Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1905-07-06
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
INTERNATIONAL LESSON COMMENTS
FOR JULY g.

| Subject Hezekiah's Prayer, lisa. xxxviil.,
1-8-Golden Text, Psa. xlvi., 1-Mem.
ory Verses, 4.6-Connentary on the
Days Lesson.
l. Isaiah warns Hezekiah of ap.
preaching death ". y. I'm those
! days" This may only mean in the
| days Of Hezekiah. That this was in
| the fourteenth year of his reign is evi.
| dent when we consider that fifteen
/ years were added to his life w. 81, and
| yet he only reigned twenty-nine years
| e Kings 1S: y. 1t must have been be.
| fore the invasion by Sennacherib from
| the fact that God promised to deliver
them out of the hand of the King of
| Assyria and to defend Jerusalem.
| "Sick unto DEATH Sick of a malady
| which, in the natural course of things,
would have proved fatal. From
| Kings 20: we learn that the disease
| was probably carbunce. God sends
| illness upon the good, not in punish
ment for sins past, but as a trial Of
| their faith and patience Rom. ): -,
| Isaiah" Isaiah's character stands
! before us as one of almost superhuman
| elevation. Game unto him. There is
no species of cruelty greater than to
suffer a friend to lie on a dying bed
under delusion. And there is evi
IDENTITY no danger to be apprehended
| from communicating to the sick thei1
, true condition. 1t should be done ten.
derry and with affection, but it should
be done faithfully. "Set thine house in
| order" Arrange your affairs so that
they will go on without you; referring
to his family, his plans, his successor
and his kingdom. Thou shalt die"
| Death was the natural result of his
| sickness.
II. Hezekiah prays in great distress
| Tvs 2, -.
9. Face toward the wall" He
turned away from those who were
present so that he might pray more
freely and collectedly. 3. "Remembef
now The old covenant promised tenn
poral prosperity. including length OF
days to the righteous. walked"
Life is a journey: Gods people walk
with Him Gen. >: ~: Kings o: 4)
"A perfect heart" Literally. with
whole heart" one absolutely devoted
to Jehovah. The King pleads his up
rightneSS and holy conduct before God.
He could not have done this. in the
face of death, had he not felt in his
heart the truthfulncss of his state
ments. His influence had been wholly
on the side Of true religion; he had not
fOrSaken the ways of the Lord. "Wept
sore" Literally, with Il great weep.
ing" The great sorrow of HeZekiah
at the approach of death was only nat
ural. The desire to live ones full term
of years is right. IIezekiah felt that
his work was unfinished.
ILL., Gods promises to lleZekiah Tvs,
40. f. Then came etc. God spake
to Isaiah Immediately g Kings 2O:4l.
). God of David thy father" God
remembers the covenant with the faith.
er to the children (EXod. 20-5). Heard
thy prayer" God still hears prayer,
1t is His will that we pray Matt. Z: Z
II: John IL: y. Why then are there so
many unanswered petitions! Because
there is so much aimlesS praying
tJames 1: y. Seen thy tears" Atfec-
tonate prayers are especially pleasing
to God. Cold, lifelcsS prayers are not
answered. David refers to his tears
Ipsa. Sc: y as though God bottled them
and kept an exact account of them in
His book" Add unto thy days" In
Kings the promise is, II will heal thee;
on the third day thou shalt go up unto
the house of the Lord" The Lord still
heals people. sometimes by directing
the sufferer to the proper remedy and
sometimes without the use of Il rem
pdy In this case (see . Kings 20: y
the Lord told Hezekiah to make a pOul-
tce of figs and put it on the boil, or
carbuncle. "Fifteen years" Hezekiah
is the only man who was ever informed
of the term of his life. God in mercy
has hidden the time Of our death from
our eyes. We should be always ready
and should work as though each day
was our last G. "Will deliver" The
Assyrians were powerful enemy and
were constantly to be feared.
". The sign given Hezekiah Tvs. Z,
81. I. a sign" Hezekiah asked for
a sign % Kings 20: s., Asking for a
sign is a pious or wicked act accord
ing to the spirit in which it is done.
Hezekiah is given his choice of two
signs, and he chose what appeared to
him to be the more difficult.
s. SHADOW of the degrees" THE
shadow on the steps" r. V. Many
opinions are held with regard to this
miracle. The older commentators be-
lievcd that the earth's motion was act
ually reversed around its axis. 1t has
been urged with Il good deal of force
that the true cause of the phenomenon
was solar eclipse, in which the moon
obscured the upper limb of the sun,
which would have the effect Of length
ening all shadows and thus causing the
appearance of going backward on the
dial of the stairs. But the opinion gen.
orally held at present is that 1t was
miraculous use Of the laws of refrac-
ton. dial of AhaZ." steps OF
Ahaz" II. w. margin. The dial which
Ahaz set up, and which he probably
obtained from Babylon. for he AZ pears
to have been fond of foreign objects Of
art q Kings 1G: 1M. The Assyrans
were the first to divide the day into
twenty four hours. Herodotus states
that the Greeks obtained their knowl.
edge of the dial and the division of the
day into twelve parts from the Baby
lonians, who were in constant inter
course with the Assyrians, Returned
ten stops Or. W We must suppose
tnnt the steps" whatever they were,
could he seen from the sick chamber
of 1ezekiah, to whose mind the sign
was significant. The retreating shadow
meant added years to his life. What
kind of apparatus is denoted by the
steps of Ahaz' we have no means Of
Determining
Ara ,icfA AN "a.