Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• Betrothal of a female 21:7-11
  Females did not enjoy as much freedom as males in the ancient Near East and in Israel. They were subject to the fathers or husbands in authority over them as well as to God (cf. Eph. 5:22-24; Col. 3:18). Verses 7-11 describe ...
• The time intervals of sacrifices 22:26-33
  Seven additional laws specified the time periods that governed the offering of some sacrifices. The Israelites were not to offer oxen, sheep, and goats as sacrifices before these animals were eight days old (v. 27). It took t...
• The seventh commandment 5:18
  This commandment deals with adultery only. Whereas murder violates life itself, adultery violates the most important and sacred human relationship, marriage.88God dealt with other forms of sexual sin elsewhere (cf. chs. 22-25...
• 2. Restoring fellowship with Yahweh ch. 14
  God blessed David and his kingdom because David had honored God by seeking to bring the ark into Jerusalem. The Chronicler recorded three instances of divine blessing in this chapter.First, God gave David favor in the eyes of...
• 1. God as leader 23:1-4
  23:1 David compared Yahweh to a shepherd as he reviewed His blessings on his life (cf. 28:9; 80:1). This was a familiar role for David who had been a shepherd of sheep as a youth and who later became a shepherd of God's peopl...
• Psalm 45
  This royal psalm glorified the king as he prepared for his wedding. The writer related the counsel that the bride had received as she anticipated the wedding. He then predicted that people would honor the king forever because...
• 3. Benediction on the couple 45:16-17
  The memory of the king's ancestors would pale in comparison with that of his descendents. The king's sons would become famous princes who would occupy positions of authority far and wide because of the king's righteous rule. ...
• 3. The wise woman 31:10-31
  We have read much in Proverbs already about unwise women. Solomon personified both wisdom and folly as women (chs. 8-9). Perhaps God wanted us to finish reading this book assured that women are not essentially evil or foolish...
• Purpose
  Probably God's primary purpose in inspiring this book of the Bible was to give us revelation concerning the way love between a man and a woman should look.17The characters in the book behave toward one another the way men and...
• Message24
  Contemporary culture has affected the interpretation of this book more than that of most other Bible books. For many years believers considered this book to be a revelation of God's love for the believer and the believer's lo...
• The certainty of these benefits 62:1-9
  It seemed to Isaiah's audience that the promises in chapter 60 could hardly come to pass since the Babylonian exile was still ahead of them. The Lord assured them that He would surely fulfill these promises."Much of this chap...
• The question of fasting 9:14-17 (cf. Mark 2:18-22; Luke 5:33-39)
  The Pharisees criticized Jesus' conduct in the previous pericope. Now John's disciples criticized the conduct of Jesus' disciples and, by implication, Jesus.9:14 The people who questioned Jesus here were disciples of John the...
• 3. Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus 3:1-21
  John now presented evidence that Jesus knew people as no others did and that many believed in His name (2:23). This constitutes further witness that He is the Son of God. John summarized several conversations that Jesus had w...
• 4. John the Baptist's reaction to Jesus' ministry 3:22-30
  The writer next noted the parallel ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus in Judea. John the Baptist readily confessed Jesus' superiority to him even though they were both doing the same things. This was further testimony t...
• 4. The assurance of victory over death 15:50-58
  Paul brought his revelation of the resurrection to a climax in this paragraph by clarifying what all this means for the believer in Christ. Here he also dealt with the exceptional case of living believers' transformation at t...
• The contrast between the message and the messenger 4:7-15
  Paul presented many paradoxical contrasts involved in the sufferings and supports of the Christian to clarify for his readers the real issues involved in serving Jesus Christ."This passage, which is about suffering and death ...
• 1. Paul's reasons for making these claims 11:1-6
  In the first subsection he explained his need to present this evidence.11:1 Paul found it necessary to remind and reveal to the Corinthians some of the evidences of the Lord's commendation of his ministry (cf. 10:18). He call...
• Purpose
  Paul's frequent references to the church as a mystery, previously unknown but now revealed, identify the apostle's main purpose in writing as having been the exposition of the mystery of the church (1:9; 3:3-4, 9; 5:32; 6:19)...
• Outline
  I. Salutation 1:1-2II. The Christian's calling 1:3-3:21A. Individual calling 1:3-2:101. The purpose: glory 1:3-142. The means: knowledge 1:15-233. The motive: grace 2:1-10B. Corporate calling 2:11-3:191. Present unity 2:11-22...
• 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...
• Now alive in God 2:4-10
  The wrath of God on the unbeliever (v. 3) contrasts with the grace of God on the believer (vv. 5, 7, 8). God's grace toward some unbelievers gives them life (vv. 4-5), raises them up (v. 6), and seats them in heavenly realms ...
• 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...
• III. THE CHRISTIAN'S CONDUCT 4:1--6:20
  Practical application (chs. 4-6) now follows doctrinal instruction (chs. 1-3).
• 2. Walking in holiness 4:17-32
  In the first part of this chapter Paul stressed the importance of living in unity in the church. He turned next to the importance of living in holiness."The Bible was written to be obeyed, and not simply studied, and this is ...
• The basic admonition 5:15-21
  Paul began this section with a basic admonition (vv. 15-21). Then he applied this instruction to various groups of Christians (5:22-6:9).5:15 The word order and usage in the Greek text suggest that "careful"modifies "walk"rat...
• The duty of wives 5:22-24
  "After centuries of Christian teaching, we scarcely appreciate the revolutionary nature of Paul's views on family life set forth in this passage. Among the Jews of his day, as also among the Romans and the Greeks, women were ...
• The duty of husbands 5:25-33
  5:25 In the Greco-Roman world in which Paul lived, people recognized that wives had responsibilities to their husbands but not vice versa.137Paul summarized the wife's duty as submission and the husband's duty as love. The wo...
• The duty of fathers 6:4
  Paul addressed fathers because they are God's ordained family heads on whom the primary responsibility for child training rests. When a father is absent in a family, the mother usually assumes this responsibility. In Greco-Ro...
• The duty of slaves 6:5-8
  The third group that Paul addressed was slaves and masters (cf. 1 Cor. 7:17-24). Most slaves served in the home in Paul's day so this section fits in well with what precedes about other household relationships. Some students ...
• The duty of masters 6:9
  Masters should seek to please the Lord in their dealings with their slaves even as slaves should try to please Christ as they serve their masters. They should not threaten because our heavenly Master does not threaten us. Thr...
• Paul's message 1:25-27
  Paul's role in the household of God (the meaning of "stewardship") was that of a servant who fully expounded God's revelation for the benefit of his Gentile readers."He was a servant of the church, but in the deepest sense he...
• C. The fundamental relationships 3:18-4:1
  Paul next set forth certain principles to guide his readers in their most important interpersonal relationships. He did this to enable them to understand what behavior is consistent with union with Christ in these relationshi...
• 3. Slaves and masters 3:22-4:1 (cf. Eph. 6:5-9)
  3:22 Paul probably made this section longer than the preceding two because he sent this epistle to Colosse with the Epistle to Philemon. Onesimus, Philemon's run-away slave, carried them.166Moreover there may well have been m...
• VI. Women in the Ministry and Teaching of Paul and Peter
  A. Paul affirms the personal equality of man and woman in the new creation by stating that in Christ there is "neither male nor female"(Gal. 3:28).A woman obtains salvation by faith exactly as a man does (Eph. 2:8-9; 1 Pet. 1...
• Young women 2:4-5
  Paul listed seven responsibilities of these women. They were (1) to be lovers of their husbands (to put their welfare before self-interests), (2) to be lovers of their children, and (3) to be sensible (Gr. sophronas; self-con...
• Rationale 3:3-8
  3:3 To motivate his readers to obey these commands Paul encouraged them by reminding them of the way they used to be. They had already come a long way. Each characteristic he mentioned in this verse contrasts with one he had ...
• B. Respect for Others 2:13-3:12
  This section of the letter clarifies what it means to function obediently as God's people in a hostile world. It contains one of the tables of household duties in the New Testament (2:13-3:7; cf. Eph. 5:21-6:9; Col. 3:18-4:1)...
• 3. Wives' respect for their husbands 3:1-6
  Having explained before how Christians should conduct themselves in the world, Peter next gave directions about how Christian wives and husbands should behave. He did this to help his readers identify appropriate conduct in f...
• C. The Conduct of False Teachers 2:10b-19
  Peter next emphasized the conduct of false teachers to motivate his readers to turn away from them.2:10b "Daring"means bold to the point of being presumptuous, and "self-willed"is arrogant."They are concerned about doing thei...
• 1. The praise of God in heaven 19:1-10
  This pericope has strong ties to what precedes (16:17-18:24). It is the concluding revelation concerning the fall of Babylon, the latter-day Egypt and Tyre, and Antichrist, the ultimate Pharaoh of the Exodus and King of Tyre....