The Present Truth, vol. 15

January 26, 1899

“The Gospel of Isaiah. God Alone Is Great” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

(ISAIAH 2:6-22, LOWTH'S TRANSLATION.)

6. Verily Thou hast abandoned Thy people, the
house of Jacob;
Because they are filled with diviners from the
East,
And with soothsayers like the Philistines;
And they multiply a spurious brood of strange
children. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.1

7. And his land is filled with silver and gold;
And there is no end to his treasures;
And his land is filled with horses;
Neither is there any end to his chariots. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.2

8. And his land is filled with idols;
He boweth himself down to the work of his
hands,
To that which his fingers have made; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.3

9. Therefore shall the mean man be bowed
down, and the mighty man shall be humbled;
And thou wilt not forgive them. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.4

10. Go into the rock, and hide thyself in the dust;
From the fear of Jehovah, and from the glory
of His majesty,
When He ariseth to strike the world with
terror. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.5

11. The lofty eyes of men shall be humbled;
The height of mortals shall bow down;
And Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that
day. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.6

12. For the day of Jehovah God of hosts is
against everything that is great and lofty;
And against everything that is lofty, and it
shall be humbled. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.7

13. Even against all the cedars of Lebanon, the
high and the exalted;
And against all the oaks of Bashan; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.8

14. And against all the mountains, the high ones;
And against all the hills, the exalted ones; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.9

15. And against every tower, high raised;
And against every mount, strongly fortified. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.10

16. And against all the ships of Tarshish;
And against every lovely work of art. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.11

17. And the pride of man shall bow down;
And the height of mortals shall be humbled;
And Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that
day: PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.12

18. And the idols shall totally disappear. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.13

19. And they shall go into caverns of rocks, and
into holes of the dust;
From the fear of Jehovah and from the glory
of His majesty.
When He ariseth to strike the earth with
terror. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.14

20. In that day shall a man cast away his idols
of silver,
And his idols of gold, which they have made
to worship,
To the moles and to the bats; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.15

21. To go into the caves of the rocks, and into the
clefts of the craggy rocks;
From the fear of Jehovah, and from the glory
of His majesty,
When he ariseth to strike the earth with
terror. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.16

22. Trust ye no more in man, whose breath is in
his nostrils,
For of what account is he to be made? PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.17

In verse 6 there is nothing in the original text to indicate with what the people are filled from the East. The text, literally rendered, reads, “because they are filled from the East.” This is indicated in the Revised Version, as well as in our common version. That with which they are filled is not limited to diviners or any other one thing. The idea is that whatever the people have comes from the East. The expression that is used, however, is the ordinary Hebrew idom to express comparison, so that it might be read, “because they are filled more than the East,” which is still more emphatic. In the East idolatry has been practised the longest of any place on earth. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.18

“They are soothsayers, like the Philistines.” The Philistines were people of Canaan, whom God commanded to be cast out for their abominations, among which was witchcraft-pretended communication with the dead. The word rendered “soothsayer” is from the word meaning “cloud,” indicating that those who practise that art act secretly, under cover. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.19

“They please themselves with the children of strangers.” Literally, “they strike hands with the children of strangers.” The people of Israel were forbidden to make any league with the people of the land. They were to be separate from all the people on earth. Exodus 23:16. They were not to be reckoned among the nations, nor to be like them. Numbers 23:9. They were to depend on the Lord alone for defence, consequently they did not need any alliance with other people, however numerous. God's people must not enter into any covenant, except with Him. To form any alliance in partnerships, or to be in any way whatever entangled or identified in interests with other people, is to be false to God. It is those who are “rich and increased with goods” (Revelation 3:16, 17), who are spued out of the Lord's mouth. “He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away.” Luke 1:53. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.20

Note the place whence real fulness comes. In Christ all fulness dwells (Colossians 1:19), and we are “made full” in Him. Colossians 2:10, R.V. He says, “Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.” Psalm 81:10. But when the fulness that people have is not from Him, it is really nothing but emptiness; they are puffed up, not filled. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.21

“Their land is also full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.” What a terrible fall from the high place for which God created man. “Thou hast made him but little lower than God, and crownedst him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet.” Psalm 8:5, 6, R.V. Yet “What is Man?” At his best state he is altogether vanity; of himself he is nothing at all; but with God dwelling in him in all His fulness, He is lord of the works of God's hands. And from this high estate men have fallen so low as to worship-acknowledge themselves inferior to-the works of their own hands. From having dominion over the work of God's fingers, they abase themselves before the works of their own fingers! Could fall ever be greater? That is what idolatry is. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.22

But all idolaters do not set up images of wood or stone or some metal in a temple, and fall down before them. It is not necessary that one should do obeisance to a carved image, in order to be an idolater. All that is necessary to constitute one an idolater is that he worship his own works. Now people worship that in which they put their trust for salvation. Whoever therefore depends upon anything that he has done, as a means of salvation, is an idolater. Then have you never seen idolaters? Do you not know any? Would you need to go out of your own house to find one? Notice that just before the statement that their land is full of idols, we read: “Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures.” Is there any land to which that would apply more truly than to this? Does it make any difference whether the silver and gold that men worship be made into an image, or simply bear the stamp of the Government? There is no land on earth that is not full of idols. Then let us say these words to the Lord: “Take away iniquity, and receive us graciously. Asshur shall not say to us; we will not ride upon horses; neither will we say any more to the wood of our hands, Ye are our gods; for in ... the fatherless findeth mercy.” Of all who thus acknowledge their sin, God says: “I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely.” Hosea 14:2-4. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 51.23

God is no respecter of persons; therefore “the mean man”-the man of low degree-and “the mighty man”-the hero in the world's estimation-shall alike be bowed down and humbled, if they persist in exalting themselves above God. “For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low.” “The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.” The Judgment will reveal everything just as it is, and then it will be seen that God alone is great. None of the men of the earth who claim to be great will be able to make their claim good in that day. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.1

That will be a terrible day. “The kings of the earth, and the great men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every freeman” (Revelation 6:15) “shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth,” and shall say to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” Yet to behold that same face will be the reward and the highest delight of those who have been humble before God. Psalm 17:15; Revelation 22:4. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.2

The Gospel is now seeking to prepare men for that great and terrible day. “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high things that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4, 5. The Gospel does the very thing that the great day of God does, only it is better to submit to the process now, willingly, than to wait till then. God only is “high and lifted up.” He has not exalted Himself at the expense of others, as men do; but He cannot be other than He is. The Creator is by the very nature of things infinitely greater than all created things. Only by His greatness can anything exist; and whoever gladly recognises and acknowledges that greatness, is by it exalted. When men exalt themselves, everything is reversed and in disorder. It is necessary that God's rightful place in the universe should be recognised; otherwise confusion would always reign. The Gospel is working to this end, and the great day of the Lord will complete the work, by the destruction of those whose high pretensions have made them ignore God. They will simply be left to the full trial of their claims, and as a consequence will “be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind, and as the smoke out of the chimney.” Hosea 13:3. When put to the test of trying to exist separate from God, they will be “found wanting.” Like the idols which they have made, they will simply “pass away,” because when the support of God, which they have despised and rejected, is withdrawn, there is nothing left. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.3

The conclusion of the matter is, “Cease ye from man whose breath is in his nostrils, for wherein is he to be accounted of?” “Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord.” Jeremiah 17:5. This is not a curse put upon those who trust in men,-in themselves,-as a... It is not at all because they have offended the dignity of God: God is not a man, that He should feel offended because His rank is not recognised; He is meek and lowly in heart. The curse is simply a statement of fact. Suppose a man suspends himself over the bottomless pit, on nothing; what else but his utter destruction can result? Man is nothing, and whoever trusts in man, even in himself, must inevitably come to nothing. The Judgment will do nothing more than reveal things as they are, and leave every man to the result of his own choice, and God will be clear from the blood of the wicked who are destroyed. Recall Isaiah 1:31. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.4

The lesson that we should not fail to learn, is the power of the Gospel. Its power is equal to the power manifested in the great and terrible day of the Lord. God's power to save-to make something for eternity out of men who are nothing-is the mighty power that will shake the heavens and the earth. When the Lord comes, it is to save His people. The prophet Habakkuk saw a vision of God going forth for the salvation of His people, and “His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise, and His brightness was as the light; He had bright beams coming out of His side; and there was the hiding of His power. Before Him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at His feet. He stood, and measured the earth; He beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow... the sun and moon stood still in their habitation.” All that power is even now exerted to save people, and will save them, if they but trust it. Only two things are necessary for anybody to know, namely, that man is nothing, and God everything. He who has learned this, has eternity with all its riches and wisdom in his grasp. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.5

Thinking twice will often save us acting twice. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 52.6

“Studies in the Gospel of John. Healing the Nobleman's Son. John 4:43-54” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

To us who read in the Gospels the thrilling narrative of Christ's work on earth, it seems strange that any of those who knew Him in the flesh could have been so blind and deaf as to give rise to His complaint that “a prophet hath no honour in his own country.” Yet in this respect Christ shared the experience of those who had in past ages given the Word of God to the people. It is true that the Jews in His day had a great respect for the prophets of bygone years. They believed that these were sent by God and that their fathers had done wrong in killing them. Said they, “If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.” Yet when the message of God came to themselves they rejected One who was more than a prophet, and thereby showed that they were no better than their fathers. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.1

The man in whose mouth God puts His own words always has a living message for the people, a present truth. He does not present issues which were vital in years past, but are now no longer so. His message fits the needs of the hour and calls, not for approval of something that was done a hundred years ago, but for present decision. This is why a prophet has no honour in his own country. When there is no longer any risk of endangering their interests, the multitude will endorse the message and honour the prophet. In so doing they flatter themselves that they are one with the heroic souls who jeopardised their lives by obeying the truth when it was unpopular. Satan is well content that man shall adopt truths which were vital in past generations, if he can thus obscure truth which has a special application at the present time. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.2

In His words to the Jewish nobleman Christ struck at the difficulty which made it possible for His countrymen to reject Him. “Except ye see signs and wonders ye will not believe.” Men do not see anything remarkable in that to which they are accustomed. The early years of Jesus had been largely spent at Nazareth, and there His blameless life had revealed the glory of God, yet His fellow townsmen saw nothing in Him to justify the assertion that He was anointed by God for a special work. “And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?” as if that were of itself sufficient to overthrow His claim. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.3

Jesus Himself was a most wonderful sign, but His neighbours saw nothing extraordinary in Him. They thought that if He would give them a sign such as Moses or Elijah gave, they would believe. Really, their thought was, Convince every one that you are the Messiah, and when we see everybody else recognising you, we will do so also. They did not wish to incur the odium of espousing an unpopular cause. They wanted Him first to get rid of the reproach, and since none of the mighty works which He wrought effected this, none of them answered the purpose of the sign which they desired. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.4

For all whose hearts were open to receive light and truth Christ's own life was a sign, but it got Him no honour in His own country. It is an incomprehensible marvel that God speaks to us in His own Word, yet how many see any wonder in it? They say, If God would thunder His Word into our ears as He did at Sinai, we would believe it. It is a wonderful work that God does in providing us with food and drink, with air and light, by the unceasing exercise of His power and wisdom, yet men see nothing worthy of notice in it. They say that if God would rain bread from heaven as He did on Israel, or turn water into wine as He did at Cana of Galilee, they would no longer doubt Him. The miracles which God daily and hourly works in the sight of men get Him no honour among those who are accustomed to His working. “The ox knoweth His owner, and the ass his master's crib, but Israel doth not know, My people do not consider.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.5

The nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum, came to Jesus very much as the majority of people, when they desired to receive something from Him. He “besought Him that He would come down, and heal his son; for he was at the point of death.” His heart was full of an intense desire, and the reproof implied in the words of Jesus, “Except ye see signs and wonders ye will not believe,” could not turn the father's thoughts from the boon that he sought so earnestly. His only response was, “Sir, come down ere my child die.” This man did not come in strong faith, as did the centurion who asked only that the Word of healing might be spoken, but Jesus does not repulse the nobleman because of his lack of faith. He is touched with the feelings of our infirmity; and His own heart responded to the father's cry for help. So when burdened hearts pour out their longing to the Lord, He inclines His ear to them, even though they know but little of true faith. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.6

But Jesus taught the nobleman how to believe. He said, “Go thy way; thy son liveth.” And the man believed the Word and went his way. So many do not know what faith is. They think it is some quality possessed by themselves, of which some men have much and others little. Sometimes they say, “Yes, I believe what the Lord says, but I have not faith enough to do it.” They think they can estimate the amount of faith they have, and that everything depends upon the amount. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Faith is simply believing what God says. There is no question of how much you believe. The point is, Do you believe? What would you think if some one should say to you, “Yes, I believe what you say, but I don't believe you very much.” You would conclude that the person did not believe you at all. Christ says that faith as a grain of mustard-seed will remove mountains. It is not your faith but the Word you believe that does such great things. God's Word is infinitely powerful, therefore whatever it says must be so and you believe it when it speaks. This is faith. If the Word makes a great promise, and you believe it, you have great faith. It was hearing the Word that gave the nobleman faith. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 53.7

Would you like to be strong in faith? Then let the Word of God dwell in you richly. Receive it not as the Word of men, but as it is in truth the Word of God; listen to it, meditate upon it, hide it in your heart, and you will be full of faith, for “faith cometh by hearing.” If you listen to God speaking, the faith will come naturally, without effort on your part. When the dead hear the voice of the Son of God, they that hear shall live. Therefore, though you be dead in trespasses and sins, listen to God's Word and you will live, live by faith. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.1

Too often when we kneel in prayer and pour out our heart before God, we rise from our knees and go our way as though nothing had been accomplished, beyond the natural relief that comes from telling our troubles. Jesus has said, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find.” “Every one that asketh receiveth.” “Whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that while I do.” Every one may ask whatsoever he will in the name of Christ, and know that his request is granted, for the Lord has definitely said so. Then when we pray to the Lord, we are not to rise from our knees and go our way, still troubled and anxious, but know that, since God honours His own promise, our desires are granted. The Lord gives us blank cheques in which we may insert our own name, and whatsoever we desire. If a wealthy man should give us such an opportunity as this, we should not be slow to take advantage of it, but when we had taken the cheque to the bank, and handed it to the cashier, we should not go away feeling as poor and unsatisfied as ever. We would know that we are richer than we were by the full amount of the cheque, and we may know, just as certainly, by the Lord's oft-repeated guarantee, that we are enriched to the extent that we have asked for in our prayer. It was in this assurance that the nobleman took his way home, and he learned from the servants who came to meet him that at the very hour Jesus had said, “Thy son liveth,” the fever left his child. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.2

Jesus came to reveal the Father, not to obscure His character. If the miracles wrought by Jesus were not indicative of God's continual desire to help us, Christ's course in healing so many would simply draw a veil of mystery over His Father, and leave us in perplexing doubt as to what we might expect that He would do for us. When we realise that Christ was the expression of God's good-will to men, all the circumstances of this miracle are encouraging; the reception of the father's petition, the way in which he was led to believe in the immediate results that followed the healing Word, speak to us of the possibilities that await us in the Word of God when we believe it simply, and thus allow it to work. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.3

There is a word which God has spoken to us all, which has as much of personal application and of wondering-working power, also of instantaneous performance, for us as the words spoken to the nobleman had for him and his son. The Lord says to us, “Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes.” Isaiah 1:16. There seems to be so little of encouragement in these words that few will question their application to themselves. It is clear that no one can be in worse condition than the people described in the first chapter of Isaiah to whom these words are addressed, so that they take in every sinner. What is the force of the command, “Put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes?” When Christ bade the lepers be clean it was He who supplied that which was needed. The lepers did not feel discouraged at His asking them to do an impossible thing. It was for Him to look after the impossibility. Similarly, when He bade the lame to walk they rejoice, for He found the needed power. So too when He says to us, “Put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes,” the more impossible thing sounds the more we are to rejoice at the great work which this word accomplishes in us. It needs Divine strength to accomplish such a task, but the strength is in the commandment. All that is needed is for us to hear and believe that the blessed command may be fulfilled in us just as the words “Come forth” were fulfilled in Lazarus. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.4

Think how much is involved in this command. The Lord says, “Put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes.” But there is nothing that is not naked and open to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Therefore to put anything out of His sight is to put it out of existence. That is, our doings are to be sinless in the Lord's eyes. We cannot possibly do this ourselves, because we have secret sins that we have not yet discovered in their true character. But these are in the sight of the Lord, and are therefore included in the command. “Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance.” Psalm 90:8. These hidden springs of evil that make hearts so desperately wicked, and deceitful above all things so that none can know it, the Lord has commanded us to remove from His sight. Shall we sigh and say it is impossible, or believe the Word and in its strength obey? It is God who gives the command, and when we believe His Word of power we may rejoice that it works effectually in us who believe. Of the people who thus by faith obey the Word of God, it is written, “the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found.” Jeremiah 50:20. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.5

“Prayer” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

Prayer is the key of the morning and the lock of the night. Happy is the family whose day holds nothing which the one may not fitly open, and the other peacefully close. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 54.6

“Little Folks. Wanted” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

All our talks together about the wonderful works of God, have shown us how “all things work together” for the good of all things. Nothing lives for itself alone, but each is a part of God's plan for blessing others. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.1

In all of His great works God is thinking of the little things, and working for the good of the smallest. He works in the great and glorious sun to bring to life the little flowers, and to gladden the tiny insect. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.2

“Thus sunbeams your alike their glorious tide
To light up worlds, or wake an insect's mirth.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.3

We have seen, too, that in causing the tides of the mighty ocean and seas, God is thinking of and caring for those tiny creatures that need to live a part of their time in the water and a part on the land just met by the going which leaves them for the beach out of the water. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.4

In His great work of drawing up the water from the earth, and causing it to float in great billowy clouds in “the spacious firmament on high,” God is preparing to water the little flowers, to give drink to man and “to every beast of the field,” and even “to cause it to rain on the earth where no man is; on the wilderness wherein there is no man; to satisfy the desolate and waste ground, and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth.” Job 38:26, 27. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.5

In all these and many other ways we see what great works God is doing in His care for the very least of His creatures, using the great things to minister to the very smallest. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.6

But we have found also that in all these little things, which may at first seem to us so unimportant, and to have no special use or meaning, God has some wonderful purpose, which we find when we enquire into them and seek them out. God's greatness is shown in the very smallest of His works. He has a purpose in everything that He does. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.7

The least and most insignificant thing in the earth is “a part of God's great plan,” and is needed just where He has placed it. “He weighs the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance;” so even the tiny little grains that make up our world are considered by Him and placed just where He wants them. His great works are just as dependent on these little things, as the little things are on the great. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.8

There is a little poem which tells of a discontented little buttercup who was fretful and unhappy because she “wished she were a daisy.” And this is the advice given to her in the parable by a robin whom she asked to try to find “a nice white frill” for her, like the daisies wear:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.9

“You're nicer in your own bright gown,
The little children love you;
Be the best buttercup you can,
And think no flower above you. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.10

“The swallows leave me out of sight,
We'd better keep our places;
Perhaps the world would all go wrong
With one too many daisies! PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.11

“Look bravely up into the sky,
And be content with knowing
That God wished for a buttercup
Just here where you are growing.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.12

Are you not glad, little children, that God wants you in His world? He needs you, or He would not have put you here. And He has put you in just the place where He wants you, at the very time when He needs you there. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.13

We are told of His Son Jesus, that “when the fulness of time was come, was come, God sent forth His Son.” And this is true of every child of God. He thought of you long ages ago, and has been preparing a place and a work for you. And when His time came, just the right time for you to come into the world, He put you here in exactly the place where He wants you. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.14

Though you may not know what God is doing, with you, you may be quite sure that, like every one of His works, you are a part of His plan. And if you give yourself to Him, doing day by day what you know He would have you, He is carrying out in your life some special purpose of good to the world that He could not do without you. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 58.15

“Jottings” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

-The growth of the motor industry in France is shown in the fact that the new occupation demands the employment of 200,000 hands. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.1

-The eruption of Vesuvius on January 15 attained large proportions, the flow of lava being greater than any which has hitherto occurred. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.2

-The trade of the free part of Hamburg has increased enormously; and the sum of one million pounds is to be spent in increasing the landing accommodation. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.3

-The largest ship ever built has just been launched in Belfast. She is called the Oceanic, and belongs to the White Star Line. Her length of twenty eight feet, and her engines will develop 28,000 horse power. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.4

-A large body of water rear Guildford has burst its banks, owing to the recent heavy rains, and caused great damage. Hedges were swept away, houses flooded, and the highway from Guildford to Dorking greatly damaged. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.5

-General Egan, having used strong language concerning the part played by General Miles in the late war, is to be tried by court-martial. It is expected that some very damaging revelations will be made if the case is allowed to proceed to trial. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.6

-The agitation over Messrs. Bryant and May's matches does not seem to have greatly affected their financial standing. They have been able to declare a half-yearly dividend at the rate of 15 per cent. per annum-or 2 per cent. less than was paid last year. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.7

-The deepest hole in the earth is near Ketechau, Germany. It is 5,785 feet in depth, and is for geological research only. The drilling was begun in 1880, and stopped six years later because the engineers were unable with their instruments to go deeper. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.8

-The National schools at Arundel having become inadequate to accommodate the pupils, the Education Department have required that they be enlarged, or a Board School will be built. The Duke of Norfolk has enlarged the Catholic schools to accommodate all the children in the place, and the Education Department has caused some consternation locally by suggesting that this will probably meet the needs of the case. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.9

-Ahmed Fedil's entire force of 2,000 men has surrendered to the British. Ahmed Fedil himself succeeded in escaping. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.10

-The first Brahmin widow remarriage in Berar has just been celebrated. The ceremony was witnessed by about 400 people. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.11

-It is proposed to run a lightning express between Manchester and Liverpool on a single rail, at a speed of ninety miles an hour. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.12

-During 1898, 802 vessels of 1,559,125 tons gross were launched in the United Kingdom. This output has surpassed all previous records. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.13

-France has completed a torpedo boat which is said to travel on or under the water with equal ease. Eight similar boats are to be constructed. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.14

-At last two places within the Arctic Circle have received the electric light. Hammerfest and Tromso are now lighted by electricity, so that they have an artificial daylight during the long winter darkness. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.15

-The intention of sending a United States squadron to visit Europe has been adandoned. The Secretary of the Navy Department believes it absolutely essential to maintain the North Atlantic Squadron at its full strength, for reasons of international policy. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.16

-Trade Unions include only a small fraction of the labour of this country. According to a Board of Trade report, just issued, the proportion is 21 per cent. of adult workmen and 12 per cent. of women, excluding from the latter all women not employed in factories and workshops. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.17

-The Pope has just founded in Rome a college, “mainly for English Roman Catholic converts who purpose returning as missionaries to England, where, without any expense to themselves, they may have as opportunity of pursuing their ecclesiastical studies and acquiring the virtues necessary for the sacerdotal state.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.18

-The Chinese department of the British Museum library contains a single work which occupies 5,020 volumes. This wonderful production of the Chinese press is one of only a small number of copies now in existence. It is an encyclopaedia of the literature of China, covering a period of twenty-eight centuries, from 1,100 B.C. to 1,700 A.D. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.19

-The great pyramid of Cheops is the largest structure ever erected by the hand of man. Its original dimensions at the base were 764 feet square, and its perpendicular height in the highest point 448 feet. It covers four acres, one rood, and twenty-two rods of ground, and has been estimated by an eminent architect to have cost not less than ?33,000,000. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.20

-A report from Rome states that the Holy See is actively continuing its efforts to be represented at the conference. The object of the Vatican is to prove to the world and the Powers that the Pope still considers himself a temporal sovereign. The Italian semi-official organ of the Ministry says that Italy would have to decline the invitation to join the conference if the Pope be represented as a temporal sovereign. The Czar suggests that the conference be held in Brussels in April or May. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.21

-Tesla has invented an electrical apparatus which he claims will destroy every germ in the human body and restore a sick man to perfect soundness. A Viennese professor says of the invention: “The Tesla currents are currents of immense tension, causing no pain to the human body. I have been working with those currents for ten mouths and have achieved splendid snorer in certain diseases, particularly gout and in certain skin affections. As for tuberculosis, I only know that Mr. Tesla in his laboratory has succeeded in destroying the consumption bacilli. It is an open question yet whether he can destroy them in the living body, but I have no reason to doubt it.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 62.22

“Back Page” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

“To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto Me? saith the Lord.” Isaiah 1:11. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.1

God had a purpose in the sacrifices which He commanded Israel to offer. The sacrifices themselves were not the end desired. They were only a means PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.2

“For the law having a shadow of good things to come, ... can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered; because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.” Hebrews 10:1, 2. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.3

The fault of Israel was that they did not proceed from the shadow to the substance. The reason of their rejection of Christ, when He came among them in the flesh, was that they had not recognised Him in the sacrifices, commanded by God, which prefigured His work. Had they learned what the sacrifices were designed to teach them, they would have received the Saviour gladly when He appeared. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.4

“For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they know Him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning Him.” Acts 13:27. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.5

The eyes of Israel were blinded in the reading of the Old Testament. They thought that they were God's people, because they were so much better than the surrounding heathen, and that in offering sacrifices they were rendering the worship which God desired. But God did not wish them to stay for ever among the shadows. He wanted them to come to the substance and know by experience the fulness and power of the salvation from sin which was in Christ. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.6

Since the shadows in themselves were worthless, it did no good to multiply them. No number of shadows, however great will suffice to make one substance. “For it is not possible that the blood of nulls and of goats should take away sin.” So the Lord asks, “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices?” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.7

The object at which the Lord aimed was the taking away of sin, and the bringing in of righteousness, not only to cleanse the sinner and make him whiter than snow, but to keep him so. “Sacrifice and offering Thou didst not desire; ... burnt offering and sin offering hast Thou not required.” Psalm 11:6. “Though ye offer Me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will, not accept them.... But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.” Amos 5:24. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.8

The same question is addressed to us, To what purpose is the multitude of your prayers and religions observances? Are these the end of our Christian experience? Are we, any more than was Israel, come to the substance of Christ's work for us, or do we, as they, have to offer continually, year after year, sacrifices that never take away sin? Are we delivered from the power of sin any more than were they? PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.9

“Thou shalt call His name Jesus: for He shall save His, people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21. “Wherefore when He cometh into the world, He saith, Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast Thou prepared Me. Then said I, Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.10

In proportion as Christ's sacrifice was more effectual than the blood of bulls and goats for the taking away of sin, so should the deliverance from sin of those who receive Christ differ from the experience of those who offered slain beasts. “Every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: but this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; ... for by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.” Hebrews 10:11-14. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.11

All that is needed to be done to keep men from falling and to present them faultless before the presence of God with exceeding joy, has been already completed in the sacrifice of Christ. Those who receive Him for all that He is may prove now the exceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe. This is the object of God in giving His Son to us. Until He is received as a perfect Saviour from sin, He is not known in His real character. His name is Jesus because He saves from sin, and no one can know Jesus who does not know a Saviour from sin. Until we thus know Him, even if professing faith in Him, we are only among the shadows of good things to come. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.12

In giving Christ to us, God gives us deliverance from all the power of evil, and if we neglect to receive so great salvation, all our prayers and religious observances will be to no purpose. They will be no more acceptable to God than were the sacrifices offered by ancient Israel. But now that the reality of Christ's work for us is made known, we may leave the shadows of good things to come, and enjoy the good things themselves. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.13

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; ... let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.” Hebrews 10:19-21. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.14

Mr. Cecil Rhodes, in a published interview, gives a striking example of what might be accomplished with the enormous sums of money devoted to naval and-military expenditure. He says that with the ?14,000,000 we shall spend in Great Britain on warships during the next five years, in addition to our present expenditure, he could complete his Cape to Cairo railway, and have ?4,000,000 left. It being pointed out to him that the Russian Government purposed spending ?40,000,000 this year on railways, he replied:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.15

The Russian Government is right. The construction of railways is the first necessity for a vast undeveloped country. No expenditure is more profitable, more indispensable. I am all for the construction of railways as against expenditure on armaments. Just think for a moment at the difference what the difference is. Fourteen millions for warships, all of which would be rusty iron in twenty years. Not one of them earning a penny. Every one of them needing the diversion from productive industry of hundreds of able-bodied men in the flower of their youth. That is one side of it. On the other, ?10,000,000 expended in completing the line from Cape to Cairo, and you have a whole continent opened up, a great highway of the nations driven through the heart of Africa, the shores of the vast inland seas rendered accessible to commerce, markets opened at every station, every man on the line employed in productive industry-that is the other side of it. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.16

Sabbath-keeping bricklayers and labourers wanted at once. Apply, H. Spencer, York Road, Kettering. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 64.17

“The Gospel of Isaiah. Saved and Sent” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

(Isaiah 6, LOWTH'S TRANSLATION.)

“In the year in which King Uzziah died, I saw Jehovah sitting on a throne high and lofty; and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him stood the seraphim; each of them had six wings; with two of them he covereth his face, with two of them he covereth his feet, and two of them he useth in flying. And they cried alternately, and said:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.1

Holy, holy, holy Jehovah God of Hosts!
The whole earth is filled with His glory. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.2

And the pillars of the vestibule were shaken with the voice of their cry; and the temple was filled with smoke. And I said, Alas for me! I am struck dumb; for I am a man of polluted lips; and in the midst of a people of unclean lips do I dwell; for mine eyes have seen the King, Jehovah God of Hosts. And one of the seraphim came flying unto me; and in his hand was a burning coal, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar. And he touched my mouth, and said:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.3

Lo! this hath touched thy lips;
Thine iniquity is removed, and thy sin is expiated. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.4

And I heard the voice of Jehovah, saying, Whom shall I send; and who will go for us? And I said, Behold, Here am I; send me. And He said:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.5

Go, and say thou to this people,
Hear ye indeed, but understand not;
See ye indeed, but perceive not;
Make gross the heart of this people;
Make their ears dull, and close up their eyes;
Lest they see with their eyes, and hear with
their ears.
And understand with their hearts, and be con-
verted; and I should heal them. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.6

And I said: How long, Jehovah? And He said:- PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.7

Until cities be laid waste, so that there be no
inhabitant;
And houses, so that there be no man;
And the land be left utterly desolate.
Until Jehovah remove man far away;
And there be many a deserted woman in the
midst of the land.
And though there be a tenth part remaining
in it,
Even this shall undergo a repeated destruction;
Yet, as the ilex, and the oak, though cut
down, hath its stock remaining,
A holy seed shall be the stock of the nation. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.8

“I saw Jehovah.” Compare John 12:37-41 with verses 9 and 10 of this chapter, and it will be seen that it was Christ whom Isaiah saw in His glory. From this we learn something of the wondrous glory of our Redeemer, and what He gave up for the sake of saving us. He is the effulgence of the Father's glory, and the express image of His person. Hebrews 1:1, 2. The glory which He had with the Father before the world began is His now (John 17:5), and He gives it to us, for we shall be “glorified together.” Romans 8:17. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.9

“His train filled the temple.” The word rendered “train” is the same that in Jeremiah 13:22, 26, and other places is translated “skirts,” and in Exodus 28:33, 34; 39:24, 25, 26, is translated “hem.” The hem or skirt of His garment filled the temple. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.10

What is this garment? Here is the answer: “O Lord my God, Thou art very great; Thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment; who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain.” Psalm 104:1, 2. The light and glory of the Lord is His clothing; His train, that filled the temple, was His glory. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.11

“The whole earth is full of Thy glory.” That is, the garment with which the Lord covers Himself is the fulness of the earth. Not only the temple in heaven, but the whole earth is filled with the hem of His garment. Now remember that when Jesus was here in the flesh, all that was needed for the healing of a poor, afflicted woman was that she should “touch the hem of His garment.” So wherever we are, we are to reach of the hem of that garment which brings life and health and salvation. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.12

“The healing of the seamless drums
Is by our beds of pain;
We touch Him in life's throng and press,
And we are whole again.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 66.13

“The fulness of the whole earth is His glory.” This, as may be seen from the margin of the Revision, is the literal rendering of the Hebrew. Wherever in the earth we see fulness, revealing itself in the multiplied forms of life, it is the glory of the Lord. Remembering now that in even the hem of His garment there is healing, what can this teach us except that God expects all to be healed, to be whole-holy. He has provided liberally to this end. All that is needed is that we come into conscious touch with Him by intelligent faith. Jesus Christ came that we might have life, and that we might have it in abundance. John 10:10. The life is the light of men. If we would but see the life, as it is all about us, and allow ourselves to be controlled by it, sickness would become a thing of the past, for eternal freshness is the characteristic of the life. To speak plainly, if we recognise that what are called “the laws of nature” are but the manifestations of the life of God, and let these laws rule in us, we shall find the life of Jesus manifested even in “our mortal flesh,” and that will mean victory over disease as well as over sin. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.1

“Above it stood the seraphim.” Or, “above Him stood the seraphim.” The Hebrew does not distinguish between masculine and neuter. In this case it amounts to the same thing, for above the throne would be above the Lord. The word “seraphim” means “burning ones.” The difference, if any, between them and cherubim, is not revealed; but we read in Ezekiel 28:14 about the “anointed cherub that covereth;” and on the cover to the ark in the tabernacle of Moses were figures of cherubim overshadowing the glory of the Lord. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.2

Each seraph covered his face with two of his wings, as unable or unworthy to look directly upon God. Yet the redeemed saints “shall see His face.” Revelation 22:4. Oh, marvellous privilege accorded to the sons of Adam! to be on such terms of intimacy with the God of hosts as is not permitted even to the highest of the unfallen angels. And to show the special favour granted to humble followers of Christ even now, He says, “in heaven their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 18:10. This shows that there is a difference, and that the angels who are specially commissioned to guard the faithful of earth, have access to the Father to a degree that others do not. “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace.” “One thing have I desired of the Lord; that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple.” Psalm 27:4. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.3

“Woe is me; for I am undone, cut off, struck dumb; because I, a man of unclean lips, have seen the King, and the Lord of hosts.” It was the sight of the Lord that made Isaiah conscious of his own imperfection. Job said, “Now mine eye seeth Thee, wherefore I abhor myself.” Job 42:5, 6. The sight of the Lord makes known the presence of sin, and either removes the sin, or destroys the sinner, according to the circumstances under which He is seen. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.4

“This hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.” It is fire from the altar, which, when cast on the earth, works destruction. The same fire that cleanses those who confess their sins, consumes those who cling to them. The saints of God, having been tried in the fire, as gold, and having had all the alloy of sin purged away by it, can dwell amid everlasting burnings which will consume the wicked like chaff. Read Malachi 3:2, 3; Isaiah 33:14, 15. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.5

Mark how quickly Isaiah's sins were removed. All he did was to acknowledge that he was a sinner. As soon as he said, “I am a man of unclean lips,” the angel touched him with the coal from God's altar, saying, “Thine iniquity is taken away.” “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Only acknowledge your sin, and you may know that it is gone. Some sincere souls say: “I have confessed all the sins I know of, and I am resolved not to stop until I have discovered every sin in my character, and have confessed it; so that I may be forgiven.” Why, you could not nearly enumerate all your sins in a lifetime. They are more than can be numbered. Isaiah did the whole thing at once: “I am a man of unclean lips,” which meant that he was unclean in heart. The publican said: “God be merciful to me, a sinner,” and went to his house justified. Be assured that if you acknowledge yourself to be a sinner, you are forgiven. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.6

God saves men only for service. The object of our cleansing is not merely that we may escape destruction, but that we may be messengers of salvation. As soon as the Lord had cleansed Isaiah from sin, He called out, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” It was a general question, yet intended specially for the ears of Isaiah. And the prophet heard, and immediately responded, “Here am I; send me.” God reconciles us to Himself by Christ, and puts the word of reconciliation in us, that we, in the place of Christ, may be agents for reconciling others. 2 Corinthians 5:18-20. He says, Come! and then to all who heed the call, He says, “Go!” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.7

The Lord has said that there will be but few saved. So He fortified Isaiah against discouragement, by letting him know at the outset what the result of his message would be. He was to carry a message whose effect would be to harden hearts, and make people blind and deaf to the truth. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.8

Look at John 12:37, and you will see what sort of a message it is that hardens men's hearts. “Though He had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on Him.” Yet the miracles were done and recorded solely for the purpose of enabling people to believe on Jesus, and to obtain life through His name. John 20:30, 31. And some did believe. Thus we see that it is the tender mercy of God that hardens men. “Let favour be shown to the wicked, yet will he not learn uprightness.” Isaiah 26:10. But God is clear. How can any soul hold God responsible for his unbelief, when it was the goodness of God, which leads men to repentance, that hardened him? PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.9

How long is this commission to Isaiah to be in force?-Until the end of the world. “Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate.” But Isaiah is long since dead. True, but the message is still to be given; for remember that the Lord made His call general, and not particularly to Isaiah. “Who will go for us?” He is waiting for agents, and is anxious to use every one who will allow his sin to be purged. We are to be “ready to every good work” (Titus 3:1), and this readiness is gained through the cleansing power of God. God will use the instrument that is ready to hand when His work is to be done. This chapter emphasises what was set forth in the article, “The Time of the Promise,” at the beginning of this study in Isaiah, namely, that Isaiah's prophecy was especially for the last days. We do not need to make any interpretation, but simply take it as applying now. Although it was so long ago, the people who then heard his words were in the same condition and circumstances that the people of these days are. They did not profit by the message. Let us therefore give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, and fear lest, a promise having been left us, any of us should come short of it, and fall after the same example of unbelief. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 67.10

Although destruction be determined upon all the land, a remnant shall be saved. “As a terebinth, and as an oak, whose stock remaineth, when they are felled; so the holy seed is the stock thereof.” The holy seed, the humble believers in Christ, are the seed that prevents the earth from total and irretrievable ruin. As a tree will sprout and grow again, although cut down, so although the earth be made desolate, the few men who are left-the righteous ones-will be the sprout that will spring up and cause the whole earth to be renewed. “Israel shall blossom, and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.” Isaiah 27:6. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 68.1

“The Gospel of Isaiah. God Our Only Refuge and Strength” The Present Truth 15, 4.

E. J. Waggoner

(ISAIAH 8:9-22, LOWTH'S TRANSLATION.)

9. Know ye this, O ye peoples, and be struck
with consternation;
And give ear to it, all ye of distant lands;
Gird yourselves, and be dismayed; gird your-
selves and be dismayed. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.1

10. Take account together, and it shall come to
naught;
Speak the word, and it shall not stand;
For God is with us. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.2

11. For thus said Jehovah unto me,
As taking me by the hand He instructed
me,
That I should not walk in the way of this
people, saying; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.3

12. Say ye not, I is holy,
Of everything of which this people shall say,
It is holy;
And fear ye not the object of their fear, neither be ye terrified. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.4

13. Jehovah God of Hosts, sanctify ye Him;
And let Him be your fear, and let Him be
your dread; PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.5

14. And He shall be unto you a sanctuary;
But a stone of stumbling, and a rock of of-
fence,
To the two houses of Israel;
A trap and a snare to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.6

15. And many among them shall stumble,
And shall fall, and be broken; and shall be
ensnared, and caught. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.7

16. Bind up the testimony, seal the law among
My disciples. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.8

17. I will therefore wait for Jehovah, He who
hideth His face
From the house of Jacob; yet will I look for
Him. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.9

18. Behold, I, and the children,
Whom Jehovah hath given unto Me;
For signs and for wonders in Israel,
From Jehovah God of Hosts,
Who dwelleth in the mountain of Sion. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.10

19. And when they shall say unto you;
Seek unto the neucromancers and the wizards;
To them that speak inwardly, and that
mutter.
Should not a people seek unto their God?
Should they seek, instead of the living, unto
the dead? PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.11

20. Unto the command, and unto the testimony,
let them seek;
If they will not speak according to this
word,
In which there is no obscurity. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.12

21. Every one of them shall pass though the land
distressed and famished;
And when he shall be famished, and angry
with himself.
He shall curse his king and his god. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.13

22. And he shall cast his eyes upwards, and look
down to the earth;
And lo! distress and darkness!
Gloom, tribulation, and accumulated dark-
ness! PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.14

In studying this lesson, let each one use diligently both the King James and the Revised Versions, in connection with the translation that is given here. There is quite a variation in the wording, but to the thoughtful student this will be a help instead of a cause of confusion. The different renderings, when carefully and thoughtfully compared, will only serve to give a broader view of the message of God. Different verbal renderings mean, not contradiction, but fulness. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.15

The reading of verse 9 in the common version, or the Revision, is clearer and more in harmony with the text than that given by Lowth. The thought, as will be seen by comparison, is the same as that in the second Psalm. We can readily see how the rendering, “Make an uproar” is consistent with, “Associate yourselves.” A crowd is likely to make an uproar. “The heathen rage.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.16

Notice that the people are not commanded to associate themselves together, or to make an uproar. This will be seen from the context. Even though they associate themselves, and rage against the Lord and His people, they “shall be broken in pieces.” It is “a vain thing” that the heathen imagine, when they set themselves against the Lord, and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.” Instead of breaking, they will be broken. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.17

“There is no power but of God; the powers that be are ordained of God.” Romans 13:1. This being the case, it is evident that no one can withstand God. “Our God is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever He hath please.” Psalm 115:3. He rules over the kingdoms of the heathen, and in His hand is power and might, so that none is able to withstand Him. 2 Chronicles 20:6. Therefore “fight ye not against the Lord God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.” 2 Chronicles 13:12. God cannot be overthrown by His own power turned against Him. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.18

This is the comfort of the people of God in times of persecution. Verse 10 reads in the French of Segond, “Form projects, and they shall come to nothing; give orders, and they shall come to nothing; give orders, and they shall be without effect; for God is with us.” “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31. God is King of kings. He makes His servant His firstborn, “higher than the kings of the earth.” Psalm 89:27. Read verses 17-27. This is spoken to the seed of David. Christ was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, but as His flesh is ours, we share His exaltation. He has been raised to sit at the right hand of God in the heavenly places, “far above all principality and power and might and dominion,” and we are raised to sit with Him. Ephesians 1:20, 21; 2:1-6. “He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill; that He may set him with princes, even with the princes of His people, and to make them inherit the throne of glory.” Psalm 113:7, 8; 1 Samuel 2:8. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.19

God's people, therefore, have nothing to fear from man, or from any combination of men. If they are indeed His, they have a position higher than that of any earthly king. All nations may be arrayed against them, but they can accomplish no more against those who dwell in the secret place of the Most High than they can against the Almighty Himself. Read Psalm 118:6-17. It is true that earthly rulers may put some of God's people to death, even as they crucified Christ, but even so they cannot prevail against them. Christ conquered when He went into the grave. One man who knows the Lord (and the only way we can know Him is to have Him dwelling in us), is stronger than all nations combined. His authority is greater than theirs. This is the fact; unfortunately there are so many Christians who do not know their rightful place. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 85.20

The fact that God's people have a place higher than the kings of the earth does not make them defiant. They are not to use their authority against men nor governments, but to help. Indeed, as soon as they assume a defiant, dictatorial attitude, they lose their power. Their strength is the strength of meekness. God clothes His people with His own kingly authority, in order that they may properly represent Him as ambassadors. Paul, brought before the Roman governors, preached the Gospel to them; and the man in chains caused the man on the throne to tremble. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.1

People confederate for the purpose of maintaining or executing some project which they think is right. So the translation which we are following has in verse 12, “it is holy.” We shall get the sense, however, better, if we follow the common or the Revised rendering, “a confederacy,” or “a conspiracy.” God would not have His people become bound up in any worldly compact. Ancient Israel were forbidden to make any league with the inhabitants of the land. Even so now they are not to be members of any human organisation whatever. The church of Christ, of which He is the direct Head, provides for every want. Benevolent associations, so-called, are not needed by Christians, for the church is that. A little reflection will enable anybody to see that these associations are selfish, and so opposed to the Gospel of Christ. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.2

It is not because God would have His people exclusive, that He tells them to make no league with the people of earth, and not to unite with any worldly society whatever for protection or help. No; it is because He would have them save the world. When His people unite with the world in any organisation or society for mutual help or protection, they thereby disparage Him, who is the only real help. They give the world the impression that the church of Christ, nay, Christ Himself, does not afford sufficient protection and help. They put themselves in the position of dependents upon men, instead of occupying the position of benefactors, which God designs that they should hold. They are to give to the world, even to kings, and not to receive from them. A true child of God, poor and unknown, is better able to offer protection to an earthly ruler, than the Government is to protect him. This being so, how much more does it apply to all smaller combinations of men. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.3

In ancient times anyone who acknowledged God could join His people. Even so it is now. The church is God's kingdom. All may come into it, who are willing to have Christ reign over and in them. And God's people, instead of being exclusive, must mingle with the people of the world, even going out into the highways and the lanes to find them, to do them good, and to invite them to come and share the blessings of God's house. But how dishonouring to the God whom they profess to serve, when they, finding that danger threatens, seek protection from those whom they are sent to deliver. There are many societies organised for the purpose of helping men temporally and spiritually,-of improving their physical and moral condition,-and they all do more or less good; but that is no reason why the Christian should join them. He must not oppose them, but let them do all the good they can; but he must know that he, as a member of Christ's body, has a field of operation, and a power for good, infinitely greater than they have, so that to join them would narrow his efforts. The glorious Gospel is the sovereign remedy for all human ills; therefore lift the standard high, and do not let it be confused with anything else. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.4

“Sanctify the Lord of Hosts Himself; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread. And He shall be for a sanctuary.” Compare 1 Peter 3:14, 15: “If ye suffer for righteousness sake, happy are ye; and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts; and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” The only place of safety for any man is the secret place of the Most High. But we abide in God only when He abides in us. When God is set in the soul-temple as supreme, He Himself is the Sanctuary of the soul. Then the man has a hope of which he can give a good account. It is a living hope. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.5

“Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.” But God is a kind and compassionate Father, as much more tender with His children than any earthly father is with his children as He is greater than man. Earthly fathers have love for their children, but “God is love.” What a blessed position to be in, when the only thing in the universe to be afraid of is God, who is love. He loves men, even sinners, but hates sin. He is terrible to nothing but sin. When He is our fear, the result is the destruction of sin. The only dread we need to have, with respect to God, is the dread of displeasing Him; and when we fear to displease Him, so much that we will trust Him, and yield to His ways, He will give us the testimony that we please Him. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.6

“Behold, I and the children whom God hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of Hosts.” Who says this?-Read Hebrews 2:9-13, and it will at once be seen that Christ is the speaker here. Then we may take courage to go back and read verse 17 of our lesson: “I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth His face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for Him.” Has God hidden His face from us? So He did from Christ, yet Christ saw Him again. Not long ago one said to me, “God has forsaken me.” Very well, said I, That is just what Christ said, “Ah, but,” said the other, “God had not cast Him off.” Indeed He had not; and since all that He suffered was for you, and in your place, you may be just as sure that He has not cast you off. No matter how much God seems to hide His face, if we go through the dark experience with Christ, we may be confident. Of all overcomers it is said, “They shall see His face.” PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.7

But what about the signs and wonders? That is a most glorious prospect. It presents the most marvellous psosibilities before believers in God. “I and the children whom the Lord hath given Me, are for signs and wonders,” says Christ. That is, we ourselves are classed in with Christ. It is not merely that we are to do signs and wonders, but we are to be them. All the marvels of “the Man Christ Jesus” are to be reproduced in all who are men in Christ. The world is to wonder at Christians just as much as it did at Christ, and for the same reason. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 86.8

“The Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:22-24. Here we have the same stumbling-block as in our lesson. Thank God that the stumbling-block is the sanctuary to believers. This stumbling-block is the sign; it is Christ crucified. You will remember that Christ said the Jews should have no other sign than His crucifixion. See Matthew 16:4. He gave them the most wondrous sign that could be given, and they stumbled at it. God's people are to present the same sign to the world. When the death and resurrection of Christ are fully manifest in their lives, they themselves will be signs greater than any miracle that they could perform. Let the sign, then, the sign of the cross, shine out. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 87.1

The remaining verses in this chapter were quoted for the sake of the connection, but will be left for special study till next week. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 87.2

When Jesus sent out His disciples to preach, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand,” we read “He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner if disease.” Matthew 10:1. Again, just before His ascension to heaven, He said to His apostles, “Ye shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me.” Acts 1:8. Unless power accompanies the message it is not the Gospel. That which makes God's message to the world a gospel, or glad tidings, is that it brings the power which is so much needed. The Gospel is the power of God to every one that believeth unto salvation. Romans 1:16. In the church of Christ there must be seen the working of His own mighty power. Unless this is true His people do not bear witness to Him. Any power short of the power of God does not reveal Him to men. PTUK January 26, 1899, page 87.3