Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• 2. Conditions at the time of creation 1:2
  "Verse 2 describes the condition of the land before God prepared it for human beings."31"Deep"(tahom) describes the world. In the Old Testament tahomrefers to the ocean, which the ancient world regarded as symbolic of chaos a...
• Solomon's prosperity 4:20-28
  We can explain the writer's unusual reference to Judah and Israel at this time, before the division of the kingdom. When he wrote Kings the nation had split, so probably the writer was using the designation that was common in...
• Yahweh's plan to terminate Ahab 22:1-28
  Another significant battle occurred between the battle of Ramoth-gilead that the writer recorded in chapter 22 (853 B.C.) and the battles he recorded in chapter 20. Ahab and his Aramean ally Ben-Hadad II (860-841 B.C.) defeat...
• The leaders 2:1-2a
  The "province"referred to was probably Judah38rather than Babylonia39in view of the context. Zerubbabel was the grandson of King Jehoiachin and the nephew of Sheshbazzar, the leader of this return (1 Chron. 3:17-19). Zerubbab...
• Tattenai's question 5:3-5
  The text does not say if the Jews' antagonistic neighbors had provoked Tattenai, the governor of the Persian province in which Jerusalem stood, to ask to see the Jews' temple building permit. It simply says he asked to see it...
• 1. God's goodness to His people 34:1-10
  34:1-3 David exulted in the Lord and called on his people to praise God with him.34:4-7 The psalmist's recent experience of God's answering his prayer for help and delivering him (vv. 4, 6) was only one example to him. Those ...
• 2. The prayer to bless David's descendents 132:6-10
  132:6-8 The antecedent of "it"(v. 6) is the ark (v. 8). Ephrathah (Ephratah) is an old name for the area around Bethlehem (Gen. 35:16, 19; 48:7). Jaar evidently refers to Kiriath-jearim, the town where the ark rested for 20 y...
• 3. God's determination for Israel 4:2-6
  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 (...
• A. The prophet's cleansing 6:1-8
  6:1 Why did Isaiah date this passage since he did not date most of his others?70Probably he did so because King Uzziah had been the best king of Judah since Solomon. Nevertheless during the last part of his reign he suffered ...
• The woe against Ephraim and Judah ch. 28
  "The section begins (1-6) and ends (23-29) with double illustrations drawn from nature and agriculture. Between lies a meditation in eight broadly equal parts on how Jerusalem's leaders refused the word of invitation and inhe...
• Promises about the future of the Davidic line and the people 23:1-8
  "After the oracles against wicked kings, there is a promise of a righteous one, the Shoot of David."313Jeremiah just announced that none of Coniah's descendants would ever rule as kings. Now he went on to clarify that a David...
• Prophecies about false prophets 23:9-40
  Having given a true prophecy about the future, Jeremiah proceeded to announce God's judgment on the false prophets who were misleading His people with false prophecies (cf. v. 1). This section consists of six different messag...
• The wheels and their movement 1:15-21
  1:15 Ezekiel also saw a prominent wheel standing upright on the ground beside each of the four living creatures.1:16 These wheels appeared to have been skillfully made of some valuable material, the exact identity of which is...
• An epilogue to the riddle 17:22-24
  Like the preceding parable (cf. 16:60-63) this one also ends with a promise of hope.17:22-23 The Lord Himself would also snip a tender twig from the top of the tall cedar tree that represented the Davidic line of kings. He wo...
• Genre
  Daniel is a book of prophecy."Among the great prophetic books of Scripture, none provides a more comprehensive and chronological prophetic view of the broad movement of history than the book of Daniel. Of the three prophetic ...
• 7. The interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream 2:36-45
  2:36 Daniel carefully distinguished the dream (vv. 31-35) from its interpretation (vv. 36-45) for the sake of clarity. His reference to "we"telling the interpretation is probably an editorial plural. This form of speech allow...
• Zion's positive future role 4:1-5
  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...
• Title and Writer
  The title of this book comes from its traditional writer, as is true of all the prophetical books of the Old Testament. The name "Zechariah"(lit. Yahweh remembers) was a common one among the Israelites identifying as many as ...
• Purpose and Themes
  Zechariah ministered to the restoration community to motivate those Jews to finish rebuilding the temple and to rededicate themselves to Yahweh with the prospect of His blessing. The central theme of the book is encouragement...
• Genre
  Zechariah consists of a combination of exhortations (sermon material), prophetic-apocalyptic visions, and oracles concerning eschatological salvation. Some of the oracles introduce or follow visions, and others stand alone. A...
• Structure
  "The shape' of a poem, the artistic arrangement of a book are instruments used by the Holy Spirit to convey His message."24In the case of Zechariah, there are three large chiastic sections (1:7-6:15; 7:1-8:19; and chs. 9-14)....
• Message25
  This is the second post-exilic prophetical book. The historical background and audience are the same as those for Haggai. As Zechariah's contemporaries looked back, they saw former glories and recent shame. As they looked for...
• Outline
  I. Introduction 1:1-6II. The eight night visions and four messages 1:7-6:8A. The horseman among the myrtle trees 1:7-171. The vision proper 1:7-152. The oracle about God's jealousy for Israel 1:16-17B. The four horns and the ...
• I. Introduction 1:1-6
  That this pericope introduces the whole book seems clear since verse 7 introduces the eight night visions that follow it (1:7-6:8). Its content is also foundational to all that follows."It strikes the keynote of the entire bo...
• II. The eight night visions and four messages 1:7--6:8
  Zechariah received eight apocalyptic visions in one night (1:7). As the text will show, they concerned God's purpose for the future of Israel, particularly Jerusalem, the seat of the Davidic dynasty and the site of the temple...
• 1. The vision proper 1:7-15
  1:7 Zechariah received another revelation from the Lord three months after his previous one in Darius' second year, 520 B.C.35"On the same day (24 Shebat), five months earlier, the rebuilding of the temple had been resumed (c...
• D. The cleansing and restoration of Joshua ch. 3
  The Lord explained that Joshua and his friends were men who had prophetic significance (v. 8). As will become clear, Joshua, Israel's high priest, represents Israel in this vision, specifically Israel in her divinely appointe...
• 1. The symbolic act 3:1-5
  3:1 Zechariah's guiding angel next showed the prophet, in his vision, Joshua (lit. Yahweh saves), Israel's current high priest (6:11; Ezra 5:2; Neh. 7:7; Hag. 1:1), standing before the angel of the Lord (1:11-12). "The accuse...
• 2. The accompanying promises 3:6-10
  3:6-7 Then the angel of the Lord admonished Joshua. He promised, in the name of sovereign Yahweh, that if Joshua obeyed the Lord and served Him, Joshua would govern the temple, have charge of the temple courts, and enjoy free...
• E. The gold lampstand and the two olive trees ch. 4
  This vision would have encouraged the two leaders of the restoration community, Zerubbabel and Joshua, by reminding them of God's resources, and it would have vindicated these leaders in the eyes of the Israelites. Chapter 3 ...
• The second oracle 4:8-10
  4:8-9 Another word from the Lord also came to Zechariah about Zerubbabel. This appears to be another oracle that the writer inserted here because it is appropriate at this point. He promised that as Zerubbabel had laid the fo...
• 3. The interpretation of the vision 4:11-14
  Though some help understanding the vision came through the preceding oracles concerning Zerubbabel, Zechariah still had some questions about what he had seen in the vision. The angel helped him further.4:11-12 Zechariah asked...
• G. The woman in the basket 5:5-11
  The preceding vision described the future removal of individual sinners from the land through divine judgment, and this one pictures the eventual removal of all wickedness from the future "holy land"(2:12; cf. 3:9)."In line w...
• H. The four chariots 6:1-8
  There are several similarities between this last vision and the first one (1:7-17) indicating a return to ideas introduced at the beginning of this chiastic series of revelations. Again there is a group of horses of various c...
• III. The symbolic crowning of Joshua 6:9-15
  The visions ended and Zechariah awoke from his dream-like state. What follows is a symbolic act that took place in Jerusalem at the Lord's command."The position of this actual ceremony after the eight visions is significant. ...
• V. Oracles about the Messiah and Israel's future chs. 9--14
  This part of Zechariah contains two undated oracles that are almost entirely eschatological. They expand the eschatological vision in chapters 1-8 and modify its generally optimistic view with emphasis on Israel's purificatio...
• 2. The restoration of the true people ch. 10
  The first part of this oracle focused particularly on the true King who would come and exercise sovereignty over the nations (ch. 9). Now the emphasis changes to the people of the King, the Israelites, who will return to the ...
• Israel's cleansing 13:1-6
  13:1 In that day God would open a fountain for the complete spiritual cleansing of the Israelites, both for their moral sins and for their ritual uncleanness (cf. Ezek. 47). The figure of a fountain pictures abundant cleansin...
• The smiting of the Shepherd and the scattering of the sheep 13:7-9
  13:7 Zechariah now returned in a poem to the subject of the Shepherd that he had mentioned in chapter 11. He also returned to the time when Israel would be scattered among the nations because of her rejection of the Good Shep...
• The worship of the sovereign King 14:16-21
  14:16 The remaining former enemies of Israel who would not die would bow to the sovereignty of Yahweh (cf. 8:20-23; Isa. 2:2-4; 45:21-24; 60:4-14; Ezek. 40-48; Phil. 2:10). They would be expected to make annual pilgrimages to...
• B. The priests' warning 2:1-9
  Whereas the emphasis in Malachi's argument shifts at this point somewhat from the sins of the priests to their possible fate, there is a continuing emphasis on their sins. In the preceding section (1:6-14) the cultic activity...
• V. Oracle four: the problem of God's justice 2:17--3:6
  That another oracle is in view is clear from the question and answer format that begins this pericope, as it does the others. Verse 17 contains the question and answer, and the discussion follows in 3:1-6. The Israelites' cha...
• Jesus' deliverance of a demoniac in Gadara 8:28-34 (cf. Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39)
  The central theme of this incident is Jesus' authority over evil spirits.8:28 Gadara was the regional capital of the Decapolis area that lay southeast of the Sea of Galilee. Its population was strongly Gentile. This may accou...
• 4. The witness of Philip and Andrew 1:43-51
  The disciples of John were not the only men who began following Jesus. Andrew continued to bring other friends to Jesus. This incident preceded Jesus' formal appointment of the Twelve, but it shows Him preparing those who wou...
• B. The Positive Instruction of the Readers vv. 20-23
  v. 20 The contrast Jude introduced with "But"distinguishes Jude's readers from the false teachers. Since we are God's temples under attack by hostile enemy forces, we need to build ourselves up, to strengthen ourselves spirit...
• 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 ...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

• A Vision Of Judgment And Cleansing
  And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. 2. And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen...
• I. The Symbolical Vision (Zechariah 3:1-5).
  The scene of the vision is left undetermined, and the absence of any designation of locality gives the picture the sublimity of indefiniteness. Three figures, seen he knows not where, stand clear before the Prophet's inward e...
• II. The Remainder Of The Vision.
  The remainder of the vision is the address of the Angel of the Lord to Joshua, developing the blessings now made sure to him and his people by this renewed consecration and cleansing. First (Zechariah 3:7) is the promise of c...
• The Right Of Entry
  I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.'--Zechariah 3:7.A WORD or two of explanation will probably be necessary in order to see the full meaning of this great promise. The Prophet has just been describing a...