The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1899-08-18
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON VII, THIRD QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, AUG. &c.
Text of the Lesson, t,=eis. X:vii, 1-11.
Memory Verse. I: - Golden Text,
Rev. NSiI. IL Commentary Pre-
pared by the Rev. ID. VI. Stcarns.

| -hittTNaTu &c DrOISnt mo agar
unto the door OF the house, and, behold
waters issued ont from under the threshold
| OF the house eastward" i do not kEoy,
how to take the last eight chapters OF
| EZckial otherwise than Just rs they read
| ana therefore expect that there will yet he
| temple at .Icrusalcm answering to this
description ard that from this temple lit.
cral waters shall flow eastward to- thS Dead
| sen and westward TO the Mc,litcrr!n mean,
| according to Icch. xiv, s; that mt J.rus;,-
| lem the l-crd will have n thror" III the
| midst of His people, and that the na.nc of
the city will thereafter Ec Tic I.ora is
| There, or Jehovah Shammah (chaI tiers
| Kill, 4; Xviii, 3D. One may siy tha.
there arc t0o lnany difficulties In the story.
| to take it so literally but | can only am
| swcr thGt iii trying. to spiritu0lizc the Stcry
you VIII make great many more difficult
| ties. Now let us receive the spiritual les
ioEs for Cur own hearts.
. And, behold, there ran ont waters
on tic right side While VIC expect that
from the temple mountain real Writers
shall Cow forth tic great spiritual lesson
| May be found SIT forth III slch passages as
Jcr ii, -, and JChn iv, II. H. Goi
Himself is the fountain cf living v,&tcr,
and Ec who seeks rest CT soul clScw here
will fail to find it,
~ liz III lHt.S,,s!I C'si'lIS,
and hc Brought Iuc through the waters.
Tic waters We're 10 the ankles" Ou.. first
experience of the enjoyment Of the saliva
ton that is i'll Christ for Us is az II he
very slight and superficial vixen compared
with the fTll.css Of that salvation as after
ward revealed to US. Go rot r:Cai! that
there may not be Ut tEe first very great
joy, but it is apt to Ec joy bcca,sc Of cur
own personal salvation because we have
passed trGil GCath To lie and arc sure that
our sins arc forgiven.
1. TIE waters were to tic knccS The
waters were ~ the iui:.s" Thus the Ec::t
two stages found tie waters grcatly L.cp-
cninG anu strengthening, suggesting that
rs we 20 On in "Ur spiritual life there is
much ior lis - lva:a &::u oriGy. Perhaps
the analogy ;h"t is iuGnd in the third,
fourth and scvr!.th CHAPTERS of John may
help us to understand il; II Tie third
chapter there is the first step. or TIE r,w
Firth l'y w;:t'r and the Spirit: il the fourth
chHrtCr nn advance Up"n this w.cn the
believer becomes Il well 1f water, a;;L in
the seventh chapter = still further advance
when the believer !nay kcco,.c as u river
of water
8. ~ river that I co".d not raSs ever.
Thus our appreciation or the great saliva.
tinn ever dcVprns, until, while at lr,:.vc
thought we knew it all, "" cu,Hc 20 see
that we know little ;ibuut il, CT rather
aEout !!inl Who il our salvation, !or il L.
all in lii,I!, uEd nothing apart IvuM iiim
Not until we arc gathered with the v:hu!,
church, the Lo,Iy Of Christ, shall we bc
able TO comprehend with all saints what are
the breadth and length nEd depth and
height of the love Cf Christ which ras>cth
knowledge Eph. ill, Is. ly)
a. ..-,ir,l nc s:itu Inn" I:lc. s>o: OI man,
hast thou seen this:' In chaptCr%l, ! lie
was commanded 10 hchcld wiki his eyes.
hear with his ears and set his heart ur0n
all that Gcd would SHOW him, 10 the in
tent that he miGht declare it. What We
truly soc for our own souls EcTci.. we
cannot keep to ourselves Like Peter and
John, We will say, THAT which we have
seen and heard declare we unto you. 1--WE
cannot but speak tho things which we
have seen and heard" Il John i, 3; Acts.
iv, POI.
T. "Now, when had returned. behold,
at the bank cf tho river were very many
trees Cn the one side and on the other. -
In Gen. ii, 8, wo read that the Lord God
made To grow in Eden every tree that WAS
pleasant to tho eyes and good for food, the
tree of liio also in the midst of the garden.
In Rev. xii, :. wc read of the tree of life
in the midst of tho street and on either
lilu Of the river.
o. lOEtn lHlO VIC SCH,
the waters shall bc healed" Health is
another rendering of salvation. or, rs in
Ps. Xvii, ?, Thy saving health" The
Dead sea, whose waters are to Ec healed,
is suggestive of all who arc dead in tres
passes and sins, whether jew or gentle, u
nation or an individual. "Thc whole head
is sick and the whole heart faint lisa. j,
81, but Jehovah has said, behold, l will
bring it health and cure and I will cure
them and will reveal unto them the ab,ln-
dance Of peace and truth" (lcr XXXiii, ~.
O. Every thing shall live whittier tho
river comcth." lIo is the Fountain and
the River, the Tree of Life and the Fruit
thereof; He is Health, and lie is Life
Life eternal j. NOW brought within reach
of III! who hear the gospel Of tho grace Of
God, and to aS many as receive Him Is
given the privilege of becoming the chill
drcn of God He that hath the ION hath
life, and he that hath not the Son of God
hath not life (John i, l.; John " 1?).
10. Their fish shall be according to
their kinds, as the fish Of the great sea,
exceeding many" The sea suggests rcu-
pies and muititudcs and nations and
tongues, as in Rev. xvii, II, and the fishes
of the sea are suggestive of individuals. aS
when thc Lord said TO the ii:hCrmCn OF
Galilcc, Follow Nc, ard will make you
fishers of men" (Math. iy, 10; Lui:o Y,
100. l expect that We shall some day see
correction between the 153 great fishes
Of the resurrection draft John xxi, ~
and the lJ3, Geo strangers in Israel whom
solomon used toiclp him build the tenn
plc Oil Chrun. ii, Il, l@.
IL "Eut the miry places thereof ari
the marshes thereof shall not Er healed.
! They shall be given 70 salt" Not Cycn
in the hiillCnnial reign Of Christ shall all
| be holy. There shall be portions Of c"rth
not fully blessed and people on earth WHO
will follow the devil when lie comes oIt Oi
| the pit ut the end of the thousand years
| (Rcv. XX, 7, s.. Not until thc new hcav-