Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• Scope
  The events recorded in Genesis stretch historically from Creation to Joseph's death, a period of at least 2500 years. The first part of the book (ch. 1-11) is not as easy to date precisely as the second part (ch. 12-50). The ...
• Purpose
  Genesis provides the historical basis for the rest of the Bible and the Pentateuch, particularly the Abrahamic Covenant. Chapters 1-11 give historical background essential to understanding that covenant, and chapters 12-50 re...
• Outline
  The structure of Genesis is very clear. The phrase "the generations of"(toledotin Hebrew, from yaladmeaning "to bear, to generate") occurs ten times (really eleven times since 36:9 repeats 36:1), and in each case it introduce...
• Expulsion from the garden 3:22-24
  Verse 22 shows that man's happiness (good) does not consist in his being likeGod as much as it depends on his being withGod (cf. Ps. 16:11).221"Like one of us"may mean like heavenly beings (God and the angels; cf. 1:26).222Ch...
• D. What became of Noah 6:9-9:29
  The Lord destroyed the corrupt, violent human race and deluged its world, but He used righteous Noah to preserve life and establish a new world after the Flood."Noah's experience presents decisively the author's assertion tha...
• F. What became of Shem 11:10-26
  "The Babel account (11:1-9) is not the end of early Genesis. If it were, the story would conclude on the sad note of human failure. But as with earlier events in Genesis 1-11, God's grace once again supersedes human sin, insu...
• II. PATRIARCHAL NARRATIVES 11:27--50:26
  One of the significant changes in the emphasis that occurs at this point in Genesis is from cursing in the primeval record to blessing in the patriarchal narratives. The Abrahamic Covenant is most important in this respect. H...
• A. What became of Terah 11:27-25:11
  A major theme of the Pentateuch is the partial fulfillment of the promises to the patriarchs. The promises in Genesis 12:1-3 and 7 are the fountainhead from which the rest of the Pentateuch flows.397Walter Kaiser labeled the ...
• The divine promises 12:1-9
  "These verses are of fundamental importance for the theology of Genesis, for they serve to bind together the primeval history and the later patriarchal history and look beyond it to the subsequent history of the nation."414"W...
• 2. Abram in Egypt 12:10-20
  The second crisis Abram faced arose because of a famine in Canaan. Abram chose to sojourn in the Nile Valley until it was past. In this incident Abram tried to pass Sarai off as his sister because he feared for his life. By d...
• Abram's war with four kings 14:1-16
  A major significance of this literary unit is that it describes two more challenges to God's faithfulness and Abram's faith. So far Abram had had to contend with several barriers to God's fulfilling His promises to him. His w...
• Abram's meeting with two kings 14:17-24
  This section records an important decision Abram had to make after he returned victoriously from his battle with the Mesopotamian kings.14:17 The "valley of Shaveh"was near Jerusalem (the Salem of verse 18). It may have been ...
• 5. The Abrahamic Covenant ch. 15
  Abram asked God to strengthen his faith. In response Yahweh promised to give the patriarch innumerable descendants. This led Abram to request some further assurance that God would indeed do what He promised. God graciously ob...
• 10. The destruction of Sodom ch. 19
  Chapters 18 and 19 "paint a vivid contrast between the respective patriarchal ancestors, Abraham and Lot, with an obvious moralistic intent (i.e., a demonstration that human initiatives--Lot's choice--always lead to catastrop...
• 16. The purchase of Sarah's tomb ch. 23
  Abraham's purchase of a burial site in the Promised Land demonstrated his intention to remain in Canaan rather than going back to his native homeland. Since he was a sojourner in Canaan his friends probably expected him to bu...
• C. What became of Isaac 25:19-35:29
  A new toledotbegins with 25:19. Its theme is "the acquisition of the blessing and its development and protection by the Lord."625Moses set up the whole Jacob narrative in a chiastic structure that emphasizes the fulfillment o...
• 3. Isaac and Abimelech 26:1-11
  God prevented Isaac from leaving the Promised Land and renewed the covenant with him, but then He had to protect Rebekah when Isaac lied about his relationship with her to Abimelech."In the short span of one chapter, the writ...
• Bibliography
  Aalders, Gerhard Charles. Genesis. The Bible Student's Commentary series. 2 vols. Translated by William Heynen. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1981.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas...
• 5. The friendliness of Jethro the Midianite ch. 18
  As a Midianite, Jethro was a descendant of Abraham as was Amalek. Both were blood relatives of the Israelites. Nevertheless the attitudes of the Amalekites and Jethro were very different, though Midian as a nation was hostile...
• 4. The redemption of tithes 27:30-34
  God claimed as His possession one tenth of the seed, fruit, and livestock of the Israelites. If the owner wished to keep some of this himself, he had to pay the value of what he kept to God plus 20 percent. This tithe was a c...
• War ch. 20
  These instructions deal with how Israel was to come into possession of the Promised Land (cf. Num. 33:50-56). They are in the context of civil legislation because Israel did not have a standing army. Soldiers volunteered to g...
• D. Moses' blessing of the tribes ch. 33
  After receiving the reminder of his death and as one of his final official acts as Israel's leader, Moses pronounced a prophetic blessing on the tribes of Israel (cf. Gen. 49)."In the ancient Near East, a dying father's final...
• 6. Victory over the Amorite alliance at Gibeon 10:1-27
  Israel's continuing success led her enemies to exert increasing opposition against the people of God. This chapter records the Canaanites' first aggressive action against the Israelites.10:1-5 The Jebusites lived in and aroun...
• Micah's attempt to recover his losses 18:21-26
  Micah gathered some of his neighbors and pursued the Danites hoping to force them to return what they had taken from him. However the Danites proved stronger than he anticipated, and he had to withdraw without a fight (cf. Ge...
• Scope
  The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
• 3. David's acceptance by all Israel 5:1-12
  In 1004 B.C. David became king of all Israel and Judah.50This was his third anointing (cf. 1 Sam. 16:13; 2 Sam. 2:4). The people acknowledged David's previous military leadership of all Israel as well as God's choice of him t...
• 5. Promise to praise 7:17
  David closed his psalm with a vow to thank and praise God for His righteousness. Even though God had not yet vindicated him, his reflection on the character and activities of the Lord encouraged him to believe that He would d...
• 1. The manifestation of God's judgment 76:1-3
  God made His great name known in Israel by defeating an enemy of His people. Salem is Jerusalem (Gen. 14:18; Heb. 7:1-2). Evidently Asaph composed this song after an enemy attacked Jerusalem unsuccessfully....
• 2. The record of God's faithfulness to Israel 105:7-41
  105:7-11 God remembered His people (v. 7, cf. v. 42) so His people should remember Him (v. 5). God had been faithful to the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:1-3, 7; 15:18-21; 22:15-18; 28:13-15). He made this covenant with Abraham...
• 2. The rule of Messiah 110:3-4
  110:3 When Messiah comes to rule over His enemies His people will willingly join in His reign (cf. Judg. 5:2). They will be holy in contrast to the unholy whom Messiah will subdue. They will be as youthful warriors, namely st...
• 1. The promise of divine enablement 1:4-10
  1:4 The prophet now began speaking to his readers and telling them what the Lord had said to him. Throughout this book, an indication that the Lord had told Jeremiah something is often the sign of a new pericope, as here (cf....
• H. The oracle against Elam 49:34-39
  Elam was the land of the Elamites who lived in Mesopotamia somewhat east of the Babylonians (in modern southwest Iran). We know little about the history of the Elamites, and their inclusion in a collection of judgments agains...
• The deliverance of a demoniac in Gadara 5:1-20 (cf. Matt. 8:28-34; Luke 8:26-39)
  Even though Mark had already reported that Jesus had exorcized many demons, this case was extraordinary.5:1 Mark and Luke called this area the country of the Gerasenes, but Matthew called it the country of the Gadarenes. Gerg...
• 2. The deliverance of a demoniac in Gadara 8:26-39 (cf. Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20)
  The raging of this demoniac was even worse than the raging of the waters of Galilee (cf. Ps. 65:7). Demonic power was evident in the Hellenistic world of Luke's original readers. The fact that this incident happened in predom...
• 5. The joy of comprehension 10:21-24
  This incident followed the preceding one immediately (v. 21). The subject of joy continues, and the section on the responsibilities and rewards of discipleship reaches its climax here. Jesus expressed His joy to the Father in...
• 1. Abraham's justification by faith 4:1-5
  Paul began this chapter by showing that God declared Abraham righteous because of the patriarch's faith.4:1 By referring to Abraham as "our forefather after the flesh"(v. 1) Paul revealed that he was aiming these comments at ...
• 1. Arrangements for the collection 16:1-4
  16:1 It seems that the Corinthian Christians had heard about the collection (Gr. logeias, extra collection) Paul was getting together for the poor saints in Jerusalem (v. 3) and wanted to make a contribution. James, Peter, an...
• The significance of Melchizedek 7:1-10
  The writer began by explaining the significance of Melchizedek since understanding him is foundational to appreciating Jesus Christ's high priestly ministry.213"The dominant text in 7:1-10 is Gen 14:17-20, but in chap. 7 as a...
• The particulars of Melchizedek's significance 7:1-3
  7:1-2 The writer referred to Melchizedek (lit. righteous king, probably a title rather than a proper name) as the head of a priestly order. It was not uncommon for one individual to combine the roles of priest and king in ant...
• The superior priesthood of Jesus 7:11-25
  Having shown the superiority of Melchizedek to Abraham and Levi, the writer proceeded to point out the superiority of Melchizedek's priesthood and Jesus' priesthood. He did so to clarify for his readers the inferiority of the...
• 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),...
• 2. The announcement of the mighty angel 10:5-7
  10:5 The fact that the angel took an oath and swore by God seems to confirm that he is not God. Lifting the right hand toward God was and is a customary gesture when making a solemn oath (cf. Gen. 14:22; Deut. 32:40; Dan. 12:...