Bible Commentaries

Matthew 12:3-8 — Matthew 12:3-8 . Christ’s defence . It is twofold. (1) He shields disciples by examples: David and the priests; to both the faultfinders would defer (Matthew 12:3-5 ); (2) He indicates the principles involved in the examples (Matthew 12:6-8 ). The case of David

Matthew 8:10 — Matthew 8:10 . In Matthew 8:13 we are told that Jesus did not disappoint the centurion’s expectation. But the interest of the cure is eclipsed for the evangelist by the interest of the Healer’s admiration, certainly a remarkable instance of a noteworthy

Mark 5:14 — brings them straight to Jesus (Mark 5:15 ), and they see there a sight which astonishes them, the well-known and dreaded demoniac completely altered in manner and aspect: sitting ( καθήμενον ) quiet, not restless; clothed ( ἱματισμένον here and in Luke 8:35 ), implying previous nakedness, which is expressly noted by Lk. (Luke 8:27 ), sane ( σωφρονοῦντα ), implying previous madness. For this sense of the verb vide 2 Corinthians 5:13 . Some take the second and third participle as subordinate to the first,

John 15:20 — alter. Bengel takes ἐτήρησαν in a hostile sense, “infensis modis observare,” referring to Matthew 27:36 , but in John τὸν λόγον τηρεῖν is regularly used of “observing” in the sense of “keeping,” practising, see John 8:51 , John 9:16 , John 14:23 ; 1 John 2:3-5 , etc.; Revelation 1:3 ; Revelation 3:8 , etc.

Acts 12:19 — Acts 12:19 . μὴ for οὐ , as often with a participle. Simcox, Language of the N. T. , p. 188. ἀνακρίνας , Acts 4:9 ; Acts 24:8 ; Acts 28:18 , Luke 23:14 , of a judicial investigation, cf. also 1 Corinthians 9:3 for this judicial use by St. Paul, see Grimm sub υ . ἀπαχθῆναι “to be put to death,” R.V., only here in this sense

Acts 13:10 — Acts 13:10 . πλήρης : for an interesting parallel in Plato cf. Wetstein, in loco , Plato, Legg. , 908 D. ῥᾳδιουργίας : only here in N.T., cf. Acts 18:14 , hellenistic, R.V. “villainy,” A.V. “mischief” (so Genevan), but other E. V. “deceit”; the idea of deceit, however, is more properly contained in δόλου R.V., “guile”.

Acts 25:4 — Cæsarea, but he undertook to hear the charges of the Jews there. ἐν Και ., see critical note, perhaps here εἰς simply = ἐν , so Blass, and Simcox, cf. Mark 13:9 , Acts 19:22 . On the other hand cf. Weiss on the frequent force of εἰς peculiar to Acts 8:40 ; Acts 9:21 (where he reads ἐις ), intimating that Paul had been brought to Cæsarea with the purpose that he should be kept there. The Jews had asked Festus ὅπως μεταπέμψ . α . εἰς Ἰ ., but Festus intimates that the prisoner was in custody at Cæsarea,

Acts 7:5 — field. οὐδὲ βῆμα ποδός , cf. Deuteronomy 2:5 ; Deuteronomy 11:24 , same Hebrew ( cf. Hebrews 11:9 ), “spatium quod planta pedis calcatur” (Grimm); cf. also its use in Xen. It may have been a kind of proverbial expression, cf. Genesis 8:9 (Schöttgen). καὶ ἐπηγγείλατο , cf. Genesis 12:7 (Genesis 17:8 , Genesis 48:4 ), so that here again God appeared unto Abraham in what was a strange and heathen land. See also for verb, James 1:12 ; James 2:5 . On the force of the word see p. 54. εἰς

Acts 8:14 — Acts 8:14 . ἡ Σαμ .: here the district; Weiss traces the revising hand of St. Luke (but see on the other hand Wendt, in loco ). There is nothing surprising in the fact that the preaching of the Gospel in the town should be regarded by the Apostles at Jerusalem

Acts 8:25 — Acts 8:25 . οἱ μὲν οὖν : the μὲν οὖν and δέ in Acts 8:26 may connect the return of the party to Jerusalem and the following instructions to Philip for his journey, and so enable us to gather for a certainty that Philip returned to Jerusalem with the Apostles,

Acts 9:33 — but see Alford’s note, and so too Hilgenfeld. ἐξ ἐτων ὀκτώ : characteristic of Luke as a medical man; in the cases of disease which he alone mentions, St. Luke frequently gives their duration, e.g. , Acts 13:11 , Acts 3:2 ; Acts 4:22 ; Acts 14:8 , see Hobart, p. 40, Zahn, Einleitung in das N.T. , ii., p. 427. κραββάτῳ , see above on Acts 5:15 , and spelling. παραλελυμένος , see above on Acts 8:7 , and cf. also Zahn, Einleitung in das N. T. , ii., p. 436 (1899).

Romans 13:9 — Romans 13:9 . τὸ γὰρ Οὐ μοιχεύσεις . Cf. Romans 8:26 . The order of the commandments here is different from that in Exodus 20:0 or Deuteronomy 5:0 (Hebrew), but it is the same as in Luke 18:20 , and (so far) in James 2:11 . This order is also found in Cod. . of the LXX in Deuteronomy 5:0 καὶ εἴ τις

1 Corinthians 6:17 — faith (1 Corinthians 1:21 , etc.) to Christ (as Lord, cf. 1 Corinthians 12:3 , etc.) establishes a spiritual communion of the man with Him as real and close as the other, bodily communion (“tam arcte quam conjuges sunt unum corpus,” Bg [986] ), and as much more influential and enduring as the spirit is above the flesh. “ The Spirit” is the uniting bond (1 Corinthians 3:16 , Romans 8:8 f., etc.), but the Ap. is thinking of the nature and sphere of this union; hence the anarthrous,

2 Corinthians 11:8 — 2 Corinthians 11:8 . ἄλλας ἐκκλησίας ἐσύλησα κ . τ . λ .: I robbed other Churches, e.g. , Philippi (Philippians 4:15 . He expresses himself hyperbolically to bring out his meaning; συλᾷν is a very strong word, see Acts 19:37 , Romans 2:22 ), taking wages of them ( ὀψώνιον

2 Corinthians 2:13 — there (yet cf. chap. 2 Corinthians 7:1 ); σάρξ in the later passage is used of the whole mortal nature of man, which is subject to distress and disappointment; and πνεῦμα here is a general term for the “mind” ( cf. Romans 1:9 ; Romans 8:6 ; Rom 12:11 , 1 Corinthians 2:11 ; 1 Corinthians 5:3 ; 1 Corinthians 14:14 , chap. 2Co 7:1 ; 2 Corinthians 7:13 , etc., for St. Paul’s use of πνεῦμα for the human spirit, and see on 2 Corinthians 3:6 below). For the tense of ἔσχηκα , see on

2 Corinthians 8:9 — 2 Corinthians 8:9 . γινώσκετε γὰρ κ . τ . λ .: for ye know the grace, i.e. , the act of grace, of our Lord Jesus Christ, that being rich, sc. , in His pre-existent state before the Incarnation, yet for your sakes ( cf. Romans 15:3 ) He became poor, sc. , in that

1 Timothy 5:3 — 1 Timothy 5:3 . τίμα : It is difficult to fix precisely the force of τιμάω in this connexion. On the one hand, the passage (1 Timothy 5:3-8 ) is a part of the general directions as to Timothy’s personal relations to his flock. Respect, honour , would, then, render the word adequately. On the other hand, 1 Timothy 5:4 ; 1 Timothy 5:8 show that the question of widows’ maintenance,

Revelation 14:7 — 14:15 ), καιρός the fit, moment for action. Contrast with this summons Lucan’s fulsome appeal to Nero (1:57 f.): “librati pondera cœli Orbe tene medio,” etc. The second angel of the trio announces the faults and fall of (Revelation 14:8 ) Rome as a second Babylon. The prophet quotes from the postexilic oracle appended to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 51:7-8 ). θυμός has probably the double sense carried by the English term “passion”. As history proves, the Cæssar cult fairly intoxicated

Revelation 17:8 — Revelation 17:8 . As the Beast seen by the seer cannot be described as non-existent, it must denote here (as in Revelation 13:3 f., though differently) not the empire but the emperor, or one of its own heads. Such an identification was natural in the ancient world

Revelation 19:8 — Revelation 19:8 . “Yea, she is (has been) permitted to put on” (for διδόναι ἵνα cf. Revelation 9:5 , Mark 10:37 ), epexegetic of ἡτοιμ . ἑαυτήν (Isaiah 61:10 ). “Uides hic cultum gravem ut matronae, non pompaticum qualis meretricis ante (Revelation