The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1905-08-16
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON ylll, THIRD QUARTER, INTER
NATIONAL SERIES, AUG. 20.

We nave DclOfc us Il SOu VI tIitlL s''i11H
king. sitting on the same throne. the
throne OF the Lord Il CLron. NNiX, 23l,
as the Lords representative. bat he
has no respect for God or for His Woru.
The ten tribes, the kingdom OF Israel,
had been carried into carti:ify hcc;illSc
Of their persistent rebellion against
God, and now tue two tribes, issl king
dom of Judah, were nearing thc-rnd Of
Gods patience with them. lii less
than twenty years from the date OF our
lesson {see verse y the Judgment Lad
fallen upon them, and they were cap
tivcS at Babylon. When men persist
entity blaSpheme God and refuse to
listen to Him. then He speaks III Juds-
ment, but up to the last with 4 desire
that men may not perish cternally.
See verse 5 and Job XNXiii. %, 80.
Jeremiah WAS the Lords messenger
during the last forty years before the
captivity Of Judah. eighteen years OF
the reign Of Josiah and twenty-five Of
.Jehoikim and Zcdekiah, and now after
he had been the Lords faithful witness
for about twenty-five OF the forty
wears he is commanded TO write III a
book the Lords words against Ills peo-
pie if perchance they might return TO
the Lord and the Threatened judgments
DE averted 1t is no easy matter to be
Il witness against evil and evlldoerS,
md Jeremiah was told 1T the begin
nins of his ministry, They shall fight
against thee, but they shall not prevail
against thee, for I am with thee, saith
the Lord, to deliver thee (chapter J.
19). Isaiah and Ezekiel were also fore
warned that the people would not re-
ceiye their message The apostles We're
sent forth rs sheep in the midst OF
wolves, and we are assured that
throughout this whole age there Will
be wayside and rocky soil hearers. and
tares Will grow with the wheat TIL Tie
harvest, while in the last days there
will only be form Of godliness, With
out the power, and people will not en-
durc sound doctrine QI Tim. iii, 10;
iv. 3.
Verse OF our lesson chapter teaches
us that Scripture is the word OF the
Lord. There may be- q mans pen ana
a mans mouth, but the words are the
words Of the Lord. See chapter /, .;
II Sam. xiii, >; Deut. Xviii, is; Matt.
Y, 20.
In Jehoikim, the professed represent
ative Of God, cutting and burning the
words OF the Lord without fear OF
trembling we see a foreshadowing OF
the destructive criticism of our own day
which will not tolerate the word OF
God concerning sin or judgment to
come OF anything supernatural, Will
not believe in a Saviour conceived by
the Holy Spirit nor in the resurrection
Of the dead, has no use for the atone
ment Of Christ and therefore no III
terest III foreign missions. Like the
prophets OF Jeremiah's time, they
prophesy falsely, speak vision OF
their own heart and cause people to
err by their lies and their lightness,
and the people seem to love to have ii
so DER. V, so, 81; xiii, 1G, 81; 1sa. xxS'
10, ~.
In all ages God has His remnant OF
faithful ones, and there were those Wnc
begged Jehoikim not to burn the roll
but he would not hear (verse 2o). lie
had no use for such words as these
"He that. being often reproved, hard
encth his neck. shall suddenly be de-
stroyed, and that without remedy
prov. xxx, II, but he had hatred and
Imprisonment for those who would
dare to reprove him (verse 26), remind
ing US Of the words Of Ahab concern,
ing Micaiah, Il hate him, for he never
prophesied good unto me, but always
evil 0I Chron. xviii, y, and recalling
the words Of our Lord also. If the
world hate you, ye know that 1t hateo
Me before it hated YOU (John Ky, 49,
The princes, knowing the temper OF
their king, had advised Baruch and
Jeremiah to hide themselves, and now
we read that the Lord hid them oversees
10, 26y. When the Lord hid Elijah
Ahab could not possibly find him 4
Kings xvii, s: xviii, 10l. There is a
hiding from God and a hiding in God
(Gen. iii, S, 10; Isa. xviii, II; IL, 10
Zeph. il, 81. Happy are those who can
truly say, My life is hid with Christ
in God" (Col. Iii, 81.
However much men may seek TO oe'
stroy the word Of God and seem tc
succeed, the true child Of God rejoiceS
In Ps. cxlx, 50, Forever, 0 Lord, Thy
word is settled in heaven and lisa
xl, s, The word Of our God shall stand
forever" The Lord saw Jehoikim, Is
treatment Of His message and bore pa
tiently with him yet awhile, but told
jeremiah to take another roll and write
in it all the former words and many
more (verses 2S, 32). Men may re
fuse to believe the word Of God and
even cut out and destroy the portions
CT the Bible which they do not like
but it stands, all Of it, forever settled
In heaven, and some day they will be-
lieve it.
Although neither the king nor his
people would listen to the words OF
the Lord, it came to pass in due time
lust as the Lord had said III Chron
xxxvi, so, and so 1t always will be
and it shall yet be seen that whoSoevel
is not found written in the book OF
life shall be cast into the lake Of fire
(Rev. xx, Isl. Our believing or not be
lieving what God has said cannot II
any way affect the truth. It is the un
believer who suffers because Of his IN
belief and thus gives evidence Of his
folly and madness in thus seeking his