The Progress., 1893-04-08
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON III, SECOND QUARTER, INTER
NATIONAL SERIES, APRIL t6.

ory Verses, s-IO-GoIden Text, John Kill,
r Commentary by the Rev. ID. NJ.
Stearns.
La Then job answered and said. Even
today is my complaint bitter; my stroke is
heavier than my groaning." This is the be
ginning of Jobs reply to the third address
Of Eliphaz. Each Of the three-Eliphsz,
Bildad and Zopbar-had spoken twice, and
Job bad replied to each I'm turn. This is the
beginning Of the third round. In an inter
esting and instructive little pamphlet en-.
titled JOB and His Friends" by c. III. NJ,
the author thinks that these three stand
for experience, tradition and legality-all
we'll meaning. but unwise In their dealings
with job The difficulties on each side are
summed up in chapter xxi, 1-3. They
condemned Job instead of leading him 20
condemn himself and he justified himself
rather than God AS to the beginning of
this reply of Job, we may often feel that we
too, have great cause of complaint, as did
Israel under their discomforts, but it is
written, when the people complained, 1t
displeased the Lord" (Num. ri, y
3 "Oh. that | knew where | might find
Him. that might come even TO His seatp'
Eliphaz had said, "Acquaint now thyself
with Him and he at peace" xxi, 21 Job
replies that his longing is to do so. Accord
ing to the testimony Of God Himself, Job
was perfect and upright man, fearing God
and eschewing evil q, 8; ii, 81, the word
perfect" meaning in this case simple or
sincere. Before his friends came even un
der overwhelming aflliction, he was patient
and did not sin nor charge God foolishly ii,
%; il, 10Y, because he felt himself face TO
face with God and that God was dealing
with him. But these men seem TO have
come between him and God, and he, in re
plying to them and dealing with them,
loses sight Of God and gropes in the dark
ness of his own wisdom.
l. II would order my cause before Hin
and Gil my mouth with arguments" So it
seemed to Job in his blindness, but It is
evident that he lacks the broken and con
trite spirit which only is acceptable to God.
In the story of the two men who went up
to the temple to pray duke xviii, 1O-l4) it
was the man who would not lift up so much
as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon
his breast, saying, God be merciful to me, a
sinner" who went down to his house justi
fed rather than the other who thanked God
that be was better than other men. IL is
only when our mouths are stopped as to our
own righteousness that we can enjoy the
free justification Of the grace Of God
through His righteousness Rom. iii, 1eD.
8 II would know the words which be
would answer me and understand what he
would say unto me-" He cannot under
stand these friends, and It is very clear that
they do not understand him, but he thinks
ne could understand God, and he would like
to know what God would say to him. NJ
doubt there are many who think they car
sympathize with Job in his being so mis-
understood Well there Is great comfort
| In looking unto Him who knew us thor
ouehly from the beginning and can nevei
| find out anything new about us. He never
can or will misunderstood u.s. 20 Lord
thou hast searched me and known me-
| tPs cxXXix, -
o. "Will He plead against me with Hi
great poweri No, but He would put
strength in me-" A very little thing will
often bring the soul into such place thai
everything will look distorted, as when on'
sees things in fog or with blurred vision
| Our eyes need constant amounting will
heavenly eye salve (Rev. iii, 1S) that we ma!
see clearly The Holy Spirit can do this
| and inasmuch as we have Him In a sens
that Job had him not we are more guilt,
than Job II we allow our vision to becom
| so dim. God pleads not against the sinner
but against sin, which He hates. He VIII
sought Adam and Eve and redeemed then
and restored them to a measure of fellow
ship with promise of future glory is eve
the same and is pleading with the slime
to come to Him, however sinful he may be
and with the erring to return to Him, how
ever far off he may have wandered. Sc
Isa 1, IS, lv. g, Z; Jer iii, l2-14; Hos xiv, l,
T. "There the righteous might disput
with Him, so should be delivered foreve
from my Judge" Perhaps we cannot tel
Just what was in the mind Of job when b
uttered these words, but this we do know
that there is only one righteous perso
whose righteousness can stand before Goo
| and He also has been ordained to be th
Judge Of quick and dead Oh Cor. v, 81; Act
xvii,3l) However sinful we may be, IL onl
we come with true penitence to Him VIII
came into the world to save sinners, He wi
not only not cast us out John vi, 30, bu
He will become our righteousness, wisdom
sanctlncatlOn anu redemption, anu we sua
have great cause to glory in Him q Cor
80, BIZ The Judge being our friend, our RI
deemer, our substitute, who died in ou
stead. what boldness we may have in th
day of judgment Il John iv, ~.
s. Behold. go forward, but He is nc
there, and backward, but cannot perceiy
Him." He reminds us Of the bride in tt
Song of Songs who, because she had bee
self occupied and had not promptly heede
the voice of her beloved, is compelled
seek Him very earnestly before she foun
Him again. She says, ~ sought Him, br
could not find Him; called Him, but Il
gave me no answer" (Song v, 81. Many
Christian Is walking in darkness, out
fellowship with God, because OF some thin
) or person which has been allowed to con
nearer TO them than the Lord Himself. L
is not far off. nor hard to find, when we see
Him with the whole heart (Rom. X, 8, ., Je
xix, Is), and IL we would walk continual
with Him, esteeming His fellowship mo
than all else. we would never walk in dar
| noaa