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3,811 commentary entries
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible
Matthew Henry on Genesis 6:22
Noah's care and diligence in building the ark may be considered, 1. As an effect of his faith in the word of God. God had told him he would shortly drown the world; he believed it, feared the threatened deluge, and, in…
Noah Invited into the Ark. (b. c. 2349.)
NOAH INVITED INTO THE ARK. (B. C. 2349.) Here is, I. A gracious invitation of Noah and his family into a place of safety, now that the flood of waters was coming, Genesis 7:1. 1. The call itself is very kind, like that…
The Deluge. (b. c. 2349.)
THE DELUGE. (B. C. 2349.) Here is Noah's ready obedience to the commands that God gave him. Observe, 1. He went into the ark, upon notice that the flood would come after seven days, though probably as yet there appeared…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 7:11-12
Here is, I. The date of this great event; this is carefully recorded, for the greater certainty of the story. 1. It was in the 600th year of Noah's life, which, by computation, appears to be 1656 years from the creation…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 7:13-16
Here is repeated what was related before of Noah's entrance into the ark, with his family and creatures that were marked for preservation. Now, I. It is thus repeated for the honour of Noah, whose faith and obedience he…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 7:17-20
We are here told, I. How long the flood was increasing—forty days, Genesis 7:17. The profane world, who believed not that it would come, probably when it came flattered themselves with hopes that it would soon abate and…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 7:21-24
Here is, I. The general destruction of all flesh by the waters of the flood. Come, and see the desolations which God makes in the earth (Psalm 46:8), and how he lays heaps upon heaps. Never did death triumph, from its f…
The Earth Becomes Dry. (b. c. 2349.)
THE EARTH BECOMES DRY. (B. C. 2349.) Here is, I. An act of God's grace: God remembered Noah and every living thing. This is an expression after the manner of men; for not any of his creatures (Luke 12:6), much less any…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 8:4-5
Here we have the effects and evidences of the ebbing of the waters. 1. The ark rested. This was some satisfaction to Noah, to feel the house he was in upon firm ground, and no longer movable. It rested upon a mountain,…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 8:6-12
We have here an account of the spies which Noah sent forth to bring him intelligence from abroad, a raven and a dove. Observe here, I. That though God had told Noah particularly when the flood would come, even to a day…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 8:13-14
Here is, 1. The ground dry (Genesis 8:13), that is, all the water carried off it, which, upon the first day of the first month (a joyful new-year's-day it was), Noah was himself an eye-witness of. He removed the coverin…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 8:15-19
Here is, I. Noah's dismission out of the ark, Genesis 8:15-17. Observe, 1. Noah did not stir till God bade him. As he had a command to go into the ark (Genesis 7:1), so, how tedious soever his confinement there was, he…
Noah's Sacrifice. (b. c. 2348.)
NOAH'S SACRIFICE. (B. C. 2348.) Here is, I. Noah's thankful acknowledgment of God's favour to him, in completing the mercy of his deliverance, Genesis 8:20. 1. He built an altar. Hitherto he had done nothing without par…
Blessing of Noah and His Sons. (b. c. 2348.)
BLESSING OF NOAH AND HIS SONS. (B. C. 2348.) We read, in the close of the foregoing chapter, the very kind things which God said in his heart, concerning the remnant of mankind which was now left to be the seed of a new…
God's Covenant with Noah. (b. c. 2347.)
GOD'S COVENANT WITH NOAH. (B. C. 2347.) Here is, I. The general establishment of God's covenant with this new world, and the extent of that covenant, Genesis 9:9-10. Here observe, 1. That God is graciously pleased to de…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 9:12-17
Articles of agreement among men are usually sealed, that the covenants may be the more solemn, and the performances of the covenants the more sure, to mutual satisfaction. God therefore, being willing more abundantly to…
Sin of Ham. (b. c. 2347.)
SIN OF HAM. (B. C. 2347.) Here is, I. Noah's family and employment. The names of his sons are again mentioned (Genesis 9:18-19) as those from whom the whole earth was overspread, by which it appears that Noah, after the…
Noah's Prophecy. (b. c. 2347.)
NOAH'S PROPHECY. (B. C. 2347.) Here, I. Noah comes to himself: He awoke from his wine. Sleep cured him, and, we may suppose, so cured him that he never relapsed into that sin afterwards. Those that sleep as Noah did sho…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 9:28-29
Here see, 1. How God prolonged the life of Noah; he lived 950 years, twenty more than Adam and but nineteen less than Methuselah: this long life was a further reward of his signal piety, and a great blessing to the worl…
The Generations of Noah. (b. c. 2347.)
THE GENERATIONS OF NOAH. (B. C. 2347.) Moses begins with Japheth's family, either because he was the eldest, or because his family lay remotest from Israel and had least concern with them at the time when Moses wrote, a…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 10:6-14
That which is observable and improvable in these verses is the account here given of Nimrod, Genesis 10:8-10. He is here represented as a great man in his day: He began to be a mighty one in the earth, that is, whereas…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 10:15-20
Observe here, 1. The account of the posterity of Canaan, of the families and nations that descended from him, and of the land they possessed, is more particular than of any other in this chapter, because these were the…
Matthew Henry on Genesis 10:21-32
Two things especially are observable in this account of the posterity of Shem:— I. The description of Shem, v. 21. We have not only his name, Shem, which signifies a name, but two titles to distinguish him by:— 1. He wa…
The Confusion of Tongues. (b. c. 2247.)
THE CONFUSION OF TONGUES. (B. C. 2247.) The close of the foregoing chapter tells us that by the sons of Noah, or among the sons of Noah, the nations were divided in the earth after the flood, that is, were distinguished…