Posts Tagged ‘ Commentary ’

Esther – commentary

Esther a. Authorship There is no name attached to the book of Esther. Therefore, we cannot know who wrote the book. The best that we can do is to say that the author was someone who knew something about Persian court life. Moreover, this person lived after the events, as he writes from the vantage [...]


1 Peter – Short Commentary

Short Introduction and Commentary Amazon.com Widgets 1 Peter Short Introduction and Commentary a. Authorship The letter claims to be written by the apostle Peter. However, there are many scholars who question the authorship of Peter for three main reasons. First, they claim that the Greek of 1 Peter is simply too polished to have been [...]


Psalm 10-14 – Justice and Judgment

For a number of psalms (10-14), the psalmist laments the wickedness in the world. For instance, the unrighteous do not acknowledge God (10:4), plot against the powerless (10:3), are filled with pride (10:6), lurk for prey (10:8-11), speak falsehood (12:2), and flatter with a double heart (12:3). Does not this sound like much of our [...]


Joshua 3:7 – God with us

And the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. There has been an important pattern in the Pentateuch, which the book of Joshua immediately picks up. It is the theme of [...]


Notes on Philippians – A Short Commentary

Chapter 1 1:1 Service. Paul and Timothy see themselves as servants of Christ. What a great posture for leaders! The key to spiritual authority is service. The more you serve others with a heart of humility and generosity, the more people will see you as a leader. The greatest in the kingdom of God is [...]


Philippians 1:27-30 – Suffering

Philippians 1:27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened [...]


Proverb 31

Proverb 31:30 “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.” This verse challenges much about our culture, because we live in a world that prizes charm and beauty (not only in women, but also men). Our society, I think it is fair to say, is [...]


Proverb 12

This chapter is hard hitting. It starts with a thesis, “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid,” and immediately applies it to the lives of readers. Verse after verse there is correction. A few of these points are worth mentioning in view of our cultural context. Consider the following:


Proverb 10

The two themes that struck me in the reading of this proverb are: work hard and speak less. I think if we all followed these two pieces of advice a little more, then we would all be better off. The answer for this is not hard to ascertain. First, God calls us to work. The [...]


Proverb 8

God’s grace fills this chapter. Consider the following two sentences. Wisdom is more precious than gold, silver and precious stones (8:10, 11, 19), necessary for ruling and justice (8:15), brings honor and riches (8:18), and creative (8:22-31). Wisdom calls out to all men from the heights and the entrance of the city gates (8:1-4). God [...]


Proverb 7 – Temptation’s Power

The imagery of Proverbs 7 is piercing and graphic. To dabble with sin is far from harmless. It is actually a “highway to the grave, and it leads down to the chambers of death” (7:27). Why, then, would anyone dabble? The simple answer is people are not wise. The more complex answer is that sin [...]


Proverb 5

“Had I only known” are the famous words of many people who live with regret. Hindsight is usually much better, but the problem with this is that it is usually too late. Therefore, what is best is to live according to the wisdom of God’s counsel now, says the author of Proverbs. This is wisdom.


Proverb 4 – Wisdom and Righteous Living

It is interesting to note that this chapter, which starts with such a strong emphasis on obtaining wisdom, ends with a call to upright living. In fact, the moral tone is impressive, because it covers the totality of the person. The heart is mentioned in verse 23, the mouth and lips in verse 24, the [...]


Proverb 2

Advice may seem like a small thing. Words; that’s it. However, when we enter into a biblical framework, the advice or counsel that a person internalizes will make all the difference in a person’s life. This is precisely why the proverbs constantly exhort people to seek after wisdom. The good news is that wisdom calls [...]


A Riff on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26

A few years back, I sat in a lecture about ancient trade routes. More than scholars could have imagined, trade in the Greco-Roman world has been conducted vastly and effectively. By examining pottery shards and other detritus, the lecturer made this point. I was convinced. However, what interested me most was his use of an [...]