8. Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9. And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. A.D. 27. Jan. and Feb. THE TEMPTATION WILDERNESS OF JUDEA. 46 our Lord Milton's Picture. 8. SHOWETH Him all the Kingdoms of the World.-Milton, in his “Paradise Regained," pictures with matchless skill, as lost in meditation upon the means by which his kingdom can be founded and built up." Thus Satan appealed to the noblest feelings and purest aspirations of Jesus, offering him, apparently, the very things he had come to this world to bring. This method of gaining the kingdom was the one the Jews desired and expected. "Victorious deeds Flamed in my heart; heroic acts,-one while To rescue Israel from the Roman yoke, "Yet held it more humane, more heavenly, first The Red There is a curious little picture in the Crystal Palace gallery of Munich, called "The Red Fisherman." The devil in red costume is fishing for men who are like fishes in a pond. Fisherman. The bait on his hook consists of gold coins, but near him are other kinds of bait,-crowns, swords, wines, jewels. "Daughters of Time the hypocritic days, Bread, kingdoms, stars, and sky that holds them all." 9. ALL THESE THINGS WILL I GIVE THEE.—In a measure Satan did have these things. Christ later called him the "prince of this 10. Then saith Jesus unto him, get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. world." On everything he had stamped his seal, "The trail of the serpent was over them all." I will relinquish my opposition, and your ideal shall become the real at once. You shall "Of the future borrow, Clothe the waste with dreams of grain, Paint the Golden Morrow." The kingdom of God will come in the place of the cruel and oppressive kingdoms then in power; and come at once without pain or the cross, without humility and reproach, but with glory and power. There will be no long delay, no slow and painful process, lasting through generations, no conflict, no persecutions, no great selfdenials, no martyrdoms, no soul lost; but the new era, the good time coming, will burst at once into noontide glory over all the earth. IF THOU WILL FALL DOWN AND WORSHIP ME, not in outward form, but in reality, as men now "worship the almighty dollar." This condition destroyed the very aims Jesus sought. THE VEILED Prophet of KhoRASSAN, in Moore's "Lalla Rookh," is a vivid picture of Satan when he comes to tempt mankind, and of his method of temptation. The prophet chief kept over his features a silver veil, which he said Zelica and the Prophet of the Silver Veil. “He had flung In mercy there, to hide from mortal sight He represented himself as an Arm Divine raised to right the nations to exalt and to refine the human race of gods. "On his white flag, Mokanna's host unfurled These words of sunshine, Freedom to the world." With pious awe before the silver veil, This fettered world from every bond and stain, A.D. 27. Jan. and Feb. THE TEMPTATION WILDERNESS OF JUDEA. The beautiful Zelica, believing the promises of the Veiled Prophet, and looking toward happiness, purity and heaven, is led away into a dim charnel house, and there, among the dead, she pledges herself in a bowl of blood to be his forever. When the Veiled Prophet had bound his victim in these terrible bonds, he began to reveal his true nature, his hideous hypocrisy, his terrible purposes. 66 And now thou see'st my soul's angelic hue, 'Tis time these features were uncurtained, too;- (Raising the silver veil) "Here, judge if hell, with all its power to damn, "THE bad man sits retailing away heaven and salvation for pence, and seldom vends any commodity, but he sells his soul with it, like brown paper, into the bargain."-Robert South. LIBRARY.--N. P. Willis' poems, "Parrhasius," shows how futile is ambition gained by sin: Robert Browning's poems, “Bishop Blougram's Apology," shows the vanity of "success at any cost." 11. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold angels came and ministered unto him. II. ANGELS CAME AND MINISTERED UNTO HIM.-After the battle and victory come sweet blessings from heaven, beyond the power of the untried heart to conceive. Says Lyman Abbott, 'Great souls come to great peace only after great conflict. Not till in his own life and soul the devil has been vanquished can any one of us vanquish him for others; and the greater his battle for others is to be, the greater the battle in and for himself will be." Peace through Victory. Victory on the Battlefield The wise man ever prays: Lead us not into temptation; but when he is tempted, he is not to run away, but to overcome. The greatest battles of the world have been spiritual battles with temptation. And when God's day comes to bestow the rewards described in Revelation for those who overcome, it will be seen that in this unseen warfare have the grandest victories been gained, and the loftiest heroism displayed; and far beyond the heroes and victors whose deeds "echo through the corridors of time," shall be emblazoned among God's eternal stars the heroes and conquerors on the battlefields of the heart. of the Heart. LIBRARY.-Longfellow's poem, "The Ladder of St. Augustine." In another poem Count Arnaldos, standing on the shore, heard some sailors in their vessel "Chant a song so wild and clear, Poised upon the mast to hear; Till his soul was full of longing, Teach me, too, that wondrous song,' 'Would thou,' so the helmsman answered, Only those who brave its dangers Comprehend its mystery.'"-Longfellow. So only those who battle with temptation, and breast its storms, can know the fullness of the joy and peace of the victors, when angels come and minister unto them. Between verses 11 and 12 belongs the whole of the first year of Jesus' public ministry-the Year of Beginnings; the Judean Ministry. Dec. A.D. 27 ΤΟ Oct. A.D. 29. A BIRD'S EYE 12-17. From the following little diagram we obtain a general view of the life of Christ, and can see more clearly where these verses belong : GALILEE. The country and its people. Galilee contained about 2,000 square miles, or about one-third of Palestine proper, with a population of 3,000,000. Josephus says that it included 204 cities and villages, the smallest of which had 15,000 inhabitants. The soil was very fertile, the vineyards and orchards were very fruitful. There were prosperous manufactories, and a great trade between Egypt and Damascus passed through the region. The Sea of Galilee 66 was covered with vessels engaged in traffic and fisheries, and its shores were dotted with cities and villages." The people were industrious, intelligent and active. Many were rich. It was a common saying, according to Edersheim, "If a person wishes to be rich, let him go north (to Galilee); if he wants to be wise, let him come south" (to Jerusalem). Moreover, being so far away from Jerusalem, the religious center, and in such frequent contact with other peoples, they were more tolerant and less bound by tradition than the people of Judea. Thus in many ways this was the most hopeful field in all Palestine for gaining a foothold and reception for the new kingdom of God. |