LESSON III.—SABBATH, JULY 15, 1899.
FEEDING THE FOUR THOUSAND; HEALING OF BLIND, DEAF, AND DUMB.
Phenicia, Decapolis, Gennesaret, and Bethsaida, A.D. 30. 29 “And Jesus departed thence, and came nigh unto the Sea of Galilee; and He went up into the mountain, and sat there. 30 And there came unto Him great multitudes, having with them the lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and they 31 cast them down at His feet; and He healed them; insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb speaking, the maimed whole, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel. 32 “And Jesus called unto Him His disciples, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I would not send 33 them away fasting, lest haply they faint in the way. And the disciples say unto Him, Whence should we have so many 34 loaves in a desert place, as to fill so great a multitude? And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they 35 said, Seven, and a few small fishes. And He commanded the 36 multitude to sit down on the ground; and He took the seven loaves and the fishes; and He gave thanks and brake, and gave to the disciples, and the disciples to the multitudes. 37 And they did all eat, and were filled; and they took up that which remained over of the broken pieces, seven baskets full. 38 And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women 39 and children. And He sent away the multitudes, and entered into the boat, and came into the borders of Magadan.” 1 “And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and tempting 2 Him asked Him to show them a sign from heaven. But He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It 3 will be fair weather; for the heaven is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day; for the heaven is red and 4 lowering. Ye know how to discern the face of the heaven; but ye can not discern the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of Jonah. And He left them, and departed.” 5 “And the disciples came to the other side and forgot to take 6 bread. And Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of 7 the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, We took no bread. And 8 Jesus perceiving it said, O ye of little faith, why reason ye 9 among yourselves, because ye have no bread? Do ye not yet perceive, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, 10 and how many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven 11 loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? How is it that ye do not perceive that I spake not to you 12 concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Then understood they how that He bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 32 “And they bring unto Him one that was deaf, and had an 33 impediment in his speech; and they beseech Him to lay His 34 hand upon him. And He took him aside from the multitude 35 privately, and put His fingers into his ears, and He spat, and touched his tongue, and looking up to heaven, He sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And his ears were opened, and the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.” 13 “And He left them, and again entering into the boat departed 14 to the other side. “And they forgot to take bread; and they had not in the boat 22 with them more than one loaf.” “And they come unto Bethsaida. And they bring to Him a 23 blind man, and beseech Him to touch him. And He took hold 24 of the blind man by the hand, and brought him out of the village; and when He had spit on his eyes, and laid His hands 25 upon him, He asked him, Seest thou aught? And he looked11up, and said, I see men; for I behold them as trees, walking. 26 Then again He laid His hands upon his eyes; and he looked steadfastly, and was restored, and saw all things clearly. He sent him away to his home, saying, Do not even enter into the village.” NOTE.—The texts inclosed in marks of parentheses, while not essential to the lesson study, will be found to throw much light upon the lesson, and are suggested for those who wish to study further. 1. Having to leave Phenicia, after the incident with the heathen woman, into what parts did the Saviour go? Matt. 15:29. Note 1. (Mark 7:31.) 2. What demonstration occurred in the place of His retirement? Verses 30, 31. Note 2. (Isa. 35:4-6.) 3. Relate the circumstances of one special case of healing which was then effected. Mark 7:32-35. 4. What led Jesus to decide to feed the multitude, who had been three days with Him? Matt. 15:32. (Ps. 86:15.) 5. How great was the company to be fed? Verse 38. 6. What amount of food was at hand, with which to feed so many? Verses 34-36. (John 6:32, 33.) 7. Was this amount sufficient for the occasion? Verse 37. (Ps. 37:3; 23:5.) 8. After sending away the people, to what point did the Saviour then go? Verse 39. (Mark 8:10.) 9. Who visited Him there? For what purpose? Matt. 16:1. Note 3. 10. What reproof did He administer in reply to such a demand? Verses 2, 3. 11. What class of people seek for miraculous signs in order to believe? Verse 4. (Matt. 12:38-40.) 12. After this brief but plain talk to His auditors, to what point did Jesus go? Mark 8:13. 13. When His disciples met Him there, of what were they reminded? Verse 14. 14. What made them think that Jesus was referring to their neglect? Matt. 16:6, 7. 15. To show them that He had no reference to their lack of material bread, to what did He call their attention? Verses 8-11. Note 4. 16. By this reminder what was made to dawn upon their minds? Verse 12. 17. Where is Christ next found? Who was there brought to Him for a blessing? Mark 8:22. 18. What did He do to the blind man? Verse 23. 19. What effect did this have upon the sufferer? Verse 24. 20. When Christ put His hands again on the partially-opened eyes, what took place? Verse 25. (Isa. 42:6, 7.) 21. With what charge did Christ then send him home? Verse 26. Note 5. (Isa. 42:2.) Side Lights.—"Desire of Ages," chapter 44. 1. Decapolis means "ten cities." Nine of these lay east of the Jordan, and one on the west. The country round about these cities was therefore called Decapolis. From Matt. 4:23-25 and Mark 7:31 it would appear that this general appellation was given to quite a large district extending along both sides of the Jordan. According to Pliny, it was confined to the eastern side of the river, and extended from Damascus on the north to the brook Jabbok on the south. This was a region particularly disliked by the Jews, because ten cities therein located had municipal governments distinct from Jewish interference—tho in Palestine—and had joined together in a political alliance against all Israel. They afterward perished by fire and sword, and the entire region, once so densely populated, is said to be now almost without inhabitants. 2. Then came unto Him.—This reveals how impossible it was for the Son of God to be hid. The popular excitement, however, only served to make His enemies hate Him the more, because the people were not only enjoying the rich blessings of His spiritual teaching, but were also experiencing the power of heaven in healing their maladies, which was a foretaste of the kingdom of God restored. 3. Tempting Him.—The word "tempt" as here used means to try or prove. It appears that they were not satisfied with His past demonstrations of infinite power, and would have others to gratify their own curiosity. Christ, however, would throw away no miracles on these agnostics. They would not have believed had their request been granted. It is evident that the two parties united on this occasion for a mischievous purpose. 4. Beware of the leaven.—Strange that they should so soon forget that Christ Himself was living bread, and that those who possessed Him could never hunger. John 6:35, 36. His reminder of the two miracles, when food was created for the multitude, was to impress the thought that where He is there can be no lack, because He is living bread, and that His spoken word can, when necessary, take material form, and become a nourishing substance for the body. 5. Sent Him away.—It must be remembered that Christ was a fugitive from the malice of His enemies, and so the less publicity given to His acts and words the safer He would be, until the hour should come for Him to be delivered up. Luke 22:53. LESSON III.—SUNDAY, JULY 16, 1899.
THE HEBREWS IN THE FIERY FURNACE.
NOTE.—In the second chapter of Daniel we have the record of a dream of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, in which he was shown a great image whose head was of gold, its breast and arms of silver, its body and thighs of brass, the legs of iron, and the feet of iron and clay. The interpretation given by Daniel was that the head of gold represented the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar, or Babylon, and the other metals denoted succeeding kingdoms. Nebuchadnezzar was evidently not pleased with the thought of his kingdom, or dynasty, coming to an end. So he set up an image that was all gold, and called for the leading officials from all parts of the empire to come at a certain time to establish the worship of this image. By this means he hoped to inculcate the religious duty of the people to sustain the kingdom of Babylon for all time. But when the time came, and the signal was given for the officers of the kingdom to fall down and worship the golden image, three of them refused to obey the command. These were the companions of Daniel mentioned in the last lesson—Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; but, on entering the service of the king, their names had been changed to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, respectively. 14 “Nebuchadnezzar answered and said unto them, Is it not of purpose, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, that ye serve not my god, nor worship the golden image which I have set 15 up? Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made, well; but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who 16 is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer thee in this mat- 17 ter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and He will deliver us out of 18 thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image 19 which thou hast set up. Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego; therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more 20 than it was wont to be heated. And he commanded certain mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their hosen, their tunics, and their mantles, and their other garments, and were cast into the 22 midst of the burning fiery furnace. Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shad- 23 rach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, fell down bound into the 24 midst of the burning fiery furnace. Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and rose up in haste; he spake and said unto his counselors, Did not we cast three men 25 bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the aspect of the fourth is like a son of the 26 gods. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace; he spake and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the Most High God, come 27 forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came forth out of the midst of the fire. And the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, and the king's counselors, being gathered together, saw these men, that the fire had no power upon their bodies, nor was the hair of their head singed, neither were their hosen changed, nor had the smell of fire 28 passed on them. Nebuchadnezzar spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent His angel, and delivered His servants that trusted in Him, and have changed the king's word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.” Golden Text: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us.” Verse 17. (1) What was the cause of the controversy recorded in this lesson? See note. (2) What censorious inquiry did Nebuchadnezzar make of his unyielding servants? V. 14. (3) What further opportunity did he give them? and what would be the penalty of disobedience? V. 15. Note 1. (4) How did the three men answer the king? V. 16. (5) Who did they say was able to deliver them? V. 17. (6) But what was their determination even if not delivered? V. 18. Note 2. (7) How did this bold stand affect Nebuchadnezzar? What rash command did he give? Vs. 19, 20. (8) What further preparation was made for the execution? V. 21. (9) What was the nature of the king's command? What was the first result of the intense heat? V. 22. (10) When the executioners were slain by the fire, what happened to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego? V. 23. (11) What sensation suddenly came upon the king? What did he say to his counselors? What did they reply? V. 24. (12) Then what did the king say? V. 25. (13) Seeing the men were unharmed, what did Nebuchadnezzar do? How did they respond to the call? V. 26. (14) Who besides the king saw this wonderful deliverance? How completely was the fury of the flames checked? V. 27. (15) Then what confession did the king make? V. 28. Note 3. 1. Who shall deliver?—Nebuchadnezzar did not understand that it was the God of Israel who had given His people into the hands of Babylon's king, and was able also to deliver them. Altho after the interpretation of his dream he had acknowledged that Daniel's God was "a God of gods, and a Lord of kings," his egotism now led him to imagine himself above all power, because he had become a universal ruler. But he was afterward made to realize that "the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will." 2. The spirit of resignation.—It was not deliverance that these three Hebrews were seeking. There was no selfishness in their appeal from the king's sentence. They were actuated solely by a desire to honor the God of Israel. Otherwise their profession of faith would not have been honored. They would not dishonor Him even if He did not deem it best to grant temporal deliverance at that time. They stood on the same ground on which Paul stood when he wrote, "Christ shall be magnified in my body whether it be by life, or by death." Phil. 1:20. 3. Convinced, but not converted.—Nebuchadnezzar was convinced of the power of the Most High God, and as he was desirous of having power on his side, he readily acknowledged the superiority of the God of the Hebrews. But that his recognition was of the same spirit of the modern "National Reform" movement, is shown by the decree, which immediately follows the lesson scripture, and is necessary to make the lesson complete: "Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill; because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort." Nebuchadnezzar had to have another experience (recorded in chapter 4) before he learned the lesson of humility that marks the converted man, and learned that the Most High is a God of mercy as well as of power.