PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis
Thomas Whitelaw [1840-1917] · 541,608 words · 594 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 61
Jchovietic document, but whether an independent writing or only of n Rupplementary character mny be eaid to be as yet undetermined, touching on many of the sam<J points as the former narration, but, unlike it, ueing the name Jehovah for the Deity, not nltogether to the exclueion of the term Elohim, but apparently as ey…
750 wordsSECTION 62The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 62
characterised, in addition to the above idiosyncrasies, by the use of tho infinitive e.bso• lute for the sake of emphasis, the poetical suffix \~, tho Divine nnme )\1~~. and so on. And lastly, as if to establish this remark&ble hypothesis beyond the possibility of challenge, the author of the Elohistic writing, by a…
718 wordsSECTION 63The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 63
~---- -···-------------------------- Pentoteuch, its 11uth~nticity woulcl be thereby established, it may be urged that th'l first objection largely insisted on by Kuenen (' The Religion of Israel,' vol. i. eh. ii. p. 109) and others is ex ltypothesi out of court, for the obvious reason that it assnme,q what is not adm…
708 wordsSECTION 64The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 64
Captidty, an,! who had never visited the land of the l'haraohR, bnt who Wl\B yet BO well acquainted with the country, ita mannerB and customs, its laws and religion, that in at least twenty-five different instances mentioned by Bohlen his information was correct, had committed the unpardonable error of making the Eg…
713 wordsSECTION 65The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 65
t11bo11111cle, for wl1ich work, as requiring the strength of a full-grown man, all males between the ogee of thirty and fifty were to be enrolled (Ilengstenberg, Keil). Among arithmetical blunders, the exact agreement of the census of the male heads of the people taken in the second year of the Exodus (Numb. i. 45) wit…
712 wordsSECTION 66The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 66
such 11s might naturally be adopted in I\ hortatory discourse (it occurs frequently in the P~alms) instead of ':J'fW.? (Exod. niii. 12), the form more suitable fordidactio composition ; •and indeed this explanation accounts for the larger number of the peculiar phrases cited, such as "with all the heart and with all…
769 wordsSECTION 67The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 67
party, must have fabricated "this book of the law" as a legi~lative programme (Kuenen, 'The Religion of Israel,' vol. ii. pp. 18, 19). For (1) there are not a few resemblances between the other Penfoteuchal booh and Jeremiah, of which the appended list, collected by Bohlen, may be studied (cf. Gen. i. 22; xxxv. 11 w…
1,486 wordsSECTION 68The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 68
Genuineness of tho l'ontntcnch,' vol. i. p. 172) have shown, whether it really wne e. measure, and, (2) on the rrneumption that it was, it still requires proof that it was e.n old e.nd not n new one, the words omer and ephak both being Egyptian (' Spee.ker'e Commentary'). (4) Passages wki.ck make citations from documen…
752 wordsSECTION 69The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 69
11. Considerations which arc generally belieYed to favour the Mosaic authorship ot the Pentntench. 1. JT WAS NOT IMI'OSSIBLE FOB MOSES TO PRODUCE SUCII A DOOK AS TllE PRESENT PENTATEUCH. In the first place, he had the means of doing so, inasmuch as it is cnpable of almost perfect demonstration that he was acquainte…
710 wordsSECTION 70The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 70
emcmcipation nnd resnscitntion could not be far to seek. Still further, in the third pince, Moses enjoyed the leisure which was indispensable for the composition of such n work ns the Pentateuch. The forty years' retirement to the land of Midian, carry- ing with him probably the ancient records of his people, must h…
706 wordsSECTION 71The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 71
documents, but the existing Pentateuoh ae far as it conld be composed (vide 'Intro• duction,' § 4), and hold with Bleek that it oannot be certainly established that eithor the book "·hich Moses was instructed to compose, or the law which Moses fini~hed or made Rn end of writing, and committed to the Levites to be de…
725 wordsSECTION 72The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 72
alone, ie lte author; o.nd the more so ns, in the fourth placo, there are certain water• marks, us it wero, in the book iteelf which not only vouch fer its antiquity, but appear to require it to have been composed about the time of Moses. It is doubtful if the existence ot !lrchaisme in tho lnngue.ge of the Pentateuch …
757 wordsSECTION 73The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 73
both were in the book which Hilkiah found and Shaphan and the king read. Then, as to the discovery of the roll just at the moment when it was needed, it is not at all !!urprising th11t the wave of religious enthusiasm which had set in upon Jud11h with Josiah's coming to the throne should have caused the forgotten Pe…
800 wordsSECTION 74The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 74
tionnl acts ot worship were performed, and for perfectly adequate reasons, while abundant evidence exists that, notwithstanding all the t11rhulent disorder of th" period, "the law of Moses formed the basia of the religious, civil, and political life of the nation." And thus we are conducted to the days of Joshua, in th…
1,084 wordsSECTION 75The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 75
§ 1. ITS TITLE AND CONTENTS. 1. Its title. Like the other four divisions of the Pentateuch, the First Book of Moses derives its title in the Hebrew Scriptures from its initial word, l3eresh- ith; in the LXX., which is followed by the A. V., it is designated by a term which defines its contents, I'EvEa11: (Genesis). rE…
924 wordsSECTION 76The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 76
seems to ha,ve been written rather about than by Moses" ("Videtur Pentateuchus potius de Mose quam a Mose eeriptus "), though doubtless it was based upon originals from his hand. About the beginning of the eighteenth century Vitringa, in his 'Observationes Sacrm,' propounded the view that Moses had employed sketches wr…
1,047 wordsSECTION 77The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 77
~ i. 27; the inf. absol. for emphasis, ii 16, 17; iii. 4., 16 ; xvi. 10; xxx, -c 1r; the suffix ix. 26, 27; the Divine name 7;,,;:i., xiv. 18-20, 22. But, without replying t-0 these so-called arguments seriatim, "it may be answered, as against the entire hypothesis, that it is-1. Unnec&sanJ, not being required for e. …
769 wordsSECTION 78The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 78
as spuriom,; while, according to the Clolnentine HomiliM (iii. 47), tho llrcsent Pentateuch was written 1Lfter Moses' death. There does not appear, however, to have been any serious questioning on the subject of the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch as a whole, or of Genesis as a part of that larger work, until th…
1,190 wordsSECTION 79The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 79
aJditionnl orgumcnt may be derived from the internal unity of the I>entateuch and in porticular of the Book of Genesis. It is true that in one sense this i~ the very question in dispute, whether Genesis is th,3 work of one or more authors; but, as its (alleged) composite character is always paraded as o.n argu- men…
1,158 wordsSECTION 80The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 80
nation, it is likewise a Wl'iting of transcendent value and paramount impOl'tanco to every scion of the human race, containing as it does the only nuthentio information which has ever yet reached the world of the original dignity of mankind, and of the conditions under which it comrnenced its career on earth ; the only…
580 wordsSECTION 81The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 81
Wordsworih: The Holy Bible, with Notes, London, 1864. Wright: The Book of Genesis, London, 1859. (3) American :-Bush: Notes on Genesis, New York, 1838. Jacobus: Notes, Critical and Explanatory, on Genesis, New York, 1865. Turner: Exegetical Commentary on Genesis, New York, 1846. III. HOMILETIOAL AND PRACTICAL EXPOSITI…
1,260 wordsSECTION 82The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 82
BOOK OF GENESIS. -- 'l'llE PR.IJ\fEVAL ... AGE OF THE WORLD • (C HS •I. - I X.). FilOIII 'l'IIE CREATION 'l'O THE DELUGE. § 1. THE BEGINNING (Cu. I. 1-II. 3). EXPOSITION. them, it is destitute of either local colouring CHAPTER I. or national peculiarity, being no moro Jewish I. THAT this initial section is-n…
440 wordsSECTION 83The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 83
the simplor question of its truthfulnoss. If cxxxvi., in both of which II Hebrew bard the Mosaic cosmogony is true, it can only red tos the story of crCR tion. ha,e been ~iYcn b)• inspiration ; e.nd that it is ~'or. 1.-In the beginning, Bereshitli, is tnrn may be said to be, mth rapidly aug- ne,thor "from etel'llity…
876 wordsSECTION 84The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 84
tho Godhend. Created. Bara, one of three beyond these, the She,mitic mind conccivcri terms employed in this section, and in of the heaven where the angels rlwcll Scripture genornlly, to describe the Divine (1 Kings xxii. 19; Matt. xviii. 10), an•l nctivity; the other two being yatzar, where Goel spcciall.r rrsi,les …
980 wordsSECTION 85The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 85
refrrro\l to in the }>receding verse, the prc- distingnishos between " tho deop" An<l tha smt ter!"<'strinl globe with its atmospheric "waters," making the latter refer to the firmament, end not simply "the In.nil" as liqui\l condition of the globe, and the former opposed to " the skies " (Murphy) ; cer- apply to " …
973 wordsSECTION 86The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 86
'fhe cl,aos (or w11ter) ti1Lmot (tho sea) woR In gloom profound- an ocean without lho proclucing-mothor of the whole ol light." them," &c. ( Vid. Macclona!tl's 'Creation,' &c., p. 51.) (' Chalclonn Genesis,' p. 62.) 6. The de~cription of ,haoR irivcn by Ovid is 2. The Babylonian cosmogony, accordil!g to too 11ppro1…
913 wordsSECTION 87The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 87
HOMILETICS. Ver. 1.-T/i,e t•isiUe tniive;·se. I. O~r., yet NOT srnru:. t. One. In age orig-in and n~ture on~, "the hea,·ens and the earth" also constitute one vast ~ysten/ ~oh_ermg phys1cnlly ~hrougb the f~r.ce of graYitation, which, in its ultimate nnnlysis, 1s s1T?ply R!1 express1~n of the D1_v1,ne P?Wer, they ar…
996 wordsSECTION 88The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 88
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 1.-" Beginning" is a word familiarly on our lips ; but, for the most part, wo mean only rearrangement, or the commencement of one link in the chain of e,ents. But who can conceive the beginning of creation? Who can travel back in thougl,t to the first moment of its existence, and look…
618 wordsSECTION 89The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 89
Yen,. 1-5.-A true and firm foundation of revelation and fnith mnst be laid in a Di,·ine doctrine of "Genesis,'' the beginnings out of which have come both the world of nature and the world of grace. In this book we are taught what is the order by which all things must be ti;ed, Coming forth from Elohim, from the lufini…
1,060 wordsSECTION 90The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 90
Vers. 3-5.-Tho evolulion of the cosmos Ruach Eloliim, eliminates the light from wo.s accomplished by a series of Divine forma- the dark chaotic mass of earth, on the second tive works which extended over a period of six uplifts the atmosphere above the waters, an,l successive days. In the character of those on the thir…
509 wordsSECTION 91The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 91
mnn n <'Onccption of his ineffnLle nnJ 1111- for the cnrth. 'l'ho exigencies of the text nppronchnblc Godhend wns to snpply liim ns well ns the nsccrtnincll facts of phyeicnl with nn nnthropomorphic imngeofnimself- science, rcquiro tl10 first dity's work to bo the " the Word mnde fle.sh." Deeper insight, originitl p…
997 wordsSECTION 92The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 92
lhoro is oYory reason to believe thn.t li~ht, festly, though revolving on its axis, the carlh l1ont, nnd electiicily nre only modifications woulcl not experience the vicissitude of cby of the snmo force, we mny be wnrrnnted in and night, which some conjecture was not at embrncing nil the three in its significance, t…
976 wordsSECTION 93The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 93
morning was, day 011c. Considcrnb)~ dil'crs- the creation ,lays were long periods, nn,1 not ily of sentime11t prernils with rcgar,l to tho simply solnr dnys, is conlhmc,I by n vnricty cxnrt intl'!,-,retation of these words. On tlie of considerations. I. Iu the crcntion rccor,l 1111c hand. it is nssnme<l that the fir…
1,051 wordsSECTION 94The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 94
eented e.s h11ving refitctl from l1is creative Now, whether the ngctation of the thir<I lnbours, must likowiso be ll natuml or solar clay is to be s011gl1t for in the carLonifero11s da.y ; nnd if eo, it is proper to observe what formations of the Palreozoic age (Hugh )I ille,r), follows. It follows (l) tha.t the events…
894 wordsSECTION 95The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 95
bca11ti.f11l. The first mn<le of God's crent11res, it is like1 rise one of the most radiantly fair. St.reaming forth direct from the golden sun, or reflected in silver benms from the pi.le moon, painting the orient dawn ·with roseate hues, or bathing tho western hills in a sea of glory, Rhimmering in whiteness through …
774 wordsSECTION 96The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 96
EXPOSITION. Ver. 6.-Day two. The work of this clay and how far it may have been 1tssistc•l by consisted in tho formation of that immense the action of the light upon the condcnsin" gaseous ocean, called tho atmosphere, hy mass of the globe is a problem in the soln~ which the earth is cncirclccl. And God said, tion of …
972 wordsSECTION 97The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 97
HmnLETICS. Yer. 7.-T/u at,;nosp/1,eric Ji,r1(UL1nent. I. Tm,: cnEATURE OF Gon. I. From God it re.ceh·ed its being (ver. 7) .. Not h~re alone, but. in othe~ parts, Scripture declares ihe firmament to be the Dn-me handiwork (Ps. Xl.l[. 1; c1v. 2). Whence we may note-(1) That not it, tlie creature, should receive our …
752 wordsSECTION 98The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 98
EXPOSITIO~. Ver. 0.-Day t!iree. 'l'ho distribution of beginning" (Dawson, '0. W.,' p. 131; cf. land and water and the production of vegeta- 'Green's Geology,' p. 512). And it was so. tion on this day onga~ed the formative eneTgy Though the separation of the dry lam! from ol' the word of Eloh1m. And God said, Let th…
940 wordsSECTION 99The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 99
to bo rcplcni~hed, "To o 1r view," says have tho po"·er of val'iation nlong the line Dawson, "thnt primeval d.-y land "·ould of ccrtnin eharncteristies belonging to thom- scarc<'ly hnYc seemed good. It was a wol'ld aelves, but not that any absolutely new of bare, rocky peaks and verdureless valleys- species has ever…
981 wordsSECTION 100The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 100
nmong geologists wholher nny of the earliest the latter half of the third creative day. In formed metamorphic rocks uow remain (cf. the Creation Series of Chaldeau tablets are Groan's 'Geology,' p. 308); but still it is two fragments, which George Smith con- sugceptiblo of nlmost perfect demonstration jectures have a r…
842 wordsSECTION 101The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 101
hie Creator. 3. Their operati<mi; which nro as diven1ified as nre their natures and plnces. The sea moves, the land rests, the phmt g-rows. 'l'he sen fertilises and beautifies the soil, the soil sustains and nourishes tho plant, the plnnt decorates the land and gi'<"es food to man and beast. The sea fills the clouds th…
834 wordsSECTION 102The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 102
plnccs whrro light is, light-hol,lcrR, I's. !xiv, gnnl the tl,rce plirnscs ns ,·o-onli11atc; 16 ; tpwarijp•c, LXX. ; lurnincwia, Vulgatc ; Rose11miiller, Gesenins, De Wettc, Baum- epokon of lnmps nnd cnndlesticks, Exo<l. xxv. garten take the first two as a hendiadya 6; Num. iv. D, 16) in the firmament (liter- for "sign…
1,003 wordsSECTION 103The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 103
~un, which wns tl,crcby con~t.il 11tcd chief they could not keep nloof from nn 1il.Jcrmtion \umi1rnry or "ligl1t-holdcr" for the systom, which form~d tho very focus of tho pi:incipnl the moon nnd p)Rncts becoming, nR n neces- l~11Skrn religions they yielded to that tempt- Mry consequence, "light-holders" in tho ing …
1,023 wordsSECTION 104The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 104
ine not wanting indirect corroboraLions of pica! cl1matcs to prevail ~n,\ tropical \'f';cd~- I.ho truth of tho Mosaic narrative from both tion to abound, both of which have g.,-aclnally it and geology. According to the sacred disappeared from tho polar regions in con- writer, tlie presently existing atmosphere, the eeq…
808 wordsSECTION 105The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 105
he shrouded in thick gloom, while with th<'m nn ai of cheerfulness is imparted to the ,larkened enrth. And, of course, least of nil could the S'ltn be wanted (for 'The Value of Light' vu/,. p. 13). 2. To distin{jltish day and night. 'l'he beneficence of this arrangement appears by reflecting on the inconvenience of …
1,005 wordsSECTION 106The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 106
EXPOSITION. Ver. 20.-Dayfi,1:e. The waters ancl the truth tl1at plants are living organisms. 011Jy R ii·, separated on the second day, ore on this the life principle of the animal creation is filled with their respective inhabitants. And different from that of the vegetable kingrl.om. God said. Nature never makes an o…
657 wordsSECTION 107The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 107
crocNliks, nnd otncr sea monsters (Delitzscl1); as yet sub .fudia. Prindpal Dawson In, gigantic nquniic nn,l amphibious reptiles clinos to chum for the gigitntic fornminifcr, (.Kalisch, llincdonnld). And every living eozoon 1 .madense, of the Laurcntian rocks, 11reature (ncphesh cJur11yaA) whi11h moveth. the honour …
968 wordsSECTION 108The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 108
Vcrs. 20-22.-'l'lte mys(ery of life. I. hs omcrn. 1. Kot dwd nwUer. Scrip- ture, eqnally with science, rrprese11fs life as having- a J;l,ysical basis; but, urdike modern e,·olutionista, never confounds vital force with the material rncchar,iirn in which it resides, and tl1ro11gh wl,ich it opcrntt·s. Advanced biologists…
759 wordsSECTION 109The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 109
are <lifferC'ut in di!Trrenl kinds of anirnnls. The fowls, e. g., were designed to fly through the ntmospl1C'rc; the fi8h to swim in water. (3) In its sphere. 'l'he different living creatnr<'s nre differently located,-the fish in the sea, the birds in the air,-cacl1 one's sphere being adapted to its nature. 3. P1·og1·e…
875 wordsSECTION 110The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 110
EXPOSITION. Ver. 24. -Day six. Like clay three, ground) after his kind. The order of creation this is distinguished Ly a double creative (vcr. 25) differs from that in which they wer~ net, the production of the higher or land summoned into existence (vcr. 24). The latter animals and the creation of man, of the may be …
808 wordsSECTION 111The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 111
tn P~ nnmctl Adam; descriptive of either configurs.tion which it 11.ctually possrsses. It his cofmn·, rr0m adam, to be red, (Josephus, corresponds to tho rnin, or kind, whioh Gcsonins, Tuch, Hupfeld); or his appear- determines species among nnimnls. It is rmce, fo,m n root in Arabic which signifios that which consti…
982 wordsSECTION 112The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 112
"Corto frrenum viris et mulLn-ibus non laxa- dependent conclition. Though lord r,f th11 vit, ut in vngas libiclines ruercnt, absque creation, he wna yet to draw the mcnns of his dolectu et pudore; sed a sando cnsto"lue con- subsistence from the creature which he ruled. jugio incipien•, descendit o.d generntionem" Wheth…
1,199 wordsSECTION 113The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 113
HOMILETICS. Yer. 27.-1'he (lreatness of man. I. THE TilllE OF HIS APPEAnANCE. The latest of God's works, he ~-as produced towards the close of the era that witnessed the intro- duction upon our globe of the higher animals. Taking either view of the length of the creatin day, it may be supposed that in the evening the …
1,013 wordsSECTION 114The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 114
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 24-31.-1'/ie sixth day. We pass from the sea and air to the earth. We are being led to man. Notice- I. THE PREPARATION IS coMrLETE. Defore the earth receives the human being, it brings forth all the other creatures, and God sees that they are good-good in his sight, good for man. I…
1,235 wordsSECTION 115The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 115
often, between the re.ally_g_ood. and the really evil, but the tlttainment of the highen ---the fulfilment of his D1vme 1deo., the top-stone placed upon the temple witb shout- inge : " Gro.ce, gro.ce unto it." II. "The evening and the morning were the sixth day." OuT OF THE NTGllT OF THE INJl'INITE PAST CAME FOUTH '!'…
911 wordsSECTION 116The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 116
rested from all hie work whioh God hnd be sought for in the primitirnobscrvnncoofa rreated and made. Litemlly, created to mah, seventh day rest in accordance with Divine t',1c exact import of which bes been variouslX appointment. Precisely as we reeson that explained. The "Jv ijp(aro o6,0( ,ro,ij,ra, ' the early nnd…
1,218 wordsSECTION 117The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 117
which he contemplated the peculiar work of blessing his creation which lay before him, a work which also had its foreshadowings in the benedictions pronounced on the Jiving creatures of the fifth day, and on man on the sixth. 3. Beneficent activit?J. Even man, unless where his intellectual and moral faculties are dorma…
1,172 wordsSECTION 118The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 118
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vcrs. 1-3.-Rest and Ligltt. The finished heavens ana earth and their host pre- pare the day of rest. God ended his work as an interchange of clarlmcss and light. I. Tim REST OF TIIE SA.DEATH IS NOT INACTION, BUT THE CESSATION FROM ·rHE LOWE~ onnrn OF WORK FOR THE HIGHER. The idea of the f…
995 wordsSECTION 119The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 119
prosupposes the paradisaical innoconce of of the generations to be forthwith recorded. the first pair (eh. ii.). Thus homogeneous in Then it wns thnt the heo.vcns nnd the enrth it.self, it likewise ccnnects ,cith tlu pr~eding in their development took a clenr nnd decided step forward in the direction of man and the st…
947 wordsSECTION 120The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 120
Others, (loriving from o. hiphil future, take it uphenvecl and tl:c wnlcrs g.:~hercd into the ne denoting "ho who cnusos to be, tho Ful- subsiding valley,1. Nothing would moro ftller," and find in this nn explanation of naturally follow that event than the steam in" Exod. vi. 8 (Exoll). Mny not nll these ideas up of…
1,247 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.