The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1902-12-18
THE LESSON TENT.

the Lord; and Samuel cried unto the Lord
for Israel: aLGI the LORD heard him.
10. And as Samuel was offering up the
burnt offering. the Philistines. drew near
TO battle against Israel; but the Lord thun-
Cered with great thunder on that day
upon the Philisupes, and Gtscomfitec them,
and they Were smitten before Israel.
II. And the men of Israel went out of Miz-
peh, and pursued the Philist!nes. and smote
them, until they came under Beihcar.
Y. Then Samuel took a stone, and set II
between M!Zpeh and Sher, and called the
name of ii Ehenezer, saying, Hitherto hath
the Lord helped Us.
Is. So the Phi!stlnes were subdueG, ana
| they came no more into the coast of Israel;
and the haJd of the Lord was against the
Phiis tines all the Gays OF Samuel.
GOLDEN Ten /. Prepare your
hearts unto the Lord. and serve Him
Only.-t sam. Tar.
OUTLINE OF SCRIPTURE SECTION.
The ark captured. Sam. T.
| The 'Aptnrs fihCttC...............l Sam. D.
The ark recovered. ...............l Sam. g.
TIE Phils tines GefJQtod..........l Sam. /.
TlME-B. G. iii and llt0.
PLACE. Eherzer, AshdoG, Gait, Ekror,
Both-shem,sh and Mzpeh.
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
| In their first encounter with the
/ Philistnes, the Israclites took the ark
! of God into battle, thinking thereby
| to make victory sure. In doing this
/ they showed that they believed in the
ark more than in the Lord. BY their
defeatthey learned that afalse faith is
no protection. When they again faced
their foes, the lsraelites. besought
Samuel to pray for them. What God
can do for His people in emergencies >
is shown by His answer 10 Samuers
aver.
There was constant war between
The philistiues and Israel. and the
PhiliStines seem to have been the
more powerful. or ut least the better
organized. ISraeIs attempt to devel-
op a strong, independent national life
without king was a failure.
The taking of the ark to the battle
field SHOWS that it had come to be re-
garded superstitiously by the people.
They thought the ark would in some
magic way insure victory. Images and
charms of all sorts have often been
carried into battle in this way. Peo-
pie who depend on ''good-luck'
charms. or anything besides their own
best efforts and the blessing of God
are doomed to failure as surely as
were, the Hebrews. ELS tragic enc
shows Us that moral weakness is as
terrible in its consequences as more
wiIful and aggressive wlckedness. FL
was criminally weak.
TIE Phili>tineS. too. regarded tht
81. With a suspicious dread. Strange
things happened when they put it il
ore of their shrines with Dagon, anC
, terrible disease broke out in the CIT y
! What could explain it but the ennft,
. of the God of the ark? No one want
ed it, and so they sent it from on
place, td another. Disease seemed t.
follow it everywhere,
In the house OF Aminadab, who wa
{ probably Levite, the ark was rev
erently kept for 20 years. Their
= were no sacrifices or other religion
services. so far as we know. The sane
y tuary at Shiloh had lost prestige wit
] the removal of the ark and the deaf
of the priests, and it never regained il
II What Samuel was doing during thes
Y years we DO not know. In verses 3,
4 we find him leading a movement 70
j reform. The Philistines seemed I
have feared trouble from the gathel
ing of Israel at Mizpeh, and went up I
disperse them; but through Samu'
n Israel called upon Jehovah, and II
d sent a terrific thunderstorm upon tn
" II. L.. ~,
n that Israel won an easy victory. Ners
u l3 must be taken in connection wit
9:15. 16; 1873. 10. which modify the il
depreciation of it. There were thre
4 Philistine invasions of the land afte
Z this time, and all during the life {
Samuel.
PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS.
"The supplicatton of a righteol
man availeth much in its working"
Jas. 5:16.
more things are wrought by pray
n than this world dreams of."-Tenn
son.
"Prayer moves the Hand that NOV
II the world."-John Aikman Wallace.
Little faith will get very gre
mercies. but great faith still greater
Rev. Charles Spurgeon.
In u Nutshell.
Love is tho evidence of Gods Ii
n us.
Gods work must be done in Goo
way.
The poor in goods are often ri
IN grace.
The most glorious task is made I
of insignificant trifes.
Religion is to the moral what gra
itation is to the natural.
Our losses and our gains furni
the true estimate of life.
A man may 60 through life wi