Bible Commentaries

Ezra 3:2 — Jeshua, the high priest, was the son of Jozadak, who was carried into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar 1 Chronicles 6:15.Zerubbabel was really the son of Pedaiah, Shealtiel’s (or Salathiel’s) younger brother. But Shealtiel having no sons, and the royal line being continued in the person of his nephew, Zerubbabel, the latter was accounted Shealtiel’s son.

Job 40:10 — Deck thyself now with majesty and excellency - That is, such as God has. Put on everything which you can, which would indicate rank, wealth, power, and see whether it could all be compared with the majesty of God; compare Psalms 104:1, “O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honor and majesty.”

Psalms 135:1 — Praise ye the Lord - Hebrew, Hallelu-jah. Literally, “Praise Jah,” an abridged name for Yahweh. See the notes at Psalms 68:4.Praise ye the name of the Lord - The same as praising God himself.Praise him, O ye servants of the Lord - You who are especially designated or appointed to this service, Psalms 134:1.

Psalms 148:1 — Praise ye the Lord - See the notes at Psalms 146:1.Praise ye the Lord from the heavens - On the part of the heavens. Let those who dwell in heaven begin the song.Praise him in the heights - All that are in the heights; to wit, in the highest parts of the universe, or the heavens.

Psalms 148:2 — Praise ye him, all his angels - Dwelling in the heavens. Compare the notes at Psalms 103:20.Praise ye him, all his hosts - See the notes at Psalms 103:21 and the notes at Isaiah 1:9. All his armies - referring to the angels considered as marshalled into hosts, of which God is the Head and Leader.

Proverbs 21:6 — Vanity - Or, “a breath driven to and fro of those that are seeking death.” Another reading of the last words is: “of the snares of death” (compare 1 Timothy 6:9). Some commentators have suggested that the “vapor” or “mist” is the mirage of the desert, misleading those who follow it, and becoming a “net of death.”

Proverbs 27:20 — Hades, the world of the dead, and Destruction (Death, the destroying power, personified) have been at all times and in all countries thought of as all-devouring, insatiable (compare the marginal reference). Yet one thing is equally so, the lust of the eye, the restless craving which grows with what it feeds on Ecclesiastes 1:8.

Proverbs 3:20 — Compare Genesis 1:7; Genesis 7:11; Job 38:0. Looking upon the face of Nature, men see two storehouses of the living water, without which it would be waste and barren. From the “depths” rush forth the surging waves, from the “clouds” falls the gentle rain or “dew;” but both alike are ordered by the Divine Wisdom.

Proverbs 5:21 — One more warning. The sin is not against man, nor dependent on man’s detection only. The secret sin is open before the eyes of Yahweh. In the balance of His righteous judgment are weighed all human acts.Pondereth - Note the recurrence of the word used of the harlot herself (see Proverbs 1:6 note): she ponders not, God does.

Isaiah 40:17 — Are as nothing - This expresses literally what had been expressed by the beautiful and striking imagery above.Less than nothing - A strong hyperbolic expression denoting the utter insignificance of the nations as compared with God. Such expressions are common in the Scriptures.And vanity - Hebrew, תהו tôhû - ‘Emptiness;’ the word which in Genesis 1:2 is rendered ‘without form.’

Isaiah 44:21 — Remember these - Remember these things which are now said about the folly of idolatry, and the vanity of worshipping idols. The object of the argument is, to turn their attention to God, and to lead them to put their trust in him.Thou art my servant - (See the notes at Isaiah 42:19; Isaiah 43:1).

Jeremiah 15:13 — Jeremiah is personally addressed in the verse, because he stood before God as the intercessor, representing the people.(1) God would give Judah’s treasures away for nothing; implying that He did not value them.(2) the cause of this contempt is Judah’s sins.(3) this is justified by Judah having committed them throughout her whole land.

Jeremiah 25:3 — The three and twentieth year - i. e., nineteen under Josiah, and four under Jehoiakim. This prophecy divides itself into three parts,(1) the judgment of Judah Jeremiah 25:3-11, and Babylon’s doom Jeremiah 25:12-14;(2) the wine-cup of fury Jeremiah 25:15-29;(3) the judgment of the world Jeremiah 25:30-38.

Jeremiah 50:15 — Shout - i. e., spoken of the war-cry. So in Isaiah 42:13, where God is compared to a warrior, it is said He shall shout (the King James Version cry), i. e., raise the war-cry.Site hath given her hand - The sign of submission (compare 1 Chronicles 29:24 margin).Foundations - Or, buttresses. The Septuagint: “battlements.”

Jeremiah 8:18 — Rather, “O my comfort in sorrow: my heart faints for me.” The word translated “comfort” is by some supposed to be corrupt. With these mournful ejaculations a new strophe begins, ending with Jeremiah 9:1, in which the prophet mourns over the miserable fate of his countrymen, among whom he had been earnestly laboring, but all in vain.

Ezekiel 25:8 — Prophecies against Moab which lay south of Ammon, and shared Ammon’s implacable hostility to the children of Israel.Seir was close to Moab. Edom is identified with Mount “Seir” in Ezekiel 35:1-15; and “Seir” is therefore probably coupled with “Moab” here because, being near neighbors closely leagued together, they expressed a common exultation at Jerusalem’s fall.

Ezekiel 4:11 — Water by measure - This probably corresponds to the water of affliction 1 Kings 22:27; Isaiah 30:20. The measure of the hin is variously estimated by Jewish writers. The sixth part of a hin will be according to one estimate about 610ths, according to another 910ths of a pint. The lesser estimate is more suitable here.

Ezekiel 40:3 — The appearance of brass - Brightly shining.A line of flax - For measuring the ground plan.A measuring reed - For the walls (compare Jeremiah 31:38-39). To measure implied a separation for sacred purposes. The measurements are: (1) exact, to show that the promise is certain; (2) equal, to denote harmony; (3) vast, to mark majesty and grandeur.

Matthew 10:27 — What I say to you in darkness ... - That is, in “secret,” in “private,” in “confidence. The private instructions which I give you while with me do you proclaim publicly, on the “house-top.” The “house-top,” the flat roof, was a public, conspicuous place. See 2 Samuel 16:22. See also the notes at Matthew 9:1-8.

Luke 1:30 — Fear not, Mary - Do not be alarmed at this appearance of an angel. He only comes to announce to you good tidings. Similar language was addressed by an angel to Joseph. See the notes at Matthew 1:20.Thou hast found favour with God - Eminent favor or mercy in being selected to be the mother of the Messiah.