Bible Commentaries

Daniel 12:3 — the importance of remaining faithful to God, and who do so, will receive glory (cf. Daniel 11:33; Daniel 11:35). Those who lead others to do right will too. Their glory will be similar to the glory of the sky above, and to the stars (cf. Matthew 13:43). The angel expressed this blessing in a beautiful parallelism. Their glory will involve the privilege of reigning with Jesus Christ during His millennial kingdom, and from then on-forever (cf. Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:11-27; Revelation 20:4). "Verses

Daniel 9:20-21 — obviously an angel. The description "the man Gabriel" is a play on words and probably means "the servant, the strong one of the strong God." The Hebrew word ish (man) often appears as a description of a servant. [Note: Leupold, p. 400.] "Note that the term ha’is (’the man’) does not signify ’man’ in contradistinction to angels or other spiritual powers residing in heaven; that would have been ’adam or ’enos in Hebrew. It rather indicates

Joel 2:4-5 — interesting that locusts look like tiny armored horses, and they behave like them as well (cf. Job 39:19-20; Revelation 9:7). The Italian word for locust means "little horse," and the German word means "hay horse." [Note: Cf. Wolff, p. 45, n. 46; Driver, p. 52; et al.] Thus the correspondence between the army of locusts that had recently swept through the land swiftly and this future invading army is unmistakable. Even their sounds were similar. However, the point of the comparison

Amos 6:14 — announced that He would raise up a nation against the Northern Kingdom. He was the really strong one. Once again God’s people would fall under the control of a foreign oppressor, as they had done in the past (cf. Exodus 3:9; Judges 2:18; Judges 4:3; Judges 6:9; Judges 10:11-12; 1 Samuel 10:17-18). This enemy would afflict the Israelites throughout the length and breadth of their nation, from Hamath in the north to the brook (or sea, cf. 2 Kings 14:25) of the Arabah in the south (the Dead Sea).

Amos 7:1 — was no way to prevent this in Amos’ day. Locust invasions were a perennial threat, and they were a method of discipline that God had said He might use if His people proved unfaithful to His covenant with them (Deuteronomy 28:38; Deuteronomy 28:42; cf. Joel 1:1-7; Amos 4:9).

Jonah 1:5 — into the sea illustrates the extreme danger they faced (cf. Acts 27:18-20). Jonah’s ability to sleep under such conditions seems very unusual. The same Hebrew word (radam) describes Sisera’s deep sleep that his exhaustion produced (Judges 4:21) and the deep sleep that God put Adam and Abram under (Genesis 2:21; Genesis 15:12). Perhaps Jonah was both exhausted and divinely assisted in sleeping. His condition does not seem to have a major bearing on the story; it is probably a detail. The

Micah 1:2 — The Hebrew word hekal literally means "palace" rather than "temple." It refers to the location of the throne of judgment. This appears to be a reference to God’s heavenly temple in view of the following verses (cf. Psalms 11:4; Isaiah 3:13-14; Habakkuk 2:20). "What the peoples are supposed to hear serves not to increase their knowledge but to determine their lives." [Note: Hans W. Wolff, Micah, p. 55.]

Micah 4:4 — Peace will prevail worldwide. The figure of people sitting under their vines and fig trees describes them at rest enjoying the fruits of their labors and God’s blessings (cf. 1 Kings 4:25; Zechariah 3:10). They will not fear. Perhaps because it is so hard to believe that these conditions will ever prevail on earth Micah assured his audience that the very mouth of almighty Yahweh had spoken these words. These promises came from Him,

Habakkuk 2:16 — would give them a cup of judgment that would make them drunk. Yahweh’s right hand is a figure for His strong personal retribution, giving back in kind what the person being judged had given (cf. Isaiah 51:17-23; Jeremiah 25:15-17; Lamentations 4:21; Matthew 20:22; Matthew 26:42; 1 Corinthians 11:29). Having swallowed the cup’s contents the Babylonians would disgrace themselves rather than honoring and glorifying themselves as they did presently. Their future disgrace contrasts with Yahweh’s

Haggai 2:9 — glory. The Lord also promised to bring peace to the site of the temple, Jerusalem. Neither of these things has happened yet, so the fulfillment must be future (millennial). Lasting peace will only come when Messiah returns to rule and reign (cf. Isaiah 2:4; Isaiah 9:6; Zechariah 9:9-10). Jesus Christ’s adornment of the second temple, as renovated by Herod the Great, with His presence hardly seems to fulfill the exalted promises in this prophecy. [Note: Chisholm, "A Theology . . .," p.

Zechariah 1:1 — month of the second year of Darius was October-November of 520 B.C. Evidently Haggai began ministering two months earlier to the same audience and ended his prophetic ministry one month later (Haggai 1:1; Haggai 2:10; Haggai 2:20; cf. Ezra 5:1; Ezra 6:14). Since there was no human king of Israel then, the writer dated the prophecy in reference to Darius, a reminder that Israel was in "the times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24). "The times of the Gentiles" is the time when Gentiles control

Zechariah 11:3 — The shepherds and lions (the rulers and leaders of Israel, cf. Jeremiah 25:34-38) would wail because a coming destruction would leave no pasture for their flocks and no lairs or food for beasts. "The pride of the Jordan is not the river itself; this expression personifies it, referring to that in which the Jordan may take

Zechariah 5:1-4 — F. The flying scroll 5:1-4 The priests and the kings in Israel were responsible for justice in the nation (cf. Deuteronomy 17:9; 2 Samuel 15:2-3), though neither group could prevent wickedness from proliferating. The sixth and seventh visions deal with the removal of wickedness.

Matthew 13:3-7 — The focus in the first parable is on the soils rather than on the sower. Some seeds fell beside the path that was hard from traffic (Matthew 13:4). They lay on the surface where birds saw them and devoured them before they could germinate. Other seeds fell where the topsoil was thin (Matthew 13:5-6). Their roots could not penetrate the limestone underneath to obtain necessary moisture from the

Matthew 23:27-28 — markers just before Passover to alert pilgrims to their presence. They did this so these strangers would not unknowingly touch one, become unclean, and therefore be ineligible to participate in the feast. [Note: Mishnah Shekalim 1:1; Mishnah Kelim 1:4; Mishnah Moed Katan 1:2; Mishnah Masser Sheni 5:1.] It was not so much the whitewashing that made them attractive as it was the monuments themselves that were attractive. Jesus compared these whitewashed monuments to the Pharisees. Both appeared attractive,

Matthew 26:57 — Josephus wrote that the building in which the Sanhedrin normally met, the "chamber of hewn stone," stood close to the western wall of the temple enclosure. [Note: Josephus, Antiquities of . . ., 5:4:2.] Part of this western wall is the modern Wailing Wall where Jews go daily to pray. The exact location of this chamber is presently unknown. However this meeting of the Sanhedrin took place in Caiaphas’ house or palace, the location of which

Matthew 26:8-9 — Evidently Judas Iscariot led the disciples’ criticism of Mary’s act (John 12:4). According to the Gospel records, every time Mary tried to do something for Jesus she was misunderstood. [Note: Wiersbe, 1:95.] The disciples failed to appreciate the significance of what Mary was doing and that such an anointing was appropriate in

Matthew 27:1-2 — from him. The title "governor" is a general one. Really Pilate was a prefect (procurator) whom Tiberius Caesar had appointed in A.D. 26. [Note: Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, s.v. "Pilate, Pontius," by J. G. Vos, 4:790-93. For a list of the procurators of Judea, see Edersheim, The Life . . ., 2:702.] Judea and Samaria had become one Roman province in A.D. 6 that Pilate now governed (in A.D. 33). Normally he lived in Caesarea, but during the Jewish feasts he often

Matthew 6:5-6 — in private reveals that he is less interested in God’s approval than in human praise." [Note: Carson, "Matthew," p,. 165.] Jesus alluded to the Septuagint version of Isaiah 26:20 where the private room is a bedroom (cf. 2 Kings 4:33). Any private setting will do. Jesus was not discouraging public praying but praying to be admired for it.

Matthew 7:7-8 — opposition Jesus’ disciples need to pray for God’s help. He will always respond positively to their words, though others may reject them (Matthew 7:6). Still, their petitions must be for His glory rather than for selfish ends (cf. James 4:2-3). All that the disciple needs to serve Jesus Christ successfully is available for the asking. "Jesus’ disciples will pray (’ask’) with earnest sincerity (’seek’) and active, diligent pursuit of God’s way