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
So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that!
“I fell at his feet to worship him - Great as this angel was, St. John could not mistake him either for Jesus Christ, or for God the Father; nor was his prostration intended as an act of religious worship.”
He has eyes like blazing fire, and many royal crowns on His head. He has a name written on Him that only He Himself knows.
“His eyes were as a flame of fire - To denote the piercing and all-penetrating nature of his wisdom. On his head were many crowns - To denote the multitude of his conquests, and the extent of his dominion.”
The armies of heaven, dressed in fine linen, white and pure, follow Him on white horses.
“The armies which were in heaven - Angels and saints over whom Jesus Christ is Captain, Clothed in fine linen - All holy, pure, and righteous.”
And He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
“On his vesture and on his thigh a name written - Dr. Dodd has well observed on this passage, that “it appears to have been an ancient custom among several nations to adorn the images of their deities, princes, victors at public games, and other…”
He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.
“The dragon - See the notes on Rev 12:9. That old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan - He who is called the old serpent is the Devil - the calumniator, and Satan - the opposer.”
Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and…
“Blessed - Μακαριος· Happy. And holy; he was holy, and therefore he suffered for the testimony of Jesus in the time when nothing but holiness was called to such a trial. The first resurrection - Supposed to be that of the martyrs, mentioned above.”
And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, into which the beast and the false prophet had already been thrown.
“And the devil - was cast onto the lake - Before Satan was bound, that is, his power was curtailed and restrained; now, he is cast into the lake of fire, his power being totally taken away.”
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life.
“The dead, small and great - All ranks, degrees, and conditions of men. This description seems to refer to Dan 7:9, Dan 7:10. And the books were opened - See Dan 12:1. “Rab.”
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
“And I John - The writer of this book; whether the evangelist and apostle, or John the Ephesian presbyter, has been long doubted in the Church. New Jerusalem - See the notes on Gal 4:24-27 (note).”
‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,’ and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.”
“There shall be no more death - Because there shall be a general resurrection. And this is the inference which St Paul makes from his doctrine of a general resurrection, 1Co 15:26, where he says, “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.””
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.
“It is done - All is determined, and shall be fulfilled in due time. The great drama is finished, and what was intended is now completed; referring to the period alluded to by the angel.”
But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with…
“But the fearful - Δειλοις· Those who, for fear of losing life or their property, either refused to receive the Christian religion, though convinced of its truth and importance; or, having received it, in times of persecution fell away, not being willing to risk their…”
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God,
“To a great and high mountain - That, being above this city, he might see every street and lane of it. The holy Jerusalem - See on Rev 21:2 (note).”
The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates.
“Had a wall great and high - An almighty defense. Twelve gates - A gate for every tribe of Israel, in the vicinity of which gate that tribe dwelt; so that in coming in and going out they did not mix with each other.”
The wall of the city had twelve foundations bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
“The wall - had twelve foundations - Probably twelve stones, one of which served for a foundation or threshold to each gate; and on these were inscribed the names of the twelve apostles, to intimate that it was by the doctrine of the apostles that…”
The city lies foursquare, with its width the same as its length. And he measured the city with the rod, and all its dimensions were equal—12,000 stadia in length and…
“The city lieth foursquare - Each side was equal, consequently the length and breadth were equal; and its height is here said to be equal to its length. It is hard to say how this should be understood.”
The wall was made of jasper, and the city itself of pure gold, as pure as glass.
“The building of the wall of it was of jasper - The oriental jasper is exceedingly hard, and almost indestructible. Pillars made of this stone have lasted some thousands of years, and appear to have suffered scarcely any thing from the tooth of time.”
the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
“The fifth, sardonyx - The onyx is an accidental variety of the agate kind; it is of a dark horny color, in which is a plate of a bluish white, and sometimes of red.”
By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory.
“The nations of them which are saved - This is an illusion to the promise that the Gentiles should bring their riches, glory, and excellence, to the temple at Jerusalem, after it should be rebuilt. See Rev 21:26.”
And into the city will be brought the glory and honor of the nations.
“The glory and honor of the nations into it - Still alluding to the declarations of the prophets, (see the passages in the margin, Rev 21:24, etc.), that the Gentiles would be led to contribute to the riches and glory of the temple by their…”
down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh…
“In the midst of the street of it - That is, of the city which was described in the preceding chapter. The tree of life - An allusion to Gen 2:9.”
They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads.
“See his face - Enjoy what is called the beatific vision; and they shall exhibit the fullest evidence that they belong entirely to him, for his name shall be written on their foreheads.”
Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true.
“These sayings are faithful and true - See the preceding chapter, Rev 21:5. From this verse to the end of the chapter is reckoned the epilogue of this book. 1. The angel affirms the truth of all that had been spoken, Rev 22:6-11. 2.”
Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book, because the time is near.
“Seal not the sayings - Do not lay them up for future generations; they concern the present times; they must shortly come to pass, for the time is at hand. See above, Rev 22:6. What concerned the Jews was certainly at hand.”
Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates.
“Blessed are they that do his commandments - They are happy who are obedient. That they may have right to the tree of life - The original is much more expressive, Ἱνα εσται ἡ εξουσια αυτων επι το ξυλον της ζωης· That they may have…”