Earlier text: Search the ScripturesNecessity for the Reformation.
CORRUPTION IN THE CHURCH.
THE learning of the schools was pure when compared with the actual condition of the church. The theology of the learned might be said to flourish, if contrasted with the religion, the morals, the instructions of the priests, monks, and people. If science stood in need of a revival, the church was in still greater need of a reformation. The people of Christendom, and under that designation almost all the nations of Europe might be comprised, no longer looked to a living and holy God for the free gift of eternal life. They therefore naturally had recourse to all the devices of a superstitious, fearful, and alarmed imagination. Heaven was peopled with saints and mediators, whose office it was to solicit God's mercy. All lands were filled with the works of piety, of mortification, of penance, and observances by which it was to be procured. Take the description of the state of religion at this period given by one who was for a long while a monk, and in after life a fellow-laborer with Luther,—Myconius. "The sufferings and merits of Christ were looked upon," says he, "as an empty tale, or as the fictions of Homer. There was no longer any thought of that faith by which we are made partakers of the Saviour's righteousness, and the inheritance of eternal life. Christ was regarded as a stern judge, prepared to condemn all who should not have recourse to the intercessions of saints or to the pope's indulgences. Other intercessors were substituted in his stead; first the Virgin Mary, like the heathen Diana; and then the saints, whose numbers were continually augmented by the popes. These intercessors refused their mediation unless the party was in good repute with the monastic orders which they had founded. To be so, it was necessary not only to do what God had commanded in his word, but also to perform a number of works invented by the monks and priests, and which brought them in large sums of money. Such were Ave Marias, the prayers of St. Ursula, and of St. Bridget. It was necessary to chant and cry day and night. There were as many different pilgrimages as there were mountains, forests, and valleys. But with money these penances might be compounded for. The people therefore brought to the convents and to the priests money, and everything they possessed that was of any value,—fowls, ducks, eggs, wax, straw, butter, and cheese. Then the chantings resounded, the bells rang, the odor of incense filled the sanctuary, the sacrifices were offered up, the tables groaned, the glasses circulated, and these pious orgies were terminated by masses. The bishops no longer appeared in the pulpits, but they consecrated priests, monks, churches, chapels, images, books, and burial places, and all these brought a large revenue. Bones, arms, feet, were preserved in boxes of silver or gold; they gave them to the faithful to kiss during mass, and this increased their gains." "All maintained that the pope being in the place of God (2 Thess. 2:4) could not err; and there were none to contradict them." At the church of All Saints, at Wittemberg, was shown a fragment of Noah's ark; some soot from the furnace of the three children; a piece of wood from the crib of the infant Jesus; some hair of the beard of the great St. Christopher; and nineteen thousand other relics, more or less precious. At Schaffhausen was shown the breath of St. Joseph, that Nicodemus received on his glove. In Wurtemberg might be seen a seller of indulgences disposing of his merchandise with his head adorned with a feather plucked from the wing of the archangel Michael. But there was no need to seek so far for these precious treasures. Those who farmed the relics overran the country. They bore them about in the rural districts (as has since been done with the holy Scriptures), and carried them into the houses of the faithful, to spare them the cost and trouble of the pilgrimage. They were exhibited with pomp in the churches. These wandering hawkers paid a certain sum to the proprietors of the relics, with a percentage on their profits. The kingdom of Heaven had disappeared; and men had opened in its place on earth, a market of abominations. At the same time, a profane spirit had invaded religion, and the most solemn recollections of the church, the seasons which seemed most to summon the faithful to devout reflection and love, were dishonored by buffoonery and profanations altogether heathenish. The Humors of Easter held a large place in the annals of the church. The festival of the resurrection claiming to be joyfully commemorated, preachers went out of their way to put into their sermons whatever might excite the laughter of the people. One preacher imitated the cuckoo; another hissed like a goose; one dragged to the altar a layman dressed in a monk's cowl; a second related the grossest indecencies; a third recounted the tricks of the apostle St. Peter,—among others, how, at an inn, he cheated the host, by not paying his reckoning. The lower orders of the clergy followed the example, and turned their superiors into ridicule. The very temples were converted into a stage, and the priests into mountebanks. If this was the state of religion, what must have been the morals of the age? Doubtless the corruption was not universal. Justice requires that this should not be forgotten. The Reformation elicited many shining instances of piety, righteousness, and strength of mind. The spontaneous power of God was the cause; but how can we doubt that by the same power the germs of this new life had been deposited long before in the bosom of the church. If, in these our days, any one were to collect the immoralities and degrading vices that are committed in any single country, such a mass of corruption would doubtless be enough to shock every mind. But the evil, at the period we speak of, bore a character and universality that it has not borne at any subsequent date; and above all, the abomination stood in the holy places, which it has not been permitted to do since the Reformation. Moral conduct had declined with the life of faith. The tidings of the gift of eternal life are the power of God to regenerate men. Once take away the salvation which is God's gift, and you take away sanctification and good works, and this was the result. The proclamation and sale of indulgences powerfully stimulated an ignorant people to immorality. It is true that, according to the church, they could benefit those only who made and kept a promise of amendment. But what could be expected from a doctrine invented with a view to the profit to be gained from it? The vendors of indulgences were naturally tempted to further the sale of their merchandise by presenting them to the people under the most attractive and seducing aspect; even the better instructed did not fully comprehend the doctrine in respect to them. All that the multitude saw in them was a permission to sin; and the sellers were in no haste to remove an impression so favorable to the sale. What disorders, what crimes, in these ages of darkness, in which impunity was acquired by money! What might not be feared when a small contribution to the building of a church was supposed to deliver from the punishments of a future world! What hope of revival when the communication between God and man was at an end; and man, afar off from God, who is spirit and life,—moved only in a circle of pitiful ceremonies and gross practices,—in an atmosphere of death. The priests were the first who felt the effects of this corrupting influence. Desiring to exalt themselves, they had sunk themselves lower. Infatuated men! They aimed to rob God of a ray of his glory, and to place it on their own brows; but their attempt had failed, and they had received only a leaven of corruption from the power of evil. The annals of the age swarm with scandals. In many places the people were well pleased that the priest should have a woman in keeping, that their wives might be safe from his seductions. What scenes of humiliation were witnessed in the house of the pastor! The wretched man supported the mother and her children, with the tithe and the offering; his conscience was troubled; he blushed in presence of his people, of his servants, and before God. The mother, fearing to come to want when the priest should die, provided against it beforehand, and robbed the house. Her character was gone; her children were a living accusation of her. Treated on all sides with contempt, they plunged into brawls and debaucheries. Such was the family of the priests. These horrid scenes were a kind of instruction that the people were ready enough to follow.—D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation. Notes on Open Letters.
By Editor
How EASY it is to get puzzled over a difficulty that is of our own making! Many a man first assumes that there is a contradiction in Bible statements, and then wonders if that contradiction can be explained away. No puzzling in this line is more common than that which is indicated in this question of a Tennessee reader, about the effect of prayer:— “If you think it is of sufficient importance, I should like to have your opinion on the following: Do we propose to change the mind of the Lord respecting his creatures? and, if not, why pray at all? The Lord is said to be immutable. I have had a great deal of thought on this, and I wait to hear in ‘Notes on Open Letters.’” No, we do not expect to change the mind of the Lord; nor do we want to change it. The Lord's mind is announced in his word, as being set on giving certain things to his creatures, and on doing certain things for his creatures, when those things are prayed for in faith. To neglect to pray under such circumstances, is to decline to seek the things conditionally promised to us. To pray for those things is to evidence our desire for the promised blessings, and our confidence in the unchangeableness of God, who has promised them to those who ask them in faith, and who will not fail to do as he has promised. When the Lord says, “Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it,” it is for the man to open his mouth wide, as a condition to the Lord's filling that mouth. Does the man expect to change the mind of the Lord by this mouth-opening? On the contrary, man's mouth-opening is so far a proof of his confidence in God's immutability in mouth filling. So also, when the Lord says: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you,” it is for a man to show his confidence in God's unchangeableness by asking, seeking, knocking in prayer, in order that God may give to him as he has promised to give.—S. S. Times. The Truth Shall Make You Free
The Son of man breaking the bondage of death and overcoming its power is the central figure of the New Testament. "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" is the golden promise. If there is real gratitude in the heart, it will come out, it will find expression in words; for "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." What Shall We Play?
By Editor
THE following question was sent to the Christian Union, and is so well answered that we give our readers the benefit of it:— “Is the game of poker that is played so much now socially, and in many Christian families, harmful, either to those playing, or in their influence or example on others—played without prizes, of course? I do not have confidence in my own judgment, for once I thought it wrong to play whist, and now I think it as harmless as any amusement. “I hope and expect that my son of eighteen, and we, his parents, will agree on the subject when we have got all the light we can.” The Christian Union is not competent to give an answer to this question. There is no one on its editorial staff who is an authority on either whist or poker; and its editor-in-chief, to whom questions of ethics are generally referred, does not even know the cards by sight, though he has been once or twice introduced to them. He has a general impression that whist is an intellectual game, exercising the memory, the judgment, and the observation, and therefore has some merit in it; and that poker is a gambling game, dependent on luck in the hand and brass in the player, and therefore has no merit in it. But his education in cards was neglected in his youth, and he has been too busy ever since with more serious business to supply the deficiency. He has never seen reason to regret the paternal neglect, and he has found it several times convenient to be able to say that he never plays cards. But this question, though somewhat peculiar in form, is analogous to questions continually addressed to the Christian Union by inquiring friends. Is it right to go to the theater? to play cards? to play billiards? to read novels? to dance? We answer by giving six general principles, not as a substitute for individual discrimination in each individual case, but as a help in exercising discrimination. 1. When you are in Rome do not do as the Romans do. There are questions which majorities must determine; there are questions which each soul must determine for itself. The still, small voice of conscience ought to be louder than the noisy clamor of the multitude. Even Rabbis and priests may lead the cry of Crucify Him! Crucify Him! What everybody does may be right; but is quite as likely to be wrong. That everybody goes to bull-baiting in Spain does not make bull-baiting right; that everybody goes to the theater in New York does not make theater-going right. Neither does it make either wrong. Majorities do not determine moral questions. There is no presumption in favor and none against what everybody does. Everybody is just about as apt to go wrong as right. Do not follow the flock of sheep over the wall. Look for yourself where you leap. The whole law is not fulfilled in this one word: Thou shalt not be odd. Because everybody waltzes may be an excellent reason why you should refuse. 3. Keep on the safe side of certainty. “He that doubteth is condemned if he eateth.” Whatever is doubtful is dangerous; whatever is dangerous it is safe to let alone. Take a piece of paper and write down on it all the amusements that you are doubtful about. You wish that some one would tell you whether these are right or not. The interrogation mark tells you; for you they are wrong. Cross them all off the list of possible recreations so long as the interrogation mark is there. If the interrogation mark is ever removed, still leave them crossed off for at least six months. There are enough amusements that are not doubtful. There is ice enough that is strong; do no skating on thin ice. 4. The pleasure which is more pleasurable than your work is to be taken with caution. We do not say that it is to be discontinued, nor even that it is doubtful, but that it is to be taken with caution. So long as a man enjoys his work more than he enjoys his pleasure, his pleasure is comparatively safe. The great danger is from a mind given over to pleasure; the great safeguard is a mind consecrated to its work. If the mother enjoys the party more than her children, to her the party is dangerous; if the student enjoys cards more than books, to him the cards are dangerous; if the clerk enjoys the theater more than the counting-room, to him the theater is dangerous. Be on your guard against pleasures which are more delightful than duties. “Nonsense! we must then be on guard against all pleasures?” Very well! Be on guard against all pleasures. It will do you no harm. If your work is a dull routine, any pleasure may become a seductive temptation. 5. For “What is the harm?” substitute “What is the good?” What is the harm of cards, of dancing, of billiards, of the theater? Bury that pernicious question. Never ask it again. Substitute another. What is the good? Life is too short to waste any of it in things that are merely harmless. Devote it, the whole of it, every hour and minute of it, to what will do you or some one some good. Whatever bears no fruit, cut it down; why cumbereth it your little ground? You have none to spare. Does the evening game of cards quicken your faculties for the next day’s work? Does the evening dance give you a better appetite for the next morning’s breakfast? Does the game of billiards send you back to your desk with new zest for your labors? Does the theater purify your imagination, or broaden your sympathies, or quicken your sensibilities? We are asking questions, not answering them. That we leave for you to do. We can readily understand that there is no universal answer to them; that different readers will give different answers. Then let different readers have different practices. 6. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. You have no right to consider the effect of doubtful amusement merely upon yourself. You must consider their effect on others; on your companions, on the community. You must apply all these principles to this larger problem—the public good and the public evil. You will not play with fire if your neighbor will thereby be burned. You will not even warm yourself by a fire, if that fire, once lighted, will set the woods on fire. Is it safe for me? Is it useful to me? Is it safe for the community? Is it useful to the community? Put these questions to every recreation which offers itself to you and to your family. If you never do what everybody does, because everybody does it; if you never judge your neighbor by yourself, or yourself by your neighbor; if you cross off from your list every amusement which has in your own mind a question mark after it; if you are always on your guard against pleasures that are more pleasurable than your work; and if you never do anything if there is injury in it to you or your neighbor, nor unless there is benefit in it to you or your neighbor—you will be able to solve most of the perplexing questions of social life and amusement to your own final satisfaction, though probably not to the satisfaction of all the rest of mankind. “We have the truth.” Well, what of it? Does it do us any good? If we have more truth than our neighbors, does it make us better men than they are? Of what use is truth, if it does not make us true and faithful? When men claim great knowledge of the truth, the world and the church have a right to look and see whether corresponding fruits are exhibited. A man whose faith does not cure him of covetousness, of meanness, of worldliness, of jealousy, of falsehood, of slandering, of back-biting, and trickery, may boast of his religion as much as he pleases, but his “glorying is not good.” He may claim to have light, but what avails light if he still walks in darkness? He may profess to have faith, but what avails his faith if it does not work by love and purify his heart and mould his life? A man’s religion is worth simply its practical value. It is useless for a man to change his religion if his religion does not change him. If his faith does not benefit its owner, it surely will benefit no one else. What we do not feel ourselves, we shall vainly try to make others feel. What we do not practice ourselves we shall not be able to induce others to practice. Sham pathos, make-believe emotion, groans, and whines, and tones, and grimaces, do not convert souls to God, nor turn sinners from the error of their ways. Religion is a reality or it is nothing; yea, less than nothing, and vanity. There is enough of emptiness, hypocrisy, and sham in the world, without the church adding to the amount. Let us be real, or let us be nothing. Let us pray God to set up the standard of his rectitude within our souls, and write his law within our minds. Thus having truth in the inward parts, we shall delight in the law of God after the inward man, and shall show forth the praises of him who hath called us to glory and virtue.—Sel. You want to be true, and you are trying to be; learn these two things: Never to be discouraged because good things get on so slowly here; and never to fail daily to do that good which lies next to your hand. Do not be in a hurry, but be diligent. Enter into that sublime patience of the Lord. Be charitable in view of it, Dr. Archibald Alexander had a large experience in dealing with doubters, and his counsel was marked by a thorough common sense and great familiarity with the ways of the Spirit. A theological student once called on him in great distress of mind, doubting whether he had ever been converted. The old doctor encouraged him to open his mind to him. After he was through, the aged disciple, laying his hand on his head, said: "My young brother, you know what repentance is—what faith is. You think you once repented and once believed. Now, don't fight your doubts; go it all over again, repent now, believe in Christ now; that's the way to have a consciousness of acceptance with God. I have to do both very often. Go to your room and give yourself to Christ in a moment, and let your doubts go. If you have not been his disciple, be one now. Don't fight the devil on his own ground. Choose the ground of Christ's righteousness and atonement, and then fight him." Busy People Called to Serve
WHEN Jesus called his disciples, it is a remarkable circumstance that he never called a single idler or loafer. They were all busy people. It is by these busy classes that everything is done, and it is to them that the world looks for all enterprise and progress. When anything is to be done in the church, no one ever thinks of calling upon the people of leisure. The busiest men and women are the only ones that have time to work for God, and they are the ones that bear most cheerfully the heat and burden of the day. —Methodist Advance. ABHOR that which is evil, says the divine command; no man is safe unless he does. The Sabbath-School.
By Ellet Joseph Waggoner
LESSON FOR THE PACIFIC COAST—NOV. 22.
- What is the meaning of the word "immortal"?
- Quote three texts which prove positively that man is not immortal.
- Who alone has immortality?
- May man ever become immortal?
- What must he do in order to receive immortality?
- Can we earn immortality, or do we receive it as a gift? Give proof.
- Where must we look for immortality?
- Can you prove from the Bible that eternal life will not be given to the wicked?
- For what purpose did Christ come to earth?
- Who alone does Christ say have everlasting life?
- In what sense do we have it now?
- When shall we come into possession of it? Give proof.
- In the Bible, by what figure are the dead often represented? Give instances.
- In what place are they asleep?
- Until what time do they sleep?
- Is there any business carried on in the grave? Quote proof.
- Do the dead know what their friends on earth are doing?
- Do any of the dead praise the Lord?
- State in Bible language just how much the dead do know.
- At what point of time do men thus lose all consciousness?
- From what does this breath of life come?
- To whom does it return at death?
- What is the difference, if any, between the breath of man and that of beasts?
- Of what is man composed?
- To what does he return at death?
- What is the difference between the death of men and that of beasts?
- Then what is it that makes a man's life so much more valuable than that of a beast?
- Give two texts of Scripture that you have already learned, which prove that men can derive no benefit from praying to the Virgin Mary.
THE lesson for this week being a review of the subject of immortality, it will be in place to make the notes of a general nature. From our previous study we have learned that the terms "immortal" and "immortality" do not occur in the Bible so frequently as is commonly supposed. In hymns and sermons and essays we find such expressions as "immortal soul," "immortal spirit," "undying spirit," "deathless soul," "the immortal part of man," etc., very frequently. In the Bible we look for them in vain. Query: If the Bible does not contain any of these expressions, by what authority do Christian teachers use them? Where are we to look for information concerning the nature of man? Shall we look to our own experience and observation? That would lead us to conclude that man is mortal, for we see death on all sides. We do not need the words of inspiration to convince us that man's life is "even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." Death and decay are the lot of all earthly beings. If we turn to history, we find that such has ever been the case. The biographies of all men end with the statement, "And he died." Shall we go to heathen authors? If we do we shall find them contradicting one another, one affirming that man has a principle within him that cannot be destroyed, another declaring that death ends all; and by this very diversity of opinion they proclaim their own ignorance of the subject. And yet these very heathen "philosophers" are the ones to whom Christianity is indebted for its dogma of inherent immortality. It is indeed strange that professed followers of Christ should turn from the statements of "holy men of God," who "spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost," to the conjectures of men who "when they knew God, glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened;" to those who, while professing themselves to be wise, became fools; who, because they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, were given over "to a mind void of judgment." Yet this is what is done. The words of Plato and Socrates are preferred above those of Job, Isaiah, David, Luke, Peter, and Paul. For when we turn to Holy Writ, where alone wisdom dwells, we find no record of "the immortal part of man," but perfect unanimity in declaring that "it is appointed unto man once to die," that there is no man that liveth that can deliver his soul from the hand of the grave, and that God only hath immortality. IF we look for the origin of the anti-scriptural doctrine of natural immortality, we find that it sprung from the mind of Satan, the father of lies. The archdeceiver said to the mother of the race: "Ye shall not surely die," but "ye shall be as gods," or, as God. The same trait that prompted the acceptance of this doctrine, has perpetuated it. Vanity, love of self, is that through which Satan has deceived the world. It was flattering to Eve's vanity to be told that she had the principles of life within herself, so that she could maintain her own existence as well as God can. It was for this reason that heathen philosophers seized upon the idea, and it is largely for this reason that the Catholic Church adopted it from them. From the Catholic Church, Protestant bodies have received it as a sacred legacy. When we realize the practical effect of the doctrine—to make one self-confident, and regardless of God as the Author of life, and of Christ, as the one through whom it is vouchsafed to man, we can understand something of the far-reaching policy of Satan. There are but few Catholic abominations for which this dogma is not responsible. Out of it grew purgatory, and the sale of indulgences, by which the popes of Rome waxed rich at the expense of the purses and the morals of the people of Europe. Without that doctrine, the worship of so-called saints, and of the Virgin Mary, would find no place in the Catholic Church. And Spiritualism, that masterpiece of deception, would make no headway but for the prevalence of the belief that departed ones are not really dead. It is a fact that so long as Protestants hold to the doctrine of inherent immortality, they have no weapon with which to successfully meet the errors of Catholicism, or the deceptions of Spiritualism. But the unlearned peasant, who relies on the Bible as God's holy word, and who understands its simple and harmonious truths, may, with the help of God, withstand the assaults of learned prelates or blasphemous infidels. E. J. W. NOTES ON THE INTERNATIONAL LESSON.
By Alonzo T. Jones
In the present lesson our attention is turned from Solomon in his uprightness, when he was the beloved of the Lord, to Solomon in his degradation, when "the Lord was angry with" him; from Solomon building a temple for Jehovah, which the Lord accepted and hallowed for his own name, to Solomon building temples for Ashtereth, and Chemosh, and Molech, and for the gods of all his strange wives, the abominations of heathendom, which God abhorred; from Solomon worshiping the God of Heaven in such height of purity and faith, and with such wondrous acceptance that it brought the very presence of Heaven down upon the earth, to Solomon in such depth of iniquity worshiping idols, and joining in the murderous and licentious rites of all the heathen nations round about; from Solomon in the fear of God, and from a deep sense of sin, burning sweet incense to the Lord, offering to him the acceptable sacrifices of sheep and oxen, and praying to him for forgiveness, for light, for strength, and for wisdom, to Solomon burning incense to devils, helping on the sacrifice to them of smiling babes and innocent children, and opening the gates of iniquity by which the whole land should be stained with innocent blood. In short we are turned from the contemplation of "Solomon in all his glory," to the contemplation of Solomon in all his shame. "KING Solomon loved many strange women." It seems that at this time Solomon cared for nothing but to have his own way. Contrary to the express command of the Lord, in Deut. 17:16, he did multiply horses to himself and he carried on with Egypt a regular traffic in horses and chariots, until he had for himself, one thousand four hundred chariots, which with three horses for each chariot—two to work and one in reserve—would make four thousand two hundred horses; then he had twelve thousand horsemen—cavalry—besides. But he did not conduct this trade for himself alone. He had horses and chariots brought out of Egypt for the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of Syria, and there can be hardly a doubt that this traffic in horses with the Hittites and the other nations led him into his sinful connection with these "strange women," for seven hundred of his wives were "princesses," the daughters of these heathen kings with whom he was trading in horses. Had Solomon been obedient to the Lord, he would have been saved from all this, for Deut. 17:18 says: "And it shall be when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book. . . . and it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life." And this which he was to write, and read for himself was contained particularly in the two foregoing verses forbidding the very thing which Solomon did. "He shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses; forasmuch as the Lord hath said unto you, Ye shall return no more that way. Neither shall he multiply wives to himself that his heart turn not away." Solomon did send into Egypt and multiply horses unto himself; this led to the traffic with the heathen round him; this led him to the gathering to himself of the many strange women, and these led him to the final and fatal step, and his heart was turned away from his God. "WHEN Solomon was old," the text says. Not old in years, for he was only about forty-nine, but the dissipation consequent upon having seven hundred wives, every one of them shamefully licentious, besides three hundred concubines, who could have certainly been no better,—all this made him "old" though only in the prime of his years. "His wives turned away his heart after other gods." And what fearful gods they were! Devils, the psalmist calls them (Ps. 106:37, 38); and devils they were. "Ashtereth the goddess of the Zidonians." The "queen of heaven" of Jer. 7:18 and 44:19, the Astarte of the Greeks, the Venus of the Romans, and under different names worshiped by all of the ancient East, and though having different names, yet was always worshiped in the same manner, and which is fully expressed in one word—lasciviousness. She was the female Baal, and corresponded to the moon as Baal did to the sun. She represented the female principle in generation as Baal did the male. She was always worshiped in connection with him, and the rites of her worship corresponded to that idea. Her priests were men dressed in women's clothes; her priestesses were harlots, and the only worship was prostitution.647 MILCOM of the fifth verse is identical with Molech of the seventh, and Molech of the Ammonites is the same as Chemosh of the Moabites, and both are the same as Baal of the Canaanites and other Eastern nations generally. It is with Baal as with Ashtoreth above, although called by different names, he is the same god, and his worship the same amongst all the ancient nations. He represents the sun; and the worship of Baal, Molech, Chemosh, or by whatever name, was sun-worship. The form of his worship is described in the words of the Bible about Ahaz (2 Chron. 28: 2, 3): "For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim. Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the abominations of the heathen whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel." Baalim in the text is the plural form of Baal, and signifies the images of Baal in connection with Ashtoreth, set up and worshiped together. So we see that children born of the licentious worship of Ashtoreth, were burned in the fire in the worship of Baal. Not all of the children, of course, but such as they should choose to sacrifice. The priests of Molech (Baal) ranked above the princes, and were next to the king, and sometimes even the king himself was a priest, as in the case of the father of the infamous Jezebel, who was himself a priest of Ashtoreth, and was also dedicated to Baal. It was such daughters, of such men as these, from whom Solomon took his seven hundred wives. No wonder they turned away his heart from the Lord. No wonder that in cleaving to these in their impurity he did it at the expense of forsaking Jehovah, who will be worshiped in purity alone. No wonder that now we read in quick succession: "And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon." Verse 14. "And God stirred up another adversary." Verse 23. "And Jeroboam . . . even he lifted up his hand against the king." Verse 26. No more can Solomon write as he did in his youth to Hiram: "But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent." 1 Kings 5: 4. Adversaries on all sides, from the kings abroad and from his own subjects at home. Evil "occurrent" everywhere. From his own sowing of evil, springs an abundant harvest, and he has to begin the reaping. No more can he be called Solomon—peace—but rather Magor-missabib—fear round about, for there is fear on every side, and God above all against him, to rend the kingdom from him as though no longer fit to rule over men. And in closing we may quote the words used ages after by Nehemiah in correcting sins in Israel: "Among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel; nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin." Neh. 13: 26. The words of David to Solomon are still the words of the Lord to every one of the children of men. Know thou God "and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts; if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off forever." 1 Chron. 28: 9. ALONZO T. JONES. SOLOMON's life is an example and a warning. In his youth an example of how good God is to all who will seek him in humility, and in entire dependence upon him, an example of how "the blessing of the Lord it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it." Prov. 10: 22. In his latter days his life is a warning to all, of man's helplessness when he forsakes the path which the Lord has marked out for us to walk in. It shows that, however great a man's wisdom may be, or however grand may be his success while serving the Lord in sincerity, all the wisdom that he had acquired will not keep him from becoming a fool, and that all the success that he had achieved will not prevent his making a miserable failure, when he ceases to serve the Lord. Therefore cling close to the word of God. "The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom." Job 28: 28. "Good success have all they that do his commandments." Ps. 111: 10. There Are Doctors and Doctors.
RATHER more than a year ago, a lady was prevailed upon to sign the total abstinence pledge. She had been in the habit of regularly drinking a little wine daily; so little that she hardly thought that she could do any good by ceasing to take it. But to her surprise she found the influence of her example, as a pledged abstainer, powerful enough to induce more than a hundred persons to sign as she had done. After a year of happy work as total abstainer, she was taken ill, and she sent for her medical man. He found her weak and exhausted and altogether out of sorts, and asked her what she had been doing with herself to bring her down so low. She confessed that during the last year she had taken no stimulant of any sort; she had become a teetotaler. "Ha! I thought as much," exclaimed the doctor, "and I assure you that it will not do for you. You must give it up at once. You are just committing suicide. You absolutely require a gentle stimulant. There are constitutions that can do without it, but yours is not one of them. You have always been accustomed to a little, and you must take it, just a glass of bitter beer with luncheon, and a little wine at dinner to assimilate your food. It is absolutely necessary to you." The lady felt very sorrowful, very unwilling to do what would, she knew, more than nullify the effect of all her endeavors during the past year, and would put a complete stop to her excellent work among her poor neighbors. After earnest, prayerful thought, she decided to take another opinion. She went up to London to consult Sir Andrew Clarke. He examined into her case, and questioned her very carefully, and at last inquired, "Do you take stimulants at all?" "No," she replied, timidly, "I was in the habit of taking a little, but for the last year I have taken none at all—and—" "I am glad to hear it. Never touch stimulants of any sort; it is the very worst thing you can take." "Oh, doctor!" she exclaimed eagerly, "will you write that down and put your signature to it?" "Very willingly," he replied. Armed with her precious document, she returned home, and when next she saw her own medical man, she showed it to him. He took it up, read it and looked at the signature. "Ha! Sir Andrew Clarke! H'm, yes, he is a great man, and can say these things. We country doctors can't afford it."—Watchword.