Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1917-08-08
SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson vIl.-Third Quarter, FOR
Aug. 12, 1917.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.
Text Of the Lesson, u chren. xxxiv. T.
f3- Memory Verses, Z 10oldsn
Text, EccIss. xii. t-cemmsrtary Pre-
pared BY Rev. D. N. stsarns.


We have come to the record Of the
last good king who reigned over judah.
and while Isaiah and Micah were the
prophets during the reign Of Hezekiah.
jeremiah began to prophesy In the thir-
teenth year Of Josiah lisa l. 1; Mic.
1, 1; Jer. |, p. Every good prophet.
priest and king points onward TO the
Lord Jesus who when on earth was the
prophet Ike unto Moses. speaking Just
what the Father told him: who b now
our great high priest within the veil.
ever living to make intercession for rs:
and who when He comes again shall be
the true king Of Israel reigning In
righteousness. q priest upon his throne.
and We shall he His associates and
joint heirs. the twelve apostles ruling
over the twelve tribes Of Israel ,Deut
xviii, IS, 10; John Iii, 10. 80; Heb. vii
2+27; Jer. xxin s, 6: Zech Vi. II. 10;
Rev. 1. 8, q; v, 0, 10; Luke KIT. $500.
What a glorious future to keep ever
before us. to wean Us from ali present
entanglements and enable us to run
with patience the race set before us,
(Heb. XII, 49, As Josiah was power
less, even with the help Of Jeremiah.
to effectually stem the tide Of ever In
creasing iniquity, we may not expect
to do more than he did in the last
years Of his age. to which we have
come. Jeremiah was a prophet Of the
Lord during the last forty years pre-
ceoing the judgment upon Judah 1.-THE
last eighteen OF Josiah's reign and the
twenty-five Of the four bad kings
who succeeded himl, and we may be
within a good deal less than forty
years Of the end Of this evil age, which
will end with time like the days Of
Noah and Lot Luke xvii. 28-30). We
ian only do as Josiah and Jeremiah
did, and that Is be faithful to God as
He gives us time and opportunity. 1t
is profitable to compare the reigns OF
Ioash and Josiah I'll Chron. XIV. the
two boy kings, but Josiah did better
than Joash. though he did not reign as
long. To do right in the sight Of the
Lord, turning neither to the right hand
nor to the left (iesson verses /, p. is
a good summary Of goily life and
reminds Of the Lords message to
Abram after the thirteen years blank
in mis- history, Il am the Almighty God;
walk before Me and be thou perfect"
tGen. xvi. 16: xvii, ~.
The message might be read literally:
am Ell Shaddai, the mighty God. all
sufficient for you; walk before Me and
be upright or sincere. II Is a good
kept from turning to the right hand or
to the left. there is a very gracious
promise In lisa. xxx, 81 When Josiah
was sixteen he began to seek after the
God OF David. his father verse 81, and
no doubt he did 1t with all his heart,
according to Jer. xxx. 13, and In no
sense feignedly, as many do. When he
was twenty he began to purge the land
from idols tvcrses 3-Sl, and the saying
In verse about burning mems bones
On the idol affairs reminds US of the
saying OF the unnamed man OF God to
Jeroboam In ! Kings xiii. /, 2. when
he mentioned Josiah by name as the
xxiii. IS 20. the fultillment of this say
ing Of the man Of God Is fully recorded.
often refer to this prediction and
fulfilment as token of the literal full
flment which shall yet be Of every pre-.
diction concerning things yet future
As truly as His riding nnon an ass
colt foretold in Zech. TX, O. was literally
fulfilled. so truly shall the prediction
of the next verse tZech TX, l0) be as
literally fulfilled. and He shall speak
peace unto the nations. and His do
minion shall be from sea to sea and
from the river to the ends Of the earth
In Mic. v. 2. 1t was foretold that the
and that He would be ruler In Israel
We know that be was born In Bethle-
hem. the whole world being moved by
the decree OF Caesar, and il was that
decree which brought Mary from Naz-
aretb to Bethlehem at that time Ee
has never yet ruled In Israel, but He
surely will st His coming again In
glory. and the whole world Ia now be-
ing moved to prepare the way for Is
rael's restoration and recognition as a
nation We seem to have come to the
beginning Of times foretold by our
Lord in Luke xxi. 25-2s. distress Of ma
tons. with perpexity. the sea and the
waves roaring. mems hearts falling
them for fear and for looking after
those things which are coming on the
earth. He said that even the begin
ming Of such times would indicate the
drawing near of redemption for Isreal
Written May Is. 1915, Josiah's ref
ormation reached even to the putting
away Of some Of the idolatry introduced
by Solomon III Kings xiii. 10. IA
When he was twenty-eight be be
gan to repair the house Of the Lord
Qesson verses S-l3l. and 1t was then
the Book OF the Law was found. the
result of which will be our next lesson.
The house now being built is the
church Of the Living God. and 1t is the
one only thing worthy Of our attention
L.