Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• Directions for the Passover 12:1-14
  The Jews called their first month Abib (v. 2). After the Babylonian captivity they renamed it Nisan (Neh. 2:1; Esth. 3:7). It corresponds to our March-April. Abib means "ear-month"referring to the month when the grain was in ...
• The veil 26:31-35
  The veil and curtains were alike in design and construction. The veil hung to act as a wall separating the holy and most holy places into two rooms.461The Book of Hebrews used the veil in the temple, which replaced this one i...
• David's trust in God 26:21-25
  Saul again confessed that he had sinned, as he had done when he had sacrificed at Gilgal (v. 21; cf. 15:24, 30) and when David had spared his life in the cave (24:17). Nevertheless he seems to have failed again to follow thro...
• 2. David's confidence in God's love 31:3-8
  The psalmist's confidence that the Lord would protect him was strong.31:3-4 David believed God would free him from his present entangling problems because the Lord had promised to help the righteous in their afflictions.31:5 ...
• Humility rather than sacrifice 66:1-6
  This section introduces judgment into the mood of hope that pervades this section describing Israel's glorious future (65:17-66:24). Oppressors of the godly remnant will not prosper nor will those who depend on externals for ...
• 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...
• The crucifixion and mockery of Jesus 27:32-44 (cf. Mark 15:21-32; Luke 23:26-43; John 19:17b-27)
  Matthew's emphasis in his account of Jesus' crucifixion was on the mocking of the onlookers.27:32 Jesus was able to carry the crosspiece of His cross until He passed through the city gate (cf. Mark 15:21 John 19:17). Normally...
• The death of Jesus 27:45-50 (cf. Mark 15:33-37; Luke 23:44-46; John 19:28-30)
  27:45 That "land"(Gr. ge) was abnormally dark from noon until 3:00 p.m. Matthew's use of geprobably indicates Israel. Darkness in Scripture often represents judgment and or tragedy (cf. Exod. 10:21-22; Amos 8:9-10). Matthew's...
• The placing of Jesus in the tomb 27:57-61 (cf. Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:31-42)
  Normally the Romans let the bodies of crucified criminals rot on their crosses without burial. If family members wanted to bury a crucified loved one, they had to apply for permission to do so. The Romans usually granted thes...
• The death of Jesus 15:33-41 (cf. Matt. 27:45-56; Luke 23:44-49; John 19:28-30)
  Mark's account of Jesus' death included five climactic events: the darkness, two of Jesus' cries, the tearing of the temple veil, and the Roman centurion's confession. All of these events happened during the last three of the...
• 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 announcement to the shepherds 2:8-20
  There is great theological significance in this familiar passage. It comes through mainly in the angel's words and in the symbolism of what happened."In 2:8-14 we have a third annunciation scene, which follows the same patter...
• B. The baptism of Jesus 3:21-22 (cf. Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; John 1:29-34)
  Luke's account of this significant event is shorter than the parallel passages. At His baptism, Jesus received the anointing of the Holy Spirit for His ministry. It was also the occasion for the Father to authenticate Jesus a...
• 2. Jesus' teaching in Nazareth 4:16-30
  In contrast to most people, the inhabitants of Jesus' hometown did not praise Him. When Jesus began to speak of God extending salvation to the Gentiles, a particular interest of Luke's, the Jews there opposed Him violently. P...
• 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...
• 1. The companions and supporters of Jesus 8:1-3
  Luke's account stresses that concern for the multitudes motivated Jesus' mission. Mark, on the other hand, presented opposition from the Jewish religious leaders as a reason for His activities. Matthew stressed Jesus' desire ...
• The Lord's Prayer 11:1-4 (cf. Matt. 6:9-13)
  Luke's record of Jesus' teaching the Lord's Prayer differs significantly enough from Matthew's account that we can safely conclude that Jesus gave similar teaching on separate occasions. This repetition illustrates the import...
• 7. A sign of Jesus' ability to affect change 13:10-17
  There are several thematic connections that tie this pericope with what has preceded and show its role in the development of Luke's argument. Jesus had just called the nation to repentance (vv. 3, 5). Now He showed that chang...
• 3. Jesus' postponement of the kingdom 13:31-35
  Another comment triggered teaching of a similar nature. The continuing theme is the messianic kingdom.13:31 This incident followed the former one chronologically. Therefore it is probable that Jesus' words about Jews not ente...
• 6. Jesus' second appearance before Pilate 23:13-25 (cf. Matt. 27:15-26; Mark 15:6-15; John 18:39-19:16)
  The overall impression that Luke presented with this part of his narrative is that Jesus' condemnation was a terrible travesty of justice. Pilate condemned an innocent man. This decision comes across as specially heinous sinc...
• F. The crucifixion of Jesus 23:26-49
  Luke's account of the crucifixion includes a prophecy of the fate of Jerusalem (vv. 29-31), more emphasis on the men who experienced crucifixion with Jesus (vv. 39-43), and less stress on the crowd that mocked Jesus. It clima...
• The criminals crucified with Jesus 23:32
  This verse constitutes a narrative bridge connecting Jesus' journey to the Cross with His crucifixion. One of its functions seems to be to introduce the two criminals who feature later in the story (vv. 33, 39-43). More impor...
• 2. Jesus' death 23:33-49
  The only parts of this section of Luke's Gospel that are unique are Jesus' prayer for His enemies (v. 34), the dialogue with the criminals (vv. 39-43), and Jesus' prayer of self-sacrifice to the Father (v. 46). Thus Luke pres...
• The mockery of Jesus' crucifixion 23:33-38 (cf. Matt. 27:33-43; Mark 15:22-32; John 19:18-24)
  23:33 Luke alone called the site of Jesus' crucifixion "the place called the skull"(Gr. kranion) rather than referring to it by its Aramaic name, Golgotha, and then translating it. This was undoubtedly an accommodation to his...
• The salvation of one criminal 23:39-43
  This is another incident that only Luke recorded. It reflects his interest in needy people receiving salvation from Jesus. This is such a dominent theme in Luke's Gospel that one commentator concluded that this incident is th...
• 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...
• G. The burial of Jesus 23:50-56 (cf. Matt. 27:57-66; Mark 15:42-47; John 19:31-42)
  This pericope is primarily transitional bridging the stories of Jesus' death and resurrection. It confirms the reality of Jesus' death. However, Luke included more information about Joseph of Arimathea (location unknown) than...
• H. The resurrection of Jesus 24:1-12 (cf. Matt. 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; John 20:1-10)
  Luke's account of the events following Jesus' resurrection stresses the reality of that event and the reactions of the witnesses to it. All these people felt depressed because of Jesus' death, but when they learned of His res...
• 2. The men crucified with Jesus 19:18 (cf. Matt. 27:38; Mark 15:27; Luke 23:33b)
  The horrors and shame of crucifixion are difficult for people who have grown up hearing pleas against "cruel and unusual punishment"to appreciate. It was a deliberately long and painful form of death that humiliated the suffe...
• 6. The death of Jesus 19:28-30 (cf. Matt. 27:48-50; Mark 15:36-37; Luke 23:46)
  John did not mention the darkness that came over the land as the other evangelists did (cf. Matt. 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44-45). This is noteworthy in view of John's interest in the light and darkness motif. Perhaps he di...
• 1. The removal of Jesus' body from the cross 19:31-37
  This pericope is unique to the fourth Gospel.19:31 The "day of preparation"was Friday, the day before the Sabbath (Saturday, cf. v. 14; Mark 15:42). The Jews considered sundown the beginning of a new day. In this case the new...
• 2. The burial of Jesus 19:38-42 (cf.Matt. 27:57-60; Mark 15:42-46; Luke 23:50-54)
  19:38 All four evangelists mentioned Joseph of Arimathea but only with Jesus' burial. The Synoptics tell us that he was a godfearing rich member of the Sanhedrin who was a follower of Jesus and who had not voted to condemn Je...
• The disciples' spiritual preparation 1:12-14
  1:12-13 The disciples returned to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Spirit. The short trip from where Jesus ascended on Mt. Olivet to the upper room was only a Sabbath day's journey away (about 2,000 cubits, two-third...
• 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...
• The dispersion of the witnesses 8:1b-3
  This short section sets the stage for Philip's ministry by giving us its cause.8:1b Stephen's execution ignited the first popular persecution of Christian Jews.348Since Stephen was a Hellenistic Jew, the Hellenistic Jewish Ch...
• 4. Ministry on the way to Rome 27:1-28:15
  For a number of reasons Luke seems to have described this stage of the gospel expansion in detail. He evidently wanted to demonstrate God's protection of Paul, to illustrate the increasingly Gentile nature of gospel expansion...
• A. The description of justification 3:21-26
  Paul began by explaining the concept of justification.92"We now come to the unfolding of that word which Paul in Chapter One declares to be the very heart of the gospel . . ."933:21 The "righteousness of God"here refers to Go...
• E. The universal applicability of justification 5:12-21
  Paul's final argument in support of justification by faith was a development of his previous emphasis on the solidarity that the saved experience with their Savior (5:1-2, 9-10). In this section (5:12-21) he expanded that ide...
• 4. Special revelations Paul received 12:1-10
  Paul had cited his freedom to minister without the Corinthians' financial support and his sufferings in ministry as grounds for boasting. He next mentioned the special visions and revelations that God had granted him. He refe...
• 2. The examples of Jesus and Paul 2:8-10
  Paul proceeded to undergird his appeal to suffer hardship with the examples of Jesus (v. 8) and Paul (vv. 9-10).2:8 The greatest example of suffering hardship for a worthy purpose, of course, is Jesus Christ. Paul urged Timot...
• 1. The three-fold admonition 10:19-25
  The writer began with a three-fold admonition, which is all one sentence in the Greek text. The long sentence intensifies the writer's appeal.306"In view of all that has been accomplished for us by Christ, he says, let us con...
• 2. The Vindication of Christ 3:18-22
  Peter now reminded his readers of the consequences of Jesus' response to unjustified persecution. He did so to strengthen their resolve to rededicate themselves to follow God's will wholeheartedly and confidently. He also wan...
• 2. Suffering as Christians 4:15-19
  4:15-16 However, we should not take comfort in suffering that we bring on ourselves for sinning, only suffering that we experience because we take a stand with Jesus Christ (cf. 2:20). Peter felt ashamed when he denied the Lo...
• 7. The fifth bowl 16:10-11
  16:10 The darkening of the (first) beast's throne appears to be literal; light will diminish (cf. Exod. 10:21-23; Isa. 60:2; Joel 2:1-2, 31; Mark 13:24). Another possibility is that this may be a figurative darkening in which...
• The restoration of Paradise 22:1-5
  Essentially what John saw next was Paradise regained (cf. 2:7; Gen. 2; Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 12:2). Having viewed the splendor of the New Jerusalem he now saw what will nourish and enrich the lives of God's people there."Up to t...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

• Words From The Cross
  And when they were come to the place which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. 34. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what ...
• I. The First Word Sets Jesus Forth As The All-Merciful Intercessor And Patient Friend Of Sinners.
  It is very significantly set in the centre of the paragraph (Luke 23:33-38) which recounts the heartless cruelty and mockery of soldiers and rulers. Surrounded by that whirlwind of abuse, contempt and ferocious glee at His su...
• The Dying Thief
  And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom.'--Luke 23:42.THERE is an old and true division of the work of Christ into three parts--prophet, priest, and king. Such a distinction manifestly exis...