Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• The transfer of prophetic power 2:1-14
  The Gilgal in view may have been the one between Jericho and the Jordan, or it may have been one about seven miles north of Bethel since Elijah and Elisha went down to Bethel (v. 2).10This account presupposes previous revelat...
• The Servant's confidence 50:4-9
  This is the third Servant Song (cf. 42:1-4; 49:1-6; 52:13-53:12). Like the second song, this one is autobiographical, but unlike the first and second songs it contains no reference to the Servant. That it is the Servant who i...
• B. Jeremiah's hope 3:19-40
  3:19 Jeremiah prayed that the Lord would remember his affliction and bitterness (cf. Job 13:15).3:20-21 He himself remembered something that gave him hope.3:22 The prophet remembered that the Lord's loyal love (Heb. hesed) ne...
• 3. The trials of Jesus 26:57-27:26
  Matthew stressed Jesus' righteousness for his readers by highlighting the injustice of His trials."The breaches in law are so numerous as to be unbelievable . . ."1026". . . even the ordinary legal rules were disregarded in t...
• The trial before the Sanhedrin 26:57-68 (cf. Mark 14:53-65; Luke 22:54, 63-65)
  Matthew omitted Jesus' hearing before Annas (John 18:12-14, 19-23). Quite possibly Annas lived in one wing of the same building in which the Sanhedrin met.102826:57 Josephus wrote that the building in which the Sanhedrin norm...
• Peter's denials of Jesus 26:69-75 (cf. Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22:55-62; John 18:15-18, 25-27)
  All four evangelists recorded three denials, but the details differ slightly.26:69-70 Peter was warming himself near the fire in the center of the courtyard (Mark 14:65; Luke 22:55; John 18:18). The servant girl's words expre...
• The formal decision of the Sanhedrin 27:1-2 (cf. Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71)
  Matthew's narrative directs the reader's attention from the courtyard back to the Sanhedrin's council chamber (v. 68).Evidently the chief priests and elders had to decide how they would present Jesus' case to Pilate to secure...
• B. The Servant's endurance of suffering 14:53-15:47
  Jesus' sufferings until now had been anticipatory. Now He began to experience pain resulting from His trials and crucifixion. As the faithful Servant of the Lord who came to do His Father's will, His sufferings continued to i...
• The hearing before Caiaphas 14:53-65 (cf. Matt. 26:57-68; Luke 22:54, 63-65; John 18:24)
  14:53 The high priest in view here was Caiaphas. Interestingly Mark never mentioned him by name. He was the high priest that the Romans had appointed in 18 A.D., and he served in this capacity until 36 A.D.This was an unoffic...
• Peter's denial of Jesus 14:66-72 (cf. Matt. 26:69-75; Luke 22:55-62; John 18:16-18, 25-27)
  This event happened below in the courtyard while the hearing just described continued on the floor above. These verses resume what Mark introduced in verse 54. The events were contemporaneous with Jesus' examination by the Sa...
• Outline
  I. Introduction 1:1-4II. The birth and childhood of Jesus 1:5-2:52A. The announcement of John the Baptist's birth 1:5-251. The introduction of John's parents 1:5-72. The angel's announcement to Zechariah 1:8-233. The pregnanc...
• 2. The raising of a widow's son 7:11-17
  This miracle raised the popular appreciation of Jesus' authority to new heights. Luke also continued to stress Jesus' compassion for people, in this case a widow whose son had died, by including this incident in his Gospel. T...
• 2. Judas' betrayal 22:47-53 (cf. Matt. 26:47-56; Mark 14:43-52; John 18:2-12)
  22:47-48 All the synoptic evangelists noted the close connection between Jesus' praying and the arrival of the soldiers. It was very important that Jesus pray. Judas preceded the arresting mob (Gr. ochlos, crowd) as Jesus had...
• 1. Peter's denial of Jesus 22:54-62 (cf. Matt. 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; John 18:15-18, 25-27)
  Luke placed Peter's denial ahead of Jesus' trial before Caiaphas whereas Matthew and Mark intertwined these events. The effect in Luke is to focus the reader's attention on Peter's behavior immediately after Jesus' prediction...
• 3. Jesus' trial before the Sanhedrin 22:66-71 (cf. Matt. 27:1; Mark 15:1a)
  Luke is the only Gospel writer who gave us an account of what happened at this official meeting of the Sanhedrin. It followed informal interviews late at night by Annas and Caiaphas. This meeting took place very early on Frid...
• 4. Jesus' first appearance before Pilate 23:1-7 (cf. Matt. 27:2, 11-14; Mark 15:1b-5; John 18:28-38)
  Jesus' trial now moved from its Jewish phase into its Roman phase.497It did not take long for Pilate to determine that Jesus was innocent of any crime worthy of death. Notwithstanding the record stresses how difficult it was ...
• 5. Jesus' appearance before Herod 23:8-12
  Luke alone recorded this aspect of Jesus' Roman trial. He probably did so because Herod Antipas found no basis for condemning Jesus either. Thus Luke cited two official witnesses to Jesus' innocence for his readers' benefit (...
• Jesus' self-sacrifice to God 23:44-49 (cf. Matt. 27:45-56; Mark 15:33-41; John 19:28-30)
  Luke included three things in this heart of the death scene. He gave two evidences of God's displeasure with people for rejecting His Son. He recorded Jesus' prayer of trust in the Father, and he noted three immediate reactio...
• 2. Jesus' announcement of His betrayal 13:21-30 (cf. Matt. 26:21-25; Mark 14:18-21; Luke 22:21-23)
  Jesus had spoken only briefly about His betrayal until now (cf. 6:70; 13:10, 18). Now He gave the Twelve more specific information.13:21-22 The prospect of His imminent betrayal and death upset Jesus visibly (Gr. etarachthe, ...
• 3. Annas' interrogation of Jesus 18:19-24
  John's version of Peter's denial is quite similar to those of the other Gospel writers, but His revelation of Jesus' interrogation by Annas is unique. None of the other evangelists mentioned it.18:19 Clearly Annas was the (un...
• 4. Peter's second and third denials of Jesus 18:25-27 (cf. Matt. 26:71-75; Mark 14:69-72; Luke 22:58-62)
  John took his readers back to the courtyard where Peter stood warming himself with the high priest's servants and officers (v. 18).18:25 Under pressure again, Peter denied for a second time that he was one of Jesus' disciples...
• 1. The Jews' charge against Jesus 18:28-32 (cf. Luke 23:1-2)
  John began his version of this civil trial by narrating the initial public meeting of Pilate and Jesus' accusers.54318:28 "They"(NASB) refers to all the Jewish authorities (cf. Matt. 27:1-2; Mark 15:1; Luke 23:1). They led Je...
• The arrest of Peter and John 4:1-4
  In chapters 4-7 there is a series of similar confrontations with each one building up to the crisis of Stephen's death and the persecution that followed. The first four verses of chapter 4 conclude the incident recorded in ch...
• The Sanhedrin's response 4:13-22
  4:13-14 The Sanhedrin observed in Peter and John what they had seen in Jesus, namely courage to speak boldly and authoritatively without formal training (cf. Matt. 7:28-29; Mark 1:22; Luke 20:19-26; John 7:15). They may also ...
• The apostles' appearance before the Sanhedrin 5:17-33
  The popularity and effectiveness of the apostles riled the Sadducees just as Jesus' popularity and effectiveness had earlier.5:17-18 The high priest "rose up"(Gr. anastas, cf. v. 34) taking official action as leader of the Sa...
• 3. Stephen's death 7:54-8:1a
  Stephen's speech caused a revolution in the Jews' attitude toward the disciples of Jesus, and his martyrdom began the first persecution of the Christians.Luke recorded the Sanhedrin's response to Stephen's message to document...
• Paul's defense before the Sanhedrin 22:30-23:10
  "The irregular structure of Luke's account of Paul's defense before the Sanhedrin evidently reflects the tumultuous character of the session itself. Three matters pertaining to Luke's apologetic purpose come to the fore: (1) ...
• 1. The argument from culture 11:2-6
  Paul introduced the first of the two subjects he dealt with in this chapter, the Corinthian women's participation in church worship, with praise. He did not introduce the second subject this way (vv. 17, 22). As with the othe...
• C. Correction of another apostle 2:11-21
  Paul mentioned the incident in which he reproved Peter, the Judaizers' favorite apostle, to further establish his own apostolic authority and to emphasize the truth of his gospel.2:11 Peter had shaken hands with Paul in Jerus...
• B. The true doctrine of Christ 2:8-15
  Paul revealed what his readers enjoyed in Christ in this pericope to encourage them to remain faithful to the true revelation they had received and believed."The apostle now makes his most direct attack against the Colossian ...
• 3. A popular saying 2:11-13
  To encourage Timothy further to endure hardship Paul cited a commonly accepted and used quotation that encouraged believers to remain faithful to their Christian profession (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15; 3:1; 4:9; Titus 3:8). It may have ...
• A. The Agent of God's Final Revelation 1:1-4
  The writer began his epistle with an affirmation of Jesus Christ's greatness to introduce his readers to his subject. This section is one sentence in the Greek text. It contrasts God's old revelation with the new, specificall...
• 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...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

• Gethsemane
  And: He came out, and went, as He was wont, to the mount of Olives; and His disciples also followed Him. 40. And when He was at the place, He said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41. And He was withdrawn fr...
• The Cross The Victory And Defeat Of Darkness
  This is your hour, and the power of darkness.'--Luke 22:53.THE darkness was the right time for so dark a deed. The surface meaning of these pathetic and far-reaching words of our Lord's in the garden to His captors is to poin...
• In The High Priest's Palace
  Then took they Him, and led Him, and brought Him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off. 55. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them....
• III. We Have The Formal Rejection And Condemnation By The Council.
  The hearing recorded in Luke 22:66-71 took place' as soon as it was day,' and was apparently a more formal official ratification of the proceedings of the earlier examination described by Matthew and John. The ruler's questio...
• Christ's Look
  And the Lord turned and looked upon Peter.'--Luke 22:61.ALL four Evangelists tell the story of Peter's threefold denial and swift repentance, but we owe the knowledge of this look of Christ's to Luke only. The other Evangelis...