Voices and influences
Adam Clarke
The self-taught Irish Methodist orientalist who rode preaching circuits for fifty years and spent forty of them writing a commentary on the whole Bible.
Summary
This site quotes Adam Clarke 9,015 times across 66 books, and lists 0 works.
- Lived 1762 to 1832.
- Quoted here most in Genesis: 673 of 9,015.
Adam Clarke
- Lived
- 1762 to 1832
- Tradition
- Methodist
5 of 9,015 quotations
Own words
Quoted in full, because Adam Clarke died in 1832 and these works are out of copyright. Each citation below names its edition and its year. A citation naming a modernised text means that edition makes its own editorial changes, and that edition's terms are not in this site's record.
The earth was without form and void - The original term תהו tohu and בהו bohu, which we translate without form and void, are of uncertain etymology; but in this place, and wherever else they are used, they convey the idea of confusion and disorder.
The rest of the quotation
From these terms it is probable that the ancient Syrians and Egyptians borrowed their gods, Theuth and Bau, and the Greeks their Chaos.
Genesis 1:2 Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. BSB
Even a fool - He is counted wise as to that particular. He may know that he cannot speak well, and he has sense enough to keep from speaking. He is, as to that particular, a wise fool.
The rest of the quotation
A man may be golden-mouthed and silver-tongued in eloquence; but to know when and where to speak and to be silent, is better than diamonds. But who that thinks he can speak well can refrain from speaking? His tongue has no rest.
Proverbs 17:28 Even a fool is considered wise if he keeps silent, and discerning when he holds his tongue. BSB
Thoughts of peace - Here God gives them to understand, 1. That his love was moved towards them. 2. That he would perform his good word, his promises often repeated, to them. 3. That for the fulfillment of these they must pray, seek, and search.
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4. That he would hearken, and they should find him; provided, 5. They sought him with their whole heart, Jer 29:10-13.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope. BSB
Let your light so shine - Or more literally, Thus let your light shine, Ουτω λαμψατω το φως.
The rest of the quotation
As the sun is lighted up in the firmament of heaven to diffuse its light and heat freely to every inhabitant of the earth; and as the lamp is not set under the bushel, but placed upon the lamp-stand that it may give light to all in the house; Thus let every follower of Christ, and especially every preacher of the Gospel, diffuse the light of heavenly knowledge, and the warmth of Divine love through the whole circle of their acquaintance.
Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. BSB
A bruised reed shall he not break - A reed is, in Scripture, the emblem of weakness, Eze 29:6; and a bruised reed must signify that state of weakness that borders on dissolution and death. And smoking flax shall he not quench - Λινον τυφομενον.
The rest of the quotation
Λινος means the wick of a lamp, and τυφομενον is intended to point out its expiring state, when the oil has been all burnt away from it, and nothing is left but a mere snuff, emitting smoke.
Matthew 12:20 A bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not extinguish, till He leads justice to victory. BSB
Influence, on the record
This site quotes Adam Clarke 9,015 times across 66 books.
This site’s own count of what it does with the voice
The life, in order
The life told as one accountfrom this site's record
Adam Clarke was born at Moybeg, in County Londonderry, Ireland, about 1760 — his father said 1762, and the exact year has never been settled. His father was a schoolmaster; the family was poor. As a boy Clarke was thought slow. He learned to read late, and then read everything he could reach. He was converted among the Methodists in 1778, and in 1782 John Wesley himself sent him to the Bradford circuit in England. He was about twenty-two, with almost no formal schooling and a horse. He spent the rest of his life as a travelling preacher, moving circuits every few years as Methodist rules required — Bradford, Norwich, the Channel Islands, Dublin, Manchester, Liverpool, London. He was elected president of the British Methodist Conference three times, in 1806, 1814, and 1822, an honor almost never repeated in that era. And all along he studied. Clarke taught himself Hebrew, Syriac, Chaldee, Arabic, Persian, Samaritan, Coptic, and more, and became one of the finest oriental scholars in Britain without ever holding a university chair. The government hired him: for years he worked for the Records Commission on Rymer's Foedera, the great collection of English state papers, and he catalogued manuscripts for private libraries. He was elected to the Royal Irish Academy and the Society of Antiquaries. The work he is known for took forty years. The Holy Bible... with a Commentary and Critical Notes was published in eight volumes between 1810 and 1826. It is enormous, digressive, and packed with material nobody else was supplying to English readers — Hebrew and Arabic parallels, ancient customs, natural history, textual notes, and long excursions on whatever caught his eye. It became the standard theological resource of Methodism for the better part of two centuries, and it is still consulted. He was open about where he broke ranks. Clarke denied the eternal sonship of Christ: he held the Son to be fully and eternally divine, but taught that the title "Son" describes the incarnation rather than an eternal relation. Methodists argued with him about it in his lifetime and long after, and Methodist doctrine did not follow him there. He also read the tempter of Genesis 3 as a creature more like an ape than a serpent — a reading nearly everyone else rejected. The commentary carries these views plainly, and readers have always had to weigh them. He gave himself away in other directions too. He worked for the early Bible society movement, championed the Sunday school, organized mission work in the Shetland Isles, and gave away most of what he earned. He died of cholera in London on August 26, 1832, during the epidemic that swept Britain that year, still working. Sources: Adam Clarke, The Holy Bible... with a Commentary and Critical Notes; J. B. B. Clarke, ed., An Account of the Infancy, Religious and Literary Life of Adam Clarke, LL.D.; Luke Tyerman, The Life and Times of the Rev. John Wesley; the Dictionary of National Biography (1887), "Clarke, Adam."
9,015 quotations across 66 books
Where this voice is quoted
“Listen to their voice,” the LORD said to Samuel. “Appoint a king for them.” Then Samuel told the men of Israel, “Everyone must go back to his city.”
“Hearken unto their voice - Let them have what they desire, and let them abide the consequences.”
And he had a son named Saul, choice and handsome, without equal among the Israelites—a head taller than any of the people.
“From his shoulders and upwards - It was probably from this very circumstance that he was chosen for king; for, where kings were elective, in all ancient times great respect was paid to personal appearance.”
One day the donkeys of Saul’s father Kish wandered off, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants and go look for the donkeys.”
“The asses of Kish - were lost - What a wonderful train of occurrences were connected in order to bring Saul to the throne of Israel!”
When they reached the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant, “Come, let us go back, or my father will stop worrying about the donkeys and start worrying about…
“Were come to the land of Zuph - Calmet supposes that Saul and his servant went from Gibeah to Shalisha, in the tribe of Dan; from thence to Shalim, near to Jerusalem; and thence, traversing the tribe of Benjamin, they purposed to return to Gibeah…”
“If we do go,” Saul replied, “what can we give the man?
“There is not a present to bring to the man of God - We are not to suppose from this that the prophets took money to predict future events: Saul only refers to an invariable custom, that no man approached a superior without a present…”
The servant answered him again. “Look,” he said, “I have here in my hand a quarter shekel of silver.
“The fourth part of a shekel of silver - We find from the preceding verse, that the bread or provisions which they had brought with them for their journey was expended, else a part of that would have been thought a suitable present; and here…”
And as they were climbing the hill to the city, they met some young women coming out to draw water and asked, “Is the seer here?”
“Young maidens going out to draw water - So far is it from being true, that young women were always kept closely shut up at home, that we find them often in the field, drawing and carrying water, as here.”
“Yes, he is ahead of you,” they answered. “Hurry now, for today he has come to the city because the people have a sacrifice on the high place.
“He came to - day to the city - Though Samuel lived chiefly in Ramah, yet he had a dwelling in the country, at a place called Naioth, where it is probable there was a school of the prophets. See 1Sa 19:18-24.”
“At this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you are to anoint him leader over My people Israel; he will save them…
“Thou shalt anoint him to be captain - Not to be king, but to be נגיד nagid or captain of the Lord’s host. But in ancient times no king was esteemed who was not an able warrior.”
As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them, for they have been found.
“As for thine asses - Thus he shows him that he knew what was in his heart, God having previously revealed these things to Samuel. And on whom is all the desire of Israel?”
And Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the portion I gave you and told you to set aside.”
“Said unto the cook - טבח tabbach, here rendered cook; the singular of טבחות tabbachoth, female cooks, 1Sa 8:13, from the root tabach, to slay or butcher. Probably the butcher is here meant.”
So the cook picked up the leg and what was attached to it and set it before Saul. Then Samuel said, “Here is what was kept back.
“The shoulder, and that which was upon it - Probably the shoulder was covered with a part of the caul, that it might be the better roasted.”
And after they had come down from the high place into the city, Samuel spoke with Saul on the roof of his house.
“Upon the top of the house - All the houses in the East were flat-roofed; on these people walked, talked, and frequently slept, for the sake of fresh and cooling air.”
When you leave me today, you will find two men at Rachel’s tomb in Zelzah on the border of Benjamin.
“Rachel’s sepulcher - This was nigh to Bethlehem. See Gen 35:19. At Zelzah - If this be the name of a place, nothing is known of it.”
They will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from their hands.
“And they will salute thee - ושאלו לך לשלום veshaalu lecha leshalom, “And they will inquire of thee concerning peace,” i.e., welfare.”
When these signs have come, do as the occasion demands, for God is with you.
“Thou do as occasion serve thee - After God has shown thee all these signs that thou art under his especial guidance, fear not to undertake any thing that belongs to thy office, for God is with thee.”
And you shall go before me to Gilgal, and surely I will come to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings.
“Seven days shalt thou tarry - I will come to thee within seven days, offer sacrifices, receive directions from the Lord, and deliver them to thee.”
Then a man who lived there replied, “And who is their father?” So the saying became a proverb: “Is Saul also among the prophets?”
“But who is their father? - The Septuagint, in its principal editions, adds ου Κεις; is it not Kish? This makes the sense more complete.”
And when Saul had finished prophesying, he went up to the high place.
“He came to the high place - I suppose this to mean the place where Saul’s father lived; as it is evident the next verse shows him to be at home.”
Now Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where did you go?” “To look for the donkeys,” Saul replied.
“Saul’s uncle - The word דוד dod signifies a beloved one, love, a lover, friend, etc.; and is the same as David. It is supposed to mean uncle here; but I think it means some familiar friend.”
So again they inquired of the LORD, “Has the man come here yet?” And the LORD replied, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.”
“The Lord answered - What a continual access to God! and what condescension in his attention to all their requests! The stuff among which he had secreted himself may mean the carts, baggage, etc., brought by the people to Mizpeh.”
Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see the one the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people.”
“God save the king - There is no such word here; no, nor in the whole Bible; nor is it countenanced by any of the versions.”
Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, and the men of valor whose hearts God had touched went with him.
“A band of men - Not a military band, as I imagine, but some secret friends, or companions, who were personally attached to him.”
But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make a treaty with you on one condition, that I may put out everyone’s right eye and bring reproach upon all Israel.”
“I may thrust out all your right eves - This cruel condition would serve at once as a badge of their slavery, and a means of incapacitating them from being effective warriors.”
“Hold off for seven days,” replied the elders of Jabesh, “and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.”
“Give us seven days respite - Such promises are frequently made by besieged places: “We will surrender if not relieved in so many days;” and such conditions are generally received by the besiegers.”