Bible Commentaries

Ezekiel 24:8 — blood out of Jerusalem by allowing the Babylonians to slay the Jews in it. The innocent blood that the Jerusalemites had shed had cried out to God for Him to take vengeance and to execute wrath on the murderers, as Abel’s blood had done (Genesis 4:10; cf. Isaiah 26:21). As the people of Jerusalem had shed blood openly, so the Lord would shed their blood openly, on the bare rock of Jerusalem. "The severe judgment sent by God upon Judah should be ample warning to those today who share the

Ezekiel 25:13 — of Edom where Edomites evidently lived. Jeremiah revealed that this punishment would come through Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 9:26; Jeremiah 25:21; Jeremiah 27:1-11). Edomites occupied southern Judah after the Exile. [Note: Taylor, p. 188. Cf. 1 Esdras 4:50.]

Ezekiel 25:15-16 — The Philistines to Judah’s west had also scorned the Israelites and had sought to destroy them (cf. Judges 13-16; 1 Samuel 4; 1 Samuel 13; 1 Samuel 31; 2 Samuel 5:17-25; 2 Kings 18:8; 2 Chronicles 21:16-17; 2 Chronicles 28:18). Therefore the Lord would stretch out His strong hand in judgment against them and cut off the Cherethites, a group of Philistines who originated in

Ezekiel 35:11-13 — He had done this when He judged them. This would teach them that the Lord had heard the hateful words that the Edomites had spoken against "the mountains of Israel" (cf. Ezekiel 35:2-3; Ezekiel 35:7; Ezekiel 35:15; Ezekiel 36:1; Ezekiel 36:4; Ezekiel 36:8). By speaking against the Israelites the Edomites had spoken against Yahweh since He was their God, and the Lord had heard them (cf. Ezekiel 36:5; Malachi 1:1-5).

Ezekiel 40:20-23 — There was a gate complex on the north side of the wall that was identical to the one on the east (Ezekiel 40:6-16). It too was 50 cubits (83 feet 4 inches) long and 25 cubits (41 feet 8 inches) wide, excluding its stairway. Seven steps led into the gate complex from the outside up to its threshold (Ezekiel 40:6). Looking straight through the north gate or

Hosea 5:3 — Yahweh knew Israel well; He had not been deceived and fallen into a trap, as the Israelites had. Ephraim had played the harlot against her husband, the Lord, and had defiled herself by doing so (cf. Leviticus 18:20; Leviticus 18:24; Numbers 5:20; Numbers 5:27-28). Ephraim was the largest tribe in Israel and so, frequently, was a synonym for the Northern Kingdom (e.g., Hosea 4:17). Hosea may have referred to it here because this tribe was foremost in idolatry. [Note: Wood, "Hosea,"

Amos 2:6 — Israel’s first sin was that the Israelites took advantage of righteous, needy people for their own personal, material advantage and sold them into slavery, perhaps into debt (cf. 2 Kings 4:1-7). They sold, for the price of what they owed, honest people who would have repaid their debts if given the opportunity. They would even sell into slavery someone who could not pay the small price of a pair of sandals. Another interpretation is that

Micah 4:9 — agony, like a woman in labor pains who can do nothing to relieve her misery. Did the Jews have no king leading them and providing counsel for them? This would be their condition during the captivity. The Babylonian captivity is in view primarily (Micah 4:10). "The now has a certain width of reference, embracing both the Assyrian and Babylonian crises. Prophets saw the future not diachronically [consecutively] but synchronically [simultaneously]." [Note: Waltke, in Obadiah, . . ., p. 178.]

Zechariah 5:1 — unrolled scroll flying through the air. This was a scroll that contained writing, the equivalent of a modern book. "A scroll (or roll), in Scripture symbolism, denotes the written word, whether of God or man (Ezra 6:2; Jeremiah 36:2; Jeremiah 36:4; Jeremiah 36:6, etc.; Ezekiel 3:1-3, etc). Zechariah’s sixth vision is of the rebuke of sin by the Word of God. The two sins mentioned [in Zechariah 5:3] really transgress both tables of the law. To steal is to set aside our neighbor’s right;

Malachi 2:3 — Part of this curse involved rebuking the priests’ offspring (Heb. zera’, physical descendants) and spreading (Heb. zarah) refuse from their feasts on their faces (cf. Zechariah 3:3-4). The disgusting picture is of God taking the internal waste of the sacrificial animals and smearing it on the priests’ faces. Consequently both sacrifices and priests would have to be taken outside for disposal. This play on words communicates

Matthew 27:4 — because of Judas’ guilt in betraying Him. "They are ’guileful’ and ’callous,’ purchasing the services of Judas to betray Jesus yet leaving Judas to his own devices in coming to terms with his burden of guilt (Matthew 26:14-16; Matthew 27:3-4)." [Note: Kingsbury, Matthew as . . ., pp. 22-23.]

Mark 15:20 — Normally the Romans forced criminals condemned to crucifixion to walk naked to their place of execution and flogged them along the way. [Note: Josephus, Antiquities of . . ., 19:4:5.] Evidently the soldiers concluded that Jesus would not live through such treatment in view of the abuse that He had already suffered. Therefore they put His own garments back on Him. Mark’s original readers faced subjection to similar mockery

Luke 12:5 — about the possibility of losing an eternal reward. He cited God’s punitive power to deter hypocrisy. This is Luke’s only reference to hell (Gr. geenna), but elsewhere it is a place of eternal torment (cf. Matthew 5:22; Matthew 18:8-9; Mark 9:43-48; James 4:12; 1 Enoch 27:2). "Jesus taught the reality of hell unambiguously." [Note: Liefeld, "Luke," p. 959.]

Luke 23:1-7 — 4. Jesus’ first appearance before Pilate 23:1-7 (cf. Matthew 27:2, 11-14; Mark 15:1b-5; John 18:28-38) Jesus’ trial now moved from its Jewish phase into its Roman phase. [Note: See R. Larry Overstreet, "Roman Law and the Trial of Christ,"

Luke 23:27-28 — residents of Jerusalem rather than women from Galilee who had been ministering to Jesus, since Jesus addressed them as daughters of Jerusalem. This is an Old Testament designation for the residents of Jerusalem that views them as typical Israelites (Micah 4:8; Zephaniah 3:14; et al.). He urged them to mourn their own fate and the fate of their children more than His. They were weeping over the injustice of one man’s death, but He was grieving over the coming destruction of an entire nation.

Luke 7:11 — Valley. It was 6 miles south and a little east of Nazareth and is easily visible across the valley from Nazareth. The Hill of Moreh is a significant site because on its south side stood Shunem where Elisha raised the son of the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:18-37). Luke distinguished two groups of people who accompanied Jesus, namely, His disciples and a large multitude of presumably non-disciples.

Luke 9:43-44 — The reaction of the crowd to Jesus’ exorcism (Luke 9:43 a) was typical of the reaction of the multitudes as He continued to minister (Luke 9:43 b). In the context of this popular approval, Jesus revealed again to His disciples that it would not continue. He prefaced His announcement with a demand for attention

John 1:35-42 — 3. The response to John the Baptist’s witness 1:35-42 The writer now turned his attention from John the Baptist’s witness to Jesus to record the reactions of some men to John’s witness. Two of John the Baptist’s disciples left him to follow Jesus when they heard John’s testimony

John 10:18 — Superficially observers could have concluded that Jesus died because the Jews conspired against Him. However, Jesus revealed that behind that instrumental cause was the efficient cause of God’s purpose (cf. Acts 4:27-28). God had given Jesus the authority to offer Himself as a sacrifice for humankind’s sins and to rise from the dead. Nevertheless the Son remained submissive to the Father in the triune hierarchy. Jesus willingly offered Himself; no human

John 19:1-16 — 4. The sentencing of Jesus 19:1-16 (cf. Matthew 27:22-26; Mark 15:12-15; Luke 23:20-25) There is quite a bit of unique material in this pericope. This includes the details of the Roman soldiers’ abuse of Jesus (John 19:1-5) and the situation that