Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1892-03-02
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
The Downfall of Judah-Jer. go: lid
Memory Verses 6-S.

LESeOc FoR MARCH .. 1914.
GOLDEN TExr-Dchold. your house is left
| unto you dcsoiatc. Matt. 1858.
CENTRAL TRUru--The way of tho trans
gressors is hard.
TIME---Jcrusalem destroyed in the summer
PLAcE.-Jerusalem; Ribiah SEVENTH 1--WE
miles north of Damascus. Babylon.
J ULERs.-Zedekiah, twenty first and last
king OF Judah, a son of Josiah; Nebuchadncz-
sar, king OF Babylon.
Prophets. in Jerusalem (6S7-
ySs); Ezekiel. in Babyionia 59s-573); Daniel.
In Babylon (oO5-5So); Obadiah (5s5).
PARALLEL ACCoUNTs.-Jer 5s:l-i0; 9 Chron.
sd:ii2i; Kings 95:i-l9
BIBLIcAt. LIrHRArUREs OF THE PERIOD
Jer. chaps 2i.23. 1888. IS. 81. Psalms seventy
four and seventy nine give pictures OF the siege.
Obadiah belongs TO the early part OF the cap
tivity. Jcrcmians "Book OF Lamentations"
consists OF Ave poems or dirges. written about
this captivity. -Four OF them are alphabetical
poems. tho twenty-five stanzas commencing
with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. They
arc supposed to have been written in tho
Grotto Of jeremiah. on the west side OF Jorusa-
lem.
HELPS OVER HARD PLAcEs.-i 'In the ninth
year," u. C. 5SS THE tenth MONTH" ''Tibeth,"
which extends from about tho middle OF Dc
cemocr 10 the middle OF January. Eleventh
year. fourth month, tho ninth day" about
July /, $50, year and n half after tho siege be-
gan. The city was broken ups" the walls
were broken through, and the city surrendered.
J. Sin the middle gatc:" between the upper
and lower city. "Rabsaris:" a high Assyrian
title belonging 20 the previous name; Sarse-
chin the Rabsaris SO Rab-mag high priest.
or chief OF the sorcorers. belongs TO Nergal.
sharczer. who was the Rab-mRg. 4 Gate be-
twixt the two walls:' OF the valley OF tho
Tyropcan. between Zion and tho temple hill.
The Assyrians came in from the north; tho
king fed TO the south The way OF the plain:"
over Olivct 10 Jericho. TO the plain OF the
Jordan. 3. ''Riblah:" where rs n center
Nebuchadnezzar was conducting the siege OF
Tyre as well as Jerusalem. o. Slew sons"
as the last sight he should ever behold Z.
Put out ZedcSiah's eyes" Thus fulfilled two
remarkable prophecies: one by Ezekiel G2: 10
49, that King ZcdelSiah should be led into
Babylon a captive, should live there and there
die, and yet he should never the city; the
other 10y Jeremiah (39:35) that Zedeldah
should speak with Nebuchadnczzar mouth to
mouth. and see his eyes. o. Fell away" de
serted from the city TO the Chaldeans.
LESSON COMMENT.
Nine months ago we had this same
lesson. AS suggestion, which may
add some freshness to it, l would give
the following outline:
Call to mind two great professions.
The first of these / see is marching out
of Egypt. Moses is the great leader.
and the faces of all the people are radiant
with joy and high anticipation. There is "a
look of triumph on their countcnances,
and they are laden with the spoil of their
enemies, which they have had given to
them, so glad were their previous cap
tors to have them leave the land. Pres
emily i see this procession fall into dire
straits, by reason of their adversarics.
Pharaoh is after them with his hosts,
and they see no way out of their diff
culties. Then theycry to the Lord, and
are delivered with mighty deliverance,
and that without striking blow in
their own defense. On the further side
of the Red sea they gather, while their
prosecutors are struggling in the wa
tiers, and Mt last Pharaohs hosts are no
more; for the floods have gone over
them, and the horse and his rider have
forever persisted in the sea. Then they
sing, and with song and dance pro-
claim their great victory, and ascribe
the praise 70 the God of their fathers.
This was grand sequel to such tri-
umph, and was prophetic of very
great future. What may not such
people do, with God as their shield, and
with the God of their. fathers .as their
bucltlcr? Truly, if ever nation had a
grand beginning, this was that people.
The second procession is a vast con-
trast to this one that we have Just been
considering. Again vast throng of
people, but in their countenances there
Is no sign of triumph. With downcast
countenanccs they march forth, but
there is no song of deliverance in their
mouths, and no arm of the Almighty is
stretched out foreshcir deliverance. The
clank of the chains is the only music
that grects the ear, and the cry of de-
spair the only sound that escapes their
lips. Their king is taken to face his
conqucror, and when he sees him he is
greeted with dcrision. His two sons are
slain before his eyes, and then he is by
refinement of cruelty blinded himself.
After this brief pause in the awful
march, 1T is resumed, and for u thousand
miles the weary cXiles drag their way
TO land of captivity and of shame.
What contrast between the two pic
lures! What pair of oil-paintfhgs
these scenes might suggest, full OF les
sons for nations as well as for individ-
uals
Now all these things happened to
them FOR cnsam piles, and they are writ
ten for our admonition upon whom the
ends of the world are come. Where
fore let him that thinbeth he standeth
take heed lest he fall" Cor 10: IL, II.
In these two pictures we see set forth
the plans of mercy that God has for His
people. and the pcrverse way in which
they mar those plans - Rev. A. f.
Schaufiler, d. ID.
LESSONS FROM THE CAPTURE or JERUsA-
LEM
/. God put every hindrauce possible
IN the way OF their sin and destruction
prophets, warnings, mercics. time for
repentance, a vision OF the end.
.. G) The Punishment comes slowly
at first, in smaller measures, in order
10 give opportunity for repentance. (2)
IL Is accompanied by earnest warning
and cntrcatics. CD IL is intended TO
save men from sin. (4) There is. there.
fore, because God t. love, no escape. OK
scpt by repeating and forsal,ing sin. (5)
Tut COD Is waiting to- confer Ills bless.
ings. a. coon as men arc fitted To re.
ceive tl'r'
-- ----
SINCE THE LAST TIDE.
RECENTLY NJ Amador. Cal, a block
Of marble weighing one hundred tons
was quarricd and cut into columns for