Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• The first day 1:3-5
  1:3 The world came into being by God's word (cf. Ps. 33:9; Heb. 11:3). Each of the six creative days began with God speaking.55Jesus Christ, the Word of God, was the Creator (John 1:3). The theme of God's word (spoken, writte...
• The creation of man 2:4-17
  2:4 Having related the creation of the universe as we know it, God next inspired Moses to explain for his readers what became of it.129Sin entered it and devastated it."The destiny of the human creation is to live in God's wo...
• E. The faithfulness of God 21:43-45
  These verses conclude the account of the division of the land proper (chs. 13-21; cf. 1:2-6; 11:23). They bind the two parts of the second half of the book together. They form a theological conclusion to the entire book up to...
• 2. God's presence in Zion 46:4-7
  46:4-5 God's presence in Jerusalem was similar to that of a refreshing life-giving river rather than the raging sea (v. 3; cf. Isa. 8:6; 33:21). Old Jerusalem, of course, had no literal river flowing through it (cf. Rev. 22:1...
• 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...
• The importance of continuing to seek wisdom 3:11-20
  Even though the price one has to pay for wisdom (i.e., life within the will of God) includes submitting to God's discipline (vv. 11-12), it is worth it (vv. 13-20)."Loath"(v. 11b) means to shrink back from (cf. Heb. 12:5-6). ...
• 1. The future of the righteous on earth 9:1-10
  9:1 "All this"refers to the general pattern of God's inconsistent retribution that Solomon had discussed. Even though he could not predict whether a given person would experience prosperity or adversity, he believed all peopl...
• The world rejoicing in Messiah's reign ch. 25
  Isaiah next described the remnant who will stream to Zion praising God at the beginning of Messiah's reign. Notice the many triadic formations in the structure of this chapter, creating a feeling of the completeness of joy. T...
• A song 26:1-6
  26:1 The prophet revealed another song that will be sung "in that day"(the Millennium, cf. ch. 25) by those in Zion.The New Jerusalem that God will set up will be a place of strength and security for the redeemed (cf. Rev. 21...
• Two woes against Jerusalem ch. 29
  There are two more "woes"that deal with Jerusalem in this chapter (vv. 1-14, 15-24) in addition to the one in chapter 28. The first of these is similar to the previous "woe"(cf. vv. 1-8 with 28:1-6, and vv. 9-14 with 28:7-13)...
• The woe against destroyers of God's people ch. 33
  There is general correspondence between this sixth "woe"and the third one (29:15-24), but this one deals more with application and the third one more with principles. It is the most eschatological of the "woes,"though it cont...
• The Lord's arm 51:9-16
  The Israelites cried out for God to act for them. He had done so in their past history, but they needed His help now. Probably the believing remnant was requesting help.51:9 Israel's call for God to awake assumes that He had ...
• New heavens and a new earth 65:17-25
  God not only will be faithful to His promises in spite of Israel's unfaithfulness (63:1-65:16), but He will demonstrate His ability and desire to provide righteousness for sinful humankind by creating new heavens and a new ea...
• 6. Ezekiel's muteness 3:22-27
  3:22 While Ezekiel was among the exiles in Tel-abib, the Lord directed him to go out to the nearby plain where the Lord promised to speak with him (cf. ch. 1; Acts 9:6; Gal. 1:16-17).3:23 Ezekiel obeyed the Lord. While he was...
• C. Ezekiel's vision of the return of God's glory chs. 40-48
  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...
• 2. The millennial temple 40:5-42:20
  Earlier Ezekiel hinted that there would be a future temple in the restored Promised Land (20:40; 37:24-28). Now he described it in considerable detail. Some of the detail is here to help the reader understand what the writer ...
• The temple river 47:1-12
  47:1 Ezekiel's guide, who appears to have been his original guide in this vision (v. 3), brought him back to the main entrance to the temple proper. Ezekiel saw water flowing to the east from under the temple threshold.565It ...
• Bibliography
  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...
• 4. The interpretation of the four beasts 7:15-18
  7:15-16 Even though Daniel understood all kinds of visions and dreams (1:17), much of what he had just seen baffled and alarmed him (cf. 7:28). He now saw himself participating in the events of his vision. He evidently addres...
• A. Israel's spiritual renewal and deliverance 2:28-32
  2:28-29 After this, namely, after the deliverance from the northern invader just described, God promised to pour out His Spirit on all mankind without gender, age, class, or position distinction.29In Old Testament times God g...
• The final deliverance of Israel and the return of Messiah 14:1-8
  14:1 The Lord announced through His prophet that a day was coming, for His benefit primarily, when the nations that had plundered Israel victoriously would divide their spoil among themselves in Jerusalem. This would be the L...
• The explanation of the parable of the weeds 13:36-43
  Matthew separated the explanation of this parable from its telling in the text (vv. 24-30). He evidently did this to separate more clearly for the reader the parables Jesus spoke to the multitudes from the parables He told Hi...
• The parable of the talents 25:14-30
  The other important quality that will make a servant blessed when Jesus returns, in addition to prudence, is faithfulness (cf. 24:45-46). This parable explains what Jesus regards as faithfulness. Essentially it involves using...
• 5. The certainty of these events 21:29-33 (cf. Matt. 24:32-35; Mark 13:28-31)
  Jesus told the parable of the fig tree to illustrate the certainty of what He had prophesied. He then gave other assurances of fulfillment. Luke omitted Jesus' statement that no one would know the day or hour when He would re...
• Message27
  In one sense the Gospel of John is more profound than the Synoptics. It is the most difficult Gospel for most expositors to preach and to teach for reasons that will become evident as we study it. In another sense, however, t...
• The promise of a heavenly home 14:1-4
  14:1 Jesus was troubled because of what lay before Him, and the Eleven were troubled (Gr. tarassestho) because they did not understand what lay before them. Jesus had just told them that He was going to leave them (13:33), bu...
• Peter's visit to Cornelius 10:23b-33
  10:23b-24 Peter wisely took six other Jewish Christians with him (11:12). A total of seven believers witnessed what took place in Cornelius' house. The trip from Caesarea to Joppa took part of two days (v. 30). Cornelius was ...
• 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...
• B. Denunciation 1:6-10
  In these opening words Paul rebuked his readers for turning away from the gospel that he had preached to them and for turning toward a different "gospel."He accused them of being religious turncoats. He did so to impress them...
• B. The Superiority of God's Son 1:5-14
  The writer proceeded to explain the exaltation of Jesus Christ to help his readers appreciate the fact that He fulfilled Old Testament prophecy concerning the Son of David. He did this so they would appreciate Him properly an...
• Historical background
  The opening verses of the book state that "John"wrote it (1:1, 4, 9; cf. 22:8). >From the first century to the present day almost all orthodox scholars have concluded that this means the Apostle John.1Two noteworthy exception...
• Message8
  The subject of the Book of Revelation is Jesus Christ (1:1). It is an unveiling ("revelation") of Him. What does this book reveal about Christ? The Book of Revelation is the unveiling of the person of Jesus Christ, the power ...
• Outline
  I. The preparation of the prophet ch. 1A. The prologue of the book 1:1-81. The preface 1:1-32. The address and doxology 1:4-63. The theme 1:7-8B. The commission of the prophet 1:9-201. The first commission to write 1:9-112. T...
• 1. The preface 1:1-3
  The Apostle John wrote these opening verses to introduce to his readers the main subject dealt with in this book and his purpose for writing it.1:1 "The revelation of Jesus Christ"is the subject of this book. "Revelation"mean...
• 3. The theme 1:7-8
  These verses contain the first prophetic oracle of the book. The only other one in which God speaks is in 21:5-8.1:7 "Behold"(Gr. idou) indicates special divine intervention. This verse summarizes the main features of the rev...
• 3. The amplification of the commission 1:17-20
  John's response to this revelation was similar to Daniel's response to the vision God gave him (cf. Dan. 10:7-9). Jesus then proceeded to give John more information about what He wanted him to do.1:17 This revelation of Jesus...
• II THE LETTERS TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES chs. 2--3
  Before analyzing each of the seven letters that follows we should note some of their features as a group. They are similar in that they are all brief, and each contains a unique description of the Lord Jesus drawn from 1:12-2...
• 5. Promise 2:7
  An invitation preceded the promise, as in all the letters to follow (cf. 1:3). Jesus was the only person to issue this invitation in Scripture. The Gospels also record Him doing so seven times (Matt. 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9...
• 3. Promise 3:9-11a, 12
  Jesus Christ gave no rebuke to this church, as was true of the church in Smyrna. He gave the Christians five promises instead.1. Their Jewish antagonists would eventually have to acknowledge that the Christians were the true ...
• 4. Promise 3:20-22
  In the context we note that God addressed well-known verse 20 to Christians."The first thing which a person mustget fixed in his mind when studying the message to the Church in Laodicea is the fact that the Spirit of God is a...
• III. THE REVELATION OF THE FUTURE 4:1--22:5
  John recorded the rest of this book to reveal those aspects of the future that God wanted His people to know (cf. 1:19). He revealed the events in chapters 4-18 to enable the readers to understand events leading up to Jesus C...
• The worship of God 4:9-11
  4:9 Whenever it is appropriate and possible the four living creatures give praise to eternal God. They glorify and honor Him for His perfections, and they thank Him for His great works, especially His creation (v. 11).4:10 Th...
• 2. The salvation of the great multitude 7:9-17
  There are a number of contrasts between the 144,000 and this great multitude. The number of the first group is not only smaller but definite whereas the number of the second group is larger and indefinite. People from the 12 ...
• 1. The temple in Jerusalem 11:1-2
  11:1 "And"(Gr. kai) ties this chapter closely to the previous one. John's first prophetic assignment after receiving his fresh commission was to provide this information.Again John became an active participant in his vision (...
• 5. The end of the second woe 11:14
  This verse is transitional (cf. 9:12). It refers to the end of the second woe (the sixth trumpet, 9:21) and ties this judgment in with the third woe (the seventh trumpet). It clarifies that God interjected the revelations of ...
• G. The seventh trumpet judgment 11:15-19
  John's revelation continued to unfold future events as God revealed these to him in his vision. The scene John saw next was in heaven. The seventh trumpet judgment did not begin immediately (cf. 8:1-5), but John received info...
• 1. Judgment at the end of the Great Tribulation ch. 14
  John recorded these scenes of his vision to assure his readers of the triumph of believers and the judgment of unbelievers at the end of the Tribulation."The two previous chapters have prepared Christians for the reality that...
• The triumph of the 144,000 14:1-5
  14:1 "And I looked"(Gr. kai eidon) introduces three scenes in chapter 14 (vv. 1, 6, 14), as this phrase did twice in chapter 13 (vv. 1, 11). "Behold"(Gr. idou, cf. v. 14) calls special attention to the greatness of the sight ...
• The blessedness of those who die in Christ 14:13
  This "voice"was probably the Lamb's (1:10-11, 19; cf. 10:4, 8; 11:12; 14:2; 18:4; 21:3). The voice told John to record that it would be a blessing for the believers who live during the Great Tribulation to die as martyrs. The...
• 8. The sixth bowl 16:12-16
  The final three bowl judgments all have political consequences.16:12 The problem that this judgment poses for earth-dwellers is not a result of the judgment itself but its consequences, namely, war. It does not inflict a plag...
• The invitation of the angel 17:1-2
  17:1 The fact that this chapter describes the judgment of Babylon referred to in 14:8 and 16:19 seems clear. It was one of the angels who poured out the bowl judgments who served as John's guide as he viewed these events in h...
• The call for God's people to leave Babylon 18:4-8
  18:4 Another voice from heaven instructed God's people to separate themselves from the system that the city symbolizes so they would avoid getting caught in her judgment. The being speaking is evidently an angel who speaks fo...
• 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....
• 4. The judgment of the wicked 20:11-15
  20:11 This "And I saw"introduces something else John saw in this vision (cf. 19:11, 17, 19; 20:1, 4, 12; 21:1, 2). The continuation of chronological progression seems clear from the continued use of "And"to introduce new info...
• N. The eternal state 21:1-22:5
  The next scenes in John's visions proved to be of conditions that will exist after the Millennium. He recorded this insight to reveal the final home of believers. There are many allusions to Isaiah 60 and 65 and Ezekiel 40-48...
• 1. The vision of the new heaven and earth 21:1
  John now saw a new scene that elaborated on the passing away of the present earth and heaven to which he had just referred briefly (20:11). The new earth and heaven will come into existence after the Millennium and the great ...
• 2. John's first vision of the New Jerusalem 21:2-8
  21:2 In the same vision, John next saw a city descending out of heaven from God (cf. v. 10; 3:12; Heb. 11:13-16). It was holy in contrast to the former Jerusalem (cf. 11:8; Isa. 52:1; Matt. 4:5; 27:53). As the old Jerusalem w...
• 3. John's second vision of the New Jerusalem 21:9-22:5
  God now provided John with more information about the New Jerusalem (v. 2).734The chronological progression of the revelation in 19:11-22:5 locates the New Jerusalem in the new creation, not in the Millennium....
• John's guide to the city 21:9-10
  21:9 One of the angels with the seven bowls of judgment served as John's guide in this part of his vision (cf. 17:1). The fact that one of these particular angels helped John understand both the mystery of Babylon and that of...
• The illumination of the city 21:23-27
  21:23 Evidently there will be no sun and moon (and stars) in the new heaven because God's glory will illuminate the whole earth. The need for created light sources will end when the Creator Himself lives among His people. God...
• 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...
• IV. THE EPILOGUE TO THE BOOK 22:6-21
  In this final section of the book John reported concluding information and instructions that God gave him. He did this to comfort and caution his readers and to affirm the authority of this book."The concluding paragraphs of ...
• A. The testimony of the angel 22:6-7
  22:6 The angel who had been revealing the new creation to John, one of the angels who had the seven bowls (21:9), continued to speak to him.782He assured John that the things prophesied to happen soon (4:1-22:5), which John h...
• B. The testimony of John 22:8-11
  22:8 John resumed addressing the reader, which he had not done since 1:1, 4, and 9. He affirmed the angel's words that the prophecy was genuine. He himself had heard and had seen the things that he had recorded (cf. Dan. 8:15...
• C. The testimony of Jesus and John's response 22:12-20
  22:12 Jesus Christ repeated His promise to return soon (v. 7, cf. 1:3; 22:20)."Nowhere is a date set, nor was there any definite promise that the consummation would occur within the lifetime of the first century Christians. N...
• Bibliography
  Abbott-Smith, George. A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1950.Aldrich, Roy L. "The Divisions of the First Resurrection."Bibliotheca Sacra128:510 (April-June 1971):117-19.Alford, Henry. ...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

• Three Inscriptions With One Meaning
  Exodus 28:36, Zech. 14:20, Rev. 22:4.You will have perceived my purpose in putting these .three widely separated texts together. They all speak of inscriptions, and they are all obviously connected with each other. The first ...
• Three Tabernacles'
  The Word dwelt among us.'--John 1:14.He that sitteth on the Throne shall dwell among them.'--Rev. 7:15.Behold, the Tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them.' --Rev. 22:3.THE word rendered dwelt,' in these th...
• The City, The Citizens, And The King
  "And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2. In the midst of the street of it, anti on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which ...
• The Triple Rays Which Make The White Light Of Heaven
  "His servants shall serve Him: 4 And they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads."--Rev. 22:3-4.One may well shrink from taking words like these for a text. Their lofty music will necessarily make all wo...