Bible Commentaries

Psalms 110:3 — numerous, and a blessing from God. The expression "from the womb of the dawn" probably signifies their early appearance during Messiah’s reign. Later revelation identifies these people as faithful believers (Revelation 5:10; Revelation 20:4; Revelation 20:6; Revelation 22:5).

Psalms 47:1-2 — submission to His authority. "Kings in the ancient Near East loved to designate themselves by this title [great king] because with it were associated superiority, suzerainty, and the power to grant vassal treaties (cf. 2 Kings 18:19; Isaiah 36:4). Any king assuming this title could not tolerate competition. So it is with Yahweh. He alone is the Great King over all the earth (cf. Malachi 1:11; Malachi 1:14)!" [Note: VanGemeren, p. 358.]

Psalms 61:1-2 — from his own people and his secure surroundings on this occasion. The rock he requested may have been a literal butte on which he could take refuge, such as Masada. On the other hand, he may have been speaking figuratively of God (cf. Deuteronomy 32:4; Deuteronomy 32:15; Deuteronomy 32:18; Deuteronomy 32:30-31; Deuteronomy 32:37; 2 Samuel 22:2; Psalms 18:31; Psalms 18:46; Psalms 28:1; et al.).

Psalms 80:14-16 — The term "son" is a literal rendering of the Hebrew word that metaphorically means branch. It describes the new growth on the vine, the new generation of Israelites. Matthew applied this reference to Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:15; cf. Exodus 4:22; Hosea 11:1). The psalmist saw the vine of Israel burned and cut down by its enemies whom God had allowed to damage it.

Psalms 84:3-4 — a great advantage because they worked in the rooms surrounding the temple. They could praise God always because they were at the center of His worship. "Three times he uses the word ’Blessed’, or ’Happy’: once wistfully (4), once resolutely (5), once in deep contentment (12). These can guide us in exploring the movement of the psalm." [Note: Kidner, Psalms 73-150, p. 303.]

Proverbs 16:10 — A king’s edict becomes law for his people. [Note: For the meaning of "divine decision" or "oracle," see E. W. Davies, "The Meaning of qesem in Prv 16:10," Biblica 61 (1980):554-56.] His ordinances are the will of God for them (unless he commands contrary to God’s revealed will; cf. Acts 4:19-20). Consequently it is very important that the ruler not err in his judgment. [Note: See W. Lee Humphreys, "The Motif of

Isaiah 12:1 — the remnant who survived the harvesting of Israel would praise Yahweh for ending His discipline of them, and for comforting them. Previously in Isaiah’s prophecy "that day" was one to be dreaded (cf. Isaiah 2:20; Isaiah 3:18; Isaiah 4:1; Isaiah 7:18; Isaiah 7:20-21; Isaiah 7:23), but now it is one to be hoped for. This is the eschatological "day of the Lord" so often referred to by the prophets, that will include judgment (in the Tribulation) and blessing (in the Millennium).

Isaiah 12:3 — In the future, Israelites could anticipate securing His salvation and sharing it with others, specifically the Gentiles (cf. Psalms 116:13). This verse became a common saying among the Jews and led to a water-drawing ceremony in Jerusalem (cf. John 4:15; John 7:37-38). Water represents everything necessary for supporting life.

Isaiah 16:4-5 — righteous Davidic king would judge there. This is clearly a reference to Messiah’s rule during the Millennium (cf. Isaiah 9:1-6; Isaiah 11:1-9). Moab, then, will be one of the nations that comes to the mountain of God to seek His ways (Isaiah 2:1-4). This leap into the eschaton in the oracle extends Moab’s desire to find security in Judah in Isaiah’s day-far into the future.

Isaiah 3:4-5 — This lack of leadership would result in incompetent individuals seeking and gaining positions of authority (cf. Leviticus 19:32; 1 Kings 3:7). Isaiah 3:4 is reminiscent of the reign of King Rehoboam. Looking ahead, wicked King Manasseh began ruling over Judah when he was only 12, and Kings Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah, who followed him later, proved capricious. "Good government is one of

Isaiah 30:15 — particular message from the sovereign Lord her God, the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah had called the people to repent and rest in the Lord for their salvation. He had promised that their quiet trust in Him would prove to be their strength (cf. Isaiah 7:4; Isaiah 7:10-12; Isaiah 28:12). He had commanded "not alliance but reliance." [Note: G. A. Smith, The Book of Isaiah , 1:128.] Yet the people refused to obey.

Isaiah 38:12 — their expected places. Before the day of his life was out, the Lord would end it. "The thought is that in the morning one did not expect anything untoward to occur, and by evening, when darkness had come, the event had already taken place (cf. Job 4:20)." [Note: Young, 2:520.]

Isaiah 51:1 — The Lord appealed to the righteous in Israel to listen to Him (cf. Isaiah 50:10). Watts believed the speaker, through Isaiah 51:4, was Darius. [Note: Watts, Isaiah 34-66, p. 204.] These were the Israelites who sincerely wanted to trust and obey God, but found it difficult to do so because impending captivity seemed to contradict God’s promises. The Lord directed them to

Jeremiah 15:17 — Jeremiah had not spent much time with the people who disregarded God’s messages to repent. Rather, he felt indignation at their hard hearts and separated from them (cf. Psalms 1:1; Psalms 26:4-5). Their attitude repulsed him, and he felt under divine constraint to behave with integrity, in harmony with his preaching. Jeremiah felt that he had become a social leper (cf. Leviticus 13:46). "Every true servant of God is likely to experience

Jeremiah 18:3-4 — top served as a rotating table on which he formed his art (cf. Ecclesiastes 2:18-23; Ecclesiastes 8:17; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Ecclesiastes 10:8-9; Ecclesiastes 11:6). [Note: See R. H. Johnston, "The Biblical Potter," Biblical Archaeologist 37:4 (1974):86-106.]

Jeremiah 19:9 — The siege of Jerusalem would be so bad that the residents would eat their own children, and one another, rather than die of starvation (cf. Jeremiah 11:1-8; Leviticus 26:29; Deuteronomy 28:53-57; 2 Kings 6:26-29; Lamentations 2:20; Lamentations 4:10). This was compensation for their having taken human life to worship pagan idols. Being consumed by cannibals was a typical curse for treaty-breakers in the ancient Near East, as was lack of burial (Jeremiah 19:7). [Note: See D. R. Hillers, Treaty-Curses

Jeremiah 25:8-9 — because they had not obeyed Him, He would bring Nebuchadnezzar down from the north, and destroy them and their neighbor nations with an awful, everlasting devastation. Nebuchadnezzar was the Lord’s servant in the same sense Cyrus was (cf. Isaiah 44:28 to Isaiah 45:1); he served the Lord by carrying out His will, for the most part unwittingly (cf. Jeremiah 27:6; Jeremiah 43:10; Acts 2:23). Since God’s people would not listen to His servants the prophets (Jeremiah 25:4), the Lord would send

Jeremiah 4:11-12 — Yahweh’s command and would be the instrument of God’s judgment on the people. They were all too familiar with such devastating winds, or siroccos, that blew almost unbearable heat and dust into Judah from the Arabian Desert (cf. Genesis 41:6; Jonah 4:8).

Jeremiah 4:3 — call from the Lord to each of Jeremiah’s original Jerusalemite and Judean hearers. Yahweh appealed to them with two agricultural metaphors. They needed to plow up the previously unplowed soil that symbolized their hearts (cf. Hosea 10:12; Mark 4:1-9). They needed to cultivate soft hearts that would welcome the Lord’s words. Negatively, they needed to stop investing in counterproductive ventures such as idolatry. "Just as a farmer does not sow his seed on unplowed ground, so God does

Jeremiah 9:2 — from his fellow countrymen. Their spiritual adultery and treachery repulsed him. A few recent commentators take the first five verses of this pericope to be the words of God rather than Jeremiah’s. [Note: E.g., Page H. Kelley, Jeremiah 1-25, pp. 143-45. Kelley wrote the commentary on 8:4-16:21 in this volume of the Word Biblical Commentary, which appears in the bibliography of these notes after Craigie, the writer of the first part of the book.]