The Watertown news. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1917-1919, 1917-08-24
SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson K.-Third Quarter, For
Aug. 26, 1917.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.

The topic of this lesson is the cap
dvity of Judah, for, although such men
as Hezekiah and Josiah did what they
could to turn the people from their sins
to the Lord, the results wel$S.nly par
tial and temporary, and their sins in
creased. The Lord God had compass
sion on them, notwithstanding their
rebellion against Him, and sent them
His messengers, His servants the
prophets, to tell them of His love and
His readiness to forgive them and
bless them if only they would turn to
Him with the whole heart, but they
Knocked the messengers Of God and
despised His words and misused His
prophets until the wrath of the Lord
arose against His people, till there was
no remedy QI Chron. xXxyi. 10. 1G).
Many times He had told them in the
beginning Of their national history how
He would bless them in the land He
had given them if only they would obey
Him and honor Him and keep them
selves from the idolatries of other ma
lions. See for example Lev. XVI. 1-13.
He told them just as plainly what
He would do to them and how He
would punish them if they would not
hearken to Him and keep His COM
mandments Uev. XVI 14-39l. Three
times in that chapter He told them
that If they persisted in disobedience
He would punish or chastise them
seven times for their sins. an express
sion which we will consider later in
our lesson tLev XVI. 10, "a. 2S) Not
only during their wilderness journey,
but also while the judges ruled, and
afterward when He gave them kings.
He many time forgave their iniquity
and delivered them and saved them for
His names sake (Ps. xviii. So; cvi, 8,
49,, but the time had come when there
was no remedy but the captivity. ~.
Josiah was succeeded by four kings.
three sons and q grandson, each Of
whom did evil in the sight of the Lord,
and during the twenty-five years of
their reigns Judah was carried into
captivity in three different companies
until all but the very poorest were car
ried away. The fourth year of Jehoia-
kim was the first year Of Nebuchad-
nezzar. and in that year, which would
be about 606 B. c.. some Of the princes.
including Daniel and others. and part
of the vessels of the house Of God
were carried to Babylon DER. XIV, /;
Dan. /, 1-3). About seven years later
Jehoiakim, who reigned only three
months, was taken to Babylon, with
his mother and servants and princes
and officers and 10000 others perhaps
$4,000 II Kings xiv, 8. 16). and this
was the second deportation. Eleven
years later, In the nineteenth year Of
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, the captivity of Judah
was completed by the carrying away
of Zedekiah and the rest of the people.
except the poor, who were left to be
vinedressers and husbandmen. Then
was the house of the Lord burned and
the remaining vessels destroyed or car
ried away Oh Kings XIV, LILO. Then
was fulfilled the strange, prediction
through Ezekiel concerning Zedekiah.
II will bring him to Babylon, yet shall
he not see it." for after his sons were
slain before his eyes they put out his
eyes and bound him and carried him to
Babylon (Ezek xii. 10; Kings XIV, y.
However seemingly impossible any
prediction of the. Lord may appear, it
will surely be literally fulfilled in His
time, either by near or far distant
fulfillment. or Outlines by both, for as
one has said prophecy may have many
germinal fulfillment, while the full
accomplishment may be still in the
future The Lord had said through
jeremiah that this punishment of Ju-
dab would continue seventy years and
that then they would return, and so 1t
came to pass, as we shall see in flu
ture lessons der XIV, -: IL ChrOn
xXxvi, 1929. Because Israel rejected
their Messiah, when in the fullness of
time He came to them, they have ever
since been scattered among all nations,
and He said that Jerusa lem would be
trodden down by the gentiles until the
times Of the gentiles be fulfilled luke.
xxi, pa.
The times of the gentiles began with
Nebuchadnezzar, 606 B. c., and cor
respond with the seven times already
GOD said that He would punish Israel
for their sins. According to Dan. XII.
10, margin, times are years, and in
Mum. xiv, "a, there Is a way of the
Lord revealed, wherein he used years
for days. Seven times 800, the days in
a Scrfptural year. equals $500. which
seems to cover the seven times, of Is
raels punishment in Lev. XVI, or the
times of the gentiles. Now. COG 3. c..
added to 1914, the year in which the
present European war began, gives
$500, and there seems therefore to be
good reason for believing that the
times Of the gentiles began to run out
in 1914. AS they began gradually with
the three deportations of judah re-
ferred to in this lesson, so it may re-
quire eighteen years, more to less, to
end them. Since then, we are already
in the beginning Of the end of these
times how fully occupied we should
be In giving the gospel to help com
plete the church, the body OF Christ,
and hasten the coming of the kingdom
OF righteousness and peace. always ex
pecting to be caught up any day and
yet ready to continue here In His serv-
ice or be absent from the body and
present with the Lord. ~