The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1889-07-26
ISRAEL WANTED A KING.


VIZ III ~ y
fused TO obey tho voice Of samuel; and they
said. Nay hut we will have = king over Us.
lSam. s:l9.
CENTRAL TRrTH-We should seek TO know
Gods will, rather than insist on our own.
TiME-B. Z. l0s56, about twenty years
after tho last lesson. Others make the date
Il. &. lO5)
PLAcE-Ramah, the homo Of Samuel, four
miles northwest Of Jerusalem. Samuel,
now about seventy years old. For forty
years he had been prophet OF Israel, and
for twenty years judge.
INTERVENING HfsroRr season OF peace
and prosperity followed the victory OF our
last lesson. Samuel had grown old. and
made his sons judges in Beersheba, forty
i've or nifty miles 10 the southwest.
HEirs OVER HARD Places. Tnr elders ~
hrdci; the heads Of families and leading
persons. forming a kind Of legislature. q
Sous 'rnh NOT IA uv rays; they took brides
and perverted justice ~. -. Il The fhing
disp'sns>d Samuel; II was not wrong TO have
q king Dcut. E:ii-aO. but the request was
e SUR upon his administration a rejection
81 tod. "a refusal 70 be as noble and holy n
nation as God would have them to be. Why
ala they desires kingt CD To be like other
nations. GU 10 have a visible leader for
war ~. y. I'd To give unity 10 the nation.
~ Samuel would not long be able To rule
Them and his sons were not fit forth place.
I. Ihsp hare NOT rejected fIe>. chiefly. but L-v
hare rsjsefed me; in rejecting Samuel. How!
az They did not ask what was best, but
were determined TO nave their own way.
CD They were unwilling 10 be such a nation
as God thought best. t) They wanted sue
cess without obedience, and hoped they
could have IL by a king. "a They dlstrusted
HnI AZ rl.f~ tw.TatIf. 1.nl.. *. -
tive was bad-to be like other nations. Q.
Hearles unto their rolc<; grant their request.
For so sinfula people a king was the best,
as a punishment for their not being moro
worthy. II. This Tli b. he manner ~ The
king: 10 He would bring in luxury al the
peoples expense. 20 He would limit their
freedom % He wouid impose high taxes
and drain the wealth Of the people.
LESSON FAcTs-Samucl was growing old,
being Mt the time OF our lesson seventy
years OF age. Twenty years had elapsed
since the events OF the last lessor. They
had been years Of considerable prosperity.
Hitherto the people had been governed
directly by God through the medium OF
judges or prophets. Th example Of sur
rounding nations, however, proved conta-
gious, and at last the people wanted q king
like the nations around them. The imme-
IldIr ofta-luu OF tuls IfYlt@L lot = KING
was the misrule Of Samuel's two sons. This
led the elders to assemble and ask Of Sam
uel that some fitting man should be chosen
as their permanent king. God told Samuel
TO hearkcn TO the request Of the people. but
to warn them that II would not be Ut all TO
their advantage n they had a king: for the
burdens that q king would lay on their
shoulders would be far heavier than any
thing that they had yet been called upon to
bear. The gun OF tho aged prophet
was In vain, however,; for the people were
bent on having their own way, as we sec
from the sequel Of the lesson. Compare
this lesson with ! Kings l2:-il.)
Cal A WnoxG REorEsT-That II was wrong
is evident from the way In which God re-
spends nj the first. IL involved y lack Of
trust in Gods method OF governing them.
II Samuel sons were evil, the way out Of
the difficulty did certainly not lie In the
direction OF q monarchy. Any one could
/ have told them that. The fact was that
they were weary Of seeming 10 be at a dis
advantage as against b snowy monarch
les around them. Now God had always
told them that in case they came TO have .
| king, nc should he particularly careful 70 be a.
unlike other nonarehs as possible. tSce Deut.
1.:f69O.) In making their request, there
fore. they showed u spirit markedly 1t vari-
ancc with the one they ought 70
have cherished. ,b) AREorEsr vErfEMESrLY
URGED. It might not have been SO evil .
thing to make the request they did had they
quietly yielded when II was evident that
their desire was not acceptable In Gods
sight. But they were welded 70 their
purpose, and no clear and prophetic be-
trayal OF consequent disasters At all AFFECT
cd them. .-yay, but W wai hare a king"
Is their reitcrant request, or rather de-
mand. II was this vehement insisting on
having their way that aggravated their
guilt. (c) THE REQUEST GRANTED. This
was strange, To human reason IL would
seem almost as though God would have
done better 10 deny them out and out, and
punish them for ~wilfuliess. But we must
never forget that God always treats men.
not as machines, but as free agents. so He
treated Israel. In this way they leasncd
many q lesson, both In the desert and In
Canaan. which otherwise II would have
been impossible to teach thcm.-Rev. A. !.
Schauftcr.
PRACTICAL. SUGGESTIONS.
l. The best Of men sometimes have bad
children.
> We often earnestly desire things not
best for US 70 have.
3. There may be sin and folly as well as
0aIktI III Alt nttltL ~ ~ ~
4. Be very careful OF the feelings OF the
old.
D. We reject God when we refuse 70 obey
Him; when we insist on our will contrary
to Gods; when we neglect His Word, and
reject His ministers, and do not believe on
Jesus.
8. God sometimes yields 10 our requests
because we are not worthy Of the better
things He has planned for Us.
THERE are no cxigcncics IN our nves -
which the well-trained mind should not -
prepared, or which the truly rageo
soul may not meet with caimness, rels.ns
upon all wise Providence 70 make ~ ING
right moment . complete provision. 10 sucn
lives there can come no failure. ~ nave
the oft-rcpcated promise in the word o.
Divine truth that those who seek ms Rlory
shall not fail. All who unsclfishly pursue
their work may with industry achieve GER
tain success and md constant encourage
mcnt and happiness all along LIES journey