always been so. B ut t he children of t r u th a re both more j u st and more charitable t h an either. T h ey cited the precedent of Heze- kiah who accepted the, reproof of Micah, and repented. T h ey laid to heart the words of J e r e m i ah in verse 16 (v. 19). 1 ,ut why did they not, like -EGezekiali, "seek t he Wh en God called Jeremiah, H e said, "I will u t t er my j u d gm e nt against them—thou . theretore gird up thy loins, arise a nd speak .unto t h em all t h at I c omm a nd th.ee—they shall fight against thee b ut they shall not prevail against thee, for I am with thee to deliver thee," Jer. 1:17-19. T he picture before us is t h at of a good m an on trial for his life. He is God's prophet and -has delivered God's message; and the people are prepared to p ut him to death. God k n ew the t emp t a t i on t h at would come to him to withhold t he truth, and so He promised him His presence and help. The truth has never been popular. P r o p h e- cies of evil and of j u d gm e nt have always been rejected by t he masses. T he J e ws never believed t h at God would fulfill H is word a nd destroy Jerusalem. T he Anti- deluvians could not believe t h at God would destroy the world with a flood. H ow few t h e re are t h at believe P a u l 's second letter to the Thessalonians and to Timothy, or P e t e r 's second Epistle, or t h at of J o h n? H ow m a ny believe t h at the j u d gm e n ts pro- claimed in Revelation will be fulfilled? No one cares to tell t he t r u th about the ever- lasting punishment of the wicked. J e r e m i ah RESISTING A SWORD WITH A PEN- KNIFE. Lesson VII .—Jer. 36. I. A CHANGE OF MASTERS. 1. Necho and Nebuchadnezzar fought at Carchemish for the empire of the west. Babylon won. 2. Nebuchadnezzar took Je- rusalem. H is f a t h er Nabupolassar died, and he hasted to Babylon to secure his throne. Daniel and his companions with some of the temple t r e a s u r es were carried with him, and t h us began the "Seventy Years' Captiv- ity (Dan. 1:1, 2). T h at captivity had been predicted bv J e r e m i ah (Jer. 7:11) and this beginning of it should have convinced the people of J e r e m i a h 's truthfulness. 3. Je- holakim served his new lord three years, and then ventured to rebel, a nd so com- pleted the union of himself and his people. II. JEREMIAH COMMANDED TO WRITE. 1. "In the fourth year" (26:1). This w as the year in which Jehoiakim rebelled a g a i n st Nebuchadnezzar. 2. "Write." J e r e- m i a h 's prophesying had so far been oral. T he Lord's prophets spoke not fo" ''heir con- temporaries alone, but for aP + imes and peoples )Rom. 4:23. 24; 1 Cor. 10:11). Their words were reduced to writing in order, also, t h at the a g r e eme nt of prediction with ful- filment should prove to all time t h at Jehovah
L o r d ?" 5. The priests reply. T h ey cited the precedent of U r i j a h 's case, who fled for his life but w as brought back and slain by J e- hoiakam. B ut J e r e m i ah w as acquitted. 6. T he prophet who fled was. overtaken a nd slain; the one who k e pt his ground w as pre- served alive. w a s no t r i mm e r; no d r e a m e r; he w as a liv- ing witness to the t r u th a nd he w as faith- ful to his trust. H e w as in danger of death, b ut w h at would life be to a m an had he been r e c r e a nt to such a trust. T he Gospel of the grace of God is a. t r u s t; sacredly committed to us as H is messengers. Are we faithfully giving it to the people of t he e a r t h? Are a ny of us who a re preachers a nd teachers evading the responsibility and avoiding the opportunity to declare the whole counsels of Go PITH AND PIVOT—T. C. H. Lesson for August 13, 1911
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