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Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 3151 to 3175 of 4943 results

3151. Love the Lord Your God

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... he tells them is effectively obedience to God, and any deviation to the right or to the left will be a rejection of the way of the Lord. In Hebrew, chapter 6 begins with “And this is the command . . . , ” which suggests that it is a continuation of the previous verses. The sequence of meaning is: “God gave me all this command (5:31) . . . So you be careful to do it (5:32f.) . . . And this is it (6:1ff.) . . . !” The emphasis on motivational factors is almost overwhelming in this short passage. Five ...

3152. Not Because of Israel's Righteousness

Deuteronomy 9:1-6

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... Notes 9:2 Anakites: Cf. 1:28. 9:3 Quickly: In this context, “quickly” is used to give the people assurance of success, but is qualified in reality (cf. 7:22f.). 9:4 The best sense is gained if the direct speech of the people is continued to the end of verse 4. This also avoids the apparently redundant repetition of verse 4b in verse 5. The word No is not strictly in the Hb.; it is an interpretative rendering of the simple conjunction “and,” on the translators’ assumption that the people’s ...

3153. Love and Obey the Lord

Deuteronomy 11:1-32

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... is to impress on this generation of Israelites that it is their responsibility to obey Yahweh here and now (vv. 2, 7), neither relying on the obedience of previous generations nor passing off the responsibility to the next generation. Each generation has a continuity and a solidarity with previous generations in covenantal obligation (cf. 5:2f.), but at the same time each generation must make its own response and take the consequences. 11:8–9 The entire section of 11:8–17 is devoted to Israel’s ...

3154. Passover

Deuteronomy 16:1-8

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... by Christians. Fourthly, there is the reciprocal nature of giving and blessing. The people’s giving and feasting was to be an obedient response to God’s giving and blessing. But at the same time, God’s blessing would be God’s continued response to their obedience. It is impossible to separate the two. It is inadequate to speak of obedience being the condition of blessing, or to speak of unconditional blessing unrelated to responsive obedience. There is a dynamic reciprocity between the two. The ...

3155. Adonijah Sets Himself Up as King

1 Kings 1:1-27

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... in view of the fact that the guest list for Adonijah’s feast mentions only those royal officials who were men of Judah (and not also Israel), that their support for Adonijah represents at least in part a commitment to history and tradition and to the continuing influence of Judeans at the centers of power. By contrast, only Benaiah the son of Jehoiada of the individuals named in the opposing group has any claim to such a longstanding association with David (cf. 2 Sam. 20:23; 23:20–23), although we must ...

3156. Solomon's Other Activities

1 Kings 9:10-28

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... :4). It is of little comfort to read, in the sure knowledge of this future reality, that Solomon is for the time being an orthodox worshiper in the temple (v. 25; cf. Exod. 23:14–17). 9:26–28 The supply of gold pouring into Solomon’s coffers continues, with the assistance of hapless Hiram, as his ships sail to Ophir in Arabia (Gen. 10:29; cf. Ps. 45:9; Isa. 13:12 for its fame). Additional Notes 9:13 Cabul: The NIV footnote, in common with many modern commentators, apparently wishes us to explain this ...

3157. Solomon's Adversaries

1 Kings 11:14-25

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... was in the first instance tied up with moral virtue—his father’s and his own. That is what his father had himself told him (1 Kgs. 2:2–4), and that is what God had seemingly confirmed to him (1 Kgs. 9:3–9). Blessing in fact continued even through indiscretion, however, and eventually it appeared (1 Kgs. 11), as readers of 2 Samuel 7 would suspect it might, that there was more to God’s dealings with David’s house than David had told his son. Eventually it appeared that God’s punishment of this ...

3158. Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam

1 Kings 12:1-24

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... people (v. 23), to fight against the house of Israel (the northern tribes). It requires a prophetic oracle from Shemaiah to prevent war by convincing the people that what has happened is indeed of God. But this situation does not last long; there will be a continuous war between north and south throughout the period after the schism (1 Kgs. 14:30; 15:6, 16). Perhaps Rehoboam was untimately unwilling to give up his own view of reality in favor of God’s. Perhaps the northern tribes (in spite of Jeroboam’s ...

3159. Joash Repairs the Temple

2 Kings 12:1-21

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... 50). Once again we are reminded of that “humbling of David” theme (1 Kgs. 11:39) that has surfaced in the description of even the best of the post-Solomonic Judean kings (cf. the commentary on 1 Kgs. 15:18–24; 22:47–50). 12:17–18 This theme continues as we turn to consider Joash as a military figure. For Judah, too, is oppressed by Hazael in this period (cf. 2 Kgs. 10:32–33 for his assault on Israel), as he turns east from the Philistine city of Gath to attack Jerusalem. Like Asa, Joash knows no ...

3160. Jehoahaz King of Israel

2 Kings 13:1-9

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... this kind of statement requires caution (cf. the additional note to 1 Kgs. 8:8 on the phrase ʿaḏ-hayyôm hazzeh, “until this day”). Yet in a context where an everlasting promise is being cited, it seems likely that we are being told about God’s continuing attitude to Israel in the postexilic period in which Kings was coming into its final shape. Such an understanding helps to make sense of the chapter and the book as a whole. Israel is still the people of the exodus (cf. 1 Kgs. 8:22ff.). It may be ...

3161. Amaziah King of Judah

2 Kings 14:1-22

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... to consolidate Amaziah’s gains in Edom by claiming the port of Elath (cf. 1 Kgs. 9:26). The fact that he is called simply “the king,” with no further indentification made, bears out our interpretation of the whole passage. The “humbling” of the house of David thus continues (cf. 1 Kgs. 11:39; 15:16–22; 22:48–49; 2 Kgs. 11–12). There is limited success of the kind enjoyed in the old days of empire (cf. the defeat of Edom). Amaziah is unable to be a Solomon. He is unable to exploit his Edomite ...

3162. Hezekiah's Illness

2 Kings 20:1-11

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... “sulking”) and weeps over his fate. Nevertheless, God answers him. The king will be well enough by the third day to go up and worship in the temple (v. 5), and he will live for another fifteen years (v. 6). Throughout that period (it is implied), God will continue in the ways of chapters 18–19. God will deliver the king and the city, not because of Hezekiah’s wholehearted devotion (v. 3), but for God’s own sake and the sake of David (v. 6). The message of 19:34 is thus reinforced. Even a king who ...

3163. Manasseh King of Judah

2 Kings 21:1-18

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... of 2 Kings 11:1ff. This time, identification with Ahab will lead the house of David to Ahab’s fate. 21:19–26 In the shadow of such spectacular apostasy, the reign of Manasseh’s son Amon has the appearance of a relatively unimportant footnote. He continues in the ways of his father, worshiping his idols (vv. 11, 21) and forsaking the LORD. He reigns, like other (northern) kings whose fathers received oracles about the destruction of their house, for only two years (1 Kgs. 15:25; 16:8; 22:51), and like ...

3164. A Prophecy Against Babylon

Isaiah 13:1--14:23

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... When people die, physically they go to join their ancestors in the family tomb. Like Greek thinking, Middle Eastern thinking pictures the inner person similarly joining the ancestors and other dead persons in a non-physical equivalent to the tomb. It is a form of continuing existence with other people, but an inactive one, like that of the body itself in the tomb, and with a debilitating side (see v. 11b). The arrival of the king of Babylon will at least relieve the tedium of Sheol, a reality for other once ...

3165. Hezekiah’s Illness

Isaiah 38:1-22, Isaiah 39:1-8

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... –32 reflected. The preoccupation with death here makes clear to anyone who was inclined to overestimate Hezekiah that he is a mere mortal, and it prepares the way for the somberness of the message that will follow in chapter 39. The preoccupation with death continues into the third element in the thanksgiving, a commitment to an ongoing life of praise (vv. 18–20). The living are able to live that life as the dead cannot. Indeed, here that constitutes the greatest deprivation of death, even for those who ...

3166. The Future Glory of Zion

Isaiah 54:1-17

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... and a man who has walked out in a fit of temper can by no means assume that he can walk back in. In a traditional culture, reproach continues to attach to a woman who could not hold onto her man. Yahweh speaks as if it were a case of walking out in a fit of temper ... unfailing love (the same word translated “kindness” in v. 8). 54:11–14a The battered city is now splendidly restored. Yahweh continues a personal form of address but now speaks to the city and promises it will be rebuilt—in a different kind ...

3167. Salvation for Others

Isaiah 56:1-8

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... prophecies from Isaiah himself. But the fact that they manifest similarities with the work of both the Ambassador and the Poet may rather suggest that these later chapters are the work of a prophet or prophets who are heirs to both these earlier figures. They continue their work, and sometimes preach on texts from them. They discuss how to live with the Ambassador’s challenges (you must do right) and the Poet’s promises (Yahweh will do right). 56:1–3 The first eight verses of chapter 56 present Yahweh ...

3168. Signs and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 4:1-5:17, Ezekiel 6:1-14, Ezekiel 7:1-27

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... his mission in chapters 4–7. Note, too, that while there is no formal indication of the ending of one unit and the beginning of another at the juncture of chapters 1–3 and 4–7, the characteristic vocabulary of the first section does not continue into the following. For example, the expression “rebellious house” (3:27; compare 2:4–7; 3:11) is not found again until 12:2–3. Finally, the visionary character of these first three chapters, and their close relationship to chapters 8–11 and 40–48 ...

3169. Riddles and Metaphors

Ezekiel 15:1-8, Ezekiel 16:1-63, Ezekiel 17:1-24

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... ’s sin: Like mother, like daughter (v. 44). This is the only proverb Ezekiel cites favorably (compare 12:22, 27; and esp. 18:2–3). Please note: Ezekiel’s point is not that Jerusalem can blame its sin on its antecedents. Rather, Jerusalem continues to do as its pagan forebears once did. Once more, Ezekiel reminds us that Jerusalem’s “parents” were unclean foreign nations: “Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite” (v. 45; compare v. 3, which reverses the order). Jerusalem is not ...

3170. Egypt

Ezekiel 29:1-21, Ezekiel 30:1-26, Ezekiel 31:1-18, Ezekiel 32:1-32

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... s descent consoles the fallen of the nations, so here the nations say of Egypt and her allies, “They have come down” (v. 21). In verses 22–31, these same expressions (“uncircumcised,” “slain,” “killed by the sword,” “fallen by the sword”) continually repeat, as the dirge goes through the roll of nations that have descended to Sheol. The passage introduces other stereotypical phrases as well: in particular, these nations had spread terror in the land of the living (vv. 23–26, 30, 32 ...

3171. Prologue to the Law of the Temple: The Lord Comes Home

Ezekiel 40:1--43:12

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... above the cherubim” in the Most Holy Place to the temple threshold (9:3), then to the eastern gate of the inner court (10:19), and then to the Mount of Olives, east of the city (11:23). In the temple vision, as we will see, this disassociation continues. The promise of God’s presence is not dependent upon the ark, or upon the imagery and symbolism associated with it (43:7). Next the angel takes Ezekiel back outside the temple and tells him the thickness of the temple walls (six cubits, the same as the ...

3172. Transition to Jesus’ Public Ministry

Matthew 4:12-17

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... more his theme of Gentile inclusion, already introduced by the women of Jesus’ genealogy (1:3, 5, 6) and the magi (2:1). Even though Jesus’ ministry will be focused on “the lost sheep of Israel” (15:24; cf. 10:6), Matthew will continue to foreshadow Gentile inclusion by narrating encounters between Jesus and Gentile supplicants (8:5–13; 15:21–28) and will signal the inauguration of the Gentile mission after Jesus’ resurrection (28:19). Teaching the Text 1. Jesus is the bringer of salvation to ...

3173. Sermon on the Mount: Giving, Prayer, and Fasting

Matthew 6:1-4, Matthew 6:5-15, Matthew 6:16-18

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... neuter, it would be rendered as “deliver us from evil” (for a parallel idea, see Sir. 33:1). The traditional, liturgical use of the Lord’s Prayer, in the early days of the Christian church, led to expansions of it in corporate prayer. This continuing usage explains the longer ending of the prayer (“for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen”) that occurs in some Greek manuscripts but is not widespread in the manuscript tradition. It was likely a scribal addition that became ...

3174. Jesus’ Authority to Perform Miracles

Matthew 8:18-22, Matthew 8:23-27, Matthew 8:28-34, Matthew 9:1-8

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... role as representative humanity that is in view in this passage (see comments on “Son of Man” at 8:20). Teaching the Text 1. Jesus, as rightful king of this world, has power over nature and forces that work against God’s purposes. Matthew continues to emphasize Jesus’ authority in his Galilean ministry, both in word and deed. Not only does Jesus have authority over illness and disease (8:1–17), but also Matthew demonstrates Jesus’ power over the created world (8:23–27), over evil (8:28–34 ...

3175. Jesus Eats with Sinners and Heals the Sick

Matthew 9:9-13, Matthew 9:14-17, Matthew 9:18-26, Matthew 9:27-34

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... Jesus was known as “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (11:19), should not the church be typecast the same way? 2. Jesus as healer and miracle worker comes from God and is worthy of our trust. These are not new themes; instead, they continue the motifs begun already in chapter 8: Jesus’ authority and the importance of faith in response to it. But as Matthew tells story after story about Jesus’ ability and willingness to heal and do other miracles, the reader is led to the conclusion that Jesus ...

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