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3,811 commentary entries
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible
Manasseh's Ruin Foretold. (b. c. 643.)
MANASSEH'S RUIN FORETOLD. (B. C. 643.) Here is the doom of Judah and Jerusalem read, and it is heavy doom. The prophets were sent, in the first place, to teach them the knowledge of God, to remind them of their duty and…
Amon's Reign and Death. (b. c. 643.)
AMON'S REIGN AND DEATH. (B. C. 643.) Here is a short account of the short and inglorious reign of Amon, the son of Manasseh. Whether Manasseh, in his blind and brutish zeal for his idols, had sacrificed his other sons—o…
Josiah's Pious Reign; the Book of the Law Read. (b. c. 623.)
JOSIAH'S PIOUS REIGN; THE BOOK OF THE LAW READ. (B. C. 623.) Concerning Josiah we are here told, I. That he was very young when he began to reign (2 Kings 22:1), only eight years old. Solomon says, Woe unto thee, O land…
The Ruin of Judah Foretold; the Favour Shown to Josiah. (b. c. 623.)
THE RUIN OF JUDAH FORETOLD; THE FAVOUR SHOWN TO JOSIAH. (B. C. 623.) We hear no more of the repairing of the temple: no doubt that good work went on well; but the book of the law that was found in it occupies us now, an…
Josiah Destroys Idolatry. (b. c. 623.)
JOSIAH DESTROYS IDOLATRY. (B. C. 623.) Josiah had received a message from God that there was no preventing the ruin of Jerusalem, but that he should deliver only his own soul; yet he did not therefore sit down in despai…
Josiah Reforms Judah. (b. c. 623.)
JOSIAH REFORMS JUDAH. (B. C. 623.) We have here an account of such a reformation as we have not met with in all the history of the kings of Judah, such thorough riddance made of all the abominable things and such founda…
The Death of Josiah. (b. c. 610.)
THE DEATH OF JOSIAH. (B. C. 610.) Upon the reading of these verses we must say, Lord, though thy righteousness be as the great mountains—evident, conspicuous, and past dispute, yet thy judgments are a great deep, unfath…
Reigns of Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim. (b. c. 610.)
REIGNS OF JEHOAHAZ AND JEHOIAKIM. (B. C. 610.) Jerusalem saw not a good day after Josiah was laid in his grave, but one trouble came after another, till within twenty-two years it was quite destroyed. Of the reign of tw…
Jehoiakim Subdued by Nebuchadnezzar. (b. c. 599.)
JEHOIAKIM SUBDUED BY NEBUCHADNEZZAR. (B. C. 599.) We have here the first mention of a name which makes a great figure both in the histories and in the prophecies of the Old Testament; it is that of Nebuchadnezzar, king…
Jehoiachin Carried Captive to Babylon. (b. c. 599.)
JEHOIACHIN CARRIED CAPTIVE TO BABYLON. (B. C. 599.) This should have been the history of king Jehoiachin's reign, but, alas! it is only the history of king Jehoiachin's captivity, as it is called, Ezekiel 1:2. He came t…
Jerusalem Besieged. (b. c. 590.)
JERUSALEM BESIEGED. (B. C. 590.) We left king Zedekiah in rebellion against the king of Babylon (2 Kings 24:20), contriving and endeavouring to shake off his yoke, when he was no way able to do it, nor took the right me…
The Temple Destroyed. (b. c. 588.)
THE TEMPLE DESTROYED. (B. C. 588.) Though we have reason to think that the army of the Chaldeans were much enraged against the city for holding out with so much stubbornness, yet they did not therefore put all to fire a…
Dispersion of the Remnant of Judah. (b. c. 552.)
DISPERSION OF THE REMNANT OF JUDAH. (B. C. 552.) In these verses we have, I. The dispersion of the remaining people. The city of Jerusalem was quite laid waste. Some people there were in the land of Judah (2 Kings 25:22…
Genealogies. (b. c. 4004.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 4004.) This paragraph has Adam for its first word and Abraham for its last. Between the creation of the former and the birth of the latter were 2000 years, almost the one-half of which time Adam hims…
Genealogies. (b. c. 1896.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 1896.) All nations but the seed of Abraham are already shaken off from this genealogy: they have no part nor lot in this matter. The Lord's portion is his people. Of them he keeps an account, knows t…
Genealogies. (b. c. 1751.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 1751.) Here is, I. The family of Jacob. His twelve sons are here named, that illustrious number so often celebrated almost throughout the whole Bible, from the first to the last book of it. At every…
Genealogies. (b. c. 1450.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 1450.) The persons mentioned in the former paragraph are most of them such as we read of, and most of them such as we read much of, in other scriptures; but very few of those to whom this paragraph r…
The Family of David. (b. c. 1055.)
THE FAMILY OF DAVID. (B. C. 1055.) We had an account of David's sons, 2 Samuel 3:2-5, &c. 1. He had many sons; and no doubt wrote as he thought, Psalm 127:5. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of these arrows. 2…
Matthew Henry on 1 Chronicles 3:10-24
David having nineteen sons, we may suppose them to have raised many noble families in Israel whom we never hear of in the history. But the scripture gives us an account only of the descendants of Solomon here, and of Na…
The Sons of Judah; The Prayer of Jabez. (b. c. 1720.)
THE SONS OF JUDAH; THE PRAYER OF JABEZ. (B. C. 1720.) One reason, no doubt, why Ezra is here most particular in the register of the tribe of Judah is because it was that tribe which, with its appendages, Simeon, Benjami…
Genealogies. (b. c. 1420.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 1420.) We may observe in these verses, 1. That here is a whole family of craftsmen, handicraft tradesmen, that applied themselves to all sorts of manufactures, in which they were ingenious and indust…
Genealogies. (b. c. 715.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 715.) We have here some of the genealogies of the tribe of Simeon (though it was not a tribe of great note), especially the princes of that tribe, 1 Chronicles 4:38. Of this tribe it is said that the…
Genealogies. (b. c. 715.)
GENEALOGIES. (B. C. 715.) We have here an extract out of the genealogies, I. Of the tribe of Reuben, where we have, 1. The reason why this tribe is thus postponed. It is confessed that Reuben was the first-born of Israe…
The Defeat of the Hagarites. (b. c. 750.)
THE DEFEAT OF THE HAGARITES. (B. C. 750.) The heads of the half-tribe of Manasseh, that were seated on the other side Jordan, are named here, 1 Chronicles 5:23-24. Their lot, at first, was Bashan only; but afterwards th…