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Texts -- Ezekiel 38:1--39:29 (NET)

Context
A Prophecy Against Gog
38:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 38:2 “Son of man , turn toward Gog , of the land of Magog , the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal . Prophesy against him 38:3 and say : ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : Look , I am against you, Gog , chief prince of Meshech and Tubal . 38:4 I will turn you around , put hooks into your jaws , and bring you out with all your army , horses and horsemen , all of them fully armed , a great company with shields of different types , all of them armed with swords . 38:5 Persia , Ethiopia , and Put are with them, all of them with shields and helmets . 38:6 They are joined by Gomer with all its troops , and by Beth Togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops – many peoples are with you. 38:7 “‘Be ready and stay ready , you and all your companies assembled around you, and be a guard for them. 38:8 After many days you will be summoned ; in the latter years you will come to a land restored from the ravages of war , with many peoples gathered on the mountains of Israel that had long been in ruins . Its people were brought out from the peoples, and all of them will be living securely . 38:9 You will advance ; you will come like a storm . You will be like a cloud covering the earth , you , all your troops , and the many other peoples with you. 38:10 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : On that day thoughts will come into your mind , and you will devise an evil plan . 38:11 You will say , “I will invade a land of unwalled towns; I will advance against those living quietly in security – all of them living without walls and barred gates – 38:12 to loot and plunder , to attack the inhabited ruins and the people gathered from the nations , who are acquiring cattle and goods , who live at the center of the earth .” 38:13 Sheba and Dedan and the traders of Tarshish with all its young warriors will say to you, “Have you come to loot ? Have you assembled your armies to plunder , to carry away silver and gold , to take away cattle and goods , to haul away a great amount of spoils ?”’ 38:14 “Therefore , prophesy , son of man , and say to Gog : ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : On that day when my people Israel are living securely , you will take notice 38:15 and come from your place , from the remote parts of the north , you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses , a great company and a vast army . 38:16 You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud covering the earth . In the latter days I will bring you against my land so that the nations may acknowledge me, when before their eyes I magnify myself through you, O Gog . 38:17 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : Are you the one of whom I spoke in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel , who prophesied in those days that I would bring you against them? 38:18 On that day , when Gog invades the land of Israel , declares the sovereign Lord , my rage will mount up in my anger . 38:19 In my zeal , in the fire of my fury , I declare that on that day there will be a great earthquake in the land of Israel . 38:20 The fish of the sea , the birds of the sky , the wild beasts , all the things that creep on the ground , and all people who live on the face of the earth will shake at my presence . The mountains will topple , the cliffs will fall , and every wall will fall to the ground . 38:21 I will call for a sword to attack Gog on all my mountains , declares the sovereign Lord ; every man’s sword will be against his brother . 38:22 I will judge him with plague and bloodshed . I will rain down on him, his troops and the many peoples who are with him a torrential downpour, hailstones , fire , and brimstone . 38:23 I will exalt and magnify myself; I will reveal myself before many nations . Then they will know that I am the Lord .’ 39:1 “As for you , son of man , prophesy against Gog , and say : ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : Look , I am against you, O Gog , chief prince of Meshech and Tubal ! 39:2 I will turn you around and drag you along ; I will lead you up from the remotest parts of the north and bring you against the mountains of Israel . 39:3 I will knock your bow out of your left hand hand and make your arrows fall from your right hand . hand . 39:4 You will fall dead on the mountains of Israel , you and all your troops and the people who are with you. I give you as food to every kind of bird and every wild beast . 39:5 You will fall dead in the open field ; for I have spoken , declares the sovereign Lord . 39:6 I will send fire on Magog and those who live securely in the coastlands ; then they will know that I am the Lord . 39:7 “‘I will make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel ; I will not let my holy name be profaned anymore . Then the nations will know that I am the Lord , the Holy One of Israel . 39:8 Realize that it is coming and it will be done , declares the sovereign Lord . It is the day I have spoken about. 39:9 “‘Then those who live in the cities of Israel will go out and use the weapons for kindling – the shields , bows and arrows , war clubs and spears – they will burn them for seven years . 39:10 They will not need to take wood from the field or cut down trees from the forests , because they will make fires with the weapons . They will take the loot from those who looted them and seize the plunder of those who plundered them, declares the sovereign Lord . 39:11 “‘On that day I will assign Gog a grave in Israel . It will be the valley of those who travel east of the sea ; it will block the way of the travelers . There they will bury Gog and all his horde ; they will call it the valley of Hamon-Gog . 39:12 For seven months Israel will bury them, in order to cleanse the land . 39:13 All the people of the land will bury them, and it will be a memorial for them on the day I magnify myself, declares the sovereign Lord . 39:14 They will designate men to scout continually through the land , burying those who remain on the surface of the ground , in order to cleanse it. They will search for seven full months . 39:15 When the scouts survey the land and see a human bone , they will place a sign by it, until those assigned to burial duty have buried it in the valley of Hamon-Gog . 39:16 (A city by the name of Hamonah will also be there.) They will cleanse the land .’ 39:17 “As for you , son of man , this is what the sovereign Lord says : Tell every kind of bird and every wild beast : ‘Assemble and come ! Gather from all around to my slaughter which I am going to make for you, a great slaughter on the mountains of Israel ! You will eat flesh and drink blood . 39:18 You will eat the flesh of warriors and drink the blood of the princes of the earth – the rams , lambs , goats , and bulls , all of them fattened animals of Bashan . 39:19 You will eat fat until you are full , and drink blood until you are drunk , at my slaughter which I have made for you. 39:20 You will fill up at my table with horses and charioteers , with warriors and all the soldiers ,’ declares the sovereign Lord . 39:21 “I will display my majesty among the nations . All the nations will witness the judgment I have executed , and the power I have exhibited among them. 39:22 Then the house of Israel will know that I am the Lord their God , from that day forward . 39:23 The nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile due to their iniquity , for they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies ; all of them died by the sword . 39:24 According to their uncleanness and rebellion I have dealt with them, and I hid my face from them . 39:25 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says : Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob , and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel . I will be zealous for my holy name . 39:26 They will bear their shame for all their unfaithful acts against me, when they live securely on their land with no one to make them afraid . 39:27 When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from the countries of their enemies , I will magnify myself among them in the sight of many nations . 39:28 Then they will know that I am the Lord their God , because I sent them into exile among the nations , and then gathered them into their own land . I will not leave any of them in exile any longer . 39:29 I will no longer hide my face from them , when I pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel , declares the sovereign Lord .”

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • Gog

    [isbe] GOG - gog (gogh; Goug): (1) A son of Joel, and descendant of the tribe of Reuben (1 Ch 5:4). (2) The prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal (Ezek 38:2 f; 39:1-16). His territory was known as the land of Magog, and he was the chie...
    [nave] GOG 1. A Reubenite, 1 Chr. 5:4. 2. A Scythian prince. Prophecy against, Ezek. 38; 39; Rev. 20:8.

  • EZEKIEL, 1

    [isbe] EZEKIEL, 1 - e-ze'-ki-el: I. THE PROPHET AND HIS BOOK 1. The Person of Ezekiel Name, Captivity and Trials 2. The Book (1) Its Genuineness (2) Its Structure (3) Relation to Jeremiah (4) Fate of the Book and Its Place in the C...

  • EZEKIEL, 2

    [isbe] EZEKIEL, 2 - II. Significance of Ezekiel in Israel's Religious History. Under the first head we will consider the formal characteristics and significance of the book; and the examination of its contents will form the subject...

  • Ezekiel, Book of

    [ebd] consists mainly of three groups of prophecies. After an account of his call to the prophetical office (1-3:21), Ezekiel (1) utters words of denunciation against the Jews (3:22-24), warning them of the certain destruction of ...

  • Tubal

    [ebd] (1.) The fifth son of Japheth (Gen. 10:2). (2.) A nation, probably descended from the son of Japheth. It is mentioned by Isaiah (66:19), along with Javan, and by Ezekiel (27:13), along with Meshech, among the traders with Ty...
    [isbe] TUBAL - tu'-bal (tubhal, tubhal; Septuagint Thobel, Codex Alexandrinus in Ezek 39:1, Thober): As the text stands, Tubal and Meshech are always coupled, except in Isa 66:19 (Massoretic Text) and Ps 120:5. In the former passag...
    [smith] is reckoned with Javan and Meshech among the sons of Japheth. (Genesis 10:2; 1 Chronicles 1:5) The three are again associated in the enumeration of the sources of the wealth of Tyre. (Ezekiel 27:13) Tubal and Javan, (Isaia...
    [nave] TUBAL, son of Japheth, Gen. 10:2; 1 Chr. 1:5. Descendants of, become a nation, Isa. 66:19; Ezek. 27:13; 32:26; 38:2, 3; 39:1.

  • Magog

    [isbe] MAGOG - ma'-gog (maghogh; Magog): Named among the sons of Japheth (Gen 10:2; 1 Ch 1:5). Ezekiel uses the word as equivalent to "land of Gog" (Ezek 38:2; 39:6). Josephus identifies the Magogites with the Scythians (Ant., I, v...
    [smith] (region of Gog). In (Genesis 10:2) Magog appears as the second son of Japheth; in (Ezekiel 38:2; 39:1,6) it appears as a country or people of which Gog was the prince. The notices of Magog would lead us to fix a northern loca...
    [nave] MAGOG Son of Japheth, Gen. 10:2; 1 Chr. 1:5. Prophecy concerning, Ezek. 38:2; 39:6. Symbolical of the enemies of God, Rev. 20:8.

  • Rosh

    [ebd] (Ezek. 38:2, 3; 39:1) is rendered "chief" in the Authorized Version. It is left untranslated as a proper name in the Revised Version. Some have supposed that the Russians are here meant, as one of the three Scythian tribes o...
    [smith] (Ezekiel 38:2,3; 39:1) probably a proper name, referring to the first of the three great Scythian tribes of which Magog was the head.
    [nave] ROSH 1. Son of Benjamin, Gen. 46:21. 2. An ancient people, Ezek. 38:2, 3; 39:1.

  • Hamon-gog

    [ebd] multitude of Gog, the name of the valley in which the slaughtered forces of Gog are to be buried (Ezek. 39:11,15), "the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea."
    [isbe] HAMON-GOG - ha'-mon-gog (hamon-gogh, "the multitude of Gog"): The name of the place where "Gog and all his multitude" are to be buried (Ezek 39:11,15). By a change in the pointing of Ezek 39:11, ha-`abharim for ha-`obherim, ...
    [nave] HAMON-GOG, another name for Hamonah, Ezek. 39:11, 15.

  • CREMATION

    [isbe] CREMATION - kre-ma'-shun (compare saraph, Josh 7:15, etc., "shall be burnt with fire"; kaio, 1 Cor 13:3, "If I give my body to be burned," etc.): Cremation, while the customary practice of the ancient Greeks, and not unknown...

  • Shield

    [ebd] used in defensive warfare, varying at different times and under different circumstances in size, form, and material (1 Sam. 17:7; 2 Sam. 1:21; 1 Kings 10:17; 1 Chr. 12:8, 24, 34; Isa. 22:6; Ezek. 39:9; Nahum 2:3). Used figur...
    [smith] The ordinary shield consisted of a framework of wood covered with leather; it thus admitted of being burnt. (Ezekiel 39:9) It was frequently cased with metal, either brass or copper; its appearance in this case resembled gold...
    [nave] SHIELD, defensive armor. Different kinds of, designated as buckler, shield, target, Psa. 35:2; Ezek. 38:4. Used by Saul, 2 Sam. 1:21; by the Benjamites, 2 Chr. 14:8; 17:17. Uzziah equipped the children of Israel with, 2 Chr...

  • JOEL (2)

    [isbe] JOEL (2) - (yo'el; Ioel): I. THE PROPHET II. THE BOOK 1. Literary Form 2. Outline of Contents 3. Interpretation (1) Literal (2) Allegorical 4. Indications of Date (1) Place in the Canon (2) Language and Style (3) Quotations ...

  • Meshech

    [ebd] drawing out, the sixth son of Japheth (Gen. 10:2), the founder of a tribe (1 Chr. 1:5; Ezek. 27:13; 38:2,3). They were in all probability the Moschi, a people inhabiting the Moschian Mountains, between the Black and the Casp...
    [nave] MESHECH 1. Called also Mesech. Son of Japheth, Gen. 10:2; 1 Chr. 1:5. 2. Son of Shem, 1 Chr. 1:17. 3. A tribe, Psa. 120:5; Ezek. 27:13; 32:26; 38:2, 3.

  • Burial

    [isbe] BURIAL - ber'-i-al (qebhurah; compare New Testament to entaphidsai): I. IMMEDIATE BURIAL CONSIDERED URGENT 1. Reasons for This 2. The Burial of Jesus 3. The Usual Time 4. Duties of Next of Kin II. PREPARATIONS FOR BURIAL 1. ...
    [nave] BURIAL Rites of, Jer. 34:5. Soon after death, Deut. 21:23; Josh. 8:29; John 19:38-42; Acts 5:9, 10. With spices, 2 Chr. 16:14; Mark 16:1; Luke 23:56. Bier used at, 2 Sam. 3:31; Luke 7:14. Attended by relatives and friend...

  • Hamonah

    [ebd] multitude, a name figuratively assigned to the place in which the slaughter and burial of the forces of Gog were to take place (Ezek. 39:16).
    [isbe] HAMONAH - ha-mo'-na (hamonah): The name of a city which stood apparently near HAMON-GOG (which see) (Ezek 39:16).
    [smith] (multitude), the name of a city mentioned in Ezekiel. (Ezekiel 39:16)
    [nave] HAMONAH, burial place of the multitudes of Gog, Ezek. 39:16.

  • COMPANY

    [isbe] COMPANY - kum'-pa-ni: The fertility of the original languages in synonyms and varied shades of meaning is seen by the fact that 20 Hebrew and 12 Greek words are represented by this single term. An analysis of these words sho...

  • God

    [nave] GOD. List of Sub-Topics Miscellany; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Access to; Compassion of; Creator; Creator of Mankind; Eternity of; Faithfulness of; Fatherhood of; Favor of; Foreknowledge of; Glory of; Goodness of...

  • Birds

    [isbe] BIRDS - burds (`ayiT; Greek variously ta peteina (Mt 13:4) ta ornea tou ouranou (Rev 19:17) ornis (Mt 23:37; Lk 13:34) Latin, avis; Old English "brid"): I. Meaning of the Word. All authorities agree that the exact origin of ...
    [nave] BIRDS Creation of, on the fifth creative day, Gen. 1:20-30. Mankind's dominion over, Gen. 1:26, 28; 9:2, 3; Psa. 8:5-8; Jer. 27:6; Dan. 2:38; Jas. 3:7. Appointed for food, Gen. 9:2, 3; Deut. 14:11-20. What species were un...

  • PASS, PASSAGE, PASSENGER

    [isbe] PASS, PASSAGE, PASSENGER - pas, pas'-aj, pas'-en-jer: "To pass" bears different meanings and corresponds to various words in Hebrew and Greek. It occurs frequently in the phrase "and it came to pass" (literally, "and it was"...

  • MESECH, MESHECH

    [smith] (drawing out), a son of Japhet, (Genesis 10:2; 1 Chronicles 1:5) and the progenitor of a race frequently noticed in Scripture in connection with Tubal, Magog and other northern nations. They appear as allies of God, (Ezeki...

  • MESHECH; MESECH

    [isbe] MESHECH; MESECH - me'-shek, me'-sek (meshekh, "long," "tall"; Mosoch): Son of Japheth (Gen 10:2; 1 Ch 1:5; 1:17 is a scribal error for "Mash"; compare Gen 10:22,23). His descendants and their dwelling-place (probably somewhe...
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  • Will the Jews return to the Holy Land, and will they ever, as a nation, acknowledge Christ as the Messiah? is often asked, and again it is sought to be known how they can be God's chosen people when they reject Christ. There ...

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • The poet bewailed the fact that he had to continue living with people such as liars who continually stir up strife (vv. 5-6). Meshech was a barbarous nation far to the north of Israel (cf. Ezek. 39:1-2). Kedar in northern Ara...
  • Having begun this oracle by clarifying God's desire for Israel (2:1-4), the prophet proceeded to contrast her present condition. She depended on people rather than Himself, a condition that would result in divine discipline (...
  • 4:11-12 The Lord also said that when this invasion would come it would descend like a violent wind from the north. It would be far more severe than an ordinary attack that the prophet compared to a gentle breeze that would wi...
  • Ezekiel ministered to the Jews in exile. He probably wrote this book for the benefit of the exiles and the other Jewish communities of his day and beyond his day. In some of his visions (e.g. chs. 8 and 11) the Lord carried t...
  • There are two major structural peculiarities that set Ezekiel off as distinctive.First, the book is a collection of prophecies arranged in almost consistent chronological order. No other prophetical book is as consistently ch...
  • Several theological concepts receive considerable attention in Ezekiel. Alexander identified five central ones: the nature of God, the purpose and nature of God's judgment, individual responsibility, the ethical, religious, a...
  • I. Ezekiel's calling and commission chs. 1-3A. The vision of God's glory ch. 11. The setting of the vision 1:1-32. The vision proper 1:4-28B. The Lord's charge to Ezekiel chs. 2-31. The recipients of Ezekiel's ministry 2:1-52...
  • 24:25-26 Evidently Ezekiel was not to deliver any more prophetic messages to his fellow exiles after he made the explanation in verses 20-24 until he received word of the destruction of the temple and the capture of the remai...
  • It is appropriate that this section appears at this point in Ezekiel, between the messages announcing judgment on Judah and Jerusalem for sin (chs. 4-24) and the messages announcing future blessings for Israel (chs. 33-48). I...
  • As in numerous other prophetic Scriptures, promises of Israel's restoration accompanied predictions of judgment on the nations (e.g. 34:27; 38:8; 39:26; Isa. 65:21; Jer. 23:6; Amos 9:14-15).28:25 The Lord also promised to reg...
  • "This last major division of the book focuses on the restoration of Israel's blessing. Israel would be judged for her sin (chaps. 1-24) as would the surrounding nations (chaps. 25-32). But Israel will not remain under judgmen...
  • Since this message is undated, it may have come to Ezekiel about the same time as the previous two in chapter 32, namely, in the last month of 585 B.C. If so, Ezekiel received it about two months after God gave him the six me...
  • "The concept of the land is particularly significant to the six messages [33:21-39:29] delivered in that one night before the news of Jerusalem's fall reached the exiles in Babylonia [cf. 33:21-22]. Since Jerusalem had fallen...
  • "The themes of regathering as sheep and of covenant merge in Ezekiel 34:25-31. The Lord promises to make a covenant of peace with His regathered sheep."44434:25 The Lord also promised to make a covenant of peace (i.e., result...
  • "The next verses in the chapter are among the most glorious in the entire range of revealed truth on the subject of Israel's restoration to the Lord and national conversion."46536:22-23 Ezekiel was to tell the Israelites that...
  • This is the sixth and last message that Ezekiel received from the Lord the night before the refugees reached the exiles with the message that Jerusalem had fallen (cf. 33:21-22). It too deals with God's plans for Israel in th...
  • 38:1-2 The Lord commanded Ezekiel to utter an oracle of judgment against Gog (cf. 1 Chron. 5:4; Rev. 20:8), who was the prince (king) over Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. His land was Magog (cf. Gen. 10:2; Rev. 20:8).The identity o...
  • 38:10-12 At that time Gog would devise an evil plan against the Israelites. He would plan to invade the Israelites while they are at rest and to plunder them. Israel would seem to be completely defenseless relying on her God ...
  • 38:14 The Lord wanted Ezekiel to tell Gog that on the day the Lord would call him up for service (v. 4) he would know that Israel dwelt securely in her own land.38:15-16 He and his allies would descend on Israel from the nort...
  • 38:17 The Lord asked rhetorically if it was Gog about whom He had spoken through His other servants the prophets many years earlier. "Are you he of whom the prophets spoke?"Yes, he was. This was not the first revelation of a ...
  • "Chapter 39 retells the story of God's attack and defeat but with a slightly different emphasis from that of the prior chapter. Not much attention is given to the attack itself (merely vv. 1-2), whereas a great deal of space ...
  • This message expands on one event that will take place at the end of the invasion (cf. v. 4).39:17-18 The Lord also instructed Ezekiel to prophesy to the birds and beasts to come and feast on the flesh of the invaders who had...
  • This message forms a fitting conclusion to the whole section of prophecies about Israel's restoration to the Promised Land (chs. 33-39) as well as to those about future invasion (chs. 38-39).39:25-26 The Lord promised to rest...
  • The Book of Ezekiel begins with a vision of God's glory (ch. 1), records the departure of God's glory (chs. 8-11), and ends with another vision of God's glory (chs. 40-48). This is the longest vision outside the Book of Revel...
  • 43:6 The prophet heard someone speaking to him from the temple, and there was a man, probably Ezekiel's guide, standing beside him (cf. 1:16).43:7-8 The one speaking from the temple, undoubtedly the Lord, told Ezekiel that th...
  • God promised Abraham that He would give a particular piece of real estate to his descendants (Gen. 12:7). Later He reiterated this promise and became more specific about its boundaries (Gen. 15:7, 18-21; 17:8; Num. 34:1-12). ...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968.Alexander, Ralph H. Ezekiel. Everyman's Bible Commentary series. Chicago: Moody Press, 1976._____. "Ezekiel."In Isaiah-Ezekiel. Vol. 6 of The Expo...
  • 11:40 Finally the very end time will arrive (cf. vv. 27, 35; 12:4, 9). Then this king will be the focus of attack by the king of the South (cf. vv. 42-43), a power south of Palestine, and the king of the North, a force to its...
  • God's judgment on unbelievers would accompany the spiritual renewal and deliverance of His own in the future day of the Lord. As God promised to wipe out the locusts for despoiling Judah, now He promised to do the same to the...
  • 4:1 Amos opened this second message as he did the first (ch. 3), with the cry, "Hear this word."He addressed the wealthy women of Samaria, calling them "cows of Bashan."Bashan was a very luxuriant region of Transjordan east a...
  • 4:1 Reference to "the last days"often points to the eschatological future in the Prophets, and it does here (e.g., Deut. 4:30; Ezek. 38:16; Dan. 2:28; 10:14; Hos. 3:5). This phrase usually refers to the Tribulation and or the...
  • 1:15 This is the first verse of chapter 2 in the Hebrew Bible. Nahum called his audience to give attention. Someone was coming over the mountains with a message of peace. Consequently the people of Judah could celebrate their...
  • The second description of Nineveh's fall is more philosophical than the first one and ends with a statement by Yahweh that gives the reason for its fall (v. 13).2:8 Nineveh had been as placid as the waters around the city for...
  • 2:1 The Lord revealed another message to Haggai almost one month later, on the twenty-first day of the seventh month (Tishri, modern October 17) of the same year, 520 B.C. This was the last day of the feast of Tabernacles (Bo...
  • 2:1-2 In the next scene of his vision, Zechariah saw a man (i.e., an angel who looked like a man) with a measuring line in his hand (cf. 1:11; 6:12; Ezek. 40:2-3). When the prophet asked him where he was going, he replied tha...
  • The focus now changes from physical to spiritual deliverance (cf. Deut. 30:1-10).12:10 The Lord also promised to pour out on the Davidic rulers and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, representing all the Israelites, a spirit of re...
  • Jesus' genealogy and virgin birth prove His legal human qualification as Israel's King. His baptism was the occasion of His divine approval. His temptation demonstrated His moral fitness to reign. The natural question a thoug...
  • The account of the calling of these first disciples clarifies that to repent and believe the gospel (v. 15) should result in abandoning one's former life to follow Jesus from then on. This is the appropriate response that Mar...
  • Another question led to this teaching. The thematic connection with Jesus' words about the small beginning of the kingdom (vv. 19, 21) should be obvious. As elsewhere, Luke recorded Jesus teaching lessons and using illustrati...
  • All the Gospels contain instances of Jesus giving the Great Commission to His disciples, but evidently He did not just give it once. The contexts are different suggesting that He repeated these instructions on at least four s...
  • Having announced His departure Jesus proceeded to offer the Holy Spirit for those who believed on Him (cf. chs. 14-16).7:37 The feast of Tabernacles lasted seven days (cf. Deut. 16:13). However the day following the feast was...
  • The key to the apostles' successful fulfillment of Jesus' commission was their baptism with and consequent indwelling by the Holy Spirit. Without this divine enablement they would only have been able to follow Jesus' example,...
  • 2:14-15 Peter, again representing the apostles (cf. 1:15), addressed the assembled crowd. He probably gave this speech in the Temple outer courtyard (the court of the Gentiles). He probably spoke in the vernacular, Aramaic or...
  • 6:3 When the Lamb broke the second seal on the scroll, John heard the second living creature order the second horseman forward.6:4 The red horse probably symbolizes bloodshed and war. The rider of this horse removes peace fro...
  • The scene shifts again, this time from heaven to earth. This first trumpet blast signaled the beginning of a judgment that involved hail, fire (lightning?), and blood (bloodshed? cf. Exod. 9:23-26; Ezek. 38:22). This judgment...
  • 16:17 This final judgment has the greatest impact of all since the air into which the angel pours his bowl is what humans breathe.535The loud voice is probably once again God's since it comes from the throne in the heavenly t...
  • 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...
  • 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...
  • 20:7 At the end of the Millennium God will release Satan from the abyss (cf. 1 Pet. 3:19). Two reasons are implied in the text: to demonstrate the incorrigibility of Satan, and to demonstrate the depravity of humanity.695God ...
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