Pueblo chieftain., 1921-12-10
DOOMED, BUT EXULTANT
The International Sunday School Les
son for December II is, "Pauls Last
words."-II Timothy 4:6-ls.
BY WILLIAM T. ELLIS

The end tests all.''. Last words
have cherished significance. In the
light that streams from an open. wait
ing grave the dying seem sometimes
to see life in its relative Significance.
So We welcome this farewell utterance
lit Is almost a triumphant shout-or
the greatest hero that ever fought in
the ranks OF Christ.
Uncounted myriads OF persons. of
all ages and conditions, in every part
OF the world. will gather about this
fragment Of n personal letter from the
doomed prisoner. Paul the Apostle. to
his young friend. Timothy. who was
carrying on the work at Ephesus. Only
three individuals. so far as the record
survives. ever got personal letters
from the great interpreter OF the Cos
pei: they We're Timothy. Titus and
Philemon. The letters to the first two.
who were ministers, are the last re-
corded writings OF Paul.
Theco ardent messages are shad-
owed by prison walls. and by the grim
figure OF. the Roman eSecutioner, who
was drawing near. Paul was under
sentence OF death. Nero at his worst
was on the throne, and soon to follow
his Christian prisoner to the great ac-
counting-but in what different
spirit! The man in chains went to his
end like a king and a conqueror: tho
man on the throne met death like a
slave and II coward.
Thin was Paufs second Roman Inn
prisonment; he had been freed from
his earlier, easier duress at the capi-
tai. and had made another missionary
journey. But following the burning oi
Rome. Nero had charged tho cstastro-
phe to the Christians, and terrible
prosecutions had followed. Naturally,
ft,t ..f h..
Paul could not escape. and this time
his confinement WAS rigorous. He is
forsaken by all except Luke, the re-
porter physician. He is lonely, and
yearns for his younger friends. Timo-
thy and Mark. He is cold also and
asks for his cloak. and his Unsuitable
mental hunger yearns for his books.
pathetic picture is given us OF the vet
Gran warrior In a dungeon.
HAVING LIvED-"IIURRAH FOR
DEATH"
Only In few words does Paul re-
veal his physical state: mostly his let
ter rings like a trumpct's battle call.
lie had greatly lived and now he is
ready TO die greatly. Nobody can have
mean life and a noble death: ono
is the fruit of the other. In the spirit
OF the proverb which says. ~ man Is
responsible for his face at fifty" n
f'AH'N Is iN'WtSr Tftp'USlbl' lDl Aii'
attitude with which he approaches tho
great dissolution. There is more in
this pean of Paul than n moment of
ccstacy: all the years that had gone
found expression In II. No amount of
funeral oratory can make bier elo-
duent, except as 1t speaks forth a life.
One of our modern poets. Elsu Barker.
has caught somewhat the epirit Of
Paul
when am dead and sister TO tho
dust:
When no more avdly I drink tho
wine
OF human love: when the pale Pro-
scrpine
Has covered mo with poppies, and
cold rust
Has cut my lyre-strings. and the sun
has thrust
Me underground TO nourish the
world-vine--
Men shall discover these old songs
of mins,
And say: This woman livca-as poets
must.
"Thia woman lived and wore life as
sword
To conquer wisdom; this dead wom'
an read