Bible Commentaries

Matthew 11:25-26 — 25, 26. ] This is certainly a continuation of the foregoing discourse; and the ἀποκριθείς , which seems to have nothing to refer to, does in reality refer to the words which have immediately preceded. The ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ κ . is not chronological , but

Matthew 28:1-10 — 1 10. ] JESUS HAVING RISEN FROM THE DEAD, APPEARS TO THE WOMEN. Mark 16:1-8 . 2 John 1:1-10; 2 John 1:1-102 John 1:1-10 . The independence and distinctness of the four narratives in this part have never been questioned, and indeed herein lie its principal difficulties. With regard to them, I refer to what I have said in the Prolegomena,

Luke 8:45 — 45. ] We are not to imagine that our Lord was ignorant of the woman, or any of the circumstances. The question is asked to draw out what followed. See, on the part of Jesus Himself, an undeniable instance of this, in ch. Luk 24:19 and note there. The healing took place by His will , and owing to His recognition of her faith: see similar questions, Genesis 3:9 , and 2 Kings 5:25 . ὁ Πέτ . κ . οἱ σ . αὐ . ] A detail contained only here. On the latter part of

John 17:22-23 — 22, 23. ] Grotius and others interpret this δόξα , “potestas faciendi miracula,” and refer to ch. Joh 2:11 and ch. John 11:40 ; but wrongly: for if so, the αὐτοῖς must mean the Apostles only, whereas it is distinctly referred to the believers

Acts 1:25 — 25. ] τόπον is from internal evidence, as well us manuscript authority, the preferable reading. It has been altered to κλῆρον to suit Acts 1:17 . διακονίας , implying the active duties; ἀποστολῆς , the official dignity of the office: no figure of

Acts 12:17 — reff. His motive was haste : he tells briefly the particulars of his deliverance, and, while it was yet night, hastily departs. Ἰακώβῳ ] James, the brother of the Lord , whom we find presiding over the church at Jerusalem, ch. Acts 15:13 ; Acts 21:18 ; Galatians 2:12 . See Galatians 1:19 ; Galatians 2:9 . He appears also to be mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15:7 . I believe him to have been one of those ἀδελφοὶ τοῦ κυρίου mentioned Matthew 13:55 ; John 7:5 ; ch. Acts 1:14 ; 1 Corinthians 9:5 , of

Acts 25:13 — 13. ] HEROD AGRIPPA II., son of the Herod of ch. 12 (see note on Act 25:1 there), was at Rome, and seventeen only, when his father died (Jos. Antt. xix. 9. 1). Claudius (ib. 9. 2) was about to send him to succeed to the kingdom, but was dissuaded by his freedmen and favourites, and sent Cuspius Fadus

Romans 1:19 — 19. ] διότι , because , may either give the reason why the anger of God is revealed , and thus apply to all that follows as far as Romans 1:32 , being taken up again at Romans 1:21 ; Romans 1:24 ; Romans 1:26 ; Romans 1:28 (so Meyer): or may explain τῶν .… κατεχ . (so Thol.): which latter seems most probable: the subauditum being, ‘(this charge I bring against them), because.’

2 Corinthians 12:9 — man’s ways, My Power not being brought to perfection as man’s power is conceived to be) ( My) Power is made perfect (has its full energy and complete manifestation) in (as the element in which it acts as observable by man) weakness . See ch. 2 Corinthians 4:7 , and 1 Corinthians 2:3-4 , where the influence of this divine response on the Apostle, is very manifest. If I mistake not, the expression τῆς δυνάμεως , there , favours the omission of μου here, as in our text, and makes it probable

Galatians 1:12 — 12 .] proof of this . For neither ( οὐδὲ γάρ in negative sentences, answers to καὶ γάρ in positive; e.g. in Herod. i. 3, ἐπιστάμενον πάντως ὅτι οὐ δώσει δίκας · οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκείνους διδόναι : omit the οὐ , and substitute καί for οὐδέ , and the sentence

Galatians 1:17 — times refers to his departure from Damascus: q.d. ‘when I left Damascus, I did not go … but when I left Damascus, I went.’ The repetition of ἀπῆλθον is quite in the Apostle’s manner; Meyer adduces as examples Romans 8:15 (Hebrews 12:18 ; Hebrews 12:22 . We may add Heb 2:16 ). εἰς Ἀραβ . ] On the place which this journey holds in the narrative of Acts 9:0 , see notes on Galatians 1:19 ; Gal 1:22 there. Its object does not seem to have been (as Chrys., al., Meyer, al.) the preaching

Galatians 4:14 — its needfulness. But the principles of sounder criticism have taught me how unsafe is such ground of arguing, and have compelled me to adopt the text of the most ancient MSS. The temptation seems to have been the ‘thorn in the flesh’ of 2 Corinthians 12:1 ff., whatever that was: perhaps something connected with his sight, or some nervous infirmity: see below, and notes on Acts 13:9 ; Acts 23:1 . ἐξεπτύσατε ] “expresses figuratively and in a climax the sense of ἐξουθ . Cf. the

Philippians 2:1 — the exhortation. παραμύθ . ] better comfort , than ‘ persuasion :’ it corresponds (see above) to σπλ . κ . οἰκτιρ . in the other pair: see also reff. παραμυθία , the earlier form, occurs in the same sense 1 Corinthians 14:3 ; Wis 19:12 . ἀγάπης is the subjective genitive, ‘consolation furnished by love.’ κοιν . πν . ] communion, fellowship , of the Holy Spirit , cf. ref. 2 Cor.: not, ‘ spiritual communion ’ (De W., al.). The manuscript evidence in

Philippians 3:20 — 20 .] For (I may well direct you to avoid τοὺς τὰ ἐπίγεια φρονοῦντας : for our state and feelings are wholly alien from theirs) our (emphatic) country (the state , to which we belong, of which we by faith are citizens, ἡ πατρίς , Thl.; meaning the

1 Thessalonians 2:8 — ἐχόμενοι ὑμῶν , παρὰ τὸ ὁμοῦ κ . τὸ εἴρω , τὸ συμπλέκω : and Phot. gives ὁμοῦ ἡρμόσθαι as its meaning. But as Lünem. observes after Winer, edn. 6, § 16, B. b ), “This is suspicious, 1) because the verb here governs a genitive and not a dative, 2) because there is no instance of a similar verb compounded with ὁμοῦ or ὁμός . Now as in Nicander (Theriaca, 2:402) the simple form μείρεσθαι occurs in the sense of ἱμείρεσθαι , it can hardly be doubted that μείρεσθαι is the original root, to which

Hebrews 10:23 — 23 .] (First we must treat of the punctuation and connexion. I have stated above the ground for attaching καὶ λελουμένοι κ . τ . λ . to the foregoing, with Syr., Primas., Faber Stap., Luther, E. V., Estius, Seb. Schmidt, Cramer, Michaelis (paraphr.),

Hebrews 11:38 — quocunque veniant servi Dei, ejus benedictionem, quasi fragrantiam boni odoris, secum afferunt. Sic domus Potiphar benedicta fuit in gratiam Josephi, Genesis 39:5 , et Sodoma salva futura erat, si in ea inventi fuissent decem justi homines, Gen 18:32 ”); wandering in deserts and mountains and caves, and the chinks of the earth (the Holy Land was especially calculated, by its geological formation, and its wildernesses, to afford shelter to persecuted persons: so did it to a hundred of the

James 5:14 — sacrament of extreme unction: on which see below. The πρεσβύτεροι are not simply “ætate seniores in quavis communitate,” but those who were officially πρεσβύτεροι , or ἐπίσκοποι , which in the apostolic times were identical: see notes on Acts 20:17 ; Acts 20:28 ; so that “sacerdotes ab Episcopo ordinatos” above, would, as applied to the text, be an anachronism), and let them pray over him ( ἐπ ʼ αὐτόν , either, 1. literally, as coming and standing over his bed: or, 2. figuratively,

Revelation 2:20 — 20 .] Notwithstanding I have against thee that thou sufferest ( ἀφεῖς from ἀφέω , see ref. Ex. and Winer, edn. 6, § 14. 3) thy wife (or, the woman ) Jezebel (on the whole, the evidence for σου being inserted in the text seems to me to preponderate.

Revelation 20:4-6 — 4 6 .] The Millennial reign . And I saw thrones (combine the two passages in the reff.), and they sat upon them (who? the Apostles, as in ref. Matt.: the Saints, as in 1 Corinthians 6:2-3 , οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι οἱ ἅγιοι τὸν κόσμον κρινοῦσιν ; … οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ἀγγέλους κρινοῦμεν ; Notice well, that there is nothing to hinder this in the souls of the saints not being seen till the next clause: for there is no mark of temporal sequence connecting