The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1924-02-22
THE JUDGE
REVIEWS
THE LESSON
Gideon. the Original

In the Book OF Judges we are
dealing with an aboriginal people. To
those devoiees OF the evolutionary
theory in history who believe that
every epoch in a nations lie Is an
advance over the preceding epoch. and
with each succeeding year the trend
OF development Is upward and Cod
ward. / recommend careful study Of
this book in comparison with the
Book OF Joshua. That kind OF an
evolutionary faith is based on pure
imagination and a poor one at that.
ITO make my point clearer: The
last chapter OF Joshua states that Is
racl served the Lord all the days OF
Joshua and all the days oil the elders
who ouilived Joshua That is. the
whole people continued TO live in an
atmosphere OF civic righteousness and
spirituality during Joshua's career and
for quite a time thereafter. Things
went well with them Evolution up
ward now had its innings. But when
we come to the history recorded in
Judges we meet dcvoution and not
evolution Their progress was to the
bad and not to the good.
"One reason for this backward
plunge into i6olatry was the obvious
lack of great leadership. Each tribe
became law unto itself. and to a
considerable extent every one did,
about as he chose. As the book states.
In those days there was no king OF
Israel; every man did that which was
right in his own eyes. Lack OF
leadership meant lack OF organization
and the trend OF the magnificent or
ganization built by Moses and Joshua
was toward disintegration. Being
largely primitive people they did
primitive things. hence. idolatry. The
religious practices they were sworn
to observe under Mosaic law were
honored more in the breach than in
the observance. The idolatrous GUS
toms. and the people who praciiced
them were to be driven from the land.
but that was not done. The idoatry
OF these former masters OF the land
began to be tolerated by the new
corners. and finally tolerance led by
easy stages to open espousal OF the
sinful practices.
THE truth of what Pope wrote in
his essay on man is. in the Book of
Judges, clearly revealed.
Vice is 7 monster OF so fright
ful mein.
As to be hated needs but to be
seen;
Yet seem TOO oft. familiar with
her face.
We first endure. then pity. then
embrace =
Here we see the pernicious effect OF !
living too closely to that which is for
eign. and inimical to ones best in +,
terests. The foreign element in any y
nation may easily prove a leaven OF a
wickedness that. ii unguided or un- I,
checked. may lead on to national dis .,
solution. That is Americas great a
problem today. To use a familiar \
that OF prohibition The \
enemies OF sobriety. who would bring 4,
back again in all its iniquiiy it they u
could, the open saloon. belong largely 4
to that foreign element in our popula- Il
ton who are proving unassimilablc. (
and are frankly detrimental to the n
best interests OF the Republic The r,
issue is plain. Either we-thc rest of :,
ns-must control them. or they will =,
control us. We maintain prisons and 81
reformatorieS because il we didn't the q,
Toes OF an organized society built up h
On the foundation Of law and justice "
would overcome us We must con-
troll them or be controlled and ter :,
rorized by them. Never were those :,
words, Eternal vigilance is the price n
Of liberty, truer than today r
THE penalty which these ancient =,
lsraelites suffered because they be-
,ame lax in their religious and patri- !,
'uc obligations is well shown i'm =,
Judges ii;2O-2j. The point OF that Il;
passage is. the Jews did not observe G
hat which was right and transgressed in
he commandment OF their God OPEN ~
espousing the customs OF their p,
'eighbors, therefore these foreigners r
we're never driven out from their land. G.
md periodically they became the sub m
ects and slaves OF these fcrocious ~
RIDES. Thus. for time. the con-
Iuered became the conquerors.
The Book OF Judges. then. clearly =
caches that the wages OF sin IS death: e
hat II one sows to the wind he will
cap the whirlwind Bat the book =