, la visión del Siete copas, de las últimas cosas,

Revelation 4:2 — Juan se le permitió 'en el Espíritu' traspasar los límites de los mortales, y como Moisés (Éxodo 24), como Isaías (6), como Daniel (8), contemplar al Padre eterno: ( a ) En Su inefable majestad; 'como un jaspe y una piedra de sardina' ( Apocalipsis 21:11 ). Estos describen Su majestad y se toman para representar simbólicamente que Dios es santo y justo . ( b ) En Su gloria como Dios del pacto . Él está rodeado (como la visión de Ezequiel, cap. 1) con el arco de la promesa ( cf . Génesis 9:12 ).

1 Samuel 11:6 — COURAGE AND FORBEARANCE ‘The Spirit of God came upon Saul.’ 1 Samuel 11:6 Amid a weeping people the tidings of the fate of Jabesh were told to Saul, who was returning with the oxen from the field. Saul felt the sorrow of it all as much as anybody, but Saul also felt it was no time to weep. The Spirit of the Lord

1 Samuel 24:13 — MAGNANIMITY ‘Mine hand shall not be upon thee.’ 1 Samuel 24:13 This was the hour of David’s great temptation, when a single blow might have made him lord of Israel, so was it the hour of David’s greatest victory, when he won, through grace, the lordship of himself. There are deeds that it takes high

1 Samuel 28:15 — IN THE WITCH’S CAVE ‘God is departed from me.’ 1 Samuel 28:15 I. There were three courses open to Saul: he might sit down in quiet hopelessness, and let the evil come; or he might in faith and penitent submission commit the whole matter to God, even amid the awful silence; or he might betake himself

2 Samuel 1:18 — THE SONG OF THE BOW ‘Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow.’ 2 Samuel 1:18 I. The Song of the Bow.—We never come to this Song of the Bow without being struck afresh with its beauty, its pathos, its lofty patriotism, its tender recollection of a dead friend, and, perhaps, best of all, its generous forgetfulness of all that