Bible Commentaries

Jeremiah 25:26 — 26. Sheshach—Babylon; as the parallelism in Jeremiah 51:41 proves. In the Cabalistic system (called Athbash, the first Hebrew letter in the alphabet being expressed by the last) Sheshach would exactly answer to Babel. Jeremiah may have used this system (as perhaps in Jeremiah 51:41- :) for concealment at

Jeremiah 31:19 — :-). The Jews' "looking to Him whom they pierced" shall result in their "mourning for Him." Repentance is the tear that flows from the eye of faith turned to Jesus. He Himself gives it: we give it not of ourselves, but must come to Him for it (Acts 5:31). instructed—made to learn by chastisement. God's Spirit often works through the corrections of His providence. smote upon . . . thigh— (Ezekiel 21:12). A token of indignant remorse, shame, and grief, because of his past sin. bear . . . reproach

Ezekiel 16:38 — 38-40. judge thee, as women that break wedlock— (Leviticus 20:10; compare Ezekiel 16:2). In the case of individual adulteresses, stoning was the penalty (John 8:4; John 8:5). In the case of communities, the sword. Also apostasy (Deuteronomy 13:10) and sacrificing children to Molech (Deuteronomy 13:10- :) incurred stoning. Thus the penalty was doubly due to Israel; so the other which was decreed against an apostate city (Deuteronomy

Ezekiel 2:1 — at once His lowliness and His exaltation, in His manifestations as the Representative man, at His first and second comings respectively (Psalms 8:4-8; Matthew 16:13; Matthew 20:18; and on the other hand, Daniel 7:13; Daniel 7:14; Matthew 26:64; John 5:27).

Ezekiel 26:20 — 20. the pit—Tyre's disappearance is compared to that of the dead placed in their sepulchres and no more seen among the living (compare Ezekiel 32:18; Ezekiel 32:23; Isaiah 14:11; Isaiah 14:15; Isaiah 14:19). I shall set glory in the land—In contrast to Tyre consigned to the "pit" of death, I shall set glory (that is, My presence symbolized by the Shekinah cloud, the antitype to which shall be Messiah, "the glory as of the only-begotten

Ezekiel 29:4 — "I have made it"), wished to stand in the stead of God as defender of the covenant-people, his motive being, not love to them, but rivalry with Babylon. He raised the siege of Jerusalem, but it was only for a time (compare Ezekiel 29:6; Jeremiah 37:5; Jeremiah 37:7-10); ruin overtook not only them, but himself. As the fish that clung to the horny scales of the crocodile, the lord of the Nile, when he was caught, shared his fate, so the adherents of Pharaoh, lord of Egypt, when he was overthrown

Ezekiel 33:24 — Gedaliah who, though dwelling amidst regions laid waste by the foe, still cherished hopes of deliverance, and this without repentance. Abraham was one . . . but we are many—If God gave the land for an inheritance to Abraham, who was but one (Isaiah 51:2), much more it is given to us, who, though reduced, are still many. If he, with 318 servants, was able to defend himself amid so many foes, much more shall we, so much more numerous, retain our own. The grant of the land was not for his sole use,

Daniel 11:45 — 45. plant . . . between the seas—the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean. tabernacles of . . . palace—his palace-like military tents, such as Oriental princes travel with. See on Daniel 11:1, as to the time of Antiochus' attack on Judea, and his subsequent "end"

Daniel 11:5 — 5. Here the prophet leaves Asia and Greece and takes up Egypt and Syria, these being in continual conflict under Alexander's successors, entailing misery on Judea, which lay between the two. Holy Scripture handles external history only so far as it is

Hosea 4:12 — forbids; whichever came out first, in drawing them out of a case, gave the omen for, or against, an undertaking. declareth—that is, is consulted to inform them of future events. spirit of whoredoms—a general disposition on the part of all towards idolatry (Hosea 5:4). err—go astray from the true God. from under their God—They have gone away from God under whom they were, as a wife is under the dominion of her husband.

Amos 2:7 — is, eagerly thirst for this object, by their oppression to prostrate the poor so as to cast the dust on their heads in mourning on the earth (compare 2 Samuel 1:2; Job 2:12; Ezekiel 27:30). turn aside . . . way of . . . meek—pervert their cause (Amos 5:12; Job 24:4 [GROTIUS]; Isaiah 10:2). a man and his father—a crime "not so much as named among the Gentiles" (Isaiah 10:2- :). When God's people sin in the face of light, they often fall lower than even those who know not God. go in unto the same

Jonah 2:2 — is partly descriptive and precatory, partly eucharistical. Jonah incorporates with his own language inspired utterances familiar to the Church long before in Jonah 2:2; Psalms 120:1; in Jonah 2:3; Psalms 42:7; in Jonah 2:4; Psalms 31:22; in Jonah 2:5; Psalms 69:1; in Jonah 2:7; Psalms 142:3; Psalms 18:6; in Jonah 2:8; Psalms 31:6; in Jonah 2:9; Psalms 116:17; Psalms 116:18; Psalms 3:8. Jonah, an inspired man, thus attests both the antiquity and inspiration of the Psalms. It marks the spirit of faith,

Jonah 4:5 — 5. made him a booth—that is, a temporary hut of branches and leaves, so slightly formed as to be open to the wind and sun's heat. see what would become of the city—The term of forty days had not yet elapsed, and Jonah did not know that anything more

Micah 2:8 — also has become an enemy to the unoffending passers-by. robe with the garment—Not content with the outer "garment," ye greedily rob passers-by of the ornamental "robe" fitting the body closely and flowing down to the feet [LUDOVICUS DE DIEU] (Matthew 5:40). as men averse from war—in antithesis to (My people) "as an enemy." Israel treats the innocent passers-by, though "averse from war," as an enemy" would treat captives in his power, stripping them of their habiliments as lawful spoils. GROTIUS translates,

Zechariah 10:4 — 22:23). The large peg inside an Oriental tent, on which is hung most of its valuable furniture. On Messiah hang all the glory and hope of His people. bow— (Isaiah 22:23- :). Judah shall not need foreign soldiery. Messiah shall be her battle-bow (Psalms 45:4; Psalms 45:5; Revelation 6:2). every oppressor—rather, in a good sense, ruler, as the kindred Ethiopic term means. So "exactor," in Isaiah 60:17, namely, one who exacts the tribute from the nations made tributary to Judah [LUDOVICUS DE DIEU].

Matthew 20:1 — c.—The figure of a vineyard, to represent the rearing of souls for heaven, the culture required and provided for that purpose, and the care and pains which God takes in that whole matter, is familiar to every reader of the Bible. (Psalms 80:8-16 Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21; Luke 20:9-16; John 15:1-8). At vintage time, as WEBSTER and WILKINSON remark, labor was scarce, and masters were obliged to be early in the market to secure it. Perhaps the pressing nature of the work of the Gospel, and the comparative

Luke 6:17 — 17. in the plain—by some rendered "on a level place," that is, a piece of high tableland, by which they understand the same thing, as "on the mountain," where our Lord delivered the sermon recorded by Matthew (Matthew 5:1), of which they take this following discourse of Luke to be but an abridged form. But as the sense given in our version is the more accurate, so there are weighty reasons for considering the discourses different. This one contains little more than

John 3:5 — 5. of water and of the Spirit—A twofold explanation of the "new birth," so startling to Nicodemus. To a Jewish ecclesiastic, so familiar with the symbolical application of water, in every variety of way and form of expression, this language was fitted

John 9:4 — programme of instructions, so to speak; hence, (4) that as His period for work had definite termination, so by letting any one service pass by its allotted time, the whole would be disarranged, marred, and driven beyond its destined period for completion; (5) that He acted ever under the impulse of these considerations, as man—"the night cometh when no man (or no one) can work." What lessons are here for others, and what encouragement from such Example!

Acts 13:2 — themselves: in the case of Saul at least, such a designation was indicated from the first (Acts 22:21). Note.—While the personality of the Holy Ghost is manifest from this language, His supreme divinity will appear equally so by comparing it with Hebrews 5:4.