Bible Commentaries

Genesis 25:26 — is he that "takes us out of the womb"; Psalms 22:9 but he suffereth Esau for a time to enjoy the first birthright, till his own time came to set things to rights. God "waits to be gracious; for he is a God of judgment". Isaiah 30:18 And his hand took hold on Esau’s heel. — As if he would have turned up his heels, and got to the goal before him. And his name was called Jacob. — Calcanearius , a heel catcher, or supplanter, as he afterwards proved to Esau, who

Genesis 28:14 — And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Ver. 14, 15. And thy seed shall be as the dust. — Against his fourfold cross, here is a fourfold comfort, as Pererius well observeth, a plaster as broad as the sore, and sovereign for it. (1.) Against the loss of his friends, "I will be with thee":

Genesis 44:5 — fraud and false dealing; whereby ye have hitherto sought to delude him? Is it not plain ye are spies and naughty-packs? The Jerusalem Targum seemeth to tax Joseph here for a soothsayer; or, at least, a seeker to such; which God forbade. Deuteronomy 18:10 Calvin also thinks he did grievously offend in pretending to be such a one; and did impiously profane the gift of the Spirit in professing himself a magician. But, pace tanti viri, this is too heavy a censure, and a forcing of the text, saith Junius.

Genesis 49:23 — him; his adulterous mistress, that, harlot-like, hunted for his precious life; his injurious master, that, without any desert of his, imprisoned him; the tumultuating Egyptians, that, pined with hunger, perhaps, "spoke of stoning him," as 1 Samuel 30:6 ; and the envious courtiers and enchanters, that spoke evil of him before Pharaoh, to bring him out of favour, as the Jerusalemy Targum addeth. All these "arrow masters," as the Hebrew here hath it, set against Joseph, and shot

Genesis 5:1 — much as may be to recover it in Christ, who being “the express image of his Father’s person,” απαυγασμα και χαρακτηρ . Hebrews 1:3 is both apt and able to renew that lost image of God in us, by his merit and Spirit, by his value and virtue.

Leviticus 17:7 — statute for ever unto them throughout their generations. Unto devils. — Synesius saith, the devil is ειδωλοχαρης , an idol lover. As they had done in Egypt. Ezekiel 23:8 Deuteronomy 32:17 And as both Pagans and Papagans do. 1 Corinthians 10:20 Revelation 9:20 The Americans in Canada worship the devil; who, when he is offended with them, flings dust in their eyes. At Calecutta, the chief city of Malabar, they worship Satan with flowers

Leviticus 22:10 — [of] the holy thing. There shall no stranger. — The equity of all this was, that ministers should have a comfortable subsistence for them and theirs; and that the things that are appointed to that purpose should not be converted to other uses. 1 Corinthians 9:13 It is certainly a sad complaint that Luther Luther, in Gen, xlvii. makes: Nisi superisset spolium Aegypti quod rapuimus Papae, omnibus ministris verbi fame pereundum esset, … Were it not for such spoils of Egypt as we have won

Romans 14:14 — The old sectaries had their pithanology, insinuative and persuasive language; so have the modern; and hence so many dissonant opinions among us. If ye speak with several tongues (so hold several opinions) will not he that comes in think ye are mad? 1 Corinthians 14:9-11 Dii boni, quomodo hic vivunt gentes! How strangely do people live here, said a stranger, observing our divisions in Henry VIII’s time, which (alas) were nothing comparable to these of our days, and all because simple men and

1 Corinthians 1:4 — is as the stars of heaven, can in their courses sing a song of praise to God. True it is, that "all his works praise him;" that is, they give matter and occasion so to do; but his saints only bless him, in manner as Paul here doth, Psalms 145:10 , and bring actual glory to him, Ephesians 1:11-12 . Wicked men cannot say, I thank my God, for they have no true notion of God, but as of an enemy; and therefore all their verbal thanks are but as music at funerals, or as the trumpet before a

Galatians 5:13 — least amount of licence. Therefore αναστατουντες , are men the worse, because they should be better. Christ came to call sinners, not to licentiousness, but to repentance, Mark 2:17 , to take his yoke upon them,Matthew 11:29; Matthew 11:29 , to hire out their members servants to righteousness,Romans 6:16; Romans 6:16 . Hence it is, that as St Paul’s Epistles largely prove free election and justification by Christ; so the

Ephesians 5:16 — time; but the truth is, we do not so much lack it as waste it. Non parum habemus temporis, sed multum perdimus. (Sen.) The men of Issachar were in great account with David, because they had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, 1 Chronicles 12:32 . So are they in great account with God that regard and use the season of well doing. It is reported of holy Ignatius, that when he heard a clock strike, he would say, here is one hour more now past that I have to answer for. And of

1 Timothy 5:22 — whether fit to govern or no; and of the orators, whether not incontinent, prodigal, unkind to parents, …; for if so, they were disprivileged, and not suffered to plead or speak publicly. (Rous’s Archaeol. Attic.) Keep thyself pure — See 1 Timothy 5:2 , and know that sin is a filthy thing, and defileth the soul worse than any jakes (outhouses) can do the body, as our Saviour shows, Matthew 7:23 .

Hebrews 13:4 — Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. Marriage is honourable — And yet say the Rhemists, upon1 Corinthians 7:9; 1 Corinthians 7:9 , marriage of priests is the worst sort of incontinency. Is not this to play the Antichrist And the bed undefiled — Admonemus in ipso etiam matrimonio quandam esse scortationis speciem, siquis pure Dei done pure

1 Peter 2:24 — ανηνεγκεν , bare them aloft, viz. when he climbed up his cross, and nailed them thereunto. "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows," Isaiah 53:4 . He "taketh away the sins of the world," John 1:29 . That we being dead to sins — απογενομενοι , or, separated from sin, or uumade to it, cut off from it, the old frame being utterly dissolved. By whose stripes — Or,

1 John 3:12 — one. These divinity hatreds are most deadly. Such fratricides were Alphonsus Diazius, and Charles, king of France, stirred up by Pope Urban to kill his brother Manford, king of Sicily. Because his own works, … — The old enmity, Genesis 3:15 . So Numbers 22:3-4 . Moab was irked because of Israel, or did fret and vex at them, as Exodus 1:12 , yet they were allied, and passed by them in peace, and, by the slaughter of the Amorites, freed them from evil neighbours which had taken away part

Revelation 14:4 — whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. Which were not defiled with women — Which have not moiled themselves with fornication corporal or spiritual, as those Israelites, Numbers 25:1-9 , by Balaam’s counsel, and as Papists at this day, seduced by those effeminate locusts, Revelation 9:8 . As for their shavelings that plead this text to prove marriage defilement, let them hear the apostle, Hebrews 13:4 , and another almost

Revelation 2:1 — as some think; who not stirring up the gift of God that was in him, had remitted somewhat of his former fervour. By the style here given him ("angel") he is monished not more of his dignity than of his duty. That angel at Bochim, Judges 2:1 , is thought to have been Phineas. And some interpret that of Solomon, "Neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error of the priest," Ecclesiastes 5:6 . It is good counsel to ministers that one gives, Angelorum induistis nomen, induite

Revelation 2:9 — — Poverty discommends not any to Christ; money bears no mastery in his kingdom. Thou art poor, saith he here; but that is neither here nor there; it is a matter of nothing, that, stumble not therefore at the Church’s poverty. She is ever rich: 1. In reversion, and hath heaven and happiness; she is ever rich in bills and bonds. 2. In an apparent pledge that is worth all the world besides; that is, in Christ. If he have given us his Son, … All is yours who are Christ’s, … That

Revelation 20:9 — And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And they went up — As a flood, Ezekiel 8:9 ; Ezekiel 8:16 . And compassed — As resolved that none should escape them, Psalms 118:11-12 ; 2 Kings 6:14-15 ; 2 Kings 25:1 . The camp of the saints — The Church militant. And the beloved city — The New Jerusalem, Revelation 21:2 ; "The dearly

Revelation 22:11 — let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. He that is unjust, … — q.d. Let things be foretold never so plainly, and fall out never so accordingly, yet wicked men will be uncounsellable, incorrigible, Isaiah 26:10 ; "But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant," 1 Corinthians 14:38 . He falls with open eyes, let him fall at his own peril: who so blind as he that will not see? "Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone," Hosea 4:17 . He