Bible Commentaries

Genesis 16:1-6 — one’s wife (Genesis 16:2) was a method of providing an heir in the case of a childless marriage apart from adoption. [Note: Speiser, p. 130; T. Frymer-Kensky, "Patriarchal Family Relationships and Near Eastern Law," Biblical Archaeologist 44 (1981):209-14.] Hagar was Sarai’s personal servant, not a slave girl. Abram also had at least one personal servant (Genesis 24:2). "It was a serious matter for a man to be childless in the ancient world, for it left him without an heir.

Genesis 33:1-17 — the blessing that should have been his, to undo his sins of earlier years (cf. Genesis 33:11). [Note: Wenham, Genesis 16-50, pp. 298-99.] Jacob gave God the glory for giving him his family; he confessed that his family was a gift from God (Genesis 33:4-5). This attitude is evidence of a basic change in Jacob’s approach to life. [Note: For some interesting insights into eastern behavior as reflected in Genesis 33:4, see Imad Shehadeh, "Contrasts between Eastern and Western Cultures,"

Genesis 45:1-15 — 10. Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers 45:1-15 Joseph emotionally revealed his identity to his brothers. He assured them of God’s sovereign control of his life and directed them to bring Jacob to Egypt. He then demonstrated his love for his brothers warmly. This is one of the most dramatic

1 Kings 3:4-15 — Solomon’s petition for Wisdom 3:4-15 A tabernacle, evidently the Mosaic tabernacle, and the Mosaic tabernacle’s bronze altar still stood at Gibeon (lit. little hill; 1 Chronicles 16:39-40; 1 Chronicles 21:28-29; 2 Chronicles 1:3; 2 Chronicles 1:5-6). Gibeon was one of the so-called

Isaiah 60 overview — mean for Israel both in relation to God and in relation to world [sic]? In many ways, the rest of the book is an exploration of those issues, and in chs. 60-62 they come to their broadest expression and resolution." [Note: Oswalt, The Book . . . 40-66, p. 535.] Eight themes run through these chapters. [Note: Ibid.] Isaiah introduced these truths earlier, but he emphasized them strongly in this section. 1.    God will save Israel. 2.    God will give Israel

Lamentations 3 overview — heart and mind. "Jeremiah proposes his own experience under afflictions, as an example as to how the Jews should behave under theirs, so as to have hope of a restoration; hence the change from singular to plural (Lamentations 3:22; Lamentations 3:40-47)." [Note: Jamieson, et al., p. 664.] Faithful servants of the Lord of all ages can identify with many of the prophet’s sentiments expressed here. "Chapter 3 is the heart of Jeremiah’s short book. This chapter gives the book

Ezekiel 23 overview — 4. The parable of the two sisters ch. 23 This chapter is the final climactic one in Ezekiel’s collection of messages that condemn Israel’s defective leadership (chs. 20-23). Both chapters 16 and 23 personify Israel as a prostitute, but there

Numbers 31:1-24 — encountered. [Note: Ashley, p. 592.] Another writer explained this problem as follows. "The Midianites were a larger confederation of tribes, associated with various smaller groups such as the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:28; Judges 8:22; Judges 8:24), the Moabites (Numbers 22:4; Numbers 22:7), the Amalekites (Judges 6:3; Judges 6:33), and Ephah (Genesis 25:4; Isaiah 60:6). They roamed through the arid lands of Sinai, the Negeb and Transjordan. Here it is those Midianites associated with Moab that

Numbers 35:9-34 — Cities of refuge 35:9-34 Six of these Levitical towns were also cities of refuge. The appointment of cities of refuge was a divine provision for the safety of a killer who was not guilty of premeditated murder (cf. Deuteronomy 19:1-13; Joshua 20). God had told the Israelites

Jonah 1:3 — Tarshish was the name of a great-grandson of Noah through Noah’s son Japheth and Japheth’s son Javan (Genesis 10:1-4). From then on in the Old Testament the name describes both the descendants of this man and the territory where they settled (cf. 1 Kings 10:22; 1 Kings 22:48; 1 Chronicles 7:10). The territory was evidently a long distance from Israel and on the Atlantic

Micah overview — writer. The name "Micah" is a shortened form of "Micaiah," which means, "Who is like Yahweh?" A different Micaiah, the son of Imlah, served as a prophet in the Northern Kingdom during the reign of King Ahab of Israel (874-853 B.C., 1Ki_22:8-28; 2Ch_18:3-27). Micah’s hometown was Moresheth-gath, which stood about 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem in Judah (Mic_1:1). It was called Moresheth-gath (Mic_1:14) because it was fairly close to the Philistine town of Gath.

Habakkuk overview — musician and possibly a Levite. "The precise relationship of the prophets with the temple is one of the most debated elements in Old Testament study." [Note: Tremper Longman III and Raymond B. Dillard, An Introduction to the Old Testament, p. 463.] The Septuagint addition to the Book of Daniel, the apocryphal Bel and the Dragon, mentions Habakkuk in its title as the son of Jeshua of the tribe of Levi. It records a legend about him that is pure fantasy. Supposedly an angel commanded Habakkuk

Matthew 1:2-6 — rather than Abram. The longer name connotes the covenant privileges that God made to Abraham when He changed his name. The writer separated Judah and his brothers (Matthew 1:2) because the messianic promise of rulership went to Judah alone (Genesis 49:10). This allusion to the 12 tribes of Israel provides another clue that Matthew’s interests were strongly royal (cf. Matthew 8:11; Matthew 19:28). Matthew also mentioned Perez’s brother (Matthew 1:3) perhaps because he was his twin. But

Matthew 24:15 — "the prophet." Matthew’s inclusion of the phrases "the abomination of desolation," which Luke omitted, and "the holy place," which Mark and Luke omitted, were appropriate in view of his Jewish audience. Daniel 9:24-27 predicted that from the time someone issued a decree allowing the Jews to rebuild Jerusalem until the coming of Israel’s Messiah, 69 weeks (lit. sevens) of years would elapse. This 483-year period began when King Artaxerxes issued his decree,

John 18:28 — 15:1; Luke 23:1). They led Jesus from Caiaphas in the sense that he was the head of the Sanhedrin that had passed sentence on Jesus (cf. Matthew 27:1-2; Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71). The Sanhedrin had condemned Jesus for blasphemy (Matthew 26:63-66; Mark 14:61-64), which was a capital offense in Israel (Leviticus 24:16). However the Sanhedrin could not execute the death sentence for this offense without Roman agreement, and there was little hope of Pilate giving it. Therefore the Jewish leaders decided

Titus overview — been there and had instructed Titus to remain there when he departed (Tit_1:5). Evidently Paul wrote Titus after he wrote 1 Timothy and before he wrote 2 Timothy. Tit_3:12 seems to indicate that his plans were more settled than when he wrote 1Ti_3:14. [Note: Philip H. Towner, 1-2 Timothy & Titus, p. 19.] Titus was a Greek Gentile (Gal_2:3). He had probably become a Christian under the influence of Paul and had become one of the apostle’s protégés (Tit_1:4). Titus had been

1 John overview — writing. [Note: E.g., Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, and Tertullian.] Though modern critics have challenged this view, they have not destroyed it. [Note: See Charles C. Ryrie, "The First Epistle of John," in The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, pp. 1464-65, for a concise discussion of views of authorship.] Neither is there any reference to who the first recipients of this epistle were or where they lived other than that they were Christians (1Jn_2:12-14; 1Jn_2:21; 1Jn_5:13). They may have been the

Revelation 22:17 — Jesus continued speaking to John. The "Spirit" is God’s Holy Spirit, and the "bride" is probably the church, not the New Jerusalem, since this appeal is to the present bride of Christ. [Note: Moffatt, p. 492.] Jesus quoted both of these entities reiterating their appeal to Himself to come back to the earth (cf. Revelation 1:7). "The one who hears" is everyone who hears this book read in the churches, as was common in John’s day. This includes

1 Samuel 17:50-58 — humble weapon to give His people a great victory in response to one person’s faith. This is another instance of God bringing blessing to and through a person who committed himself to simply believing and obeying God’s Word (cf. 1 Samuel 14:1). Stoning was the penalty for blasphemy in Israel (Leviticus 24:16; Deuteronomy 17:7). Usually death by stoning required many large stones, but David executed this Philistine blasphemer with only one stone. God’s unseen hand propelled and directed

1 Samuel 29:6-11 — Philistines against the Israelites. Thus David continued his deception. For the third time Achish vindicated David (1 Samuel 29:3; 1 Samuel 29:6; 1 Samuel 29:9). Note the parallel with Pilate’s threefold vindication of Jesus (John 18:38; John 19:4; John 19:6; cf. Luke 23:22). [Note: Brueggemann, p. 200.] David had been as a divine messenger to the Philistine king, a source of much blessing to him (cf. Genesis 12:2-3). David may have shared the booty that he had taken in his battles against his