Bible Commentaries

John 11:55 — This is the third and final Passover that John mentioned in his Gospel (cf. John 2:13; John 6:4) and probably the fourth one during Jesus’ public ministry. John mentioned the first, third, and fourth of these. [Note: Hoehner, p. 143.] The Mosaic Law required that the Jews who had become ritually unclean had to purify themselves for one week

John 13:1-11 — The act of foot-washing 13:1-11 "In the Synoptic account of the events of this evening we read of a dispute among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. John does not record this, but he tells of an action of Jesus that rebuked their lack of humility more strikingly than any words could have done." [Note: Morris, p. 544.] The emphasis in John 13:1-3 is on what the Lord knew, and in John 13:4-5 it is on what He did.

John 14:15-21 — The promise of the Spirit 14:15-21 At the end of His answer to Peter’s question (John 13:36), Jesus moved the conversation back to the general theme of preparation for His departure (John 14:4). He did the same thing after answering Philip’s question (John 14:8). Obedience to the will of God is not only a condition for getting answers to prayer. It is also an evidence of love for God. Love for God is the controlling idea in the following verses (John 14:15-21).

John 2:18 — The spokesmen for the Jews present in the courtyard wanted Jesus to perform some miraculous sign (Gr. semeion, cf. John 2:11). They wanted Him to indicate that He possessed divine authority to do what He did (cf. Exodus 4:1-9; Matthew 12:38; Matthew 16:1; Mark 8:11; Luke 11:16; 1 Corinthians 1:22). The sin of these Jewish leaders is apparent in that they did not deal with the question of the justice of Jesus’ criticism. They only inquired about His authority to act as He did.

John 20:1-9 — 1. The discovery of Peter and John 20:1-9 (cf. Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-8) John omitted the earthquake, the angel rolling away the stone that covered the tomb entrance, and his sitting on the stone (Matthew 28:2-3). He also did not include the appearance of two angels to the women who visited the tomb early Easter morning, before Peter and John did, and the women’s reactions (Matthew 28:5-8; Mark 16:5-8; Luke 24:4-8).

John 6:34 — Jesus had glorified the new bread sufficiently now for the people to request it of Him, as he had glorified the living water for the Samaritan woman. He had set them up for the revelation that He was that bread. If they were sincere in their desire for it, they would accept Him. Yet the people did not realize what they were requesting, as the woman at the well did not (cf. John 4:15). They were still thinking of physical bread. They wanted this new type of physical bread from then on.

John 7:15 — amazement at Jesus’ ability to do that. The Judean Jews (cf. John 1:19) marveled at Jesus’ understanding of religious matters (cf. Matthew 7:28-29; Mark 1:22). They knew He had not had a formal theological education under the rabbis (cf. Acts 4:13). "To the Jews there was only one kind of learning-that of Theology; and only one road to it-the Schools of the Rabbis." [Note: Ibid.]

John 7:8-9 — Having offered His explanation, Jesus encouraged his brothers to go on to the feast without Him. Again He intimated that the Father was setting His agenda and He needed to follow it rather then their suggestion (cf. John 2:4). God’s immediate will for Him was to stay in Galilee. The NIV "yet" has weak textual support, though it represents a valid interpretation. Many old Greek manuscripts do not contain it. Probably copyists added it to explain what Jesus

Acts 10:25-26 — Revelation 19:10; Revelation 22:8-9). ". . . Simon Peter would never have let you get down to kiss his big toe [as pilgrims to St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome do to the statue of Peter there]. He just wouldn’t permit it." [Note: McGee, 4:556.] Later Paul and Barnabas received a similar reception from the Lystrans and likewise refused worship (Acts 14:11-15).

Acts 15:10 — test God in that it would question the rightness of His action in giving the Spirit to Cornelius. When a Gentile became a Jewish proselyte, the Jew in charge of the ceremony said the Gentile now took up the yoke of the kingdom of heaven (cf. Matthew 23:4; Galatians 5:1). [Note: Bruce, Commentary on . . ., p. 307.] Peter said this yoke, the Mosaic Covenant, was an obligation that was both unbearable and unnecessary (cf. Matthew 11:29-30).

Acts 2:24 — God, a higher Judge, reversed the decision of Jesus’ human judges by resurrecting Him. God released Jesus’ from the pangs of death (Gr. odinas tou thanatou), namely, its awful clutches (cf. 2 Samuel 22:6; Psalms 18:4-6; Psalms 116:3). A higher court in heaven overturned the decision of the lower courts on earth. It was impossible for death to hold Jesus because He had committed no sins Himself. He had not personally earned the wages of sin (Romans 6:23), but He

Acts 5:12-16 — The expanding influence of the apostles 5:12-16 This pericope is another of Luke’s summaries of conditions in the church that introduces what follows (cf. Acts 2:42-47; Acts 4:32-35). It also explains why the Sadducees became so jealous that they arrested not only Peter and John but other apostles as well. The apostles were gaining great influence not only in Jerusalem but also in the outlying areas. The healing

Acts 5:20 — were to continue addressing "the people," the Jews, with the full message that they had been heralding. They were not to back down or trim their words. The message of "this life" is a synonym for the message of salvation (cf. Acts 4:12; Acts 13:26). [Note: Longenecker, p. 319.] The Greek words zoe ("life") and soteria ("salvation") both translate the same Hebrew word, hayyah.

Acts 7:39-40 — The Israelites in the wilderness refused to listen to Moses and repudiated his leadership of them (Numbers 14:3-4; Exodus 32:1; Exodus 32:23). By insisting on the finality of the Mosaic Law so strongly, as they did, Stephen’s hearers were in danger of repudiating what Moses had prophesied about the coming prophet. The Israelites refused to follow Moses

Acts 8:13 — Even Simon believed. I see no reason to conclude that Simon’s faith was spurious, though many students of this passage have concluded that he was an unbeliever. [Note: E.g., ibid., 4:544, 545; Toussaint, "Acts," p. 373; Wiersbe, 1:435-36; and Witherington, pp. 288-89.] The text says that he believed just as the others Luke mentioned (Acts 8:12), and there is no reason to doubt the reality of their faith. Having practiced

Acts 9:33 — Peter healed another lame man in Lydda (cf. Acts 3:6-8; Luke 5:17-26). [Note: See Joshua Schwartz, "Peter and Ben Stada in Lydda," in The Book of Acts in Its First Century Setting; Vol. 4: The Book of Acts in Its Palestinian Setting, pp. 391-414.] Aeneas is a Greek name. He was probably a Hellenistic Jew. We do not know if he was a Christian. The fact that Luke called him a man, but referred to Tabitha as a disciple (Acts 9:36), may imply that he was not a believer.

Romans 10:5 — Paul supported his contention that justification results from faith in Christ (Romans 10:4) through Romans 10:13. He used the Law (Deuteronomy 30:6; Deuteronomy 30:11; Deuteronomy 30:14) to prove that Moses showed that it was futile to trust in law-keeping for salvation. Moses revealed that those who practiced the righteousness commanded

Romans 15:2 — this principle of love. Paul was not saying that we should be "people pleasers" and do whatever anyone wants us to do simply because it will please them (cf. Galatians 1:10; Galatians 1:19; Ephesians 6:6; Colossians 3:22; 1 Thessalonians 2:4). The goal of our behavior should be the other person’s welfare and spiritual edification (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:19-23). We should not please others rather than God, but we should please others rather than ourselves.

Romans 6:15 — sin are both inappropriate for a believer who is living under God’s gracious authority. "Surely, the objector says, we may take a night off now and then and sin a little bit ’since we are under grace.’" [Note: Robertson, 4:364.]

1 Corinthians 2:9 — The source of this quotation is evidently Isaiah 64:4; Isaiah 65:17. It summarizes Paul’s point well. There are many things we can know only by revelation. The more God reveals the more clearly we see that He has designed His plans for humanity for our blessing. "Paul’s thought is that