The National tribune., 1892-09-01
SUNDAY MEDITATION.

A Study Of the, international Sunday
School Lesson Appointed for Sept.
| II, 1892. a,q :"
Subject: Philip and the Ethiopian. Acts.
8:a644O.
Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study tho paragraph from the Holy Scriptures -
indicated above.i ti3lah
INTRoDUcTIoN.
We left st. Philip. the Deacon, at q city in
Samaria The Apostles, SITS. Peter and John,
who went to samaria, have returned to Jeru-
salem. Good seed had been sown. A nucleus
| of Christians was formed, consisting of men
| and women who had been baptized, and had
| felt on their heads the hands of the Apostles.
| The Holy Spirit descended on these new Chris.
tians of Samaria, and we have reason to hope
| they continued in the faith. Not unlikely
| they suffered more or less from Simon Magus
| and his associates.
| We now come to the study of the conversion
and baptism of the Treasurer of Candace.
1. References.
Verse 20. Angel of the Lord 1:10; S: 10;
1913, 7, 22; 12:7-11, 90; 81: %; 2 XII, 1:3;
| Heb, l: IA. Arise. Chron., 90: IS; Is, go: l.
GAIA. Gen., 10: 49, JOSH, Is: 3; Is: At; judi,
| 16:2I-3I; Zee, 81 S. Desert. st. Mt, 3: 1-3;
st. L., 1924.
v. q. Ethiopia. Ps 6s: 81; s7:4; Is,
1876; As: Ia; GO: So; 66: 10, 90; Jer., ID: %;
! 1877; 80: 16; Zep 3: 10. Arose and went mot
knowing whittier nor wherefore). St. Mt,
| 21:2-6; st. Mark, IA: 1916; ST. John, 2: So;
Heb, lis. Queen of Ethiopia CT. Queen
of Sheba. XII, 1911; st. Mt. 12: AZ. To
Jerusalem to worship. l XII, s:41-43; Pa,
6s:29; Is, 56:36; st. John, 1920.
| v. %. Read Esaias (the prophecy Of
IT. Is. 10; JOSH, g; Ps, 1:2; 119: SO, Ill /;
Prov, 9: 1-6; 8: 33, "a; st. John, 5: 80; 2 I'll,
3: 1917. Esaias Usaiah), %: %; Is. ii; ST.
L.. ga; II. Chariot. 2 XII, So, 26; 10:
| Is, 16.
v. 49, Spirit said 10: 10; IL: 12: 1924;
Is: 6, Z; 20: %, %; l Cor, l2: III; l Til. Il.
| V. 80. Ran. 81: Ps., 119: 80; Ecc, 8: 10;
Ro., IL: IL st. John. ABA. Understandest
thou what thou readest. st. Mt, 10: 10. %,
81; 1910; a. Is; St. Mark, ID: IA; ST. L.,
"a Al, As; st. john 5: 80; Cor, IA: 49,.
| V. 81. How can 1 except guided7 Ps., 25:
g. 8; 70: l6, IL, %; Prov, 500. 3; Is, 90: 18
10; 8; St. Mt, IS: 3, 4; st. Mark, 10: Is;
Cor, 3: IS; So; IA: 36, 81; Eph., 81: 3, a;
st. James, l: 10. 81; Pet, 9: /, 2.
| V. 81. Place of Scripture. Is., So: Z, g.
Sheep. Pet, rs. Lamb St. John, l: 90
1 Pet, /: 10. Opened not mouth. Ps., 80 2,
g; st. Mt, 26: 62, So; Pet, 9: 21-24.
V. 49, Humiliation. Phil, 2:8,9 Judg-
ment taken away. Job. 27:2; 1875; Is., s.:
49, 10:2; Hab.. Ia; st. Mt, 81: 1926; ST.
So: 8, IL. His life taken. Ps., %: Is; Is, So:
10, 12; DAN, g.: &c; Zee, 1877.
| V. 81. OF whom speakest the prophet? st.
Mt. 2:24 ID: Sc; IS: Is.
v. 81. st. Philip explained the Scripture Is:
%; 26: q, %; 1925 ST. L.. "a: q, A. AZ
Opened mouth. 1874; Job, 81; st. Mt, s:
2; 2 Cor, 6: IL. Preached Christ 800; g.:
20; II: 20; 17:a. IS; 10: Is; Cor, 1 %; 2:
2; Eph, 4 81; Pet, l.: IL. H.
V. &c. See, here is water. 10: AZ; Eze.. SO:
25; st. John, 3 s. %; Titus. 3:5, 6; John,
SO. 20
| " 81 Believest, 10, 10; ST. Mark, 10: 10 ;
St. John, a: Al. SO; Ro., 1910 / believe
IS; st. John, 6: GO. SO; Q: 1913; 11:2; 90:
81; John, 4: Is; SCI, 5, 1913
/ " S. Baptized him. 2 :3S, 80; st. Mt, 20:
10; st. Mark, 1916; st. John, 3:22, 20; 1
| Pet, 3:21.
v. 80. Out of water. St. Mt, 3: is; st. Mark,
1:10. Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip.
XII, IS: 12; XII. 2: Is; Eze., 8: 12-14; 8: B.;
on way rejoicing. 8; Is: SO; IS: 81; H., 35:
g; 90: IL, 10; 81. 10; 66: Ii. IA; ST. Mt,
! 10: A; TO-, $50; I5$ I0-13; Phil, 3:3; 4:4 !;
! st. James, 1: 9, 10; A.: 49, IL
| v. 40. Azotns (Ashdod). JOSH, Is: 46, At;
| Sam, s. 1. 3 Zee, 9 g. Preached in all cities.
| st. L., 10: 1,2; Ro., IS: 10. Cesarea. 10: / /;
2l:S; 1928, 80; 1854.
| 2. Time.
We can locate date at say A. d. 35. There
! is no way of fixing the time exactly and hence
| there are different dates given. The year 35
cannot be much out of exactness. Probably
the eunuch went to Jerusalem to attend the
passover, and hence we can locate the lesson in
early May.
st. Philip was stopping at city in Samaria
| we may suppose Sychar-when he received q
| Divine message to overtake chariot ON way
| down from Jerusalem to GAIA Both said
places are well fixed geographically, but the
exact place where Philip got into the chariot
of the eunuch-how far the two rode together
where the certain water ". 36) was-we eau
not state SO accurately. The direction was
south" ". 26) Sychar in straight line
| from Jerusalem was about 80 miles north.
| GAIA in a direct line was about so miles south
west from Jerusalem. Hence the distance
from Sychar to GAIA was, via Jerusalem, about
| 80 miles. A straight line from Sychar to GAIA
| is 70 miles. Ancienty GAIA was in the south
ern part of the land of the Philistines. 1t fell
| into the Roman Province. Judea. It is known
| also as AZzah. The modern name is Ghuzzeh.
| It was the scene of Samson's feats Of strength
| and the place of his tragic death. There are
now about Is 600 inhabitants. The city 10 two
to three miles from the Mediterranean.
Much of the region between Jerusalem
and GAIA was without villages or houses,
and 30 was known as desert region-the idea
being that the locality was without inhabit-
ants. and not necessarily barren, sandy, ETC.,
IS we would think from the word desert.
Afford notices the fact there were two roads
between Jerusalem and GAIA much Travelled,
and passing through towns more or less popu-
lous, and hence roads not deserty in the sense
of the New Testament. But Robinson found
still another route. 1t passes through the Wady
| Musnrr and leads through region quite I'M
populated in Christs time. We may suppose
the eunuch chose q more retired road for the
purposes of reading and meditating.
| DR.. A. Barnes thinks desert ;" refers to the
city GAIA, regarding this the natural con-
struction. He holds the reference is to GAIA,
as described by the prophet Zephaniah. (2:4)
Said prophecy was Mt least in part fulfilled by
Alexander the Great, who took GAIA after very
stubborn resistance. ,(Jos., ART. IL, 8, and 4 !;
also l3. 13, 81 That was what Is known az " Old
Gaxa," as Diodorus -Sicuus styled it. Strabo
refers to it as "Gaza the desert" In 1923 two
missionaries, Messrs. Fisk and King, believed
they discovered evidences of said Old GAIA.
Gaza, now known a. such, was built on differ
ent but neighboring site, and is the GAIA re-
ferred to by st. Luke. q
Ethiopia. That was on the continent Of AZ
rica-south Of Egypt-west OF the Red Sea and
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