In the School That History Keeps The International Sunday School LFMOB For September 30, 1017. A Quarterly Review, "The Goodnem and Severity of Hod."—Daniel Oi 3-10 i By WILLIAM T. ELLIS BY WILLIAM T. ELLIS To review a former study is like visiting a familiar city with the lar ger vision of the traveler whose horizon has widened. The vaster reaches of the themes studied are perceived in a review, and what rela tion each bears to all. There is nd subject that so well repays repeated study as the Biblej like Solomon's storehouse, it produces treasures new and old. Of necessity, the uni form series of S.unday school lessons, which are studied around the world, cover whole ranges of history and moral teaching by a few selected Incidents and passages. The past quarter's work Is a survey of the history of Israel and Judah, with brief glimpses into the prophecies which made the period's immortal contribution to literature. The book-taught man must always sit at the feet of him who has made a first-hand study of life. The wis est men are they who know what Is In man from personal observation and experience. Yet even they, to maintain perspective and proportion, must study the character of man as it is written in history. There is distinct educational value, apart from all religious considerations, in the fact that eighteen million per sons have for tierce months past been studying chapters in the his tory of the ancient nation of Judah. Moving the Arm That Moves tlie World These studies in human nature, flespite all that is dreary and dis appointing in them, have pointed out the one phase of universal and eter nal truth, which is man's hope, the mercy of the Lord. The pitifulness and long-suffering of Jehovah to ward Judah, are wonderfully appeal ing and revealing. "Like as a fa ther pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear them." God's love for man surpasses man's power to grasp. Incidents without number in Judah's history riiake this plain. When Sennacherib came down "like a wolf on the fold," the hosts of heaven were promptly en listed for the Jews. Eternally God fights with His own. And He is easily entreated. Heze kiah's plight and prayer drive home the teaching, which is as new as if freshly discovered by every human life that puts it to the test, that "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." This great and infinite Jehovah, who stands as the background of all his tory, is yet so personal that He may be affected by the deeds and plead ings of faithful hearts. This truth was the light of Ju dah's dark times. The old seer Isaiah beheld the highest revelation of Jehovah in "The Suffering Sav iour." The ultimate .expression of God's character is Jesus Christ. His characteristic voice is one of gracious Invitation. "How everyone that thlrsteth, come to the waters, and he that hath no money, buy wine and milk without money and without price." They do not know God at all who do not know that He is love, iMgl CARTERS B sdßmm iiver 8 r 11 •'''•••- ~WM f Two Splendid | Things | One is plenty of open- X v, air exercise. % If you can't get all of | | that you should, it's all |i the more important that X you should have the-® |i other tried-and-true rem- | edy for a torpid liver and V ! bowels that don't act freely and naturally. Take one pill every night; L;j more only when you're nre it*> ] necessary. !• CARTERS ffITTLE g U SVER & I|Wlls €tnuin<i bears Signature 'J Colorless faces often show the | absence of Iron in the blood. 5 Carter's Iron Pills | will help this condition. | NUXATED IRON increases strength of delicate, nervous, Mm FIT 111 111 rundown people 100 II I I P er cent. In ten days I| I I Irw In many instances. w HAIJM SIOO forfeit If It fails as per fuU ex- Ask your doctor or druggist about* it." Croll Keller, G. A. Gorgas, J. Nelson Clark always carry ft in stock / Hr reason of thorough distribu tion with the drag trade In the United States and lower selling costs, reduced prices are now pos sible for Eckman's Alterative FOR THROAT AND LUNGS Stubborn CouKha and Colda No Alcohol. Narcotic or Habit forming Drug $2 Size $1 Size Now $1.50 Now 80 Cts, Eckman Laboratory, Philadelphia. C OL P S & Head or chest—are best Jgj-sK _ treated "externally" jMWA V/ MttU Unfair Mon* V VICKVAPORUES FRIDAY EVENING, eager to lavish of His best upon all who will receive Him. So like a seesaw goes Judah's his tory, that taking it section by sec °n It is .difficult to understand whether it is really moving up or down. Herein comes the benefit of ?, , a review as this; the nation's " f e is viewed as a whole, and we see that its progress is downward, de spite occasional good kings and great prophets. Judah grew worse and worse, until it became intolerable to the King of kings. So, with a re gret that was greater than could be felt by either the most ardent Jew ish patriot, God wiped it off His slate. Even His patience has limits. To take the measure of Judah's history, wo must consider its total results and not its isolated experi ences. So it is with a life, not one deed, but its general tendencies de termine its destiny: A life's trend is more important than its traits. God views a life as a whole. Wise self-examination asks, "Whither does my life trend? What is its in fluence as a whole?" Similarly, one may ask of his own country and time, as of old Judah, "Whither its general tendencies? Is it bound God ward or earthward? Are its ruling sentiments noble or sordid? Is it getting better or is it getting worse?" The best use that Sunday school members can make of this ancient history of the Jews is to apply it as a plumb-line to the present prac tice. A Peculiar Nation ISobody can study closely the world of to-day, and especially the older nations, without being convinced that the place and mission of Amer 'ca and by America I mean North America, for there is no essential dif ferencein the ideals of Canada and i J, United States—is as absolute ly distinctive as was that of ancient Judah.. The new life of the old orient Is being shaped principally by the history and Idealism of this new West, which has been providentially placed in its magnificent geographi cal isolation, in order to work out a -unique destiny. A veritable teacher and prophet among the na tions are we. What may vaguely be called the American spirit is the most powerful weapon at work on the earth to-day. No sordid, ma terial Influence this; it is high ideal ism and spirituality. It spells lib erty and brotherhood and justice and emancipation. Those great con ceptions which created this Western World are to-day the deepest need and desire of uncounted millions of earth's people, who are heirs of op ptession, subordination. Ignorance and fatalism. Judah failed to be true to her mission; and she not only forfeited her own existence, but she also failed to serve the nations to whom she had been commissioned a schoolmaster. Three Kinds of Men In Judah's short days—for three hundred and fifty years seem but episodal in the long sweep of his- Jer.v the power of the man born to high place was greater than now. The king's divine right was accept ed by all—except the few rivals who would overthrow him. There was no great reverse of outspoken public opinion, such as is the strength of our modern democracies. The king was far above the people. A mod ern nation can get along fairly well, even though Its king be a rake or fool. Not so in Judah's day. Thus we find three outstanding' factors in the life of that kingdom to be the good kings, the bad kings and the prophets. There were a num ber of colorless kings, who may be passed by without comment. That the nation lived so long as it did was due primarily to the good kings—Hezekiah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Josiah. The history of Judah was like a mountainous sky-line, with the good kings as the mountain peaks. They made their people to turn to God. Forever they stand as illus trations of the truth that one man has power to lead many men to do good. Now that people choose their own rulers, it may reasonably be said to be incumbent upon them to sec that these rulers are men with that first qualification for good citizen ship, the fear of the Lord. The power of one small boy in the neighborhood for mischief is the wonder and despair of parents. It seems as if one such is able to off set the influence of half a dozen good boys, plus all the anxious par ents concerned. It was so with the mischief-making kings of Judah. They made the people to sin. The warnings of the prophets, the strong pull of the nation's providential his tory, the examplo of their pious predecessors, all seemed to be nulli fied, when kings like Rehoboam, Joash, Ahaz, Manasseh and Jeho iakim came to the throne. The peo ple who condone or suffer wicked ness in a public official are trifling with their own and their children's welfare. Like beacons, beckoning a bewil dered traveler on a dark night, were the prophets of Judah lsaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekial and Daniel. The man with a word of truth is the divine corrective in the life of so ciety. A nation is never in the worst state so long as it has fear less, disinterested men, who will pro claim the wise word of true coun sel. The underlying evil of the na tien was Its neglect of God's clear word, and failure to follow the path He had clearly marked out Writ ten over all those troublous gener ations wo may clearly read, "Right eousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." Taking Civilization to Task It has chanced to be my lot to traverse practically all the ruins of antiquity. I have trodden the fallen grandeur of all the ancient and im perial civilization. In these ruins one reads a story of a retributive power who overrules all of man's vaultings and ambitious plans. One cannot visit Nineveh for instance, and be hold the Children of Israel who have still survived while the glory of Sennacherib has perished without awesome thoughts of the God of Abraham and the children of the promise. A long look hack over the mil lenniums makes It clear that society has an obligation to God. He has held accountable the nations of the earth. God deals with peoples as well as with individuals, and that is the lesson for to-jday. We are en gaged, on this western continent, in creating a new civilization. If we are not ignorant of the teachings of time we will keep God's program In mjnd and hold out nation true to Its obligation to the King of kings. "Hold ye the faith, the faith our fathers sealed us. Whoring not with visions over wise and over stale. Except ye pay the Lord, Single heart and single sword, Of your children In their bondage Shall He ask them treble tale." "The Live Store" " n! ; TKecognition! t Doutrichs a Wonderful Store. Recognition is worth a lot these days—and when you are playing in a "big game" you must be a heavy hitter to put it over —time was when small things were big—but the clothing business today requires the Know How as well as the where-with, it takes both to be successful. You can't make a home run with a hole in your bat neither can you fool the public long and get away with it We've played the game with square-dealing, good merchandise and honest representation from the day we opened our doors in Harrisburg and through this method we have attained permanent and lasting results. They say Doutrichs have revolutionized the clothing business in central Pennsylvania, and we feel highly complimented that this "Live Store" has won the loyal patronage and good will of such a vast multitude of people. We are going to do a big ger clothing business than ever before, because careful planning and enor mous buying months ago has enabled us to stock heavily with good merchan dise at considerable lower prices than can be obtained now for high grade, standard mer chandise and when you see the clever styles and numerous fabrics in Suits and Overcoats we have you'll not criticise us for handling Headquarters for "Stetson Hats"flSyßi Ever buy a hat that you were not pleased with? then kick yourself for getting an unbecom- /Jmf CL J /K inghat that can't happen at Doutrichs because we would cer tainly rather not sell you a hat than have you displeased you . /V, can return anything you buy here for exchange or have your jTfr \_<W WtJ money back on request. ffgjwtf Scratch Finished Hats, $2.50, $3.00, $3.50 to $5.00 WtAW 'lim Velour Hats in All Colors, $5.00 to $7.50 tThe Boys' Department UndcTWCZir There's lots of room here now and since we enlarged our children's I 1 1! 1 * 13 - ro P ea nion department. It don't take long to grow in pop ular favor, if you have what the boys want, and the way the balcony is crowded at times is convincing evidence that Doutrichs and the t (*VQ boys are becoming fast friends no other ™ vUlvl U store can boast of As large an assortment of The New y Neck pu JJ. Boys' Suits at over" Sweaters are here $5.00 $6.50 $7.50 to SIB.OO g"" Come Here and Get Acquainted N™ Department. s£jj QO 50 an{ J $g 50 Street j , Penna. HAHRISBURG TELEGRAPH EPTEMBER 28, 1917. 13
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers