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
Who is this coming up from the wilderness like a column of smoke, scented with myrrh and frankincense from all the spices of the merchant?
“Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness - Going to Egypt was called descending or going down, coming from it was termed coming up.”
Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel.
“Threescore valiant men - These were the guards about the pavilion of the bridegroom, who were placed there because of fear in the night. The security and state of the prince required such a guard as this, and the passage is to be literally understood.”
King Solomon has made his carriage out of the timber of Lebanon.
“Of the wood of Lebanon - Of the cedar that grew on that mount. It is very likely that a nuptial bed, not a chariot, is intended by the original word אפיון appiryon. Montanus properly translates it sponsarum thalamum, a nuptial bed.”
He has made its posts of silver, its base of gold, its seat of purple fabric. Its interior is inlaid with love by the daughters of Jerusalem.
“The pillars - of silver - The bedposts were made of silver, or cased with wrought silver plates, like the king’s chairs brought from Hanover, now, in one of the staterooms in Windsor Castle.”
Come out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze at King Solomon, wearing the crown his mother bestowed on the day of his wedding— the day of his heart’s rejoicing.
“Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion - This is the exhortation of the companions of the bride to the females of the city to examine the superb appearance of the bridegroom, and especially the nuptial crown, which appears to have been made by Bathsheba…”
Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon, and your mouth is lovely. Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.
“Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet - Both lips and cheeks were ruddy; sicut fragmen mali punici - Vulgate. Like the section of a pomegranate, that side cut off on which is the finest blush. This is a good and apt metaphor.”
Your neck is like the tower of David, built with rows of stones; on it hang a thousand shields, all of them shields of warriors.
“Thy neck is like the tower of David - It is certain that bucklers were frequently hung about towers, both for their ornaments, and to have them at hand when their use was required; see Eze 27:10.”
Your breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle grazing among the lilies.
“Thy two breasts are like two young roes - I have met with many attempts to support this similitude, or rather to show that there is a similitude; but I judge them unworthy of citation.”
Before the day breaks and the shadows flee, I will make my way to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense.
“Until the day break - Until the morning breeze. See Son 2:17. The shadows flee away - Till the sun sets. Mountain of myrrh - Probably the same as the mountains of Bether, Son 2:17.”
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon!
“My spouse - The כלה callah which we translate spouse, seems to have a peculiar meaning. Mr. Harmer thinks the Jewish princess is intended by it; and this seems to receive confirmation from the bridegroom calling her sister, Son 4:9, that is, one of the…”
How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! Your love is much better than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than all spices.
“How much better is thy love - דדיך dodayich; Hebrew. mastoi sou; Septuagint. Ubera tua; Vulgate. “Thy breasts.” And so all the versions, except the Chaldee. Smell of thine ointments - Perfumes.”
Your lips, my bride, drip sweetness like the honeycomb; honey and milk are under your tongue, and the fragrance of your garments is like the aroma of Lebanon.
“Thy lips - drop as the honey-comb - Thy words are as delicious to my heart as the first droppings of the honey-comb are to the palate.”
My sister, my bride, you are a garden locked up, a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed.
“A garden enclosed - a spring shut up, a fountain sealed - Different expressions to point out the fidelity of the bride, or of the Jewish queen. See the outlines. She is unsullied, a chaste, pure virgin.”
Your branches are an orchard of pomegranates with the choicest of fruits, with henna and nard,
“Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates - This seems to refer to the fecundity of the bride or Jewish queen; to the former it would be a prediction; to the latter, a statement of what had already taken place.”
I sleep, but my heart is awake. A sound! My beloved is knocking: “Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one.
“I sleep, but my heart waketh - This is a new part; and some suppose that the fifth day’s solemnity begins here.”
I have taken off my robe—must I put it back on? I have washed my feet—must I soil them again?
“I have put off my coat - The bride must have been in a dream or in much disorder of mind to have made the frivolous excuses here mentioned.”
My beloved put his hand to the latch; my heart pounded for him.
“My beloved put in his hand - If it were a real scene, which is mentioned in this and the two following verses, it must refer, from the well-known use of the metaphors, to matrimonial endearments.”
I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city. They beat me and bruised me; they took away my cloak, those guardians of the walls.
“Took away my veil - They tore it off rudely, to discover who she was. See on Son 5:2 (note). To tear the veil signifies, in Eastern phrase, to deflower or dishonor a woman.”
O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you, if you find my beloved, tell him I am sick with love.
“I am sick of love - “I am exceedingly concerned for his absence; and am distressed on account of my thoughtless carriage towards him.” The latter clause may be well translated, “What should ye tell him?” Why, “that I am sick of love.””
My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, outstanding among ten thousand.
“My beloved is white and ruddy - Red and white, properly mixed, are essential to a fine complexion; and this is what is intimated: he has the finest complexion among ten thousand persons; not one in that number is equal to him.”
His eyes are like doves beside the streams of water, bathed in milk and mounted like jewels.
“His eyes are as the eyes of doves - See on Son 4:1 (note). Washed with milk - The white of the eye, exceedingly white.”
His arms are rods of gold set with beryl. His body is an ivory panel bedecked with sapphires.
“His hands - gold rings set with the beryl - This really seems to refer to gold rings set with precious stones on the fingers, and perhaps to circlets or bracelets about the wrists.”
His mouth is most sweet; he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
“His mouth is most sweet - His eloquence is great, and his voice is charming. Every word he speaks is sweetness, mildness, and benevolence itself. Then, her powers of description failing, and metaphor exhausted she cries out, “The whole of him is loveliness.”
You are as beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah, as lovely as Jerusalem, as majestic as troops with banners.
“Beautiful - as Tirzah - This is supposed to be the address of Solomon to the bride. Tirzah was a city in the tribe of Ephraim, (Jos 12:24), and the capital of that district.”
Turn your eyes away from me, for they have overcome me. Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down from Gilead.
“Turn away thine eyes - As the sight of so many fires after night was extremely dazzling, and the eye could not bear the sight, so the look of the bride was such as pierced the heart, and quite overwhelmed the person who met it.”