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LESSON XIV.—SABBATH, SEPTEMBER 30, 1899

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Pacific Press Publishing Company · OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA · Sep 13, 1899

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 25, No. 37.

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LESSON XIV.—SABBATH, SEPTEMBER 30, 1899.

HEALING OF BLIND BARTIMEUS; VISIT AT THE HOUSE OF ZACCHEUS.

Matt. 20:20-34. 20 "THEN came to Him the mother of the sons of Zebedee with her sons, worshiping Him, and asking a certain thing of Him. 21 And He said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto Him, Command that these my two sons may sit, one on Thy right hand, and one on Thy left hand, in Thy kingdom. 22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink the cup that I am about to drink? They say unto Him, We are able. 23 He saith unto them, My cup indeed ye shall drink; but to sit on My right hand, and on My left hand, is not Mine to give, but it is for them for whom it hath been prepared of My Father. 24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation concerning the two brethren. 25 But Jesus called them unto Him, and said, Ye know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and 26 their great ones exercise authority over them. Not so shall it be among you; but whosoever would become great among 27 you shall be your minister; and whosoever would be first 28 among you shall be your servant; even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many. 29 "And as they went out from Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. 30 And behold, two blind men sitting by the wayside, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, 31 saying, Lord, have mercy on us, Thou Son of David. And the multitude rebuked them, that they should hold their peace; but they cried out the more, saying, Lord, have mercy on us, 32 Thou Son of David. And Jesus stood still, and called them, 33 and said, What will ye that I should do unto you? They say 34 unto Him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened. And Jesus, being moved with compassion, touched their eyes; and straightway they received their sight, and followed Him."
Luke 18:35 to 19:10. 36 "And hearing a multitude going by, he inquired what this 37 meant. And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth 38 by. And he cried, saying, Jesus, Thou Son of David, have 39 mercy on me. And they that went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace; but he cried out the more a great 40 deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto Him; and 41 when he was come near, He asked him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive 42 my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight; thy 43 faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God. 1 "And He entered and was passing through Jericho. And 2 behold, a man called by name Zacchaeus; and he was a chief 3 publican, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who 4 He was, and could not for the crowd, because he was little of stature. And he ran on before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him; for He was to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to-day I 6 must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came 7 down, and received Him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, He is gone in to lodge with a man that 8 is a sinner. And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have wrongfully exacted aught of any man, I restore fourfold. 9 And Jesus said unto him, To-day is salvation come to this 10 house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost."
NOTE.—The texts included 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.

SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.

  1. Notwithstanding what Jesus had said to the disciples regarding His future, what request was preferred for two of them by their mother? Matt. 20:20, 21. Note 1. (Mark 10:35-37.)
  2. What reply did Jesus make? What answer did the two return to His question? Verse 22. (Matt. 26:38-40.)
  3. What promise was then given the ambitious disciples? Verse 23. (Acts 12:2; Rev. 1:9.)
  4. How did the other disciples feel toward the two for their request? What lesson did Jesus proceed to teach them about the spirit manifested? Verses 24-28. (Luke 22:24; 1 Peter 5:3.)
  5. As Jesus and the twelve passed through Jericho with a multitude following, who sat by the wayside begging? Verses 29, 30. (Mark 10:46; Luke 18:35.)
  6. When, by inquiry, these men learned that Jesus was passing, what was their plea? Luke 18:36-38.
  7. What did the multitude instantly demand of the blind men? With what result? Matt. 20:31.
  8. How did Jesus respond to their importunate appeals? Verse 32. (Luke 18:40.)
  9. Upon hearing their pitiful request repeated, what was Jesus moved to do? By what was He thus moved? Verses 33, 34. (Luke 7:13.)
  10. What noted man was with the multitude that went with Jesus out of Jericho? Luke 19:2. Note 2.
  11. In order to have a better view of Jesus than his small stature gave him among the crowd, what did Zacchaeus do? Verses 3, 4.
  12. As the Lord passed and saw him, what did He say to Zacchaeus? Verse 5.
  13. How did the people take the matter of Jesus' going in the house of a tax-gatherer? Verses 6, 7. (Matt. 9:11, 12.)
  14. Upon arriving at home what did Zacchaeus tell the Lord of his intention? Verse 8. (Lev. 6:4, 5.)
  15. For that saying, what did the Lord pronounce upon his house? Verses 9, 10. (Gal. 3:29.)
  16. Give the substance of the parable that Jesus then spoke to the people. Verses 11-27. Note 3.
  17. What lesson do you learn from this parable?
  18. Tell what you can of the travels, miracles, and discourses of Jesus, as covered by this quarter's lessons.
Side Light.—"Desire of Ages," chapter 61.

NOTES.

1. In Thy kingdom.—It seems strange at this distance that, after so much and such recent instruction concerning the part Jesus was to act, the disciples should still cling to their traditional dream of an earthly Messianic kingdom. But theirs is a case of religious teaching in which the whole life becomes so molded as to prove almost hopelessly fixed. Inasmuch as human nature is the same in every age, how important that parents see to it that their children are now diligently taught in the principles of eternal truth!
2. Chief publican.—The publicans were tax collectors. This man, being "chief among the publicans," was probably the superintendent of customs, or tribute, for the district of Jericho. These tax collectors were famous for being extortioners in their business, and it is not strange, therefore, that this Jew (for such his name implies) was "rich."
3. The parable of the pounds is the parallel of the parable of the talents in Matt. 25:14-46, and will be studied more fully in a future lesson. It is an illustration of the spiritual gifts bestowed by our Lord upon His church when He went away. See Eph. 4:8-13; 1 Corinthians 12. Both spiritual gifts and pounds (talents) were given at the same time, by the same Lord, to the same ones, for the same purpose, for the same period of time, hence must be the same. Note, that these precious gifts of the Spirit are illustrated by the highest money denomination, "pound" in Roman, "talent" in Jewish money. They are given to use for God. He who does not use for God, buries the gift in the earth and will lose all.