Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 38:9-22 — section is a psalm of lamentation and thanksgiving that Hezekiah composed after his recovery (Isaiah 38:10-20). It is the only extant narrative in the Old Testament written by a king of Judah after the time of Solomon. [Note: The New Scofield . . ., p. 744. ] Compare King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon’s similar testimony of praise, after God delivered him from insanity (Daniel 4:34-35). This psalm is also chiastic in structure. It begins with reference to the gates of Sheol and sorrow at the prospect

Isaiah 42:24-25 — whenever their ancestors had gotten into such a condition, repentance brought restoration to usefulness. Their relationship to God was the key. The Torah, of course, explained what God promised to do if His people obeyed or disobeyed Him (cf. Isaiah 1:4-8; Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28-29), but the Israelites had not paid attention to this teaching. Since they chose to go their own way, the judgment of God had burned them. Most of Isaiah’s contemporaries were still claiming that they did not deserve

Isaiah 46:1-2 — wise administrator. The names Nabopolassar, Nebuchadnezzar ("Nebo, protect the boundary"), and Nabonidus, among others, show reverence for Nebo, and the name Belshazzar ("Bel, protect the king") honored Bel. [Note: See Archer, p. 642.] Nebo was the god of learning, writing, and astronomy. The Babylonians carried images of these prominent gods in their New Year’s Day parades. Isaiah envisioned Bel and Nebo as bending over as the Babylonians carried their images in procession

Isaiah 52:7 — Isaiah exulted in the good news that the Lord had just revealed. The news had reached His people through a messenger whom the prophet pictured as running across mountains with his message (cf. Isaiah 40:9; Isaiah 41:27; Nahum 1:15). The messenger’s feet were beautiful because they carried him and his message of peace, happiness, and salvation (cf. Matthew 10:1-7; Romans 10:15). His message is that Yahweh is the only true God and that He reigns

Isaiah 55:10-11 — of His blessing; every time God sends water from heaven, in whatever form, it brings blessing because it nourishes the earth. Both rain and snow achieve their purpose of bringing life, nourishment, and blessing to humanity (cf. Jeremiah 29:11; Mark 4:1-20; Hebrews 6:7-8). Therefore, since God has promised compassion and forgiveness for those who seek Him, people can count on the fact that if they seek Him, this will be His response. "As the rain furnishes both seed and bread, so the word of

Isaiah 60:4 — The nations and their leaders will bring the disbursed Israelites back to their land as well (cf. Isaiah 11:12; Isaiah 49:18). They will also bring their wealth and give it to the Israelites (cf. Isaiah 60:11; Isaiah 61:6; Haggai 2:7-8; Zechariah 14:14). This will delight the Israelites, as well as surprise them, since throughout history the nations have taken from Israel. These

Jeremiah 20:1-2 — action against God’s overseer of the nations, Jeremiah (cf. Jeremiah 1:10). This is the first recorded act of violence done to Jeremiah. It reminds us of the captain of the temple guard who, years later, similarly imprisoned Peter and John (Acts 4:1-3).

Jeremiah 33:17 — From then on there would always be a Davidic king ruling over the nation of Israel (cf. 1 Kings 2:4; 1 Kings 8:25; 1 Kings 9:5). [Note: See Douglas K. Stuart, "The Prophetic Ideal of Government in the Restoration Era," in Israel’s Apostasy and Restoration: Essays in Honor of Roland K. Harrison, pp. 283-92.] That King has appeared,

Jeremiah 39:3 — All the officials of the Babylonian army entered the city and eventually took their places at a gate in the middle of the city, in fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy in Jeremiah 21:4. This Middle Gate was evidently an opening in a wall that separated two parts of Jerusalem. This is the only reference to this gate in the Bible. The writer mentioned two, three, or four of the Babylonian officials by name: Nergal-sar-ezer, Samgar-nebu,

Jeremiah 41:3 — about him [Ishmael] disgraced the name of David his forebear [sic], who had resisted every impulse to ’wade through slaughter to a throne’ and had awaited God’s time and his people’s will [1 Samuel 26:10; 2 Samuel 2:1; 2 Samuel 2:4; 2 Samuel 5:1]. This was no David but a Jehu-and a Jehu without the excuse of a crusade. Almost as outrageous as his treachery was his folly, in supposing that a regime that was devised in deception, imposed by violence, backed by ill-wishers (Ammon,

Jeremiah 49:26-27 — When Yahweh destroyed the city, all her young soldiers would perish, and it would burn down (cf. Amos 1:4; Amos 1:14)-even the fortified towers named in honor of a number of great Aramean kings named "Ben-hadad" (lit. son of [the god] Hadad). Hadad was an Aramean storm god, the equivalent of the Canaanite Baal. Jeremiah indicated no reason for

Ezekiel 1:10-11 — The forward face on each creature looked like a man, another like a lion, another like a bull, and the fourth like an eagle (cf. Revelation 4:7). These were traditionally the four most impressive animals, man being the chief over all, the lion chief of the wild animals, the ox chief of the domesticated animals, and the eagle chief of the birds. [Note: Stuart, p. 32.] Their faces may represent

Ezekiel 1:20-21 — Spirit controlled them. Most expositors view these cherubim as forming, supporting, or pulling a throne-chariot on which Ezekiel saw God riding (cf. Exodus 25:10-22; 2 Samuel 22:11; 1 Chronicles 28:18; Psalms 18:11; Daniel 7:9; Hebrews 8:5; Revelation 4). I think this makes sense. Perhaps the mobility of the wheels suggests God’s omnipresence, the eyes His omniscience, and the elevated position His omnipotence. [Note: Greenberg, pp. 46-47; J. W. Wevers, Ezekiel, p. 48; Cooper, p. 69.] "God

Ezekiel 14:22-23 — In spite of this severe judgment on Jerusalem, some of the inhabitants would survive and would join the Jews already in exile (i.e., a remnant, but this time an apostate remnant, cf. Jeremiah 44:27-30; Amos 9:8; Amos 9:11-15). The formerly exiled Jews would see their conduct and actions (Heb. ’alilah, evil actions) and feel some comfort in view of the calamity that had overtaken Jerusalem. They would then see that what the Lord had done

Ezekiel 37:9-10 — The Lord then told Ezekiel to prophesy to the breath and to command it in the name of the Lord to come from the four winds (i.e., every direction) and give life to the bones (cf. Isaiah 43:5-6; Jeremiah 31:8). Ezekiel followed the Lord’s instructions, and breath came into the corpses (cf. Genesis 2:7; Romans 8:1-17). They came to life, stood up, and formed a very large group of people, as large as an army. "What is the significance

Ezekiel 47:3-5 — The "man" took his measuring line (cf. Ezekiel 40:3) and measured 1,000 cubits (about one-third of a mile) east from the wall along the watercourse. He led Ezekiel across the river (Heb. nahal), and it was ankle deep. Another 1,000 cubits farther east they crossed again, and this time the water was

Joel 2:11 — leading an army against them. He is the one who is directing the soldiers with His voice. His host is both numerous and strong. The day of this attack, the day of the Lord, is great and awesome, and no one can withstand it (cf. Malachi 3:2; Malachi 4:5). Some interpreters regard the description of the locust plague in Joel 2:1-11 as simply another description of the same locust plague as the one described in chapter 1, or another locust plague in Israel’s past history. Others take this description

Amos 1:6 — Philistia, as Damascus was of Aram. The particular sin for which God would judge the Philistines was their capture and deportation of whole communities (or people at peace, Heb. shelema), possibly Israelites and or Judahites, to Edom as slaves (cf. Joel 3:4-8). During the reign of Israel’s King Jehoram (852-841 B.C.) Philistines and Arabs had carried off the royal household (2 Chronicles 21:16-17), plundered the temple (Joel 3:5), and sold the people into slavery (Joel 3:3; Joel 3:6). "The concern

Amos 4:13 — creates the intangible and transitory wind, knows people’s thoughts, turns dawn into darkness, and steps on the hills of Israel like a giant approaching Samaria. They could not escape His judgment, so they better prepare for it (cf. Micah 1:3-4). "In one bold sweep, this hymn shows the sovereignty of God-from his creation of the world to his daily summoning of the dawn, from his intervention in history to his revelation of mankind’s thoughts. Every believer can take comfort in the

Haggai 2:5 — The Lord reiterated the promise He had made to the Israelites when they left Egypt in the Exodus. His Spirit would stay in their midst, so they did not need to fear (cf. Exodus 19:4-6; Exodus 33:14). The returnees could identify with their forefathers who departed from Egypt because they had recently departed from another captivity in Babylon. As the Lord had been with them in the cloudy pillar, so He was with them now. As David