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T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
The Rechabites were a constant protest against the degeneracy of the nations of Israel and .of Judah. (2) The Test. The Lord com manded Jeremiah to bring the Rechab ites' into a chamber of the tem ple and give them wine to drink, and this he did. The test was a public one, and an impressive one. There were set pots of wine, and cups were given to them, and Jeremiah—God’s prophet —gave the invitation. They stood the test, which consisted not merely in their refusal to drink wine, but in their loyalty to the teaching of Jonadab. Obedience is the real test. Will they obey the law of their father? Will they ring true in the midst of the wine drinking, God-defying people who tram pled under foot God’s laws? They stood the test and refused to he disobedient to the law which had differentiated them from other peoples. It is not a question here as to whether the law of separation which governed them was best adapted to the develop ment of a people along the line of prog ress, but a question of filial obedience, and proof that it was possible for a people to live in the midst of and still refuse to conform to the trend of the age. (3) The Testimonial. Jehovah set the seal of His approval to this splendid testimony of the Rechab ites. They had honored their father by obedience to his Command, but Judah had renounced the law of Jehovah which their fathers had promised to obey, and refused to be obedient children. Jeho- • vah pleads, “Will ye not receive instruc tion?” What a comment from the Lord as He charges His own people with their failure to believe in and to keep His precepts! And what a commendation of this strange, wandering tribe does Jeho vah give as He pays tribute to their faithfulness, v. 19.
to learn. And you cannot legislate men into holier lives. No nation ever had such a splendid beginning as did Israel. Jehovah Him self lived in the midst. He supplied their needs. He fought their battles. He gave them divine laws, and in spite of it all, Israel drifted away from Jeho vah, worshipped idols, gave themselves over to every known sin, and finally fell a victim to the heathen enemy. What better proof could God give to our nation than that victory recorded in God’s Word, and what more solemn warning? Man by nature is bad. Neither educa tion nor, civilization changes that na ture. You cannot solve the problem of a nation’s need by community regenera tion; you must deal with the individual. Outline: (1) The Teaching of Jonadah. (2) The Test. ( 3) The Testimonial. (1) The Teaching of Jonadab. Jona dab, the son of Rechab, is called the father of the Rechabites. He was contemporary with Jehu, the wicked king. The Rechabites were not Israel ites, but were descendants of the Kenites (1 Chron. . 2:55) and secured a place with Israel through. Jethro, the father- in-law of Moses. (Judges 1:.6). Jehu used Jonadab in order to secure the approbation of Israel (2 Ki. 10:15, 16). Jonadab pledged the Rechabites to. three distinct things: 1. Total abstinence from wine and strong drink. 2. To own no fixed property, such as houses, vineyards or lands, though they were allowed to possess cattle. 3. They were not to settle in villages or cities, nor to build houses, nor to cultivate lands. They were to live in tents and move from place to place. For more than a thousand years they had faithfully kept these covenants.
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