ATTENTION IN PRAYER

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Apr 22, 1875

ATTENTION IN PRAYER.

A pious Jew, while on a journey, perceived that the hour of the evening prayer had arrived. He stopped, and prayed to God. Lost in his meditation, his heart lifted heavenward, he did not reply to a nobleman, who passing that way, stood still and saluted him. Enraged at the Jew's apparent rudeness, the nobleman waited until he had finished his prayers, and then angrily addressed him: "Wretch! why didst thou not return my salutation? I have a good mind to punish thee for thy incivility."

"Friend," the Hebrew replied, "if thou wert standing before thy king and spoke to him, and one of thy friends passed thee and saluted thee, wouldst thou leave abruptly the king, and turn to thy friend?"

"Certainly not; I would not dare do such a thing."

"Now," said the Hebrew, "judge if I have done right or wrong in not returning thy salutation. I stood before the King of kings, the Almighty Creator of the world, offering to Him my prayer of supplication; how dared I leave Him and turn to thee?"

"Thou hast done well," the nobleman said; "go thy way in peace."—From the Talmud.