The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-05-17
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SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson Vll!-SeCond 0uartev, E01
a May 10, 1913. 4
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.

u exc or the Lesson Gen. KILL SIX
Memory Verses, is, 16-GoIden Text
Gal. vi, documentary Prepared by
Rev. q. M. Stearns.
The seven years Of Righteousness
were ended, and the seven years OF
dearth began to come, and the dearta
was in all the lands, and even in Egypt.
and all countries came into Egypt to
Joseph to buy corn xii, $3.50. One
might infer from XII, 55, that some Of
the Egyptians rather disliked going to
Joseph the Hebrew, and so appealed to
Pharaoh, but he laid them low by say
ing, go unto Joseph; what he saith
to you, do" So it came to pass that in
all Egypt, as 1t had been in the prison,
whatsoever they did Joseph was the
doer of it (xxxix, 22). How like the
great truth concerning the Lord Jesus,
Neither is there salvation in any 9TH
err (Acts ", 12), and how searching
and humiliating to human pride is the
fact that If any who know Of Him will
not accept His free gift Of Himself
they cannot be saved! Here is a great
contrast. Corn had to be bought in
Egypt, but Jesus Christ, having obtain
ed eternal redemption by the sacrifice
Of Himself, gives it freely to whose
ever will"
Jacob said to his sons, "Behold, 4
have heard that there is corn in Egypt
(xlii, .. He could not have heard un-
less some one had told. Many have
never heard Of eternal life in Christ be- !
cause so few tell, or seem to have any,
thing worth telling. How is it? Is Id
nothing to you? Do you care2 In due
time there appeared before Joseph
among those who came to buy CORN
his ten brothers, Benjamin having
been left at home, and Joseph knew
them, but they did not know him Cvers-
es 3-S). Twenty years may have made
more change in some than in others,
but they would never have thought OF
seeing In the ruler of Egypt the boy
Of seventeen whom they had sold as a
slave, and as to his, to them, foolish
and absurd dreams, they had no doubt
long since ceased to give them a
thought.
Joseph had forgiven them and had
learned to see the hand of God in it
all, and now his opportunity had come
to return love for their hatred, but they
must be Inundated and convicted Of
their great sin against him. There is
no life eternal for any except penitent
sinners, and Israel as a nation must
become penitent before they can be-
saved, but a sight of Him will do it all.
First he accused them Of being spies,
to which they replied, "We are true
men, = = . twelve brethren, the sons
of one man in the land of Canaan; and,
behold, the youngest is this day with
our father, and one is not" Oversees II,
49,. When we consider their treatment
Of Joseph and of their father at that
time they must have changed greatly
to have become true men; but if they
meant true men as men go, or true in
the sense of their not being spies, but
having come truly for corn and naught
else, then it stands all right.
They would have time to do some unu-
sual thinking during their three days in
prison. And here is another third day
story Of d~eliverance, for on the third
day Joseph talked with them and
agreed to let nine Of them return home
with corn, provided n was left a pris-
ner as an assurance that when they
came again for corn they would bring
their younger brother with them. Then
they talked with one another in Jo4
seph's presence Of their guilt Of long
ago, for which they felt that they were
now suffering. and they remembered
the anguish of his soul as he besought
them not to deal 20 with him, but to !
let him return to his father, yet they
would not hear him. I wonder il they
did not hear those h~eartrending cries
many a time during those twenty
years. The memory Of some things
will constitute no small part of the
torment Of the lost, for it was said tai
the rich man who was in torment, "Sons
remember duke xvi, 25). Sins for
given and blotted out by the blood OF
the Lamb will not be remembered
against us Qsa. xiii, 30, and need NOT
be remembered by us. Joseph UNDER
stood all they were saying, but he
CpOh0 W IhCLA tlLObSA Oh pESLSE 4
that they might not know him just
yet. His heart was greatly touched,
and he turned away from them and
wept, but returned again and COM
muned with them. Then, retaining
Simeon a prisoner, he commanded to
fill their sacks, put each mans money
in his sack and gave them provision
for the way.
When they reached home without
Simeon and told all to their father, and
that they could not go again unless
they took Benjamin also, Jacob was In
great distress, said that Benjamin
should lever go, and exclaimed most
bitterly, "All these things are against
me- (verse 36l. If he only could have
seen the outcome as we now know 1t
how differently he would have felt and
talked! But this was written for us
that we might believe that all things,
however dark they look. are for III
good Rom. viii, 2S). If we would live
in the love of God, His perfect love
would cast out all fear Il John iv, 1S).
Miss Habershon's typical sugges-
lions on this chapter are concerning
the none other name;" that though
the world and even His own knew Him
not, He knew all men; the Spirit inter