The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-09-27
SUNDAY MEDITATION.
A Study of the International Sunday
tfOy
School Lesson appointed for Oct
Z, 1894

School Lesson appointed ior UcL
7, 1894.
Subject: Christ's First Demonstrating
of Scriptures i'm the Synasos at Nazareth.
St. Luke, 1920.
Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study the paragraph from the Holy Scriptures as
indicated above.l
We may consider, first, the reading; sec
ondly, the explanation.
THE READING
Data.
We have account of Christ reading in the
synagog at Nazareth. 1t is written in st.
Luke's Gospel, 4 /: 1920. This is the only
report we have of the incident The writer
was not present He had probably heard of
the incident about which he wrote. We
must keep in mind that the writers of the
Bible books wrote by the direction of God,
and under the influence Of the Holy Spirit.
Their productions are therefore correct and
reliable. ST. Luke wrote in probably the
year A. D. 81, or about 80 years after the
events in the synagog. He wrote in Achaia,
Greece, far off from Nazareth. When we
recall the great interval of time, and the
vast separateness of the places we are
pleased to read / Pet, 1: 81.
Time.
Harmonists of the Gospel are wont to
put this paragraph in January of the year
81 A. D., some II months after the baptism
of Jesus. The Jewish calendar shows that
Isa., chapter 81, was the Hephtaroth or
prophetic section appointed to be read on
the Day of Atonement; to wit, Tisri 10th.
Tisri corresponds with our October. There
would be a beautiful fitness in Christ read
ing at, so far as we know, his first public
appearance as reader in the synagog, that
paragraph which points so directly to his
great work as the Messiah. Some hence locate
the paragraph in October. Jesus was few
months over 81 years of age. He was in
the second year of his ministry. The
Prophet Isaiah wrote in the year 730 3. c.,
or 1877 years before our lesson. And we
study an incident which occurred 1857
ago.
We find ourselves at Nazareth. That
place was the home Of Christ from the
time he was two years old until he was 80
years of age. 1t was quite an obscure
town. We do not find it mentioned in the
Old Testament. 1t was about SO miles
north of Jerusalem, six miles northwest of
Mt. Tabor, ID miles southwest of the Sea
of Galilee. Our Savior was known as Jesus
of Nazareth. 1t was in the province of
Galilee. 1t is now called En-Nasireh.
There are at present about 5000 inhabit-
ants. The Annunciation to the Virgin
Mary took place there. Many traditions as
to Christ, the Virgin Mary and st. Joseph
are told to travellers as to which, however,
some discretion must be exercised on the
part of listeners. Nazareth was for some
reason in disrepute during the early days of
the Christian era. (St. John, 1 /: 49, The
Roman Catholic Church has fine place of
worship in Nazareth. The Emperor of
Austria greatly enriched it. There is also a
chapel in the care Of the Church of England,
dedicated October, 1871, by Bishop Gobat.
The rector has two schools, one for young
men and the other for young women. The
aim is to prepare native teachers The Ger
man colonists have constructed pleasant
carriageway from Nazareth to Mt. Carmel.
1t is well there be facilities for preaching
Christ in the very place where he began his
public work explaining the prophesies of
the Old Testament.
Jesus was brought up ". 16) at Naza-
reth. There he spent % years. passing
through infancy, childhood, youth, early
There he studied, and possibly
there he learned trade.
The scene of the lesson was a synagog.
The Jews had but one Temple. That was
at Jerusalem. But every town had at least
one synagog. Synsgogs were ordinarily
plain. There were in them no affairs for
sacrifice, seeing that only at the Temple
could sacrifices be offered in accordance with
the Jewish ritual. Much freedom was
granted in the synagog services. Any cit
izen not in bad repute could read the Holy
Scriptures therein.
The Reader.
Children were required when - years
old to attend the Sabbath services in the
synagog. Jesus had complied with the
law in this respect. Indeed, attendance was
' his CUSTOM" ", 49, But persons could
not publicly read and expound the Holy
Scriptures until reaching the age of 80
years. Jesus had passed beyond that period.
He went early in his ministry to his home
NAZARETH and began TO labor with his
neighbors and acquaintance. Attending
the synsgog he at the proper time in the
service probably arose and intimated his
willingness to act as Maphtir, OF reader
The minister in charge Of the scroll Qitera-
ture was then in rolls, not on pages) handed
it to Christ to read. Jesus according to
the custom stood mp to read. The Jews
forbade one leaning against anything while
the Holy Scriptures were pronounced. In
some churches now all the congregation
stand during the reading of the Gospel
We observe that so soon as the paragraph
had been read Christ sat down.(St. Matt,
5: l.
Jesus was well known to the worshipers
in the synagog. They had probably heard
of the strange incidents attend
ing his infancy; something of the bap-
tism, and probably of the temptation
of his miracles, for he had
changed the water to wine only nine miles
from Nazareth (Cana) and healed the noble
mans son at Capernaum.
Tile Paragraph Read.
We find Jesus read Isaiah. 81: Ia Of
course, he used the Hebrew Bible, and was
therefore able to render that language. st.
Luke gave the account in Greek and that
in turn has been translated into English
Since the Bible was not then in our modern
book form, but, instead, scroll, the word
" opened" ". ~ means unrolled, and
" closed" ". 20) means rolled up. 1t is
supposed the paragraph read was the por-
tion of Scripture appointed rituaily to be
read that day in public worship. The Jews
read their Bible in a systematic way, having
a particular section appointed for each day
of the year. 1t was a singular coincidence
that Christ happened to read just when the
selection appointed was so plainly appli-