Synonyms: renounce, relinquish, dispense with, forswear, disclaim, disown, disavow, discard, wash one's hands of, give up, stop, cease, drop, forgo, desist from, have done with, abjure, abstain from, discontinue, break off, refrain from, set/lay aside, desert, leave, leave high and dry, turn one's back on, cast aside, break (up) with, vacate, quit, evacuate, withdraw from, surrender, cede, yield, indulge in, give way to, give oneself up to, yield to, lose oneself to/in, uninhibitedness, recklessness, lack of restraint, lack of inhibition, unruliness, wildness, impulsiveness, impetuosity, immoderation, wantonness
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 3226 to 3250 of 3926 results
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
Big Idea: In the midst of a crisis, submission to the Lord’s will and wise action go hand in hand. Understanding the Text The tension in the plot heightens in this episode of the story. When the news of Absalom’s revolt and widespread support reaches Jerusalem, David decides to flee the city immediately. Apparently he feels that the city is indefensible, and he does not want Absalom to slaughter the city’s people (v. 14). Yet all is not lost: the foundation is laid for a favorable resolution to the ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... military prowess found its source in the Lord’s supernatural enablement.8 22:44  the attacks of the peoples. The Hebrew text has “my people.” Here David refers to attacks by his own countrymen rather than by foreigners. He most likely alludes to his conflicts with the Benjamite supporters of Saul (2 Sam. 2:8–3:1), his own son Absalom and his Israelite followers (2 Sam. 15–18), and Sheba (2 Sam. 20). In all of these cases large segments of the nation opposed David (2:8–9; 15:6, 13; 20:2). 22:45 ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... to the subsequent history in yet another way. When Solomon takes over the throne following his father’s death, he replaces Abiathar, a descendant of Eli, with Zadok (1 Kings 2:26–27, 35). Solomon’s decision, though motivated by Abiathar’s decision to support Adonijah, is consistent with the prophetic proclamation recorded in 1 Samuel 2:27–36. One gets the impression that the narrator of 1 Kings, by drawing attention to the fulfillment of the prophecy (cf. 2:27), is trying to absolve the house of ...
3229. The Ark Heads Home
1 Samuel 6:1-7:1
Teach the Text
Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... seventy of them. The Hebrew text and the ancient versions read “50,070 men,” a number that is impossible to accept as original. The site of ancient Beth Shemesh could not have accommodated this many people.12 A few medieval Hebrew manuscripts and Josephus support the smaller number seventy, as read by the NIV. they looked into the ark. The standard interpretation of this text is that some of the people looked into the ark (which implies that someone touched it) and were struck down because of their lack ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... people. The verb translated “govern” (‘atsar) is not used in chapter 8. One might have expected the verb “reign” (malak) to appear here, since it is used in chapter 8 to describe the rule of the king (vv. 9, 11). Its absence here is striking, supporting the idea that the Lord is not intending to give the people exactly what they want.7The verb ‘atsar means “restrain, detain, withhold,” suggesting that the appointed leader will hold the people in check. (Note esp. the use of the verb in 1 Sam ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... committed to them. Understanding the Text This chapter provides a fitting conclusion to the story of Saul’s accession to kingship. Facing a serious military threat from the Ammonites (12:12), Israel demanded a king like all the nations, for they thought such a king, supported by a standing army, would give them the security they so desperately needed (8:19–20). When the time came to choose this king, the Lord made it clear he was not going to give them what they wanted. He would give them a leader ...
Teach the Text
Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... see 1 Sam. 7:2), too far away to bring to Saul in time to launch an attack. It is more likely that Ahijah’s ephod, mentioned in verse 3, is in view here, since an ephod is used to consult the divine will. The use of the verb “bring” supports this, for it appears with “ephod” as an object elsewhere (1 Sam. 23:9; 30:7).6 14:23  on that day the Lord saved Israel. The use of the verb “saved/rescued” (yasha‘) may echo the exodus (cf. Exod. 14:30) and Gideon’s victory over the Midianites (Judg ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... s program in his quest to destroy David, but Jonathan, who stands in line to inherit his father’s throne, rejects personal ambition and is loyal to David.9 For exilic readers anticipating a time when the Lord will restore their nation, this account supports the prophets’ message that the Lord will reestablish the nation through an ideal Davidic king. It also provides a model of what this king will look like. He will, like David, experience the empowering presence of the Lord in a special way. The Lord ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... bode well for the second major character to appear in the book: if literary order is preserved, it is now Saul’s turn to die and leave the stage. Yet from the Davidic perspective, Samuel’s death adds tension to the story, because David has lost his greatest supporter and is on his own, as it were.3 25:3  She was an intelligent and beautiful woman. The term translated “intelligent” (sekel) describes a moral quality, not just mental aptitude (cf. Ps. 111:10; Prov. 3:4; 12:8; 13:15; 16:22; 19:11; 23 ...
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Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... himself of his enemy with one quick stroke. Saul’s spear has been mentioned before: on two occasions he tried to kill David with it (18:10–11; 19:9–10), and once he threw it at David’s best friend, his own son Jonathan, for supporting David (20:33). In 22:6 it is mentioned again just before Saul launches his campaign against David and murders the priests at Nob for allegedly siding with David. Saul’s spear symbolizes the king’s hostility toward David and the mortal danger that Saul represents ...
Teach the Text
Robert B. Chisholm Jr.
... Judah and its allies (the Kenites), so that the king will think he has transferred his loyalties from his homeland to Achish. To ensure that Achish does not discover what he is really up to, David leaves no survivors among his victims. This account supports the narrator’s defense of David by showing that he does not really become a traitor to Israel. Though he moves to Philistine territory and even claims to kill Judahites and Kenites, he is really killing the enemies of Israel.1 However, the story ...
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Daniel J. Estes
... has prompted what she says, she is then willing to have Job surrender his commitment to do what is right, so that his pain can be relieved. Job refuses to do that. At the time when Job has already lost so much, he now feels that he has lost the support of his wife as well. 2:10  Job did not sin in what he said. Job replies to his wife that she is speaking like a foolish woman, that is, her speech does not adhere to God’s path of wisdom. By contrast, Job’s speech, which is a window ...
3238. Eliphaz
Job 4:1-5:27
Teach the Text
Daniel J. Estes
... wicked. 4:10–11 The lions may roar and growl. In the Psalms, the lion is often a metaphor for a wicked person (Pss. 7:2; 17:12; 22:13). By using multiple references to lions in 4:10–11, Eliphaz tries to employ colorful language to support his point and make it convincing. However, since he implies that Job’s passionate words in chapter 3 were merely the growling of a toothless lion, Eliphaz’s rhetoric sounds more pompous than persuasive. 4:12–16 A word was secretly brought to me. After arguing ...
Teach the Text
Daniel J. Estes
... arguments that are convincing, at least to him and the other friends. However, his strength also proves to be his weakness, because his logic causes him to view Job merely as a case to be solved rather than as a person in pain who needs support. As a result, Bildad comes across with a condescending tone that only makes Job hurt all the more. In his enthusiasm for stating the correct answer, Bildad overlooks his original purpose, which was to comfort his friend (2:11). Similarly, when we minister to people ...
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Daniel J. Estes
... finds ample reasons for giving up. Most people in this kind of traumatic situation would abandon all hope, but even when all seems hopeless Job maintains a ray of hope that sustains him. Although a careful analysis of Job 19 in its context does not support reading it as a reference to Christ’s resurrection and final judgment, nevertheless Job with the limited revelation available to him is able to keep hoping that he will see God, that is, that he will be restored to favor with God. The misguided attempts ...
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Daniel J. Estes
... can at best experience only temporary joy (20:4–5). Zophar does not seem to realize that this concession flies in the face of the certainty that he insists on later in the chapter. He fails to notice that a careful observation of life actually supports Job’s claim that the retribution principle has exceptions. Zophar turns a blind eye to this evidence that should have prompted him to revise the absolute categories in his system of thinking. As we evaluate life and as we counsel others, we must be ...
Teach the Text
Daniel J. Estes
... ), their cattle bear profusely (21:10), they enjoy family tranquility (21:11–12), they do not suffer debilitating disease but die painlessly (21:13), and they enjoy all of this even as they reject God (21:14–15). The observable facts, then, do not support the claims by Job’s friends that sinful acts and painful consequences are invariably linked together. 21:16  I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked. Echoing the language of Psalm 1:1, Job emphatically rejects the charges by the friends that his ...
Teach the Text
Daniel J. Estes
... . As Elihu sees it, Job deserves punishment from God, because his heart is wicked and rebellious. In trying to analyze Job’s situation logically, Elihu misreads Job’s heart. Elihu gives a cold, theoretical answer when what Job needs is compassionate support. Elihu tries to solve a theological puzzle, but he fails to salve the pain of Job’s heart. Although other people can and do misconstrue our hearts, the Lord always understands us perfectly, and his omniscience is a great comfort. Illustrating ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... like humans. 2:9  you will break them with a rod of iron . . . pottery.7 The verb “break” assumes one Hebrew root (r‘‘), while the alternate reading “rule” (see NIV footnote) assumes another (r‘h, “to shepherd”). The LXX supports “rule” while the Targum the verb “break.” In light of the parallel metaphor in the second half of the verse, the translation “break” is preferable, although “to rule” is not out of metaphorical range, since the shepherd “ruled” with his ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... very opposite of his opponents’ claim. The contentment brought by the Lord’s answer “from his holy mountain” (3:4) has became an antidote for anxiety. He can sleep at night, and that is a single piece with his rising the next morning to face the day, supported by the knowledge that the Lord sustains him (3:6). This suggests that David’s daily routine and trust in God are interwoven, which indeed is the nature of genuine faith. Life’s crises call for a renewal of our faith in the God who answers ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... term to “righteousness.” God is the standard of righteousnss in the world (7:11). The NIV emends the Hebrew preposition at the end of the verse (‘alay, “upon me”) to the name for God, ‘elyon (also 7:10; cf. 7:17), without textual support. However, this preposition is sometimes used to intensify the link between the speaker and the related subject, as it is here, giving the sense of “according to my own integrity” (see, e.g., ESV: “the integrity that is in me”). David has put forth ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... in the Septuagint and Vulgate (which is Ps. 11 in the Hebrew and the Protestant and Jewish translations; see the sidebar “Varying Numbering of the Psalms”). Outline/Structure Psalms 9 and 10 form a partial alphabetic acrostic, which does not support a logical progression of thought (see the sidebar “The Alphabetic Acrostic Psalms” in the unit on Ps. 25). Rather than a logical outline, we should probably follow the sequence of the alphabetic letters.[5] However, the following outline approximates a ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... trusted direction ought not be made in the midst of our despair. The opening statement (1:1a) suggests that the psalmist’s trust in God was a position he had settled outside the counsel of those who recommended he escape. The suppliant’s trusting faith is supported by the observations of 11:4–7, which illustrate the third perspective: (a) God has the full perspective on David’s world, for he is in his “holy temple” in heaven observing what is going on in the earth (11:4), which buoys David’s ...
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C. Hassell Bullock
... description of his enemies (17:9). The imagery of the eagle protecting her young (17:8b) is a frequent metaphor in the Psalms.[5] Some would link it to the cherubim in the tabernacle/temple,[6] but the plausibility that it is an echo of Deuteronomy 32:11 supports nature as its source, as is definitely the case in the Song of Moses. The presence of lions (17:12) in the ancient Near East is well attested, and the Psalms often compare the psalmist’s enemies to lions (e.g., Ps. 7:2).[7] Interpretive Insights ...
Teach the Text
C. Hassell Bullock
... 23:34/John 19:24). The hurling of insults (22:7) is alluded to by Matthew and Mark (Matt. 27:39/Mark 15:29), and the psalmist’s trust in God (22:8) is remembered by Matthew (27:43). These quotations and allusions are enough to support the conclusion that Psalm 22 was seared in the messianic consciousness of the early disciples. Further, the writer to the Hebrews, after he has asserted that Christ is not ashamed to call his followers “brothers and sisters” (Heb. 2:11), quotes verse 22 to affirm that ...
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