The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-04-28
Golden TeSt,-~etio we therefore. ant
teach all nations. $3.50 Matt. ~: II.
Enfcign Missionary Lesson.

Foreign missionary Lesson.
We have fer TODAY a missionary
,cSson. The International Commit
tee has very appropriately selected
for this lessen tbs story Of Jonah,
Not long after The time OF J0ash
King OF Judah, Jeroboam III. reigped
in Israel In shs brief account which
We have o; his reign Il IL stated I'll.
Kings II. s5l that his Kingdom was
extended from Klamath in the far
north to the Dead Sea, Ia accordance
with a prophecy which had been
made by Jonah the SON of Amittd of
Gath -hepher Perhaps Jonah follow
ed EHshs. We do hot know. We haze
no ether facts about him aside from
the story We Sre row L. study,
t+re fay God told Jonah to go 10
NineNah AND 10 tell the people that
their city was about To be destroyed
oD account Of its wickedneSs Jonah
did net wart 40 gu-lato1 he tells s3s
why~-~and So he ran away. Perhaps
h. thoBght--as great many people
IN has day thought--~that Jehovah
ruled only IN Israel. and that ii nc
could escape 10 another land he would
b. out of His reach Al any rate he
was determined to get as far from
homo and from Ninevah as possible,
tor he tied To Joppa ana took pas
sage In o ship bound Tor Tarshish,
a Phocaician colony on the southwest
Of Spain, which was in that day re-
gsafded as the very end % the earth.
on the way "A great storm arose ANA
The ship was III danger OF sinking.
In those days~-as in many others
dayS--~sailors thought that storms
were often sent AZ Judgment fof
the crime of somebody on board, and
it WAS the custom to cast lots to
find out who the criminal was In
this case the lot fell on Jonah. and
they went 10 him and demanded to
knew what he had done. Jonah told
them the whole story. and ahen they
asked him what they should do. in
sisted that they should cast him into
the sea- Ordinarily they would not
have hesitated, for they had been
taught that in such cases If they
should throw the criminal overheard
AS a sacrifice to the gods. their wrath
would abate and the storm would
sbate with 1t. But they were afraid
~ deal thus with "a man who claimed
TO be prophet and so they deter
mined to make another effort to bring
the ship tn shore. Finally when they
saw that their efforts " ere in vain
they took up Jonah and threw him
overheard A great fish "a STA
monster OF some sort. We know not
what-~came along and swallowed
Jonah. But God had determined to
give His prophet another chance, and
the great fishH threw him np. Jonah
landed on the shore---a better man.
we may be sure. than when he start
I'D on his foolish voyage
The Lesson Text In Everyday Dress
When Jonah got back To land God
again ordered him TO go to Nlnevah
And Jonah went Entering the city he
began to cry, Yet forty days and
Nineyah shall be overthrownt" People
stopped and listened and passed on
But Jonah continued to cry: Yer
forty days and NineXah shall BIC over
thrown" >PrcsentIy the crowd begar
IL gather around him. and tbs
prophet had "a chance to tell then
hls story We may be sure that he
told them all that God had ordered
him 10 tell them, ny and by word
reached the king that a strange look
ing man from distant country was
passing through the streets prophesy-
ing the destruction of the city. Per
haps the King sent for him and heard
the story from his own lips AT ans
rate he believed the prophecy ans
Immediately issued proclamation
commanding all the people Ia repent
III may be, he said. that God vii
repent and turn away from liis fierce
anger that We perish not And tht
people 1fPthteut MY Sho""u eSi 'A''
signs Of repentance--the best theA
knew. They tasted aud even required
their focks and herds io fast, TheS
put on sarkcloth, BETTER. they quf
rtefr meanness arid cried nightly
nn1a GOD. And God heard them. u
viii not destroy the city, lie said IL
Jonah,
That made Jonah angry. ~ knew
st." he said. That u Just what
said st the beginning, knew thai
You were so nerctu1 that 1ot
wouldn't destroy the -SineVites ans
that was the reason fled TO Tar
thish Nh Jonah &rssied he was
dead,