Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 58:14 — 14. delight . . . in . . . Lord—God rewards in kind, as He punishes in kind. As we "delight" in keeping God's "Sabbath," so God will give us "delight" in Himself (Genesis 15:1; Job 22:21-26; Psalms 37:4). ride upon . . . high places—I will make thee

Jeremiah 15:17 — 17. My "rejoicing" (Jeremiah 15:16) was not that of the profane mockers (Psalms 1:1; Psalms 26:4; Psalms 26:5) at feasts. So far from having fellowship with these, he was expelled from society, and made to sit "alone," because of his faithful prophecies. because of thy hand—that is, Thine inspiration (Isaiah 8:11; Ezekiel 1:3; Ezekiel 3:14). filled

Jeremiah 16:18 — long ago committed by their fathers) and their (own) repeated sins" (Jeremiah 16:11; Jeremiah 16:12). English Version gives a good sense, "First (before 'I bring them again into their land'), I will doubly (that is, fully and amply, Jeremiah 17:18; Isaiah 40:2) recompense." carcasses—not sweet-smelling sacrifices acceptable to God, but "carcasses" offered to idols, an offensive odor to God: human victims (Jeremiah 19:5; Ezekiel 16:20), and unclean animals (Isaiah 65:4; Isaiah 66:17). MAURER explains

Jeremiah 23:3 — 3, 4. Restoration of Judah from Babylon foretold in language which in its fulness can only apply to the final restoration of both "Judah" and "Israel" (compare Jeremiah 23:6); also "out of all countries," in this verse and Jeremiah 23:6- :; also, "neither

Jeremiah 31:31 — and Judah, not with the spiritual Israel, that is, believers, except secondarily, and as grafted on the stock of Israel (Romans 11:16-27). For the whole subject of the thirtieth and thirty-first chapters is the restoration of the Hebrews (Jeremiah 30:4; Jeremiah 30:7; Jeremiah 30:10; Jeremiah 30:18; Jeremiah 31:7; Jeremiah 31:10; Jeremiah 31:11; Jeremiah 31:23; Jeremiah 31:24; Jeremiah 31:27; Jeremiah 31:36). With the "remnant according to the election of grace" in Israel, the new covenant has already

Ezekiel 14:9 — and his ministers; not merely permissively, but by overruling their evil to serve the purposes of His righteous judgment, to be a touchstone to separate the precious from the vile, and to "prove" His people (Deuteronomy 13:3; 1 Kings 22:23; Jeremiah 4:10; 2 Thessalonians 2:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:12). Evil comes not from God, though God overrules it to serve His will (Job 12:16; James 1:3). This declaration of God is intended to answer their objection, "Jeremiah and Ezekiel are but two opposed to the

Ezekiel 47:8 — 8. the desert—or "plain," Hebrew, Arabah (Deuteronomy 3:17; Deuteronomy 4:49; Joshua 3:16), which is the name still given to the valley of the Jordan and the plain south of the Dead Sea, and extending to the Elanitic gulf of the Red Sea. the sea—the Dead Sea. "The sea" noted as covering with its waters the guilty cities

Daniel 11:41 — 41. Antiochus, according to PORPHYRY, marching against Ptolemy, though he turned from his course to wreak his wrath on the Jews, did not meddle with Edom, Moab, and Ammon on the side of Judea. In 1 Maccabees 4:61; 5:3; &c., it is stated that he used their

Daniel 2:5 — 5. The thing—that is, The dream, "is gone from me." GESENIUS translates, "The decree is gone forth from me," irrevocable (compare Isaiah 45:23); namely, that you shall be executed, if you do not tell both the dream and the interpretation. English Version is simpler, which supposes the king himself to have forgotten the dream. Pretenders to supernatural knowledge often bring on themselves

Hosea 12:4 — 4. the angel—the uncreated Angel of the Covenant, as God the Son appears in the Old Testament (Malachi 3:1). made supplication— Malachi 3:1- :: "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." he found him—The angel found Jacob, when he was fleeing

Hosea 7:16 — idolatries and blasphemies against God and His prophets (Psalms 73:9; Psalms 120:2; Psalms 120:3). their derision in . . . Egypt—Their "fall" shall be the subject of "derision" to Egypt, to whom they had applied for help (Hosea 9:3; Hosea 9:6; 2 Kings 17:4).

Joel 2:30 — preceded its destruction [JOSEPHUS, Wars of the Jews]. To these the language here may allude; but the figures chiefly symbolize political revolutions and changes in the ruling powers of the world, prognosticated by previous disasters (Amos 8:9; Matthew 24:29; Luke 21:25-27), and convulsions such as preceded the overthrow of the Jewish polity. Such shall probably occur in a more appalling degree before the final destruction of the ungodly world ("the great and terrible day of Jehovah," compare Malachi

Amos 1:4 — 4. Hazael . . . Ben-hadad—A black marble obelisk found in the central palace of Nimroud, and now in the British Museum, is inscribed with the names of Hazael and Ben-hadad of Syria, as well as Jehu of Israel, mentioned as tributaries of "Shalmanubar,"

Nahum 2:2 — Assyrian rod of chastisement, having done its work, is to be thrown into the fire. If God chastised Jacob and Israel with all their "excellency" (Jerusalem and the temple, which was their pre-eminent excellency above all nations in God's eyes, Psalms 47:4; Psalms 87:2; Ezekiel 24:21; see on Ezekiel 24:21- :), how much more will He punish fatally Nineveh, an alien to Him, and idolatrous? MAURER, not so well, translates, "restores," or "will restore the excellency of Jacob." emptiers—the Assyrian spoilers.

Habakkuk 2:5 — transgresseth by wine (a besetting sin of Babylon, compare :-, and CURTIUS [5.1]), being a proud man." Love of wine often begets a proud contempt of divine things, as in Belshazzar's case, which was the immediate cause of the fall of Babylon (Daniel 5:2-4; Daniel 5:30; compare Proverbs 20:1; Proverbs 30:9; Proverbs 31:5). enlargeth his desire as hell—the grave, or the unseen world, which is "never full" (Proverbs 27:20; Proverbs 30:16; Isaiah 5:14). The Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar were filled with

Habakkuk 3:17 — heap of ruined creature comforts, and rejoice in Him as the "God of their salvation." Running in the way of His commandments, we outrun our troubles. Thus Habakkuk, beginning his prayer with trembling, ends it with a song of triumph (Job 13:15; Psalms 4:7; Psalms 43:3; Psalms 43:5). labour of the olive—that is, the fruit expected from the olive. fail—literally, "lie," that is, disappoint the hope (Psalms 43:5- :, Margin). fields—from a Hebrew root meaning "to be yellow"; as they look at harvest-time.

Zechariah 5:3 — corrupted conscience, written on their hearts ( :-). cut off—literally, "cleared away." as on this side . . . as on that side—both sides of the roll [VATABLUS]. From this place . . . from this place (repeated twice, as "the house" is repeated in Zechariah 5:4) [MAURER]; so "hence" is used, Genesis 37:17 (or, "on this and on that side," that is, on every side) [HENDERSON]. None can escape, sin where he may: for God from one side to the other shall call all without exception to judgment [CALVIN]. God will

Matthew 13:43 — 43. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father—as if they had been under a cloud during the present association with ungodly pretenders to their character, and claimants of their privileges, and obstructors of their

Mark 4:35 — the even was come—(See on Mark 6:35). This must have been the earlier evening—what we should call the afternoon—since after all that passed on the other side, when He returned to the west side, the people were waiting for Him in great numbers (Mark 4:21; Luke 8:40). he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side—to the east side of the lake, to grapple with a desperate case of possession, and set the captive free, and to give the Gadarenes an opportunity of hearing the message of salvation,

Luke 12:5 — equally formidable way. (2) There is a hell, it seems, for the body as well as the soul consequently, sufferings adapted to the one as well as the other. (3) Fear of hell is a divinely authorized and needed motive of action even to Christ's "friends." (4) As Christ's meekness and gentleness were not compromised by such harsh notes as these, so those servants of Christ lack their Master's spirit who soften down all such language to please ears "polite." (See on :-).