The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-10-05
THE TIME OF THE JUDGES
REV. MIR. PELL's INTERNATIONAL
sUSDdY-SCHOOL LESSON.
Result Of the Children OF Israel's Dis
obedience to the Lord-The Incident
at Rochim.

great enthusiast IN how nObly they in
tented to serve the Lord, and what un
grateful wretchss tn y would be IL thel
did not. 1t is hard to realize that III,
fearful multi ides which We now coml
upon at Bochim are the same peopl.
who so lately made the heavens abov,
GlIsal ring with their no.iy acciama
tons
Dark days have fallen upon Icfael
The things which Moses loresaw AID
Joshua feared have happen 4 TO them
They have d.sobeyed the Lord an they
have learned By experience what ths ,
had refused to learn from their Divine
Teacher, that 1t takes two 10 Keep d
covenant, and that happiness depend.
not 20 much upon the milk and Money
that is in the land as II does upon the
milk and honey that is In the hearts OF
its inhabitants. They are in Canaa,
but they are not enjoying ii. They look
ed for rest, but they have found none
They stopped fignting before they were
dola. and the enemies which they allow
ed to remain are constant source OF
B troIole The Lord no longer appears TO
hem as in the days Of old. 1t is a sad,
SAD state into which they nave FALLEN.
and the pltiable spectacle which they
present at Bochim is enough TO melt
the heart Of the Angel of the Lord who
comes to rebuke them.
But pity does not turn the Angel OF
the Lord from his duty. He is not OF
the type of the Ilous senl.mentdlist
who would have taken the poor back
sliders In his lap and said, The e now.
dears. don't trouble about 1t any more"
He has come to rebuke them and he is
not going to soothe them before they are
hurt. They need to be rcbuked. Their
conduct has been without excuse. They
have deliberately disobeyed the Lord.
and they are not sorry for IL. They are
only soarry for the trouble they have got
into. If God IS TO get them out OF trou-
BILE. they must get in q right state to he
helped. and there is nothing they need
so much as a severe rebuke from God
himself. There are times In cur lives
when we grow very dull of hearing and
the still small voice fails 10 warn us
times when we need 10 feel the hand OF
heaven laid heavily upon our shoulder
when We need 10 be turned round sharp
ly and given a good shake and brought
10 our senses Let us watch this Angel
OF the Lord and learn from him the lost
art Of rebuke
In the first place. he rebukss with
authority. He Is sent for the purpose
I'm the second place. he Is fitted for II:
he does not need 10 say To the people.
Never mind what / do, you mind what
i preach" If we feel that we are called
of God to administer a rebuke we may
safely procrastinato long enough to in
quire whether the huse We live in Is
stone proof In the second place, the
Angel administers rcbuke, not abuse.
That IS 10 be expected from an angel OF
the Lord as well as from the Angel OF
the Lord" II our own conscience IS not
clear our rebuke viii be recognized as
abuse; II We are not Of the Lord. every
attempt TO rebuke will fall TO the level
Of abuse. In the thirl place, there is wis
dom in the Angels method. lie begins
by recalling the hole from whence they
were dug. He reminds shem OF Egypt
and he bids II I'm remember that IL was
the Lord who delivered them out n bon
dage. and that 1t IL to the Lord they
are indebted for all that they now pos
sess. That IS a good way 10 begin re-
buke; recall past mercies. Then the
Angel bids them remember the covenant
which the Lord had Jade with them.
Tn y ad entered INTO IL Of their own ac-
cord: they had deliberately broken IT;
they had refused 10 drive out all the
Of the land as God had COM
manded, and as they had promised.
NOV" says the Angel, rye have not
obeyld my voice: why have ye done
this?" And with awful emphasis, he |
declares that lie will no more work Won |
ders for them as he has done in the past, |
and that the inhabitants which they had I
refused 10 drive out shall remain as
thorns i'm III Dir SIDES. and their gods shall |
he a snare unto them. They have re- |
fused 10 learn from God as their teacher; |
they shall now go to school 70 bitter ex-
perience. That Is what much Of the hard /
discipline Of life means-that In many /
things we have refused the best teacher
and we must have the second best.
The story has a familiar sound 10 most /
cf us When We entered into the Chris
tan life we were commanded % fight |
until We lad gotten full possession. We
made war against our Temptations and
besetting sins, and We won many vic
tories. But we grew tired before the
war was over: there were little out-of-
the-way places that We all not take
possession OF in the name Of the Lord
We allowed the enemy to Turk I'm dark
Orners Of our hearts. In many in
stances We scotched the snake, but did
not Kill IT, And now our lives are fun
If VACATIONS and worries and tri ais be-
'ausc of those sins which we have al
owed 10 remain. MAJ 4 time the Angel
If the Lord has come 10 US at Bochim
md rebuked US, ana we have wcpt AMI
,assel resolutions and gone on in the
I'D way.
Perhaps il the people at Bo-him had
lot exha istcd themselves with weeping /
m account OF the consequences OF their
ms they would have given more thought !
o tleir sins and TO the Lord against
hon they had sinued. AMI would have
rought forth fruits meet for repentance.
The remainder OF the lesson has no
o lnection with the incident an }Ochim.
Z Is a bird 's-oye view OF the history OF
sraei I'm the time OF the Judges. So
)ng as tie elders ylo were contem-
Orary with Joshua, and "who had seen
II the great works Of the Lord lived.
le people served the Lord. when they Z
led. and the people were required 20 q
'alk by faith. they stumbled ana fell.
h-y did not have faith enough 10 serve :
od unless they saw his hand at work 4
)r item; but they rad Credul.ty enough {
, serve IDOLS. though Baal had never 4
trctchod forth his hand to help them :
Fhen they fetl. troubles Without num-
er fell upon them; nevertheless the
ord raised up Judges which delivered {
lem out OF the hands OF those that /
ooilel them" (
Watch that 10y who must be always !
aking resolutions 10 supply his lack :
resolutiOn--whcse goodness manifests \
self chiefly IN his intentions Did ever 4
boy promise more? Did ever boy d
,rform less? He Is born unto mischief
the sparks fly upward He gets into
ouble every morning. and his father
rs him out every evening The bad e
eds he does to-day are only outnumber- ;
by the good deeds he is going 10 do e
morrow His badness Is chronic. his
,odi ess spasmodic To-day he is re-
lived 70 be a Paul: before night he VIII y
keeping company with Judas Iscariot p