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
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
“Pride goeth before destruction - Here pride is personified: it walks along, and has destruction in its train. And a haughty spirit before a fall - Another personification. A haughty spirit marches on, and ruin comes after.”
Understanding is a fountain of life to its possessor, but the discipline of fools is folly.
“Understanding is a well-spring of life - מקור חיים mekor chaiyim; another allusion to the artery that carries the blood from the heart to distribute it to all the extremities of the body.”
Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
“Pleasant words are as a honey-comb - The honey of which is sweeter than that which has been expressed from it, and has a much finer flavour before it has come in contact with the atmospheric air.”
He who is slow to anger is better than a warrior, and he who controls his temper is greater than one who captures a city.
“He that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city - It is much easier to subdue an enemy without than one within. There have been many kings who had conquered nations, and yet were slaves to their own passions.”
A bribe is a charm to its giver; wherever he turns, he succeeds.
“A gift is as a precious stone - It both enriches and ornaments. In the latter clause there is an evident allusion to cut stones. Whithersoever you turn them, they reflect the light, are brilliant and beautiful.”
To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.
“The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water - As soon as the smallest breach is made in the dike or dam, the water begins to press from all parts towards the breach; the resistance becomes too great to be successfully opposed…”
A man lacking judgment strikes hands in pledge and puts up security for his neighbor.
“Striketh hands - Striking each other’s hands, or shaking hands, was anciently the form in concluding a contract. See notes on Pro 6:1.”
He who loves transgression loves strife; he who builds his gate high invites destruction.
“He that exalteth his gate - In different parts of Palestine they are obliged to have the doors of their courts and houses very low, not more than three feet high, to prevent the Arabs, who scarcely ever leave the backs of their horses, from…”
A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine - Instead of גהה gehah, a medicine, it appears that the Chaldee and Syriac had read in their copies גוה gevah, the body, as they translate in this way.”
It is surely not good to punish the innocent or to flog a noble for his honesty.
“Nor to strike princes for equity - To fall out with the ruler of the people, and to take off his head under pretense of his not being a just or equitable governor, is unjust.”
Even a fool is considered wise if he keeps silent, and discerning when he holds his tongue.
“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.”
A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in airing his opinions.
“But that his heart may discover itself - It is a fact that most vain and foolish people are never satisfied in company, but in showing their own nonsense and emptiness.”
Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
“To accept the person of the wicked - We must not, in judicial cases, pay any attention to a man’s riches, influence, friends, offices, etc., but judge the case according to its own merits.”
The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.
“The words of a tale-bearer - דברי נרגן dibrey nirgan, “the words of the whisperer,” the busy-body, the busy, meddling croaker. Verba bilinguis, “the words of the double-tongued.” - Vulgate. The wordes of the twisel tunge - Old MS. Bible. “The words of a slanderer.””
A man’s gift opens doors for him, and brings him before great men.
“A man’s gift maketh room for him - It is, and ever has been, a base and degrading practice in Asiatic countries, to bring a gift or present to the great man into whose presence you come.”
Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue - This may apply to all men. Many have lost their lives by their tongue, and some have saved their lives by it: but it applies most forcibly to public pleaders; on many of their…”
He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD.
“Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing - Marriage, with all its troubles and embarrassments, is a blessing from God; and there are few cases where a wife of any sort is not better than none, because celibacy is an evil; for God himself…”
Luxury is unseemly for a fool—how much worse for a slave to rule over princes!
“Delight is not seemly for a fool - תענוג taanug, splendid or luxurious living, rank, equipage, etc. These sit ill on a fool, though he be by birth a lord.”
A man’s insight gives him patience, and his virtue is to overlook an offense.
“It is his glory to pass over a transgression - “No,” says what is termed a man of honor; “he must meet me as a gentleman; I must have his blood, let God say what he will.” O poor, dastardly coward!”
Houses and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD.
“A prudent wife is from the Lord - One who has a good understanding, אשה משכלת ishshah mascaleth; who avoids complaining, though she may often have cause for it.”
Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger.
“Into a deep sleep - תרדמה tardemah, the same into which Adam was thrown, before Eve was taken from his side. Sloth renders a man utterly unconscious of all his interests.”
Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be party to his death.
“Let not thy soul spare for his crying - This is a hard precept for a parent. Nothing affects the heart of a parent so much as a child’s cries and tears.”
He who assaults his father or evicts his mother is a son who brings shame and disgrace.
“He that wasteth his father - Destroys his substance by riotous or extravagant living, so as to embitter his latter end by poverty and affliction; and adds to this wickedness the expulsion of his aged widowed mother from the paternal house; is a son of…”
The slacker does not plow in season; at harvest time he looks, but nothing is there.
“The sluggard will not plough - For other parts of this character, see the preceding chapter, Proverbs 19 (note). It is seldom that there is a season of very cold weather in Palestine; very cold days sometimes occur, with wind, rain, and sleet.”
Who can say, “I have kept my heart pure; I am cleansed from my sin”?
“Who can say, I have made any heart clean - No man. But thousands can testify that the blood of Jesus Christ has cleansed them from all unrighteousness.”