Bible Commentaries

Genesis 27:1-4 — Blessing";Arthur S. Peake, Peake's Commentary on the Bible (London: T. C. and E. C. Jack, Ltd., 1924), p. 157. and Robinson entitled it, "Jacob Steals Esau's Blessing!"Theodore H. Robinson, Abingdon Bible Commentary (New York: Abingdon Press, 1929), p. 236. Such views cannot be correct. What is in view here is a plot — initiated by Esau, concurred in by Isaac, and long nurtured by the flattering deeds of Esau — which was designed to take back the birthright and the blessing which conveyed

Exodus 10:1-6 — all time since they occurred. "How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me…?" "This question shows that Pharaoh was responsible for hardening his heart,"J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 57. "We may rest assured that there was always a time when he might have relented; and it was because he hardened his heart at such times, that God is said to harden him."Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Whole Bible (London: T. Mason and G. Lane,

Exodus 20:13 — understanding this is the distinction between the word here rendered "kill," and another Hebrew word in numerous passages rendered, "Thou shalt surely slay him," or "He shall surely be put to death." In those places the word is [~harag]. Deuteronomy 13:9 is an example. "Thou shalt surely [~harag] him." Now the word here is [~ratsach], which means murder. In those other places, it is [~harag] which means "to slay" or "to put to death." For that reason, Moffatt correctly rendered this commandment, "Thou

Ezra 1:1-4 — the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, besides the freewill-offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem." "In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia" A number of scholars place this date at 538 B.C.,F. C. Cook, Barnes' Commentary Series, Ezra, p. 437. but Darius was ruler of Persia (as Cyrus' deputy) for a couple of years; and Keil's placement of this date at 536 B.C.C. F. Keil, Keil and Delitzsch's Old Testament Commentaries, Jeremiah, p.

Nehemiah 2:1-8 — he drank that in the king's presence and handed the cup of wine to the king."Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary, p. 295. "Then I was sore afraid" "It was contrary to court behavior for a servant to appear sad."Arthur S. Peake's Commentary, p. 330."Being sad in the king's presence was a serious offense in Persia (Esther 4:2); and, besides that, Nehemiah was well aware that the request which he would ultimately make of the king might indeed anger him."Wycliffe Old Testament Commentary, p. 436. "The

Psalms 49:13-15 — shall descend like a great flock of sheep into the nether world, where Death shall be their shepherd! Addis' summary of these three verses is, "The wicked like the righteous die, but the righteous alone have the prospect of immortality."W. E. Addis, p. 381. "The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning" We might ask, `What morning'? and Rawlinson gives this answer: "When the resurrection morning comes - and no other explanation seems possible (see even Cheyne) - it will bring them no release;

Leviticus 5:1-6 — cursing in Numbers 5:21). The sin referred to did not consist in the fact that a person heard a curse, or blasphemy, and gave no evidence of it."C. F. Keil, Commentary on the Old Testament, Vol. 1 (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company), p. 310. Keil is most certainly correct in this, because the N.T. usage of "adjuration" places it, not on the street, but in a court of law. In Matthew 26:63, Jesus is said to have answered Caiaphas not a word, until the high priest placed Jesus under judicial

Daniel 6 overview — this chapter. "From Cyrus' annalistic tablet we know that he appointed his general Gobryas to be governor of Babylon, and that Gobryas set up sub-governors.Arthur Jeffery, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol, VI, Daniel (New York: Abingdon Press, 1954), p. 437. The mention of 120 satrapies in this chapter appears unreasonable to the critics; but the record defies their criticism. There were no less than 127 subdivisions of this same empire in the days of Esther (Esther 1:1); and besides, as Jeffery noted,

Numbers 33:50-56 — slaves. It is not hard to see how Israel reacted to that. (2)    The lust of Israel was aroused and captured by the allurement of vast numbers of women, many of whom no doubt were persons of great physical beauty and attractiveness. (3)    There were still remnants of the old pagan superstitions in Israel as revealed in Stephen's valedictory in Acts 7, and, in the case of the tribes of Manasseh and Ephraim, those pagan traditions went back to the very roots of

Numbers 8:5-13 — for a wave-offering unto Jehovah." Unger listed the specifics required for the cleansing of the Levites thus: (1)    by sprinkling with water (Numbers 8:7 a) (2)    by shaving all their flesh (Numbers 8:7 b) (3)    by washing their garments (Numbers 8:7 c) (4)    by atonement being made for them (Numbers 8:8-12) (5)    by identifying them with all Israel who were represented by them (Numbers 8:9-10) (6)    by

Deuteronomy 3:23-29 — cause them to inherit the land thou shalt see. So we abode in the valley over against Beth-peor." "What god is there…?" "These words do not prove that the writer believed in the real existence of heathen deities."T. Witton Davies, op. cit., p. 234. On the other hand, as Harrison said, "Moses is here making clear his conviction of the supreme power of God as the one and only true deity, but at the same time acknowledging that the worship of pagan gods was a possibility."R. K. Harrison, The New

Deuteronomy 30:6-10 — commanded in the old dispensation. "In Deuteronomy 10:16, it is the Israelite himself who must do the circumcising as an act of obedience,"Peter E. Cousins, The New Layman's Bible Commentary, Deuteronomy (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1979), p. 306. but in the new covenant, which is certainly in view here, God Himself will create a new heart within His followers. As stated in Ezekiel 11:19, God would "give them a new heart and put a new spirit within them," thus linking this blessing with the

Deuteronomy 4:1-8 — done and said what He has said, Israel must bring its attitudes and life into harmony with the will of God if the people are to live and prosper in the world."Edward P. Blair, The Layman's Bible Commentary, Deuteronomy (Richmond: John Knox Press, 1963), p. 25. "Ye shall not add unto the word… neither shall ye diminish from it" (Deuteronomy 4:2.). Craigie pointed out that this passage, along with Revelation 22:18-19, has been considered by the historical Christian Church, "as a commandment

Philippians 2:6 — God a thing to be grasped. THE SO-CALLED HYMN Many scholars insist that "Paul here quotes a previously composed hymn"; Frances Foulkes, New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1132. but outside the attractiveness of plausible imagination, there is no hard evidence of any kind to commend such a view. It is true, of course, that the passage is composed of balanced phrases having a kind of rhythm and that they could have been sung;

1 Timothy 3:2 — Christians, nor of elders; and those are profoundly in error who make the high standard in evidence here the excuse for appointing none at all. The very fact of Paul's appointing elders in every church immediately after the first missionary journey (Acts 14:23) proves that such officers are absolutely necessary in every congregation; and the fact that one or more of a given group of elders might be declared deficient in given qualifications is not a valid reason for countermanding God's order to ordain elders

Hebrews 8:1-2 — has "The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord's throne is in heaven." Micah saw the Lord's "holy temple" as far above the earth from which the Lord would come down and tread "upon the high places of the earth" (Micah 1:2-3). Habakkuk has the renowned call to worship, "But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him" (Habakkuk 2:20). From all these and many other references, should it be concluded that there is literally a temple

Judges 11:34-40 — by the offering of a lamb instead. This applied even to the first-born of a donkey! It is simply inconceivable that Jephthah would have been ignorant of this principle, or that he would have failed to take advantage of it on behalf of his daughter. (3)    "It shall be Jehovah's" (Judges 11:31). "This should be understood in terms of what Hannah meant when she said of her unborn child, "I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life (1 Samuel 1:11)."D. K. Campbell, p. 104.

Revelation 3:7 — interest, as one of the great modern cities of the United States bears the same title. "Here is the seventh and last occurrence of this word in the New Testament, the other passages where it is found being: Romans 12:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; Hebrews 13:1; 1 Peter 1:22; and 2 Peter 1:7 (twice). William R. Newell, The Book of Revelation (Chicago: Moody Press, 1935), p. 67. Philadelphia is supposed to have been founded between 189 B.C. and 138 B.C., either by Eumenes, king of Pergamum, or his younger

Revelation 6:7-8 — freedom of their will. God will not procure obedience through coercion. (2) The progression of disastrous human calamities is not permitted to ravage without limitation, but each of them is limited, a fact that will often recur in subsequent visions. (3) Nor are these terrible riders permitted to go alone. At the head of the van is the white horse with its crowned rider; and all of the others "following" him means that they are not permitted to destroy except under the rules of divine restraint.

2 Samuel 24:1 — same time, historically, as were the Books of Samuel; and therefore we reject categorically the notion of critical scholars who claim that the account in 1 Chronicles 21:1 represents, "A subsequent advance of religious thought,"Arthur S. Peake, p. 293. in Israel, erroneously supposing that, "In this passage we have an illustration of the imperfect recognition of the moral nature of Yahweh."Ibid. "The language here leaves no doubt of the author's theory that God incites men to do that for which he