Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 13:8 — They shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth - This comparison is often used in the Scriptures to denote the deepest possible pain and sorrow, as well as the suddenness with which any calamity comes upon a people Psalms 48:6; Isaiah 21:3; Isaiah 42:14; Jeremiah 6:24; Jeremiah 13:21; Jeremiah 22:23; Jeremiah 49:24; Jeremiah 50:43; Hosea 13:13; Micah 4:9-10; John 16:21; Galatians 4:19; 1 Thessalonians 5:3.They shall be amazed one at another - They shall stare with a stupid gaze on one

Isaiah 37:8 — So Rabshakeh returned - Returned from Jerusalem to the camp of his master. He had received no answer to his insulting message Isaiah 36:21; he saw there was no prospect that the city would surrender; and he therefore returned again to the camp.And found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah - He had departed from Lachish. Why he had done this is unknown. It is possible that he had

Isaiah 43:26 — - if they could pretend that He had forgotten anything; that they had merits which he had not considered; or that he had charged them with crime with undue severity.Let us plead together - Hebrew, ‘Let us be judged together’ (see the note at Isaiah 41:1).Declare thou, that thou mayest be justified - That you may show that you are just, or righteous; that you may demonstrate that you are unjustly accused of crime, and punished with undue severity.

Isaiah 43:5 — Fear not - (see the note at Isaiah 41:10, Isaiah 41:14; compare Isaiah 43:1).I will bring thy seed - Thy children; thy descendants. The sense is, I will re-collect my scattered people from all parts of the world. The passage appears to have been taken from Deuteronomy 30:3, where God promises

Isaiah 46:2 — They stoop - Bel, and Nebo, and all the Babylonian gods (see Isaiah 46:1).They could not deliver the burden - The word ‘burden’ here, probably means the load of metal, wood, and stone, of which the idols were composed. The gods whom the Babylonians worshipped had not even power to protect the images which were made to represent

Isaiah 51:15 — Sea. The Chaldee renders this, ‘That rebuked the sea.’ The Septuagint, Ὁ ταράσσων ho tarassōn - ‘Who disturbs the sea.’ or, who excites a tempest. Lowth renders it, ‘Who stilleth at once the sea.’ The Hebrew word is the same which occurs in Isaiah 51:4, where it is rendered, ‘I will make my judgment to rest’ (רגע râga‛). Probably the idea here is, that he restrains the raging of the sea as if by fear; that is, makes it tranquil or still by rebuking it. He had this power over all raging seas, and

Isaiah 66:4 — and then vexation, adverse destiny, from עלל ‛âlal, to do, to accomplish, to do evil, to maltreat. It is not used in the sense of delusions, or devices; and evidently here means the same as calamity or punishment. Compare the Hebrew in Lamentations 1:22. Lowth and Noyes render it, Calamities; though Jerome and the Septuagint understand it in the sense of illusions or delusions; the former rendering it, ‘Illusiones, and the latter ἐμπαίγματα empaigmata - ‘delusions.’ The parallelism requires us

Jeremiah 1:10 — I have ... set thee over - literally, I have made thee Pakeed, i. e., deputy. This title is given only to these invested with high authority (e. g. Genesis 41:34; 2 Chronicles 24:11; Jeremiah 20:1; Jeremiah 29:26). From God’s side, the prophet is a mere messenger, speaking what he is told, doing what he is commanded. From man’s side, he is God’s vicegerent, with power “to root out, and to pull down.”Root

Jeremiah 15:19 — Jeremiah had questioned God’s righteousness (see Jeremiah 12:1 note); he is told, “If thou return,” if thou repent thee of thy doubts, and think only of thy duty, “then will I bring thee again, then will I cause thee again to stand before Me.” To stand before a person means to be his chief officer or vicegerent.

Jeremiah 3:16 — Law as the conditions of the covenant and having over it, upon the mercy-seat, the Shechinah as the visible sign of God’s presence. But “in those days” the symbol must pass away, because God will then dwell in His people by the gift of the Holy Spirit 1 Corinthians 3:16, and the terms of the covenant will be written on their hearts Jeremiah 31:33.Neither shall they visit it - Rather, neither shall they miss it; i. e., they will not trouble about it, nor regret its loss.Neither shall that be done anymore

Ezekiel 1:4 — have “electrum,” a substance composed by a mixture of silver and gold, which corresponds very well to the Hebrew word. The brightness, therefore, is that of shining metal, not of a transparent gum. Render it: “out of the midst thereof,” like Ezekiel 1:7 burnished gold out of the midst of fire.

Ezekiel 48:35 — The circuit of the city walls, a square of 4500 reeds, was 18,000 reeds, not quite 37 English miles. The circuit of Jerusalem in the time of Josephus was reckoned by him to be about four miles.The name ... - The manner of expressing a spiritual meaning by giving a name to a city, a people, or the like, is familiar

Daniel 10:3 — and partook of that only which was coarse and disagreeable.Neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth - That is, he lived on bread or vegetables. It is not to be inferred from this that Daniel ordinarily made use of wine, for it would seem from Daniel 1:0: that that was not his custom. What would appear from this passage would be, that he practiced on this occasion the most rigid abstinence.Neither did I anoint myself - The use of unguents was common in the East (see the notes at Matthew 6:17), and

Daniel 4:5 — language in saying of one that he saw a dream.Which made me afraid - The fear evidently arose from the apprehension that it was designed to disclose some important and solemn event. This was in accordance with a prevalent belief then (comp. Daniel 2:1), and it may be added that it is in accordance with a prevalent belief now. There are few persons, whatever may be their abstract belief, who are not more or less disturbed by fearful and solemn representations passing before the mind in the visions

Hosea 10:4 — besides. And what harvest? Not any wholesome plant, but poison. They cultivate injustice and wickedness, as if these were to be the fruits to be rendered to God from His own land. So Amos says, “Ye have turned judgment into gall or wormwood” Amos 6:12; Amos 5:7, and Habakkuk, “Judgment went forth perverted” Habakkuk 1:4.

Hosea 4:5 — two parts of the verse fill up each other. “By day and by night shall they fall, people and prophets together.” Their calamities should come upon them successively, day and night. They should stumble by day, when there is least fear of stumbling John 11:9-10; and night should not by its darkness protect them. Evil should come “at noon-day” Jeremiah 15:8 upon them, seeing it, but unable to repel it; as Isaiah speaks of it as an aggravation of trouble, “thy land strangers devour it in thy presence”

Matthew 2:13 — The angel appeareth to Joseph in a dream - See Matthew 1:20.Flee into Egypt - Egypt is situated to the southwest of Judea, and is distant from Bethlehem perhaps about 60 miles. It was at this time a Roman province. There were many Jews there, who had a temple and synagogues (see the notes at Isaiah 19:18),

Matthew 23:33 — Ye serpents - This name is given to them on account of their pretending to be pious, and very much devoted to God, but being secretly evil, At the heart, with all their pretensions, they were filled with evil designs, as the serpent was, Genesis 3:1-5Generation of vipers - See the notes at Matthew 12:34.Damnation of hell - This refers, beyond all question, to future punishment. So great was their wickedness and hypocrisy, that, if they persevered in this course, it was impossible to escape the

Matthew 24:34 — This generation ... - This age; this race of people. A generation is about 30 or 40 years. The destruction of Jerusalem took place about forty years after this was spoken. See the notes at Matthew 16:28.Till all these things ... - Until these things shall be accomplished. Until events shall take place which shall be a fulfillment of these words, if there were nothing further intended. He does not mean to exclude the reference to the judgment, but

Matthew 4:3 — The tempter - The devil, or Satan. See Matthew 4:1.If thou be the Son of God - If thou art God’s own Son, then thou hast power to work a miracle, and here is a suitable opportunity to try thy power, and show that thou art sent from God.Command that these stones ... - The stones that were lying around