Article October 1, 1938 Issue

Bible Notes

"A man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil" (Luke 4:33)—The ordinary Greek term for "devil" is "diabolos," which was often used in relation to Satan or human beings supposed to be like him (cf. John 6:70), but the word "daimonion," which is found in this passage, is more exactly "evil spirit" or "demon" (Souter: Greek Lexicon, p. 58).

"The glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby" (Isa. 33:21)—The question as to the real implication of the illustration here used by the prophet has given rise to some difference of opinion among both translators and commentators. For example, Moffatt's translation brings out the meaning that the Lord Himself is the "river" of His people, "a river never raided by a galley, sailed by no ships of war." Kent, however, in his rendering, suggests that the Lord and His power were to take the place of, and also to be superior to, the great rivers or moats to which the pagan nations looked for safety, for he gives the following translation: "But there we have a Glorious One, Jehovah, instead of broad encircling streams; in it no fleet of oars can go, Neither can stately ship pass by it." Still another possible rendering is that of Wade (Book of Isaiah, p. 214): "For there we shall have the river of the Lord instead of broad streams." Then, commenting upon the concluding portion of the verse, the same commentator adds: "The river of the Lord which will fertilize and enrich Jerusalem will not allow (like the Euphrates and the Nile) hostile fleets to navigate it and endanger the safety of the people who dwell by it" (loc. cit.). Smith renders: "For there, in place of broad rivers and streams, we shall have the River of the Lord, on which no ship with oars will go, no stately bark shall pass."

"My days are like a shadow that declineth" (Ps. 102:11)—The Hebrew word here translated "that declineth" means literally "stretched out," the reference being, it would seem, to the stretching out or lengthening of shadows as evening approaches. Thus Smith has: "My days are like a lengthened shadow;" though Moffatt suggests: "My days are brief as any evening shadow."

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