575
T H E
K I N G ’ S
B U S I N E S S
September 1924
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The Wh o l e Bib l e Sunday School L esson Uour se ■ -•-= Recommended by World’s Fundamental Association ■
T. C. Horton V. V. Morgan Mrs. S. W . Barrett
EXPOSITION and PERTINENT QUESTIONS COMMENTS FROM THE COMMENTARIES ELEMENTARY - -
very place where God appeared to Abraham when he had laid Isaac upon the altar and was about to plunge the knife into him when God provided a sacrifical offering in his stead,— a sacred place. God chose the place. It was peculiarly situated, for on one side six hundred feet of foundation had to be laid, and three years were consumed in the building of it. Not one stone of the temple was left upon another when it was destroyed, but this foundation on the side of the hill remains unto this day (2 Tim. 2 :1 9 ): “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having: this seal, The I.ord knowcth them that are his. And, Bet every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” Jesus compared Himself to the temple (John 2:19) and to the foundation (Matt. 21:42) which is a quotation of Psa. 118:22, and Peter quotes the same in his address to the Sanhedrin (Acts 3:11) and Paul sets his seal to this truth in 1 Cor. 3:11: “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” and in Eph. 2 :20: “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and pro phets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Cord.” Men may come, and women too, with false creeds and cults. They may propagate their beliefs with some degree of success, but they pass away, while our foundation can not be moved. It standeth sure. (2) THE CONSECRATION, Ch. 8, “And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of the congregation of Israel” v. 22. The temple was finished. The holy vessels were con structed and placed in position, the furnishings were com pleted, and then the ark of the covenant was placed in the Holy of holies, and Solomon as prophet, priest and king took his place. Let us, get the picture: An enormous gathering of peo ple, described in the 65th verse; a great holy-day gathering. No Israelite would be absent who could be present. A great procession, with Solomon in all his glctfy as leader, followed by the white-robed priests (2 Chron. 5 :1 2 ): «A]s0 the Bevites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets.” The offerings of sheep and oxen were so many that they could not be numbered (v. 5). The cloud of glory filled the house of the Lord so that the priest could not stand to minister (V. 11). The Prayer of Consecration. Solomon had prepared a brazen scaffold to stand upon for the dedication (2 Chron. 6 :1 3 ). There was the cloud overshadowing, giving assur ance of the presence of Jehovah, which set the seal to His approval. Solomon was awed, as was Moses at the burning bush, Elijah at the mouth of the cave, and the disciples of Christ at the Mount of Transfiguration.
SEPTEMBER 14, 1924 BESSON 50 BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE 1 Kings, Chapters 5-8
Golden Text: “ And what agreement hath the temple of- God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their, God, and they shall be my people.” 2 Cor. 6:16. Outline of Besson You will note that the fourth chapter is omitted in our study of 2 Kings. The theme of this chapter is “Wealth and Wisdom” and in it we have a short history of Solomon’s court and officials, the princes, the priests. We have also a record of Solomon’s wisdom which ex- BESSON ceeded the wisdom of the children of the EXPOSITION East, and that he spake three thousand T. C. Horton proverbs and a thousand and five songs, and that the kings of the East came to hear his wise messages. (1) THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE, Chs. 5-7. “ And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord” v. 5. (a) The Preparation. In the program of preparation we must include David, Solomon and Hiram, king of Tyre. They all participated in the task of gathering the materials. This study of the building of the temple is one of the most interesting in the whole Bible, and is pregnant with lessons of deep import to every Christian. The story cov ers a period of seven years of work, and is told in thirty eight verses— a wonderful suggestion of the comprehensive manner in which facts are recorded in the Bible. There were 3300 officers and overseers, and 15,000 labor ers, at one time, including foreigners (1 Ki. 9:15-28). It was built in silence (1 Ki. 6 :7 ): «And the house, when it was in building:, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither; so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.” The cost was estimated at seven billions, gifts of lavish proportions being made for the work. (b) The Place. The site, selected for the temple was Mount Moriah, (2 Chron. 3 :1 ): “Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where the Lord appeared unto David, his father, in the place that David had prepared in the threshing-floor of Oman the Jebusite.” It was a noteworthy place. When Satan tempted David to number Israel, he omitted the prescribed ransom. (Ex. 30:12) and God sent a pestilence. “When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then they shall give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.” When David confessed his sin, the angel of death stayed his hand, and God appeared to David at Mt. Moriah— the (1) The Construction. ' (2) The Consecration.
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