Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1892-01-15
OVERCOME WITH WINE.
LESSON III. FIRST QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, JAN "

Text of the Lesson lisa. xviii. I-I3.
Memory verses. 1-Goiden Text.
Prov w. documentary by the Rev
ID. NJ. Stearns.
AS most of the verses in this lesson are
too long to quote in full in these brief
notes must beg the reader to peri!se with
Bible in hand, as should always he done
otherwise lesson helps may become snare
and hlndranre
| Woe to the crown of pride, to the
drunkards OF Ephrain overcome
with wine This Is Il lesson of warning
to the sensuols, self iudulgent unbelievers
in lsrael-a curse pronounced upon them
instead of the blessing which might have
been theirs had they only been willing and
obcdient lisa. l. 10. 30 Observe how this
and the next three chapters begins with
"Woer then 'Bphold "a righteous king"
(XXXli, u. another woe. n Judgment and
then the kingdom comes tXXXv, -lW
2. "BcnOid the Lord hath a mighty and
strong one. who shall cast down To the
earth with the hand Read verses Is. II
and see what the mighty aud strong one
might have been to them had they built
upon Him, but what He will be because of
their sin
B "Ihe crown of pride, the drunkards of
Ephraim shall be trodden under feet"
Nations and individuals choose their own
destiny II willing now to find their Joy
in God and in His will, proving that His
love is better than wine Cant /, y then
all the Joys of His kingdom shall he theirs
but if they prefer the joys of the vine of
lna
wrath of God Rev xiv, Is, 10
4. And the glorious beauty which is on
the head of the fat valley shall be fading
flower The terraced and luxu-
riantly fruitful hills of 5amara are
symbol OF excessive worldly luXuriance
and pleasure Israel was placed in Il land
flowing with milk and honey that she
might glorify God as the author and giver
of every gift she enjoyed, but when she en-
joye1 her luXuries and forgot God she only
wrought sorrow for herself discarding an
eternal for present JOY which proved only
fading flower
5. an that day shall the Lord of Hosts
be for IA crown of glory, and for "A diadem
of beauty, unto the residue of His people"
Unto the remnant who shall he left after
the judgmen' have fallen God shall be an
eternal eXcellency They are spoken of as
but Il third part of the nation, but they
shall be His people and He will be their
God, Czech xiii S, o. Not only shall He be
their crown Of glory, but they shall he His
crown OF glory, and Il royal diadem in His
hand lisa xii, 81
q. And for spirit of judgment to
Him that stitch in judgment, and for
strength to them that turn the battle to
the gate. He will be wisdom to the rulers
who rule for Him, and He will be the
strength of all who fight for Him and drive
the enemy from their gates. The Lord is
God of judgment tor discernment) chapter
XXX, Is, aud all who rely upon Him will
have wisdom given them to decide rightly
But they also have erred through
wine, and through strong drink are out of
the way They err IN vision they stumble
in judgment And these were the priests
and prophets who should have led the PEG
pie in the right way There is wisdom
of this world which intoXicates and blinds
people to the truth of God. many teachers
and preachers thus err and stumble now
adays and multitudes are led astray by
them Test all ny lisa viii, 20, r. V
s, For all tables are full of vomit and
filthiness. so that there is no place clean"
As disgusting and abominable as such re
uncleanness and unholness in the sight of
God. AS Il refined and temperate person
abhors the company of the drunken and
profane, we may in some small measure
imagine how loathsome to God must be the
worldly and pleasure loving who bear His
name, He says He will spew them out of
His mouth REV ill., lG)
o. "Whom shall He teach knowledge?
and whom shall He make to understand
doctriney them that are weaned from the
milk and drawn from the breasts" This
may be the sneer of the drunkards at the
prophet, whom they think talks to them
as if they were children. Or it may be the
Spirit of the Lord seeking such us He may
guide into the truth If the latter, we
cannot help thinking of Paul's difficulty
with some believers (see | Cor. iii, |, 2.
Heb. v, l2-l4), and praying that we may
not be babes like them, but able to eat
some strong meat.
TO- For precept must be upon precept,
precept upon precept line upon line, line
upon line; here a little and there little"
So blind are we to spiritual things and so
slow to learn that we must have the same
truths repeated over and over again Thus
the Saviour taught, and so we must teach
also. with patience and perseverance and
loving kindness, relying upon the Spirit to
make us 'apt to teach" I'll Tim. ii. 24)
| IL. For with stammerIug lips and an
other tongue will He speak TO this people "
AS they stammer in their drunkenness, so
He will speak to them by those who in
their estimation are stimmerers Paul
was considered by some TO be, as to his
bodily presence, weak, and as to his speech
contemplate Ul Cor. X, lO) So also were
the prophets despsed and hated because of
the message they carried (Jer. XII. 10; Xxx, ~.
IL ''ro whom He said, This is the rest
wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest;
and this is the refreshing Yet they would
not hear" He would give them rest and
fullness of joy. but His word was to them
a WEAKNESS. a series of trivial commands
and they would not hear. In quietness
and confidence might they live if they
would only return to and rest in Him, but
they would not lisa. xxx, l5) So also did
Jesus complain of them.
10 But the word of the Lord was unto
them precept upon precept that
thav might po and fall hark ward md no