BIBLE READINGS FOR THE HOME CIRCLE

1. Whom did Moses say the Lord would raise up?

"The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto Him ye shall hearken." Deut. 18:15. See also verse 18.

2. What use of this prophecy by the Apostle Peter shows that it referred to Christ?

"For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me. . . . Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days." Acts 3:22-24.

3. In what language did Isaiah foretell Christ's birth?

"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Isa. 7:14.

4. In what event was this prophecy fulfilled?

"Now all this was done [the birth of Jesus of the Virgin Mary], that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." Matt. 1:22, 23.

5. Where was the Messiah to he born?

"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel." Micah 5:2.

6. When was Jesus born?

"Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king." Matt. 2:1.

7. Under what striking emblem was He prophesied of by Balaam?

"There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel." Num. 24:17.

8. In what scripture does Christ apply the same emblem to Himself?

"I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star." Rev. 22:16. See also 2 Peter 1:19; Rev. 2:28.

9. What prophecy was fulfilled in the slaughter of the children of Bethlehem?

"Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not." Matt.2:16-18.

10. How was Christ's first advent to be heralded?

"The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God." Isa. 40:3.

11. By whom was this fulfilled?

"And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? . . . He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." John 1:19-23.

12. How was Christ to be received by His own people?

"He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not." Isa. 53:3.

13. How is the fulfilment of this prophecy recorded?

"He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not." John 1:10, 11.

14. What was predicted of Christ's preaching?

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." Isa. 61:1.

15. What application did Jesus make of this prophecy?

"And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto Him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. . . . And He began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." Luke 4:16-21. See Luke 7:19-22.

16. How, according to prophecy, was Christ to conduct Himself when on trial?

"He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth." Isa. 53:7.

17. When accused by His enemies before Pilate, how did Christ treat these accusations?

"Then said Pilate unto Him, Hearest Thou not how many things they witness against Thee? And He answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly." Matt. 27:13, 14.

18. What prophecy foretold of the disposal of Christ's garments at the crucifixion?

"They part My garments among them, and cast lots upon My vesture." Ps. 22:18.

19. What record answers to this prophecy?

"And they crucified Him, and parted His garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted My garments among them, and upon My vesture did they cast lots." Matt. 27:35.

20. What was foretold of His treatment while on the cross?

"They gave Me also gall for My meat; and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink." Ps. 69:21.

21. What was offered Christ at His crucifixion?

"They gave Him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when He had tasted thereof, He would not drink." Matt. 27:34. See also John 19:28-30, and page 127 of this volume.

22. With whom did the prophet Isaiah say Christ would make His grave?

"And He made His grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death." Isa. 53:9.

23. With whom was Christ crucified?

"Then were there two thieves crucified with Him, one on the right hand, and another on the left." Matt. 27:38.

24. Who took charge of Christ's body after it was taken down from the cross?

"A rich man of Arimathea, named Joseph. . . . went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. . . . He wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock." Verses 57-60.

25. What experience in the life of a noted prophet indicated the length of Christ's stay in the grave?

"But He answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: for as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Matt.12:39, 40.

26. What prophecy foretold Christ's triumph over death?

"For Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption." Ps.16:10. See Acts 2:24-27.

The Successive Prophecies of Christ

Supposing one single man to have left a book of predictions concerning Jesus Christ as to the time and manner of His coming, and supposing Him to have come agreeably to these predictions, the argument would be of almost infinite force; yet here the evidence is stronger beyond all comparison; a succession of men for the space of four thousand years follow one another, without interruption or variation, in foretelling the same great event. A whole people are the harbingers of the Messias, and such a people as subsisted four thousand years to testify in a general body their assured hope and expectation, from which no severity of threats or persecutions could oblige them to depart. This is a case which challengeth in a far more transcendent degree our assent and wonder. -Pascal.

I. What does Jesus declare Himself to be?

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me." John 14:6.

2. In what condition are all men?

"But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin." Gal. 3:22. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Rom. 3:23.

3. What are the wages of sin?

"The wages of sin is death." Rom. 6:23.

4. How many are affected by Adam's transgression?

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men." Rom. 5:12.

5. What is the gift of God?

"The gift of God is eternal life." Rom. 6:23.

6. How many may receive this gift?

"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that athirst come. And him that heareth say, Come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." Rev. 22:17.

7. In whom is the gift?

"This is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life and this life is in His Son." 1 John 5:11.

8. In receiving the Son what do we have in Him?

"He that hath the Son hath life." Verse 12.

9. What loss do those sustain who do not accept Him?

"And he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." Verse 12.

10. In what other way is this same truth stated?

"He that believes on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." John 3:36.

11. After one truly receives Christ, whose life will be manifested in him?

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in, me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Gal. 2:20.

12. In what condition are all before they are quickened with Christ?

"God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ." Eph. 2:4, 5.

13. What is this change from death to life called?

"Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever." 1 Peter 1:23.

14. When man first transgressed, what was done to prevent him from living for ever in sin?

"And now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever. . . . So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." Gen. 3:22-24.

15. What is declared to be one purpose of Christ's death?

"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil." Heb. 2:14.

16. Through whom will Abraham receive the promise of the future inheritance?

"The Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land." Gen. 12:7.

17. How many were embraced in God's promises to Abraham?

"And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed." Acts 3:25.

18. To whom does the "seed" in these promises refer?

"Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Gal. 3:16.

19. What would make the death of Christ in vain?

"If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." Gal. 2:21.

20. Why have all been reckoned under sin?

"But the Scripture bath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." Gal. 3:22.

21. How then do all become children of God?

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Verse 26.

22. With whom are the children of God joint heirs?

"If children, then heirs; heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ." Rom. 8:17.

1. For what purpose did Christ come into the world?

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." 1 Tim. 1:15.

2. Why was He to be named Jesus?

"Thou shall call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins." Matt. 1:21.

3. Is there salvation through any other?

"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Acts 4:12.

4. Through whom are we reconciled to God?

"All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." 2 Cor. 5:18, 19.

5. What has Christ been made for us, and for what purpose?

"For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." Verse 21.

6. How dependent are we upon Christ for salvation?

"I am the vine, ye are the branches: . . . without Me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.

7. What three essentials for a Saviour are found in Christ?

Deity. "But unto the Son He saith, Thy throne, 0 God, is for ever and ever." Heb. 1:8.

Humanity. "When the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law." Gal. 4:4.

Sinlessness. "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth." 1 Peter 2:22.

8. How did Christ show from the Scriptures that the promised Saviour of the world must be both human and divine?

"While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, What think ye of Christ? Whose son is He? They say unto Him, The son of David. He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call Him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou on My right hand, till I make Thine enemies Thy footstool? If David then call Him Lord, how is He his son?" Matt. 22:41-45.

NOTE -This important truth concerning the union of the human and divine in Christ, has been well expressed in these words: "Divinity needed humanity that humanity might afford a channel of communication between God and man. Man needs a power out of and above himself to restore him to the likeness of God. There must be a power working from within, a new life from above, before men can be changed from sin to holiness. That power is Christ."

9. What two facts testify to the union of divinity and humanity in Christ?

"Concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." Rom. 1:3,4.

10. How complete was Christ's victory over death?

"I am the first and the last: I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive f or evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." Rev. 1:17,18. See Acts 2:24.

11. How complete is the salvation obtained in Christ?

"Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them." Heb. 7:25.

12. What should we say for such a Saviour?

"Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift." 2 Cor. 9:15.

1. What is faith declared to be?

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Heb. 11:1.

2. How necessary is faith?

"Without faith it is impossible to please Him." Verse 6.

3. Is mere assent to divine truth sufficient?

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." James 2:19.

4. What is required besides a belief in the existence of God?

"For he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." Heb. 11:6, last part.

5. From whom does faith come?

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God." Eph. 2:8.

6. Why did God raise Christ from the dead?

"Who by Him do believe in God, that raised Him up from the dead, and gave Him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God." 1 Peter 1:21.

7. What is Christ's relation to this faith?

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." Heb. 12:2.

8. What is the basis of faith?

"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." Rom. 10:17.

9. What relation does faith bear to knowledge?

"Through faith we understand that the worlds were frame by the word of God." Heb. 11:3.

10. By what principle is genuine faith actuated?

"In Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love." Gal. 5:6.

11. Of what is faith a fruit?

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith." Verse 22.

12. What in the early church showed living faith?

"Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love." 1 Thess. 1:3.

13. What is necessary in order that the preaching of the gospel may be profitable?

"For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them but the Word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Heb. 4:2.

14. How does Abraham's experience show that obedience and faith are inseparable?

"By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went." Heb. 11:8.

15. With what, therefore, is the faith of Jesus joined?

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14:12.

16. In what other statement is the same truth emphasized?

"But wilt thou know, 0 vain man, that faith without works is dead?" James 2:20.

17. How is faith brought to perfection?

"Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?" Verse 22.

18. What is the result of faith's being put to the test?

"The trying of your faith worketh patience." James 1:3.

19. What relationship to God is established by faith?

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Gal. 3:26.

20. How do the children of God walk?

"For we walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Cor. 5:7.

21. Upon what condition may one expect answers to prayer?

"But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed." James 1:6.

22. To what parts of the ancient armour is faith compared?

"Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." Eph. 6:16. "Putting on the breastplate of faith and love." 1 Thess. 5:8.

23. What chapter in the Bible is devoted to faith?

The eleventh chapter of Hebrews. In verses 33-38 are summarized the victories of the heroes of faith.

24. What gives victory in our conflicts with the world?

"This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." 1 John 5:4.

25. What is the ultimate purpose of faith?

"Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul.,;." 1 Peter 1:9.

1. Who are called to repentance?

"I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Luke 5:32.

2. What accompanies repentance?

"And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations." Luke 24:47.

3. By what means is sin made known?

"By the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20.

4. How many are sinners?

"We have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin." Verse 9.

5. What do transgressors bring upon themselves?

"Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience." Eph. 5:6.

6. Who awakens the soul to a sense of its sinful condition?

"When He [the Comforter] is come, He will reprove [convince, margin] the world of sin." John 16:8.

7. What are fitting inquiries for those convicted of sin?

"Men and brethren, what shall we do?" "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" Acts 2:37; 16:30.

8. What replies does Inspiration return to these inquiries?

"Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved." Acts 2:38; 16:31.

9. What will the truly repentant sinner he constrained to do?

"I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin." Ps. 38:18.

10. What is the result of godly sorrow?

"For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation." 2 Cor. 7:10.

11. What does the sorrow of the world do?

"The sorrow of the world worketh death." Same verse.

12. How does godly sorrow for sin manifest itself?

"For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter." Verse11.

13. What did John the Baptist say to the Pharisees and Sadducees when he saw them come to his baptism?

"0 generation of vipers, who bath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" Matt. 3:7.

14. What did he tell them to do?

"Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance." Verse 8. NOTE - "There can be no repentance without reformation. Repentance is a change of mind; reformation is a corresponding change of life."-Dr. Raleigh.

15. When God sent the Ninevites a warning message, how did they show their repentance, and what was the result?

"And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil that He had said that He would do unto them; and He did it not." Jonah 3:10.

16. What leads sinners to repentance?

"Or despises thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?" Rom. 2:4.

1. What instruction is given concerning confession of sin?

"Speak unto the children of Israel, When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the Lord, and that person be guilty; then they shall confess their sin which they have done." Num. 5:6, 7.

2. How futile is it to attempt to hide sin from God?

"But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out." Num. 32:23. "Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance." Ps.90:8. "All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." Heb. 4:13.

3. What promise is made to those who confess their sins?

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9.

4. What different results attend the covering and the confessing of sins?

"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." Prov. 28:13.

5. How definite should we be in confessing our sins?

"And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he bath sinned in that thing." Lev. 5:5.

NOTE-"True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sins. They may be of such a nature as to be brought before God only; they may be wrongs that should be confessed to individuals who have suffered injury through them; or they may be of a public character, and should then be as publicly confessed. But all confession should be definite and to the point, acknowledging the very sins of which you are guilty."-"Steps to Christ," page 43.

6. How fully did Israel once acknowledge their wrong doing?

"And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king." 1 Sam. 12:19.

7. When David confessed his sin, what did he say God did?

"I acknowledged my sin unto Thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin." Ps. 32:5.

8. Upon what did he rest his hope for forgiveness?

"Have mercy upon me, 0 God, according to Thy loving kindness: according unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Ps. 51:1.

9. What is God ready to do for all who seek forgiveness?

"For Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee." Ps. 86:5.

10. What is the measure of the greatness of God's mercy?

"For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him." Ps. 103:11.

11. How fully does the Lord pardon when one repents?

"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." Isa. 55:7.

12. What reason is given for God's readiness to forgive sin?

"Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardons iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retains not His anger for ever, because He delights in mercy." Micah 7:18. See Ps. 78:38.

13. Why does God manifest such mercy and long-suffering toward men?

"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:9.

14. What prayer did Moses offer in behalf of Israel?

"Pardon, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of Thy mercy, and as Thou has forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now." Num. 14:19.

15. What reply did the Lord immediately make?

"And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word." Verse 20.

16. When the prodigal son, in the parable, repented and turned toward home, what did his father do?

"When he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him." Luke 15:20.

17. How did the father show his joy at his son's return?

"The father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." Verses 22-24.

18. What is felt in heaven when a sinner repents?

"Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents." Verse 10.

19. What did Hezekiah say God had done with his sins?

"Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but Thou has in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for Thou has cast all my sins behind Thy back." Isa. 38:17.

20. How completely does God wish to separate sin from us?

"Thou wilt cast-all-their sins into the depths of the sea." Micah 7:19. "As far as the east is from the west, so far bath He removed our transgressions from us." Ps. 103:12.

21. How did the people respond to the preaching of John?

"Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins." Matt. 3:5, 6.

22. How did some of the believers at Ephesus testify to the sincerity of the confession of their sins?

"And many that believed came, and confessed, and showed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver." Acts 19:18, 19.

23. Through whom are repentance and forgiveness granted?

"The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins." Acts5:30,31.

24. What is the only unpardonable sin?

"Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaks a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaks against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come." Matt. 12:31, 32.

NOTE-As the Holy Spirit is the agent that convicts of sin and brings the offer of pardon through the Word, the denial of the Spirit's work is the refusal of pardon. In other words, the only unpardonable sin is the sin which refuses to be pardoned.

25. Upon what basis has Christ taught us to ask forgiveness?

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." Matt. 6:12.

26. What spirit must those cherish whom God forgives?

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Verses 14, 15.

27. What exhortation is based on the fact that God has forgiven us?

"And be you kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." Eph. 4:32.

28. In what condition is one whose sins are forgiven?

"Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputes not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." Ps. 32:1, 2.

THERE's a wideness in God's mercy
Like the wideness of the sea;
There's a kindness in His justice
Which is more than liberty.

There is welcome for the sinner,
And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Saviour;
There is healing in His blood.

For the love of God is broader
Than the measure of man's mind,
And the heart of the Eternal
Is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more simple,
We should take Him at His word;
And our lives would be all sunshine
In the sweetness of our Lord.
- Frederick W. Faber.

1. How did Jesus emphasize the necessity of conversion?

"Verily I say unto you, Except you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 18:3.

2. In what other statement did He teach the same truth?

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3.

3. How did He further explain the new birth?

"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." Verse 5.

4. With what comparison did He illustrate the subject?

"The wind blows where it lists, and thou hears the sound thereof, but cannot not tell whence it comes, and whither it goes: so is everyone that is born of the Spirit." Verse 8.

5. What change is wrought in conversion, or the new birth?

"Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)." Eph.2:5.

6. What is one evidence of this change from death to life?

"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loves not his brother abides in death." 1 John 3:14.

7. From what is a converted sinner saved?

"Let him know, that he which converts the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins." James 5:20. See Acts 26:14-18.

8. To whom are sinners brought by conversion?

"Create in me a clean heart, 0 God; and renew a right spirit within me. . . . Then will I teach transgressors Thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto Thee." Ps. 51:10-13.

9. In what words to Peter did Jesus indicate the kind of service a converted person should render to his brethren?

"And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." Luke 22:31, 32.

10. What other experience is associated with conversion?

"For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them." Matt. 13:15.

11. What gracious promise does God make to His people?

"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for Mine anger is turned away from him." Hosea 14:4.

12. By what means is this healing accomplished?

"He [Christ] was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed." Isa. 53:5.

13. What takes place when one is converted to Christ?

"Wherefore if any man is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new." 2 Cor. 5:17, R.V., margin. See Acts 9:1-22; 22:1-21; 26:1-23.

14. What is the value of merely outward forms?

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails anything, nor un-circumcision, but a new creature." Gal.6:15.

15. Through what was the original creation wrought?

"By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth." Ps.33:6.

16. Through what instrumentality is conversion wrought?

"Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which lives and abides for ever." 1 Peter 1:23.

17. What change is wrought by beholding Jesus?

"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." 2 Cor. 3:18.

Note-A beautiful statue once stood in the market-place of an Italian city. It was the statue of a Greek slave girl. It represented the slave as tidy and well dressed. A ragged, uncombed little street child coming across the statue in her play one day, stopped and gazed at it in admiration. She was captivated by it. She gazed long and lovingly. Moved by a sudden impulse, she went home and washed her face and combed her hair. Another day she stopped again before the statue and admired it, and got a new idea. Next day her tattered clothes were washed and mended. Each time she looked at the statue she found something in its beauties to admire and copy, until she was a transformed child. By beholding we become changed.

18. What are the evidences that one has been born of God?

"If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone that does righteousness is born of Him." "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and everyone that loves is born of God, and knows God." 1 John 2:29; 4:7.

19. What is true of everyone who believes in Jesus?

"Whosoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God." 1 John 5:1.

20. What do those born of God not do?

"We know that whosoever is born of God sins not; but he that is begotten of God keeps himself, and that wicked one touches him not." Verse 18.

21. What indwelling Power keeps such from sinning?

"Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin; f or His seed remains in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." 1 John 3:9. See 1 John 5:4; Gen. 1 39:9.

22. What will be the experience of those born of the Spirit?

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." ROM. 8:1.

1. What ordinance is closely associated with believing the gospel?

"And He said unto them, Go you into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believes not shall be damned." Mark 16:15, 16.

2. What did the Apostle Peter associate with baptism in his instruction on the day of Pentecost?

"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." Acts 2:38.

3. In reply to his inquiry concerning salvation, what was the Philippian gaoler told to do?

"And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved, and thy house." Acts 16:31.

4. What followed immediately after the gaoler and his family had accepted Christ as their Saviour?

"And he took them [Paul and Silas] the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway." Verse 33.

5. In connection with Christian baptism, what is washed away?

"And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." Acts 22:16. See Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 3:21.

6. By what means are sins washed away?

"Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood." Rev. 1:5.

7. Into whose name are believers to be baptized?

"Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost." Matt. 28:19, R.V.

8. When believers are baptized into Christ, whom do they put on?

"For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Gal. 3:27.

9. Into what experience are those baptized who are baptized into Christ?

"Know you not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death?" Rom.6:3. Note -Baptism is a gospel ordinance commemorating the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. In baptism public testimony is given to the effect that the one baptized has been crucified with Christ, buried with Him, and is raised with Him to walk in newness of life. Only one mode of baptism can rightly represent these facts of experience, and that is immersion, the mode followed by Christ and the primitive church.

10. How is such a baptism described?

"Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Verse 4.

11. How fully are we thus united with Christ in His experience of death and resurrection?

"For if we have been planted, together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection." Verse 5.

12. What will follow this union with Christ in His death and resurrection?

"Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him." Verse 8.

13. In what working of God is faith to be exercised in connection with baptism?

"Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead." Col. 2:12.

14. At the beginning of His ministry, what example did Jesus set for the benefit of His followers?

"Then comes Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him." Matt. 3:13.

15. What remarkable experience attended the baptism of Jesus?

"And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him: and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Verses16,17.

16. What promise is made to those who repent and are baptized?

"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Acts 2:38.

17. What question did the eunuch ask after Philip had preached Jesus unto him?

"And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what does hinder me to be baptized?" Acts 8:36.

18. In order to baptize the eunuch, where did Philip take him?

"And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him." Verse 38.

19. How did the people of Samaria publicly testify to their faith in the preaching of Philip?

"But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." Verse 12.

20. What instruction did the Apostle Peter give concerning the Gentiles who had believed?

"Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord." Acts 10:47, 48.

21. How perfect is the unity into which believers are brought by being baptized into Christ?

"For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit." 1 Cor 12:12,13.

22. After being united with Christ in the likeness of His death and resurrection, what should the believer do?

"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God." Col. 3:1.

LORD, in humble, sweet submission,
Here we meet to follow Thee,
Trusting in Thy great salvation,
Which alone can make us free.

Naught have we to claim as merit;
All the duties we can do
Can no crown of life inherit;
All the praise to Thee is due.

Yet we come in Christian duty,
Down beneath the wave we go;
0 the bliss! the heavenly beauty!
Christ the Lord was buried so.
-Robert T. Daniel.

1. What message of entreaty has God sent to us through His appointed messengers?

"Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." 2 Cor. 5:20.

2. Through whom is this reconciliation made?

"All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation." Verse 18.

3. What was required in order to effect this reconciliation?

"For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." Rom. 5:10.

4. What basis for reconciliation was made by Christ's death?

"Having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself." Col.1:20.

5. Through whom is the reconciliation received?

"We also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement [reconciliation, margin]." Rom. 5:11.

6. BY what union does Christ reconcile both Jew and Gen. tile to God through the cross?

"And that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." Eph. 2:16.

7. In what prophecy was the work of reconciliation foretold?

"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity." Dan. 9:24.

8. In thus reconciling the world unto Himself, what attitude did God take toward men?

"God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." 2 Cor.5:19.

9. What rendered it possible for God to treat sinners thus?

"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isa. 53:6.

10. What was Christ made, to release men from sin?

"For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Cor. 5:21.

11. How was He treated?

"But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed." Isa. 53:5.

12. What did John declare concerning Him?

"Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away [bears, margin] the sin of the world." John 1:29.

13. To what place did Christ carry these sins?

"Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes you were healed." 1 Peter 2:24.

14. What is the great purpose of Christ in His work of reconciliation?

"And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and unblamable and unreprovable in His sight." Col. 1:21, 22. "I will arise and go to my father." Luke 15:18.

1. In whom has God made us accepted?

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings . . . in Christ: according as He hath chosen us in Him . . . to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved." Eph. 1:3-6.

2. What great gift comes with our acceptance of Christ?

"And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that everyone which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and 1 will raise him up at the last day." John 6:40. See also John 17:2.

3. What is the first and primary evidence of our acceptance with God?

"If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which He hath testified of His Son. . . . And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son." 1 John 5:9-11. NOTE -The primary basis of all faith and acceptance is the Word of God-that which God Himself has said. To receive and believe this is the first essential to salvation-the first evidence of acceptance.

4. Why did John write his testimony concerning God's love and purpose in giving Christ?

"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." Verse 13. "These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name." John 20:31.

5. What witness does the true believer in Christ have that he is accepted of God?

"He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made Him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son." 1 John 5:10.

Note - Faith and feeling should not be confounded. Faith is ours to exercise in the Word of God, regardless of our feelings, and often in opposition even to our feelings. Many fail to accept the pardon and assurance of the acceptance of Heaven, because they do not take God at His word, but instead turn their attention to. their changeable moods and feelings. Faith always precedes the joyful feelings which naturally result from the assurance of forgiveness and acceptance. This order is never reversed.

6. How only do any become children of God?

"Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Gal. 3:26.

7. What is the foundation of faith?

"Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." Rom. 10:17.

8. What assurance has the believer of his union with God?

"Hereby know we that we dwell in Him, and He in us, because He hath given us of His Spirit." 1 John 4:13.

9. What three definite witnesses of acceptance are mentioned by John?

"There are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." 1 John 5:8.

10. How does the Spirit witness to our acceptance with God?

"Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." Gal. 4:6. "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." Rom. 8:16.

11. Of what is Christian baptism an evidence?

"As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Gal. 3:27. NOTE - In baptism, the water and the Spirit both bear witness to God's acceptance. He who at Christ's

baptism said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," witnesses to the acceptance of every sincere believer at his baptism.

12. To what does the blood of Christ witness?

"These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. . . . If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:4-7. "In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins." Eph. 1:7. See also Rev. 1:5,6.

13. When may we find acceptance with God through Christ?

"I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day Of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." 2 Cor. 6:2.

14. To whom, therefore, should we ascribe glory and honor?

"Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever Amen." Rev. 1:5, 6.

15. What is another evidence of divine acceptance?

"You know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." 1 John 3:14.

16. What blessed assurance is given all believers in Christ?

"And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ
Jesus." Phil. 4:7.

ARISE my soul, arise, Shake off thy guilty fears; The bleeding Sacrifice In my behalf appears;Before the throne my Saviour stands, My name is written on His hands.

Five bleeding wounds He bears, Received on Calvary;
They pour effectual prayers, They strongly speak for me.
Forgive him, oh, forgive! they cry,
Nor let the contrite sinner die! ---CharlesWesley.

1. What is the ground of justification on God's part?

"That being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Titus 3:7.

2. What is the means through which this justifying grace is made available to the sinner?

"Much more then, being now justified by His [Christ's] blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Rom. 5:9.

3. How is justification laid hold upon?

"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." Rom. 3:28.

4. What is the only way sinners may he justified, or made righteous?

"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the, works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." Gal. 2:16.

5. What concrete example makes clear the meaning of this doctrine?

"And He brought him [Abraham] forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness." Gen. 15:5, 6.

6. How is the righteousness thus obtained described?

"And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Phil. 3:9.

7. Upon what basis is justification granted?

"And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification." Rom. 5:16.

8. Upon what basis does the reward come to one who works?

"Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt." Rom. 4:4.

9. Upon what condition is faith reckoned for righteousness?

"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Verse 5.

10. How does grace, as the ground of justification, exclude righteousness by works?

"And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work." Rom. 11:6.

11. In what way are both Jews and Gentiles to be justified?

"Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith." Rom. 3:29, 30.

12. What statement testifies to Abraham's faith in God?

"He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief ; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform." Rom. 4:20, 21.

13. What did this bring to him?

"And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness." Verse 22.

14. How may we receive this same imputed righteousness?

"Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead." Verses 23, 24.

15. Why must justifying faith lay hold upon both the death and the resurrection of Christ?

"Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." Verse 25. See 1 Cor. 15:17.

16. What is inseparable from the experience of justification by faith?

"Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." Acts 13:38, 39.

17. How has Christ made it possible for righteousness to be imputed to the believer?

"For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." Rom. 5:19.

18. What prophetic declaration foretold this truth?

"In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory." Isa. 45:25.

19. What other prediction asserts the same great truth?

"By His knowledge shall My righteous Servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities." Isa. 53:11.

20. What does the imputed righteousness of Christ enable God to do, and still be just?

"To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believes in Jesus." Rom. 3:26.

21. By what name is Christ appropriately called?

"Behold, the days come, says the Lord, that 1 will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." Jer. 23:5, 6.

22. What blessed experience follows upon the acceptance of Christ as our righteousness?

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5:1.

23. What does Christ thus become to the believer?

"For He is our peace, who bath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us." Eph. 2:14.

24. On what basis is there no possibility of justification for the sinner?

"Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20.

25. How does the death of Christ bear testimony to this?

"I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." Gal.2:21.

26. What is proved by any attempt to be justified by the law?

"Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace." Gal. 5:4.

27. Why did Israel fail to attain unto righteousness?

"But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling-stone." Rom. 9:31, 32.

28. What is revealed by the law?

"By the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20.

29. What bears witness to the genuineness of the righteousness obtained by faith, apart from the deeds of the law?

"But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets." Verse 21.

30. Does faith set aside the law of God?

"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." Verse 31.

31. What scripture shows that the righteousness which is received by grace through faith must not be made an excuse for continuing in sin?

"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" Rom. 6:1, 2.

32. Does faith exclude works?

"But wilt thou know, 0 vain man, that faith without works is dead?" James 2:20.,

33. What is the evidence of genuine, living faith?

"Show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works." Verse 18.

34. What, then, are the visible proofs of genuine justification by faith?

"Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." Verse 24. See also verse 22.

35. What great exchange has been wrought for us in Christ?

"For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Cor. 5:21. Note - Said Luther: "Learn to know Christ and Him crucified. Learn to sing unto Him a new song---to despair of yourself, and to say to Him: Thou' Lord Jesus Christ art my righteousness, and I am Thy sin. Thou hast taken what was mine, and hast given me what was Thine; what Thou wast not Thou didstbecome, in order that I might become what I was not."-D'Aubigne's "History of the Reformation," book 2, chapter 8.

Look upon Jesus, sinless is He;
Father, impute His life unto me.
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life whiter than snow.

Deep are the wounds transgression has made:
Red are the stains; my soul is afraid.
Oh, to be covered, Jesus, with Thee,
Safe from the law that now judgeth me

Longing the joy of pardon to know;
Jesus holds out a robe white as snow:
Lord, I accept it! leaving my own,
Gladly I wear Thy pure life alone."

Reconciled by His death for my sin,
justified by His life pure and clean,
sanctified by obeying His Word,
Glorified when returneth my Lord. -F. E. Belden.

1. What is assured to the believer in Christ?

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

2. What is revealed in the gospel?

"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith." Rom.1:17.

3. What has Christ brought to light through the gospel?

"To hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." 2 Tim. 1:10.

4. How closely are righteousness and life thus united?

"In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death." Prov. 12:28.

5. What does he find who follows after righteousness?

"He that follows after righteousness and mercy finds life, righteousness, and honor." Prov. 21:21.

6. Through what does grace reign unto eternal life?

"That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. 5:21.

7. What is the very life of the Spirit?

"And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." Rom. 8:10.

8. What are the commandments of God declared to be?

"All Thy commandments are righteousness." Ps. 119:172.

9. What did Jesus declare God's commandments to be?

"And I know that His commandment is life everlasting." John 12:50. NOTE - Life and righteousness are thus shown to be inseparable.

10. What does the prophet Jeremiah declare Christ to be?

"And this is His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." Jer. 23:6.

11. What does Christ declare Himself to be?

"I am the way, the truth, and the life." John 14:6.

12. How is righteousness received?

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." Rom. 5:17.

13. How is eternal life bestowed?

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. 6:23.

14. What did Moses set forth as the basis of righteousness?

"And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God, as He hath commanded us." Deut. 6:25.

15. What did Christ indicate as essential to eternal life?

"And He said unto him, Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou

wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." Matt. 19:17.NOTE -The righteousness of God, which is obtained by faith in Christ, brings with it the life of God, which is inseparably connected with righteousness; and the life of God, which is bestowed upon man as a gift through his faith in Christ, is a life of righteousness---the righteousness, or right-doing, of Christ.

1. What inspired Prayer sets the standard of Christian experience?

"And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thess. 5:23.

2. How necessary is the experience of sanctification?

"Follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord." Heb. 12:14, R.V.

3. What encouragement is held out as an aid in attaining this experience?

"For this is the will of God, even your sanctification." 1 Thess. 4:3.NOTE - Whatever is the will of God concerning us can be realized in our experience if our wills are in harmony with His will. It is therefore a matter of great encouragement to know that our sanctification is included in the will of God.

4. What distinct purpose did Christ have in giving Himself for the church?

"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word." Eph. 5:25, 26.

5. What kind of church would He thus be able to present to Himself?

"That He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." Verse 27.

6. In the experience of sanctification, what attitude must one assume toward the truth?

"God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." 2 Thess. 2:13.

7. What instruction shows that sanctification is a progressive work?

"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 3:18. See chap. 1:5-7.

8. What description of the Apostle Paul's experience is in harmony with this?

"Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Phil. 3:13, 14.

9. By what is this cleansing from sin and fitting for God's service accomplished?

"For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" Heb. 9:13,

14. See also chap. 10:29.

10. What change is thus brought about?

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Rom. 12:2.

11. Can anyone boast of sinlessness?

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8.

12. What are we exhorted by, the prophet to seek?

"Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought His judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it maybe ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger." Zeph.2:3.

13. In whose name should everything be done?

"And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus." Col. 3:17.

14. In all we do, whose glory should we have in view?

"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Cor. 10:31.

15. What classes of persons are necessarily shut out of the kingdom of God?

"For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God." Eph. 5:5. "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." 1 Cor. 6:9, 10.

16. What must be crucified and eliminated from our lives if we would be holy?

"Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: for which things sake the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience." Col. 3:5, 6.

17. When purged from these sins, in what condition is a man, and for what is he prepared?

"If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto every good work." 2 Tim. 2:21.

NOTE - Sanctification is the term used to describe the work of God the Holy Ghost upon the character of those who are justified. We are justified in order that we may be sanctified, and we are sanctified in order that we may be glorified. 'Whom He justified, them He also glorified." Rom. 8:30. The grace of God is given to make us holy, and so to fit us for God's presence in eternity; for 'without holiness no man shall see the Lord.' Heb. 12:114.' - "The Catholic Religion" (Episcopal), by Rev. Vernon Staley, page 327.

1. Does it matter what one believes, so long as he is sincere?

"God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." 2 Thess. 2:13.

NOTE - Doctrine affects the life. Truth leads to life and God; error to death and destruction. No one would think of saying it matters not what god one worships, so long as he is sincere, any more than he would think of saying it matters not what one eats or drinks, so long as he relishes what he eats and drinks; or what road he travels, so long as he thinks he is on the right road. Sincerity is a virtue; but it is not the test of sound doctrine. God wills that we shall know the truth, and He has made provision whereby we may know what is truth.

2. Did Joshua think it immaterial what god Israel served?

"Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve Him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as f or me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:14, 15.

NOTE -The influence of all idolatrous worship is degrading. See Rom. 1:21-32 Exodus 32; 1 Cor. 10:20; 1 John 5:21.

3. How may we determine the truthfulness of any doctrine?

"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." 1 Thess. 5:21.

4. By what should we test, or prove, all doctrine?

"To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no light in them." Isa. 8:20.

NOTE - The Bible is the test of all doctrine. Whatever does not harmonize and square with this, is not to be received. "There is but one standard of the everlastingly right and the everlastingly wrong, and that is the Bible."-T. De Witt Talmage.

5. Of what kind of doctrines should we beware?

"That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine." Eph. 4:14. See also Heb. 13:9.

6. What is a "wind of doctrine"?

"And the prophets shall become wind, and the Word is not in them." Jer. 5:13.

NOTE - Calling a doctrine a wind of doctrine does not make it such. That is a wind of doctrine which is not sustained by the Word of God.

7. For what is all Scripture profitable?

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine." 2 Tim. 3:16.

8. What advice was given to Timothy while preparing for the gospel ministry?

"Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. . . . Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine." 1 Tim. 4:13-16.

9. What solemn charge was given him concerning his public work?

"I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom; Preach the Word; . . . reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine." 2 Tim. 4:1, 2.

10. Why did the apostle say this duty was so imperative?

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." Verses 3, 4.

11. What similar instruction was given to Titus?

"But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine. . . . In all things showing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine showing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity." Titus 2:1-7.

12. What will sound doctrine enable the faithful teacher to do?

"Holding fast the faithful Word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers." Titus 1:9.

13. What danger attends the teaching of false doctrine?

"Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some." 2 Tim. 2:18.

14. Who are the disciples of Jesus, and what gracious work does the truth do for those who receive it?

"If ye continue in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:31, 32.

15. Through what are they to -be sanctified?

"Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word is truth." John 17:17.

16. What kind of worship results from false teaching?

"But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." Matt. 15:9.

17. Can we close our ears to truth, and remain innocent before God?

"He that turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination." Prov. 28:9.

18. What did Christ say of those who will to do God's will?

"If any man wills to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it be of God, or whether 1 speak from Myself." John 7:17, R.V. See also Ps. 25:9; John 8:12.

19. What will God allow to come to those who reject truth?

"Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 2 Thess. 2:10-12.

20. By what doctrines are some to be misled in the last days?

"Now the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils." 1 Tim. 4:1. See 2 Peter 2:1.

21. What fate awaits blind teachers and their followers?

"Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." Matt. 15:14.

22. To whom will the gates of the heavenly city finally be opened?

"Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in." Isa. 26:2. See also Rev. 22:14.

TRUTH is the gem for which we seek, 0 tell us where shall it be found For this we search, and pray, and weep, That truth may in our hearts abound.

We want the truth on every point, We want it all to practise by; Do Thou, O Lord, our eyes anointWith a fresh unction from on high. -Charlotte Haskins.

1. By what are men sanctified?

"Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word is truth." John 17:17.

2. To what knowledge would God have all men come?

"Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." 1 Tim. 2:4.

3. After receiving a knowledge of the truth, what must one do in order to be sanctified by it?

"God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." 2 Thess. 2:13.

4. And what besides a mere belief in the truth is necessary?

"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience." 1 Peter 1:2.

5. What effect does obedience to the truth have?

"Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit." Verse 22.

6. How should the truth ever be cherished?

"Buy the truth, and sell it not." Prov. 23:23. NOTE - That is, buy the truth at whatsoever sacrifice or cost, and sell it under no consideration.

7. Does the Bible recognize what may be called "present truth"?

"Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth." 2 Peter 1:12.

NOTE - SOME truths are applicable in all ages, and are therefore present truth for every generation; others are of a special character, and are applicable to only one generation. They are none the less important, however, because of this; for upon their acceptance or rejection depends the salvation or loss of the people of that generation. Of this kind was Noah's message of a coming flood. To the generation to whom it was preached that message was present truth; to later generations it has been past truth, and not a present, testing message. Similarly, had the first advent message of John the Baptist been proclaimed in the generation either before or after John's time, it would not have been applicable-would not have been present truth. The people of the generation before would not have lived to see it fulfilled, and to those living after, it would have been wrongly timed. Not so with general truths, such as love, faith, hope, repentance, obedience, justice, and mercy. These are always in season, and of a saving nature at all times. Present truths, however, always include all these, and hence are saving in character, and of vital importance.

8. What was the special message for Noah's day?

"And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood." Gen. 6:13,14.

9. How did Noah show his faith in this message?

"By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith." Heb. 11:7.

10. How many were saved in the ark?

"The long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water." 1 Peter 3:20.

NOTE - Doubtless many who were lost in the Flood held, in a nominal way, to belief in God; but the test as to the genuineness of this came with Noah's special message; and the difference between their belief and his was made plain when they rejected the saving truth for that time-the warning message concerning the coming Flood.

11. What special message was given to Jonah for Nineveh?

"So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. . . . And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." Jonah 3:3, 4.

12. What saved the people from the predicted overthrow?

"So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. . . . And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that He had said that He would do unto them; and He did it not." Verses 5-10. See Jer.18:7-10.

NOTE - So likewise would God have spared the antediluvian world had they received Noah's message, and turned from their evil ways.

13. What was the special mission of John the Baptist?

"There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe." John 1:6, 7.

14. What answer did he return when asked concerning his mission?

"He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." Verse 23.

15. What did Christ say of those who rejected John's message?

"But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him." Luke 7:30.

16. What did those do who were baptized of John?

"And all the people that heard Him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John." Verse 29. NOTE - That is, they honored God by this act, which showed their faith in His truth for that time.

17. Did God's chosen people receive Christ when He came?

"He came unto His own, and His own received Him not." John 1:11.

18. What reason did they give for not receiving Him? ,

"We know that God spoke unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence He is." John 9:29.

NOTE - That was the trouble; they had no faith in anything new. They knew that God spoke by Moses: it required little faith to believe that. They felt perfectly safe in accepting him, for everything had demonstrated that he was sent of God. All could see that. But here was One whom, although He had come in fulfillment of the prophecies of Moses and the prophets as their long-looked-for Messiah, they felt there was a risk in accepting, because they did not understand the prophecies relating to Him, and time had not worked out to their satisfaction the truthfulness of His claims. It required too much faith, as against their desire to walk by sight, to accept Christ. It also called for a change of views in some things, and a reformation in life. So they rejected Him. They believed in the Flood, faith in which had saved Noah; they believed in Elijah also, and professed faith in all the prophets; but when it came to this special truth for their time, they refused to accept it. Thus it has been in all ages, and thus we may expect it to continue to be to the end.

19. How did Christ say those who rejected Him reasoned?

"Ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets." Matt.23:29,30.

NOTE - While they condemned the action of their fathers in slaying the prophets whom God had sent with messages of reproof and warning applicable to those times, they soon filled up the measure of the iniquity of their fathers by putting to death the Son of God. This showed that they would have done as did their fathers had they lived in their day. Thus we see that present truths are testing truths.

20. What was the result of the Jews' not accepting Christ?

"And when He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, If thou had known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from your eyes." Luke19:41, 42. "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." Matt. 23:38.

21. Is there to be a special message for the last days?

"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man comes. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his Lord hath made ruler over His household, to give them meat in due season?" Matt. 24:44, 45.

NOTE - In the last days a message will go forth which will be "meat in due season" to the people. This must be the warning concerning the Lord's soon coming, and the preparation necessary to meet Him. Because such a message was not always preached, is no evidence that it is not now to be proclaimed. In his farewell address to the Pilgrim Fathers on their departure from Holland for America, John Robinson said: "The Lord knows whether I shall ever see your faces more; but whether the Lord bath appointed that or not, I charge you before God and His blessed angels to follow me no farther than I have followed Christ. If God should reveal anything to you by any other instrument of His, be as ready to receive it as you ever were to receive any truth by my ministry; for I am very confident that the Lord bath more truth and light yet to break forth out of His Holy Word. For my part, I cannot sufficiently bewail the condition of the Reformed churches, who are come to a period in religion, and will go no farther than the instruments of their reformation. The Lutherans cannot be drawn to go any farther than what Luther saw; and the Calvinists, you see, stick fast where they were left by that great man of God, who yet saw not all things. This is a misery much to be lamented; for though they were burning and shining lights in their time, yet they penetrated not into the whole counsel of God, but were they now living, would be as willing to embrace further light as that which they first received."

22. What does Christ say of that servant who, when He comes, is found giving "meat in due season"?

"Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when He comes shall find so doing." Verse 46.

NOTES -The coming of Christ in glory has been the hope of the faithful in all ages. Luther declared: "Ah, loving God come once; I wait continually for that day. . . . The name of the Lord be praised, who has taught us to sigh and yearn after that day, and in truth we ought to desire the speedy approach thereof. . . . I hope, truly, that day is not far off." Melanchthon said: "This aged world is not far from its end."

Calvin bade Christians "not to hesitate, ardently desiring the day of Christ's coming as of all events most auspicious"; and declared that "the whole human family of the faithful will keep in view that day." "We must hunger, after Christ, we must seek, contemplate," he adds, "till the dawning of that great day, when our Lord will fully manifest the glory of His kingdom."

Said Knox, the Scotch Reformer: "Has not our Lord Jesus carried up our flesh into heaven? and shall He not return? We know that He shall return, and that with expedition."

Ridley and Latimer, who laid down their lives for the truth, looked in faith for the Lord's coming. Ridley wrote: "The world without doubt-this I do believe, and therefore 1 say it-draws to an end."

Said Baxter: "The thoughts of the coming of the Lord are most sweet and joyful to me. It is the work of faith and the character of His saints to love His appearing, and to look for that blessed hope"

23. What will be the burden of the closing gospel message?

"Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. . . . Babylon is fallen, is fallen. . . . If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God." Rev. 14:7-10.

24. How are those described who accept this message?

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Verse 12.

25. How earnestly is this work to he prosecuted?

"And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled." Luke 14:23. NOTE - This work is now going on. In every part of the world the sound of this closing gospel message isbeing heard, and the people are being urged to accept it, and to prepare for Christ's coming and kingdom.

1. What did the Lord command Abraham to do?

"Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee." Gen. 12:1.

2. How did Abraham respond to this command?

"So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran." Verse 4.

3. Of what was Abraham's obedience the fruit?

"By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed to go out unto a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing whither he went." Heb. 11:8, R.V.

4. What command did the Lord later give to Abraham?

"And He said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." Gen.22:2.

5. Upon what ground were the previous promises then renewed to Abraham?

"And said, By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice." Verses 16-18.

6. What enabled Abraham to endure the test?

"By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son." Heb. 11:17.

7. Of what were the works of Abraham an evidence?

"Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?" James2:21.

8. By his works what was shown to be perfect?

"Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?" Verse 22.

9. In what statement of the Scripture was Abraham's obedience really implied?

"And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God." Verse 23.

10. What kind of faith avails with God?

"For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love." Gal. 5:6.

NOTE - The faith that justifies is the faith that works. Those who say, and do not, are not men of faith. The obedience which is pleasing to God is the fruit of that faith which takes God at His word, and submits to the working of His power, being fully assured that what He has promised He is able also to perform. This is the faith which is reckoned for righteousness. See Rom. 4:21, 22.

11. For what purpose is the mystery of the gospel made manifest?

But now [the mystery] is made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith." Rom. 16:26.

12. For what purpose is the grace of Christ received?

"Through whom we received grace and apostleship, unto obedience of faith among all the nations, for His name's sake." Rom. 1:5, R.V.

13. What example of obedience has Christ set for us?

"And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Phil. 2:8.

14. At what cost did even He learn the lesson of obedience?

"Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered." Heb. 5:8.

15. To whom did Christ become the author of salvation?

"And being made perfect, He became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him." Verse 9.

16. How complete should this obedience be?

"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." 2 Cor. 10:5.

17. What effect did the preaching of the apostles have upon the hearers?

"And the Word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith." Acts 6:7.

18. What effect did the preaching of the Apostle Paul have upon the Gentiles?

"For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed." Rom. 15:18.

19. How highly does God regard obedience?

"And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." 1 Sam. 15:22.

20. With what sins are rebellion and stubbornness classed?

"For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou has rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being king." Verse 23.

21. Whose voice had more weight with Saul than had the commandment of God?

"And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice." Verse 24.

22. What charge did Jesus bring against the Pharisees?

"And He said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition." Mark 7:9.

NOTE - Human tradition is simply the voice of man preserved in the church. To follow the traditions of men instead of obeying the commandments of God is to repeat the sin of the Pharisees.

23. What will be the fate of those who do not obey the gospel of Christ?

"And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Thess. 1:7, 8.

24. What condition is attained in obeying the truth?

"Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love 'of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently." 1 Peter 1:22.

25. What promise is made to the obedient?

"If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land." Isa. 1:19.

26. Whose example are we urged to imitate?

"That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises." Heb.6:12.

To obey is better than sacrifice, the Lord bath said; To hearken when He commandeth, than an offering made.

All ye who say, "There is naught to do since Christ doth save,"
Remember what He commands you in the Book He gave.

Remember only the doers of the Word are blessed;
'Tis well to hear and believe, but to do is best.

F. E. Belden.

1. In what promise was a Saviour from sin first revealed?

"And the Lord God said unto the serpent, I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shall bruise His heel." Gen. 3:14, 15.

2. Through whom was a restoration of the lost dominion promised to Abraham?

"To thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever." Gen.13:15.

3. Who was this promised seed?

"He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Gal. 3:16.

4. Where was Christ to be born?

"And . . . he [Herod] demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea." Matt. 2:4-6. See Micah 5:2.

5. Of whom was Christ to be born?

"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Isa. 7:14. NOTE - ImmanueI means "God with us." See Matt. 1:23.

6. Before His birth, what did the angel say to Joseph concerning the naming of the child?

"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shall call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins." Matt. 1:21.

TJU"There comes a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give Me to drink." John 4:7.

7. At His birth, what message did the angel bring to the shepherds abiding in the field?

"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10,11.

8. In what song of praise did a host of angels join?

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Verses 13,14.

9. What prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled at Christ's birth?

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder." Isa.9:6.

10. What did the prophet say His name should be called?

"And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end." Verses 6, 7.

11. What did the devout Simeon say when he saw the child Jesus?

"And when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for Him after the custom of the law, then took he Him UP in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel." Luke 2

12. How did the aged prophetess Anna express herself at the sight of Jesus?

"And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spoke of Him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem." Verse 38.

13. What did the wise men of the East do when they had found Jesus?

"When they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary His mother. and fell down. and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." Matt. 2:11.

14. How came Jesus to live for a time in Egypt?

"And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young Child and His mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until 1 bring word to thee : for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him." Verse 13.

15. How does the Revelator describe this satanic desire to destroy Christ?

"And the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born." Rev. 12:4.

16. By what means did Herod seek to destroy Christ?

"Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under." Matt. 2:16.

17. After Herod's death, where did Joseph and his family live?

"And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shal1 be called a Nazarene." Verse 23.

18. What is said of Christ's childhood and early life?

"And the Child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon Him. . . . And He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them." Luke 2:40-51.

19. Upon returning from a feast at Jerusalem how came Joseph and Mary to lose Jesus when He was twelve years old?

"But they, supposing Him to have been in the company, went a day's journey; and they sought Him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And when they found Him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking Him." Verses 44, 45.

NOTE - This is how many lose Jesus today. They suppose He is in their company, but do not see to it that He is with them Personally. Through carelessness it takes but a day to lose Him; but, when once lost, it sometimes takes days of sorrowful searching, as it did Joseph and Mary, to find Him again.

20. What was Jesus doing when they found Him?

"And it came to pass, that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions." Verse 46.

21. How did His questions and answers impress those who heard Him?

"And all that heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers." Verse 47.

22. With what words do the Scriptures conclude the record of Christ's early life?

"And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." Verse 52.

NOTE - Christ's early life is a pattern for all children and youth. It was marked by respect and love for His mother. He was obedient to His parents, and kind to all. He hated sin, and to every temptation turned a deaf ear. He sought to understand the reason of things, and so increased in knowledge and wisdom. He was sympathetic and tender-hearted, and ever ready to relieve the oppressed, the sorrowing, and the suffering. If we love Christ, we shall love to talk of Him; our sweetest thoughts will be of Him; and by beholding Him we shall be changed into the same image. See note on page 66 of this volume.

ALL praise to Thee, eternal Lord, Clothed in a garb of flesh and blood; Choosing a manger for Thy throne, While worlds on worlds are Thine alone!

Once did the skies before Thee bow; A virgin's arms contain Thee now: Angels, who did in Thee rejoice, Now listen to Thine infant voice.

A little child, Thou art our guest, That weary ones in Thee may rest; Forlorn and lowly is Thy birth, That we may, rise to heaven from earth.

Thou comest in the darksome night To make us children of the light; To make us, in the realms divine, Like Thine own angels round Thee shine.

All this for us Thy love bath done; By this to Thee our life is won; For this we tune our cheerful lays, And tell our thanks in songs of praise. -Martin Luther.

1. What report did the officers bring who were sent out by the chief priests and Pharisees to take Jesus?

"Never man spoke like this Man." John 7:46.

2. How did Christ teach the people?

"He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." Matt. 7:29. NOTE - "The teaching of the scribes and elders was cold and formal, like a lesson learned by rote. To them the Word of God possessed no vital power. Their own ideas and traditions were substituted for its teaching. In the accustomed round of service they professed to explain the law, but no inspiration from God stirred their own hearts or the hearts of their hearers."

3. Why was Christ's preaching so impressive?

"For His word was with power." Luke 4:32.

4. With what was He filled?

"And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness." Verse 1.

5. How freely was the Holy Spirit bestowed upon Him?

"For He whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him." John 3:34.

6. How had Christ's teaching by parables been foretold?

"I will open My mouth in a parable:1 will utter dark sayings of old." Ps. 78:2.

7. How was this fulfilled?

"Without a parable spoke He not unto them." Matt. 13:34.

8. What question did -Christ's wonderful teaching call forth?

"And when He was come into His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this Man this wisdom, and these mighty works?" Verse 54.

10. Because some thought He had come to destroy the law, what did Christ say?

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5:17-20.

11. What testimony did Nicodemus bear concerning Him?

"Rabbi, we know that Thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest, except God be with him." John 3:2.

9. What did Isaiah say Christ would do with the law?

"He will magnify the law, and make it honorable." Isa. 42:21

12. What did Christ's words at Jacob's well lead the woman of Samaria to ask?

"The woman then left her water-pot and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?" John 4:28, 29.

13. How were the two on the way to Emmaus affected by Christ's conversation with them?

"And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?" Luke 24:32.

14. In His teaching, to what did Christ direct attention?

"And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself!'

"And He said unto them, These are the words which I spoke unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning Me. Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures." Verses 27,44,45.

15. How did He encourage His disciples to look for the fulfilment of prophecy?

"When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (who reads, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains." Matt. 24:15,16.

NOTE - Christ was a faithful student, a consistent user, and a perfect expounder, of the Scriptures. He met temptation with the Scriptures; He proved His Messiahship by the Scriptures; He taught from the Scriptures; and He told His disciples to look to the Scriptures as their counsellor and guide for the future.

BLEST they who seek While in their youth, With spirit meek, The way of truth. To them the Sacred Scriptures now display Christ as the only true and living way; His precious blood on Calvary was given To make them heirs of bliss in heaven. And e'en on earth the child of God can trace The blessings of his Saviour's grace. For them He bore His Father's frown; For them He wore The thorny crown; Nailed to the cross, Endured its pain, That His life's loss Might be their gain. Then haste to choose That better part, Nor e'en refuse The Lord thy heart, Lest He declare, "I know you not," And deep despair Should be your lot. Now look to Jesus, who on Calvary died, And trust on Him who there was crucified.

1. What reference is made in the Psalms to Christ's use of parables?

"I will open My mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old." Ps. 78:2.NOTE-A parable primarily means a comparison or similitude; specifically it is a short story or narrative drawn from life or nature, by means of which some important lesson is taught, or some moral drawn.

2. From what sources did Christ usually draw His parables?

From nature and from every-day experiences.

3. For what are His parables noted?

"Our Savior's parables are distinguished above all others for clearness, purity, chasteness, intelligibility, importance of instruction, and simplicity. They are taken mostly from the affairs of common life, and are intelligible, therefore, to all men." -Dr. Albert Barnes, on Matt. 13:3.

4. Following one of His parables, what did Christ say?

"Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." Matt. 13:9.

5. What question did the disciples then ask?

"And the disciples came, and said unto Him, Why speakest Thou unto them in parables?" Verse 10.

6. What reply did Christ make?

"He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand." Verses 11-13.

NOTE - Christ's object, therefore, in using parables was to teach the mysteries, or truths, of the kingdom of heaven-truths not necessarily difficult to understand, but which had long been hidden or obscured by sin, apostasy, and tradition-in such a way that the spiritually minded and those desirous of learning the truth, might understand them, and the worldly minded and unwilling would not. When asked the meaning of any parable, Christ readily explained it to His disciples. Matt. 13:36-43; Mark 4:33, 34. See Luke 9:9-15.

7. After giving instruction by the use of parables, what question did Christ ask His disciples?

"Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto Him, Yea, Lord." Verse 51.

8. How extensively did Christ make use of parables?

"All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spoke He not unto them." Verse 34.

NOTE - Parables are simply stories. All, young and old, like to hear a story. Story-telling is one of the most successful means of awakening an interest, securing attention, and teaching, illustrating, and enforcing important truths. Christ, the greatest of all teachers, recognized this, and therefore made constant use of this method of instruction.

9. How did Christ suggest that His disciples follow His example in teaching gospel truth?

"Then said He unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old." Verse 52.

10. Which are some of the most touching and soul-winning of Christ's parables?

The parable of the lost sheep, and that of the prodigal son. Luke 15:3-7, 11-32.

1. What testimony did the chief priests and Pharisees bear concerning Christ's work?

"Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? For this Man doeth many miracles." John 11:47.

2. By what did Peter, on the day of Pentecost, say that Christ had been approved by God?

"Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know." Acts 2:22.

3. By what means did Christ claim to cast out devils?

"But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you." Luke 11:20. Matt. 12:28 says, "by the Spirit of God."

NOTE - Under the third plague in Egypt-that of turning the dust into lice the magicians, failing to duplicate it, said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God." Ex. 8:18,19.

4. Upon what ground did Nicodemus rest his belief that Christ was a teacher from God?

"Rabbi, we know that Thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that Thou does, except God be with him." John 3:2.

5. After the healing of the blind man, upon what charge did some of the Pharisees seek to prove that Christ was not of God?

"And He came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And He said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up." Luke 7:14, 15. "Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them." Same verse, last part.

7. What was the result of Christ's working miracles at His first passover?

"Now when He was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast-day, many believed in His name, when they saw the miracles which He did." John 2:23.

8. What question did the performing of these miracles lead many to ask?

"Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This Man is not of God, because He keepeth not the Sabbath day. " John 9:16, first part.

NOTE - This was a false charge. Christ did keep the Sabbath, but not according to the Pharisees' idea of Sabbath-keeping. See reading on "Christ and the Sabbath," in Vol. 1I.

6. What question did others raise in opposition to this view?

"Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague." Mark 5:34. "And many of the people believed on Him, and said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these which this Man hath done?" John 7:31.

9. Why were many attracted to Christ?

"A great multitude followed Him, because they saw His miracles which He did on them that were diseased." John 6:2.

NOTE - A miracle is the display of divine or superhuman power in some unusual or extraordinary manner; hence its nature to attract attention. Christ fed the five thousand with the multiplied loaves and fishes, and all men wondered. Every day God feeds millions of humanity with the multiplied fruits of the earth, and no one marvels. Christ, by a shortened process, changed water into wine, and everybody was astonished; but every year God does this in the usual way-through the vine-in almost limitless quantities, and no one is astonished. A divine miracle, therefore, whenever performed, is wrought to heal and to save, and to call attention to the source of divine power.

10. What did the people say when they saw these things?

"He hath done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.` Mark 7:37.

11. What kinds of disease and sickness did Jesus cure?

"And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people." "Great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all." Matt. 4:23; 12:15.

12. Who were brought to Him for healing?

"And they brought unto Him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and He healed them." Matt. 4:24.

13. To the woman who had been healed by touching His garment, what did Christ say made her whole?

"Thy faith hath made thee whole." Matt. 9:22.

14. What did He say to the two blind men as He healed them?

"According to your faith be it unto you." Verse 29.

15. To another whose sight He had restored, what did Christ say?

"Thy faith hath saved thee." Luke 18:42.

16. Why did not Christ work many miracles in His own country?

"And He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief." Matt. 13:58.

17. What lesson did Christ design to teach in healing the man sick of the palsy?

"But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (He said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house." Luke 5:24.

NOTE - By His miracles, therefore, Christ designed to teach faith in the power of God not only to restore the body, but to heal the soul.

18. What effect did Christ's miracles have upon the individuals restored, and the people who witnessed them?

"And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God." "And all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him." Luke 18:43; 13:17.

19. What message did Christ send to John the Baptist while John was in prison, to strengthen his wavering faith?

"Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in Me." Matt. 11:4-6.

20. In what miracle did Christ bring to a climax His works on earth?

"And when He thus had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave-clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go." John 11:43,44.

21. What was the result of this great miracle?

"Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on Him." Verse 45.

22. Because of the interest which this miracle created in Him, what did the Pharisees say?

"Behold, the world is gone after Him." John 12:19.

23. What did Jesus present to the people as a basis of confidence in Him?

"If I do not the works of My Father, believe Me not. But if I do, though ye believe not Me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." "Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works' sake." John 10:37, 38; 14:11.

24. Did Jesus ever make use of ordinary means in performing His miracles?

"When He had thus spoken, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, and said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent). He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing." John 9:6, 7. See also Mark 7:33-35; 8:23-25; 2 Kings 5:1-14.

25. Why were the miracles of Christ recorded by the inspired writers?

"And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book: but these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name." John 20:30, 31.

The Miracles of Christ

According to the Christian case, the miracles of Christ belong to the life and work of One who has changed, and changed immeasurably for the better, the moral and religious condition of great nations, and whose power after the lapse of eighteen centuries is still unspent. In the narratives which record the miracles of Christ the miracles are not the most wonderful elements: His teaching, His unique personality, the Divine perfection revealed under human conditions in His character and history, are more wonderful still. Finally, His appearance has proved to be the transcendent fulfilment of a great hope which, for many centuries, had been the stay, the strength, and the consolation of the race from which He sprang, a race to which had come an exceptional knowledge of God. That Christ should have worked miracles does not surprise me. It would have surprised me if He had not.

1. For what purpose did Christ come into the world?

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom 1 am chief." 1 Tim. 1:15.

2. What constrained God to give His Son to die for man?

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16. See 1 John 4:9, 10; Rom. 5:8.

3. What did the prophet say Christ would be called to endure?

"He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare His generation? for He was cut off out of the land of the living: f or the transgression of my people was He stricken." Isa. 53:7, 8.

4. Did Christ know beforehand the treatment He was to receive?

"Then He took unto Him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem. and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death." Luke 18:31-33.

5. How heavy was the burden which rested on His soul on the night of His betrayal?

"And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith He unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with Me." Matt. 26:37,38.

6. What prayer of Christ shows that the redemption of a lost world trembled in the balance in that terrible hour?

"And He went a little farther, and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, 0 My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt." Verse 39.

7. How great was the agony of His soul?

"And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly: and His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground." Luke 22:44.

8. After He had prayed this remarkable prayer three times, what occurred?

"And while He yet spoke, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss Him. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?" Verses 47, 48.

9. To what place was Christ taken?

"Then took they Him, and led Him, and brought Him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off." Verse 54.

10. While at the high priest's house, how did Peter deny Him?

"Another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with Him: for he is a Galilean. And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spoke, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter." Verses 59-61.

11. To what insults was Christ subjected at the house of the high priest?

"And the men that held Jesus mocked Him, and smote Him. And when they had blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face, and asked Him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote Thee?" Verses 63, 64.

12. Where was Christ next taken?

"And as soon as it was day, the elders of the people and the chief priests and the scribes came together and led Him into their council." Verse 66.

13. What admission did they secure from Him as the basis of condemning Him?

"Then said they all, Art Thou then the Son of God? And e said unto them, Ye say that I am. And they said, What need we any further witness? For we ourselves have heard of His own mouth." Verses 70, 71.

14. What was the next step in their plan to secure lawful authority to carry out their unlawful purpose?

"And the whole multitude of them arose, and led Him unto Pilate." Luke 23:1.

15. When Pilate desired Christ released, how did they remonstrate?

"And they were the more fierce, saying, He stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry, beginning from Galilee to this place." Verse 5.

NOTE - This has ever been a favourite accusation of the enemies of truth against the work of true reformers. The Romans at this very time had a law forbidding the teaching of any new religion "whereby the minds of men may be disturbed!'

16. When Pilate heard that Christ was from Galilee, what did he do?

"And as soon as he knew that He belonged unto Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who himself also was at Jerusalem at that time." Verse 7.

17. Who appeared to accuse Christ before Herod?

"And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him." Verse 10.

18. To what indignities did Herod subject the Saviour?

"And Herod with his men of war set Him at naught, and mocked Him, and arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him again to Pilate." Verse 11.

19. What did Pilate propose to do when Christ was again brought before him?

"I have found no cause of death in Him: I will therefore chastise Him, and let Him go." Verse 22.

20. Instead of consenting to His release, what did Christ's accusers now demand?

"And they were instant [earnest] with loud voices, requiring that He might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed." Verse 23.

21. Although Pilate had declared his belief in Christ's innocence, yet what cruel punishment did he inflict upon Him?

"Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged Him." John 19:1.

22. What shameful treatment did Christ receive from the soldiers?

"And when they had plaited a crown of thorns, they put it upon His head, and a reed in His right hand: and they bowed the knee before Him, and mocked Him, saying, Hail, King. of the Jews! And they spit upon Him, and took the reed, and smote Him on the head." Matt. 27:29, 30.

23. After bringing Him to the place of crucifixion, what drink was offered Christ to stupefy Him?

"They gave Him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when He had tasted thereof, He would not drink." Verse .34.

24. In what prayer for those who crucified Him did Christ manifest the true spirit of the gospel-love for sinner? "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Luke 23:34.

25. With what words did the chief priests and others mock Jesus while on the cross?

"Likewise also the chief priests mocking Him, with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him." Matt. 27:41,42.

NOTE - Christ could have come down from the cross. But it is because He would not save Himself that the sinner may have pardon and favour with God.

26. As He cried out in agony on the cross, and said, 9, thirst," what was given Him?

"And straightway one of them ran, and took a sponge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave Him to drink." Verse 48. See John19:28, 29.

27. What closed this terrible scene?

"When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, He said, is finished: and He bowed His head and gave up the ghost." John 19:30.

28. BY what miracle and phenomenon in nature did God indicate the character of the deed which was being committed?

"And it was about the sixth hour [noon], and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst." Luke 23:44, 45.

29. What divine purpose was wrought out in the sufferings of Christ?

"For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." Heb. 2:10.

30. For whom did Christ suffer all these things?

"He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed." Isa. 53:5.

31. Whose destruction was made certain by the death of Christ?

"That through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil." Heb. 2:14.

32. What deliverance was thus made possible?

"And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." Verse 15.

33. How much was included in the gift of Christ for the salvation of man?

"He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freelygive us all things?" Rom. 8:32.

'Tis midnight; and on Olive's brow
The star is dimmed that lately shone:
'Tis midnight; in the garden, now,
The suffering Saviour prays alone.

'Tis midnight; and from all removed,
The Saviour wrestles lone with fears;
E'en that disciple whom He loved
Heeds not His Master's grief and tears.

'Tis midnight; and for others' guilt
The Man of Sorrows weeps in blood;
Yet He who hath in anguish knelt,
Is not forsaken by His God.

'Tis midnight; and from ether plains
Is borne the song that angels know;
Unheard by mortals are the strains
That sweetly soothe the Saviour's woe.

- William B. Tappan.

1. In what psalm was the resurrection of Christ foretold?

"For Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell [Heb., Sheol, the grave] ; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption." Ps. 16:10.

2. In what way was Jonah a type of Christ?

"For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Matt. 12:40.

3. In what plain words did Christ foretell His resurrection?

"From that time forth began Jesus to show unto H-is disciples, how that He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day." Matt. 16:21. "And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: and they shall kill Him, and the third day He shall be raised again." Matt. 17:22,23. "The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day." Luke 9:22. See also Matt. 20:17-19; Mark 8:31; 9:31, 32; 10:32-34; Luke 18:31-34.

4. When asked by the Jews for a sign of His Messiahship, what did Jesus say?

"Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." John 2:19.

5. To what temple did He refer?

"Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt Thou rear it up in three days? But He spoke of the temple of His body." Verses 20, 21.

6. After His resurrection, what effect had this prediction upon His disciples?

"When therefore He was risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this unto them; and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had said." Verse 22.

7. How did the chief priests and Pharisees seek to prevent the fulfilment of Christ's words concerning His resurrection?

"Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while He was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night, and steal Him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first." Matt. 27:62-64.

8. How did Pilate comply with their request?

"Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch." Verses 65,66.

9. How futile was all this?

"In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: and for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead." Matt. 28:1-7. See also Mark 16:1-16; Luke 24:1-8 44-46; John 20:1-9.

10. Was it possible for Christ to be holden of death?

"Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that He should be holden of it." Acts 2:23, 24.

11. How does Paul speak of the resurrection of Christ?

"For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." 1 Cor. 15:3, 4.

12. Who does the apostle say saw Christ after He was risen?

"He was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: after that, He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; . . . after that, He was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time." Verses 5-8.

13. What importance is attached to Christ's resurrection?

"If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. . . . Ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished." Verses 14-18.

14. What positive assurance of the resurrection is given?

"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." Verse 20.

15. What great truth therefore follows?

"As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Verse 22.

16. What cheering message has Christ sent to His people touching His resurrection?

"I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." Rev. 1:18.

17. What is the measure of the power of God which believers may experience in their daily lives?

"That ye may know . . . the exceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead." Eph. 1:18-20.

18. What Christian ordinance has been given as a memorial of Christ's burial and resurrection?

Baptism, the symbol of the new birth. Rom. 6:3-5.

1. Through Christ, what has been opened to the house of David?

"In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." Zech. 13:1.

2. Who has borne our sins, and stands ready to help us?

"I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save." Isa. 63:1, last part.

3. For what purpose did Christ come to this world?

"For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10.

4. Through what was Christ made a complete and perfect Saviour?

"For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." Heb. 2:10.

5. Because of this, what is Christ able to do?

"For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted." Verse18.

6. How complete a Saviour is He?

"Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them." Heb. 7:25.

7. From what is He able to keep us?

"Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen." Jude 24,25.

8. What does He call those who accept Him?

"Henceforth I call you not servants; 1 have called you friends." John 15:15.

9. What kind of friend is He?

"There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother." Prov. 19:24.

10. What is the mark of a true friend?

"A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." Prov. 17:17.

I will sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me,
How He left His home in glory
For the cross on Calvary.

I was lost, but Jesus found me,
Found the sheep that went astray;
Threw His loving arms around me,
Drew me back into His way.

I was bruised, but Jesus healed me,
Faint was I from many a fall,
Sight was gone, and fears possessed me,
But He freed me from them all.

Days of darkness still come o'er me,
Sorrow's paths I often tread,
But the Saviour still is with me,
By, His hand I'm safely led.

Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
of the Christ who died for me,
Sing it with the saints in glory,
Gathered by the crystal sea. Francis H. Rawley.

1. What precious promise did Jesus make to His disciples shortly before His crucifixion?

"I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever." John 14:16.

2. Who is the Comforter, and what was He to do?

"But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that 1 said unto you." Verse 26, R.V.

3. Why cannot the world receive Him?

"Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him." Verse 17.

4. How intimate is His union with believers?

"But ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." Same verse.

5. Whose presence does the Holy Spirit bring to the believers?

"I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." Verse 18.

6.'What promise is thus fulfilled?

"Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." Matt. 28:20. See also John 14:21-23.

7. What threefold union is thus established?

"At that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you." Verse 20.

8. How does Jesus, through the Spirit, seek an entrance to every heart?

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, 1 will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me." Rev. 3:20.

9. Why was it necessary for Christ to go away?

"Nevertheless 1 tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, 1 will send Him unto you." John 16:7.

10. What was the Comforter to do when He came?

"And when He is come, He will reprove [margin, convince] the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." Verse 8.

11. By what other title is the Comforter designated?

"But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me." John 15:26.

12. What did Jesus say the Spirit of truth would do?

"Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come." John 16:13.

NOTE - The Spirit speaks (1 Tim. 4:1); teaches (1 Cor. 2:13); bears witness (Rom. 8:4); makes intercession (Rom. 8:26); distributes the gifts (1 Cor. 12:11) and invites the sinner (Rev. 22:17).

13. Whom did Christ say the Holy Spirit would glorify?

"He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall show it unto you." Verse 14.

NOTE - It is plain from these scriptures that the Holy Spirit is the personal representative of Christ upon the earth, abiding in the church by dwelling in the hearts of the believers. It follows that any attempt to make a man the vicegerent of Christ in the place of the third person of the Godhead is an attempt to put man in the place of God. Thus does the fundamental principle of the Papacy set aside the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

14. How has God revealed to us the hidden things of the kingdom?

"But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." 1 Cor. 2:10.

15. Who moved upon the prophets to give their messages?

"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 2 Peter 1:21.

16. After Pentecost, how was the gospel preached?

"With the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven." 1 Peter 1:12.

17. How are believers scaled?

"In whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise." Eph. 1:13.

18. What warning is therefore given?

"Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." Eph. 4:30.

19. Is there a limit to the strivings of God's Spirit?

"And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man." Gen. 6:3.

NOTE - The limit is determined by the creature rather than by the Creator. It is reached when there is an utter abandonment to evil, and further appeals would be without avail. God foreknowing all things, may designate a definite period of probation for man, as in the case of the one hundred and twenty years before the Flood (Gen. 6:3) ; but His Spirit never ceases to strive with man as long as there is hope of his salvation.

20. For what did David pray?

"Cast me not away from Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me." PS. 51:11.

21. How willing is God to give to us the Holy Spirit?

"If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him." Luke 11:13.

1. Concerning what subject ought we to be informed?

"Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, 1 would not have you ignorant." 1 Cor. 12:1.

2. When Christ ascended, what did He give to men?

"Wherefore He saith, When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive [margin, a multitude of captives], and gave gifts unto men." Eph. 4:8.

3. What were these gifts that Christ gave to men?

"And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers." Verse 11.

4. How are these gifts elsewhere spoken of?

"And God bath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues." 1 Cor. 12:28.

5. For what purpose were these gifts bestowed upon the church?

"For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: . . . that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ." Eph. 4:12-15.

6. What result is to be obtained by the exercise of the gifts in the church?

"Till we all come in [into, margin] the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." Verse 13.

7. How is unity preserved in the diversities of gifts?

"Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit." 1 Cor. 12:4.

8. For what purpose is the manifestation of this one Spirit given?

"But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues." Verses 7-10.

9. Who controls the distribution of the gifts of the Spirit?

"But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He will." Verse11.

10. Was it God's design that all should possess the same gifts?

"Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?" Verses 29, 30.

11. Were the gifts of the Spirit to continue forever?

"Whether there be prophecies, they shall be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away." 1 Cor. 13:8, R.V.

12. When will the gifts of the Spirit he no longer needed?

"When that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." Verse 10.

1. For what did Christ, just before His ascension, tell His disciples to wait?

"And, behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high." Luke 24:49.

2. With what did He say they would he baptized?

"Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." Acts 1:5. NOTE -John the Baptist had foretold this baptism. He said: 'I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shallbaptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire." Matt. 3:11.

3. For what work was this baptism to prepare them?

"But you shall receive power, after, that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Acts 1:8.

4. What were some of the results of the preaching of the gospel under the outpouring of the Spirit?

"Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said . . . Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. . . . Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls." Acts 2:37, 41.

"And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; . . . and believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women." Acts 5:12-14 ."And the Word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith." Acts 6:7.

5. How did persecution affect the preaching of the gospel?

"And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. . . . Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the Word." Acts 8:1-4.

NOTE - " Persecution has only had a tendency to extend and establish the faith which it was designed to destroy. . . . There is no lesson which men have been so slow to learn as that to oppose and persecute men is the very way to confirm them in their opinions, and to spread their doctrines.' - Dr. Albert Barnes, on Acts 4:4.

6. What words of Peter seem to indicate another outpouring of the Spirit?

"Repent ye-therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord." Acts 3:19.

7. What event does he speak of as immediately following these times of refreshing?

"And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive [Syriac, retain] until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." Verses 20, 21.

NOTE - From this it seems evident that we may look for another outpouring of the Spirit for a final proclamation of the gospel to all the world just before Christ's second advent and the restitution of all things.

8. What prophecy was fulfilled in the Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit in the time of the apostles?

"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said, . . . These are not drunken, as ye suppose, . . . but this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: and on My servants and on My handmaidens I will pour out in those days of My Spirit; and they shall prophesy." Acts 2:14-18. See Joel 2:28, 29.

9. What expressions in the prophecy of Joel seem to imply a double fulfilment of this outpouring of the Spirit?

"Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for He hath given you the former rain moderately, and He will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month." Joel 2:23. See also Hosea 6:3.

NOTE - In Palestine the early rains prepare the soil for the seed sowing, and the latter rains ripen the grain for the harvest. So the early outpouring of the Spirit prepared the world for the extensive sowing of the gospel seed, and the final outpouring will come to ripen the golden grain for the harvest of the earth, which Christ says is "the end of the world." Matt. 13:37-39; Rev. 14:14, 15.

10. For what are we told to pray at this time?

"Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to everyone grass in the field." Zech. 10:1.

NOTE -Before the apostles received the baptism of the Spirit in the early rain on the day of Pentecost, they all "continued with one accord in prayer and supplication." Acts 1:14. During this time they confessed their faults, put away their differences, ceased their selfish ambitions and contentions for place and power, so that when the time for the outpouring came, "they were all with one accord in one place," ready for its reception. To be prepared for the final outpouring of the Spirit, all sin and selfish ambition must again be put away, and a like work of grace wrought upon the hearts of God's people.

11. How is the closing work of the gospel under the outpouring of the Spirit described by the Revelator?

"After these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory." Rev. 18:1.

12. What does this angel say?

"And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." Verse2.

NOTE - The religious world will then be in much the same condition as was the Jewish nation after it had rejected Christ at His first advent. See 2 Tim. 3:1-5.

13. What did Peter on the day of Pentecost tell his hearers to do? "And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation." Acts 2:40.

14. What similar call and appeal will be made under the final outpouring of the Spirit?

"And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, MY people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities." Rev. 18:4,5.

NOTES - A great work will be accomplished in a short time under the final outpouring of the Spirit. Many voices all over the earth will sound the warning cry. Signs and wonders will be wrought by the believers, and, as at Pentecost, thousands will be converted in a day. Those who fail to heed this final gospel call, like the unbelieving Jews, will he doomed to destruction. The seven last plagues will overtake them as war, famine, death, and destruction overtook the Jews, who, not believing in Christ, failed to heed His call to flee, and shut themselves up in Jerusalem to their doom. Those who heed the call, and separate themselves from sin and from sinners, will be saved.

Come, Holy Spirit, come, Let Thy bright beams arise, Dispel the sorrow from our minds, The darkness from our eyes.

Convince us all of sin, Then lead to Jesus' blood, And to our wondering view revealThe mercies of our God.

Revive our drooping faith, Our doubts and fears remove, And kindle in our breasts the flame Of never-dying love.

'Tis Thine to cleanse the heart, To sanctify the soul, To pour fresh life in every part, And new-create the whole. ,

Come, Holy Spirit, come, Our minds from bondage free; Then shall we know, and praise, and love The Father, Son, and Thee. Joseph Hart.

Are All the Children In?

Are all the children in? The night is falling,
And storm - clouds gather in the threatening west;
The lowing cattle seek a friendly shelter;
The bird hies to her nest;The thunder crashes;
wilder grows the tempest, And darkness settles o'er the fearful din;
Come, shut the door, and gather round the hearthstone:
Are all the children in?

Are all the children in? The night is falling,
When gilded sin doth walk about the streets.
Oh, "at the last it biteth like a serpent" Poisoned are stolen sweets.
0 mothers, guard the feet of inexperience, Too prone to wander in the paths of sin!
Oh, shut the door of love against temptation Are all the children in?

Are all the children in? The night is falling,
The night of death is hastening on apace;
The Lord is calling, "Enter thou thy chamber, And tarry there a space."
And when He comes, the King in all His glory,
Who died the shameful death our hearts to win,
Oh, may the gates of heaven shut about us, With all the children in!
-Elizabeth Rosser.

1. After creating man, what did God say?

"And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone." Gen. 2:18.

2. What, therefore, did God say He would make?

"I will make him an help meet for him." Same verse.

NOTE - Not a helpmeet nor a helpmate, but-two words-help meet for him; that is, fit or suitable for him. The word meet in the original means a front, a part opposite, a counterpart, or mate. Man's companion, or help, was to correspond to him. Each was to be suited to the other's needs.

3. Could such a help be found among the creatures which God had already made?

"And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him." Verse 20.

4. What, therefore, did God do?

"And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made He a woman, and brought her unto the man." Verses 21,22.

NOTE - How beautiful, in its fullness of meaning, is this simple but suggestive story, at which sceptics sneer! God did not make man after the order of the lower animals, but "in His own image." Neither did He choose man's companion, or "help," from some other order of beings, but made her from man-of the same substance. And He took this substance, not from man's feet, that he might have an excuse to degrade, enslave, or trample upon her; nor from man's head, that woman might assume authority over man; but from man's side, from over his heart, the seat of affections, that woman might stand at his side as man's equal and, side by side with him, together, under God, work out the purpose and destiny of the race-man, the strong, the noble, the dignified; woman, the weaker, the sympathetic, the loving. How much more exalted and inspiring is this view than the theory that man developed from the lower order of animals!

5. What did Adam say as he received his wife from God?

"And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." Verse 23.

6. What great truth was then stated?

"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." Verse 24.

7. In what words does Christ recognize marriage as of God?

"Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." Matt. 19:6.

NOTE - Thus was the marriage institution ordained of God in Eden, before man sinned. Like the Sabbath, it has come down to us with the Edenic dews of divine blessing still upon it. It was ordained not only for the purpose of peopling the earth and perpetuating the race, but to promote social order and human happiness; to prevent irregular affection; and, through well-regulated families, to transmit truth, purity, and holiness from age to age. Around it cluster all the purest and truest joys of home and the race. When the divine origin of marriage is recognized, and the divine principles controlling it are obeyed, marriage is indeed a blessing; but when these are disregarded, untold evils are sure to follow. That which, rightly used, is of greatest blessing, when abused becomes the greatest curse.

8. By what commands has God guarded the marriage relation?

"Thou shall not commit adultery." "Thou shall not covet thy neighbour's wife." Ex. 20:14, 17.

9. What New Testament injunction is given respecting marriage?

"Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled: for fornicators and adulterers God will judge." Heb. 13:4, R.V.

NOTE -By many, marriage is lightly regarded-is often made even a subject of jest. its divine origin, its great object, and its possibilities and influences for good or evil are little thought of, and hence it is often entered into with little idea of its responsibilities or its sacred obligations. The marriage relationship is frequently used in the Scriptures as a symbol of the relationship existing between God and His people. See Rom. 7:1-4; 2 Cor. 11:2; Hosea 2:19,20; Rev. 19:7.

10. After the fall, what sort of marriages were introduced by men, which were productive of great evil?

"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose." Gen. 6:1 2.

NOTE - Not only was there plurality of wives, which in itself is an evil, but the "sons of God," descending from Seth, married the Daughters of men," the descendants from the idolatrous line of Cain, and thus corrupted the seed, or church, of God itself. All the barriers against evil thus being broken down, the whole race was soon corrupted, violence filled the earth, and the Flood followed.

11. What restriction did God make respecting marriages in Israel?

"Let them marry to whom they think best; only to the family of the tribe of their father shall they marry." Num. 36:6.

12. What prohibition did God give His chosen people against intermarrying with the heathen nations about them, and why?

"Neither shall thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shall not give unto his son, nor his daughter shall thou take unto thy son. For they will turn away thy son from following Me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly." Deut. 7:3,4.

NOTE - Intermarriage with the ungodly was the mistake made by the professed people of God before the Flood, and God did not wish Israel to repeat that folly.

13. What instruction is given in the New Testament regarding marriage with unbelievers?

"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God." 2 Cor. 6:14-16.

NOTE-This instruction forbids all compromising partnerships. Marriage of believers with unbelievers has ever been a snare by which Satan has captured many earnest souls who thought they could win the unbelieving, but in most cases have themselves drifted away from the moorings of faith into doubt, backsliding, and loss of religion. It was one of Israel's constant dangers, against which God warned them repeatedly. "Give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace [by such compromise] or their wealth for ever." Ezra 9:12. See also Ex. 34:14-16; Judges 14:1-3; Ezra 9 and 10; and Neh. 13:23-27. Even Solomon fell before the influence of heathen wives. Concerning him the inspired Word has left this melancholy record: 'His wives turned away his heart after other gods."1 Kings 11:4. No Christian can marry an unbeliever without running serious risk, and placing himself upon the enemy's ground. The Scriptures do not advocate separation after the union has been formed (see I Cor. 7:2-16), but good sense should teach us that faith can best be maintained, and domestic happiness best ensured, where both husband and wife are believers, and of the same faith. Both ministers and parents, therefore, should warn the young against all improper marriages.

14. What instruction did Abraham give his servant Eliezer when sending him to select a wife for his son Isaac?

"Thou shall take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house." Gen. 24:40.

NOTE - This passage indicates that in early Bible times parents generally had more to do in the selection of life companions for their children than they commonly have now. Young people who are wise will seek the advice and counsel of their parents, and above all, will seek to know the will of God, before entering upon this important relationship, with its grave responsibilities and its momentous consequences.

15. For how long does marriage bind the contracting parties?

"For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth." Rom. 7:

2. See 1 Cor. 7:39.

16. What only does Christ recognize as proper ground for dissolving the marriage relationship?

"Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery." Matt. 19:9.

NOTE - Civil laws recognize other reasons as justifiable causes for separation, such as extreme cruelty, habitual drunkenness, or other like gross offences; but only one offence, according to Christ, warrants the complete annulment of the marriage tie.

THERE is a bliss beyond all that the minstrel has told, When two that are linked in one heavenly tie, With heart never changing and brow never cold, Love on through all ills, and love on till they die. -Moore.

1. Where and by whom were the foundations of home laid?

"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there He put the man whom He had formed." Gen. 2:8.

2. In making this home, what besides man was needed?

"And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet [one adapted, or suitable] for him." Verse 18.

3. After creating Adam and Eve, what did God say to them?

"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth." Gen.1:28.

4. To what are the wife and children of the man who fears the Lord likened?

"Happy shall thou be, and it shall be well with thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table." Ps. 128:2,3.

5. What are children declared to be?

"Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord." Ps. 127:3. "Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of child are their fathers." Prov. 17:6.

6. How should the wife relate herself to her husband?

"Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church." Eph. 5:22, 23.

7. And how should husbands regard their wives?

"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it. . . . So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. Let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband." Verses 25-33.

8. Against what are husbands cautioned?

"Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them." Col. 3:19.

9. Why should wives he in subjection to their husbands?

"Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the Word, they also may without the Word be won by the conversation [manner of life] of the wives." 1 Peter 3:1.

10. Why should husbands be considerate of their wives?

"Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered." Verse 7.

11. Why should children obey their parents?

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right." Eph. 6:1.

12. How should parents bring up their children?

"And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Verse 4.

13. Why. should fathers not provoke their children to anger?

"Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged." Col. 3:21.

14. By what means may the mother bind the hearts of the loved ones at home together?

"She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness." Prov. 31:26.

NOTE - 'We want to get into the hearts of our children if we hold them, and help them, and bless them, and take them to heaven with us."-Frances Murphy.

15. How will such a mother he regarded?

"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." Verse 28.

NOTE - "Show me a loving husband, a worthy wife, and good children, and no pair of horses that ever flew along the road could take me in a year where I could see a more pleasing sight. Home is the grandest of all institutions.' - Spurgeon.

16. How faithfully should parents teach the precepts and commandments of God to their children?

"And thou shall teach them diligently unto thy children, and shall talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down and when you risest up." Deut. 6:7.

NOTES - "The home should be made a school of instruction, rather than a place of monotonous drudgery. The evenings should be cherished as precious seasons, to d to the instruction of the children in the way of righteousness. But how many children are sadly neglected! They are not educated in the home, that they may comprehend the truth of God, and are not trained to love justice and to do judgment. They should be patiently instructed, that they may understand the laws that govern them, and that they may know the springs of their actions. They are to be brought into harmony with the laws of heaven, to cherish the truth as it is in Jesus. In this way they may be fitted to join the society of the angels, and to stand in the presence of the divine Redeemer." Sabbath School Worker, August, 1896.

"A church within a church, a republic within a republic, a world within a world, is spelled by four letters-home! If things go right there, they go right everywhere; if things go wrong there, they go wrong everywhere. The door-sill of the dwellinghouse is the foundation of church and state. . . . In other words, domestic life overarches and undergirds all other life . . . . First, last, and all the time, have Christ in your home." - Talmage.

17. What is the great secret of a happy home?

"Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith." Prov. 15:17.

HAPPY the home when God is there,
And love fills every breast;
When one their wish, and one their prayer,
And one their heavenly rest.

Happy the home where Jesus' name
Is sweet to every ear;
Where children early lisp His fame,
And parents hold Him dear.

Happy the home where prayer is heard,
And praise is wont to rise;
Where parents love the Sacred Word,
And live but for the skies.

1. How well acquainted is God with each individual's life?

"Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising. Thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, 0 Lord, Thou knowest it altogether." Ps. 139:2-4.

2. What is the beginning of wisdom?

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments." Ps. 111:10.

3. Upon whom is God's fury to be poured?

"Pour out Thy fury upon the heathen that know Thee not, and upon the families that call not on Thy name." Jer. 10:25.

4. How are parents instructed to bring up their children?

"And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Eph. 6:4.

NOTE - "Religion is love, and a religious home is one in which love reigns There must be love in action, love that flows out in all the home intercourse, showing itself in a thousand little expressions of thoughtfulness, kindness, unselfishness, and gentle courtesy." - 'Week-Day Religion," by J. R. Miller, D.D., page 83.

5. How faithfully should parents teach their children the Word of God?

"And these words, which 1 command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shall teach them diligently unto thy children, and shall talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Deut. 6:6, 7.

6. What is the value of proper early instruction?

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6.

NOTE - No man ever said that he began the service of God too young. No parent ever regretted bringing up his children to love, fear, honor, and obey God.

7. How early were the Scriptures taught to Timothy?

"And that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." 2 Tim. 3:15.

NOTE - Timothy's father was a Greek, and his mother a Jewess. From a child he had been taught the Scriptures. The faith of his mother and of his grandmother in the Word of God had early been implanted in him through their faithful instruction. 2 Tim. 1:5. The piety which he saw in his home life had a moulding influence upon his own life. This with his knowledge of the Scriptures, qualified him to bear responsibilities and to render faithful service later in the cause of Christ. His home instructors had co-operated with God in preparing him for a life of usefulness. Thus it should be in every home.

8. Why did God confide in Abraham, and commit sacred trusts to him?

"For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment." Gen. 18:19.

9. Wherever Abraham went, what was his practice?

"And there he builded an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord." Gen. 12:8. See also Gen. 13:4; 21:33.

NOTE - "The manner in which the family worship is conducted is very important. It should be made so pleasant as to be looked forward to with gladness even by the youngest children. Too often it is made tedious, monotonous, or burdensome. . . . To make it dull and irksome is treason to true religion. . . . A few minutes given every day to preparation for family worship will serve to make it, as it should be, the most pleasant and attractive incident of the day.' - "Week-Day Religion," by J. R. Miller, D.D., pages 8183.

10. What instruction suggests the giving of thanks for daily food?

"In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 1 Thess. 5:18.

NOTE - As a rule, children will reflect the life and principles manifested in their parents. The reason why so many children are irreverent, irreligious, and disobedient today is because their parents are so. Like parent like child. If parents would see a different state of things, they must themselves reform. They must bring God into their homes, and make His Word their counsellor and guide. They must teach their children the fear of God, and that His Word is the voice of God addressed to them, and that it is to be implicitly obeyed. "In too many households prayer is neglected.

. . . If ever there was a time when every house should he a house of prayer, it is now. Fathers and mothers should often lift up their hearts to God in humble supplication for themselves and their children. Let the father, as priest of the household, lay upon the altar of God the morning and evening sacrifice, while the wife and children unite in prayer and praise. In such a household Jesus will love to tarry.' -"Christian Education," page 221.

1. By what is every child known?

"Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right." Prov. 20:11.

2. What is the duty of every child?

"My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother." Prov. 1:8.

3. What does the fifth commandment require of children?

"Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.". Ex. 20:12.

NOTE - While this precept refers directly to our earthly parents, it also includes God, our Father in heaven; for in honoring them we honor Him. To the child too young to know God, the earthly parent takes the place of God. Learning to honor, respect, and obey his earthly parents is the child's first and most important lesson in learning to honor, respect, and obey God, his heavenly Parent. Benjamin Franklin well said: "Let a child's first lesson be obedience, and the second may be what thou wilt."

4. For how long a time should one honor his parents?

"Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old." Prov. 23:22.

NOTE - As long as parents live, they should be honored and respected by their children. The duty enjoined in the fifth commandment does not cease at maturity, nor when the child leaves the parental roof.

5. What is the character of a child who will not listen to his father's instruction?

"A fool despiseth his father's instruction: but he that regardeth reproof is prudent." Prov. 15:5.

6. What course on the part of children is well pleasing to the Lord?

"Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is wellpleasing unto the Lord." Col. 3:20.

7. In what spirit should children obey their parents?

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this right." Eph. 6:1.

8. What is one way in which a child may dishonor his parents?

"He that is a companion of riotous men shameth his father." Prov. 28:7.

9. What is said of one who robs his father or his mother?

"Whoso robbeth his father or his mother, and saith, It is no transgression; the same is the companion of a destroyer. " Verse 24.

10. How did Jesus honor His parents?

"He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them." Luke 2:51.

11. How did the Jewish leaders in the days of Christ, for the sake of gain, make void the fifth commandment?

"But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." Matt. 15:5,6.

NOTE - The word translated gift in this text means a thing dedicated to God, and therefore not to be used for any other purpose. In this way the Jewish teachers, by their traditional law, taught children that by saying that their property was thus dedicated to the temple or to religious purposes, they were free from the obligation to honor and support their parents, thus making void one of the commandments of God. This Christ condemned.

12. In what other way do some dishonor their father and mother?

"There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother." Prov. 30:11.

13. What will be the fate of the one who curseth his father or his mother?

"Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness." "The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it." Prov. 20:20; 30:17.

14. What will he the reward of those who honor their parents?

"Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." Ex. 20:12.

NOTE - The fullness of this promise will be realized in the life to come, when the earth, restored to its Edenic beauty, will become the eternal home of all those who have truly honored their parents and kept all God's commandments.

15. What comment has the Apostle Paul made upon this commandment?

"Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth." Eph. 6:2, 31

16. In what age of the world is disobedience to parents to be especially manifest?

"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy." 2 Tim. 3:1,2.

NOTE - Disobedience to parents is a marked characteristic of the present generation. Never before was it so common or so widespread. The root of the evil, however, lies not so much in the children as in the parents. Many of the latter are disobedient to God, their Father in heaven, and so have failed to bring up their children in the fear of God and in the ways of righteousness. Bible instruction, lessons of faith, and prayer must not be neglected in the home if we would see obedient, God-fearing children growing up in the world.

BE kind to thy father, for when thou wert young,
Who loved thee so fondly as he?
He caught the first accents that fell from thy tongue,
And joined in thy innocent glee.

Be kind to thy mother, for lo! on her brow
May traces of sorrow be seen;
Oh, well may'st thou cherish and comfort her now,
For loving and kind hath she been.

1. How should parents train their children?

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6. "And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Eph. 6:4.

2. How diligently should parents teach children God's Word?

"These words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shall teach them diligently unto thy children." "Ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Deut. 6:6,7; 11:19.

3. What high ideal should he placed before the young?

"Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." 1 Tim. 4:12.

4. What duty does God require of children?

"Honor thy father and thy mother." Ex. 20:12.

5. What is to be one of the prominent sins of the last days?

"For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy." 2 Tim. 3:2.

6. Why did God reprove Eli?

"In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not." 1 Sam. 3:12,13.

7. How should the youth he taught to regard the aged?

"Thou shall rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord." Lev. 19:32.

8. What are some good fruits of proper child training?

"Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul." Prov. 29:17.

9. What will result if correction is withheld?

"The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame." Verse 15. See Prov. 22:15.

10. Is there danger of delaying correction too long?

"Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying." Prov. 19:18. See Prov. 23:13, 14.

11. Does proper correction evidence a want of parental love?

"He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes." Prov. 13:24.

NOTE - One Christian mother writes thus concerning the importance of child training: "Children who are allowed to come up to manhood or womanhood with the will undisciplined and the passions uncontrolled, will generally in after-life pursue a course which God condemns. The neglect of parents properly to discipline their children has been a fruitful source of evil in many families. The youth have not been restrained as they should have been. Parents have neglected to follow the directions of the Word of God in this matter, and the children have taken the reins of government into their own hands. The consequence has been that they have generally succeeded in ruling their parents, instead of being under their authority. False ideas and a foolish, misdirected affection have nurtured traits which have made the children unlovely and unhappy, have embittered the lives of the parents, and have extended their baleful influence from generation to generation. Any child that is permitted to have his own way will dishonor God and bring his father and mother to shame."

12. Whom does the Lord chasten?

"For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." Heb. 12:6.

NOTE - From this we may learn that all child training should be done in love, and that proper child training is an evidence of true love.

13. Against what evil should fathers guard?

"Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged." Col. 3:21.

NOTE - Correction should never be given in anger, for anger in the parent stirs up anger in the child. It is well to pray with a child before correcting him, and frequently mild but faithful instruction, admonition, and prayer are all the training necessary-are, in. fact, the best training that can be given. But in any case of perverseness, stubbornness, or wilful disobedience, the correction, whatever it may be, should be persisted in until the child yields submissively to the will and wishes of the parent. It is best, generally, that correction should be done in private, as this tends to preserve the self-respect of the child, a very important element in character building. No correction or training should be violent or abusive, or given for the purpose of breaking the will of the child, but rather to direct the will, bring it into proper subjection, and the child to a realization of what is right and duty.

14. How are the present effects and future results of chastisement contrasted?

"Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." Heb. 12:11.

15. What question must every unfaithful parent meet?

"Where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?" Jer. 13:20.

NOTE - Happy will those parents be who can say, "Behold, here am I and the children Thou gavest me." See Isa. 8:18

THE oldest university was not on India's strand, Nor in the valley of the Nile, nor on Arabia's sand;From time's beginning it has taught and still it teaches free Its learning mild to every child-the school of Mother's Knee.

The oldest school to teach the law, and teach it deeply, too, Dividing what should not be done from what each one should do, Was not in Rome nor Ispahan nor by the Euxine Sea; But it held its sway ere history's day-the school of Mother's Knee.

The oldest seminary, where theology was taught, Where love to God, and reverent prayer, and the Eternal Ought Were deep impressed on youthful hearts in pure sincerity, Came to the earth with Abel's birth-the school of Mother's Knee.

The oldest, and the newest, too, it still maintains its place, And from its classes, ever full, it graduates the race. Without its teaching, where would all the best of living be? 'Twas planned by Heaven this earth to leaven-the school of Mother's Knee.

1. Why did Adam call his wife's name Eve?

"And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living." Gen. 3:20. NOTE - It is said that the three sweetest words in any language are mother, home, and heaven.

2. What did God say to Abraham concerning his wife, Sarah?

"And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her." Gen. 17:16.

3. What commandment guards the honor of the mother?

"Honor thy father and thy mother." Ex. 20:12.

4. How early did Hannah dedicate her son Samuel to God?

"And she vowed a vow, and said, 0 Lord of hosts, if Thou wilt indeed . . . give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life." 1 Sam. 1:11.

5. To whom did God commit the care and early training of His only begotten Son?

"And when they were come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down, and worshipped Him." Matt. 2:11.

6. Under the influence of her tender care and faithful instruction, what is said of the child life of Jesus?

"And the Child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon Him. . . . And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." Luke 2:40-52.

NOTE-A Christian mother, above all others, can deeply implant and faithfully cherish the seeds of truth in the young and tender heart. More even than the father, the mother moulds the life, character, and destiny of man. Every stage and phase She is both the morning and the evening star of life of life is touched and influenced by her. Infancy, childhood, youth, manhood, and old age alike centre in her.

7. What tender, filial regard did Christ manifest for His mother in the hour of His death?

"When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom He loved [John], He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home." John 19:26, 27.

8. How early did Timothy know the Scriptures?

"And that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures." 2 Tim. 3:15.

9. What is said of his mother and his grandmother?

"When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice." 2 Tim. 1:5.

NOTE - No position in life is superior to that of the mother, no influence more potent for good or evil. "All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my mother," said Abraham Lincoln. "All that I have ever accomplished in life, 1 owe to my mother declared D. L. Moody. "A kiss from my mother' " said Benjamin West, "made me a painter." "My mother was the making of me," declared the noted inventor, Thomas A. Edison. And Andrew Carnegie, the millionaire, who gave his mother his earnings when a boy, said, "I am deeply touched by the remembrance of one to whom I owe everything that a wise mother ever gave to a son who adored her." It has been truly said that the home is the primeval school the best, the most hallowed, and the most potential of all academies, and that the mother is the first, the most influential, and therefore the most important of all teachers. See poem on page 163.

1. What should be the prayer of every parent?

"O my Lord. . . . teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born." Judges 13:8.

NOTE-This is a part of the prayer of Manoah, the father of Samson.

2. How should our children be taught?

"All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children." Isa. 54:13.

3. What will happen if a child is not properly instructed?

"A child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame." Prov. 29:15.

4. How did Solomon's parents regard him as a child?

"I was my father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother." Prov. 4:3.

5. What does Solomon say his father did for him as a child?

"He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live." Prov. 4:4.

6. From what time does David say he himself was taught?

"0 God, Thou hast taught me from my youth." Ps. 71:17.

7. How should all Christian parents bring up their children?

"Fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Eph. 6:4.

8. How was Moses taught during the days of his early childhood?

By faith, under the instruction of a devoted mother. See Heb. 11:23; Ex. 2:1-10.

NOTE. - The hiding of Moses was at the time when Pharaoh, king of Egypt, had issued a decree that every Hebrew male child should be killed as soon as he was born, to prevent too rapid an increase of the Hebrews. The second chapter of Exodus tells the story of the finding of Moses by the king's daughter, and his being brought up by his own mother employed as a nurse. She was a woman of faith, and her teaching of Moses was such that after he had been at the Egyptian court till he "was come to years," he chose to suffer affliction with God's people rather than to enjoy the honor of succeeding to the throne of Egypt as the adopted heir. He became the leader of God's people when they escaped from the Egyptian bondage, and after he died, he was raised to life and taken to heaven. See Heb. 11:24-26; Jude 9; Matt. 17:1-3.

9. How was Joseph regarded by his father?

"Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age." Gen. 37:3.

NOTE - The wonderful record of Joseph's life, found in Genesis 37-50, shows that he lived intimately with his father till he was seventeen years of age. He must have been carefully taught of God, also, for in all his marvellous experience as slave, prisoner, and premier of Egypt, he remained true to his heavenly Father, not a single sin being recorded of him to the day of his death.

10. How was Esther brought up?

"He [Mordecai the Jew] brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle's daughter. . . . when her father and mother were dead." Esther 2:7.

NOTE - Mordecai was a man who feared and served God, as is shown by his wise and courageous counsel to Esther, and by his own righteous conduct when the lives of both were at stake in their efforts to save the people of God from destruction while in captivity in Medo-Persia. He undoubtedly taught Esther from childhood to fear and serve God. Otherwise she would not have met the crisis with such fearless courage and such confidence in God.

11. After she became queen of Persia, how did Esther show her integrity to God?

By risking her life to save her own people. "Then Esther bade them [the messengers] return Mordecai this answer, Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will 1 go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish." Esther 4:15, 16.

12. How early does Paul say Timothy was instructed?

"From a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation." 2 Tim. 3:15.

13. How earnestly should parents teach their children the things of God?

"Thou shall teach them diligently unto thy children." "Ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Deut. 6:7; 11:19.

14. What reward in this life is promised the faithful mother?

"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." Prov. 31:28.

15. What beautiful picture of home life is drawn by the Psalmist for the father who fears the Lord?

"Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord." Ps. 128:3, 4.

16. What motive will inspire all true parents to faithfulness in teaching their children?

"That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner-stones, polished after the similitude of a palace." Ps. 144:12.

NOTE - We often hear the saying, "The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world." This agrees with the saying of the Wise man, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6. No father or mother knows the future of the little child prattling about the home circle. But God knows, as He did in the cases of Moses and Esther and Timothy. Whether it is His purpose for some of our children to rule the world, as did Joseph and Daniel virtually, as prime ministers; or for some of them to "stand before kings," as did Moses and Esther and Daniel; or for some of them to serve and suffer for the name of Christ, as did Peter and John and Paul, it is our sacred privilege to teach the children faithfully and diligently during their tender years.

I. What is said of the fifth commandment?

"Honor thy father and mother which is the first commandment with promise." Eph. 6:2.

2. What is promised those who honor their father and their mother?

"Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." Ex. 20:12.

3. What does God desire to teach the children?

"Come, ye children, hearken unto Me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord." Ps. 34:11.

4. What is the fear of the Lord declared to be?

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments." - Ps. 111:10.

5. What is said of the poor but wise child?

"Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and foolish king, who will no more be admonished." Eccl.4:13.

6. How did Christ show His tender regard for children?

"Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto Me for of such is the kingdom of heaven." Matt.19:14.

7. How did He show that He loved them?

"And He took them up in His arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them." Mark 10:16.

8. With what promise do the Old Testament Scriptures close?

"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Mal. 4:5, 6.

NOTE - From this we learn that while disobedience to parents and the breaking up of home ties will characterize the last days (2 Tim. 3:1-3; Matt. 24:37-39; Gen. 6:1, 2), God's message for the last days will strengthen the cords of love and affection, and bind the hearts of parents and children together.

9. What peaceful, happy conditions will prevail in the next world as compared with those of this life?

"They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; f or they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them." "The sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Isa. 65:23; 11:8, 9.

A PAIR of very chubby legs Encased in scarlet hose, A pair of little stubby boots With rather doubtful toes, A little kilt, a little coat, Cut as a mother can- And, lo! before us strides in state The future's "coming man."

Ah! blessings on those little hands, Whose work is yet undone,
And blessings on those little feet, Whose race is yet unrun.

And blessings on the little brain, That has not learned to plan.
Whate'er the future holds in store, God bless the "coming man."

1. Why were the Sacred Writings given?

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope." Rom. 15:4.

2. By what means is all Scripture given?

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God." 2 Tim. 3:16, first part.

3. For what is it profitable?

"And is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." Same verse, last part.

4. How was the prophecy given?

"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but, holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 'I Peter 1:21.

5. What is the Lord able to do regarding the future?

"Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them." Isa. 42:9.

6. How far-reaching is God's ability to reveal the future?

"Remember the former things of old: for I am God. . . . and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times the things that are not yet done." Isa. .86:9, 10.

NOTE. In contrast with this, note the following confession of a noted historian as to man's inability to reveal the future:-

"History has yet made so slight progress toward the scientific basis that she is able to foretell nothing that is to be hereafter. As to the future, she is stone blind. There is not a philosopher in the world who can forecast the historical evolution to the extent of a single day. The historian is as completely dumb before the problems Of 1895 [written in 18941 as a charlatan weather-prophet ought to be with respect to the meteorological conditions of the next season. The year will come and go. It will fulfil its purpose in the great calendar of man-life. Its events and issues will be evolved with scientific exactitude out of antecedent conditions. But no man living can predict what the aspect and event will be. The tallest son of the morning can neither foretell nor foresee the nature of what is to come in the year that already stands knocking at the door."-John Clark Ridpath, in Christian at Work.

Because He knows all things, the future is present with God. More, perhaps, than any other one thing, the prophecies of the Bible and their fulfillment bear witness to its divine inspiration.

7. To whom does God reveal the secrets of the future?

"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He reveals His secret unto His servants the prophets." Amos 3:'7.

8. To whom do the things which have been revealed belong?

"The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever." Deut. 29:29.

9. What testimony did the Apostle Peter bear concerning his experience on the mount of transfiguration?

"For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye-witnesses of His majesty." 2 Peter 1:16.

10. When did he say he saw the majesty of Christ, and heard the voice from heaven?

"And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with Him in the holy mount." Verse 18.

11. How does he emphasize the reliability of prophecy?

"And we have the word of prophecy made more sure." Verse 19, R.V. "Now more confirmed." Boothroyd's translation.

NOTE - Every fulfillment of prophecy is a confirmation of the truthfulness and reliability of prophecy.

12. What admonition is therefore given?

"Whereunto you do well that you take heed, as unto a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts." Verse 19, last part, R.V.

13. What has ever been the theme of God's prophets?

"Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of Your souls. Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you." 1 Peter 1:9, 10.

14. Whose Spirit inspired their utterances?

"Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow." Verse 11.

15. In what prophecy did Christ recognize Daniel as a prophet?

"When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (who reads, let him understand)." Matt. 24:15.

16. To what time were the prophecies of Daniel, as a whole, to be sealed?

"But thou, 0 Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." Dan. 12:4.

17. What assurance was given by the angel that these prophecies would he understood in the last days?

"And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand." Verses 9, 10.

18. What is the last book of the Bible called?

"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him." Rev. 1:1.

19. What is said of those who read, hear, and keep the things contained in this book?

"Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein." Revelation 1:3.

1. What statement did Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, make to his wise men whom he had assembled?

"And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream." Dan. 2:3.

2. After being threatened with death if they did not make known the dream and the interpretation, what did the wise men say to the king?

"The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can show the king's matter: therefore, there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. And it is a rare thing that the king requires, and there is none other that can show it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh." Verses 10, 11.

3. After the wise men had thus confessed their inability to do what the king required, who offered to interpret the dream?

"Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would show the king the interpretation." Verse 16.

4. After Daniel and his fellows had sought God earnestly, how were the dream and its interpretation revealed to Daniel?

"Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven." Verse 19

5. When brought before the king, what did Daniel say?

"Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king; but there is a God in heaven that reveals secrets and makes known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these." Verse 27, 28.

6. What did Daniel say the king had seen in his dream?

"Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these; . . . Thou, 0 king, saw, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible." Verses 28-31.

7. Of what were the different parts of the image composed?

"This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay." Verses 32, 33.

8. By what means was the image broken to pieces?

"Thou saw till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces." Verse 34.

9. What became of the various parts of the image?

"Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing-floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth." Verse 35.

10. With what words did Daniel begin the interpretation of the dream?

"Thou, 0 king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. And where so ever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath He given into your hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold." Verses 37, 38.

NOTE - The character of the Babylonian Empire is fittingly indicated by the nature of the material composing that portion of the image by which it was symbolized-the head of gold. It was "the golden kingdom of a golden age." The city of Babylon, its metropolis, according to history, towered to a height never equaled by any of its later rivals. "Situated in the garden of the East; laid out in a perfect square sixty miles in circumference, fifteen miles on each side, surrounded by a wall three hundred and fifty feet high and eighty-seven feet thick, with a moat, or ditch, around this, of equal cubic capacity with the wall itself; divided into six hundred and seventy-six squares, laid out in luxuriant pleasure-grounds and gardens, interspersed with magnificent dwellings-this city, containing in itself many things which were themselves wonders of the world, was itself another and still mightier wonder. . . . Such was Babylon, with Nebuchadnezzar, youthfu1, bold, vigorous, and accomplished, seated upon its throne."

11. What was to be the nature of the next kingdom after Babylon?

"After thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee." Verse 39, first part.

12. Who was the last Babylonian king?

"In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old." Dan. 5:30, 31. See also verses 1, 2.

13. To whom was Belshazzar's kingdom given?

"Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians." Verse 28.

14. By what is the Medo-Persian Empire represented in the great image?

The breast and arms of silver. Dan. 2:32.

15. By what is Grecia, the kingdom succeeding Medo-Persia, represented in the image?

"His belly and his thighs of brass." Verse 32. "And another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth." Verse 39.

16. What is said of the fourth kingdom?

"And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things: and as iron that breaks all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise." Verse 40.

17. What scripture shows that the Roman emperors ruled the world?

"And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed." Luke 2:1.

NOTE-Describing the Roman conquests, Gibbon uses the very imagery employed in the vision of Daniel 2. He says: "The arms of the republic, sometimes vanquished in battle, always victorious in war, advanced with rapid steps to the Euphrates, the Danube, the Rhine, and the ocean; and the images of gold, or silver, or brass, that might serve to represent the nations and their kings, were successively broken by the iron monarchy of Rome."-"Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," chap. 38, par. 1, under "General Observations," at the close of the chapter.

18. What was indicated by the mixture of clay and iron in the feet and toes of the image?

"And whereas thou saw the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided." Dan. 2:41.

19. In what prophetic language was the varying strength of the ten kingdoms of the divided empire indicated?

" And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken [margin, brittle]." Verse 42.

20. Were any efforts to he made to reunite the divided empire of Rome?

"And whereas thou saw iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay." Verse 43.

NOTES - Charlemagne, Charles V, Louis XIV, and Napoleon all tried to reunite the broken fragments of the Roman Empire, but failed. By marriage and intermarriage ties have been formed with a view to strengthening and cementing together the shattered kingdom; but none have succeeded. The element of disunion remains. Many political revolutions and territorial changes have occurred in Europe since the fall of the Roman Empire in AD. 476; but its divided state still remains.

This remarkable dream, as interpreted by Daniel, presents in the briefest form, and yet with unmistakable clearness, the course of world empires from the time of Nebuchadnezzar to the dose of earthly history and the setting up of the everlasting kingdom of God. The history confirms the prophecy. The sovereignty of the world was held by Babylon from the time of this dream, 603 BC. until 538 BC., when it passed to the Medes and Persians. The victory of the Grecian forces at the battle of Arbela, in 331 BC. marked the downfall of the Medo-Persian Empire, and the Greeks then became the undisputed rulers of the world. The battle of Pydna, in Macedonia, in 168 BC., was the last organized effort to withstand a world-wide conquest by the Romans, and at that time therefore the sovereignty passed from the Greeks to the Romans, and the fourth kingdom was fully established. The division of Rome into ten kingdoms is definitely foretold in the vision recorded in the seventh chapter of Daniel, and occurred between the years AD. 351 and AD. 476.

21. What is to take place in the days of these kingdoms?

"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: . . . but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever." Verse 44.

NOTE-This verse foretells the establishment of another universal kingdom, the kingdom of God. This kingdom is to overthrow and supplant all existing earthly kingdoms, and is to stand forever. The time for the setting up of this kingdom is to be "in the days of these kings." This cannot refer to the four preceding empires, or kingdoms; for they were not contemporaneous, but successive; neither can it refer to an establishment of the kingdom at Christ's first advent, for the ten kingdoms which arose out of the ruins of the Roman Empire were not yet in existence. It must therefore still be in the future.

22. In what announcement in the New Testament is the establishment of the kingdom of God made known?

"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever." Rev.11:15.

23. For what have we been taught to pray?

"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Matt. 6:10.

24. What event is closely associated with the establishment of God's everlasting kingdom?

"I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom." 2 Tim. 4:1.

25. With what prayer do the Scriptures close9

"He which testifies these things says, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Rev.22:20.

1. At what time was Daniel's second vision given?

"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters." Dan. 7:1.

NOTE - That is, in the first year of Belshazzar's office as associate king with his father Nabonadius, or 540 BC.

2. What effect did this dream have upon Daniel?

"I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me." Verse15.

NOTE-The effect of Daniel's dream upon him, it will be noticed, was similar to the effect of Nebuchadnezzar's dreams upon him; it troubled him. See Dan. 2:1.

3. What did Daniel ask of one of the heavenly attendants who stood by him in his dream?

"I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things." Verse 16.

4. What did the prophet see in this vision?

"Daniel spoke and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea." Verse 2.

5. What was the result of this strife?

"And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another." Verse 3.

6. What did these four beasts represent?

"These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth." Verse 17.

NOTE - The word "kings" here, as in Dan. 2:44, denotes kingdoms, as explained in verses 23 and 24 of the seventh chapter, the two words being used interchangeably in this prophecy.

Under the symbol of the great image of the second chapter of Daniel, is given the mere political outline of the rise and fall of earthly kingdoms, preceding the setting up of God's everlasting kingdom. In the seventh chapter, earthly governments are represented as viewed in the light of heaven-under the symbols of wild and ferocious beasts-the last, in particular, oppressing and persecuting the saints of the Most High. Hence the change in the symbols used to represent these kingdoms.

7. In symbolic language, what is represented by winds?

Strife, war, commotion. See Jer. 25:31-33; 49:36, 37.

NOTE - That winds denote strife and war is evident from the vision itself. As result of the striving of the winds, kingdoms rise and fall.

8. What, in prophecy, is symbolized by waters?

"And he says unto me, The waters which thou saw are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." Rev. 17:15.

9. What was the first beast like?

"The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it." Dan. 7:4.

NOTE - The lion, the first of these four great beasts, like the golden head of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, represents the Babylonian monarchy; the lion, the king of beasts, standing at the head of its kind, as gold does of metals. The eagle's wings doubtless denote the rapidity with which Babylon extended its conquests under Nebuchadnezzar, who reigned from 604 BC. to 561 BC. This kingdom was overthrown by the Medes and Persians in 538 BC.

10. By what was the second kingdom symbolized?

"And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh." Verse 5.

NOTE-"This was the Medo-Persian Empire, represented here under the symbol." the bear. . . . The Medes and Persians are compared to a bear on account of their cruelty and thirst after blood, a bear being a most voracious and cruel animal." Adam Clarke, on Dan. 7:5.

11. By what was the third universal empire symbolized?

"After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which bad upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it." Verse 6.

NOTES-If the wings of an eagle on the back of a lion denoted rapidity of movement in the Babylonian, or Assyrian, Empire (see Hab. 1:6-8), four wings on the leopard must denote unparalleled celerity of movement in the Grecian Empire. This we find to be historically true.

"The rapidity of Alexander's conquests in Asia was marvelous: he burst like a torrent on the expiring Persian Empire, and all opposition was useless. The gigantic armies collected to oppose him melted like snow in the sunshine. The battles of Granicus, 334 BC., Issus in the following year, and Arbela in 331 BC., settled the fate of the Persian Empire, and established the wide dominion of the Greeks .... . . The Divine Program of the World's History," by H. Grattan Guinness, page 308.

"The beast had also four heads." The Grecian Empire maintained its unity but a short time after the death of Alexander, which occurred in 323 BC. Within twenty two years after the close of his brilliant career, or by 301 BC., the empire was divided among his four leading generals. Cassander took Macedonia and Greece in the west; Lysimachus had Thrace and the parts of Asia on the Hellespont and Bosporus in the north; Ptolemy received Egypt, Lydia, Arabia, Palestine, and Coele-Syria in the south; and Seleucus had all the rest of Alexander's dominions in the east.

12. How was the fourth kingdom represented?

"After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns." Verse 7.

13. What was the fourth beast declared to be?

"Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces." Verse 23.

NOTES-"This is allowed on all hands to be the Roman Empire. It was dreadful, terrible, and exceeding strong; . . . and became, in effect, what the Roman writers delight to call it, the empire of the whole world." - Adam Clarke, on Dan. 7:7.

The final overthrow of the Greeks by the Romans, was at the battle of Pydna, in 168 BC.

14. What was denoted by the ten horns?

"And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise." Verse 24.

NOTES - The Roman Empire was broken up into ten kingdoms between the years AD. 351 and AD. 476. "The historian Machiavelli, without the slightest reference to this prophecy, the following list of the nations which occupied the territory of the Western Empire at the time of the fall of Romulus Augustulus (AD. 476), the last emperor of Rome: The Lombards, the Franks, the Burgundians, the Ostrogoths, the Visigoths, the Vandals, the Heruli, the Suevi, the Huns, and the Saxons: ten in all.

Amidst unceasing and almost countless fluctuations, the kingdoms of modern Europe have from their birth to the present day averaged ten in number. They have never since the breaking up of old Rome been united into one single empire; they have never formed one whole even like the United States. No scheme of proud ambition seeking to reunite the broken fragments has ever succeeded; when such have arisen, they have been invariably dashed to pieces.

"And the division is as apparent now as ever. Plainly and palpably inscribed on the map of Europe this day, it confronts the skeptic with its silent but conclusive testimony to the fulfillment of this great prophecy." - 'The Divine Program of the World's History," by H. Grattan Guinness, pages 318-321.

15. What change did Daniel see take place in these horns?

"I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things." Verse 8.

16. What inquiry on the part of Daniel shows that the fourth beast, and especially the little horn phase of it, constitutes the leading feature of this vision?

"Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; and of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spoke very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows." Verses 19, 20.

17. When was the little horn to arise?

"And another shall rise after them." Verse 24.

NOTE - The ten horns, as already shown, arose when Rome, the fourth kingdom, was divided into ten kingdoms. This division was completed in AD. 476. The little horn power was to arise after them.

18. What was to be the character of the little horn?

"And he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings." Same verse, last part.

NOTES - That power which arose in the Roman Empire after the fall of Rome in AD. 476, which was entirely different from all the ten kingdoms into which Rome was divided (for it demanded and exercised spiritual power over the other kingdoms), and which subdued three of the other kings-the Heruli, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths - was the Papacy.

The place and the time of the kingdom of the little horn having been located, the study of its character and work will be considered in the readings which follow.

1. What is said of the little horn as compared with the ten horns of the fourth beast of Daniel 7?

"He shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings." Dan. 7:24.

NOTE-The Papacy, which arose on the ruins of the Roman Empire, differed from all previous forms of Roman power, in that it was an ecclesiastical despotism claiming universal dominion over both spiritual and temporal affairs, especially the former. It was a union of church and state, with the church dominant.

2. What attitude of rivalry was the Papacy, represented by the little horn, to assume toward the Most High?

"And he shall speak great words against the Most High." Verse 25, first clause.

3. How does Paul, speaking of the man of sin, describe this same power?

"Who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God." 2 Thess. 2:4.

NOTES - The following extracts from authoritative works, most of them by Roman Catholic writers, will indicate to what extent the Papacy has done this:-

" All the names which are attributed to Christ in Scripture, implying His supremacy over the church, are also attributed to the Pope."--Bellarmine, "On the Authority of Councils," book 2, Chap. 17.

"You thou art the shepherd, thou art the physician, thou art the director, thou art the husbandman; finally thou art another God on earth."-From Oration of Christopher Marcellus in fourth session of Fifth Lateran Council, Labbe and Cossart's "History of the Councils," published in 1672, V01. XIV, C01. 109.

"You not man, but God, not by human but rather by divine authority, releases those whom, on account of the need of the churches or what is regarded as a benefit, the Roman pontiff (who is vicegerent on earth, not of mere man, but of the true God) separates [from their churches ]" - 'The Decretals of Gregory IX,' book 1, title 7, chap. 3.

"The Pope is the supreme judge of the law of the land. He is the vicegerent of Christ, who is not only a priest for ever, but also King of kings and Lord of lords." -From the Civilta Cattolica, March M, 1871, quoted in "Vatican Council," by Leonard Woolsev Bacon, American Tract Society edition, page 220.

"Christ entrusted His office to the chief pontiff; . . . but all power in heaven and in earth had been given to Christ; . . . therefore the chief pontiff, who is His vicar, will have this power."-Gloss on the "Extravagantes Communes," book 1, "On Authority and Obedience," chap. i, on words Porro Subesse Romano Pontiff. Canon law, published in 1556, Vol. III, "Extravagantes Communes," COL. 29.

"Hence the Pope is crowned with a triple crown, as king of heaven, and earth, and purgatory (Infernorum).' .- "Prompta Bibliotheca," Ferraris, Vol. VI, page 26, article "Papa" (the Pope).

"All the faithful of Christ must believe that the Holy Apostolic See and the Roman pontiff possesses the primacy over the whole world, and that the Roman pontiff is the successor of the blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, and is true vicar of Christ, and the head of the whole church, and father and teacher of all Christians, and that full power was given him in blessed Peter to rule, feed, and govern the universal church by Jesus Christ our Lord.' - "Petri Privilegium," in section on "The Vatican Council and Its Definitions," by Henry Edward Manning, Archbishop of Westminster (Roman Catholic), London, Longmans, Green & CO., 1871, Page 214.

"We teach and define that it is a dogma divinely revealed; that the Roman pontiff, when he speaks ex cathedra, that is, when in the discharge of the office of Pastor and Doctor of all Christians, by virtue of his supreme apostolic authority he defines a doctrine regarding faith or morals to be held by the universal church, by the divine assistance promised to him in blessed Peter, is possessed of that infallibility with which the divine Redeemer willed that His church should be endowed for defining doctrine regarding faith or morals: and that therefore such definitions of the Roman pontiff are irreformable of themselves, and not from the consent of the church." Id., page 218.

"Should Jesus Christ come in person from heaven into a church to administer the sacrament of reconciliation, and should He say to a penitent, 'I absolve thee,' and should a priest sitting at His side in the tribunal of penance pronounce over a penitent the selfsame words, 'I absolve thee,' there is no question that in the latter case, as in the former, the penitent would be equally loosed from his sin."-"Jesus Living in the Priest," by the Rev. P. Millet, S.J., English translation by the Rt. Rev. Thomas Sebastian Byrne, D.D., Bishop of Nashville; New York, Benziger Brothers, printers to the Holy Apostolic See, 1901, pages 23, 24. Imprimatur, Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York.

"They have assumed infallibility, which belongs only to God. They profess to forgive sins, which belongs only to God. They profess to open and shut heaven, which belongs only to God. They profess to be higher than all the kings of the earth, which belongs only to God. And they go beyond God in pretending to loose whole nations from their oath of allegiance to their kings, when such kings do not please them. And they go against God, when they give indulgences for sin. This is the worst of all blasphemies."-Adam Clarke, on Dan. 7:25.

4. How was the little horn to treat God's people?

"And shall wear out the saints of the Most High." Dan. 7:25.

NOTES - 'Under these bloody maxims [previously mentioned], those persecutions were carried on, from the eleventh and twelfth centuries almost to the present day, which stand out on the page of history. After the signal of open martyrdom had been given in the canons of Orleans, there followed the extirpation of the Albigenses under the form of a crusade, the establishment of the Inquisition, the cruel attempts to extinguish the Waldenses, the martyrdoms of the Lollards, the cruel wars to exterminate the Bohemians, the burning of Huss and Jerome, and multitudes of other confessors, before the Reformation; and afterwards, the ferocious cruelties practised in the Netherlands, the martyrdoms of Queen Mary's reign, the extinction by fire and sword of the Reformation in Spain and Italy, by fraud and open persecution in Poland, the massacre of Bartholomew, the persecution of the Huguenots by the League, the extirpation of the Vaudois, and all the cruelties and prejudices connected with the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. These are the more open and conspicuous facts which explain the prophecy, besides the slow and secret murders of the holy tribunal of the Inquisition."-"The First Two Visions of Daniel," Rev. T. R. Birks, M.A., London, 1845, pages 248, 249.

A detailed summary of the number of the victims of the Inquisition in Spain, under each Inquisitor-General, is given in "The History of the Inquisition in Spain," by Llorente, formerly secretary of the Inquisition, pages 206-208. According to this authority the number who were condemned and perished in the flames is 31,912.

"The church has persecuted. Only a tyro in church history will deny that. . . . One hundred and fifty years after Constantine the Donatists were persecuted, and sometimes put to death. . . . Protestants were persecuted in France and Spain with the full approval of the church authorities. We have always defended the persecution of the Huguenots, and the Spanish Inquisition. Wherever and whenever there is honest Catholicity, there will be a clear distinction drawn between truth and error, and Catholicity and all forms of heresy. When she thinks it good to use physical force, she will use it."-The Western Watchman (Roman Catholic), of St. Louis, December 24, 1908.

5. What else does the prophecy say the little horn would do?

"And he shall think to change the times and the law." Dan. 7:25, third clause, R.V.

NOTES-"The little horn, further, shall think to change times. The description applies, in all its force, to the systematic perversion of God's words by which all promises of millennial glory are wrested from their true sense, and referred to the dominion and grandeur of the Church of Rome. The orator of the Pope, for instance, in the Lateran Council, declares that in the submission of all nations to Leo the prophecy was fulfilled: 'All kings shall fall down and worship Him; all nations shall serve and obey Him.' The same antichristian feature appears in those advocates of the Papacy who would clear it from the guilt of actual idolatry, because 'it is part of that church from which the idols are utterly abolished.' Thus are the times changed; but only in the vain 'thoughts' of dreamers who see false visions and divine lying divinations; because the visible glory of Christ's kingdom remains still to be revealed." ."The First Two Visions of Daniel," Rev. T. R. Birks, M.A., London, 1845, pages 257, 258.

Although the Ten Commandments, the law of God, are found in the Roman Catholic versions of the Scriptures, as they were originally given, yet the faithful are instructed from the catechisms of the church, and not directly from the Bible. As it appears in these, the law of God has been changed and virtually re-enacted by the papacy. Furthermore, communicants not only receive the law from the church, but they deal with the church concerning any alleged infractions of that law, and when they have satisfied the ecclesiastical authorities, the whole matter is settled.

The second commandment, which forbids the making of, and bowing down to, images, is omitted in Catholic catechisms, and the tenth, which forbids coveting, is divided into two.

As evidence of the change which has been made in the law of God by the papal power, and that it acknowledges the change and claims the authority to make it, note the following from Roman Catholic publications:

"Question.-Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?

"Answer.-Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her-she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority."-"A Doctrinal Catechism," Rev Stephen Keenan, page 174. Imprimatur, John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York.

"Ques.-How prove you that the church bath power to command feasts and holy days?

"Ans- By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of; and therefore they fondly contradict themselves, by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same church.

"Ques.-How prove you that?

"Ans.-Because by keeping Sunday they acknowledge the church's power to ordain feasts, and to command them under sin: and by not keeping the rest by her commanded, they again deny, in fact, the same power."-- 'An Abridgement of the Christian Doctrine," composed in 1649, by Rev. Henry Tuberville, D.D., of the English College of Douay; New York, John Doyle, 1883, page 58.

"Is not every Christian obliged to sanctify Sunday, to abstain on that day from unnecessary servile work? Is not the observance of this law among the most prominent of our sacred duties? But you may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify." -"The Faith of Our Fathers," by James Cardinal Gibbons, Baltimore, John Murphy & Co., 1893, page iii.

All Roman Catholic writers agree in this teaching. See page 133.

6. Until what time were the saints, times, and law of the Most High to be given into the hands of the little horn?

"And they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time." Dan. 7:25, last clause.

7. In what other prophecies is this same period mentioned?

"And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent." Rev.12:14. "And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue [margin, to make war] forty and two months." Rev. 13:5. See also Rev. 11:2. "And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days." Rev. 12:6.

8. In symbolic prophecy what length of time is represented by a day?

"After the number of the days in which you searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall you bear your iniquities, even forty years." Num. 14:34. See Eze. 4:6.

NOTES - A time in prophecy being the same as a year (see Dan. 11:13, margin, and R.V.), three and one-half times would be three and a half years, or forty-two months, or twelve hundred and sixty days, since the calendar year Of 360 days, or twelve months of thirty days each, is used in prophetic chronology. As each day represents a year, the period, the end of which was to mark the limit of the time of the supremacy of the little horn, the Papacy, over the saints, times, and the law, would therefore be twelve hundred and sixty years. .

The decree of the Emperor Justinian, issued in AD. 533, recognized the Pope as "head of all the holy churches." (Justinian's Code, book 1, title 1. Baronius's Annals, AD. 533) The overwhelming defeat of the Ostrogoths in the siege of Rome, five years later, AD. 538, was a death-blow to the independence of the Arian power then ruling Italy, and was therefore a notable date in the development of papal supremacy. With the year 538, then, commences the twelve hundred and sixty years of this prophecy, which would extend to the year 1798. The year 1793 was the year of the Reign of Terror in the French Revolution, and the year when the Roman Catholic religion was set aside in France and the worship of reason was established in its stead. As a direct result of the revolt against papal authority in the French Revolution, the French army, under Berthier, entered Rome, and the pope was taken prisoner February 10, 1798, dying in exile at Valence, France, the following year. This year, 1798, during which this death-stroke was inflicted upon the Papacy, fittingly and clearly marks the close of the long prophetic period mentioned in this prophecy. Any standard history of the time may be consulted in substantiation of the facts here stated.

9. What will finally be done with the dominion exercised by the little horn?

"But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end." Dan.7:26.

10. To whom will the dominion finally be given?

"And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him." Verse 27.

NOTE - Here, as in the second chapter of Daniel, the announcement of the setting tip of the everlasting kingdom of God in the earth includes a brief outline of the history of this world. And the prophecies of Daniel concerning the powers that would the purpose of God, furnish additional features of this outline. The exact fulfillment of this outline in the history of the world since the time of Nebuchednezzar constitutes an unimpeachable testimony to the inspiration of these prophecies. And furnishes a ground of confidence that the unfulfilled portion of the prophecies will be wrought out in the future with absolute certainty and in every detail.

1. What appeared unto Daniel in 538 BC., the same year in which Babylon fell?

"In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first." Dan. 8:1.

2. Where was Daniel at this time?

"And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai' Verse 2.

3. What first attracted the prophet's attention?

"Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last." Verse 3.

4. What power was represented by the ram having two horns?

"The ram which thou saw having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia." Verse 20.

5. How are the rise and work of this power described?

"I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great." Verse 4.

6. What symbol was next introduced in the vision?

"And as I was considering, behold, a he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes." Verse 5.

7. What did the goat with the notable horn represent?

"And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.--- Verse 21.

8. How was the conquest of Medo-Persia by Grecia foretold in this symbolic prophecy?

"And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand." Verse7.

9. When the he goat "was strong," what occurred?

"Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven." Verse 8.

10. Who was represented by "the great horn," and what followed when it was broken?

"And the rough goat is the king [kingdom] of Grecia, and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up, out of the nation, but not in his power." Verses 21, 22.

NOTES - From the interpretation given, it is plain that the notable "horn" upon the he goat represented Alexander the Great, who led the Grecian forces in their conquest of Medo-Persia. Upon the death of Alexander at Babylon, 323 BC., there followed a brief period of confusion in the struggle for the kingdom, but the succession was definitely determined by the battle Of Ipsus, 301 BC. Four of Alexander's leading generals-Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus-became his successors.

"The vast empire created by Alexander's unparalleled conquests was distracted by the wranglings and wars of his successors, and before the close of the fourth century before Christ, had become broken up into many fragments. Besides minor states, four well-defined and important monarchies rose out of the ruins. . . . Their rulers were Lysimachus, Cassander, Seleucus Nicator, and Ptolemy, who had each assumed the title of king. The great horn was broken; and instead of it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven."--Myers' "History of Greece," page 457, edition 1902.

11. What came out of one of the four horns of the goat?

"And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land." Verse 9.

12. What interpretation is given to this little horn?

"And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up." Verse 23.

13. What did this little horn do to the people of God?

"And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them." Verse 10.

14. In what literal language is this persecution of the people of God further described?

"And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people." Verse 24.

15. How was this little horn to exalt itself against Christ and His mediatorial work?

"Yea, it magnified itself, even to the Prince of the host; and it took away from Him the continual burnt offering, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down." Verse 11, R.V.

16. In the interpretation of the vision, how is this self exaltation set forth?

"And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper iii his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand." Verse 25.

17. What similar language is used by the Apostle Paul in describing the "mystery of iniquity," or "man of sin"?

"That day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God." 2 Thess. 2:3, 4.

NOTE - The last two scriptures evidently describe one and the same power which, while religious and professedly Christian, is antichristian in spirit, and the very "man of sin" himself. Possessed with the selfish ambition of Lucifer (Isa. 14:12-14; Eze. 28:17), he assumes to occupy the very seat and place of Deity in the temple of God. Professing to be Christ's vicar, or personal representative on earth, he magnifies himself against Christ, and "stands up," or reigns, in the place of, and "against," the Prince of princes.

18. What was given into the hands of the power represented by the little horn?

"And the host was given over to it together with the continual burnt offering through transgression." Dan.8:12, first clause, R.V.

19. What did this power do to the truth?

"And it cast down truth to the ground, and it did its pleasure and prospered." Same verse, last clause, R.V.

NOTES - The interpretation already given to this vision shows plainly that the power represented by the little horn is the successor of Medo-Persia and Grecia. In the vision of the seventh chapter of Daniel, which is closely related to this vision, the fourth beast represented the fourth kingdom, or Rome, in its entirety, special attention, however, being given to the "little horn" phase of its history. As shown by the work attributed to it, this little horn, which arose among the ten kingdoms into which Rome was divided, was to be a religio-political power, which was to change the times and law of God, and persecute the people of God. In the vision of the eighth chapter the ecclesiastical features of this fourth world power are especially noticed and emphasized, and hence the only symbol there used to represent it is the little horn" which waxed "exceeding great."

The religion of all the four great monarchies mentioned in these prophecies was paganism; but the paganism of ancient Babylon was reproduced in pagan Rome, and then adapted and adopted by papal Rome. The little horn of the eighth chapter represents Rome, both pagan and papal, in its ecclesiastical aspect, with its union of paganism, and later of apostate Christianity, with the secular power. With its antichristian persecutions of the saints of God; with its perversion of the priesthood of Christ; and with its assertion of both temporal and spiritual power over an the world. It is evident that pagan Rome is introduced into this prophecy chiefly as a means of locating the place and work of papal Rome, and the ecclesiastical features of pagan Rome -as typical of the same features accentuated in papal Rome. And that the emphasis is to be placed upon the fulfillment of the prophecy in the work of papal Rome. A careful comparison of Dan. 7:21,25 with Dan. 8:10-12, R.V., and 2 Thess. 2:3,4, will amply justify this conclusion.

"The Romans could not forget-never did forget-that they had once been masters and rulers of the world. Even after they had become wholly unfit to rule themselves, let alone the ruling of others, they still retained the temper and used the language of masters. . . . In the absence of an emperor in the West the popes rapidly gained influence and power, and soon built up an ecclesiastical empire that in some respects took the place of the old empire and carried on its civilizing work."-"Rome; Its Rise and Fall" (Myers), Boston, 1900, pages 398, 399, 442, 443.

The host and the stars of Dan. 8:10 are the same as the saints of the Most High of Dan. 7:25; and the Prince of the host of Dan. 8:11 is the Prince of princes, or Christ. When the same Being appeared to Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15, margin), He applies the same expression to Himself.

In Dan. 8:11-13, in the Revised Version, the words "burnt offering" have been supplied by the translators after the word "continual," but this rendering seems to place too restricted a meaning upon the word "continual." The fact that no word is connected with "continual" in the original text, although in the typical service of the sanctuary it is used with "burnt offering" (Ex. 29:42), with "incense" (Ex. 30:8, here rendered perpetual), and with "show bread" (Num. 4:7), indicates that that which is continual represents the continual service or mediation of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, in which all that was continual in the typical service found its antitype and fulfillment. See Heb. 6:19,20; 7:1-3, 14-16, 23-25. The action which made the Pope the vicar of God and the high priest of the apostasy, really took away from Christ, as far as human intent and power were concerned, His place and work as the only mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5), and this took away from Him, as far as man could take it away, the continual mediation, according to the prediction in this prophecy.

The prophecies of Daniel are cumulative and widening in their view, each carrying matters farther than the preceding one, and bringing out more explicitly and more in detail important features down the stream of time. In Daniel 2, under the fourth universal kingdom, the Papacy is not represented under any direct symbol or figure at all - simply Rome in its united and divided state; in Daniel 7 Rome is symbolized by the little horn" coming up among the ten horns representing the divided state of Rome; while in Daniel 8 the only figure used to represent the fourth world power is the little horn" which waxed "exceeding great!'

In each of these last two chapters the little horn is introduced to tell especially of the workings of the same terrible power-Rome papal. Both chapters deal with the same great apostasy. In the seventh chapter, the little horn takes away the law of God. In the eighth chapter, it takes away the gospel. Had it taken away only the law, this would have vitiated the gospel; for, with the law of God gone, even the true gospel could not save, because the law is needed to convict and give a knowledge of sin. And. had the Papacy taken away only the gospel, and left the law, salvation through such a system would still have been impossible, for there is no salvation for sinners through even the law of God itself apart from Christ and the gospel. But to make apostasy doubly sure, this power changes, vitiates, and takes away both the law and the gospel.

In changing the Sabbath, the Papacy struck directly at the very heart and seal of the law of God, just as in substituting its own mediatorial system for that of Christ it struck directly at the heavenly sanctuary and its service, which, in his Epistle to the Hebrews, Paul shows to be the very heart and essence of the gospel.

20. What question was asked in the hearing of the prophet?

"Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden underfoot?" Dan. 8:13.

21. What answer was addressed to Daniel?

"And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Verse 14.

NOTE - In verse 13, R.V., the vision is dearly defined. It is "the vision concerning the continual burnt offering [or continual mediation], and the transgression that makes desolate," which results in giving both the sanctuary and the people of God to be trodden underfoot. The time when the vision was to have its special application is stated in verse 17 to be "at the time of the end," or in the last days. This is additional proof that this prophecy was to find its complete fulfillment in papal Rome as pagan Rome passed away many centuries ago. The sanctuary and the twenty-three-hundred-day period here referred to are considered at length in succeeding readings in this volume.

22. What prophetic period begins at the time when the continual mediation of Christ was taken away by the Papacy?

"And from the time that the continual burnt offering shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days." Dan. 12:11, RV.

NOTES - Inasmuch as the taking away of the continual mediation of Christ is made the beginning of a prophetic period, there must be some definite act at some definite time which, in form and intent, takes from Christ His priestly work in the heavenly sanctuary. This act was the official decree of an ecclesiastical council held at Rome in AD. 503, by which it was declared "that the Pope was judge as God's vicar, and could himself be judged by no one." See Hardouin's "Councils," Vol. 11, page 983; Labbe and Cossart's "Councils," Vol. IV, col. 1364; and Bower's "History of the Popes" (three-volume edition), Vol. 1, pages 304, 305. The work of Clovis, king of the Franks, who earned for himself the title of "the eldest son of the church" by his campaigns to subdue the kingdoms hostile to the Papacy, contributed much toward putting into practical effect this claim of the Papacy, which finally resulted in establishing the Pope as the head of the Roman priesthood which has usurped the priestly work of Christ, and has established another system of mediation in its place. This work of Clovis came to its climax in the year 508, and this year therefore becomes the natural one from which to date the 1290 years of Dan. 12:11, which would accordingly end in the year 1798, at the same time as the 1260 years of Dan. 7:25. See notes on page 27 of this volume.

"With Rome would have fallen her bishop, had he not, as if by anticipation of the crisis, reserved till this hour the master-stroke of his policy. He now boldly cast himself upon an element of much greater strength than that of which the political convulsions of the time had deprived him; namely, that the bishop of Rome is the successor of Peter, the prince of the apostles, and, in virtue of being so, is Christ's vicar on earth. In making this claim, the Roman pontiffs vaulted at once over the throne of kings to the seat of gods: Rome became once more the mistress of the world, and her popes the rulers of the earth."----"The Papacy," by J. A. Wylie, page 34.

23. What assurance was given to Daniel concerning the period of time mentioned in verse 14?

"And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days." Dan. 8:26.

NOTES - By the expression "the vision of the evening and the morning" reference is made to the vision concerning the twenty-three hundred days, as may be seen by referring to the marginal readings of Dan. 8:14.

The interpretation of the vision of chapter 8 closes without making any explanation of the long period of time which was mentioned to Daniel in the answer to the question, "How long shall be the vision?" This important feature was left to be interpreted later. See next reading.

(The 2300 Days of Daniel 8)

1. Immediately after the vision of Daniel 8, what did Daniel learn from his study of the prophecy of Jeremiah?

"In the first year of Darius . . . I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came lo Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem." Dan. 9:1, 2.

NOTE-The first deportation to Babylon, when Daniel and his companions were carried captive, was in 606 BC., and the seventy years of Jeremiah's prophecy would therefore expire in 536 BC. The first year of Darius was 538 BC., and the restoration period was therefore only two years distant from that time.

2. What did this nearness of the time of restoration from captivity lead Daniel to do?

"And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes." Verse 3.

3. What urgent petition of the prophet connects this prayer with the vision of the taking away of the continual mediation and the desolation of the sanctuary recorded in Daniel 8?

"Now therefore, 0 our God, hear the prayer of Thy servant, and his supplications, and cause Thy face to shine upon Thy that is desolate, for the Lord's sake." Dan. 9:17.

4. At the conclusion of Daniel's prayer, what assurance did Gabriel give him?

"And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, 0 Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding." Verse 22.

5. What previous instruction connected with the vision of Daniel 8 was thus being more fully carried out?

"And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision." Dan. 8:16.

6. Why was further instruction concerning this vision necessary?

"And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it." Verse 27.

7. To what did Gabriel now direct Daniel's attention?

"At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to show thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision." Dan. 9:23.

NOTES - There is abundant evidence that the instruction in the ninth chapter of Daniel supplements and interprets the vision of the eighth chapter. Note the following facts:-

• Daniel did not understand the vision concerning the treading down of his people and the sanctuary, and therefore searched the prophecies anew concerning the period of captivity.
• He evidently made a connection between the period of seventy years mentioned by Jeremiah and the twenty-three hundred days of the vision, and he at once began to pray earnestly for the restoration of the city and the sanctuary.
• The angel Gabriel, who appeared to him at the first, and interpreted all the vision with the exception of the twenty-three hundred days, now appears, and again directs his attention to the vision.
• The events of the vision begin with the kingdom of the Medes and Persians, the era of the restoration of the Jews to their own land. In the absence of any instruction to the. contrary, this would be the natural time in which to locate the beginning of the period of twenty-three hundred days; and this is the very time given for the beginning of the seventy weeks, which are clearly a part of the twenty-three hundred days, and thus determine the time of their commencement.
• The seventy weeks, or four hundred and ninety years, extend from the restoration of literal Jerusalem and the literal temple to the preaching of the gospel to all the world. See Acts 15:14-17. This special preaching of the gospel was completed in one generation, and was followed by the destruction of Jerusalem.

8. What portion of the 2300 days (years) mentioned in the vision, was allotted to the Jews?

"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city." Dan. 9:24, first clause.'

NOTES. - 'As both the 2300 years of chapter 8 and the 'seventy weeks' of chapter 9 start from the Persian period of Jewish history, in other words, as they both date from the restoration era which followed the Babylonian captivity, their starting-points must be either identical or closely related chronologically.' -"Light for the Last Days," by H. Grattan Guinness, London, Hodder and Stoughton, 1893, page 183.

"There is plainly a close correspondence between the two visions of Daniel 8 and Daniel 9. The seventy weeks are said to be cut off for certain distinct objects; and this implies a longer period from which they are separated, either the course of time in general, or some period distinctly revealed. Now the previous period (the 2300 days) includes two events-the restoration of the sacrifice, and the desolation. The fast of these is identical in character with the seventy weeks, which are a period of the restored polity of Jerusalem; and hence the most natural explanation of the cutting off is that which refers to the whole period of the former vision.' - "First Elements of Sacred Prophecy," by T. R. Birks, London, 1843, pages 359, 360.

9. What was to be accomplished at the close of the seventy weeks?

"To finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy." Verse 24, latter part. NOTE - For "the Most Holy," the Douay version reads, "the Saint of saints."

10. What portion of this period was to reach to Christ, the Messiah, or Anointed One?

"Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks." Verse 25, first part.

NOTE - The word Messiah means anointed, and Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38) at His baptism in AD. 27. Matt. 3:16.

11. At the end of this time, what was to be done to Messiah?

"And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off." Verse 26, first part.

12. How was the destruction of Jerusalem and the sanctuary by the Romans then foretold?

"And the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined." Verse 26, last part.

13. What was Messiah to do during the seventieth week?

"And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week." Verse 27, first clause. See Matt. 26:26-28.

14. What was He to take away in the midst of this week?

"And in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." Verse 27, next clause.

NOTE-Ancient Babylon took away the typical service by the destruction of the temple at the capture of Jerusalem. This service was restored at the rebuilding of Jerusalem, but was perverted into mere formalism by the Jews, and was taken away by Christ at the first advent, when He blotted out the handwriting of ordinances, and "took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross." Col. 2:14. He then became "a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." Heb. 8:2. Thus He established the service in the heavenly sanctuary. The little horn, the Papacy, as far as was within its power, took away from the people the mediation of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, and substituted for it the Roman priesthood, with the Pope as Pontifex Maximus, or high priest. Power over this truth of the gospel and over the people of God was allowed to the Papacy because of transgression (Dan. 8:12, R.V.), just as the people of Jerusalem were given into the hand of the king of ancient Babylon for the same reason. 1 Chron. 9:1. Thus has the Papacy "cast down the truth to the ground," and has trodden underfoot the sanctuary and the people of God.

15. How are the judgments upon Jerusalem again foretold?

"And for the overspreading of abominations He shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." Remainder of verse 27.

NOTE - Seventy weeks would be four hundred and ninety days; and as a day in prophecy represents a year (Num. 14:34; Eze. 4:6), this period would be four hundred and ninety years. The commandment to restore and build Jerusalem was brought to its completion by Artaxerxes Longimanus in the seventh year of his reign (Ezra 6:14; 7:7,8), which, as already noted, was 457 BC. From this date the sixty-nine weeks, or four hundred and eighty-three years, would extend to the baptism of Christ in AD. 27, and the whole period to AD. 34, when the martyrdom of Stephen occurred, and the gospel began to be preached to the Gentiles. Before the end of that generation Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, AD.

70. The twenty-three hundred years would extend from 457 BC. To AD. 1844, when began the great second advent movement, which calls upon all to come out of modern Babylon, and to prepare for the next great event, the coining of Christ and the destruction of the world by fire.

16. What question was asked in the vision of Daniel 8?

"Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said unto that certain one which spoke, How long shall be the vision concerning the continual burnt offering, and the transgression that makes desolate, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden underfoot?" Dan. 8:13, R.V.

17. What prophetic period, therefore, extends to the deliverance of God's people from the captivity in modern Babylon, and the restoration to them of the mediation of Christ?

"And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Verse 14.

NOTE-The earthly sanctuary was a type of the heavenly sanctuary (Heb. 9:23,24; Lev. 16:29,30,33) ; the cleansing of the earthly sanctuary was typical of the cleansing in the heavenly sanctuary; and this cleansing of the sanctuary accomplished on the great day of atonement is the closing work of Christ in His mediation for sin. And the commencement of the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary marks the beginning of a new era in the experience of the people of God on earth; namely, the deliverance from the power of modern Babylon, the restoration to them of the knowledge of the mediation of Christ for them in the heavenly sanctuary, and a cleansing from sin in preparation for the second advent of Christ. The cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary involves the investigative judgment, which will be followed by the plagues, and Christ's coming. This period, therefore, determines the time of restoration and of judgment.

18. What is said of those who live to see the deliverance from modern Babylon, and the restoration of the true gospel?

"Blessed is he that waits, and comes to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days." Dan. 12:12.

NOTE - The 1335 days (years) of Dan. 12:12 are evidently a continuation of the 1290 days (years) of the previous verse, which commence with the taking away of the mediation of Christ, in the year AD. 508. See under question 22 in reading on "The Vicar of Christ," page 34. The 1335 days, or years, would therefore extend to the year 1843, the time of the preaching of the judgment hour, in preparation for the cleansing of the sanctuary, and the accompanying work at the end of the 2300 days, or years, of Dan.8:14. At that time special blessings were to come upon those who were delivered from the errors and bondage of Rome, and had their minds directed anew to the mediation of Christ as the great High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary.

GENERAL NOTE ON THE PROPHECIES OF DANIEL - The second chapter of Daniel presents in brief outline the divine program of history leading up to the establishment of the everlasting kingdom of God. The seventh chapter of Daniel presents somewhat more in detail the history of those earthly kingdoms which were to precede the establishment of the kingdom of God, the objective point of the prophecy being the little horn and its effort to change the laws and ordinances of God, and to destroy the subjects, of the heavenly kingdom. The period allotted to the supremacy of this power, the Papacy (the 1260 years), is also indicated. The prophecy of the eighth chapter of Daniel covers the period from the restoration era in the time of the Persian kings and the establishment of the people of God in their own land, to the restoration era just preceding the second advent of Christ and the setting up of His everlasting kingdom. In this chapter the leading theme is the effort of the Papacy to substitute its own mediatorial system for the mediatorial work of Christ, and the announcement of a prophetic period (the 2300 years), at the end of which the counterfeit system introduced by the Papacy was to he fully exposed. The remaining chapters of Daniel supplement the prophecies of the second, seventh, and eighth chapters, and show that at the end of the first portion of the 2300-year period (the 70 weeks, or 490 years) Messiah was to appear and be cut off, following which would come the destruction of Jerusalem. In the closing chapter two new periods are introduced (the 1290 years and the 1335 years), at the end of which, as with the 2300 years, was to come the movement preparatory to the setting up of God's everlasting kingdom in the earth, in harmony with the prophecies of the second and seventh chapters.

1. What did God, through Moses, command Israel to make?

"And let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." Ex. 25:8.

2. What was offered in this sanctuary?

"In which were offered both gifts and sacrifices." Heb. 9:9.

3. Besides the court, how many parts had this sanctuary?

"And the veil shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy." Ex. 26:33.

4. What was in the first apartment, or holy place?

"For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the show bread; which is called the sanctuary." Heb. 9:2. "And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the veil." Ex. 40:26. See also Ex. 30:1-6.

5. What was contained in the second apartment?

"And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was . . . the tables of the covenant." Heb. 9:3, 4. See also Ex. 40:20, 21.

6. By what name was the cover of the ark known?

"And thou shall put the mercy-seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shall put the testimony that I shall give thee." Ex. 25:21.

7. Where was God to meet with Israel?

"And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony." Verse 22.

8. What was in the ark, under the mercy-seat?

"And He wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the Ten Commandments. . . . And I turned myself and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made." Deut. 10:4, 5.

9. When did the priest minister in the first apartment of the sanctuary?

"Now these things having been thus prepared, the priests go in continually into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the services." Heb. 9:6, R.V.

10. Who alone went into the second apartment, how often, and for what purpose?

"But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people." Verse 7.

11. What were sinners desiring pardon instructed to do?

"And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he does somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord . . . then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned. And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin-offering, and slay the sin-offering in the place of the burnt offering." Lev. 4:27-29.

NOTE - According to this, if a man sinned in Israel, he violated one of the Ten Commandments that were in the ark under the mercy-seat. These commandments are the foundation of God's government. To violate them is to commit sin, and so become subject to death. 1 John 3:4; Rom. 6:23. But there was a mercy-scat reared above these holy and just commandments. In the dispensation of His mercy, God grants the sinner the privilege of confessing his sins, and bringing a substitute to meet the demands of the law, and thus of obtaining mercy.

12. What was done with the blood of the offering?

"And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar." Verse 30.

13. After the accumulation of the sins of the year in this way, what service took place on the tenth day of the seventh month of each year?

"And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, . . . for on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord." Lev. 16:29,30.,

14. How was the sanctuary itself to be cleansed, and how were the sins of the people to be finally disposed of?

"And he [the high priest] shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin-offering. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat" Verses 5-8.

NOTE-The Hebrew word for scapegoat is Azazel. See margin of verse 8. It is used as a proper name, and, according to the opinion of the most ancient Hebrews and Christians, refers to Satan, or the angel who revolted and persisted in rebellion and sin.

15. What was done with the blood of the goat upon which the Lord's lot fell?

"Then shall he kill the goat of the sin-offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, . . . and sprinkle it upon the mercy-seat, and before the mercy-seat." Verse 15.

16. Why was it necessary to make this atonement?

"And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness." Verse 16.

NOTE-Sins were conveyed into the sanctuary during the year by the blood of the personal sin-offerings offered daily at the door of the tabernacle. Here they remained until the day of atonement, when the high priest went into the most holy place with the blood of the goat on which the Lord's lot fell; and, bearing the accumulated sins of the year in before the mercy-scat, he there, in type, atoned for them, and so cleansed the sanctuary.

17. After having made atonement for the people in the most holy place, what did the high priest next do?

"And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: and Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness." Verses 20, 21.

NOTE - The offering of the Lord's goat cleansed the sanctuary. By this offering the sins of the people, transferred there during the year, were, in type, atoned for; but they were not by this offering finally disposed of, or destroyed. The scapegoat, symbolizing Satan, the great tempter and originator of sin, was brought to the sanctuary, and upon his head were placed all these sins which Satan had tempted God's people to commit.

18. What final disposition was made of the sins of the people?

"And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness." Verse 22.

19. What was this earthly sanctuary and its round of service?

"Which was a figure for the time then present." Heb.9:9.

20. Of what sanctuary, or tabernacle is Christ the minister?

"A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man! Heb. 8:2.

21. Of what was the, blood of all the sacrifices of the former dispensation only a type?

"Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.'' Heb. 9:12. See Eph. 5:2.

NOTE -Through the sacrifices and offerings brought to the altar of the earthly sanctuary, the penitent believer was to lay hold of the merits of Christ, the Savior to come. In this way, and in this way only, was there any virtue connected with them.

22. At the death of Christ, what miraculous occurrence signified that the priestly work and services of the earthly sanctuary were finished?

"Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom." Matt. 27:50, 51.

NOTES - Type had met antitype; the shadow had reached the substance. Christ, the great. sacrifice, had been slain, and was about to enter upon His final work as our great high priest in the sanctuary in heaven.

23. What relation does the earthly sanctuary sustain to the heavenly?

"Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, says He, that thou make all things according to the pattern showed to thee in the mount." Heb. 8:5.

24. By what comparison is it shown that the heavenly sanctuary will he cleansed?

"It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these." Heb. 9:23.

25. When Christ has finished His priestly mediatorial work in the heavenly sanctuary, what decree will go forth?

"He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still." Rev. 22:11.

26. What event is directly connected with the blotting out of sin and the final refreshing from God's presence?

"Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." Acts 3:19-21.

27. According to the view of the judgment presented to Daniel, what is to be given to Christ while still before the Father?

"I saw . . . and, behold, one like the Son of man came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him." Dan. 7:13,14.

28. What will occur when the Lord descends from heaven?

"For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." 1 Thess. 4:16, 17.

29. What statement immediately following the announcement mentioned in Rev. 22:11, indicates that a judgment work had been in progress before Christ comes?

"And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Rev. 22:12.

NOTE-The typical sanctuary service is fully met in the work of Christ. As the atonement day of the former dispensation was really a day of judgment, so the atonement work of Christ will include the investigation of the cases of His people prior to His coming the second time to receive them unto Himself.

30. Is there a specified time for the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary?

"And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Dan. 8: i4.

31. How may one know that this does not refer to the earthly sanctuary?

"He said unto me, Understand, 0 son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision." Verse 17. NOTE - The prophetic period Of 2300, days (years) extends to AD. 1844, while the divinely appointed services of the earthly sanctuary ceased at the cross (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 27:50,51), and the sanctuary itself was destroyed in AD. 70, when Titus captured Jerusalem. For explanation of the period here mentioned, see the preceding reading.

l. What assurance have we that there will be a judgment?

"God . . . hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world." Acts 17:30, 31.

2. Was the judgment still future in Paul's day?

"As he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled." Acts 24:25.

3. How many must meet the test of the judgment?

"I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked." Eccl. 3:17. "For we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." 2 Cor. 5:10.

4. What reason did Solomon give for urging all to fear God and keep His commandments?

"For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12:14.

5. What view of the judgment scene was given Daniel?

"I beheld till the thrones were cast down [placed, R.V.], and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool: His throne was like the fiery flame, and His wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him: thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened." Dan. 7:9, 10.

6. Out of what will all be judged?

"And the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." Rev. 20:12.

7. For whom has a book of remembrance been written?

"Then they that feared the Lord spoke often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name." Mal. 3:16.. See Rev. 20:12.

8. Who opens the judgment and presides over it?

"I beheld till the thrones were cast down [placed], and the Ancient of days did sit." Dan. 7:9.

9. Who minister to God, and assist in the judgment?

"Thousand thousands [of angels] ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him." Verse 10. See Rev. 5:11.

10. Who is brought before the Father at this time?

"I -saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him." Dan. 7:13.

11. What does Christ as the advocate of His people confess before the Father and His angels?

"He that overcomes, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels." Rev. 3:5: See Matt. 10:32, 33; Mark 8:38.

NOTE - During this judgment scene, both the righteous and the wicked dead are still in their graves. The record of each one's life, however, is in the books of heaven, and by that record their characters and deeds are well known. Christ is there to appear in behalf of those who have chosen Him as their advocate. 1 John 2:1. He presents His blood, as He appeals for their sins to be blotted from the books of record.

"We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he bath done, whether it be good or bad." 2 Cor. 5:10.

12. After the subjects of the kingdom have been determined by the investigative judgment, what is given to Christ?

"And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him." Dan. 7:14.

13. When He comes the second time, what title will He bear?

"And He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords." Rev. 19:16.

14. What will He then do for each one?

"For the Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and then He shall reward every man according to his works." Matt. 16:27. See also Rev. 22:12.

15. Where will Christ then take His people?

"In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." John 14:2,3.

16. How many of the dead will be raised?

"For the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5:28, 29. See also Acts 24:15.

17. What time intervenes between the two resurrections?

"And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither-his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished." Rev. 20:4,5.

18. What work did Daniel see finally assigned to the saints?

"I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom." Dan. 7:21,22.

19. How long will the saints engage in this work of judgment?

"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: . . . and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." Rev. 20:4.

20. Who will thus he judged by the saints?

"Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know you not that we shall judge angels? How much more things that pertain to this life?" 1 Cor. 6:2, 3.

21. How will the decisions of the judgment be executed?

"And out of His [Christ's] mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He treads the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." Rev. 19:15.

22. Why is the execution of the judgment given to Christ?

"For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself; and hath given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of man." John 5:26,27.

23. How was the opening of the judgment to be made known to the world?

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come." Rev. 14:6, 7.

NOTE-There are three phases of the judgment mentioned in the Scriptures the investigative judgment, preceding the second advent; the judgment of the lost world and wicked angels by Christ and the saints during the one thousand years following the second advent; and the executive judgment, or punishment of the wicked at the close of this period.

1. What prophetic view of the judgment was given Daniel?

"I beheld till the thrones were cast down [placed], and the Ancient of days did sit: . . . thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened." Dan. 7:9,10.

2. What assurance has God given of the judgment?

"Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead." Acts 17:31.

3. What message announces the judgment hour come?

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." Rev. 14:6, 7.

4. In view of the judgment hour, what is proclaimed anew?

"The everlasting gospel." Verse 6, first part.

5. How extensively is this message to he proclaimed?

"To every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." Verse 6, first part.

6. What is the whole world called upon to do?

"Fear God, and give glory to Him." Verse 7. History sets its seal to the words of the holy prophets, revealing that God, through them, had faithfully declared "the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done." Isa. 46:10.

7. What special reason is given for this?

"For the hour of His judgment is come." Same verse.

8. Whom are all called upon to worship?

"Him that made heaven, and earth." Same verse.

NOTE-There is only one gospel (Rom. 1:16,17; Gal. 1:8), first announced in Eden (Gen. 3:15), preached to Abraham (Gal. 3:8) and to the children of Israel (Heb. 4:1, 2), and proclaimed anew in every generation. In its development, the gospel meets the needs of every crisis in the world's history. John the Baptist in his preaching announced the kingdom of heaven at hand (Matt. 3:1, 2), and prepared the way for the first advent. John 1:22, 23. Christ Himself in His preaching of the gospel announced the fulfillment of a definite time prophecy (the sixty-nine weeks, or 483 years, of Dan. 9:25), and called the people to repentance, in view of the coming of the predicted Messiah. Mark 1:14,15. So when the time of the judgment comes, and Christ's second advent is near, a world-wide announcement of these events is to be made in the preaching of the everlasting gospel adapted to meet the need of the hour.

9. What prophetic period extends to the time of the cleansing of the sanctuary, or the investigative judgment?

"And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Dan. 8:14.

10. When did this long period expire?

In AD. 1844. See reading on page 35.

NOTE - Our Lord based His preaching of the gospel upon the fulfillment of the first part of the 2300 days, or years (Mark 1:14, 15), a prophecy which determined the time of the first advent. The whole period extends to the time of the judgment, just preceding the second advent, and at its expiration a special gospel message is sent to all the world proclaiming the judgment hour at hand, and calling upon all to worship the Creator. The facts of history answer to this interpretation of the prophecy: for at this very time (1844) just such a message was being proclaimed in various parts of the world. This was the beginning of the great second advent message which is now being proclaimed throughout the world.

11. How is the true God distinguished from all false gods?

"Thus shall you say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth. . . . He [the true God] hath made the earth by His power, He hath established the world by His wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by His discretion." Jer. 10:11, 12.

12. For what reason is worship justly due to God?

"For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. . . . The sea is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry land. 0 come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker." Ps. 95:3-6.

13. Why do the inhabitants of heaven worship God?

"The four and twenty elders fall down before Him, saying, Thou art worthy, 0 Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for Thou has created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created." Rev. 4:10,11.

14. What memorial of His creative power did God establish?

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Ex. 20:8-11.

15. What place has the Sabbath in the work of salvation?

"Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them." Eze. 20:12.

16. How many are concerned in the judgment?

"For we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." 2 Cor. 5:10.

17. What will be the standard in the judgment?

"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For He that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. So speak you, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty." James 2:10-12.

18. In view of the judgment, what exhortation is given?

"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12:13, 14.

NOTE - A comparison of Rev. 14:7 with Eccl. 12:13,14 suggests that the way to give glory to God is to keep His commandments, and that in giving the judgment hour message, the duty of keeping the commandments would be emphasized. This is plainly shown in the description given of the people who are gathered out of every nation, kindred, tongue, and people as the result of the preaching of this message, in connection with the other messages which immediately follow and accompany it. Of this people it is said, "Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14:12.

1. What announcement immediately follows the judgment-hour message of Rev. 14:6,7?

"And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city." Rev. 14:8, first part.

2. What reason is assigned for the fall of Babylon?

"Because she -made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." Same verse, last part.

3. How was the overthrow of ancient Babylon foretold?

"And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah." Isa. 13:19.

4. What call was made to come out of Babylon?

"Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the Lord's vengeance; He will render unto her a recompense." Jer. 51:6.

5. What did ancient Babylon do to all the nations?

"Babylon bath been a golden cup in the Lord's hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad." Verse 7.

6. What was the effect of this apostasy?

"Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed." Verse 8.

7. Just before the fall of Babylon, what did her king do?

"Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand." Dan. 5:1.

8. By what command did the king repudiate the religion taught in Babylon by Daniel and others who feared God?

"Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein." Verse 2.

9. What marked the climax of Babylon's apostasy?

"Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them." Verse 3.

10. While drinking the wine, what gods did they honor?

"They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone." Verse 4.

11. What immediately followed this complete apostasy?"In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom , being about threescore and two years old." Verses 30, 31.

NOTE-The gospel of the kingdom was preached in Babylon by Daniel and by other faithful and God-fearing Jews, and Nebuchadnezzar was brought to acknowledge and to worship the true God. But after the death of Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon relapsed into idolatry again, and this apostasy was rendered hopeless when Belshazzar used the sacred vessels from the house of God, dedicated to the worship of ,God, in which to drink the wine of Babylon while worship was offered to the false gods. Then came the handwriting on the wall, and the fall of ancient Babylon.

12. In the visions of John, what interpretation is given to the woman who sat upon many waters?

"And the woman which thou saw is that great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth." Rev. 17:18.

NOTE-The great city which reigned over the kings of the earth in John's time was Rome, and that city has given its name to the church which is represented by the woman, the Church of Rome, or the Papacy.

13. In this same prophecy, how is the Church of Rome, the Papacy, designated as the antitype of ancient Babylon?

"And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." Verse 5.

14. What specific statement emphasizes this identification?

"With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication." Verse 2. See verse 4.

NOTES - The Church of Rome is called Babylon, and its religion is a revival of the religion of ancient Babylon. She claims a priesthood with exceptional powers and privileges, just as did ancient Babylon. Through the dogma of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary, she denies that God in Christ dwelt in the same flesh as fallen man, just as ancient Babylon did. See Dan. 2:11. She claims universal spiritual jurisdiction, and demands submission under pains and penalties, just as ancient Babylon did. See Daniel 3. She repudiates the fundamental gospel truth of justification by faith, and boasts of works, just as ancient Babylon did. See Dan. 4:30. A careful comparison of the ritual of ancient and modern Babylon shows that the latter is copied from the former; and it is easy to trace the connection historically through the paganism of political Rome.

On the overthrow of Babylon by the Persians, who nourished a traditional hatred for its idolatry, the Chaldean priesthood fled to Pergamos, in Asia Minor, and made it the headquarters of their religion. . . . The last pontiff king of Pergamos was Attalus Ill, who at his death bequeathed his dominions and authority to the Roman people, 133 BC., and from that time the two lines of Pontifex Maximus were merged in the Roman one. ("The False Christ," J. Garnier, London, George Allen, 1900, Vol. II, pages 94, 95.) Thus did the religion of ancient Babylon become the religion of modern Babylon.

15. What did Jesus say of the sacramental wine?

"This cup is the new covenant in My blood." Luke 22:20, R.V.

16. What is the essential teaching of the new covenant?

"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put My laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to Me a people." Heb. 8:10.

17. When Christ thus ministers the law in the heart, what does it become?

"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:2-4.

18. In what other statement is this same truth expressed?

"It is the spirit that quickens; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." John 6:63.

19. What kind of teaching have men substituted for the words which are spirit and life?

"Howbeit in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. . . . And He said unto them, Full well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your own tradition." Mark 7:7-9.

NOTES - There are two cups, the cup of the Lord and the cup of Babylon. The wine in the Lord's cup represents the living truth, "as the truth is in Jesus"; the wine in the cup of Babylon represents her false doctrines, her substitution of human tradition for the living Word and law of God, and the illicit connection which she has made between the church and the secular power, depending upon political power to enforce her teachings, rather than upon the power of God. By this very thing, while maintaining a form of godliness, she denies the power thereof. 2 Tim. 3:1-5.

The following quotation states the position of that church in regard to tradition: "Though these two divine streams [the Bible and tradition] are in themselves, on account of their divine origin, of equal sacredness, and are both full of revealed truths, still, of the two, tradition is to us more clear and safe." - "Catholic Belief," Rev. Joseph Faa Di Bruno, D.D. (Roman Catholic), page 45.

20. What relation does the Church of Rome sustain to other apostate churches?

"And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." Rev. 17:5.

NOTES - In the creed of Pope Pius IV, an authoritative statement of Roman Catholic belief, is found this statement: "I acknowledge the Holy Catholic Apostolic Church for the mother and mistress of all churches." (Article 10.) When the professed Protestant churches repudiate the fundamental principle of Protestantism by setting aside the authority of God's Word, and accepting tradition and human speculation in its place, they adopt the fundamental principle of modern Babylon, and may he regarded as the daughters of Babylon. Their fall is then included in the fall of Babylon, and calls for a proclamation of the fall of modern Babylon.

Many representatives of modern Protestantism have, in one way or another, rejected many fundamental doctrines of the Bible, such as-

The fall of man. The Bible doctrine of sin. The infallibility of the Scriptures. The sufficiency of the Scriptures as a rule of faith and practice. The Deity of Christ, and His consequent headship over the church. The miraculous conception and the virgin birth of our Lord. The resurrection of Christ from the grave. The vicarious, expiatory, and propitiatory atonement of Christ. Salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Regeneration by the power of the Holy Ghost.

The efficacy of the all-prevailing name of Christ in prayer. The ministration and guardianship of holy angels. Miracles as the direct manifestation and interposition of God's power.

Although many leaders of modern Protestantism known as higher critics have not formally adopted the creed of the Church of Rome, and have not become an organic part of that body, yet they belong to the same class in rejecting the authority of God's Word, and accepting in its place the product of their own reasonings. There is just as much apostasy in the one case as in the other, and both must therefore be included in Babylon, and both will go down in the fall of Babylon. The warning message applies with equal force to both classes.

21. To what extent is the apostasy, or fall, of modern Babylon, the mother, and of her daughters, to be carried?

"And after these things I saw another angel come down from, heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies." Rev. 18:1-3.

NOTE -In the largest sense, Babylon includes all false religions---all apostasy. The gospel message announcing her final overthrow should be a cause of rejoicing to every lover of truth and righteousness.

22. What final call to come out of Babylon is to go forth?

"And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities." Verses 4, 5.

23. How complete is to be the fall of modern Babylon?

"And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. . . . And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth." Verses 21-24.

24. What song of triumph follows the overthrow of Babylon?

"Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigns. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him." Rev. 19:6,7.

A Warning Against False Worship

1. What indicates that the messages of the judgment hour and the fall of Babylon are two parts of a threefold message?

"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice." Rev. 14:9, first clause.

2. What apostasy from the worship of God is named in this message?

"If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand." Same verse, last part.

3. What is to be the fate of those who, instead of worshipping God, engage in this false worship?

"The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receives the mark of his name." Verses 10, 11 See Isa. 33:13-17; 34:1-10; 1 Cor. 3:13; Heb. 12:29.

4. How are those described who heed this warning?

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Verse 12.

5. What description is given of the beast against whose worship this closing warning message is given?

"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority." Rev. 13:1, 2.

NOTE - In this composite beast from the sea are combined the symbols of the seventh chapter of Daniel, representing Greece, Medo-Persia, and Babylon. The blasphemous words spoken by it, its persecution of the saints, and the time allotted to it (verses 5-7) show that this beast, under one of its seven-headed manifestations, is identical with the little horn of the vision of the seventh chapter of Daniel, modern Babylon, the Papacy. See reading on "The Kingdom and Work of Antichrist," page 23. The false worship here mentioned, the worship of the beast, is the rendering of that homage to the Papacy which is due to God alone. The system of religion enforced by the Papacy is the paganism of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, indicated by the composite character of the beast (verse 2), disguised under the forms and names of Christianity

6. What challenge is made by those who worship the beast?

"And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?" Verse 4.

7. Whose sovereignty is thus challenged?

"Forasmuch as there is none like unto Thee, 0 Lord; Thou art great, and Thy name is great in might." Jer.10:6. See also Ps. 71:19; 86:8; 89:6,8.

8. What specifications of "the man of sin" are thus fully met?

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God." 2 Thess. 2:3, 4. See pages 23, 24.

9. What did Babylon give to the nations to drink?

"She made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." Rev. 14:8, last part. See pages 5962.

10. What are those to drink who accept the teachings of Babylon, and thus render homage to the beast?

"The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation." Verse 10, first part.

NOTE-The cup of the Lord, which contains the new covenant in the blood of Christ, and the cup of the wine of Babylon are both offered to the world. To drink of the former, that is, to accept the teaching of the true gospel, is to receive everlasting life; but to drink of the wine of Babylon, that is, to accept the false gospel taught by the Papacy, will result in drinking of the wine of the wrath of God from the cup of His indignation. The true gospel means everlasting life; the false gospel means everlasting death.

11. Under what threatened penalty is the worship of the image of the beast enforced?

"And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause [decree] that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed." Rev. 13:15.

NOTE-For an explanation of the image of the beast, see reading on "Making an Image to the Beast".

12. What universal boycott is to be employed, in an attempt to compel all to receive the mark of the beast?

"And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." Verses 16, 17.

NOTE-Regarding the mark of the beast, see readings on "The Seal of God" and "The Mark of Apostasy," pages 138, 141.

13. Who is the real power operating through the beast and his image, and demanding worship?

"The dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority." Verse 2, last part.

14. Who is this dragon?

"And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Rev. 12:9.

15. How did the devil seek to induce Jesus to worship him?

"And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, showed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whom so ever I will I give it. If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Your." Luke 4:5-7.

16. How did Jesus show His loyalty to God?

"And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind Me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shall worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shall thou serve." Verse 8.

NOTE - The threefold message of Rev. 14:6-12 is proclaimed in connection with the closing scenes of the great controversy between Christ and Satan. Lucifer has sought to put himself in the place of God (Isa. 14:12-14), and to secure to himself the worship which is due to God alone. The final test comes over the commandments of God. Those who acknowledge the supremacy of the beast by yielding obedience to the law of God as changed and enforced by the Papacy, when the real issue has been clearly defined, will in so doing, worship the beast and his image and receive his mark. Such will take the side of Satan in his rebellion against the authority of God.

17. How many will yield to the demand to worship the beast?

"And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Rev. 13:8.

18. In the judgment-hour message, whom are all called upon to fear, glorify, and worship?

"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." Rev. 14:7.

19. Who will sing the song of Moses and the Lamb on the sea of glass?

"And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints. Who shall not fear Thee, 0 Lord, and glorify Thy name? For Thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before Thee; for Thy judgments are made manifest." Rev. 15:2-4.

1. When God brought His people out of Egypt, how did He republish His law?

"And the Lord spoke unto you out of the midst of the fire: you heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only you heard a voice. And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even Ten Commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." Deut. 4:12,13. See also Neh. 9:13,14.

2. Where are the Ten Commandments recorded?

In Ex. 20:2-17.

3. How comprehensive are these commandments?

"Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." Ecel. 12:13.

4. What inspired tribute is paid to the law of God?

"The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes." Ps. 19:7, 8.

5. What blessing does the Psalmist say attends the keeping of God's commandments?

"Moreover by them is Thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward." Verse 11.

6. What did Christ state as a condition of entering into life?

"If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. Matt. 19:17.

7. Can man of himself, unaided by Christ, keep the law?

"I am the vine, you are the branches: he that abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing." John 15:5. See also Rom. 7:14-19.

8. What provision has been made so that we may keep God's law?

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:3, 4.

9. What is the nature of God's law?

"For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin." Rom. 7:14.

NOTE-In His comments on the sixth and seventh commandments, recorded in Matt. 5:21-28, Christ demonstrated the spiritual nature of the law, showing that it relates not merely to outward actions, but that it reaches to the thoughts and intents of the heart. See also Heb. 4:12.

10. How is the law further described?

"Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good." Verse 12.

11. What is revealed in God's law?

"And knows His [God's] will, and approves the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law." Rom. 2:18.

12. When Christ came to this earth, what was His attitude toward God's will, or law?

"Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of Me, I delight to do Thy will, 0 My God: yea, Thy law is within My heart." Ps. 40:7,8. See Heb. 10:5,7.

13. Who did He say would enter the kingdom of heaven?

"Not everyone that says unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of MY Father which is in heaven." Matt. 7:21. .

14. What did He say of those who should break one of God's commandments, or should teach men to do so?

"Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5:19, first part.

15. Who did He say would be called great in the kingdom?

"But whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom." Same verse, last part.

16. How did Christ estimate the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees?

"For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." Verse 20.

17. For what did Christ reprove the Pharisees?

"But He answered and said unto them, Why do you also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?" Matt. 15:3.

18. How had they done this?

"For God commanded, saying, Honor thy father and mother. But you say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift. . . . and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have you made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." Verses 4-6.

19. In consequence of this, what value did Christ place upon their worship?

"But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." Verse 9.

20. What is sin declared to be?

"Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." 1 John 3:4.

21. By what is the knowledge of sin?

"For by the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20. See Rom. 7:7.

22. How many of the commandments is it necessary to break in order to become a transgressor of the law?

"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For He that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law." James 2:10, 11.

NOTE-This shows that the Ten Commandments are a complete whole, and together constitute but one law. Like a chain of ten links, all are inseparably connected together. If one link is broken, the chain is broken.

23. How may we be freed from the guilt of our sins, or our transgressions of God's law?

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9.

24. Why are we admonished to fear God and keep His commandments?

"Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12:13,14.

25. What will be the standard in the judgment?

"So speak you, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty." James 2:12.

26. What is said of those who love God's law?

"Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing shall offend them." Ps. 119:165.

27. What would obedience to God's commandments have ensured to ancient Israel?

"0 that thou had hearkened to My commandments! Then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." Isa. 48:18.

28. Why is the carnal mind enmity against God?

"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." Rom. 8:7.

29. How do those with renewed hearts and minds regard the commandments of God?

"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous." 1 John 5:3.

30. What is the essential principle of the law of God?

"Love works no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." Rom. 13:10.

31. In what two great commandments is the law of God briefly summarized?

"Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." Matt. 22:37-40.

NOTE. - 'Does any man say to me, 'You see, then, instead of the Ten Commandments, we have received the two commandments, and these are much easier'? I answer that this reading of the law is not in the least easier. Such a remark implies a want of thought and experience. Those two precepts comprehend the ten at their fullest extent, and cannot be regarded as the erasure of a jot or tittle of them. Whatever difficulties surround the ten commands are equally found in the two, which are their sum and substance. If you love God with all your heart, you keep the first table; and if you love your neighbor as yourself, you must keep the second table."-"The Perpetuity of the Law of God," by C. H. Spurgeon, page 5.

32. What is said of one who professes to know the Lord, but does not keep His commandments?

"He that says, I know Him, and keeps not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." 1 John2:4.

33. What promise is made to the willing and obedient?

"If you be willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land." Isa. 1:19.

34. How does God regard those who walk in His law?

"Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord." Ps. 119:1.

1. How many lawgivers are there?

"There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy." James 4:12.

2. What is said of the stability of God's character?

"For I am the Lord, I change not." Mal. 3:6.

3. How enduring are His commandments?

"The works of His hands are verity and judgment; all His commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness." Ps. 111:7, 8.

4. Did Christ come to abolish or to destroy the law?

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." Matt.5:17.

NOTES - The law; broadly, the writings of Moses; specifically, the Ten Commandments, or moral law, from which the writings of Moses primarily derived their name. The prophets; that is, the writings of the prophets. Neither of these Christ came to destroy, but rather to fulfil, or meet their design.

"The laws of the Jews are commonly divided into moral, ceremonial, and judicial. The moral laws are such as grow out of the nature of things, which cannot, therefore, be changed---such as the duty of loving God and His creatures. These cannot be abolished, as it can never be made right to hate God, or to hate our fellow men. Of this kind are the Ten Commandments; and these our Savior neither abolished nor superseded. The ceremonial laws are such as are appointed to meet certain states of society, or to regulate the religious rites and ceremonies of a people. These can be changed when circumstances are changed, and yet the moral law be untouched.' Dr. Albert Barnes, On Matt. 5:18.

"Jesus did not come to change the law, but He came to explain it, and that very fact shows that it remains; for there is no need to explain that which is abrogated. . . . By thus explaining the law He confirmed it; He could not have meant to abolish it, or He would not have needed to expound it. . . . That the Master did not come to alter the law is clear, because after having embodied it in His life, He willingly gave Himself up to bear its penalty, though He had never broken it, bearing the penalty for us, even as it is written, 'Christ bath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us.' . . . If the law had demanded more of us than it ought to have done, would the Lord Jesus have rendered to At the penalty which resulted from its too severe demands? I am sure He would not. But because the law asked only what it ought to ask, namely, perfect obedience and exacted of the transgressor only what it ought to exact, namely, death as the penalty for sin-death under divine wrath therefore the Savior went to the tree, and there bore our sins, and purged them once for all." ---'The Perpetuity of the Law of God," by C. H. Spurgeon, pages 4-7.

"The moral law contained in the Ten Commandments, and enforced by the prophets, He did not take away. It was not the design of His coming to revoke any part of this. . . . Every part of this law must remain in force upon all mankind and in all ages, as not depending either on time or place, or any other circumstance liable to change, but on the nature of God, and the nature of man, and their unchangeable relation to each other.' -- John Wesley, in his "Sermons," Vol. I, No. 25, pages 221,222.

5. When used with reference to prophecy, what does the word fulfil mean?

To fill up; to accomplish; to bring to pass; as, "that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet." Matt. 4:14.

6. What does it mean when used with reference to law?

To perform, to keep, or to act in accordance with; as, "Bear you one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ." Gal. 6:2. See also Matt. 3:15; James 2:8, 9.

7. How did Christ treat His Father's commandments?

"I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love." John 15:10.

8. If one professes to abide in Christ, how ought he to walk?

"He that says he abides in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked." 1 John 2:6.

9. What is sin?

"Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." 1 John 3:4.

NOTE - This text does not say that sin was the transgression of the law, but that it is this, thus demonstrating that the law is still in force in the gospel dispensation. "Whosoever" likewise shows the universality of its binding claims. Whoever of any nation, race, or people commits sin, transgresses the law.

10. In what condition are all men?

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Rom. 3:23.

11. How many are included in the "all" who have sinned?

"What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin." Verse 9.

12. By what are all men proved guilty?

"Now we know that what things so ever the law says, it says to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God." Verse 19.

NOTE---It is what the law says, and not what one may interpret it to mean, that proves the sinner guilty. Moreover, God is no respecter of persons, but treats Jew and Gentile alike. Measured by the law, all the world are guilty before God.

13. Does faith in God make void the law?

"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law. Verse 31.

14. What, more than all else, proves the perpetuity and immutability of the law of God?

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16. "Christ died for our sins." 1 Cor. 15:3.

NOTE. - Could the law have been abolished, and sin been disposed of in this way, Christ need not have come and died for our sins. The gift of Christ, therefore, more than all else, proves the immutability of the law of God. Christ must come and die, and satisfy the claims of the law, or the world must perish. The law could not give way. Says Spurgeon in his sermon on "The Perpetuity of the Law of God": "Our Lord Jesus Christ gave a greater vindication of the law by dying because it had been broken than all the lost can ever give by their miseries." The fact that the law is to be the standard in the judgment is another proof of its enduring nature. See Eccl. 12. 13, 14; James 2:8-12.

15. What relation does a justified person sustain to the law?

"For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified." Rom. 2:13.

16. Who has the promise of being blessed in his doing?

"But he that looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continues, being not a hearer that forgets, but a doer that works, this man shall be blessed in his doing." James 1:25, R.V.

17. By what may we know that we have passed from death unto life?

"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." 1 John 3:14.

18. And how may we know that we love the brethren?

"By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments." 1 John 5:2.

19. What is the love of God?

"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments." Verse 3.

20. How are those described who will he prepared for the coming of Christ?

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14:12.

1. How does Nehemiah describe the giving of the law at Sinai?

"Thou came down also upon Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments: and made known unto them Thy holy Sabbath, and commanded them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses Thy servant." Neh. 9:13,14.

2. What is declared to be the chief advantage possessed by the Jews?

"What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision? Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God." Rom. 3:1, 2.

NOTE-The law was not spoken at this time exclusively for the benefit of the Hebrews. God honored them by making them the guardians and keepers of His law, but He intended that it should be held by them as a sacred trust for the whole world. The precepts of the Decalogue are adapted to all mankind, and they were given for the instruction and government of all. "Ten precepts, brief, comprehensive, and authoritative, cover the duty of man to God and to his fellow men"; and all are based upon the great fundamental principle of love. "Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." Luke 10:27. In the Ten Commandments these principles are carried out in detail, and are made applicable to the condition and circumstances of man.

3. Before the giving of the law at Sinai, what did Moses say when Jethro asked him concerning his judging the people?

"When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and His laws." Ex. 18:16.

4. What explanation did Moses give the rulers of Israel concerning the withholding of the manna on the seventh day in the wilderness of Sin, before they reached Sinai?

"And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord. Six days you shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which m the Sabbath, in it there shall be none." Ex. 16:23-26.

5. When some went out to gather manna on the seventh day, what did the Lord say to Moses?

"And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse you to keep My commandments and My laws?" Verse28.

NOTE - It is evident therefore that the Sabbath and the law of God existed before the law was given at Sinai.

6. How is the character of the law described by the Apostle Paul?

"Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful." Rom. 7:12,13.

7. For what purpose did the law enter?

"Moreover the law entered, that the, offence might abound." Rom. 5:20.

NOTE - By the giving of the law at Sinai, then, God designed, not to increase or multiply sin, but that men might, through a new revelation of Him and of His character and will, as expressed in a plainly spoken and plainly written law, the better see the awful sinfulness of sin, and thus their utter helplessness and undone condition. While in Egypt, surrounded as they were with idolatry and sin, and as the result of their long bondage and hard servitude, Israel even, the special people of God, had largely forgotten God and lost sight of His requirements. Until one realizes that he is a sinner, he cannot see his need of a Savior from sin. Hence the entering, or re-publication, of the law to the world through Israel at Sinai.

8. By what is the knowledge of sin?

"By the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20. See also Rom. 7:7.

9. Under what condition is the written law good?

"But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully." 1 Tim. 1:8.

10. And what is indicated as the lawful use of the law?

"Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for whore mongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for men stealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine." Verses 9, 10.

11. Who does Christ say need a physician?

"They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." Matt. 9:12.

NOTE-Speaking of how to deal with those "who are not stricken of their sins," and "have no deep conviction of guilt," D. L. Moody, in his "Sermons, Addresses, and Prayers," says: "Just bring the law of God to bear on these, and show them themselves in their true light. . . . Don't try to heal the wound before the hurt is felt. Don't attempt to give the consolation of the gospel until your converts see that they have sinned-see it and feel it."

12. Whom does Christ say He came to call to repentance?

"For I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Verse 13.

13. What is the strength of sin?

"The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law." 1 Cor. 15:56.

14. What are the wages of sin?

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. 6:23.

1. What is the wages of sin?

"For the wages of sin is death." Rom. 6:23.

2. What did God tell Adam and Eve would he the result if they transgressed, and partook of the forbidden fruit?

"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it: for in the day that thou eat thereof thou shall surely die." Gen. 2:17.

3. Who does God say shall die?

"The soul that sins, it shall die." Eze. 18:4.

4. How did death enter the world?

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Rom. 5:12.

5. Why did God destroy the antediluvian world?

"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth. . . . And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth." Gen. 6:5-7.

6. While God is merciful, does this clear the guilty?

"The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty." Num. 14:18. See also Ex. 34:5-7.

7. What is the result of willful sin?

"For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." Heb. 10:26, 27.

8. Under the theocracy, how were the rebellious or willful transgressors treated?

"He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses." Verse 28.

9. What awaits those who despise the means of grace?

"Of how much sorer punishment, suppose you, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?" Verse 29.

10. Is it the duty of gospel ministers to execute vengeance?

"Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us." 2 Cor. 5:20. See 2 Tim.2:24-26.

11. To whom does vengeance belong?

"Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord." Rom. 12:19.

12. To whom has execution of judgment been committed?

"For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself; and hath given Him authority to execute judgment also." John 5:26, 27. See Jude 14, 15.

13. Because evil is not punished immediately, what presumptuous course do many pursue? ,

"Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil." Ecel. 8:11.

14. What message has God commissioned His ministers to bear to men?

"Say you to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat of the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him." Isa. 3:10, 11.

1. Can there be sin where there is no law?

"Because the law works wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression ..... Sin is not imputed when there is no law." Rom. 4:15; 5:13.

2. Through what is the knowledge of sin obtained?

"For by the law is the knowledge of sin." "I had not known sin, but by the law." Rom. 3:20; 7:7.

3. What statement shows that sin was in the world before the law was given on Mount Sinai?

"For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law." Rom. 5:13.

NOTE - The fact that. sin was imputed before the law was given at Sinai is conclusive proof that the law existed before that event.

4. When did Sin and death enter the world?

"Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Verse 12.

5. With what words did God admonish Cain?

"If thou does well, shall thou not be accepted? and if thou does not well, sin lies at the door." Gen. 4:7.

6. What shows that God imputed sin to Cain?

"And He said, What has thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood cries unto Me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand." Verses 10, 11.

7. What was the difference between Cain's and Abel's characters?

"Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous." 1 John 3:12.

NOTE - There must, therefore, have been a standard at that time by which the characters of men were weighed. That standard must have defined the difference between right and wrong, and pointed out man's duty. But this is the province of the law of God. Hence the law of God must have existed at that time.

8. In what condition was the world before the Flood?

"The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence." Gen. 6:11.

9. What did God purpose to do with the people of that day?

"And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth." Verse 13.

10. What is Noah called?

"And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness." 2 Peter 2:5.

NOTE - Noah must have warned the antediluvians against sin, and preached repentance and that obedience of faith which brings the life into harmony with the law of God.

11. Why did the Lord destroy Sodom?

"The men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly." Gen. 13:13.

12. What was the character of- their deeds?

"And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (for that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds)." 2 Peter 2:7, 8.

NOTE - Their deeds would not have been unlawful had there been no law then in existence. Unlawful means "contrary to law."

13. What did Joseph, in Egypt, say when tempted to sin?

"How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" Gen. 39:9.

14. What did God say to Abraham concerning the Amorites?

"In the fourth generation they [Israel] shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full." Gen. 15:16.

15. Of what sin were the Amorites specially guilty?

"And he [Ahab] did very abominably in following idols, according to all things as did the Amorites, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel." 1 Kings 21:26.

16. Why did the Lord abhor the Canaanites?

"You shall therefore keep all My statutes, and all My judgments, and do them: that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spew you not out. And you shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them." Lev. 20:22, 23.

NOTE - The statement that "they committed all these things" refers to what had been previously forbidden to the Israelites. Among these things was idolatrous worship (Lev. 20:1-5), showing that the Gentiles, as well as the Jews, were amenable to the law of God, and were abhorred of God for violating it.

17. Why did God make His promise to the seed of Abraham?

"Because that Abraham obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws." Gen. 26:5. NOTE - Then God's commandments and laws existed in the time of Abraham.

18. Before giving the law at Sinai, what did God say because some of the people went out to gather manna on the seventh day?

"And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse you to keep My commandments and My laws?" Ex. 16:28.

19. Had the Lord spoken regarding the Sabbath previous to this time?

"This is that which the Lord hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath." Verse 23.

20. Before coming to Sinai, what had Moses taught Israel?

"When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and His laws." Ex. 18:16.

NOTE - All this shows that the law of God existed from the beginning, and was known and taught in the world before it was proclaimed at Sinai.

1. By what means did the Jews know God's will?

"Behold, thou art called a Jew, and rests in the law, and makes thy boast of God, and knows His will. . . . being instructed out of the law." Rom. 2:17, 18.

2. What did they have in the law?

"Which has the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law." Verse 20.

NOTE -The written law presents the form of knowledge and of the truth. Grace and truth, or grace and the reality or realization of that which the written law demands, came by Jesus Christ. He was the law in life and action.

3. What did Jesus say of His attitude toward the law?

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." Matt.5:17.

NOTE-The word "fulfil" as here used is taken by many to mean that Christ brought the law to an end. But the meaning of the word varies according to its usage, as is evident from the definition in the Concise Oxford Dictionary: "Fulfil. Bring to consummation, carry out, (prophecy, promise) satisfy (desire, prayer) perform, execute, do, (command, law) ; answer (purpose) comply with (conditions) bring to an end, finish, complete, (period, work)."

In the sermon on the mount, so far from abolishing the law, Christ set forth its eternal, unchangeable character, and the deep spirituality of its requirements, entering as they do into the thoughts and intents of the heart.

4. What did He teach concerning the stability of the law?

"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Verse 18.

5. In what instruction did He emphasize the importance of keeping the law?

"Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Verse 19.

6. What did Christ tell the rich young man to do in order to enter into life?

"If thou wilt enter into life, keep, the commandments." Matt. 19:17.

7. When asked which commandments, what did Jesus say?

"Jesus said, Thou shall do no murder, Thou shall not commit adultery, Thou shall not steal, Thou shall not bear false witness, Honor thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself." Verses 18, 19.

NOTE - While not quoting all of the Ten Commandments, Jesus quoted sufficient of them to show that He referred to the moral law. In quoting the second great commandment He called attention to the great principle underlying the second table of the law-love to one's neighbor-which the rich young man, in his covetousness, was not keeping.

8. Does faith render the law void?

"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." Rom. 3:31.

9. How is the law fulfilled?

"Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that love another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shall not commit adultery, Thou shall not kill, Thou shall not steal, Thou shall not bear false witness, Thou shall not covet; and if there be any other commandment [touching our duty to our fellow men], it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. Love works no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." Rom. 13:8-10.

10. What is of more importance than any outward ceremony?

"Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God." 1 Cor. 7:19.

11. What kind of mind is not subject to the law of God?

"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." Rom. 8:7.

12. What proves that the law is an undivided whole?

"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For He that said [margin, that law which said], Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. So speak you, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty." James 2:10-12.

13. How is sin defined?

"Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." 1 John 3:4.

14. How may we know that we love the children of God?

"By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments." 1 John 5:2.

15. What is the love of God declared to be?

"For this is the love of God that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous.--- Verse 3.

16. How is the church of the last days described?

"And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 12:17; 14:12.

How blest the children of the Lord, Who, walking in His sight,
Make all the precepts of His Word Their study and delight!

What precious wealth shall be their dower, Which cannot know decay;
Which moth and rust shall ne'er devour, Or spoiler take away!

-Harriet Auber.

The Fulfilling of the Law

"If the love of God is shed abroad in your heart," says Mr. Moody, "you will be able to fulfil the law." Paul reduces the commandments to one: "Thou $halt love," and says that "love is the fulfilling of the law." This truth may be demonstrated thus:

1. Love to God will admit no other god.
2. Love will not debase the object it adores.
3. Love to God will never dishonor His name.
4. Love to God will reverence His day.
5. Love to parents will honor them.
6. Hate, not love, is a murderer.
7. Lust, not love, commits adultery.
8. Love will give, but never steal.
9. Love will not slander nor lie.
10. Love's eye is not covetous.

Principles Underlying the Ten Commandments

1. Faith and Loyalty. Heb. 11:6; Matt. 4:8-10.
2. Worship. Jer. 10:10-12; Ps. 115:3-8; Rev. 14:6, 7.
3. Reverence. Ps. 111:9; 89:7; Heb. 12:28.
4. Holiness and consecration. 1 Peter 1:15,16; Heb. 12:14; Ex. 31:13; Eze. 20:12; 1 Cor. 1:30; Luke 10:27.
5. Obedience, or respect for authority. Eph. 6:1-3; Col. 3:20; 2 Kings 2:23, 24.
6. Love. Lev. 19:17, 18; 1 John 3:15; Matt. 5:21-26, 43-48.
7. Purity. Matt. 5:8; Eph. 5:3, 4; Col. 3:5, 6; 1 Tim. 5:22; 1 Peter 2:11.
8. Honesty. Rom. 12:17; Eph. 4:28; 2 Thess. 3:10-12.
9. Truthfulness. Eph. 4.25; Col. 3:9; Prov. 6:16-19; 12:19; Rev. 21:27; 22:15.
10. Contentment and unselfishness. Eph. 5:5; Col. 3:5; 1 Tim. 6:6-11; Heb. 13:5.

1. What title of distinction is given the law of God?

"If you fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself, you do well: but if you have respect of persons, you commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors." James 2:8, 9.

2. By what law is the knowledge of sin?

"I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shall not covet." Rom. 7:7.

3. By what are all men to be finally judged?

"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12:13,14. "So speak you, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty." James 2:12.

NOTE - The law which is here called "the law of liberty," is the law which says, "Do not commit adultery" and "Do not kill," for these commandments had just been quoted in the verse immediately preceding. In verse 8, this same law is styled "the royal law"; that is, the kingly law. This is the law by which men Are to be judged.

4. What system was established on account of man's transgression of the law of God?

The sacrificial system, with its rites and ceremonies pointing to Christ.

5. Why did the patriarch Job offer burnt offerings?

"And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them. And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually." Job 1:4, 5.

6. How early was this sacrificial system known?

"By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts." Heb. 11:4. See Gen. 4:3-5; 8:20.

7. BY whom was the Ten Commandment law proclaimed?

"And the Lord spoke unto you out of the midst of the fire: you heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only you heard a voice. And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even Ten Commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." Deut. 4:12, 13.

8. How was the ceremonial law made known to Israel?

"And the Lord called unto Moses. . . . saying, Speak unto ,the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering," etc. Lev. 1:1,2. "This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat-offering, and of the sin-offering, and of the trespass-offering, and of the consecrations, and of the sacrifice of the peace-offerings; which the Lord commanded Moses in Mount Sinai, in the day that He commanded the children of Israel to offer their oblations unto the Lord, in the wilderness of Sinai'. Lev. 7:37,38.

9. Were the Ten Commandments a distinct and complete law by themselves?

"These words the Lord spoke unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and He added no more. And He wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me." Deut. 5:22. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Come up to Me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written." Ex. 24:12.

10. Was the ceremonial law a complete law in itself?

"The law of commandments contained in ordinances." Eph. 2:15.

11. On what did God write the Ten Commandments?

"And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even Ten Commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." Deut. 4:13.

12. In what were the laws or commandments respecting sacrifices and burnt offerings written?

"And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the Lord, as it is written in the book of Moses." 2 Chron. 35:12.

13. Where were the Ten Commandments placed?

"And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and put the mercy-seat above upon the ark." Ex. 40:20.

14. Where did Moses command the Levites to put the book of the law which he had written?

"Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying, Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God." Deut. 31:25, 26.

15. What is the nature of the moral law?

"The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul." Ps. 19:7. "For we know that the law is spiritual." Rom. 7:14.

16. Could the offerings commanded by the ceremonial law satisfy or make perfect the conscience of the believer?

"Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience." Heb. 9:9.

17. Until what time did the ceremonial law impose the service performed in the worldly sanctuary?

"Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation." Verse 10.

18. When was this time of reformation?

"But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Verses 11,12.

19. How did Christ's death affect the ceremonial law?

"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross." Col. 2:14. "Having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances." Eph. 2:15.

20. Why was the ceremonial law taken away?

"For there is a disannulling of a foregoing commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness (for the law made nothing perfect), and a bringing in thereupon of a better hope, through which we draw nigh unto God." Heb.7:18,19,R.V.

21. What miraculous event occurred at the death of Christ, signifying that the sacrificial system was for ever at an end?

"Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom." Matt. 27:50, 51.

22. In what words had the prophet Daniel foretold this?

"And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." Dan. 9:27.

23. How enduring is the moral law?

"Concerning Thy testimonies, I have known of old that Thou has founded them for ever." Ps. 119:152.

1. What two covenants are contrasted in the Bible?

"In that He says, A new covenant, He hath made the first old. Now that which decays and waxes old is ready to vanish away." Heb. 8:13.

2. By what other terms are these covenants designated?

"For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second." Verse7.

3. In connection with what historical event was the old covenant made?

"Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in My covenant, and I regarded them not, says the Lord." Verse 9. See Ex. 19:3-8.

4. When God was about to proclaim His law to Israel, of what did He tell Moses to remind them?

"Tell the children of Israel; You have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto Myself." Ex. 19:3, 4.

5. What proposition did He submit to them?

"Now therefore, if you will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people: for all the earth is Mine: and you shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation." Verses 5, 6.

6. What response did the people make to this proposition?

"And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord." Verse 8.

7. In this covenant with Israel, what obligation was imposed upon the people?

"Now therefore, if you will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant." Verse 5, first part.

8. What was the Lord's covenant which they were to keep as their part of this covenant?

"And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even Ten Commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." Deut. 4:13.

NOTE-The Ten Commandments were the "covenant" to which the Lord referred when, in proposing to make a covenant with Israel, He said, "You will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant," etc. Ex. 19:5. The Ten Commandments were termed God's covenant before the covenant was made with Israel: hence they cannot be the old covenant itself. They were not an agreement made, but something which God commanded them to perform, and promised blessings upon the condition that they were kept. Thus the: Ten Commandments-God's covenant-became the basis of the covenant here made with Israel. The old covenant was made concerning the Ten Commandments; or, as stated in Ex. 24:8, "concerning all these words." A covenant means a solemn pledge or promise based on conditions.

9. After the law had been proclaimed from Sinai, what did the people again say?

"And all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do." Ex. 24:3.

10. That there might be no misunderstanding, what did Moses do?

"And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, . . . and he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people." Verses 4-7.

11. What did the people once again promise to do?

"And they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient." Verse 7.

12. How was this covenant then confirmed and dedicated?

"And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words." Verses 5-8.

13. How does Paul describe this dedication of the covenant?

"For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you." Heb. 9:19, 20.

NOTE - We here have the complete account of the making of the first, or old, covenant. God promised to make them His peculiar people on condition that they would keep His commandments. Three times they promised to obey. The agreement was then ratified, or scaled, with blood.

14. Within less than forty days after the making of this covenant, while Moses tarried in the mount, what did the people say to Aaron?

"Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him." Ex. 32:1.

15. When Moses came down from Sinai, what did he see?

"And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount." Verse19.

NOTE -The great object and secret of the old covenant is revealed here. The people did not realize the weakness and sinfulness of their own hearts, or their need of divine grace and help to keep the law; and so, in their ignorance, they readily pledged obedience to it. But almost immediately they began to commit idolatry, and thus to break the law of God, or the very conditions laid down as their part of the covenant. In themselves the conditions were good; but in their own strength the people were unable to fulfil them. The great object of the old covenant, therefore, was to teach the people their weakness, and their inability to keep the law without the help of God. Like the law itself, over which the old covenant was made, this covenant was designed to shut them up to the provisions of the new, or everlasting, covenant, and lead them to Christ. Gal. 3:23, 24. And the lesson which Israel as a nation had to learn in this, each individual now must learn before he can be saved. There is no salvation for anyone while trusting in self. Unaided, no one can keep the law. Only in Christ is there either remission of sins or power to keep from sinning. The breaking of the tables of the law signified that the terms of the covenant had been broken; the renewing of the tables (Ex. 34:1, 28), God's patience and long-suffering with His people.

16. Wherein does the new covenant differ from and excel the old?

"But now hath He obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also He is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises." Heb. 8:6.

17. What are the "better promises" upon which the new covenant was established?

"This shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; . . . I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." Jer. 31:33, 34. See Heb. 8:8-12.

NOTE - These are simply the blessings of the gospel through Christ. They are promised upon condition of repentance, confession, faith, and acceptance of Christ, the Mediator of the new covenant, which means salvation and obedience. In the old covenant there was no provision for pardon and power to obey. It is true there was pardon during the time of the old covenant, but not by virtue of it. Pardon then, as now, was through the provisions of the new covenant, the terms of which are older than the old covenant.

18. In what statement was Christ promised as a Savior and Deliverer of the race as soon as sin entered?

"And the Lord God said unto the serpent, . . . I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shall bruise His heel." Gen. 3:14, 15.

NOTE -The covenant of grace, with its provisions of pardon and peace, dates from the foundation of the world.

19. To whom was this covenant-promise later renewed?

"And God said unto Abraham, . . . Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shall call his name Isaac:- and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him." "I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven. . . . and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed." Gen. 17:15-19; 26:4.

20. Who was the seed here referred to?

"Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He says not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Gal. 3:16.

21. What shows that the new, or second, covenant and the Abrahamic covenant are virtually the same?

"And if you be Christ's, then are you Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." Verse 29.

22. What is necessary where there is a covenant?

"For where a covenant is, there must also of necessity be the death of that which establishes it. For a covenant is made firm over the dead victims; whereas it is of no force while that which established it lives." Heb. 9:16, 17, Boothroyd's translation.

23. With whose blood was the new covenant dedicated?

"And [He took] the cup in like manner after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in My blood, even that, which is poured out for you." Luke 22:20, R.V.

24. What power is there in the blood of this covenant?

"Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will." Heb.13:20, 21.

25. Through which covenant only is there remission f sins?

"How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause He is the mediator of a new covenant, that a death having taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant, they that have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance." Heb. 9:14, 15, R.V.

NOTE -The fact that Christ, as mediator of the second covenant, died for the remission of the transgressions that were under the first covenant, shows that there was no forgiveness by virtue of the first covenant.

26. Under the old covenant, what did the people promise?

To keep the law of God in their own strength.

27. Under the new covenant, what does God promise to do?

"I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts." Jer. 31:33.

NOTE-The new covenant is an arrangement for bringing man again into harmony with the divine will, and placing him where he can keep God's law. Its "better promises" bring forgiveness of sins, grace to renew the heart, and power to obey the law of God. The dissolution of the old covenant and the making of the new in no wise abrogated the law of God.

28. Where was the law of God written under the old covenant?

"And I made an ark of shittim-wood, and hewed two tables of stone. . . . And He wrote on the tables . . . the Ten Commandments ' which the Lord spoke unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly: and the Lord gave them unto me." Deut. 10:3,4.

29. Where is the law of God written under the new covenant?

"But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts." Jer. 31:33.

30. What reason is given for making the new covenant?

"For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, He says, Behold, the days come, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant." Heb. 8:7,8.

NOTE - The chief fault in connection with the old covenant lay with the People. They were not able, in themselves, to fulfil their part of it, and it provided them no help for so doing. There was no Christ in it. It was of works and not of grace. It was valuable only as a means of impressing upon them their sinfulness and their need of divine aid.

31. What unites all believers under the new covenant?

"Wherefore remember, that you being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: but now in Christ Jesus you who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ." Eph. 2:11-13.

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO COVENANTS

1. Both are called covenants.
2. Both were ratified with blood.
3. Both. were based upon the law of God.
4. Both were made with the people of God.
5. Both were established upon promises.

DISSIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO COVENANTS

NEW COVENANT

Called the new covenant. Called the second covenant. An everlasting covenant. Ratified with the blood of Christ. Is a better covenant. Is established upon the promises of God.

OLD COVENANT

Called the old covenant. Called the first covenant. A temporary compact. Dedicated with the blood of animals. Was faulty. Was established upon the promises of the people. Had no mediator. Had no provision for the forgiveness of 1 sins. Under this, the law was written on tables of stone. Was of works.

1. How did Christ's death on the cross affect the whole sacrificial system?

"After threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off. . . . And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." Dan. 9:26, 27.

2. What did Christ nail to His cross?

"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross." Col. 2:14.

3. What did He thus abolish?

"Having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in Himself of twain one new man, so making peace; and that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." Eph. 2:15,16.

4. To what did the ordinances pertain that were thus abolished?

"Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ." Col. 2:16, 17.

5. From what statement do we learn that these ordinances related to the sacrificial system?

"For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect." Heb. 10:1.

6. What occurred at the time of the crucifixion which indicated that the typical system had been taken away by Christ?

"And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent." Matt. 27:51.

7. In what language is this clearly stated?

"Then said He, Lo, I come to do Thy will, 0 God. He takes away the first, that He may establish the second." Heb. 10:9.

8. What is the first which He took away?

"Above when He said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin Thou would not, neither had pleasure therein; which are offered by the law." Verse 8.

NOTES - "He takes away the first." The connection plainly indicates that what Christ took away was ceremonialism as expressed in the typical service of sacrifices and offerings, and that what He established, by giving Himself to do the will of God, was the experience of doing the will of God on the part of the believer. Thus He made possible the answer to the petition which He taught His disciples, "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Instead of abolishing the moral law, Christ made such provision that every believer in Him may become a doer of that law.

"The word first here refers to sacrifices and offerings. He takes them away.' that is, He shows that they are of no value in removing sin. He states their inefficacy, and declares His purpose to abolish them. 'That He may establish the second to wit, the doing of the will of God. . . . If they had been efficacious, there would have been no need of His coming to make an atonement."--Dr. Albert Barnes, on Heb. 10:9.

9. In what statement to the woman at Jacob's well did Jesus intimate that the ceremonial system of worship would be abolished?

"Jesus says unto her, Woman, believe Me, the hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father." John 4:21.

NOTE - The worship of the Jews centered in the typical system, or ritual service, of the temple, "at Jerusalem," while the Samaritans had instituted a rival service "in this mountain," Mount Gerizim. In His statement to the woman of Samaria, Jesus therefore indicated that the time was at hand when the whole typical system would be done away.

10. What test case arose in the time of the apostles over this question?

"And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except you be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you cannot be saved." Acts 15:1,14

11. What requirement was made by these teachers from Judea concerning the ceremonial law?

"Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, You must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment." Verse 24.

12. After conferring over this matter, what decision was reached by the apostles?

"For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; that you abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if you keep yourselves, you shall do well. Fare you well." Verses 28, 29.

13. What charge was made against Stephen concerning his attitude toward the ceremonial law?

"And set up false witnesses, which said, This man ceases not to speak blasphemous words against this holy place, and the law: for we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us." Acts 6:13, 14.

14. What similar charge was brought against the Apostle Paul?

"This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to the law." Acts 18:13.

15. What statement did Paul make concerning his faith and manner of worship?

"But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets." Acts 24:14.

NOTE - The charges against Stephen and Paul were not based upon any violation of the moral law, but upon their teaching concerning the ceremonial law; and Paul's admission that he was guilty of what they called heresy meant simply that he differed from them as to the obligation to observe any longer the precepts of the law which was imposed upon them "until the time of reformation." The simple fact that such charges were preferred against these able exponents and teachers of the gospel shows that in their view the ceremonial law had been abolished by the death of Christ.

16. What is one of the offices of the moral law?

"I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shall not covet." Rom. 7:7.

17. What testimony did Christ bear concerning His relation to the law and the prophets?

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." Matt.5:17.

NOTE-"Christ kept the law. If He had ever broken it, He would have had to die for Himself; but because He was a Lamb without spot or blemish, His atoning death is efficacious for you and me. He had no sin of His own to atone for, and so God accepted His sacrifice. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believes. We are righteous in God's sight because the righteousness of God which is by faith in Jesus Christ is unto all and upon all them that believe.'! - "Weighed and Wanting," by

D. L. Moody, pages 123, 124. See also notes on pages 74, 75.

O THAT the Lord would guide my ways
To keep His statutes still!
O that my God would grant me grace
To know and do His will!

O send Thy Spirit down to write
Thy law upon my heart,
Nor let my tongue indulge deceit,
Nor act the liar's part.

Order my footsteps by Thy Word,
And make my heart sincere;
Let sin have no dominion, Lord,
But keep my conscience clear.

Make me to walk in Thy commands,
'Tis a delightful road;
Nor let my head, nor heart, nor bards
Offend against my God.

Isaac Watts.

1. When and by whom was the Sabbath made?

"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made." Gen. 2:1, 2.

2. After resting on the seventh day, what did God do?

"And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which. God created and made." Verse 3.

3. By what three distinct acts, then, was the Sabbath made?

God rested on it; He blessed it; He sanctified it. Sanctify: "To make sacred or holy; to set apart to a holy or religious use." - Webster.

4. Did Christ have anything to do with creation and the making of the Sabbath?

"All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made." John 1:3. See also Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2.

NOTE-Christ, being the active agent in creation, must have rested on the seventh day with the Father. It is therefore His rest day as well as the Father's.

5. For whom did Christ say the Sabbath was made?

"And He said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." Mark 2:27.

NOTE-It was not made for the Jews alone. The Jews derive their name from Judah, one of the twelve sons of Jacob, from whom they are descended. The Sabbath was made more than two thousand years before there was a Jew. It was made for the human race.

6. What does the Sabbath commandment require?

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shall thou labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shall not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates." Ex.20:8-10.

7. What reason is given in the commandment for keeping the Sabbath day holy?

"For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Verse 11.

NOTE - The Sabbath is the memorial of creation, and the sign of God's creative power. Through the keeping of it God designed that man should for ever remember Him as the true and living God, the Creator of all things.

8. Did God bless and sanctify the seventh day while He was resting upon it, or when His rest on that day was past?

"And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He HAD rested from all His work which God created and made." Gen. 2:3.

NOTES-God blessed and sanctified the seventh day then future, answering to the day on which He had just rested. The acts of blessing and sanctifying involve the idea of a future use of those things which are blessed and sanctified. Past time cannot be used. It is gone for ever. The blessing and sanctification of the day therefore, must have related to the future-to all the future seventh days.

In Joel 1:14 we read: "Sanctify [i.e., appoint] you a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord." Wherever used in the Bible, the word sanctify means to appoint, to proclaim, or to set apart, as in the margin of Joshua 20:7; 2 Kings 10:20, 21; Zeph. 1:7. So when the Sabbath was sanctified, as the last act by which it was made for man, an appointment, or proclamation, of the Sabbath was given. See Ex. 19:23.

"If we had no other passage than this of Gen. 2:3, there would be no difficulty in deducing from it a precept for the universal observance of a Sabbath, or seventh day, to be devoted to God as holy time, by all of that race for whom the earth and its nature were specially prepared. The first men must have known it. The words He hallowed it can have no meaning otherwise. They would be a blank unless in reference to some who were required to keep it holy."-Lange's Commentary, Vol. I, page 197.

9. How did God prove Israel in the wilderness?

"Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law, or no." Ex.16:4.

10. On which day was a double portion of manna gathered?

"And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses." Verse 22.

11. What reply did Moses make to the rulers?

"And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbathunto the Lord." Verse 23. NOTE - This was a full month and more before they came to Sinai.

12. When had God said this?

In the beginning, when He sanctified the Sabbath. Gen. 2:3. NOTE-In the wilderness of Sin, before Israel came to Sinai, Moses said to Jethro, his father-in-law, "I do make them know the statutes of God, and His laws" (Ex. 18:16), which shows that these statutes and laws existed before they were proclaimed on Sinai.

13. What did some of the people do on the seventh day?

"It came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none." Ex. 16:27.

14. How did God reprove their disobedience?

"And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse you to keep My commandments and My laws?" Verse28.

15. Why was double manna given on the sixth day?

"See, for that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He gives you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide you every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." Verse 29.

16. How, then, did the Lord prove the people (verse 4) whether they would keep His law, or not?

Over the keeping of the Sabbath.

NOTE-Thus we see that the Sabbath commandment was a part of God's law before this law was spoken from Sinai; for this incident occurred in the wilderness of Sin, before the children of Israel came to Sinai, where the law was given. Both the Sabbath and the law existed from creation.

1. What is to endure throughout all generations?

"Thy name, 0 Lord, endures for ever; and Thy memorial, 0 Lord, throughout all generations." Ps. 135:13. Memorial: "Anything intended to preserve the memory of a person or event; something which serves to keep some person or thing in remembrance, as a monument or a practice." - Webster.

2. What illustration of this is given in the Bible?

"And these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever." Joshua 4:7.

3. What were these stones to commemorate?

"And he spoke unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones? Then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land." Verses 21, 22.

NOTE-These stones were to be a standing memorial, or reminder, of Israel's coming dry-shod over the Jordan.

4. What was another memorial instituted to commemorate another signal providence in behalf of the Israelites?

"And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and you shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; you shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever." Ex. 12:14.

NOTE-This, the pass over, was a periodical memorial, to be observed on the fourteenth day of the first month of each year, the day on which the Israelites were delivered from Egyptian bondage; and its celebration was to be, with the seven days' feast of unleavened bread following and connected with it, in commemoration of that event. See Ex. 13:3-9.

5. Does God design that His great work of creating the heavens and the earth shall be remembered?

"The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. His work is honorable and glorious: and His righteousness endures for ever. He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered." Ps. 111:2-4.

6. What has He commanded men to observe in memory of this great work?

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. . . . For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Ex. 20:8-11.

7. Of what was this memorial to he a sign?

"And hallow My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God." Eze. 20:20.

8. How long was the Sabbath to be a sign of the true God?

"It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed." Ex. 31:17.

NOTE - It is manifest that if the object of the Sabbath was to keep God as the Creator in mind, and it had been faithfully kept from the first, there would not now be a heathen or an idolater on the face of the earth.

9. What besides creation were Israel to remember when they kept the Sabbath?

"And remember that thou was a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched-out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day." Deut. 5:15.

NOTE-There is a deep significance to this scripture not apparent to those unacquainted with the facts. In Egypt, through oppression and idolatrous surroundings, the keeping of the Sabbath had become not only almost obsolete, but well-nigh impossible. See reading on "Reasons for Sabbath -Keeping," pages 116, 117, under questions 9 and 10. Their deliverance from bondage was in order that they might keep God's law (Ps. 105:43-45), and particularly the Sabbath, the great seal, sign, and memorial-institution of the law. The recollection of their bondage and oppressed condition in Egypt was to be an additional incentive for keeping the Sabbath in the land of freedom. The Sabbath, therefore, besides being a memorial of creation, was to be to them a memorial of their deliverance from bondage, and of the great power of God as manifested in this deliverance. And as Egypt stands as a symbol of the condition of everyone in the world under the slavery of sin, so the Sabbath is to he kept by every saved soul as a memorial of the deliverance from this slavery by the mighty power of God through Christ.

10. Of what else does God say He gave the Sabbath to His people to be a sign, or reminder?

"Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them." Eze. 20:12.

NOTE-Sanctification is a work of redemption-of making holy sinful or unholy beings. Like the work of creation itself, this requires creative power. See Ps. 51:10; John 3:3,6; Eph. 2:10. And as the Sabbath is the appropriate sign or memorial of the creative power of. God wherever displayed, whether in creation, deliverance from human bondage, or deliverance from the slavery of sin, it is to be kept as a sign of the work of sanctification. This will be one great reason for the saints' keeping it throughout eternity, It will remind them not only of their own creation and the creation of the universe, but also of their redemption.

11. Through whom do we have sanctification?

"But of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption." 1 Cor. 1:30.

NOTE-Then, as the Sabbath is a sign or memorial of sanctification, and as Christ is the One through whom the work of sanctification is accomplished, the Sabbath is a sign or memorial of what Christ is to the believer. Through the Sabbath, therefore, God designed that the believer and Christ should be very closely linked together.

12. What statement of the redeemed shows that they will remember God's creative power?

"Thou art worthy, 0 Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for Thou has created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created." Rev. 4:11.

13. How often will they congregate to worship the Lord?

"For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, says the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, says the Lord." Isa. 66:22, 23.

NOTE-The Sabbath, which is the memorial of God's creative power, will never cease to exist. When this sinful state of things shall give way to the sinless new earth, the fact upon which the Sabbath institution is based will still remain; and those who shall he permitted to live in the new earth will still commemorate the creative power of God, while singing the song of Moses and the Lamb. Rev. 15:3. See Rev. 22:1, 2.

1. What is the one great feature by which the true God is distinguished from all false gods?

"The Lord is the true God, He is the living God, and an everlasting King. . . . The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. He hath made the earth by His power, He hath established the world by His wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by His discretion." Jer. 10:10-12.

2. When Paul wished to preach the true God to the idolatrous Athenians, how did he describe Him?

"Whom therefore you ignorantly worship, Him declare I unto you. God that made the world and all things therein." Acts 17:23, 24.

3. What did the apostles say to the idolaters at Lystra?

"We . . . preach unto you that you should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein." Acts 14:15. See also Rev. 10:6; 14:6, 7.

4. What reason is given in the fourth commandment for keeping the Sabbath day holy?

"For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day." Ex. 20:11.

NOTES - The Sabbath is the great memorial of creation and of God's creative power, a constant reminder of the true and living God. God's design in making the Sabbath, and in commanding that it be kept holy, was that man might never forget Him, the creator of all things.

"The original Sabbath being a perpetual memorial of God, the Creator calling man to imitate God in the observance of the same, man could not keep the original Sabbath and forget God.' - Professor E. W. Thomas, M.A., in Herald of Gospel Liberty, June 19, 1890.

When we remember that two-thirds of the world's inhabitants today are idolaters, and that since the fall, idolatry, with its train of associated and resultant evils, has ever been a prevailing sin, and then think that the observance of the Sabbath, as God ordained it, would have prevented all this, we can better appreciate the value of the Sabbath institution, and the importance of Sabbath-keeping.

5. What does God say the Sabbath will be to those who hallow it, or keep it holy?

"And hallow My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God." Eze. 20:20.

6. How important is it that we know God?

"And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou has sent." John 17:3.

7. Is there any danger of God's chosen people forgetting Him?

"Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping His commandments, and His judgments, and His statutes." Deut. 8:11.

8. What other reason is given for keeping the Sabbath?

"Verily My Sabbaths you shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that you may know that I am the Lord that does SANCTIFY you." Ex. 31:13.

NOTE - To sanctify is to make holy, or to set apart for a holy use. The sanctification, or making holy, of sinful beings can be wrought only by the creative power of God through Christ by the Holy Spirit. In 1 Cor. 1:30 we are told that Christ is made unto us "sanctification"; and in Eph. 2:10 it is said that "we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." The Sabbath, therefore, is a sign of sanctification, and thus of what Christ is to the believer, because it is a reminder of the creative power of God as manifested in the work of regeneration. It is the sign of the power of God, therefore, in both creation and redemption. To the believer, it is the evidence, or sign, that he knows the true God, who, through Christ, created all things, and who, through Christ, redeems the sinner and makes him whole.

9. What special reason did the Israelites have for keeping the Sabbath?

"And remember that thou was a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched-out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day." Deut. 5:15.

NOTE-In their bondage the Israelites had to some extent lost the knowledge of God, and departed from His precepts. The Sabbath came to be greatly disregarded by them; and in consequence of the oppression of the Pharaohs, especially the Pharaoh of the exodus, as witnessed by the rigorous exactions made upon them by this latter king through their taskmasters, its observance was made apparently impossible. See Ex. 5:1-19. The special point, both of reform and of conflict, just preceding their deliverance from bondage, was over the matter of Sabbath observance. Moses and Aaron had shown them that obedience to God was the first condition of deliverance. Their efforts to restore the observance of the Sabbath among the Israelites had come to the notice of Pharaoh; hence his accusation against them, "Wherefore do you, Moses and Aaron, let [hinder] the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. . . . Behold, the people of the land are many, and you make them rest [Heb., Shabbath] from their burdens." Ex. 5:4,5. Deliverance from this oppression was indeed, therefore, an additional and special reason for their keeping the Sabbath. But Egypt and Egyptian bondage simply represent sin and the bondage of sin. See Rev. 11:8; Hosea 11:1; Matt. 2:15; Zech. 10:10. Everyone, therefore, who has been delivered from sin has the same reason for keeping the Sabbath as had the Israelites who were released from Egyptian bondage.

10. What does the Psalmist say was the reason why God brought His people out of Egypt, and placed them in Canaan?

"And He brought forth His people with joy, and His chosen with gladness: and gave them the lands of the heathen: . . . that they might observe His statutes, and keep, His laws." Ps. 105:43-45.

NOTE-Their deliverance from Egyptian bondage was a reason for the keeping not only of the fourth commandment, but of every precept of God's law. This is indicated by the preface or preamble to the law as given on Sinai: "I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shall have no other gods before Me," etc. Ex. 20:2, 3. See also Lev. 19:35-37; Deut. 10:19; 15:12-15; 24:17,18. Likewise, everyone who, through Christ, has been delivered from the bondage of sin, God calls to obedience, not only in the matter of Sabbath-keeping, but to every precept of His holy law. "Blessed is the man that does this, and the son of man that lays hold on it; that keeps the Sabbath from polluting it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil." Isa. 56:2.

11. What is the meaning of the word "Sabbath"?

Rest.

NOTE -Previous to the fall, God designed that man's time should be occupied with pleasant, invigorating, but not wearisome labor. Gen. 2:15. Laborious, wearisome toll came in consequence of sin. Gen. 3:17-19. While under the fall the Sabbath, therefore, may bring physical rest to both man and the beasts of burden (Ex. 23:12) in a way not originally intended, physical rest was not its original and primary design or purpose. Cessation from the ordinary labors and occupations of the week was ordained, not because these are wrong or sinful in themselves, but that man might have an appointed time and a frequently recurring period for the contemplation of the Creator and His works. Under the gospel, the Sabbath is a sign of spiritual rest and freedom from sin. So we read, "For he that is entered into His rest, he also bath ceased from his own works, as God did from His." Heb. 4:10.

12. Who gives this rest from sin?

"Come unto Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest unto your souls." Matt. 11:28,29.

NOTE-The Sabbath, then, is the sign of the soul-rest which Christ gives to the weary and laden with sin.

13. Was the Sabbath intended as a day for public worship?

"Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation." Lev. 23:3. NOTE-A convocation is an assembly of people.

14. Does the New Testament teach the same duty?

"Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as you see the day approaching." Heb. 10:24,25.

15. What does Malachi say of those that fear the Lord?

"Then they that feared the Lord spoke often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name. And they shall be Mine, says the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spared his own son that serves him." Mal. 3:16,17.

16. Will the Sabbath be observed as a day of worship in the new earth?

"For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, says the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh com6 worship before Me, says the Lord." Isa. 66:22,23.

NOTE -"Thou has made us for Thyself, and our heart is restless till it find its rest in Thee." - St. Augustine.

1. What is first commanded in the Sabbath commandment?

"Remember the Sabbath day." Ex. 20:8.

2. Which day is the Sabbath?

"The seventh day is the Sabbath." Verse 10.

3. For what purpose are we to remember the Sabbath day?

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." Verse 8.

NOTE-All through the week we are to "remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." This means that all our plans are to be laid and all our business adjusted with reference to the Sabbath, the object of which is to help us to keep in mind the truth that God is the creator of all things. This is just as essential to spiritual growth during the six working days as upon the Sabbath itself. We are to remember that day, also, that when it comes we may not be tempted by circumstances of our own creating to treat it, or any part of it, as secular, or common time. Thus the Sabbath commandment is to be obeyed every day, though the Sabbath itself can be kept, or observed, only upon the seventh day, for "the seventh day is the Sabbath!'

4. Who made the Sabbath day holy?

"Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Verse 11. NOTE-God made the Sabbath day holy; we are to keep it holy.

5. What is it that makes a thing holy?

God's Presence in it. See Ex. 3:5; 29:43-46; Joshua 5:13-15.

6. Then in order to keep the Sabbath day holy, what must be recognized?

God's presence in the day; His blessing upon it; and His sanctification of it.

7. When, according to the Bible, does the Sabbath begin?

"And the evening and the morning were the first day." "And the evening and the morning were the second day," etc. See Gen. 1:5, 8,13,19, 23, 31. NOTE-The evening begins "at the going down of the sun." See Deut. 16:6; Mark 1:32; Deut. 23:11; 1 Kings 22:35, 36; 2 Chron. I8:34.

8. Does the Bible recognize this as the proper time for beginning and ending the Sabbath?

"From even unto even, shall you celebrate your Sabbath." Lev. 23:32.

NOTE - One great advantage of keeping the Sabbath according to the Bible method of reckoning the day, that is, from sunset to sunset, over keeping it according to the Roman reckoning, or from midnight to midnight, is that by the former one is awake to welcome and to bid adieu to the day when it comes and goes, while by the latter he is asleep when the day begins and ends. God's ways are always best. The setting of the sun is a great natural sign for marking the division of time into days.

9. What kind of labor is to be done through the week?

"Six days shall thou labor, and do all thy work." Ex. 20:9.

10. Is any of this kind of work to be done on the Sabbath?

"In it thou shall not do any work." Verse 10. NOTE - If the Sabbath is to be kept "holy," mere physical rest one day in seven cannot be the great object of the Sabbath institution.

11. How does the Lord, through the prophet Isaiah, indicate what is true Sabbath-keeping?

"If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words: then shall thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Isa. 58:13, 14.

NOTE - "Whether the Sabbath becomes a delight or a burden depends upon the spirit with which a man meets it. Indeed, the spirit of the man settles the question as to the benefits to come from any duty he may perform. One man cannot understand why his neighbor should prefer the park or the ball ground to the church, simply because his spirit is different. He has cultivated the higher nature until he loves spiritual things above all others, and to him the Sabbath is indeed a delight. It comes to his weary soul as a reminder of God, and brings him nearer to heaven in heart and mind than does any other day." - Sabbath Recorder, December 12, 1910.

12. What is the character of God, and how only can He be truly worshipped?

"God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." John 4:24.

NOTE - This is one reason why the attempt to produce Sabbath-keeping by human Sabbath laws is altogether out of place. Such laws can never produce true Sabbath-keeping, for that is spiritual, and must be of the mind and from the heart, and not Perfunctory, mechanical, nor of force.

13. What is one thing for which God has given the Sabbath to he a sign?

That He sanctifies His people, or makes them holy. See Ex. 31:13; Eze. 20:12; and page 114.

14. What does the "psalm for the Sabbath day" suggest as proper acts and themes for thought and meditation on the Sabbath?

"It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto Thy name, 0 Most High: to show forth Thy loving kindness in the morning, and Thy faithfulness every night, upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp With a solemn sound. For Thou, Lord, has made me glad through Thy work: I will triumph in the works of Thy hands. 0 Lord, how great are Thy works! and Thy thoughts are very deep." Ps. 92:1-5.

15. What do the works of God declare?

"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night shows knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard." Ps. 19:1-3. See margin.

NOTE - God designed that the Sabbath should direct the minds of men to His created works, and through these to Him, the Creator. Nature itself speaks to our senses, telling us that there is a God, the Creator and Supreme Ruler of the universe. The Sabbath, ever pointing to God through nature, was designed to keep the Creator constantly in mind. The proper keeping of it, therefore, must naturally tend to prevent idolatry, atheism, agnosticism, infidelity, irreligion, and irreverence; and, promoting the knowledge and fear of God, must of necessity be a deterrent to sin. In this may its value and importance he seen.

16. Was the Sabbath designed to be a day for public worship?

"Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation." Lev. 23:3.

NOTE - The word convocation means "a calling together," and is always used in the Bible with reference to meetings of a religious character.

17. What example did Christ set in Sabbath observance?

"And, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read." Luke4:16.

18. What else did Jesus do on the Sabbath?

"And it was the Sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes." John 9:14.

NOTE - A large share of Christ's ministry consisted of miracles and acts of mercy performed for the relief of suffering humanity; and not a few of these were done on the Sabbath. On this day, as on other days, He "went about doing good." See next reading.

19. With what words did He justify acts of mercy on the Sabbath day?

"Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath days." Matt. 12:12.

NOTE - Not a little of Christ's earthly ministry was devoted to uplifting the Sabbath, and showing the beneficent character of the Sabbath institution. It was not meant to be a day of sorrow, austerity, or gloom. Disinterested works of love and mercy toward man or beast are always in place on the Sabbath. Lawful means, according to law."

20. What day is especially indicated as the day to prepare for the Sabbath?

"And that day [the sixth day] was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on." Luke 23:54. See also Ex. 16:22, 23.

NOTE - In order to keep the Sabbath day holy, it must be remembered all through the week; and on the sixth day, or the day just before the Sabbath, special preparation should be made to be ready to welcome and observe the day when it comes.

21. How did the Israelites in the wilderness on the