The Watertown news. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1917-1919, 1917-08-03
SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson W.-Third Quarter, For
Aug. 5, 1917.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES,


There are so many things In the af-
fairs of this world which we cannot
understand that we can only find rest
In remembering that the Lord liveth,
shall finally subdue all things unto
Himself. 1t therefore becomes us to
rest In the Lord and wait patiently for
Him Qsa. xiii, 4; Rev. xvii, IA; Ps.
xxxvii, Z; Phil. iii, 10, Ply. That Ahaz
should be such a wicked king, Heze.
kiah, his son, such a good king and
Manasseh, his son, such a monstrosity
of iniquity is surely a strange sequence
of events, which I certainly do not
profess to begin to understand, but
rest In Him who foresees and over
rules all things. There Is something
worthy of prayerful consideration in
the fact that Hezekiah had fifteen
years added to his life after his serious
illness Qsa xxxviii, 81, but did not rem
der to God for this extension Of time
as he should have done Oh Chron
xxi, 25).
Manasseh must have been born about
three years after that Illness, as he
was twelve years old when he began
reign (xxxiii, y, and the question pre-
sents itself, Was it real blessing to
Hezekiah to have his life thus pro-
longed? When we are determined to
have our own way God sometimes in
dulges us, even though He knows it Is
not the best thing for us, as when He
! gave Israel their request, but sent lean
ness into their soul ops. elk, 80. A
mother once told me that when her
two boys were very young they were
sick unto death, but she would not give
them up, and God let them live But
they grew up to give her broken
heart. Whole hearted submission to
the perfect will Of God is the better
way. Contrast the Lord Jesus at the
age Of twelve about His Fathers bust
ness and returning to the 1owly home
at Nazareth, there to be subject to
Mary for the next eighteen years duke
II, 1850.
Manassehs reign was the longest Of
| any Of the kings Of judah, f1fty-five
years, and part Of 1t was the very
| worst, according to the record In lesson
verses $40. He wrought much evil In
| the sight Of the Lord and caused Ju-
dab and Jerusalem to err and to do
worse than the heather whom the Lord
had destroyed before. the children Of
| Israel, and, though the Lord spake to
! him and to his people, they would not
hearken Oversees 2, 6, 8, 10Y. He was
surely controlled by the devil during
| that part Of his reign.
| The Lord permitted the kings Of AS
| syria to take him and bind him and
carry him to Babylon, and there in his
| affection he humbled himself greatly
| before God and prayed unto Him, and
| God heard him and brought him again
| to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then
| he knew that Jehovah was God oversees
11-13). In the Apocrypha there is a
prayer recorded as his, part OF which
is: '"Thou, o Lord, according to Thy
great goodness, hast promised repent
ance and forgiveness to them that
have sinned against Thee. - /
have sinned above the number Of the
sands Of the sea; have set UP
denominations and have multiplied Of
lenses. O Lord, have sinned, and ]
acknowledge mine iniquities, where
fore, humbly beseech Thee, forgive
me, o Lord, forgive me, and destroy
me not with mine iniquities."
| Whatever his actual prayer was,
| God, who reads the heart, saw that he
was sincere and abundantly pardoned
him, according to lisa. lv, Z. Whatever
encoura cement there is In this and In
the conversion of Saul Of Tarsus and
Of the penitent thief for any and every
sinner, however great, to turn to the
| Lord, for He came to save sinners,
and His word ever stands, Him that
| cometh to me | will in noWise cast
| out" John vi, 80 He Is not willing
that any should perish and has no
pleasure in the death Of the wicked
| Oh Pet. iii, 8; Eek. xxxiii, I'D. His
cry to sinners is, Look unto me and be
! saved; incline your ear and come unto
me, hear and your soul shall live. And
| to His owA~who have wandered He
cries: o that they were wise, that they
would consider their latter end! Q
that my people had hearkened unto me
and Israel had walked in my ways!
elsa. xiv, %; Nv, 3; Deut. xxi, 90
Ps. lxxxi, 13). When restored to Jeru.
salem and to his kingdom he endeavOr-
ed to right some of the wrongs he had
done and to bring forth fruits meet
for repentance. He offered peace offer
ings and thank offerings unto the Lord
and commanded Judah to serve the
Lord God of Israel (verses HID.
Such change in such man must
have impressed many and turned
many to the Lord, but we shall see as
we go on In our lessons that the turn
ing of the people away from God was
very desperate, and it was not long
until judah was carried into captivity
for her sins. The turning away from
God and His word In our day is as
God foresaw that 1t would be Oh Tim
iit, Is; Nv, 8, 4; II Pet. Iii, 8, 4; Luke
xvii, 26-3O, but He will build His
church and take her to Himself and
bring her back with Him in glory, and
Israel shall then welcome Him. and
they shall never be unrighteous any
more but shall be blessing to all ma
lions, and the earth shall be filed with
His glory through Israel, His chosen
messengers, according to Ps. xvii.
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