The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1886-01-21
The Sunday Schools.
LESSON FOR NEXT SUNDAY.
2 Kings 25, liz

LESSON w.. Captivity OF Jadah.
2Kings 25. 1-12.
And it came to pass in the ninth year of his
5 reign, in the tenth month"; in the tenth day o1
: the month, that Nebuchadnezzark king of Baby
Ion came, he, and all his host, against Jerusa-
lem, and pitched against it and they built forts
against it round about.
2 And the city was besieged unto the eleventh
r year of king Zedekiah
And the ninth day of the fourth month the
famine prevailed in the city, and there was 40
bread for the people of the land.
And the city was broken up, and all the
men of war fled by night by the way of the gate
between two walls, which is by the kings gar
den: (now the Chaldees were against the city
round about: and the king went the way to-
ward the plain.)
And the army of the Chaldees pursued after
the king, and overlook him in the plains of
Jericho: and all his army scattered from
him.
So they took the king, and brought him up
to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they
gave judgment upon him.
| And they slew the sons of Zedekiah, before
| his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and
| bound him with fetters of brass, and carried
him to Babylon.
| And in the fifth month, on the seventh day
of the month, which is the nineteenth year of
| king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came
1
! the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem:
| And he burnt the house of the Lord. and
/ the kings house, and all the houses of Jerusa-
lem, and every great mans house burnt he with
| fire.
10 And all the army of the Chaldees, that
! were with the captain of the guard, brake down
| the walls of Jerusalem round about
| IL Now the rest of the people that were left in
the city. and the fugitives that fell away to the
| king of Babylon, with the remnant of the null
| titude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the
| guard carry away.
IL But the captain of the guard left of the
poor of the land to be ine-dressers and hus-
bandmen.
GOLDEN TExT.-By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we re
| membered Zion.-Psa. 1871.
TIME-5S B. G. End of kingdom of Judah.
In Greece, the 4sth olympiad. Year of Rome,
1866
PLACE.-same as in Lesson II, also Riblah.
(See Descriptive Index.)
Jehoiakim was wicked king, as taught
in the last lesson, and after reign of
eleven years was slain, it is not known
whether by his own people or by his enc
mics. His son Jehoiachin succeeded him,
but after reign of only a hundred days |
was carried away into captivity by |
NebuchadnezZar,. and with him large
number of the best of his people. This
was ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS second invasion
of the land He placed upon the throne
of Judah an uncle of the deposed king,
brother of Jehoiakim. The new king
took an oath of allegiance to the Baby
lonian king, but permitted the counsels of
evil advisers to carry him into rebellion
contrary to the advice of jeremiah, the
latter being thrown into prison by him
because of his opposition, imposed great
burdens of taxation upon the people, and
attempted to place his capital in a condi-
tion for defense against the Chaldeans.
But his efforts were useless. For over a
year its walls were beseiged by the Chal-
deans, while starvation prevailed within
the walls of the doomed city. When the
walls were finally broken, the king tried
to escape, but was captured and taken
before king Nebuchadnezzar. : His
children were slain before his eyes,
his own eyes were then put out,
and, blinded, he was thrust into prison,
and the throne of David-which had
stood through four hundred and fifty
years-was destroyed
The horrors of this siege have never
been surpassed in history. Men who had
been brought up in refined circumstances
were seen raking in the heaps of filth for
food. The bodies of slain infants, as well
as those of the unburied dead were de-
voured, and a pestilence engendered. The
captured king was taken to Riblah a city
in the valley of Lebanon, ten days jour-
ney from Jerusalem. Here the Babylon
ian king pronounced judgment against
him, and probably put out his eyes by his
own hand, by javelin thrusts. Nebuch-
adnezzar then sent the captain of his
guard with a force of men to destroy the
city of Jerusalem, by burning the houses,
tearing down the walls, and so on. The
idea of this was to prevent the place
being by any possibility held as strong
hold against Babylonian authority in the
future. The masses of poor people still
left at Jerusalem were given farming
lands to work. Thus it proved under the
circumstances that poverty was the only
safeguard.
The events chronicled in the Lesson
as well as the other Lessons of this Quar-
ter-portray vividly the proneness of
mankind to abandon themselves to nat
ural waywardness of disposition, and the
reckless manner in which the advice and
pleading of friends are scorned. But the
consequences of evil are sure and terrible,
and it is altogether probable that the
wayward Zedekiah reflected bitterly upon
this truth in the darkness and loneliness
of his prison. The mocking of the over
lures of Divine mercy may afford tenn
porary satisfaction or enjoyment, but the
time must come when the walls of wick
edness will be torn down, and sad as the
fate of those who willingly dwell within
them. The Kingdom of Judah had the
light constantly present. The wicked
ness of the monarchs was in opposition
to inspired prophecy and known duty.
But the proud spirits were broken, and
when the fieeting enjoyment was gone,
only the terrible consequences remained. |
OBITUARY..
JONEs.-Ded, January 81. 1886 John L. Joues, aged |
81 ears Disease, CONGESTION of stomach and lungs