Bible Commentaries

1 Kings 1:1 — some held to be the last act he did before he took his bed. But by others, with more probability, that all those things recorded in the eight last chapters of the First Book of Chronicles were done whilst David was able to go abroad; for it is said in 1 Chronicles 28:2 that he "stood upon his feet in the assembly of the princes," and spake unto them. And he so spake that they might well perceive his intellectuals were no whit decayed, though he were old and cold, rigens prae senio. And they

1 Kings 10:22 — three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish. — That furrowed the main ocean, as some sense it; or that sailed into the Mediterranean Sea, as John 1:3 ; for Tarshish was the son of Javan, Genesis 10:4 who first after the flood inhabited Cilicia, the chief city whereof is Tharsus; thence the neighbouring sea first, and then the rest of the Mediterranean, was call Tharsis. Once in three years. —

1 Kings 13:6 — for me - of the Lord thy God. — He could not say, My God, for he had chosen other gods, forsaken his own mercies, and was miserable by his own election. And the king’s hand was restored again. — Such is the power of prayer. James 5:16 A like example we find in Nicephorns and Cedrenus, of a certain profane painter in Constantinople, who, assaying to paint Christ in the form of Jupiter, had his hand in like sort dried up and withered. But upon humble confession of his fault, he was

1 Kings 19:18 — Yet I have left [me] seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him. Yet I have left me seven thousand. — See on 1 Kings 19:14 . By this, as by a bookcase, saith one, doth the apostle prove that God had not cast off all the Israelites in his time. Romans 11:2-4 According to the fashion of the wealthy, saith another, God pleaseth himself in hidden treasures. It is

1 Kings 3:9 — judge this thy so great a people? Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart. — Heb., A hearing heart; for wisdom is gotten by prayer and hearing the word, by begging and digging, as Proverbs 2:3-4 ; we also must run the like method, James 1:5 ran through all the exercises of Christ’s school, if we would be wise to salvation. That I may discern between good and bad. — Rupertus blameth Solomon for this, that he asked of God wisdom, and not holiness rather, bonum illud quod verum

2 Kings 17:6 — Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor [by] the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. And carried Israel away into Assyria. — Whither Tiglathpileser had before carried five of the tribes. 1 Chronicles 5:26 And this was the end of the Israelitish kingdom, after it had stood two hundred and fifty-four years; the time being now come of which the prophet Isaiah had spoken, saying, Within sixty-five years Ephraim shall be wasted, so that he

2 Kings 2:9 — i.e., Two parts of three, saith Vatablus: the portion of the firstborn, say others, which was double to his brethren; so would Elijah have a larger measure of the gifts of the Spirit, than any ordinary prophets inasmuch as he was to succeed his master. 1 Kings 19:16 Some read it thus, Let the double portion of thy spirit be upon me: and then he wisheth no more than to be like his master Elijah. Thus Irenaeus proved very like Polycarp, John the Evangelist’s disciple. Thus Paraeus succeeding his

2 Kings 25:4 — text, but supplied from Jeremiah 39:4 ut intelligamus fugam fuisse praecipitem, saith Vatablus, to set forth the hastiness and headlongness of their flight: but in fleeing from death they fled to it. By night. — All this was foretold. Ezekiel 12:12 By the way towards the plain. — By a way underground, φευδοθυρον . say the Hebrews, into which the secret gate led them: by a deep valley between mountains, saith Josephus. Now

2 Kings 9:26 — the loss of their blood, we shall understand the loss of their means; for a poor man’s livelihood is his life; he is in his stock like a snail in his shell. Crush that, and you kill him quite. And I will requite thee in this plat. — See on 1 Kings 21:19 . Now therefore take and cast him. — Jehoram’s blood manureth that plot that was wrung from Naboth, and Jezebel shall add to this compost. Oh, garden of herbs dearly bought, royally dunged!

2 Chronicles 15:13 — God of Israel should be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. That whosoever would not seek the Lord, — i.e., Be subject to the Lord, but seek to other gods. Should be put to death. — According to the law. Deuteronomy 13:9 Say not, This is Old Testament, we find no such thing in gospel. See Zechariah 13:3 ; Zechariah 12:10 ; Romans 13:4 ; 1 Peter 2:13-14 ; and distinguish not where the Scripture doth not distingnish. See 2 Chronicles 34:33 Ezra 7:26 Daniel 3:29 . Heathen

Ezra 6:17 — hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. An hundred bullocks, … — This little (in comparison of what was done at Solomon’s dedication, 1 Kings 8:63 ) was highly accepted in heaven: as was likewise Noah’s sacrifice, which yet could not be great: because that after a great trial of affliction, "the abundance of their joy, and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their

Ezra 6:22 — unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel. And kept the feast of unleavened bread — See 1 Corinthians 7:8 Exodus 12:35 , with the notes. Seven days — This began on the fifteenth day, and lasted till the one and twentieth day, Numbers 28:16-17 Exodus 34:25 . With joy — See Trapp on " Ezra 6:16 " For the Lord had made

Nehemiah 10:33 — expiate; to purge away, or take away uncleanness; to satisfy for sin, and to pacify wrath. By the priests making atonement legally was typified Christ’s making reconciliation between God and man; for he alone is the propitiation for our sins, 1 John 2:2 . But how much mistaken were our ancestors in times of Popery, who built religions houses, and gave large maintenance to them to buy off their sins, to deliver their souls from hell, to fetch their friends out of purgatory! …

Nehemiah 13:21 — from him. I will lay hands on you — I will lay you fast enough: be packing, therefore. The best way to be rid of sin is to threaten it, punish it, by the practice of mortification, to handle it roughly. We are not debtors to the flesh, Romans 8:12 . We owe it nothing but stripes, nothing but the blue eye St Paul gave it, 1 Corinthians 9:27 , υπωπιαζω .

Esther 4:9 — Fulvius) sound a retreat, when they should have sounded an alarm; no more must God’s messengers. Whatsoever the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak, saith Micaiah. Paul, as he received what he delivered, so he delivered whatsoever he received, 1 Corinthians 11:23 . Moses was faithful in all God’s house, …, Hebrews 3:5 .

Job 18:5 — shall be put out, though thou wilt not hear of it; but the truth shall be spoken, however it be taken, and thou shalt hereby see thyself to be a wicked man, because thy light is extinct, that is, thy outward prosperity, fitly compared to light, because, 1. It cheereth our minds; 2. Directeth our hands to every business; 3. Lesseneth our frights; 4. Rendereth us conspicuous. The light of the wicked shall put out itself (so some render it); he is commonly the cause of his own ruin (Merlin). And the spark

Job 27:14 — If his children be multiplied, [it is] for the sword: and his offspring shall not be satisfied with bread. If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword — As were Ahab’s seventy sons, for instance, 2 Kings 10:1 , whom he had begotten after God had threatened to root out his posterity. He, therefore, as it were to cross the Almighty, gives himself so much the more strenuously to the work of generation; but this was (like Ephraim) to bring forth children

Job 9:28 — — That come thronging thick about me, and terrify me; they will surely be doubled and trebled upon me; hence my sorrow is incurable; if I should resolve never so much against it, I should break my resolution, and fall to fresh complaints, Psalms 39:1 ; Psalms 39:3 . Hic vides, saith Lavater. Here we may see how little is to be ascribed to man’s freewill in the things of God, since it is not in our power to comfort and cheer up ourselves under afflictions, though we would never so fain. I know

2 Samuel 12:12 — I were sure homines ignoraturos, et Deos ignoscituros, Seneca. that men knew it not, and that the gods would pardon it, yet for the filth that is in sin, I would not commit it. It is not for men to put their sins in a secret place, as Deuteronomy 27:15 , to pull down the bush with a vintner, for God will detect them and men shall detest them; at the last day howsoever, if not before, when every man’s faults shall be written in his forehead, and, it shall be said, Behold the man, and behold

2 Samuel 17:27 — to Mahanaim, that Shobi the son of Nahash of Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel of Lodebar, and Barzillai the Gileadite of Rogelim, Shobi, the son of Nahash. — Second brother, likely, to that unworthy Hanun, 2 Samuel 10:2 who abused David’s messengers, did him much more mischief, and was therefore worthily deposed, this brother of his being set up king in his stead. We read of Attilus, king of Suecia, that he made a dog king of the Danes, in revenge of a great