Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-01-14
Overcome with wine.

Overcome with Wine.
The lesson for Sunday. Jan. II, mag be
found In Isaiah 20; 1T.
INTRODUCTORY.
A lesson on temperance. What II ID do
not speak of teetotalism or OF prohibition
We must with due discretion ft the times
90 the truth, and tho Scripture principle
that spoke against the drunkenness that
| prevailed then speaks to-day against the
drunkenness OF the nineteenth century. In
| this age OF the world we are coming to see
chat all tippling Is incorporates. and II
Terges fast toward drunkenness. The aim
y TO cure the state OF society that 10 aout
OF the way through strong drink" Ten
bets men out of the way. is to be decried.
And may mighty voice go up from all the
Sunday schools of the land against the ac-
cursed thingl
WHAT THE LESSON SAYS
Crown of pride, 1. O.. the proud crown,
the proud kingdom.-To the drunkards.
Rather. of the drunkards. First meaning.
to drlnk, second. IN ret drunk.
Name applied To the ten Northern tribes.
Whose glorious beauty, etc. Literally:
| To the fading blossom OF its glowing splen-
dor The original meaning of the word
beauty Is to. swell, an added hint as to
| Ephraim's pride. with wine.
first meanings. To stamp or tread hard Is
earlier still, and perhaps from this is de-
| rived the suggestive reading OF Jerome IN
the Douay. See Variations.
p! The Lord hath mighty and strong one,
L O., the Lord himself The Hebrew. how
ever. reads, mighty and strong one is 70
the Lord.-Wlh the hand. Possibly re-
ferring to the King OF Assyrla, who was
Gods punitive hand here.
Under feet. That is. the Assyrian army.
Placed first In the Hebrew for emphasis
though last In the English.
Hasty fruit Revision: aFirst ripe 6g.r
1t may be, however, first rile grapes, as II
refers to any kind of fruit. The root is 70
burst open. hence to ripen. The earliest
was OF course most apt TO be seized and
eaten He that looketh upon One word
In the Hebrew, onlOoker or inspection
Eateth 1t up A strong word t. devour
greedlly, to swallow. Hosea s: 8. ("Israel
is swallowed up.D
A crown OF glory. In contrast with the
crown OF pride In v. Il: 1. e., God-trust VS..
self-trust-The residue The faithful
remnant at the South. Gods judgment prov
Ing all human glory to be vanity. The
first meaning of Shaar, used here, is to be
firm and enduring.
Turn the battle to the gate A difficult
passage See Variations. The King James
rendering is quite literal, the refer ence be-
ing probably TO driving the enemy back to
discontinue or rout.
But they also. Rather, these, as In Re-
vision, |. O., judah, nearer home. The
word is emphatic in the Hebrew. Have
erred. One meaning OF tho word is TO reel
about. Very suggestively supplied In the
Margin. Out of the way. Another sug-
gestive meaning OF this word is to stagger.
Perhaps we ought to translate. and so give
strong, poetic coloring to the prophet
words. Err In vision, or reel In vision, a
graphic touch. Hebrew, To
move to and fro. Evidently there were
drunken men I'm that dry, and Isaiah had
seen them. stop here, II preferred.)
Vomlt and flthiness. Our English, per-
haps fortunately, suppresses in part the
odious Significance here A faithful pict-
ure OF the after orgies.-So that there is
no place clean. Hebrew. No place, l. O.,
no place left, all full of uncleanliness.
Suggesting the Hebrew of Nal. 3: TO-
Weaned from the milk and drawn from
the breasts A pulling construction. The
Revision makes this also interrogative.
The implication at any rate is that Israel
is like unto n babe for instruction. / am
inclined to take this as direct discourse, as
II the word ye were understood
ttFor precept must be upon precept. Lit
eruily. For prccepe upOn Preeept or AS
in Revision, alt Is precept upon precept y
This word itself Is In motto precept form.
and stronger on that account. 1t refers TO
the familiar methods OF the school-room.
Stammering lips. Or babbling lips, re-
ferring to the brogue or obscure mouthings
OF foreigners. lisa. 80: 10.-Will he speak.
God speaking In judgment through the in
vaders
WHAT THE LESSON TEACHES.
Woe to the crown OF pride Satan is wise,
but he often overreacbes himself His dis
comftures usually result from his own
overweening arrogance. Does he not seem
to be verging toward such now? have
been re-reading the life OF that pioneer OF
modern evangelism, Elder Jacob Knapp.
He is rehearsing the origin OF the Washing
tonian movement. due more to him per-
haps than to any other man. He instances
IL in n sermon on sWhy the wicked live and
why the devil livesp "Look at this case, ~
he says. ain modern times. In 1889, as
told the friends in a temperance meeting
the other night. God sen- me to Baltimore
to preach God began the work In the first
place among 1runkards. The rum-sellers
became very much out Of patience because
they were losing their customers. They
became very much filed with wrath and
malice toward the unworthy Baptist
preacher whom God employed in leading on
the sacramental host from conquest to con-
quest. and they swore vengeance upon him.
4 he young men constituted a temperance
society and invited me one night TO preach
n sermon on temperance. / agreed to do
So The rum-sellers had a meeting and
appointed a delegation to go and hear my
sermon and report They came In and sat
down behind the door. and as the sermon
went on and solemn. pointed, pungent
truths were preached, they began to feel
the power of Gods truth After service
they went back to make a report and the
old rum-seller behind the counter said,
What report have you to maker? We'll.
said one, we heard a great deal more truth
than poetry. Tho rum-seller began to
feel indignant and vindictive and poured
ont hts anathamaS on Knann. II won 4 haa r.
that man abused said Mitchell. one of the
men. Il believe that he is a good man and
that he is doing good In the city. II you
abuse him any more will leave your house.
Mitchell was as good as his word. He
rose up, put on his hat. and said, Il Will
never drink another drop in your house so
long as my name is MITCHELL and left, On
the way home, said he, Why can not re-
solve never to drink another drop any
where7 will do It, said he; and that
night they got up pledge of total absti-
hence from intoxicating drinks; and there
began the Washingtonian reform that rolled
over the Eastern States, and converted
hundreds and thousands OF inebriates."
They are out OF the way through strong
drink. 1t Is the disturbing element In all
our life OF to-day-strong drink. Not that
all imbibe, but that all are affected; the
air is poisoned with It. The statesmen In
Congress. even the preacher In the pulpit.
feels its dire power. The little children on
their way to school catch its fumes and
their delicate sensibilities are at first
shocked and afterward dulled. You recall
the train that left the track in Indiana aud
carried the three reporters to their un-
timely death. Is the suspicion wrong that
IL was whisky that misplaced the SWITCH
GOut of the way through strong drink.p It
seems as though whatever whisky touches
to-day IL jostles and hurts Law, medl-
cine. gospel even. Has not the time come