Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1899-08-17
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
THOUGHTS WORTHY or CAsis
REFLEoTIoN. 4 2 y "
A Pleasant, Interesting. sad Isssruss.
Ave Lesson, sna Where II Nay -
Found-A Learned and conciss 1s-
view Of the Same.


Found-A Learned and Coaciss 1s-
view Of the Same.
The subject OF the lesson for Aug. -
Is The River of Salvat5vn." The Dor
tion OF Scripture Is Exei. ~; 1-12. Ese-
kiess picture OF the futurv Israel as re-
established In Palestine, an6 of the tenn
pc which was to be its centes, Is detailed
In the extreme. The nine chapters 40
40 are given up to 1t, and to tn ordinary
reader the greater part OF those chapters
IL dualer and more obscure, than anything
else IN the Bible. This obscuri&y Ia In
part due to the extraordinary corruption
Of the Hebrew text, aggravated by the
vague Bepderings Of translators- II 10
also Attributable in some degree 80 the
fact that Ezekiel attempts to give full
architectural description Of the teupIe IN
all its parts, even to the thickness - the
walls, TIM size and place Of the doors,
thresholds, closets, etc. 1t differs II d.
mansions and plan both from Solonson's
and from Zerubbabei's. She change from
S0lomon's plan, rs well as the changes
In the ritual and ceremonial system
which Ezekiel proposed, were all In the
direction Of an exaltation Of the priestly
ideal, an enlargement of the place Of wog-
ship in the national life. X
1t Is after Ezekiel has completed HIS
detailed aha Ito many tedious specifica-
uons for the temple that he comes back
to the larger aspects Of his vision, and
speaks of the blessings which will abound
in the land Of Israel when these dreams
come true; and the golden age which,
will follow the establishment Of the ec-
clesiastical state, and the restoration OF
the tribes to a transformed Palestine.
The present lesson is a part of that con-
Guiding section.
Explanatory.
HE brought me again unto the door 81
the house,: Ezekiel, in his vision, had
been condncted all over the temple ana
its courts by celestial guide, who had
measured of the distances and displayed.
the various features Of the building. This
guide now brings him again to the east.
ern gates Of the temple to show him the
river. There was actually spring in the
hill on which the real temple stood, and
from it flowed a small brook to the east-
ward, which, however, could never have
been more than a mere suggestion to the
prophets mind. He pictures the water
issuing from the temple walls near the
altar-thus being a symbol of the gva-
,cious influence Of Jehovah spreading
from the temple through the land.
There were gates on the four sides III
the temple, looking toward the four
points of the compass, though the prin-
cipal entrance was on the east. This
symbolized the universally and omni-
presence Of Jehovah.
"He measured thousand cubits": oil
the measuring in the book is In cubits,
and i'm the temple this system Of measure
ment is evidently exact and literal; but
here there are round numbers. The cubit
was from eighteen to twenty inches, and
1000 cubits would therefore be rather
more than a quarter Of a mile.
That the picture Is after all an ideal
one and not strictly conformable to the
real Typographical facts is evident from
thsse verses; for the descent from Jeru-
salem to the Dead Sea is very abrupt,
mot gradual and even as the. measure
ments would indicate.
"A river that could not be passed
over: that is, Of course, o, river that
could not be forded. The jordan, which
Ezekiel probably had in his mind by way
Of comparison. was in places both narrow
and shallow. while elsewhere it was too
deep and swift for crossing,
1.-THE brink of the rivsr": the picture
that follows would be infinitely more
beautiful TO the prophs<'s readers than
to us who live in wellwatered country.
1t Is necessary always to remember In
reading the Bible that Palestine is large
ly watcrless county, as compared with
most countries thickly settled by man.
It's only river Is the Jordan and there
are very few streams that ore not dry
IN, Summer.
1.-THE waters shall be healed: the vol
ume Of fresh water poured into the Dead
Sea by this river is to be so great as to
freshen its salt waters and make fish
abound In its waters and vegetation on
It's Shores.
-''The fishers shall stand upon 1t from
n-gedi even unto En-eglaim": En-gedi
Is midway on the western shore Of the
Dead Sea; the other place is unknown.
The phrase evidently suggests large
part Of the shore-line of the sea. There
shall be as many varieties of fish as In
the "great sea-" that is, the Mediter-
raneap. .~h.
With this verse; and indeed with the
entire lesson, compare Rev. %: !, q see
Jerusalem, Which der:vgs Mich Of it's
imaginative setting from Ezekiel.
And n the Interpretation Of this lesson
the book Of Revelation Ni1! be Of more
help than almost any Qthef aid The
river, in Ezekiel's thought, was primaf-
lily the broadening stream Of divinely
guided national blessing. The nation, on
it's return from exile, should make the
land to blossom and to rejoice. God
from his holy temple would start the
stream; good men everywhere would
swell it's tide by their holy lives and I'M
selfish deeds; and j. w9uld finally make
L Ssssff flowed down the rocky channel
of the Kidron nor fresheied the salt
waste where the Jordan buries itself fof->>
ever, flows in other lands, bearing other
nations along on its healing stream, max
ing other meadows green and other trees
fruitfuli it flows beyond our vision by
the immortal fields where the redeemed
walk and are satisfied; it makes glad the
invisible city of God, and widens as it
flows. The river grows as men every
where are brought to the true source OF
life and become themselves wells of wat
err springihg up unto everlasting life. 1t
makes heather lands fruitful and glad.
and turns deserts into gardens. Nothing
can stop Its current. There is that com
fort when the little streams that tricklc
by our doors seem feeble and precarious.
Whether or not they ever reach the Faith