Bible Commentaries

Genesis 1:21 — them, when they swim and show themselves above water, they seem to be so many islands, an nare insulas putes and have been so esteemed by seafaring men, to their great danger and disadvantage. Into the rivers of Arabia, saith Pliny, Pliny, l. xxxii, c. 1. - Cur pisces vocat reptiles? Repere communiter dicuntur omnia αποδα , vel quae habent pedes breviores ut mures, … there have come whales 600 feet long, and 360 feet broad. This is "that leviathan" that

Genesis 1:5 — Darkness he created not, but only by accident; and yet not that, without some notable use. Much less that darkness of affliction which he is said to "create". Isaiah 45:7 "Unto the upright there ariseth light in darkness," Psalms 112:4 yea, light by darkness, as to Paul, whose bodily blindness opened the eyes of his mind. Luther said that God’s works are effected usually by contraries. Laertius. Opera Dei sunt in mediis contrariis And the evening and the morning, …

Genesis 20:6 — Non prorsus vacare culpa qui humano modo puri sunt . He can find flaws in that for which we may look for thanks. This makes Nehemiah crave pardon of his zealous reformations; and David cries out, "Enter not into judgment," … Psalms 143:2 Sordet in conspectu iudicis, quod fulget in conspectu operantis , saith Gregory. "Ye are they that justify yourselves before men," saith Christ to the Pharisees; "but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among

Ezra 1:3 — people of God, who yet ( tanquam monstra marina ) passed by this proclamation with a deaf ear; and preferring haram domesticam arae dominicae, a swine sty before a sanctuary, chose rather to abide in Babylon, and there to dwell amongst plants and hedges, 1 Chronicles 4:23 , making pots for the king’s garden, than to go up to Jerusalem. So that, besides this O yes, by the king, God was fain to cry, "Ho, ho, come forth, and flee from the land of the north." "Deliver thyself, O Zion,

Ezra 7:6 — Scripture: to which all other skill is but straminea candela, a rush candle, a small light, that serveth but to light men into utter darkness. Be wise be learned, saith the Psalmist; but in addition serve the Lord with fear, kiss the Son, …, Psalms 2:12 otherwise ye may be as learned as Varro, that general scholar; as Albertus Magnus, quem nihil penitus fugit, omnia perfecte novit, who knew whatsoever was knowable, as one saith of him or as Tostatus (otherwise called Abulensis), qui omnium scientiarum

Nehemiah 8:6 — all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with [their] faces to the ground. And Ezra blessed the Lord — i.e. He called upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, Psalms 18:3 . He prayed before he read and preached. So ought we to do by his example, as Lyra well noteth; and as is commonly done by all our ministers. Luther’s usual prayer before sermon was this, Confirm, O God, in us what thou hast wrought; and perfect

Nehemiah 9:17 — This is to add rebellion to sin; this is that stubbornness that Ahaz is taxed of and branded for, 2 Chronicles 28:25 . Neither were mindful of thy wonders — These soon grew stale to them, as the Psalmist proves by their wicked practices, Psalms 106:13 . And truly who that looketh upon our lives would ever think that God had done any wonders for us of this nation, either by sea or land, either against fireworks or water works formerly; or against a viperous brood among ourselves, here of late? And

Esther 1:13 — calleth for his judges and counsellors, skilful in state matters. Which knew the times — And what was best to be done in them. This skill they had gotten by much reading of politics and histories, and long observation. The men of Issachar were such, 1 Chronicles 12:32 . Such a one was Croesus to Cyrus, Polybius to Scipio, Agrippa to Augustus, Anaxagoras to Themistocles, … Xerxes here had seven such to advise with as his privy councillors; Iudices Regios, the king’s judges, Herodotus

Esther 2:10 — lib. 2), This is the basest and most contemptible people that ever I lighted upon. The Romans would not own them, when they had conquered them, as they did other nations, though they complied never so much, and were their servants (Aug. in Psalms 58:1-11 ). The Turks so hate them for crucifying Christ, that they use to say, in detestation of a thing, I would I might die a Jew, then; as when they would assure anything, in execrationibus dicunt Iudaeus sim, si fallo, they curse themselves, and say,

Esther 7:5 — certain ladies) I would kill him with mine own hand; or those of fiery Friar, who, openly in the pulpit at Antwerp, preaching to the people, wished that Luther were there, that he might tear him with his teeth (Paraei Medul. Hist. profan. Erasm. Ephesians 1:16 , ad obtrectat). But could this king possibly so soon forget what himself had not two months before granted to be done against Esther’s people (which was with his right hand to cut off his left)? or did he not all this while know what countrywoman

Job 4:21 — seen of him; but the mind of a man, that is the man ( ουκ εστιν ανθρωπος το ορωμενον ). And in the Job 4:19 man is said to dwell in a house of clay; that is, the soul to inhabit the body. The soul goes away with the name of the whole person; the soul indeed is the man in a moral consideration, and is, therefore, elsewhere called the inward man, and the hidden

Song of Solomon 2:5 — estoy hundiendo y desmayándome con un exceso de amor, con una exuberancia de gozo espiritual en Dios mi Salvador, tal como difícilmente puedo soportar. Por lo tanto, detenganme, les dice a los ministros, esos pilares para "sostener al débil", Gal 2:10 y para "consolar al débil de mente". 1 Tesalonicenses 5:14 "Deténme o sostenme con jarras, consuélame con manzanas". Solinus a cuenta de algunos cerca del río Ganges que viven odore pomorum sylvestrium, por el olor b de las manzanas del bosque, que

Hosea 12:1 — Efraín se alimenta de viento y sigue al viento solano; cada día aumenta la mentira y la desolación; y hacen un pacto con los asirios, y se lleva aceite a Egipto. Ver. 1. Efraín se alimenta del viento ] Esbelto se alimenta; a menos que Efraín fuera del tipo camaleón: quippe nec cor auro satiatur nec corpus aura. El viento llena, pero no alimenta, Isaías 55:10 . Efraín había sembrado viento, Oseas 8:7 , pero ¿de qué

Hosea 5:4 — sólo están incapacitados para la conversión, sino que el mal se ve afectado por ellas: están frente a todo bien; a sus tendones de hierro han añadido arcos de bronce, Isaías 48:4 ; a su pecado agregan la rebelión, que es tan mala como la brujería, 1 Samuel 15:23 ; hasta que al fin pierden también todo poder pasivo de convertirse, y así se transforman, por así decirlo, en tantos demonios: habiendo contraído por costumbre la necesidad de pecar, se vuelven incurables; no quieren ni pueden volver a

Hosea 8:14 — Porque Israel se ha olvidado de su Hacedor, y edifica templos; y Judá multiplicó ciudades fortificadas; pero enviaré fuego sobre sus ciudades, y consumirá sus palacios. Ver. 14. Porque Israel se ha olvidado de su Hacedor ] No es más factor suyo que su benefactor, como, 1 Samuel 12:6 , el Señor hizo a Moisés y Aarón, es decir , los adelantó a ese honor en su Iglesia. Así que se dice que nuestro Salvador hizo doce cuando los

Jonah 1:2 — subido delante de mí. Ver. 2. Levántate, ve a Nínive ] Haec est vocatio prophetae, dice Oecolampadius: este fue el llamado del profeta, al cual debió haber obedecido sin vacilar, demorar o discutir, conferir o consultar con carne y sangre, Gálatas 1:16 . Es cierto que en los gobiernos humanos, donde se excluye la razón, se introduce la tiranía. Como en el papado (donde la ramera se sienta sobre ellos, Apocalipsis 17:1 , es decir, los usa vil y vilmente; se sienta sobre sus conciencias, como Raquel

Haggai 2:7 — pecaminosa y llevadas a la obediencia de la fe mediante una conversión eficaz. Por lo tanto, un Lapide. "Sacudiré a todas las naciones" con asombro ante tan gran misterio, con gozo y con novedad de vida, dice Sa. El evangelio (dice Forbes en Apocalipsis 14: 6) tiene tres grados de operación en el corazón de los hombres. Primero, llega a los oídos de los hombres como el sonido de muchas aguas, un sonido confuso, que comúnmente no trae ni terror ni alegría; pero sin embargo, un asombro y reconocimiento

Titus 2:14 — thoroughly purge us. A peculiar people — Gr. A people that comprehend all that God sets any store by, that contain all his gettings; called elsewhere the people of acquisition, περιουσιος , 1 Peter 2:9 . The word here used Jerome saith he sought for among human authors, and could not find it. Therefore some think the Septuagint feigned this, and επιουσιον , used also in the Lord’s

Revelation 1:10 — Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, I was in the Spirit — Acted by him, and carried out of himself, as the demoniac is said to be in the unclean spirit, as being acted and agitated by him. See Trapp on " 2 Peter 1:21 " On the Lord’s day — The first day of the week, the Christian sabbath, Matthew 24:20 , called the Lord’s day, from Christ the author of it; as is likewise the Lord’s supper, and the Lord’s Church, kirk, κυριακη

Ruth 1:1 — πολλη και ελαχιστη , as St Bartholomew said of divinity; of special concernment, as pointing to Christ born of Boaz a Jew, and Ruth a Gentile, as a Saviour to both sorts; Acts 10:34-35 and of singular worth: whence Hugo compareth it to a little bee, great in fruitfulness, gathering wax and honey, for light and medicine; Lavater, to such precious stones as are small in bulk, but of egregious virtue. Now it came to pass. —