The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1901-11-21
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
for November "a, 18O1-WOrld's
Temperance Lesson.
THE LESSON TEXT.

the HlOTElnss lHdl lNSy may stioh6
drink; that continue until night. TIL wine
intiape them!
u. And the harp, and the vlol. the tabret.
and pipe, and wine. are In their feasts: but
they regard not the work OF the Lord,
neither consider the operation of His hands.
l3. Therefore my people are gone into
captivity, because they have no knowledge:
and their honorable men are famshed. and
their multitude dried up with thirst
Il. Therefore he'll hath enlarged herself.
and opened her mouth without measure:
and their glory, and their multitude, and
their pomp, and he that rejoiceth. shall de-
scend into 1t.
10. And the mean man shall be brought
down, and the mighty man shall be
humbled. and the eyes of the lofty shall be
humbled:
l6. But the Lord of hosts shall be exalted
In judgment, and God that Is holy shall be
sanctifed in Righteousness.
IL Then shall the lambs feed after their
manner and the waste places Of the fat
ones shall strangers eat.
%. Woe unto them that are mighty 10
drink wine, and men OF strength to mingle
strong drink:
g. Which justify the wicked for reward.
and take away the Righteousness Of the
righteous from him!
GOLDEN TENT.-WOe unto the I'm that
are mighty to drink wine.-Is. 6'22.
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
The lesson really covers verses $50
of the fifth chapter OF Isaiah. the
verses above merely those which con-
tain the most leading points.
The Times of Isaiah.-Although
Isaiah touches strongly in other parts
of the book upon the self-indulgence,
luxury and vice which were practiced
even by the religious leaders of Judah,
his first six chapters are given up en-
tirely to social themes. Isaiah him
self was of high social rank, n friend
and, tradition says, a relative OF
kings, but all kinds of wrong-doing
were hateful to him.
Drunkenness and Its Consequences
Tvs. 11-17.-In various parts of the
Bible we find references to those give
them music and wine and they have a
feast. The thought of God and His
work does not interest them so much
as do the pleasures of life. Those who
have been guilty of living in this fash
ion are the men who ought to have
been the leaders of their nation. By
their neglect the people have been left
withoutknowledge of danger and the
captivity that is coming will be unex-
pected. When the evil falls, luxury
will be turned to desperate want, and
because of that want men will die and
60 down into the yawning jaws of the
lower world. The effect of this day of
terror is shown in verses 1917. Among
men, all pride and power, in whatever
station in life, are brought down, and
only Gods righteousness and justice
stand on high. In the physical world,
the place where wealth and luxury
dwelt becomes the pasture-ground OF
wandering shepherds.
Woes Upon Sin Tvs. 1S-24).-The woe
of verses 1s, 10 is differently explained
by different scholars. The suggestion
that Isaiah thought of these men as
beasts drawing burden is probably
the best. The men of whom he is
speaking are profane scoffers, who
make sport Of religion and throw
morality to the winds. In verse 20,
the woe is against those false teach
ers who lead their pupils to misjudge
morality, calling good evil, and evil
good. The result Of such teaching is
to upset and confuse the moral taste,
so that pleasure is found in things
that ought to give pain, and vice versa.
The woe of verse 81 is against intel.
lectual pride, some form of which was
probably especially prominent in
Isaiah's eyes. Verses 20, % describe
the governors and judges of the land.
They have great force and valor to ex-
hibit in drinking and mixing liquor,
but none for the maintenance of JUS
tice. Verse "a gives an eloquent de-
scription of their utter overwhelming.
Figs and Thistles.
Revenue iS sweet only when fore.