the bible standard march 1906

8/3/2019 The Bible Standard March 1906

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T R

B ib l e S t a n d a r d . "la 'IIhI liT "1 W ill CONt A I ,.tbt ,1ft 0 1 604I. etrul tilt."

VOL. 26. No. 3. TWOPENCE.UCKLAND, N.Z., MARCH, 1906.

C b t m O D t b .INCE the New Year came in events have

succeeded each other with appallingrapidity, betokening the great need forthe intervention of Divine power to in-'augurate an era of happiness for men.Human endeavour, if rightly directed,might remove some of the evils, but others

are beyond the reach of man's best powers. Some evils,indeed, arise from human incapacity to rightly exercisethought and effort for the common good, .as in Russia.There the state of thmgs has beenUbe M arcb produced by a government whichof ]5l'ents. has become stereotyped and incap-able of adapting itself to changingconditions and the progress of enlightenment. As aresult, there is revolt, the outcome of a dissatis-faction which has been long growing. Beyondthe range of human control are such things asstorm and wreck, volcanic eruptions, disastrousfloods and fires. These have attended the adventand progress of the year, causing human sorrow, suffer-ing, and death, and bearing testimony that in this yearalso the experiences of the past are to be continued.Shall we not note these things, and as we do so learnthe facts of dire need for their removal if man is to bepermanently blessed, and of our own limitations whenwe consider their abolition? There is One who can re-move them, and we turn with confidence to the Divinepurpose in Him, and to the pledges already paid downof His ability and willingness to abolish them. Theneed and the remedy are both before us. Both shouldbe seriously considered.

The theories of many prophetic students have of lateexperienced a rude shock in view of the upheaval in

Russia. That huge empire, generally thought to be theGog and Magog of Ezek. xxxviii., seemed to be rapidly

attaining such a height of militarypower as would enable it, at anearly period, to take up the condi-tions of that Scripture. Evenlater, after defeat by Japan in the Far East, some pre-

dicted that Russia would inevitably and speedily turnher face towards Persia, Asia Minor, and Syria. Sincethen, however, she has been, apparently, on the vergeof complete disruption, and her present weakness, in theopening days of 1906, is extreme. Nevertheless, tojudge only from the history of nations, Russia 'rill, outof such conditions, emerge more consolidated and power-ful than ever, and her designs upon Persia and Turkeyin Asia are sufficiently well known to justify the expec-tation of her appcarance in the land of Israel in. duetime. G od's hand is visible in all this, and especiallyin the stirring up of His chosen nation, mi.llions ofwhom dwell in the Czar's Empire under such conditionsof misery, oppression, and cruelty as even they have sel-dom known in the long national existence. Russianrulers, clergy, and people are alike guilty concerningthe awful massacres of Jews, which were permitted, ifnot even connived at, by military and police, and werecondoned by Greek Church priests. Goaded into bold-ness, the Jewish press openly charges Christianity withhaving more blood to answer for than the Jew ever had.The charge is true, but it is against Christianity as theyknow it, not the Christianity of Christ and His apostles.-Oonttibuted.

lRussta inIPropbec)?

We gather from the Jewish newspapers that perhapsat no previous time since the early days of the Christianera have the sons of Israel been more deeply moved thannow. From all lands, from rich and poor, comes the

loud voice of denunciation againstlD t" tb eb (toutlsel the oppressor, Russia, and, to thein 1sraeI. credit of the race, be it said thatfinancial help in the most generous

degree is being rapidly sent to the sufferers. In thisrespect the nation has but one mind. But when thequestion of the future of the oppressed Russian Jewsis touched upon, the unanimity vanishes. The Zione-Zionists-those whose one aim is to obtain Palestine asa national home, a refuge for the race, and in whose


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34 THE BIBLE STANDARD MARCI-!, 1906.===== -= - 0 - -~-,---=~=-,--,,-===hands is the Jewish Colonial 'I'rust or Bank-seem help-less at this moment to offer even a suggestion towards :1 ,speedy solution of the difficulty. The Territorial Zion-ists, who are hopeful of obtaining some territory fromthe British Government as a stepping-stone to Palestine,have had their ranks largely added to since the Russianoutbreaks and massacres, and they are to be sympathisedwith in that our change of Government will certainlydelay any settlement. The Territorialists, under Mr.Zangwill, are active enough, yet so far as 'immediaterelief is concerned, they are as helpless as the PalestineanZionists. As is well known, the great majority of thewealthy British and American Jews withhold sympathyfrom either 'Of these two sections, and they have nowput forth their "manifesto," thei "scheme of relief," ascheme which, we fear, will be sadly heard of by theirsorely crushed brethren in Russia. The rich Jews,headed by Lord Rothschild, have nothing better to offerthan the advice to work for the freedom, the entireemancipation of the Jews in Bussia ; to strive for poli-tical and 'Other equality in that country, in which theyare exhorted to remain. This must be cold comfort to theoppressed, who cannot but realise the constant peril inwhich they are, and the fact that for them, Government,priests, nor people have anything but invincible hatred,as has been shown all through the weary years. It iseasy fOTthe wealthy Jews to point out the difficulties,apparently insurmountable, which stand in the way ofthe schemes of Palestinean Zionists and 'I'erritorialistsalike, yet the vast numbers of the people are more andmore favourable to Zionism as the one possible remedyfor all the evils which so sorely press on them.All this is from the human point of view. What of

the Divine? There is just the 'Oneanswer: God's handis not shortened that it cannot save; hath He "aid, andshall He not perform it? And when His time comes, allthe might of nations, all the insurmountable obstacles,will vanish like a dream, and the day comes when oncemore in his own land, Israel shall dwell safely; whenthe Lord will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in His people,and they shall be called the holy people, the redeemed'Ofthe Lord.-Oontributed.There is no doubt that the lot of the Jews in Russia

is at the present moment a troublous one. The awfuloutbursts of fiendish cruelty behind which have beenthe powers that be, have brought upon that people suf-

fering of untold magnitude. Theworld over, there has been arouseda strong sympathy for the op-pressed people, and wealth has been

gathered to use for their benefit. As an evidence tend-ing to show the true attitude of the Russian Govern-ment, may be noted the fact that large subscriptionsforwarded from America to aid the homeless and suf-fering Jews have been returned by Russia on the groundthat the money, if handed over to those for whose benefitit was sent, would be used to stir up revolt against theGovernment! It seems that even this door is to beclosed. Hitherto, members of the scattered race, in

1!be jbounbec5ew.

more favourable positions, have been able to mitigatethe hardships of the oppressed so far as their financialaid could do it, but if this door of practical sympathy isto be closed, they are overwhelmed indeed.Whilst sympathising with the oppressed race in their

present suffering in Russia, Watchword and Trut~ callsattention to the fact that the .Iews have also been, andin some degree still are, a persecuting people. "In ourmodern days the Jews have not

been lacking in these features.Stephen, Paul, and the early Chris-tians generally were harried and

hunted out of every city where they went with the mes-sage of peace. And the Jews held no indignation meet-ings, raised no subscriptions of money, and spoke no wordof sympathy for the suffering followers of Christ. In ourown day it is no unusual thing, if one of the Jewish faithbecomes a Christian, for the family to put black crapcon the door, hold a funeral service, and forbid the'Mashumet' ever again to cross the threshold. In-stances have happened in recent years when Jewishpeople have been baptized, or married to Gentiles, tohave the friends threaten to shoot them in the very actip. the church. Only a few weeks ago, in Toronto, andin Trenton, New -Iersey, the Jews smashed the buildingsin which missions for their conversion were conducted,and then threatened the lives of the missionaries. Wehave seen no protests in Jewish magazines, we have heard'Of no opposition from Jewish rabbis, and no Jew haslifted hand or voice to stay the violence. The Gentilesin America have not taken these things seriously-theyhave merely smiled at the foolish manifestation of raceprejudice and religious bigotry-that is all. But ifsuch things were to take place in Russia, with its ignor-ant, rude, un-Christian hordes, then it is easy to see howthe anti-Semitic hatred would burn with resentment andoverflow with rage."

Ube ~tf)ersrcc.

There is a gigantic scheme afoot for the irrigation ofMesopotamia, Sir William Willcocks, late Director-General of Reservoirs in Egypt, has collected most ofthe necessary data, and is full of sanguine enthusiasm

over the scheme. The whole areaincludes over 40,000 square milesof alluvial soil, every square yardof ,:,hich is capable of being irri-

gated and cultivated. He (Sir William) stated: "Baby-lonia, or Lower Mesopotamia, was a heavily-cultivatedand densely-populated country for many thousands ofyears. Its prosperity depended on numerous canals ledfrom the Euphrates and the Tigris. I proposeto bring back a state of affairs which will make thisdelta as rich as Egypt, and one of the great cotton-pro-ducing districts of the world." "I have been directlyengaged in irrigation and agriculture for over thirtvyears in India and Egypt, one on each side of Mesopo-tamia, and almost in the same latitude. I consider thatMesopotamia will be the Johannesburg of irrigation.The agricultural wealth of that country will be one or

59 it ajforeca9t?


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;\1ARCH, 1906. THE BIBLE STANDARD. 35the facts of the twentieth century." We publish thesethings that attention may be once more c-alled to thcBible predictions of renewed activity in that part of thevorld. It is well to call to mind that it was in thisregion that the history of men was used to carry forwardthe Divine plan for man's redemption. As clearly as theBible tells the history of these past intertwinings ofDivine action with human life and experience in thatregion, so does it, in its forepictured details of thingsto come, as clearly bear testimony that the final strugglcsof the contest for world supremacy shall be centred inthat same locality. In view of this important thing, itis worth while to note the view of this practical manregarding the possibilities of that soil so long deemed animpossible waste. The difficulties in the way of a reali-sation of the scheme are chiefly political. Were theseremoved, the money would easily be procured to carryout the proposed irrigation.

According to the rubric of the Prayer Book, the Atha-nasian Creed is to be sung or said at morning prayeron certain days by Churchmen. For many years now, agrowing dislike to this public recital has been more and

more evident, and occasionally at-U be R tbanas ian tempts have been made to get the(treetl. authorities to move in the directionof cutting it out of public worship,

if not to remove it altogether from the Prayer Book.At the Winchester Diocesan Conference, held last Oc-tober, the Dean of Winchester brought up a motion onH ie matter. Great interest was taken in the discussionwhich followed, and there were so many speakers thatthe time limit had to be largely extended. The motionof the Dean was: "That, in the interest of the Church,it is desirable to substitute for the rubric before theQuicunque vult the words, 'the confession of the Chris-tian faith commonly called the Creed of St. Athanasius,'thus omitting the order for its public use on certaindays." Not the least objection to the use of the Creedwas, he said, the danger it threatened to the future lifeof the Church in discouraging young candidates fromcoming forward for ordination to fill the ranks of theclergy. They no longer held that intellectual errorwas a sin punishable by horrible torments after death,and their best instincts rebelled against the use of thedamnatory clauses as unworthy of God and His worship.In conclusion, he appealed to those who were in favourof the retention of the Creed in Christian charity toconsent to the withdrawal of this great infliction upontheir brethren. The motion was carried by a largemajority. We are at liberty to say that we have no sym-pathy with this creed, and certainly could not agree toits use in Christian worship; but we think that a bodyof Christian teachers ought to be able to show that it isopposed to Bible teaching, rather than appeal to a merematter of sentiment as a ground for its removal. Again,therc was no need to misrepresent this creed. It no-

. where speaks of "horrible torments." It says that thosewho do not keep the Catholic Faith shall perish ever-

lastingly," and that "they that have done evil" shall go ."into everlasting fire." It seems that men can neitherbe fair to the Scriptures nor to their creeds.

Of all the singular features of 'the day, none is mareprominent than the appearance of what we may term"religious prodigies." And no less remarkable is thefact that nearly all hail from the United States. Not

to mention Dr. Dowie, Mrs. Eddy,and the many lesser stars o f theprodigy firmament, we have "boypreachers," and even "child preach-

ers," the latter including one who is said to have be-gun preaching when about two years old! Theeagerncss with which Christian men and women runin crowds after such marvels is a most solemn indi-c-ation of spiritual unrest, the absence of a tranquil mindreposing on the Rock Himself and on His Word. Allunheeded are the apostle's counsels-"continuing sted-fastly in prayer," "let the word of Christ dwell in yourich lv in all wisdom." The ceaseless running to. and frot o . listen to anything novel is more marked day by day,and such a condition is not without warning for all ofus. The remedy for our unrest is a patient waiting forthe Lord Jesus Christ, a sincere longing to behold Himin His glory, and to be made like Him, just as the onecure for the sins and sorrows, the injustice and oppres-sion, of this present evil world is His manifestation andrighteous reign over the whole earth.-Contributea.

lReliqiousIDroNgies .

Who has not heard of Professor Max Muller, therenowned linguistic authority of Oxford University?The greatness of such a man leads us sometimes to over-look the fact that he is of the same order as ourselves,

and that his needs are identicalB U bfnher 's with ours as regards his nature andcouctueton. his future. Recently a selection of

his "Thoughts on Life and Reli-gion" has been published by his widow, in which thereoccur these sententious remarks :-"1have heard andread the worst that can be said against our religion- Imean the true, original teaching of Jesus Christ-and Ifeel that I am ready in mind, if not in body, to lay downmy life for the truth of His teaching. All our diffi-culties arise from the doctrines of men, and not Hisdoctrine." That is a statement worth pondering overas the calm conclusion of a man whose reputation as athinker is world-wide.

What shall we do with the Imprecatory Psalms? Thequestion is raised in the Expository Times, but theanswer given cannot be said to be quite satisfactory."Imprecatory" is a good word. It has given relief to

many a conscience, which theU b e Jm pr ec a::: "Cursing Psalms," if they had beentor~ IDsahn s. called so, would have cut to thcquick. Yet imprecatory meanscursing. Yes, there is no doubt that is so, and the lan-guage of th~ sa id psalm s is strong and decided. The


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THE BIBLE S~ANDARD. MARCH, 1906.solution proposed is an old one, that "the imprecationsin the psalms are not the utterance of David or of otherpious Jews, but of wicked men. They are never thewords of the psalmist, but of the psalmist's ill-tonguedenemies," an answer \vhich will satisfy nobody, becausethere is nothing in the context of these curses to indi-cate such a change of person. But is not the whole diffi-culty originated from a desire to bring the psalms intoline with the teaching of the New Testament, and to.make the agreement morally perfect, Christianity beingthe determining standard? Why not seek to "rightlydivide" the Word of truth? Then it would be seenthat the expressions' are in perfect harmony with theOld Testament hopes of Israel's possession of their land,and that their way seemed to be blocked by the machin-ations and assaults of neighbouring nations, who wereviewed, not alone as the enemies of that people, but aswilful and wicked opponents of the gracious plan forthe Theocracy through which they and the wide worldcould alone be blessed. It may be, and we think is,certain that many of these psalms are prophetic of astate of things yet to be, when the people of the Lord,looking for the promised judgments and deliverance,will, in this language of the psalms, cry unto God, and,as in the Revelation, plead, "How long dost Thou notjudge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on theearth ?"

When the panic of 1893 made it necessary to use ex-traordinary efforts to keep many people from starving inthe Silver States, the Rev. Mr. Uzzell did heroic workin Denver. Amongst the list of people upon whom he

called for help regularly was agood - hearted Chinaman. Mr.Uzzell used to encourage "John"to give liberally because it was"giving to Christ." One day, when "John" thought the

minister was coming a little too often, he said in a veryserious way, "Mr. Minister, is Clist always bloke?" Thisquestion is a small door through which we may see agreat matter. At this season of the year some churchesare having socials, suppers, entertainments, concerts, andall sorts of things to raise money for Christ and for Hiscause. This is done, usually, either because of extrava-gance in conducting Church work or because the peopleof God are unwilling to give. But the constant appeal\('I \ne. \'H)'r\{lna':> a \e.ll{le.llC;Y0 make 'Peo'P\e.lee\ tbatboth Christ and His Church are "broke." It is a shameto make a begging mendicant of the Lord. A man whohad married a young wife would blush to give suppersand musieales to raise money to help him give her areasonable support. How much more should God'speople be ashamed to appeal to the outside world to findthe means to sustain His work? Retrench on your lux-uries, and learn the luxury of giving, and then theseunseemly things will cease.-Watchword and Truth.

R 'Ulseful~esson.

Here is an extract which puts into brief space a tellingpiece of evidence showing the wonderful increase in

opportunities for knowing, and a testimony, too, to thewidened area of interest. Where formerly men knew

only the affairs of their own smallsurroundings, or, at most, of theirown country, the field is now sowidened that practically the world

is drawn upon to supply news to every reader. Increaseof knowledge does not mean, necessarily, increase ofbetterment, or improvement in morals. With that littlehint we give the paragraph :-"Astatistician has learnedthat. the annual aggregation of the circulation ofthe papers of the world is estimated to be12,000,000,000 copies. To grasp the idea of thismagnitude, we may state that it would coverno fewer than 10,450 square miles of surface; thatit is printed on 781,250 tons of paper; and, further, thatif the number (12,000,000,000) represented, instead ofcopies, seconds, it would take more than 333 years forthem to elapse. In lieu of this arrangement we mightpress and pile them vertically upward to graduallyreach our highest mountains. Topping all these, andeven the highest Alps, the pile would reach the magnifi-cent altitude of 490, or, in round numbers, 500 miles.Calculating that the average man spends five minutesin reading, we find that the people of the world alto-gether annually occupy time equivalent to 100,000 yearsreading the papers."-The Summary.

1knowletlge3-ncreasetl.

tmaJttng jfrtenM wttb tbe :ll3ible.TI-lE Bible, like some excellent persons, is shy and re-

tiring. A man buys a fine, new Bible one day, andbrings it home, and the third day afterward he hasdifficulty in finding it. It has burrowed down under apile of noisy newspapers, or it has concealed itself be-hind the pompous agricultural report on the far end ofthe shelf, or maybe it has found its way into the darkstair closet, and is hiding in the remotest corner, con-fidently shunning discovery.

In order to make a real friend of the Bible, you must.manage somehow to overcome its shyness; you mustmake it feel at home in your house; you must draw outits thoughts; you must court it in the long winter even-ings before the fire.

Whoever will take the trouble to get on easy termswith the Bible will find its utmost ll"'ltience and e - to 1 : t .well repaid. It will be to him a Temple of Wisdom,furnishing him with thought and shrewd counsels andtraining his mind. It will be to him a Temple ofBeauty, filling his mind with so many and beautifulpictures that his world will be like the poet's world. Itwill be to him a Temple of Virtue, setting him right inthe way of duty, and giving him courage to follow thatway to the end. It will be to him the Temple of God,to 'which he can go with his problems and his burdensto find there inspiration and the sight of God's face.--Rev. Thomas C. Marshall.

Even good gift comes from God.


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n-iARCH, 1906. THE BIBr.E STANDARD. 37

FAITH AND FAC'l'S.

1 n.avu recently read some works claiming to be scien-tific in character, and to present theories which are snp-posed s'uccessfully to explain the past origin and historyof mankind, based upon evidences of an evolutionarytype, and to outline reasons for character in the presentwith relationship to the future. The claim is boldly made:that the reasons advanced are strong where those ofChristianity are weak. It is pointed out that the ration-alistic spirit has seized upon man, and that even Pro-testants are rationalistic towards contemporary or recentinstances of alleged miracle and inspiration, and towardsthe sacred books of Buddhists, Brahmins, Parsecs, andMahommedans; but that, as regards the narratives con-tained in the Bible, rationalism is set aside, and L'I'e-dulity takes its place; that Christians do not seek for,01' expect to find, such satisfactory evidence as is lookedfor in other matters, and which, if we fail to find, con-demns that which has presumed to claim our attention.Those who accept the writings referred to are loud intheir call that we should investigate to find truth, andto follow that alone; but they assume that the Bible isnot true, or that at best it has but had place in theevolutionary moral progress of man, that it is the huskand not the kernel of moral advancement.Therc is underlying the assumption indicated an en-tire misapprehension 'Of the Christian position. We donot find that the Bible asks us to stultify reason by theacceptance of matters which are beyond our power toinvestigate. On the contrary, we find that it puts beforeus certain things as facts, and from first to last it recog-nises that all religion must have a basis in matters offact, and a sufficiency of fact is given well within ourpower to examine, affording ample warranty for faithin those things which at present lie beyond our menta lgrasp. We find that the known and understandabledemand the unseen and the future.Faith demands fact, and the Bible puts facts and

calls for faith. That is a very simple position. Letme proceed to establish it. According to the StandardDictionary, a fact is "anything that is done, or comesto pass; an act or deed; an effect produced or resultachieved; an event; also anything regarded as actuallyexistent, whether it be an object, event, condition, orrelation, and whether material or mental." That defi-.nition will suit admirably for my purpose to-night.It has been said that "Ideas without facts make up a

philosophy; facts without ideas make a history;" butwe must have a combination of both to call forth faithand trust. In Scripture, we have the necessary corn-

bination presented as a revelation from God. His ideasare revealed, and history is made the channel of theirrealisation. So it comes to pass that all Scripture factsare full of ideas, and the things we believe and thethings hoped for are based upon actual manifestationsof the Most High. If a believer is asked, "What isyour faith?" he does not answer by naming documentsconveying abstract philosophical ideas, but he answersby saying that he believes in God, -who created; inChrist, who died and rose again; in other words, hisanswer is an appeal to facts. And his attitude is war-ranted. Note the name which God takes to Himselfin the Old Testament-J ehovah, That name impliesthat He is Sovereign, self-subsisting and eternal; butit specially conveys that He has. become the God whoacts in history in order to' fulfil His promises. He whowas, who is, and who is to come, presents Himself to man,not as a Being absorbed in self-contemplation, but asengaging in activities in behalf of man's welfare, andas having originated a great purpose towards which allhuman history must inevitably trend.The Bible history, which thus places Jehovah, the

covenant-making and covenant-keeping God, before us,is-le I. m not be frightened at a word-theological his-tory. It is certainly selected history, which aims atillustrating and forwarding God's dealings with men.Recent discoveries have shown how true 'the records areas they touch upon the story of nations. In the four-teenth of Genesis there is a piece of history which hadlong been discredited by those who thought they knewbetter than to accept such statements, but discoveriesfrom sand anc1 soil show unmistakably that the mennamed lived and ruled and bore the titles there giventhem. I dentifications of names, places, and dignitiesgo far towards establishing an historical basis for thenarrative. I point to that as merely one of numerousidentifications which prove that the Bible deals withhistorical personages and places, and in the face of such.items we have no right to assume that the simple narra-tives are untrue.It is more to my purpose to call attention to the

tendency of this selected history. Here few care totread, but if we would be just to the Bible we mustfollow where it leads. The objector is quite re-ady tosay he does not believe, because belief involves responseto the demands of an ever-present and living God, withreference to a future judgment. But if he claims to bea candid investigator, such demands should not deterbim from the quest for truth. Modern history, or, in-deed, ancient history outside the Bible, is scrappy. Ttis local, and deals with a people of one place or time.It has no satisfactory account of origin, and it cannotpoint to any goal to be attained. Beyond the record ofpresent doings, it cannot do more than grope blindly.It is root able to take up the strands of present acts andgo on weaving them into a prospective completion. Itmust wait and record the happenings of the days asthey pass. The true idea of history is, that eventssucceed each other not merely as successive happenings,


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THE BIBLE ~TANDARD. MARCH, 1906.but that there is 'purpose in them, and that the event;are leading towards some definite goal. True historyshould select those things which minister to this pur-pose, and which mark the onward sweep to the end. de-signed. That is the Bible idea, and it is found nowhereelse. Only as wc learn of the origin and unity of therace, and that there is a relative binding of all thingstogether, can we conceive the idea of a world history.Or, again, unless we have the idea or an overruling Godwho controls all to His own glor), and for the good ofman, history is to us a hopeless thing. It strugglesalong blindly, and leads to nothing. But the Bibleputs God into its pages, and points with steady fingerto both origin and end.

Observe the outstanding features of that history.From the fall or Adam there follows a line in whichjudgment succeeds judgment. There is also a line inwhich deliverance and grace succeed deliverance and,grace. 'I'he fall of Adam, the banishment from Para-dise, the wickedness of the world in the days of Noah,the flood, "the judgment of Babel, the judgment uponIsrael, and, in the future, the judgment upon the Anti-Christ. This is the downward line, and it is a con-nected line. But there is also an upward line. The.family of Seth, which called upon the name of J ehovah;Noah and his household, saved from the deluge; afterthe overthrow at Babel Abraham is chosen to begin anew era of Divine dealings with men, and to be theembodiment of a new hope. After the destruction ofJerusalem a church, chosen out of both Jews and Gen-tiles, is formed to carry forward God;s workings inhistory till the advent of the Lord. From first to lastthe Bible history keeps in view the great purpose tobless all rami lies of the earth, and to attain this end thedetails of the plan have gradually been brought beforeits readers. 'I'he call of Abraham, the promise of theseed, the grant of land, the development and disciplineor the nation of Israel, its testing for worthiness, thefirst advent of the Messiah, His death, resurrection, andascension, the formation of the Church, irrespective ofnationality, to constitute the "body" of Ohrist-theseare all items in the history which moves with statelygrandeur towards its completion. How many objectorsto the Bible note these facts? But they are true, andso true that one wonders how it is that men shouldboast of their open eyes and their clearness of intellect,and yet miss these obvious facts.

No less significant, too, is the manner in which theBible puts before us the outline of the struggle forworld-supremacy. This is given as a continuous recordin history and prophecy until the long contest is endedin the bestowment of the "kingdom of the world" uponthe. worthy One. To follow this line of thought is tohave a theme which will supply its own zest, as nationafter nation comes before us eager for this supremacy,yet it is held in check until the chosen people shall haveshown whether or not they are worthy to hold it. Theyfail, and then, in the dream interpreted by the man"greatly beloved," the image composed of differing

metals gives the outline of the history of predominancefrom his days and onwards to the end. Here is picturedthe outward character of the world-kingdoms, and, inopposition to current thought, they are shown as suc-cessively deteriorating. The nation which boasts of itsadvanced civilisation may, in God's sight, be much in-fcrior to one which has not had its advantages. Ourmodern advance is no token that we are actually betterthan our predecessors. Railways, telegraphs, facilitiesfor rapid intercourse, are to us of great importance, butit does not follow that these arc indications of highmoral standing. Greece and Rome perished by theircivilisation, and the risk is not by any means removedfrom modern nations.

The New Testament books of Luke and Acts showthat the writer was the possessor of an eminently his-toric-al mind. He affirms that he "accurately traced"the course of things ere he wrote,' in order that theinformation should afford a ground of "certainty" tothe most excellent Theophilus. He cites the birth ofJesus, when and where it happened, and with it men-tions such items as the general taxation, the names ofthe local governor, and the ru,ling 'emperor. The open-ing verses, Luke iii., contain no fewer than fifteen his-toric-al statements. The apostolic writers appeal whollyto the fact of the resurrection from the dead. If Ohristdid not rise, then faith is vain. Faith is demanded be-cause facts are presented, and the resurrection of Christis proclaimed as a Divine fact of immense significanceto all men. It is not presented as a marvel at whichmen must adore without reason, but it is the guaranteeof other things all-important to the sons of men. It isdesigned to meet the present facts of sin, mortality, anddeath. These are existent facts which provide the onlyhuman basis and call for religion. Anything whichappeals to us for acceptance on the side of religion mustshow an intelligent realisation of the presence andpotency of these things, and must give a reasonable pro-vision for escape from their thraldom. Mere theory isof no avail; the human heart will cry out for the factswhich prove a competency to deal with them. Outsidethe Bible narrative there are no facts recorded whichshow real fitness to cope with them. A theory not pos-sessing an historical and factful basis does not deserveour attention j but that teaching which shows that his-tory has understood human needs, and has manifesteda method of working to counteract and remove these lia-bilities, which in its course has recorded the payingdown of a complete and satisfactory pledge of theirremoval, this demands, and should have, all our atten-tion. 'I'he facts of our human needs are clear enough.It should be an easy matter to verify whether or not theBible realises their existence, and if it professes to pro-vide it complete remedy and. proves its profession.Patient, careful study will enable us to collate all theavailable facts on which faith can rest securely.

Yes, the Bible gives facts-many of them-and allarc linked together to supply a sufficient basis for faith.Bible history is not a matter of indifference; it is of the


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MARCH, 1906. THE BLBLE STANDARD. 39utmost importance to the sons of men. It is more thanadequate to meet the exactions of the highest intelli-gence, and to such as accept its teachings it will yield apresent peace and joy unequalled from any other doc-.trine or record. It provides the facts~indisputablyconvincing-and then it calls for a simple, loving, andobedient acceptation of its message, and expects thatthose who receive it will manifest their reception of itby another fact that shall in itself set forth the natureof the faith held and the hope cherished, a fact whichshall consist in the open and visible cession of the be-liever to the will of his Lord in the waters of baptism.Fact, faith, and fact is the Divine order. Let us readily,willingly follow this, that it may be well with us whenthe Divine purpose thus far wrought out shall reachthe culmination planned by the good pleasure of theFather of our Lord Jesus Christ.[Outline of address by the Editor, Sunday evening,

August 30, 1903.J

' {t b e ( 1 ;o spel.I CHALLENGE any man to show me anything better, any-thing more suited to man and his wants, than the Gospelof Christ. It is better than philosophy. Philosophy canonly disclose, only describe and classify. It cannot heal-it cannot cure. It is like a physician who knows thedisease, but has no remedy; while the Gospel of Christnot only lays bare the malady, but prescribes an infal-lible and universal cure.Education can only call out and develop what is in

fallen man; but the Gospel recreates man's heart andnature, and then lifts him up to the fulness of thestature of Christ. Education stops at the surface; theGospel, which I S the power of God unto salvation, pene-trates the centre of man's necessities.It is better than morality. Morality is conformity to

law. When perfect, it is a star rolling on in its God-appointed orbit. But man has broken law-the starhas swerved from its orbit. Morality cannot bring itback and keep it in its course. The Gospel can. Itbrings man back to God-gives man a new start, andkeeps him safe in his Christian course.The Gospel is better than philanthropy. Philanthropy

is the love of man as man and for man. Christianity isthe love of man for God and the love of God in man.The one would better man's condition here; the otherwould not only save man now, but would lift him towhere he belongs-to the heavenly plane of God.-Sel. "He is below himself," says quaint old Francis

Quarles, "that is not above an injury." An ignoblenature finds it hardest to forgive. We can estimate ourown nobility pretty accurately by where we measure toon the rising scale of forgiveness. The last and hardestperson for us to forgive is the one to whom we have donean injury. This may sound like a paradox, but it isdeeply true, and we need to remember it.

U ben , jface to jface.YES, face to face with the Lord! To see the King inHis beauty; to see Him as He is; to see His face; to bewith Him where He is, that we may behold His glory;to be for ever with the Lord-this, this will be the sumof all blessedness. His smile now enlightens the city ofgold, and gives to heaven its worth. Paradise would notbe paradise without Him. Not the glitter, or the glory,but the Lord. Not the green, new earth, or the flowersthat never knew of winter, but the Lord. Not the snowyrobes, or the seraph's song, but the Lord. He will bethe brightest star in an the heavenly dome, the unsettingSun whose fadeless lustre will attract and dazzle allimmortal eyes.One look at His matchless Person, when the golden

clouds return Him to earth again, will transform us intoHis image. '1'0 what perfection of likeness unto Himshall they attain who gaze on His face in rapture endlessand sublime. To lay hands on His sacred person, as didJohn the Immerser; to pillow one's head under the sameroof with Him, as did Lazarus of Bethany; to sit at thesame table with Him, as did Zaccheus of Jericho; tokneel at his feet to learn and adore, as did Mary; to feelHis holy hand laid upon the person, as did sinkingPeter; to walk by His side, as did the two who wentwith Him to Emmaus; to lean upon His bosom, as didthe beloved John-were a privilege and a joy indeed. Toanoint Him for His burial; to bedew His worn feet withtears, and wipe them with her raven hair, and then printthem all over with kisses, as did a tender, believingwomanj to clasp Him in the arms, and smooth down thethorn-pierced, dead brow of the dear Son of God, as didJ oseph of Arimathea-were a holy, tearful delight, alove to do Him honour. But what were all these corn-par~d with being with Him amid the splendours of Hiskingly metropolis, the new Jerusalem-our meetingplace the eternal throne, our meeting time the eternalday! All the gathered good of eternity will be there,but our Lord alone will make a full heaven.Well does Rutherford exclaim: "0 that He would

draw aside the curtains, and that the King would comeout of His gallery and His palace, that I might see Him!What would I notgive to have time, that lieth betwixtChrist and me, taken out of the way, that we mightonce meet. I cannot think that but at the first sight Ishall have of that most lovely and fairest face, love willcome out of His two eyes and fill me with astonishment.I would but desire to stand at the outer sides of the gatesof the new Jerusalem, and look through a hole in thedoor and see Christ's face. .0 for the coming of theBridegroom !"But the redeemed shall have a nearer view than this.

Their place is before the throne. So shall we ever bewith the Lord. Then face to face:-

"For ever with the Lord!Amen; so let it be;

Life from the dead is in that word-'Tis immortality!" D. T. TAYLoR.


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THE BIBLE STANDARD :MAlwH, 1906.TABLE OF CONTENT& PAGE

THE MON'I'U " 33-36MAKING FHlENDS WITH 'I'HI!: BIBLE 36ECHOES FROM WEST STREET 37-39THE GOSPEL " 39THEN, FAC]'; '1'0 F AC]'; .. 39ASSOCIATION N O'l'ES 40TELL GOD ABOU'I' IT 40AARON, THE MEO.IATOH -11-43DEATH AS A BLESSING " 43Fl'J'N~~SS O~' BIBLE WORDS 44OUR ]


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MARCH, 1906. THE BIBLE STANDARD. 41Baron, tbe f1DeNator.

"Aa ron stood between the dead and the living."-Numbersxvi, 4650.

THESJ!]verses record the crowning episode in a painful. story of obstinate ingratitude and rebellion, thc well-known story of the "gainsaying. of Korah," which standsfor all time as a typical instance of the deepest humanwickedness, to be bracketed with the sin of Cain, andthe infamy of Balaam (Jude ii.) in one black list. Thestory is told us with great fulness, and we can easily. picture to ourselves the successive stages in its develop-ment, from the first secret hatching of the evil design,to the dread catastrophe which overtook the chiefactors in it. It is a terrible record of human folly andsin, written "for our admonition."

There are some aspects of the rebellious movementhere recorded which fill us with wonder at its absoluteinfatuation. The root of the matter is easily found,and quite readily understood, from a human point ofview. Korah, the chief rebel, was of the tribe of Levi,and he, no doubt, thought, if leadership was to be givento members of that tribe, his claim by birth was as goodas that of his cousins, Moses and Aaron. His fellow-conspirators, Dathan and Abiram, again, being of thetribe of Reuben, no doubt rested their claims on theirbeing members of the family of the first-born son ofIsrael. Allowing their minds to dwell on these partialviews of things, they were, bit by bit, drawn on to anattitude of ingratitude and insolence almost withoutparallel.

But what strikes us with amazement is this, that thesemen, and the general body of the congregation of Israel,should have left out of view so completely other con-siderations which should have had the first place in theirminds. We ask with astonishment, how could they fora moment question the Divine appointment of Mosesand Aaron, with such an astounding history behindthem, proving that God was indeed with their venerableleaders? But the simple fact was, that they had "for-gotten God their Saviour, who had done great things inEgypt, wondrous things in the land of Ham, and ter-rible things by the Red Sea" (Ps. cvi. 21, 22). Havingbeen guilty of this greater sin of forgetfulness and in-gratitude towards God, it was a little thing that theyshould forget the self-denying service of their humandeliverers, and should accnse them of self-seeking am-bition and overweening assumption (Numbers xvi. 5,13, 14). It was a base and cruel charge, and Moseskeenly f.elt its sting; but he, with solemn dignity, re-ferred the quarrel to its true source. These men' hadrebelled against God; let Him decide the controversy.And God did so, giving a most unmistakable reply ofcondemnation on the rebels.

One wonld have thought that, in face of the appallingjudgment which befel the chief offenders (Numbers xvi.31-35), there would have been an end of the rebellion,and that the sympathisers with Korah and his company

would have humbled themselves in penitent confessionof their sin. But no 1 On the very next day, with thatjudgment fresh in their memories, "the whole congrega-tion of the children of Israel murmured against Mosesand against Aaron, saying, 'Ye have killed the peopleof the Lord.'" Oh, what obstinate blindness of unbeliefis in that "ye I" "Y c have killed the people." Theywould not see God's hand either in past blessing or inpresent chastisement, What a warning is here of thedepths of possible rebellion in the human heart. Andthe wore! of prophecy foretells a similar hardening ofhuman wickedness in the midst of outpoured judgmentin the latter times (Rev. ix. 20; xvi. 8, 9). Would webe saved from falling into a similar snare? Then letus see to it that we avoid the first step, and "forget notall His benefits."

This congregation of Israel, which thus openlygrieved their Holy One, and treated His mercy and Hisseverity alike with contempt, were clearly ripe for fur-ther punishment. And so we read that "Wrath wentforth from the Lord," and a deadly plague broke out inthe camp. And then it was that Aaron the High Prieststood forth in noble contrast to the unbelieving crowd,and with hasty steps went into the midst of death, swing-ing his censer 'O f incense, making atonement for thepeople, and stayed the progress of the plague.

The incident is worth a little study. It can teach usseveral lessons deserving of our best attention.

We learn here the true root sense of the word "A'l'ONE-JVLENT." There has been much controversy in our time.as to the meaning of that term, and as to the true doc-trine intended to be conveyed by it. One school ofthought has laid great stress on the radical meaning orthe English word "atone," which, they say, originallymeant to "reconcile," to bring together two things orpersons who were at variance. Now, of course, the termwas so used in earlier English, as in Shakespeare'sdramas, e.g.:

"Is there division 'twixt thy lord and C~ssio?A most unhappy one. I would do much.'1'0 atone them, for the love I bear to Oassio."

Othello IV. 1.But it is surely a mistake to found upon the meaningof the' translated English word instead of looking tothe root idea of the Hebrew original.

Now, the true meaning of the Hebrew word rendered"atone" is to "COVER," as is granted by all competentauthorities. This idea of "covering" is seen in someoccurrences of the Hebrew word where it will not takeour translation of "atone." Such passages, for instance,as Gen. vi. 14, where Noah was told to "pitch" the ark,that is, cover it with a coating of pitch; or, Isai. xxviii.18, where a covenant is said to be "disannulled," thatis, covered, or smeared over, as was the ancient customin obliterating what was written. Taking with us thisradical idea of "covering," we will, I think, find it givea more satisfactory explanation of the many occur-rences of "atonement" than any other. Applying it to


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42 THE BIBLE STANDAH.D. MARcn, 1906.the passage before us (which does not at first strike oncas being quite in the usual line of references to themaking of atonement), we find it simple, harmonious,and beautiful. What did Aaron do? Swinging hiscenser, "he stood between the dead and the living." Heacted as a SCREEN,or COVER,for the living, and theplague was stayed. Applying it further to the frequentreferences to atonement by blood, wc again gct a simpleand comprchensi vc view of the subject. In Levit. xvii,11 (Revised Version) we have the rationale of theDivine commands 'Onthe subject: "The life of the fleshis in the blood; and I have given it to you upon thealtar to make atonement for yOUTsouls (or lives ) ; forit is the blood that maketh atonement by reason oflheh/e." The life of the offered victim thus acted as acover or protection for the forfeited lives of the offerers,And so in the great antitype, our Lord Jesus Christgave His life to screen us from merited death, and weare redeemed by His precious blood.Further, we have here an instructive contrast between

human and Divine ideas of PRIESTHOOD.How defective and mistaken were the ideas of the men

who were so eager to seize the office filled by Aaron.'1'0 them, it was merely a post of outward pomp and per-sonal honour. They saw chiefly the goodly raiment, thebrilliant robes, the gold and jewels of adornment. Theyenvied Aaron his exalted position, honoured among thepeople, permitted sole access to the Divine presence.And these things they thought were worth grasping at.But their ambition was purely a selfish one, that theymight strut among their fellows with a little more ofpride, and be hailed as chief or leader. They forgotthat, even from the human side, the High Priesthoodwas a heavy burden and a perpetual care. When Aarondonned his garments and his mitre, it was that hemight "bear the iniquity of the holy things," and every

, time he entered the sanctuary he took his life in hishand, for the least infringement or neglect of theDivinely-prescribed regulations might cause him to die(Exocl. xxviii. 30, 35, 38, 43; xxx. 19-21; 1. umbo xviii,1-3, etc.), just as his two sons, Nadab and Abihu, hadperished. And this imperfect view of the priest's officehas been man's all through the world's history, till thevery name of priest has come to stink in the nostrils ofhumanity, as synonymous with selfishness and pride, andoften with cruelty and the foulest tyranny,But this is only man's version of the office. God'sideas of priesthood are altogether different, and Aaron

set them forth in his action here in beautiful contrastto the foolish notions of the men who envied him.'I'he essential point of difference lies here: man's idea

is self-aggrandisement; God's is a self-denying servicefor others. Many other differences may appear oncareful study, but they all branch off from this. Inthe great New Testament treatise on the function of theHigh Priest, the Epistle to the Hebrews, this essentialis laid down to start from: "Every high priest, takenfrom among men, is ordained FORMEN in things per-

tairiing to God" (Heb. V. 1). Take that as a guidingprinciple, and the development will follow on wholesomelines; leave it out, and the way is open for usurpingambition, selfish pride, and all their attendant train ofevils. Hence, continues the Epistle, "No man takeththis honour unto himself." Even Christ, the perfectHigh Priest, "glorified not Himself" in this matter, butobeyed the Divine mandate (verses 4-6).Closely joined to this fundamental principle comes

the spirit and method of action required of the .holderof the office. Here, again, the Divine standard is givenus: The High Priest is ordained "that he may offergifts and sacrifices for sins." He must remember thathe is called tc minister for those who were laden withiniquity, and standing in need of help. And the deepneeds of those whom he represented were laid as a per-petual burden upon him. He must be one "who can. have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that areout of the way" (verse 2). You will look in vain forthis spirit in the human version of the priest. "Com-passion on them that are out of the way." Nay, rathertheir practice has ever been to kindle the fires of perse-cution against all who opposed' their selfish schemes.Ask what class of men, in all the world's history, hasbeen foremost in sending the innocent, the noble, andthe true to cruel tortures and the most painful forms ofdeath; and the answer must be, the self-sty led priestsof religion. Little wonder that the world grew disgustedwith their claims!But turn now to Aaron in this picture, and learn the

beauty of the Divine idea. In some parts of his history,Aaron does not appear to great advantage. Comparedwith his brother Moses, he does not show the steadinessand strength of character of that great hero. But hereeverything in his action is noble, lovely, CHRIST-LIKE.He rendered an unselfish service for others, and thesemost undeserving. Moreover, "he RANinto the midstof the congregation" to act as their protector. Now,remember he was an aged man; his years numberedabout ninety. It is not for nothing, therefore, that weare told of his hasty movements. Had he been governedby baser motives, he would have held back. These menfor w110mhe was asked to intervene surely deserved theirfate, if any did. And why should he, in particular, in-tervene to save them? They were his bitter enemies.They had envied him his appointment. They had ac-cused him of slaying the people. A little more, andthey would have torn him in pieces. But, forgetting theinfirmity of his years, the deadly risk of contagion, thedeep hostility and ill deserts of the victims of the plague;remembering only that they were in sore need of help,and that he wore the livery of his appointment by Godto be their helper, he rushed in, made an atonement, acovering for the guilty, and gained a victory for mercyand forgiveness.Need we go further with the suggested parallel be-

tween Aaron, as here seen, and that great High Priestof whom he was, after all, but the type? Instinctively


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MARCH; 1906. THE BIBLE STANDARD. 43.we look beyond Aaron to Him who is a "merciful HighPriest" (Heb. ii. 17), who, while "holy, harmless, unde-filed, and separate from sinners," is yet quick with sym-pathy for all who arc in the thraldom of sin. He gaveHis life (not merely risked it) for the undeserving, nay,for those who were His enemies, and now "He ever'li vethto make inierceesioo" for those who need it. Whata heavy burden is this that is hourly laid on the heartof our great Redeemer-the continual intercession, notonly for the vast world of unrepentant sinners, but evenfor those of the housellold of faith who arc still so"ignorant" and often "out of the way."

"He who for men their surety stood,And poured on earth His precious blood,Pursues in heaven His mighty plan,'I'hc Sa "ion)" and the Friend of man.'I'hough now exalted up on high,11e bend on earth a Brother's eye;Partaker of the human name,He knows the frailty of 'our frame."

How valuable, then, is this portion of the Old Testa-ment records that gives us beforehand such a vivid pic-ture of God's true and ideal High Priest. Surely thosewho neglect or despise these ancient "oracles" are 'littleaware how much they lose.There remains a lesson, suggested by the subject,which we may profltably take home to oUTselves as mem-bers of the household of faith. We often speak and singwith thankfu 1 voice of the honour bestowed on us inChrist in being called to be kings and priests unto Godin the age to come. This is right and proper. It is alofty destiny for which we surely must ever praise theGod of grace. But what of its other aspect? Our l)1'C-sent study has impressed on us that to be called to he"priests of Goc1" is to be called to sennce for men. Butmust we wait till the world to come before wc begin tocultivate the priestly "compassion for the ignorant andthose that are out of the way?" What is the meaning,then, of the apostle's injunction in 1 Tim. ii. I? Helays down the duty of a Christian assembly. Throughthem "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and givingof thanks arc to be made for all men." These thingsmankind do not much render for themselves. Thegreater necc1 that God's dcsignated priests should do itfor thcm. And the more ignorant, the more careless, themore out of the way "all men" an', the more our call 1.0act as their spokesmen at the 'I'hrone. 1)0 we realise ourprivilege and our duty in this as much as we should?If not, let us awake and do better. Let us practise noli'the deed of mercy, the thought of pity, the pra'yer ofintercession, for all whom we know who lack such ser-vice; not a perfunctory "slumping" of all mankinc1 informal, meaningless petition, but a true .presentationbefore God of our fellowmen, in hours of nati:onal, orcommunal, or inc1ivic1ual need. Anc1 thus shall we besttrain ourselves for that immortal service of joy andgladness which awaits us in the Kingdom of God.

Bearsden, Glasgow. M. W. S'.rRANG.

lD ea tl ) as a :J l3 1e5Sing.W H Y , if death is really a blessing to thc saint, did thatman "with a perfect heart" (Hezekiah) wecp when told,"Thou shalt die, and not live!'''If death' is a blessing to the saint, why does theapostle Paul call it an "enemy?"

Then, why is it commonly called "the king of ter-rors?" ~If a blessing, why did Paul say, "Since by man camedeath, by man cauio also the resurrection of the dead?"Does the resurrection rescind the blessing of death?

If a blessing, why did Isaiah say, "Thy dead menshall live ?"If death is a blessing, why did God say to the saints:"I will redeem them from death?" Woulc1 it be God-like to redeem them from a blcssing?H a blessing, why did Jesus say of the rosutrcctedsaints, "N either can they c1ie any more?" Will theresurrection rob the saints of a blessing once bestowed,and render its future be towment impossible?

If death is a blessing, why did the Revelator say,"There shall be no more c1cath?" Will God cause HiRblessing to desert the saints?If the human body is a dctr'imcnt, and to be dcprivec1of it is a blessing, whv did 110t God make man withouta body?If death is a blessing in releasing a soul-prisoner froma body-prison, why not lct the released prisoner enjoyits liberty by staying 'Out of prison, instead of havingthe resurrection put it into prison again, and so fortifythe prison as to render future escape impossi ble?If death really liberates sainted soul-prisoners, andblesses them with liberty till the resurrection arrives,must not the future coming of the Lord be a calamityto these liberated souls, by simultanconsly imprisoning 1every saint now out of prison?Did death really bless Christ with three days' li bertyfrom prison cightcen hundred years ago? And did theresurrection then re-imprison Him? Anc1 has He beena prisoner for the past cightcen centuries? Was He inprison about thirty years, or more, beforc being lib crated1' 01 ' the short term of three days only, preparatory tobeing imprisoned again for evcr? Is it not rather truethat 1-1s imprisonment was during the three days inter-vcning between His death and rosurrccticn ? and thatwhen TIc escaped from the hadean prison He took the"kcvs" with Him? And if Jesus' imprisonmcnt coveredthc interim between death and the resurrection, is notthis equally true of thc imprisonment of His saints?Have not theologians blundered in placing the imprison-ment where liberty exists, and in placing liberty wherebondage bclongs ~ Is not liberty found in life, andbondage in deatb ? Is it not a mistake to suppose thatGod created man a prisoner, and then threatened himw ith liberation from prison in case he should sin? Wouldit not be more reasonable to suppose that God createdhim in a state of liberty, and threatened him with im-prisonment in case of transgression ?-Willia.m Sheldon.


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MARCH, 1906.44 THE BIBLE STANDARD.Ube jfitness of J8ible WlorM.

----

There is in Hebrew a remarkable appropriatenessand expressive energy in the terms employed to denotemental quanties or conditions. 'I'he original notionsinherent in those terms serve to picture forth, with pro-minent distinctness, the mental quality which they areemployed to designate. Thus, for instance, the usualterm for "meek" is derived from a radical word signify-ing "to afflict;" thus intimating the well-known connec-tion between sanctified sorrow and the grace of meek-ness. The usual term for "wicked" comes from a rootthat expresses the notion of restlessness, tumult, or com-motion. "There is no peace, saith my God, to thewicked." A "sinner" is one who misses the mark, whoturns aside from his "being's end and aim" -even thefavour and enjoyment of God. To "delight in" any-thing is, radically, to "bend down" towards it, such adirection of the body being an outward expression ofinward complacency. The word applied to the "law ofGod" (the Torah) is derived from a verb signifying"'to cast," "to send out," thence "to put forth," as thehand for the purpose of giving directions, "to pointout," "to indicate," "to teach." The Law is that whichindicates, or points out, to us the mind of God. "Right-eousness" is properly that wh'ich is plJ1'fectly straight."Truth," that which is firm 'Or stable. "Vanity," thatwhich is empty. "Anger" is derived from a root mean-ing to breathe, quick breathing being one of the exter-nal signs of irritated feeling. "To trust" is expressed,sometimes by a term meaning to take shelter under anyobject of confidence, sometimes by a word meaning tolean upon; in other cases by a word the radical signifi-cation of which appears to be to th'I"OWoneself upon any-one, or to hang upon him. Trust in God may be d~-scribed either as a putting ourselves under the shadow of His wings, a taking refuge in Him, or as a castingourselves upon His care, a hanging in helplessness uponHis almighty strength. "To judge" is, radically, tosmooth, to make even, to eqttal'ise.-Extract from "TheHebrew Language," by Henry Oraik.The written Word is the appointed instrumentality,

as the blessed Spirit is the revealed Agent in illumin-ating our understandings and graciously impressing ourhearts. Every legitimate means of endeavouring togrow in the knowledge of the Word may be expectedto aid us in yielding compliance with the exhortation ::"Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord andSaviour Jesus Christ."

A constant reference to God should per-vade all our efforts for the acquisition of profitableknowledge. We should cultivate every mental endow-ment which He bath imparted. We should let no facultyof the mind become torpid for want 'Of exercise; noaffection of the heart wither away for want of suitableobjects on which it may expend its strength; but mindand heart should be devoted to Him. Our intellect,our memory, our powers of apprehension and imagin-

ation, should be devoted to the habitual perusal andprayerful examination of the lively oracles; and ourtempers and dispositions; our whole cast of characterand course of conduct, be moulded and fashioned in ac-cordance with the elevating and purifying principleswith which these oracles are pervaded and imbued ....

There is no true saiie[cctioi: ,in anything apart[rotn. its relation. to the knowledge and Mijoyment 0 /God.

HENRY OUAIK. ~ur jfanlts ill @tbers.MANY people have a genius for seeing the faults ofothers, but there is one peculiarity about this facultywhich will be an interesting study for the psycholo-gist; it is the tendency to criticise most sharplythose faults in others which are most prominent inourselves. In other words, that which excites our great-est antagonism is the duplication of our own traits. Itwould be amusing, if it were not disturbing and pathetic,to hear people criticise mercilessly traits in others whicheverybody recognises as being the special possession ofthe critic themselves. It is pathetic because it showshow little we know ourselves, and it is disturbing be-cause it suggests to the listener that he may be doingprecisely the same thing. In all probability he is. Solittle do we know ourselves, as a rule, that when we seeparts of ourselves in others, we detest them. If we re-cognised them as being in a sense our own possessions,we might not like them any better, but we should surelysympathise with their possessors. If there is any com-mon experience which 'Ought to draw us together, it isidentity of struggle and temptation. We ought to standshoulder to shoulder with those who are fighting thesame fight which we are fighting, and who find in them-selves the same tendencies to evil or to weakness; andyet these are the very people from whom, as a rule, wewithdraw ourselves most entirely, and upon whose shoul-ders the lash of our criticism falls most mercilessly. Itis a good plan, when one finds that he is specially irri-tated by certain traits in another, to study himselfclosely, in order to discover whether those very traits arenot his own characteristics. It generally happens thata trait which is specially irritating in another is thevery trait that everybody finds in us. As Cowper sosagely sang-

Their own defects, invisible to them,Seen in another, they at once condemn;And though self-idolised in every case,Hate their own likeness in another's face.

Selected. After sin entered the world the first man to die was

a go-odman, an innocent man, a God-fearing, prayingman; and till sin leaves the world these qualities willexpose men to suffering and death; but the possessionof these very qualities alone is what can make theirblood speak for ages after death.


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MARCH, 1906. THE BIBLE STANDARB. 45~~

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...~~~,~~3-n ~uest of Urutb.CHAPTlm I.-Oontinued.

"I hope my visit to-night will nottrouble you, Uncle," said Philip afterh~ had exchanged a few sentenc:s with~ : I S aunt on matters of general interest.'1 suppose you are busy as usual withyour prophetic studies?""I cannot say tha t I am particularly

busy, though I ?an truthfu lIy say thatI find much enjoyment in my presentoccupation. The Psalmist could write'0 how I love Thy law,' and it is n~small pleasure to me that the race ofBible lovers did not die with him. 1think that you, too, are findinz a zreatdelight in the study of the Wo;d?"""That is so," said Philip, "althoughnow and again I cross some hard sayingwhich at present is beyond my grasp." ""Well, my boy, I expect you o,vill find

that to be a life-long experience. I havea goodly list of my own, containinoitems which await clear explanation~Occasionally, as a result of continuedreading and study, I am able to strikeone from the list; but then I am alwaysadding, so that my list of difficultiesdoes not shorten much. But you maytake it as certain that continued studymeans continued conquest. Individualdifficulties will be overcome, and willfall into line with the main truths ac-quired. Others may, of course, arise,but the experience gained in connectionwith former cases will prevent so muchas a ripple on the calmness of assuredfaith and knowledge.. "I begin to feel that, Uncle, and I amnow not at all worried when I find diffi-culties in my own personal study of the\Y ord, as I have learned that furtherand patient investigation will almostcertainly bring about their removal.But just now 1 confess I am troubledgreatly regarding a matter which arisesrather differently. I had thought thatwhen I turned aside from the incongrui-ties of orthodox traditions, and acceptedthe Bible as my only guide, I had enteredupon a path of safety, in which my onlyneed would be to find the truth by aidof the plainly-written Word. I mustsay that that which has come by thatmethod has given me every satisfaction.Now, however, I feel quite baffled andupset, for I discover that others, layingclaim to the same principle, are reachingconclusions quite opposed to those whichI now believe to be sound, and are in-dustriously circulating literature whichshows that not only is orthodoxy wrongin its conceptions of man's nature, butthat we, too; are wrong on certain veryimportant matters, and so far wrong,indeed, that only as we accept their viewcan we be sure of personal salvation, orat most attain to a salvation that can

give no share in the high honours whichbelong to those who receive their teach-ing." -"My dear Philip, I beg you not to

worry over such matters. As you obtainmore experience you will learn thatthere are many bodies of professingChristians each with its own 'shibbo-leth,' and virtually claiming, 'the peopleof the Lord are we, and there are noothers.' I could. name about half-a-dozensuch bodies in this little town of Bren-ton, each taking a similar position, andunhesitatingly condemning all others.Don't ,et ths t trouble you. These claimscan ;10 sot aga inst each other, and a11ran be placed under the category of hu-mu n pride. Our duty is to follow the\\ ord, heedless of the arrogant claims ofthese foolish people."

'V.f']], UncII', I don't think I am like-ly to be much influenced by any whoruake a persona! claim to be better thantheir Iel lo-vs because they have acquiredmore truth, nor do I pay heed to anywho seek to make disciples by loud andrepeated assertions; but I confess that Iam disturbed in mind just now by atheory which, if true, is subversive ofsome things I have learnt to hold strong-ly, and the view is upheld by, at least,a show of Scripture and of reasoningwhich, at present, I do not seem ableto deny, although many of the passagescited in proof do not, on the face ofthem, seem to carry exactly the meaningdeduced."William Keith watched the mobile

features of the young man as he spokethese words, and saw that the matterwas of deep interest to him, and, anxi-ous to be of service, said:"Well, suppose you tell me just the

nature of this difficulty, Philip. It maybe that something of the kind has hap-pened to me, and I may be able to tellyou how I became satisfied, or, if it isnew to us both, then, perhaps, we canexamine it together, and our mutualsearch will be beneficial to us. If, now,we are unconsciously holding error, andtruth comes to us from any source, weshould welcome it; only making surethat it is truth, and that error do~s notpalm itself upon us under the guise oftruth. As you have already learned, notall theories professing to wear Scripturegarb belong to the family of truth.Some of them, indeed, are subtle andharmful errors. What we have to hespecially careful of are those viewswhich to have a footing at all, makeappeal to something other than the Biblefor their authority, and there are manyof these abroad. We need fear nothingif it is content to appeal to Scripture,and to Scripture only. But, suppose youtell me just the nature of the difficulty."Then Phi lip told the story of the pur-

chase by his mother of tbe volume fromthe colporteur, his own interest in it,and the purchase and reading of the re-maining volumes of the series. He con-cluded his recital by adding that thiswas a matter not affecting him alone,but was likely to bring trouble to thechurch, as one of the brethren, somewhataggressive in his disposition, had accept-ed the doctrines as a whole, and intended

at the earliest opportunity to introducethem to the church. This made Keithlook grave, and he remarked:"There need be no difficulty about

that. Our basis of agreement affordsthe opportunity for the presentation anddiscussion of any view claiming to havea Bible basis, and if I know the brethren,they will personally listen to, and care-fully weigh, any view that claims Scrip-ture authority. But," he continued,"this view is by no means new to meI have known of it almost since the dayswhen it first became current in its present form, and I fancy your friend thecolporteur knew of this, as, to my knowledge, he has been to all the houses inthis neighbourhood, but has not been nearmy door. In various forms it has beentaught in the course of the dispensation,but in this guise it was first taught bBarbour, of Rochester, N.Y., a man whoI believe, is still alive, and from whomthe writer of these books undoubtedlvreceived it. Indeed, some of the features of the theory Barbour claims tohave discovered, and accuses the writerof 'Millennial Dawn' of appropriatingthem as his own discovery, a matter overy little consequence to us, save thatthe honesty and truth of one or the otheris impugned. I gave some attentionyears ago to the examination of ththeory propounded, and think I can lamy hands upon the notes I made; butif you like to bring the volumes roundI will look them over to see if there ianything further that is more like prooof the view taken.""I am pleased," said Philip, "that yo

have some knowledge of this matter, athat will meke our work easier. I hopehowever, you will give the books a careful reading, both for my sake and thatof the church.""Very well, I will do so, althonghtell you candidly that my readlnz o

th~t literature in the past does not "prormse me a great pleasure in store. Noonly. did I find it to abound in unwar-rante.d assumptions and arrogant claimsbu tIt was a weariness to the flesh th?-ve to read so much unnecessary verbiage to get at the writer's meaninz.But. I.promise you I will put aside mprejudice against its literary form, andendeavour to understand what the author means.""We~l, then," said Philip, whose fac

had lightened considerably when hfound that this was not a new matter this uncle, "I will let you have the voumes to-morrow."At this stage Aunt Martha, who, engaged with her knitting, had followed

the conversation with interest, lookeup from her work, and, glancing at thclock, remarked: "Now, Phi lip, you knowwe keep early hours here, and I feathat if you continue your topic muclonger your uncle will get too excited tsleep. I will make a cup of coffee foyou, and we will have a hymn togetherand a prayer before you go."Uncle Keith smiled across to Philip

as if to say, "She must have her way,and the trio sat and chatted on mattersof family interest fOT a few minutes;then Philip went to the organ and play


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THE BIBLE STANDARD. MARCH, 1906.joined. When their devotions closed hebade them a hearty good-nigbt, and, re-turned to his home, where he recited tohis mother the cause of the visit andthe substance of the conversation heldwi th his uncle.

('1'0 be Oontinued.) 1bow a JE o}? Sbonltl \treat1bts !If~otber.ONE of the most alarming, as well as oneof the most shameful, signs of the Li111ein which we live is the growing disregardof ch ildren for their parents.There were never so many ungrateful,

r\isrcspectful children in the world ~sthere are to-day, and the number 1Ssteadily on the increase.In far too many instances "fathcr" and"mother" n.ro being succeeded by "theold man" and "the old woman," forwhom the "kids" seem to have but littleof the warm, filial love and heau t . i lu lfilial respect that used to charactertsethe child"; feelings toward the parents.Ia11l vrrv glad, thero iorc, of the op-portnnity of speaking a word or two uponso vital :t subject. as that of a sori's 01'dauo'hh'r's duty to father and mol.lrcr,"lIow should a boy treat his mot hcr?"

Is that the question Iam to answer? .Then I answer it quickly and unhesi-

tatingly without a moment's halting ordoubting.A boy should treat his mother with aheartfelt, uniform kindness. He shouldstr-ive to love her with all his heart, andsoul, and mind, and strength, and- tolove her that way right along.It would not be >t Lad thing if every

boy in the land, upon getting uo in ~hemorning, were to say solemnly to hUB-self: "This day, 0 God, help me toclearly love my mother."I say a boy should love his mother

"dght along" continuously, ahvays." .. "Once a mother always a mother, lSthe word that every son should thor-oughly believe in.No mutter what mother does, no mat-tor how low she may fall, no matter whatclouds may sett.le upon her, she is yourmother, and it is your duty to stand byher.

J II fact, the greater her distress, thedirer her uoublcs and misfortu nes, thewore firmly should you dedicate yourselfto 1 1 er scrv ice.Even though it should come to thepoint where you could no longer respecther, you should keep on loving her andprotecting her.'i'he rnother may sin, for she is human,hut she can commit no sin so rank andmonstrous as would be committed by theson who, in her sin and SO]'1'OW, shoulddesert her.In saying that a boy should love hismother. I say a 11 that it is possible tosay; Ior to love one's mother is to be kindto her, to be rospcctfu l to her, to studyher comfort and peace, and in every wayto be true and faithful to her.And, surely, is there anything in this

world that is grander or more beautifulto bchuld than the sight of a gratefulchild-a son or daughter true to mother,

true to father, loving them, devoted tothem, living to make their old age co rn -fortable and happy!As God looks down upon the ways of

men He sees no nobler sight! .And the reward of it! Ah! There 1S

nothing like it under the sun!To know that you love father and

mother; that you have ever treated themwith perfect respect; that you have al-ways tried to make them glad, and tha;you have never failed to do what youcould to promote their peace and happi-nrss-to know this is to know the iichestjoy that life affords!When the great JII[irabeau was Ln.I'one can l.nveabout him in the solemn death-hour isthe memory of filial gratitude, the recol-lection of tIle fact that he was alwaystrue to father and mother.-BoslonAme1icun.

:tl < ..t lJurcb l\) arab le ."I VVAS A STRANGER, AND YE TOO I(

ME IN."-VVORDS OF JESUS.Some years ago a stranger moved into

a certain community and established hishome there. He was a man of means andinfluence, with an interesting family-just the kind every church seeks. Thechurch people were naturally interestedin the newcomers, and there was some con-cern among the five churches as to wherethe new family would go, since there wasno church of the denomination to whichthey belonged. After a few months, thegentleman took a pew in one of thechurches. An acquaintance, member ofone of the other churches, said as theymet, "I understand you have gone to theBlank church." "Yes," was the reply."Well, I am interested to know on whatground you made your choice, if you don'tmind telling. Was it because you likedtheir pastor's preaching better thanours ?" "No," was the quick responsc ,"on the contrary, I was the more takenby the style of your minister's dis-courses.""Wel l, certainly it wasn't because you

like their music better-for I fancy wehave the best quartette in town-we paythe most for it." "No, that had nothingto do with the choice, tbough we appre-ciate good and fitting music." "Was itbecause you found special friends there?"continued the questioner, a little puzzled."No, I think Iknow more of the menin your church." "Surely the doctrineisn't any nearer that of your own denom-ination than ours is?" "No, again," wasthe reply. "I don't believe you couldguess, and I'll tell you, if you won't ob-ject to my frankness, since you urge me.The simple reason why we decided to goto that church was because we foundtherc a sort of Christian comradeshipand. brotherhood we did not find else-where. Not that we were not cordiallymet everywhere; but as Inoted things

closely I saw a certain genuine interestin each other, and felt the sympatheticatmosphere. I do not know that I candefine it, but J know well what it is, andthat is the kind of church spirit I be-lieve in.""Yes, Ido know what you mean," was

thc response, "and I don't wonder at yourchoice. That church is the most earnest,brotherly, and social in the town, f'rou:the pastor to the sexton. I only wish ourswerc more likc it. It deserves all it gets,and gets about 1'11 the new people whocome to town."There are now people coming to your

town, and thcre is a moral conccaledsomewhere 'in this parable.-The Bapt'istHome Mission Monthl!).Swee tl}? Ikq)!.Kept sweet by the power divine. Kept

sweet under all circumstances, ill. allplaces, under every condition. Thing,;go wrong, people rasp you, vex you,plague you, and are mean, sordid, selfish.He sweetly kept. "Thou wilt keep him inperfect peace." LQt Him keep; we cannotkeep ourselves. Let us learn to be kept,to be still so He can keep. Let Himsweeten us, so we do not enjoy irritationand morbidness, and desire not conten-tion ~nd dispute, but sweetly kept byHim no weapon formed against us canprosper," while "all things work," andwe "rejoiec evermore." To be sweetlykept, mind your own business, love every-body, give no one a piece of your mind,be courteous, loving,- gentle, kind. .Iudgenot, but cast your care on Him, and leaveyourself and others in His hands, andyou will be sweetly kept.-Selected.

" , . . . .~ C H R IS T IA N B A N D . ~

~~~~AucKLAND.-Since our last reportthere have been five meetings, concerningwhich we are SOlTY to sa.y very few havebeen well attended. It is hoped thatthese l1leetin~ will prove a blessing andhelp to all who were present. Monday,.Ianuary 8th, an open-air meeting washE'ld, t.hc subject being, "The Look For-ward," which was dealt with by threeof the brethren, "Past Experience," takenby L. Falkner, "Present Resolution" byE. Alclridge, and "Futuro Hope" by C. B.King. On Monday, .Ianua.ry lith, aQuestion Night was held, the chair beingoccupied by :Bro. G. Aldridge. This is anew idea, and we 110pe it will not be thelast of the meetings, as they should be agreat help. At a meeting held. on the22nd, a paper on the "Life and Characterof Peter," which was written by our Sis.H. Wood, was very interesting. Monday,February 4th: A short paper, entitled"Thoughts on Christianity," written bySis. Q. Whit.ten, was enlarged upon byseveral of the members. \~7e held anopen-air meeting on Monday, February12th, the subject being "Manifestation ofGod." This was divided into three sub-jects, being spoken to by Bros. H. Ald-ritlg~ W. Wild, and L. Falkner.


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MARCH, 1906. THB BIBLE STAN DARD 47* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *.C h u r c h a~Sion N e w s . ]

III ....nc-llllllc~uUk..ullli.___I~ * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * AlfCKLAND.-The Christmas holidaysare over, gone for ever. Members of thehousehold of Faith are returning andsettling down to the usual daily routine.Let us hope that the little relaxation hasbeen beneficial to all.The series of addresses on the Millen-

nium of Scripture is still proceeding,close attention being the result of a clearexposition.Sunday, January 28: We had with us

in fellowship this morning Bro. Morgan,of the Thaines ; Bl O . Penman, of Mango-nui : and Sister Judkins, of Ch ristchurch.In the evening the second of the series ofaddresses on' the Millennium was given,entitled, "The Millennium of- Scripture."February 4: "The Millennium: Its

Social Aspects."February 11: Bro. Christie, of Mi-randa, was with us this morning. He

gave tes timony to the pleasure receivedand the benefit derived by attending themeeting with brethren of like preciousfaith. In the evening the subject was"Religion in the Millennium."Sunday, 18: "Successes and Failures in

the Millennium."The Bible Class is by no means well

attended, although a very interesting andinstructive topic is under coriaiderat.ion,"Paul's Letter to the Hebrews."On Wednesday "Vening, January 24th,

Bro. Aldridge, in his opening remarks,gave a synopsis of the Scripture, dwellingmore particularly on the Epistle to theHebrews. December 31, "Christ Betterthan Abraham." .January 7, "ChristBetter than Moses." January 14, "ChristBetter than Aaron." January 21, "TheOrder of Melchisedek." It is to be hopedthat the class attendance will soon reachits usual number. ''V.G.GEORGETOWN, BRITISH GUIANA.-

Greeting: By the time this arrives theNew Year will be well advanced. Wewho are met together at Lot 19, NortonStreet, on Monday, January Ist, 1906,send our love to all who are holding upthe Word of Life to the perishing. Werealise that we were of those who areperishing before we heard or understoodfrom God's Word that eternal life wasonly to be obtained through .Jesus Christ,and that it was God's gift to all whoobeyed His Son. We hold meetings onSunday morning, and our Bible Class onWednesday evenings, but most of ourpreaching is done in God's Hall. Manywho have thrown in their lot with Christare well scattered, oftentimes not sceinnme for weeks. Again, we experience th~loss of a goodly number, as there is acontinual change going on, some leavingthe colony Some are in Colon, Cuba,New York, Canada, Dutch Guiana .. Mostof those who have left correspond withme, and some continue to take the"Words of Life." I sell 42 copies permonth of these', besides other literature.Many would like to have the "Star Evan-

gel" and "Berean Siftings," but they arenot able to purchase. Those subjectshave taken ~ great holel upon many whohave never heard anything of the kind,especially the story of the stars. We arehaving splendid starlit nights. We seeGemini, Taurus, Orion, Lepus, and CanisMajor. As we hold our meetings inGod's Hall, we tell all we have gleanedfrom reading God's Word and Bro, A.'sbook as we g-"ze at our pictures hung upin the heavens as signs for fallen man.The cause of Christ has suffered muchfrom the doings of the sects that are notfar from us in the faith. Lawsuits, ap-propriation of funds, cheating, and mUIlYother un-Christian acts have been madepublic. We record our praises to Al-mighty God that we have been kept, andthat He will keep us if we continue obedi-ent. A brother who lives in the Kilbyvillage brought me two dollars some timeago. He has been in bud circumstancesfor years owing to lack of employment.i. offered him the "Words of Life," andhe refused it. I forced it upon him,however, and he took it, remarking thatall were alike, and he was not able topurchase. I noticed afterwards that hegenerally crossed my path about the timetbemail arrived. I said nothing to him,but gave him the papers. He confessedthat these papers were the means of sav-ing him from being wrecked. He had gotto the position of refusing to read theBible, and would not attend :1ny of thechurches. But now the Bible is attrac-tive to him, and its beauties open moreand more as he digs into it. He realisesthat God loves him, and gave His Sonthat he might live.On the last Sunday in the year we had

for our morning subject, "And what I sayunto you, I say unto all, watch" (Mk,xiii. 37). At night I spoke from the text,"Watchman, wha.t of the nigbt? the morn-ing cometh, and also the night" (Tsa . xxi.11, 12). I pointed out that God hadpledged that the morning would come,but that before that glad dawn the earthwould be enveloped in gross darkness. Itis gradually growing darker, and we can-not stir about with safety without Christ,who is the light. He is the Light of theworld. May we all be kept in the light,that we may not stumble and fall. Nay,mav we ourselves be as lights set upon ahill to those that are seeking a havenof safety.-WILLIAM S. EDGEHILL. Quite recently a smn.ll book was pub,lished which has occasioned much heart-searchings amongst Foreign MissionSocieties. The writer is engaged inMission work in India, and in her hookentitled "Things as They Are," sheshows, not only the nature of theopposition encountered, but also howsmall is the net resnlt of the work ac-complished. 'Ne had intended to writeupon this matter but our Bra. C. C.Brown, having read the book, is contri-buting a paper to our next issue on"Missionary Theology." As he and hiswife were formerly engaged in Missionwork in India, they are well fitted topass juclgment 011 the teaching givenand to speak with authority upon itsresult npoI, the natives.

~ ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~\V ~ I l J :~~~_~~ \ [ S u n S h in e C o r n e r . : I E~ ~f1~i '~, J j" '~ -f-~~ '- -1 i'~Owing to the amount of space required

for Conference matter, we were crowdedout last month, and so were unable toreport concerning our Christmas Sun-shine work.Shortly hefore the advent of the fes-

tive season, we told the Sunshine Societythat we desired to send Christmas ham-pers to several families who otherwisewould have no special Christmas fare.Each member was asked to bring to theWest Street Church on a stated eveningone ponnd weight of sunshine in th~form of provisions suitable for Christmascheer. The idea proved to be a veryhappy one; everybody wanted to sharein such a delightful way of giving, andthe waiting tables were soon loaded withan abundance of good things. The con-tributions were not confined entirely tothe members, for others also desired toshare in the good work, and added theirgifts to the store.Some sent their contributions in money

to be spent at the discretion of the Com-mittee, while others found the specifiedweight too lirnited for their generosity,and brought heavy parcels of Christmascheer. All the ingredients necessary formaking Christrnas puddings and cakeswere supplied in abundance, while otherlux{lries consisted of jams, tinned meats,tinned fruits, rice, cornflour, tea, cocoa,etc., etc.The children were not forgotten, andpackets of lollies, etc., were placed ineach hamper intended for homes wherelittle ones would be eagerly awaiting theadvent of Father Christmas. The resultof our appeal far exceeded our expec-tations and enabled us to send out somesixteen' parcels of ample proportions tothe homes of those in need. The surpriseand pleasure with which these parcelswere received, and the excitement and joyof unpa.cking, we can leave to your im-agination. The letters and messages re-ceivcd by the Committee testify to theappreciation and thankfulness of the re-cipients.

A W01~DOF THANKS.Perhaps you were among those who

shared the joy of bringing sunshine intothese homes; if so, we pass on to you thegrateful thanks of the recipients, addingalso a word on 0111' own behalf, for weare indeed glad that through your gener-osity we were able to make Christmas ahappy time for so many. Then, too, wewish to thank our friends who from timeto time send us contributions accom-panied hy letters of good wishes. Fromvarious parts of the colony we receivesuch letters; even from distant Australiaa brother writes enclosing a contribu-tion, and wishing us God-speed. And soto one and all we say, "Thank you."


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THE BIBLE STAND*RD. MARCH, 1906.)Efface Self. \tbe :fl3ible Stanbarb.

ALL extreme sensitiveness, fas

the bible standard march 1906

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