Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• 3. The attestation of Moses and Aaron's divine mission 7:8-13
  Pharaoh requested that Moses and Aaron perform a miracle to prove their divine authority since they claimed that God had sent them (vv. 9-10)."What we refer to as the ten plagues' were actually judgments designed to authentic...
• The rule of the Shoot 11:1-9
  Messiah would meet certain qualifications (vv. 2-3a) and would rule with absolute justice (vv. 3b-5) with the result that people would live in peace (vv. 6-9)11:1 The prophet had just described Assyria cut down like a forest ...
• Two woes against Jerusalem ch. 29
  There are two more "woes"that deal with Jerusalem in this chapter (vv. 1-14, 15-24) in addition to the one in chapter 28. The first of these is similar to the previous "woe"(cf. vv. 1-8 with 28:1-6, and vv. 9-14 with 28:7-13)...
• The witness to redemption 43:8-44:20
  Isaiah continued to show that Yahweh was both willing and able to deliver His people, a theme begun in 42:10. He confronted the gods, again (cf. 41:21-29), but this time he challenged them to bring forth witnesses to their de...
• A warning to the elders of God's people 14:1-5
  14:1-2 Some of the elders of the Jewish community in exile came to visit Ezekiel. While these men sat with the prophet, a word from the Lord came to him.14:3 The Lord revealed to His servant that these elders (along with the ...
• Genre
  Daniel is a book of prophecy."Among the great prophetic books of Scripture, none provides a more comprehensive and chronological prophetic view of the broad movement of history than the book of Daniel. Of the three prophetic ...
• 6. The consequences of God's deliverance 3:28-30
  2:28-29 Nebuchadnezzar's acknowledgment of Yahweh's superior power was an advance upon his earlier tribute to Yahweh's ability to reveal mysteries (2:47). The pagans believed that the gods used messengers to carry out their w...
• 1. The four beasts 7:1-8
  7:1 We have already read of two dreams that Nebuchadnezzar had (2:1; 4:5). Now God gave one to Daniel. It too was a vision from God that came to Daniel as he slept."In referring to the experience as a dream' (sing.) Daniel wa...
• 6. The interpretation of the fourth beast 7:23-25
  7:23 The interpreting angel now granted the prophet more insight about the fourth beast and particularly about the little horn. Here the dual identification of the beasts with kings and kingdoms becomes transparent. The fourt...
• 7. The end of the fourth beast and the beginning of the everlasting kingdom 7:26-28
  7:26 The angel continued that the heavenly court (v. 10) would pass judgment on the little horn, and God will remove his dominion and destroy it forever (v. 11; 2 Thess. 2:8; Rev. 19:20).7:27 The fifth kingdom, under the Son ...
• 5. The interpretation of this vision 8:15-26
  8:15-16 As in the previous vision (7:16), Daniel needed help understanding what he had seen. He saw someone who looked like a man standing before him. Evidently this was an angel. Daniel also heard a voice that he could under...
• 5. The revelation of Israel's future in 70 sevens 9:24-27
  "In the concluding four verses of Daniel 9, one of the most important prophecies of the Old Testament is contained. The prophecy as a whole is presented in verse 24. The first sixty-nine sevens is described in verse 25. The e...
• The coming ruler 11:36-39
  11:36 "Then"signals a leap in time to the distant future.The predicted king will have the power to do as he pleases; apparently he will not be subject to a higher human authority (cf. 7:23; Rev. 13:1-10; 17:12). He will exalt...
• G. The woman in the basket 5:5-11
  The preceding vision described the future removal of individual sinners from the land through divine judgment, and this one pictures the eventual removal of all wickedness from the future "holy land"(2:12; cf. 3:9)."In line w...
• The appearance of the bad shepherd 11:15-17
  "The full fate of Israel is not recounted in the rejection of the good Shepherd God raised up to tend them. The complete tale of woe centers in their acceptance of the bad shepherd God will raise up to destroy them. The one d...
• Israel's cleansing 13:1-6
  13:1 In that day God would open a fountain for the complete spiritual cleansing of the Israelites, both for their moral sins and for their ritual uncleanness (cf. Ezek. 47). The figure of a fountain pictures abundant cleansin...
• The purpose of the parables 13:10-17 (cf. Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:9-10)
  13:10 The disciples wanted to know why Jesus was teaching in parables. This was not the clearest form of communication. Evidently the disciples asked this question when Jesus had finished giving the parables to the crowd (cf....
• 4. The abomination of desolation 24:15-22 (cf. Mark 13:14-20)
  Having given a general description of conditions preceding His return and the end of the present age, Jesus next described one particular event that would be the greatest sign of all.24:15 "Therefore"or "So"(Gr. oun) ties thi...
• 4. The King's final instructions to His disciples 28:16-20 (cf. Mark 16:15-18; 1 Cor. 15:6)
  Whereas the chief priests used bribe money to commission the soldiers to spread lies, the resurrected Jesus used the promise of His power and presence to commission His disciples to spread the gospel.1091This is the final add...
• The explanation of Israel's unbelief 12:37-43
  12:37-38 The majority of the Jews did not believe on Jesus despite the many miracles that He performed that indicated His messiahship (cf. 1:11). John again attributed Israel's unbelief to God's will, though he balanced that ...
• The request for protection 17:11b-16
  17:11b The title "Holy Father"appears only here in the fourth Gospel and is a reminder of both aspects of God's nature. It balances ideas of ultimate purity with intimate paternity and so prepares for what lies ahead, namely ...
• B. Jesus' teachings about motivation for service 21:15-23
  Jesus now proceeded to use the miracle that He had just performed as the background for important instruction. John presented Jesus doing this many times in this Gospel. The repetition of this pattern in the epilogue is an ev...
• Ministry in Thessalonica 17:1-9
  17:1 Paul, Silas, Timothy, and perhaps others left Philippi and headed southwest on the Egnatian Road. Luke evidently stayed in Philippi since he again described Paul's party as "they"instead of "we"(cf. 20:5-6). Paul and Sil...
• B. Thanksgiving 1:4-9
  Paul followed his salutation with an expression of gratitude for his original readers, as he usually did in his epistles. In this case the focus of his thanksgiving was on God's grace in giving the Corinthians such great spir...
• Paul's previous conduct in Corinth 12:11-13
  12:11 Again Paul reminded his readers that he had spoken of his own qualifications as an apostle as he had only because the Corinthians required such proof. He had not done so because he wanted to commend himself or because h...
• B. Denunciation 1:6-10
  In these opening words Paul rebuked his readers for turning away from the gospel that he had preached to them and for turning toward a different "gospel."He accused them of being religious turncoats. He did so to impress them...
• 1. The experiential argument 3:1-5
  The apostle began to apply the principle stated in 2:15-21 to his audience.3:1 It is folly to mix law and grace. The Galatians were behaving as though they were under some kind of spell and not in full use of their rational f...
• The illustration 4:1-7
  4:1-3 Already Paul had compared the Law to a prison warden (3:22) and a baby sitter (3:24). Now he compared it to a trustee appointed to care for a young child and his property, a guardian. The purpose of all three comparison...
• The selection of the Father 1:4-6
  The spiritual blessings that have come to us are the work of all three members of the Trinity. God Himself is the basis of these blessings.1:4 The first blessing is election. God has sovereignly chosen some people for salvati...
• 2. Past ignorance 3:1-13
  Paul began to pray for his readers again (cf. vv. 1, 14), but he interrupted himself to tell them more about the church. What he said in this section gives background information concerning the church as a mystery.3:1 "For th...
• A. A worthy walk 1:27-30
  The first sub-section (1:27-30) begins with a topic sentence that expresses Paul's desire for the Philippians. Then he proceeded to explain and to illustrate what constitutes a worthy walk (2:1-4:9)."With this section we come...
• 2. Specific reasons 1:4-10
  1:4-5 Paul's favorite appellation for the Thessalonians was "brothers."He used it 15 times in this epistle and seven times in 2 Thessalonians. It emphasizes the equality of Christians in the family of God, Jews and Gentiles. ...
• Purpose
  Three purposes are evident from the contents of the epistle. Paul wrote to encourage the Thessalonian believers to continue to persevere in the face of continuing persecution (1:3-10). He also wanted to clarify events precedi...
• Message3
  We could contrast 1 and 2 Thessalonians by saying that Paul wrote the first epistle primarily to comfort the Thessalonians whereas he wrote the second epistle primarily to correct them.Paul had said some things in his first e...
• Outline4
  I. Salutation 1:1-2II. Commendation for past progress 1:3-12A. Thanksgiving for growth 1:3-4B. Encouragement to persevere 1:5-10C. Prayer for success 1:11-12III. Correction of present error 2:1-12A. The beginning of the day o...
• A. Thanksgiving for growth 1:3-4
  1:3 In his earlier epistle to the Thessalonians Paul had urged them to grow in faith (1 Thess. 4:10) and to increase in love (1 Thess. 3:12). He now rejoiced that they were doing both of these things (v. 3).5Paul began each o...
• B. Encouragement to persevere 1:5-10
  These verses explain what God's future righteous judgment is.1:5 Paul explained that suffering for Christ demonstrates the believer's worthiness to participate in God's kingdom. A hot fire under gold ore separates the gold fr...
• III. CORRECTION OF PRESENT ERROR 2:1-12
  Paul next dealt with a doctrinal error that had come into the Thessalonian church to correct this error and to stabilize the church.Verses 1-23 contain truth about the end times revealed nowhere else in Scripture. This sectio...
• A. The beginning of the day of the Lord 2:1-5
  2:1-2 Paul introduced his teaching by urging his readers not to be shaken from their adherence to the truth he had taught them by what they were hearing from others. The issue centered on Paul's instructions concerning the Ra...
• B. The mystery of lawlessness 2:6-12
  Paul continued his instruction concerning the events that must precede the beginning of the day of the Lord by stressing the lawlessness of that period. His purpose was to explain more clearly that his readers had not missed ...
• A. Thanksgiving for calling 2:13-15
  2:13 In contrast to the wicked unbelievers just referred to (v. 12), Paul was grateful that he could always give thanks for his readers. Moreover he did so.58The ground for his joy was God's choice of them for salvation befor...
• B. Prayer for strength 2:16-17
  As part of a bridge between his instructions (2:1-12) and exhortations (3:1-15), Paul added this prayer for the Thessalonians. He petitioned God for their encouragement and strength (cf. 1 Thess. 3:2, 13; 2 Thess. 3:3)."Addre...
• VI. CONCLUSION 3:16-18
  Paul concluded this epistle with an emphasis on unity in the church to motivate his readers to work out their problems and reestablish peaceful conditions that would glorify God.3:16 He concluded with two more prayers, his fo...
• Bibliography
  Barclay, William. The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians and Thessalonians. Daily Study Bible series. 2nd ed. and reprint ed. Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 1963.Baxter, J. Sidlow. Explore the Book. 6 vols. London: Marsha...
• E. The problem of apostasy in the church 4:1-5
  In this pericope Paul reminded Timothy of the apostasy that Jesus Christ had foretold to equip him to identify and to deal with it.143"The change that occurs at 4:1 following the hymn of victory, then, is not unexpected. Oppo...
• B. The correction of false teachers 1:10-16
  Paul emphasized the need to guard the church against false teaching to inform Titus how to deal with the problems false teachers create. The instructions in this pericope naturally grew out of Paul's emphasis on the elder's r...
• B. The Danger of Disbelief (The Second Warning) 3:7-19
  "The comparison between Christ and Moses leads to one between their followers. The writer uses the conduct of the Israelites as a means of challenging his readers to a closer walk with God."109The writer next reminded his rea...
• C. The Possibility of Rest for God's People 4:1-14
  The writer returned again from exhortation to exposition. He now posed the alternatives of rest and peril that confronted the new people of God, Christians.127The writer warned his readers so they would not fail to enter into...
• D. Living in View of the Future 3:11-16
  Peter drew application for his readers and focused their attention on how they should live presently in view of the future.3:11 Peter believed that an understanding of the future should motivate the believer to live a holy li...
• Signs of the end 2:18-19
  2:18 John probably used a different Greek word translated "children"(paidia, also in v. 12) because it implies a child who learns. His readers needed to learn what he now revealed.In the drama of human history all of John's r...
• 1. Renouncing sin reaffirmed 3:4-9
  "The present vv, 3:4-9, form six strophes, each of which divides . . . roughly into half. The two halves of the strophes balance one another; for the second part of the v provides a development of the first part (vv 4, 5, 7),...
• B. Protecting the Truth vv. 7-11
  Next John moved on to his second purpose. He wrote to encourage his readers to resist the false teachers who were distorting the truth and deceiving some of the believers."The presbyter's attention now moves from the existenc...
• 2. The source of the commission 1:12-16
  John turned to see the person who had given him his commission. These verses describe what he saw.1:12 When John turned to see the person who spoke to him he saw a majestic figure clothed in a long robe standing among seven l...
• 2. The salvation of the great multitude 7:9-17
  There are a number of contrasts between the 144,000 and this great multitude. The number of the first group is not only smaller but definite whereas the number of the second group is larger and indefinite. People from the 12 ...
• 1. The temple in Jerusalem 11:1-2
  11:1 "And"(Gr. kai) ties this chapter closely to the previous one. John's first prophetic assignment after receiving his fresh commission was to provide this information.Again John became an active participant in his vision (...
• Characteristics of the beast 13:1-4
  13:1 The dragon stood on the seashore watching a beast come out of the sea, in John's vision (cf. Dan. 7:2, 3, 7, 8, 19-27).415The implication is that the dragon summoned the beast out of the sea.416Evidently this was part of...
• Activities of the beast 13:5-8
  The notable abilities of the beast are blasphemy against God and deception of people. These activities also marked Antiochus Epiphanes, the prototype of Antichrist (Dan. 7:8, 11, 20, 25; 12:7).13:5 God (cf. 6:4, 8; 7:2; 9:5; ...
• The beast out of the earth 13:11-18
  Most interpreters who see the first beast as an individual also see the second beast as one. Others who see the first beast as a power or movement tend to view the second beast similarly. Many of the Reformers identified the ...
• The invitation of the angel 17:1-2
  17:1 The fact that this chapter describes the judgment of Babylon referred to in 14:8 and 16:19 seems clear. It was one of the angels who poured out the bowl judgments who served as John's guide as he viewed these events in h...
• The judgment of the harlot 17:15-18
  17:15 The angel next helped John understand the identity of the waters (v. 1). Water is a common symbol for people in the Old Testament (e.g., Ps. 18:4, 16; 124:4; Isa. 8:7; Jer. 47:2). The harlot exercises a controlling infl...
• 3. The destruction of the wicked on earth 19:17-21
  19:17 John saw next an angel standing in the sun, a conspicuous position in which all the birds could see him. He cried loudly for all the birds flying in midheaven to assemble (cf. Ezek. 39:4, 17). Jesus referred to the same...