The One Year Bible TLB (293 page)

4:19
a mighty wind shall sweep them away.
The Assyrian invasion came about twenty years later, and the nation disappeared.

5:10
the lowest sort of thieves,
literally, “as those who move a boundary marker”; see Deuteronomy 19:14; 27:17.

6:2
In just a couple of days,
literally, “In two days.”

7:7
They kill their kings one after another.
Three Israelite kings were assassinated during Hosea’s lifetime—Zechariah, Shallum, and Pekahiah.

9:9
what they did in Gibeah,
see Judges 19:14ff.

9:10
But then you deserted me for Baal-peor,
the god of Peor, a city of Moab (Numbers 23).

9:15
Gilgal,
the town where Baal-worship flourished (4:15; 12:11), and where the monarchy, hated of God, was instituted (1 Samuel 11:15).

126:4
May we be refreshed,
literally, “Restore our fortunes, Lord.”

10:9
that awful night in Gibeah,
see Judges 19–20.

10:14
Shalman:
probably Salaman, king of Moab, who invaded Gilead around 740 
B.C.

11:4
As a man would lead his favorite ox,
implied.

11:8
Admah and Zeboiim,
cities of the plain that perished with Sodom and Gomorrah; see Deuteronomy 29:23.

12:1
a dangerous game,
implied.

12:11
fools,
or “vanity.”

13:11
I gave you kings in my anger, and I took them away.
Probably an allusion to the kings of Israel assassinated during her last tempestuous years: Zechariah, Shallum, Pekahiah.

1:6
turned to a life of sin,
or “abandoned their original rank and left their proper home.”

127:5
when arguing with his enemies,
literally, “when they speak with their enemies in the gate.”

1:6
A vast army of locusts,
literally, “A nation.”

1:15
this terrible day of punishment,
or “the Day of the Lord.”

3:2
Valley Where Jehovah Judges,
or “Valley of Jehoshaphat.”

1:1
This book unveils . . . the life of Jesus Christ,
literally, “This is the revelation of [concerning, or from] Jesus Christ.”

1:4
in Turkey,
literally, “in Asia.”
the sevenfold Spirit,
literally, “the seven Spirits.” But see Isaiah 11:2, where various aspects of the Holy Spirit are described, and Zechariah 4:2-6, giving probability to the paraphrase; see also 2:7.

1:5
He was the first to rise from death, to die no more,
literally, “He was the firstborn from the dead.” Others (Lazarus, etc.) rose to die again. As used here the expression therefore implies “to die no more.”

1:7
and those who pierced him.
John saw this happen with his own eyes—the piercing of Jesus—and never forgot the horror of it.

1:8
I am the A and the Z,
literally, “I am Alpha and Omega.” These are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.
is coming again,
literally, “who comes” or “who is to come.”

1:11
in Turkey,
literally, “in Asia.”

1:13
like Jesus, who called himself the Son of Man,
literally, “like unto a Son of Man.” John recognizes him from having lived with him for three years, and from seeing him in glory at the Transfiguration.

1:14
His hair was white as wool or snow,
literally, “His head—the hair—was white like wool.”

1:16
in his mouth,
literally, “came out from his mouth.”

1:20
leaders,
literally, “angels.” Some expositors (Origen, Jerome, etc.) believe from this that an angelic being is appointed by God to oversee each local church.

128:5
with heaven’s blessings,
literally, “from Zion.”
as well as with human joys,
literally, “of Jerusalem.”

1:1
All day long he sat . . . keeping them from straying,
implied.

1:5
the people of Syria shall return to Kir.
Decreeing that the Syrians should go back to Kir as slaves was like saying to the Israelites that they must go back to Egypt as slaves, for the Syrians had made their exodus from Kir and now were free; see 9:7.

1:12
Teman . . . Bozrah.
Teman was in the north of Edom and Bozrah in the south. The entire country was to be devastated.

2:11
to be Nazirites,
see Numbers 6.

2:1
leader,
literally, “angel” and so also in 2:8; 2:12; 2:18; 3:1; 3:7; 3:14.
from him who walks among the churches,
literally, “from him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the golden candlesticks.”

2:6
Nicolaitans,
which, when translated from Greek to Hebrew, becomes
Balaamites,
who were followers of the man who induced the Israelites to fall by lust. (See 2:14 and Numbers 31:15-16.)

2:10
an unending, glorious future,
implied.

2:15
Balaam,
literally, “Nicolaitans,” Greek form of “Balaamites.”

29:19
Sometimes,
literally, “For a servant.”

2:22
along with all her immoral followers,
literally, “together with all those who commit adultery with her.”

3:1
the sevenfold Spirit,
see note on 1:4.

3:8
you have tried to obey,
literally, “you have kept my word.”

3:9
those supporting the causes of Satan while claiming to be mine,
literally, “those who say they are Jews but are not.”

3:10
I will protect you from the time of Great Tribulation and temptation,
or “I will keep you from failing in the hour of testing.” The inference is not clear in the Greek as to whether this means “kept from” or “kept through” the coming horror.

3:11
soon,
or “suddenly,” “unexpectedly.”

3:14
from the one who stands firm,
literally, “from the Amen.”
of all that is or was or evermore shall be,
implied.

1:1
Edom.
A nation southeast of Israel including Petra, the city hewn from rocks; her southern boundary was on the Gulf of Aqaba.

4:5
the sevenfold Spirit of God,
literally, “the seven spirits of God.” But see Zechariah 4:2-6 where the lamps are equated with the one Spirit; also in 5:6.

132:1
my heart,
literally, “David’s soul.”

132:2-5
the Ark of the Lord,
implied.

132:6
First the Ark was in Ephrathah,
literally, “Lo, we heard of it in Ephrathah.”

132:7
That is where we will go to worship him,
literally, “We will go into his tabernacles; we will worship at his footstool.”

132:13
Jerusalem,
literally, “Zion.”

132:17
a mighty Son,
literally, “a progeny.”

1:9-10
I am a Jew,
literally, “I am a Hebrew.”

3:3
so large that it would take three days to walk through it.
The Hebrew text makes no distinction between the city proper—the walls of which were only about eight miles in circumference, accommodating a population of about 175,000 persons—and the administrative district of Nineveh, which was about thirty to sixty miles across.

3:4-5
the rough, coarse garments worn at times of mourning,
implied.

4:3
when nothing that I told them happens,
implied.

4:5
sat sulking,
implied.

4:11
with its 120,000 people in utter spiritual darkness,
or “with its 120,000 children who don’t know their right hands from their left.”

5:4
with disappointment,
implied.

5:9
singing,
literally, “saying,” or “said”; also in vv. 11-12.

133:3
Jerusalem,
literally, “Zion.”

1:7
will all be burned,
literally, “they shall return to the hire of a harlot.”

1:11
There go the people of Shaphir.
In the Hebrew there is frequent wordplay in vv. 10-14. Micah bitterly declaims each town, demonstrating by the use of puns their failures.
Shaphir
sounds like the Hebrew word for “beauty,” here contrasted with their shame;
Zaanan
sounds like the verb meaning “to go forth,” here contrasted with the fear of its inhabitants to venture outside;
Beth-ezel
sounds like a word for “foundation,” which had been taken away from them.

1:14
Moresheth,
Micah’s hometown (1:1).

2:13
The Messiah,
literally, “He who opens the breach.”

6:6
A loaf of bread for $20, or three pounds of barley flour,
literally, “A choenix of wheat for a denarius, and three choenix of barley for a denarius”
there is no olive oil or wine,
literally, “do not damage the oil and wine.”

6:13
appeared to be falling to earth,
literally, “fell to the earth.”

6:14
the starry heavens disappeared,
literally, “the sky departed.”

30:3
I cannot understand man,
literally, “I have not learned wisdom.”

5:5
the Assyrian.
The area of ancient Assyria is now known as Iraq.

6:14
See Haggai 1:6.

7:13
But first comes terrible destruction to Israel,
literally, “But the land will be desolate because of its inhabitants.”

7:17
in front of the throne,
literally, “in the center of the throne”; i.e., directly in front, not to one side. An alternate rendering might be, “at the heart of the throne.”

135:21
All people of Jerusalem, praise the Lord,
literally, “The Lord be blessed from Zion.”

1:1
Nineveh
was the capital of Assyria.

1:11
Who is this king,
implied in vv. 1 and 13, also in 3:18.

2:1
Nineveh, you are finished!
This chapter predicts the events of the year 612 
B.C.
when the combined armies of the Babylonians and Medes sacked the impregnable Nineveh.

3:4
then taught them all to worship her false gods,
literally, “who betrays nations with her harlotries.”

3:8
Are you any better than Thebes?
Thebes was conquered by the Assyrians fifty-one years before this prophecy.

8:8-9
turned red as blood,
literally, “became blood.”

8:11
“Bitterness,”
literally, “Wormwood.”

136:6
who planted the water within the earth,
or “who separated the earth from the oceans.”

136:10
to Israel,
implied here and in vv. 11-12, 15, 18, 19-21.

1:6
the Chaldeans,
a tribe of Semites living between Babylon and the Persian Gulf, who began to assert themselves against the Assyrians around 630 
B.C.
and twenty-five years later had mastered most of the Near East.

1:11
The Hebrew text of this verse is very uncertain.

2:2
on a billboard,
literally, “on the tablets.”

2:3
If it seems slow,
or “If he seems slow.”

2:4
as these Chaldeans do,
implied.
the righteous man trusts in me and lives,
or “the righteous shall live by his faith.”

3:1
of triumph,
literally, “according to Shigionoth”—thought by some to mean a mournful dirge.

3:3
from Mount Sinai,
literally, “from Teman . . . from Mount Paran.”

3:4
He rejoices in his awesome power,
or “He veils his power.”

3:8-9
Literally, “Was the Lord displeased against the rivers? Were you angry with them? Was your wrath against their sin that you rode upon your horses? Your chariots were salvation. Your bow was pulled from its sheath and you put arrows to the string. You ribboned the earth with rivers.”

3:10
announcing its surrender to the Lord,
literally, “and lifts high its hands.”

9:1
one who had fallen to earth from heaven,
literally, “a star fallen from heaven”; it is unclear whether this person is of satanic origin, as most commentators believe, or whether the reference is to Christ.

9:11
(and in English, the Destroyer),
implied.

9:14
mighty demons,
literally, “[fallen] angels.”

9:16
If this is a literal figure, it is no longer incredible, in view of a world population in excess of 6 billion in the near future. In China alone, in 1961, there were an “estimated 200 million armed and organized militiamen” (Associated Press Release, April 24, 1964).
warriors,
literally, “horsemen.”

137:9
Blessed is the man who takes your babies and smashes them against the rocks!
Perhaps this could be paraphrased, “Blessed is he who invades and sacks your city.”

1:1
The Great Revival under King Josiah followed about ten years after this prophecy, and then, a dozen years later, the deportation and exile. The prophet Jeremiah was active during this same period.

1:7
has chosen their executioners,
literally, “has prepared a sacrifice and sanctified his guests.”

1:8
wearing heathen clothing,
i.e., showing their desire for foreign gods and foreign ways and their contempt for the Lord.

1:18
You cannot ransom yourselves with it,
implied.

2:5
Philistines,
literally, “Cherethites [or Cretans].” With the Philistines, they were part of a great wave of immigrants to the southern coast of Palestine around 1200 
B.C.

2:15
will mock or shake his head in disbelief.
“Nothing seemed more improbable than that the capital of so vast an empire, a city of sixty miles around with walls 100 feet high and so thick that three chariots could go abreast on them, and with 1500 towers, should be so totally destroyed that its site is with difficulty discovered.”—Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary.

3:9
I will change the speech of my returning people to pure Hebrew,
literally, “I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech.” See Isaiah 19:18.

3:10
in the Sudan,
implied.

138:1
before the armies of angels,
or “before the gods.” The same Hebrew word is used here as in Psalm 8:5.

138:2
for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name,
literally, “you have exalted your word above all your name.”

1:1
for it was addressed to them,
that is, to the exiles who had returned from Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem.

2:7
the Desire of All Nations,
i.e., Christ the Messiah, literally, “the Treasures” or “that which is choice.” But many commentators prefer this rendering: “the treasures of the nations will pour into this Temple, and I will fill it with splendor.”

2:8-9
I will give peace,
i.e., peace with God through Christ who, 500 years later, came often to this Temple.

2:18-19
24th day of the month,
i.e., of Kislev, which is early in December, according to our calendar.

11:1
a measuring stick . . . and to count the number of worshipers,
literally, “Rise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.”

11:2
forty-two months,
three and a half years, as in Daniel 12:7; also for
1,260 days
in v. 3.

11:4
two olive trees,
see Zechariah 4:3, 11.

11:7
the bottomless pit,
see 9:11.

11:15
The Kingdom of this world now belongs to our Lord, and to his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever,
or “The Lord and his Anointed shall now rule the world from this day to eternity.”

139:17-18
I can’t even count how many times a day your thoughts turn toward me,
literally, “How precious are your thoughts to me.”

1:8
each with its rider,
implied.

12:14
three and a half years,
literally, “a time and times and half a time.”

2:8
This passage evidently refers to the Messiah, here seen as one of the Godhead.

3:2
I reject your accusations, Satan,
literally, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan.”

3:8
the Branch,
i.e., the Messiah, Christ.

3:9
I will engrave this inscription on it seven times,
literally, “See the stone with seven facets I have set before Joshua, and I will engrave its inscription.”

13:7
The Dragon gave him power to fight against God’s people,
literally, “It was permitted to fight against God’s people.”

13:8
whose names were not written . . . in the slain Lamb’s Book of Life,
or “those whose names were not written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain before the founding of the world.” That is, regarded as slain in the eternal plan and knowledge of God.

13:10
The people of God . . . will be killed,
or “If anyone imprisons you, he will be imprisoned! If anyone kills you, he will be killed.”

13:18
666,
some manuscripts read “616.”

141:6-7
When their leaders are condemned and their bones are strewn across the ground,
literally, “As when one plows and cleaves the earth, our bones are scattered at the mouth of Sheol.”

30:18-19
The growth of love between a man and a girl,
literally, “The way of a man with a maid.” Some linguists believe the meaning is, “Why a girl will let herself be seduced.”

4:6
to Zerubbabel,
Governor of Judah, who was given the responsibility for rebuilding the Temple. See Haggai 1:1; 2:23, etc.

4:7
Zerubbabel will finish building this Temple,
literally, “he will bring forth the capstone.”
declaring that all was done by grace alone,
or “with mighty shouts, ‘How beautiful it is!’” or “‘The Lord bless it!’”

5:11
To Babylon
(the land of Shinar). By the time of Zechariah, Babylon had become a symbol, the center of world idolatry and wickedness.

14:4
For they are spiritually undefiled, pure as virgins,
literally, “They have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins.”

14:9
from the sea,
implied.

14:13
his martyrs,
literally, “those who die in the faith of Jesus”; v. 12 implies death from persecution for Christ’s sake.

14:14
“The Son of Man,”
literally, “one like a Son of Man.”

14:18
who has power to destroy the world with fire,
literally, “who has power over fire.”

30:21-23
who marries the husband of her mistress,
literally, “who succeeds her mistress.”

6:6
will follow it there,
or “will go west.”

6:7
red,
implied.

6:8
Those who went north have executed my judgment,
implied.

6:12
he will grow up from himself,
literally, “he will grow up in his place.”

15:3-4
O King of Ages.
Some manuscripts read, “King of the Nations.”