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By
Dr. John Eadie
Life
of John Eadie
By James Brown (1878) (pdf)
The English Bible:
An external and critical history of the various English
translations of Scripture, with remarks on the need of revising
the English New Testament
by John Eadie.
Volume 1 |
Volume 2
A commentary on the Greek text of the epistle of Paul to the
Colossians
by John Eadie
Life Of John Kitto D.D., F.S.A.
By John Eadie (1858)
Paul the Preacher
Or, A popular and practical exposition of the sources and
speeches, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles by John Eadie
(1859)
MORNING WORSHIP
O LORD our God, we approach Thee in humility and faith, and we
implore of Thee to bless us. Bring us and keep us under Thine
own tender guidance. O send down Thy holy Spirit into our hearts
that He may enlighten, sanctify, and seal us. Keep us, we
implore Thee, in a devout frame, and bless to us Thy day, Thy
word, and all the means of grace with which in Thine infinite
mercy Thou hast so fully supplied us. May we find that it is
good for us to draw near to God, and that we seek not his face
in vain. Hear us for Christ’s sake. Amen.
HYMN, or Psalm xvi. 7-11.
OUR next of kin, our Brother now,
Is he to whom the angels bow;
They join with us to praise his name,
But we the nearest int’rest claim.
But ah! how faint our praises rise!
Sure ’tis the wonder of the skies,
That we, who share his richest love
So cold and unconcern’d should prove.
O! glorious hour, it comes with speed,
When we from sin and error freed,
Shall see his face who died for man,
And praise him more than angels can.
JONAH I. 15-17, II. 1-10.
SO they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the
sea ceased from her raging. 16. Then the men feared the Lord
exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made
vows. 17. Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up
Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and
three nights. 1. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of
the fish's belly, 2. And said, I cried by reason of mine
affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of
hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice. 3. For thou hadst cast
me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods
compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over
me. 4. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look
again toward thy holy temple. 5. The waters compassed me about
even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds
were wrapped about my head. 6. I went down to the bottoms of the
mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet
hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. 7.
When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord; and my
prayer came in unto thee into thine holy temple. 8. They that
observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. 9. But I will
sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay
that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. 10. And the Lord
spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
---------------
Prayer.
We draw near to Thee, O Lord, and we bow ourselves before Thy
throne of grace and majesty. We adore Thee as Creator and
Redeemer. Thy power is unbounded, Thy wisdom is infinite, and
Thy tender mercies are over all Thy works. We bless Thee for
inviting us to come to Thee; for we have often provoked Thee by
our disobedience, and we have brought down upon ourselves the
awful penalty of death as the wages of sin. We have sinned and
done wickedly in Thy sight. Thy pure and holy law condemns us,
our own hearts condemn us, and Thou art “greater than our
hearts, and knowest all things.” O forgive us: God be merciful
to us sinners. Bestow upon us in Thy great compassion a living
faith in Christ Thy Son, who came into the world to save us by
His obedience unto death, even the death of the cross. O Let Thy
good Spirit come into our souls and work in us profound
convictions of sin and guilt and helplessness, so that we may
flee at once for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before us in
the gospel. Keep us, we entreat thee, from indifference and
procrastination. May we ever bear in mind that time is rapidly
passing away, and may we have grace given us wisely to improve
it. May we acquaint ourselves with Thee, and be at peace. Give
us, O our Father, a conscious interest in Christ Thy Son. Lord,
bring us into a state of pardon and acceptance in Thy sight, and
may we not only have the precious peace that passeth all
understanding, but may we through thy grace be enabled to
preserve it unbroken within us. We confess and lament our
numerous imperfections and short-comings, and do Thou of Thy
great pity forgive them, and give us grace to obey Thy law more
cordially and fully, and to follow more humbly and devotedly the
holy and lovely example of Thy Son. May He who took upon Him our
nature, and who died for us on Calvary, be more and more our
confidence and joy. O that we had more of His Spirit within us,
and that more of His character were manifested by us. May we
trust in Him as our Saviour, and also obey Him as our Master;
relying upon His atoning sufferings, may we be more and more
conformed to His life. Let us enjoy fellowship with Him now, in
the hope of nearer and deeper communion with Him for ever. We
bless Thee, O our Father-God, for all who have been saved by
Him, for all the souls now before Thy throne who have been
washed in His blood and perfected by His Spirit. Grant, O God,
that we, in Thine own time, be added to the number, and that
with them we may praise, and serve, and enjoy Thee, for ever and
ever. So long as Thou keepest us in the world, do Thou, Lord,
keep us, we pray Thee, from the evil that is in it. Thy servants
are ever leaving the world around us, friends and kindred are
departing from us, and we would not sorrow as those who have no
hope. Thou hast taken them to Thine own bosom, and to unending
blessedness before Thee. And though the grave closes over their
moral bodies, we thank Thee for the sure and certain hope of a
blessed resurrection, when thy Son the Lord Jesus comes,
according to his promise to raise the dead, and take all His
people home with Him to glory. We beseech Thee, Lord, that all
of us may be found in that happy company over which the second
death has no power. O Lord, revive, Thy church everywhere and
convert the world to Christ. Our native land do Thou bless, the
Queen and the royal House, all judges and magistrates, with the
entire population. O that every soul were in union with Thyself,
and were zealous in Thy service, Thou King of kings and Lord of
lords. Lord hear us, and accept us, and vouchsafe to us a
gracious and speedy answer, for Christ’s sake; and to the
Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost be all the glory world
without end. Amen.
----------------
THE CHURCH IN THE HOUSE.
O OUR God, who hast given us Thine own word as the revelation of
Thy love, and Thine own day as a period of rest and spiritual
refreshment, do Thou now bless us and give us of Thy Spirit,
that we may be renewed and strengthened in Christ. Amen.
HYMN, or Psalm xcvi. 10-13.
TO him that loved the souls of men,
And wash’d us in his blood,
To royal honours rais’d our head
And made us priests to God --
To him let ev’ry tongue be praise,
And e’ry heart be love!
All grateful honours paid on earth
And nobler songs above!
Behold on flying clouds he comes!
His saints shall bless the day;
While they that pierc’d him sadly mourn
In anguish and dismay.
Thou art the first, and thou the last;
Time centres all in thee,
Th’ Almighty God, who was, and is,
And evermore shall be.
REVELATION I. 1-8.
THE Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show
unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he
sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: 2. Who
bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus
Christ, and of all things that he saw. 3. Blessed is he that
readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep
those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
4. John to the seven churches which are in Asia: grace be unto
you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is
to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;
5. And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful Witness, and the
first-begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the
earth. Unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his
own blood. 6. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and
his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.
Amen. 7. Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see
him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the
earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8. I am Alpha
and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which
is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
----------------
SERMON LI.
“BEHOLD, HE COMETH WITH CLOUDS; AND EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM, AND
THEY ALSO WHICH PIERCED HIM; AND ALL KINDREDS OF THE EARTH SHALL
WAIL BECAUSE OF HIM. EVEN SO, AMEN.” -- Rev. I. 7.
I NEED scarcely say that responsibility to God is the law or
condition of our creation: for every creature is bound to answer
to its Maker for all the gifts which he has conferred upon it.
Nor is this connection hard, strange, or unreasonable, for
surely it is based on equity. Whatever we have we are bound to
lay out for God its giver; and has not He the right to inquire
what use we have made of time, talents, and opportunities? And
it would be a total misconception of our relation to God to
suspect for a moment that he is an austere master, reaping
“where he has not sown, and gathering where he has not strawed.”
But if there be no divine endowment, there is no human
responsibility. Where there is mental imbecility, or imperfect
and undeveloped faculties, where no power has been entrusted in
God’s mysterious sovereignty, there is nothing to answer for.
The gift, moreover, is the gauge of the responsibility. He will
not exact from a man what he would expect from an angel. His
omniscience and integrity secure an unchallenged result. No one
can find fault. He who made us, and knows us, who sees at once
all the intricate machinery of motive and impulse, is our Judge.
There are, and must be, therefore, degrees of reward. Some are
“scarcely” saved; others have “an entrance ministered unto them
abundantly.” They who have done most and suffered most for
Christ are likest him, and will be nearest to him. On the other
hand, there are, and there must be, degrees of punishment: for
although all are alike sinners, all are not sinners alike; some
are “beaten with many stripes,” and some with “few.” In a word,
the same principle underlies the menace of Jesus -- “But I say
unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the
day of judgment than for you.”
These statements have a solemn and unchanging relation to all of
us. No one can evade his responsibility. He is ever in God’s
hands, enveloped in God’s presence, and cannot escape. Flight is
impossible, resistance is insane. An awakened conscience is but
the prescience of a near tribunal; and to fling one’s self out
of the world is to thrust himself unbidden into the presence of
God. This impossibility of escape is put very graphically by an
old Hebrew bard; “Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine
hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I
bring them down: and though they hide themselves on the top of
Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they
be hid from sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I
command the serpent, and he shall bite them.”
But while every one who lives must be judged (his term of
existence and service on earth being concluded), a public
judgment of the whole human race, at one and the same time, is a
matter solely of revelation. We could not have anticipated it,
and it specially connected with the scheme of redemption. He who
loved the world and died for it is to resist it, and the promise
of his second personal advent holds a prominent place in the New
Testament. As the eleven disciples were gazing up to Him so
rapidly disappearing in the clouds, they were thus accosted: “Ye
men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same
Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in
like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” Addressing the
Athenian crowd on Mars’ Hill, the apostle told them in precise
and lucid terms, “He hath appointed a day, in the which he will
judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath
ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that
he hath raised him from the dead.” Writing to Titus, the same
apostle depicts the expectant attitude of the church thus --
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of
the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” And in our text the
startling announcement is made, “Behold, he cometh with clouds.”
Now, first it is not one foreign to us, or one who has no near
interest in us, who is thus announced, but he “who loved us, and
washed us from our sins in his own blood,” and raised us to the
high dignity of a royal priesthood; our Redeemer who in infinite
affection died to save us, who has gone to heaven to reign over
us, plead for us, while He is sympathizing with us, and
preparing a place for us; our primest benefactor, still clothed
in our nature, and ever blessing us out of his inexhaustible
fulness. Has not he a special interest in the world, into which
he was born an infant of days, and in which he grew up, speaking
so many words of wisdom, beauty, and power, doing so many deeds
of divine and mighty beneficence; living a life of purity and
fascination; maintaining a continuous conflict with evil, and at
length triumphing over it in his cross?
“Behold, he cometh” -- as if there had been bustle in heaven and
preparations had been completed -- as if the apostle had seen
him already on his march, and nigh the confines of earth.
“Behold, he cometh.” The advent is ever imminent, and the
certainty of its relative nearness ought to fill us with
vigilance and hope, so that we may ever live as under the
inspection of an opened heaven and a descending judge. And did
this thought dwell in the heart and govern it, what reverence
and circumspection would be the result -- what renewed heroism
in the daily struggle -- what wrestling with the Angel of the
covenant for revival and growth -- what eagerness to be ever
realizing the experience of the apostle, “Wherefore we labour,
that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him!”
“Behold, he cometh with clouds,” -- in solemn majesty; clouds
being often the accompaniment of the divine presence, enshrining
and veiling His glory. These clouds may form a magnificent
pavilion, or spread themselves in gorgeous array of fire and
storm around Him and his throne; for he comes in personal and
public glory, arrayed in his royal splendour -- “his own glory
and the glory of his Father;” heralded and surrounded by “his
mighty angels” -- all in harmony with the work which he comes to
perform. For he descends to conclude the annals of a world, to
decide the final destiny of all who have lived on it, to show
that the purpose of God has underlain all history, and that His
great plan has been fully and finally accomplished; to award
eternal life “to them who, by patient continuance in well-doing,
seek for glory, honour, and immortality: but unto them that are
contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish,
upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and
also of the Gentile.”
“Every eye shall see him.” The world, with all its myriads of
generations, is to be judged. No room for escape, for all must
appear; no moment for repentance, for time has come to its last
moment; and no economy in contemplation to reverse the doom of
eternal death. To be judged is for every one to stand before
“the judgment-seat of Christ,” without veil or disguise, and in
the nakedness of his soul’s essence; the light of His
countenance so shed in upon it, and so filling it, that in an
instant it sees itself in reality, gets a perfect glimpse of its
past life, and can anticipate its sentence. But to believers
there is a closer interest. The judge is not God in awful
majesty -- he whom no man can see and live; but he is Christ, in
our human nature, the loving brother, our friend of friends,
with a human heart still throbbing in his bosom. “The Father
hath given him to execute judgment also, because he is the Son
of Man.” “He hath appointed a day, in which he will judge the
world in righteousness, by that man whom he hath ordained.” “The
Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall be
punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the
Lord and from the glory of his power.” Thus the uniform teaching
of the New Testament is that the Redeemer is to be the judge. He
has the qualification to be judge, because he is God; and he has
the right to be judge, because he is man and mediator. In the
case of all to whom the gospel has been preached, his one
inquiry from them is whether they have believed in his love and
relied on his atonement? and “he that believeth is saved.” The
prospect is a cheering one to all who are Christ’s, for it is
his tribunal before which they are to stand. It is the very same
throne to which they have often come by invitation as a throne
of grace, “to obtain mercy and find grace to help them.” They
have obtained that mercy and found that grace; and when that
throne has become one of judgment, and they are brought before
it by summons, they are not alarmed. He who occupies it has
pardoned, purified, and saved them -- given them his own image,
and lifted them to fellowship with himself, so that the smile
that lights up his face will be only a prelude to the welcome
which is bursting from his lips: “Come, ye blessed of my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from before the foundation
of the world.” Yet as the pillar that guided Israel of old kept
its bright face toward them, but turned a side of “cloud and
darkness” to the Egyptians; so this aspect of the judgment,
while it cheers and comforts the disciples, casts unbelievers
into consternation and panic, because Jesus the judge they have
not accepted as Saviour. His love and his blood have made no
impression on them. They have not been brought into living union
with him, nor has his Spirit dwelt within them to regenerate and
perfect them They lived for themselves and never enjoyed
renewing power; him as master they did not obey; him as example
they did not follow; and therefore, destitute of faith in him,
they are “condemned already.” Their want of confidence in him
unfits them for all service and renders them unsusceptible of
all enjoyment, so that they sink inevitably into agony and
despair. The Lord, of his infinite mercy grant that all of us
“may find mercy of the Lord in that day,” and may it be our
privilege so to “abide in him, that when he shall appear we may
have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.”
“Every eye shall see him; they, too, that pierced him.” His very
enemies shall hide their heads in confusion and despair before
him. The court that conspired to murder him, and cast aside all
the forms and fences of law for the purpose; the priests who
descrated the office which they filled; the scribes who violated
the statutes which they professed to interpret; the rabble who
yelled, “Crucify him, crucify him;” all who took part in the
terrible tragedy -- shall see him: him whom they branded as a
blasphemer, the Son of the Most High; him whom they killed as an
imposter, the one Redeemer of men; and him whom they hanged as a
felon, the appointed judge of the living and the dead. No wonder
that his coming shall produce consternation. Such dismay,
however, is not confined to the men of Christ’s own time and
country; “all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him.”
There are those still who are guilty of the crime of piercing
him, “who crucify the Lord of glory afresh, and put him to an
open shame;” and others who, eating and drinking at the
sacramental table “unworthily,” are guilty “guilty of the body
and blood of the Lord.” For such there is mercy yet, if they
will only accept it; there being no sin beyond the reach of his
atoning merit, and no sinner beyond his power to save. There is
room in that bosom for them that pierced him, and if they take
refuge in it they shall be rescued, saved, and blessed for ever
with ineffable fellowship: --
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure --
Save me from its guilt and power.
According to the teaching of scripture the last coming of Christ
shall be sudden, and as it happens so unexpectedly, it shall
take the world by surprise. “The day of the Lord cometh as a
thief in the night.” As it was in the days of Noah when the
flood was poured out, as it was in the days of Lot when fire and
brimstone were showered upon Sodom so shall it be at the coming
of the Son of Man. The world apparently is to be slumbering in
security; it population eating and drinking, marrying and giving
in marriage; men engaging in enterprizes requiring years and
years for their completion; the great day never engaging human
hearts less than on the eve of its arrival, when, in a moment, a
trumpet is heard, and the earth is stirring, and the dead are
raised, and the great white throne is set, and each conscience
cries to itself, “Prepare to meet thy God.”
Behold, he has come! They who are alive at the second Advent,
even those of them who are believers, reap no immediate benefit
from their survival. At his descent “with the voice of the
archangel and the trump of God,” “the dead in Christ shall rise
first” -- first, not before the wicked, but first, or before the
living are changed. It is a strange thought that many men shall
not die -- shall outlive all history, and witness the throes of
expiring nature. But the dead are forestalled in nothing by
them. The living are changed, and duly fitted in spiritual and
physical constitution for passing into glory. But this refining
influence does not seize and mould them till the blessed dead
are roused from their graves. If there be a reaction after the
so-called Millenium is passed, and if the conspiracy of Gog and
Magog symbolize it, then through their last unbelief and
hostility “all nations shall wail because of him” who has come
to judge them, and against whose righteous sentence there can be
no appeal. O the sad results of sin as thus portrayed. Were the
revelation made to a sinless world that its Creator and
Benefactor was about to pay it a promised visit, would it not
prepare itself, and bestir its mightiest energies? would not the
“floods clap their hands, and the hills be joyful together,
before the Lord; for he cometh to judge the earth?” But Christ’s
coming, so fraught with blessing, creates a general
consternation, an ominous consciousness of coming doom in all
the faithless. They “shall wail because of him” -- the pure,
loving, and gentle One -- him in whom all glorified spirits
rejoice, and whom they are praising for his incarnation and
death. No wailing can be connected with him who gives life and
gladness, save from the rejection of him who gives life and
gladness, save from the rejection of him by the unbelieving, the
indifferent, the impenitent; and when the knowledge of his
character comes to them too late to awaken faith, it must fill
them with unspeakale anguish.
But why should believers be disturbed and alarmed when they
speak or think of the last day? Why should it be a source of
trembling and foreboding, and not rather of hopeful and joyous
anticipation? Why dwell on what may be called the darker aspect
of it -- the dissolution of nature, the wreck of the elements,
the passing away of the heavens, the conflagration of the earth,
and all the other terrific phenomena? Why not bear in mind that
there is a higher and glorious phase in which you are specially
interested with “all them also that love his appearing.” Nay,
till that period you are not fully redeemed. Only on one portion
of your nature has the grace of Christ taken hold; your soul is
saved. But you are something more than soul; your soul dwells in
a body organized for it. That body shares in the blessing of
Christ’s redeeming work, but does not enjoy full participation
until he comes again. It goes down to the tomb, and lies there
in the hope of a glorious resurrection; but that resurrection
does not take place till the second Advent. The soul passes into
happiness far from complete, for it is a fragmentary and
imperfect thing without its physical frame, and thus, and thus
it is “waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of the
body.” So that salvation in its fullness is conferred only at
the last day. O let it ever impress you, and be a living belief
and hope within you, that then, and not till then, you are
completely blessed; that then, and not till then, is the crown
and totality of divine grace and power conferred upon you; that
then, and not till then, you realize the Saviour’s work in its
final completeness: for he died not to save souls, but to save
men and women in their whole nature -- body, soul, and spirit.
The New Testament lays a continuous stress on the resurrection
of the body, dwelling oftener upon it than upon the mere
salvation of the soul, though indeed the one most certainly
implies the other. Salvation in its final entireness is kept in
reserve for us till He comes, and should not that event,
bringing with it this richest blessing, and taking our whole
nature to highest glory, be fondly welcomed by you? “Amen. Even
so, come Lord Jesus.”
In a word, looking at the subject in this broader light, there
are momentous reasons why we should rejoice in the fulfilment of
the promise, “Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me.”
The church will then be complete in numbers and in happiness.
Many generations have passed since Abel warbled his solitary
song before the throne, and he has been joined by many in every
century; spirits are ever passing away to glory, and the number
of the blessed is ever augmenting, till it become “a great
multitude which no man can number.” But still the glorified
church is not completed, and therefore the prayer is ever rising
before the throne, “Father, I will that they also whom thou hast
given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory;”
and in answer to this prayer of the great High Priest, good men
die and go to satisfy their Saviour by their nearness to him,
and by their possession of His image. But when he comes again
the number of the redeemed shall be completed, for humanity as a
species shall cease to exist on earth, and the whole church
shall be for the first time a band of living contemporaries
around him. And then, too, their bodies being raised and
spiritualized, and their entire nature fitted to dwell in glory,
they enter upon full fruition in the heaven of heavens, where
they shall for ever rejoice in perfection, and pour out their
hearts surcharged with grateful emotion, in eternal and
rapturous halleluiahs.
Such, then, being the indescribable blessings lying over for us,
should not we with rapture hail the day of days -- the second
coming, ever living for it and looking forward to it? Amidst all
trials, struggles, and difficulties, amidst all afflictions,
bereavements, and deaths, let us be ever saying -- ‘Our Lord
cometh,’ to crown his own, and take them home with himself to
unclouded fellowship with him, and to unending blessedness in
his gracious presence.
“Ever upward may we soar,
Rising on the wings of love;
Looking when our Lord shall come,
Waiting, longing after home.
There may we with thee remain,
Partners of thine endless reign;
There thy face unclouded see,
Find our heaven of heavens in Thee.”
-- JOHN EADIE, LL. D.
----------------
THE CHILDREN’S SERVICE.
THE CROSS.
THE Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, was convinced that Jesus had
done no crime for which he ought to die, and he tried, several
times over, to get the Jews to allow him to be set free. He said
to them that he had examined him, and had found no fault in him;
nor yet had Herod when he sent him to that prince. He asked
them, therefore, if he would let him go. There was a custom of
releasing a prisoner at the time of the passover, and he said to
them, Shall it be the King of the Jews that I shall set free
this year? But the Jews would not hear of that. There was a
notable prisoner lying in jail at the time -- a robber and a
murderer -- and they cried out in answer to Pilate’s proposal to
release Jesus, No, no; not this man, but Barabbas. What then,
said Pilate, shall I do to him whom ye call the King of the
Jews? And they said, crucify him, crucify him. Pilate weakly and
wrongly yielded to their clamour, and set the bad Barabbas free,
and agreed to yield Jesus up to the will of his enemies, by
commanding him to be scourged, as was the custom when a criminal
was condemned to the cross. Before he did this, however, he
showed that he still believed Jesus to be innocent, and tried to
throw all the blame of his death upon the Jews, by having water
brought out, and washing his hands in their presence, while he
said aloud, See ye to the blood of this just man: I am free from
it. But he was not free from it: this washing of his hands
condemned himself; for it said that he believed Jesus to be
quite innocent, and yet he was going to send him to the death of
the cross, just to please and content men that hated him.
After Jesus had been scourged, Pilate, however, tried once more
to move the Jews to let him go without further punishment. The
soldiers had taken him, all covered with the weals and wounds
the rods had made on his sacred flesh, and had clothed him with
a scarlet robe, and set a crown of thorns that they platted on
his head, and put a reed in his right hand. They did this as if
to say, This man is going to be killed for making himself a
king. They then mocked him, bowing their knees before him, and
saying, Hail, thou King of the Jews! They then went from mockery
to cruel insult, spitting in his face and striking him with
their hands, and even with the reed, which they took him for the
purpose. It was after this had been done that Pilate tried once
again to have him set free. He brought him out from the house,
with the thorn crown on his head, and wearing the scarlet robe,
he said to them, I bring him out to you that you may know that I
find no fault in him. Behold the man! And surely they might have
looked on that meek and holy sufferer, and changed their minds.
But they did not. They said, Away with him to the cross. He
deserves to die by our law; for he made himself the Son of God.
That word frightened Pilate more and more; and after he had
spoken with Jesus in the house, he tried again to persuade the
Jews to let him be released. On that they grew bold and
desperate, and scared the governor with a threat. They said, If
you let this man go, you are not the friend of the emperor. He
has made himself a king, and any one that does that must be a
rebel against Caesar. So at last Pilate went and sat down in the
judgment-seat, and gave formal and final sentence that Jesus
should die; and he was led away to be crucified.
When Judas that betrayed him found out that he was really
condemned to death, a great horror of soul came upon him. He was
filled with remorse and could not bear to look on the money he
had got to give Christ up. So he hasted to where the chief
priests who had bribed him were standing in the temple, and
showed them the thirty pieces of silver, and cried, Take them
back: I have sinned; I have betrayed innocent blood. But these
proud bad men only said, what is that to us? It is your own
affair: see to it. Thereupon Judas flung the silver down in the
temple and went and hanged himself. To such a miserable end the
traitor came!
When the guard of soldiers took Jesus from the judgment-seat to
lead him away to die, they put the wood of his cross upon him
that he might carry it to where he was to be nailed to its
beams. But after a little he was like to faint under its weight;
and laying hold of a man they met coming out of the country into
the town they made him bear it on his shoulders, walking behind
Jesus. This man’s name was Simon. He belonged to Cyrene in
Africa, and was, perhaps a black man. What an honour he would
think it, in after days, to have carried the Saviour’s cross.
There was a great crowd gathered by this time following the
procession. There were many women among them, and they wept for
pity, and wailed and lamented about Jesus. But he said to them,
Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves.
Dreadful days for you are at hand. If they do these things in a
green tree, what shall be done in the dry? And thus the sad
procession went on.
At length, outside the walls of the city, the people that were
taking Jesus to death came to a place called Golgotha, or
Calvary (which means Place of a skull; as we might say,
Skull-place, from its shape or because it was a place of death),
and there they laid the cross on the ground and nailed Jesus,
stripped of his clothes, to the beams. As they were driving the
nails through his feet and hands Jesus said, Father, forgive
them; they know not what they do. There were two others (thieves
they were) nailed to the cross at the same time; and when the
three crosses were set upright in their places, Christ’s was in
the middle. The soldiers that had strippped and nailed him began
to share his clothes, dividing them into four parts among them.
When they came to his upper coat, they found it had no seam, but
was close woven in one piece. So they thought it a pity to tear
it and cast lots to see who would get it; they were doing what
the Scriptures had long before said should be done, without
being aware of it. Then they sat down and watched beside the
crosses, as they had been bid to do.
When persons were crucified in those times, it was usual to put
an inscription over their heads, saying what they were, and why
they were put to death. Now Pilate had directed what was to be
written on Christ’s cross, and it was to be in three languages
-- Hebrew and Greek and Latin. The words were, This is Jesus of
Nazareth, the King of the Jews. The chief priests did not like
the title in that form, and they asked Pilate to change it, and
make it read that he said he was King of the Jews. But the Roman
governor was in no mood to mind them, and answered shortly, What
I have written I have written.
Crowds of people read this title, as they went by the place.
Numbers also mocked and taunted him as they came near, wagging
their heads, and saying, Save yourself, you that could build the
temple in three days; come down from the cross if you are the
Son of God. The chief priests and scribes too, who were looking
on, said among themselves, Now is his time; let him come down
from the cross, and we will believe him. He said, he trusted in
God that he would deliver him; let God save him now, if he cares
to have him. The soldiers also joined in the mockery. Even the
thieves, right and left, taunted him, and cast in his teeth his
helplessness, as they thought it. They said, If you are God’s
Son, save yourself and us. After a while, however, one of the
thieves changed his mind. He saw how Jesus bore all his
sufferings, and heard things he said, and the Spirit of God
touching his heart, he reproved his comrade, and began to pray,
Lord, when thou comest into thy kingdom, remember me; and Jesus
said, You shall be in paradise with me this very day.
Before this Jesus had seen his mother with other women, and John
the beloved disciple, standing by his cross. And he looked to
them, and said to Mary, See thy son; and to John, See thy
mother. And John from that hour took Mary to his own home.
To make all this harder to bear, and to be a token of what Jesus
was suffering for us, a great darkness came on about noon, and
continued for three hours over the whole land. And there was a
deeper darkness in Jesus’ soul. His Father’s face was hidden
from him. It was then that he sent up a loud cry, saying, My
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? After that, some of
those who were near heard him say, I thirst; and one of them
ran, and dipping a sponge in vinegar, put it on a reed, and held
it to his lips. When he had tasted it he said, It is finished;
and with a loud cry, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit! Then he bowed his head, and breathed his soul away.
----------------
QUESTIONS FROM THE BIBLE STORY.
1. Where is it said that some persons came to Christ to tell him
that Herod wanted to kill him?
2. Do you know of a robe that was torn and made red with blood,
to suggest that the person who wore it had been murdered?
3. Can you find a prophecy which in one verse foretells that
Jesus would be scourged, mocked, and spit upon?
4. Is there a prophecy that says Jesus would not have a fair and
just trial?
5. Where do we find a horrible circumstance about the death of
Judas related?
6. What psalm, as quoted by an apostle, refers to the treachery
and doom of Judas?
7. Where do we read of a disciple of the name of Simeon, or
Simon, whose surname was Black?
8. What green tree was seen to be on fire, without being burned
to ashes?
9. In what chapters of the Gospels is the destruction of
Jerusalem foretold?
10. Where is the prophecy to be found about the division of
Christ’s garments?
11. Can you find a prophecy about people taunting Christ when he
hung on the cross?
12. Where do we learn that one of the thieves who at first
mocked Christ, afterwards was sorry and prayed?
13. In which of the Gospels do we read of what Jesus, on the
cross, said to his mother and to John?
14. How many voices of Jesus were uttered from the cross?
ANSWERS to the previous questions may be found on turning
to the following chapters. -- Luke xiii.; Gen. xxxvii.; Isa. l.;
Isa. liii, compared with Acts viii.; Acts i.; Ps. cix.; Acts
xiii.; Ex. iii.; Matt. xxiv.; Mark xiii., Luke xix. and xxi; Ps.
xxii; Luke xxiii.; John xix. For the last, see all the Gospels,
and the Story foregoing.
----------------
Prayer.
O LORD God, who didst not spare thine own Son, but give Him up
to the death for our sakes, grant that we may ever keep our eye
on the cross of Jesus. May we see it to give us peace; to rouse
us to right actions in life; to cheer us when we come to die.
May we glory in it. May we be thereby crucified to the world.
And may we, following Jesus, bear our own crosses, not
complaining, but thankful when we remember what He bore for us.
Let us not, by our continuing in sin, show that in spirit we
consent to the deed of those who crucified him, nor let us in
any case make common cause with those who condemn the guiltless.
Like the gentle and loving Saviour, enable us to forgive those
who do us hurt, and to pray for them, and requite their evil
with good. Hear us, O Father, for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.
----------------
THE EVENING SERVICE
O LORD, our Father, Thou hast given us Thy holy and blessed
word, and we pray Thee to give us the right understanding of it,
more earnest faith in it, and a more fervent desire to walk in
its light. May we feel more of its saving power on our hearts,
so that our lives may be brought into fuller harmony with it.
May it be as the hidden manna, nourishing and sustaining our
souls unto eternal life. O Lord, hear us; O Lord, forgive and
answer, for Christ’s sake. Amen.
HYMN, or Psalm l. 3-6.
THE dead in Christ shall first arise,
At the last trumpet sounding;
Caught up to meet him in the skies,
With joy their Lord surrounding:
No gloomy fears their souls dismay;
His presence sheds eternal day
On those prepared to meet him.
Great God! what do I see and hear?
The end of things created!
Behold the Judge of man appear,
On clouds of glory seated!
Low at his cross, I view the day
When heav’n and earth shall pass away,
And thus prepare to meet him.
ACTS I. 1-12.
The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus
began both to do and teach, 2. Until the day in which he was
taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given
commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: 3. To whom
also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many
infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking
of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: 4. And, being
assembled together with them, commanded them that they should
not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the
Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5. For John truly
baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy
Ghost not many days hence. 6. When they therefore were come
together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this
time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7. And he said unto
them, it is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which
the Father hath put in his own power. 8. But ye shall receive
power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall
be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in
Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 9. And when
he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up;
and a cloud received him out of their sight. 10. And while they
looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men
stood by them in white apparel; 11. Which also said, Ye men of
Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus,
which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like
manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. 12. Then returned
they unto Jerusalem a sabbath-day’s journey.
Acts II. 1-8 and 31-39.
AND when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with
one accord in one place. 2. And suddenly there came a sound from
heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house
where they were sitting. 3. And there appeared unto them cloven
tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4. And
they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak
with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. 5. And
there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every
nation under heaven. 6. Now when this was noised abroad, the
multitude came together, and were confounded because that every
man heard them speak in his own language. 7. And they were all
amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all
these which speak Galileans? 8. And how hear we every man in our
own tongue, wherein we were born? 31. He, seeing this before,
spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left
in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. 32. This Jesus
hath God raised up, whereof we all our witnesses. 33. Therefore,
being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of
the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth
this, which ye now see and hear. 34. For David is not ascended
into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my
Lord, sit thou on my right hand, 35. Until I make thy foes thy
footstool. 36. Therefore let all the house of Israel know
assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have
crucified, both Lord and Christ. 37. Now when they heard this,
they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter, and to
the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
38. Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one
of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins,
and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39. For the
promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that afar
off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
----------------
Prayer.
O LORD, Thou art the first and the last. Thine are all things,
for Thou hast made them, and they are upheld in being by the
word of Thy power. All Thy works praise Thee, and Thy saints
bless Thee. We humbly and heartily thank Thee for all Thy
goodness. We live by Thy bounty. Life and all that makes life
enjoyable is Thy sovereign gift. Of Thee, to Thee, and through
Thee are all things. We bless Thee especially for Thine
unspeakable gift, the Lord Jesus, who came and suffered and died
to win us back to Thyself. Lord, we pray Thee to lead us to the
cross, that we may find refuge there from guilt, and sorrow, and
the fear of death. We would not trust in our own righteousness,
but solely in the righteousness of Christ, our blessed Redeemer,
and in his merit and mediation. We would count all but loss to
be found in Him, our Light and Life. Thou, Lord, who didst send
Thy Son, have mercy upon us. Thou, Jesus, who didst come to die,
have pity upon us, and give us union with Thyself, and take
entire possession of us. And Thou Divine Spirit, descend and
dwell within us, and be to our souls the earnest of the future
inheritance, and our preparation for it, making our very bodies
temples for Thyself. Lord, we have no life but from Thee, and no
help but in Thee. Be ever near us, to guide and bless us. O
leave us not to ourselves, but be the strength of our hearts and
our portion for ever. O that our hearts were pure, and lowly,
and upright -- possessing more and more of that
spiritual-mindedness which is life and peace. We would feel it
to be our safety to be in Christ; may it be our eager desire to
be like Him, in the hope of being with Him for ever and ever.
Enable us, Lord, to deny ourselves, and to take up our cross and
follow Him, who pleased not Himself, who came not to be
ministered to, but to minister. May each of us be enabled ever
to believe on Him, and loving Him, to do His will, so that on
each of us may be pronounced the blessing, Well done, good and
faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Lord save
Thy people, and bless Thine inheritance; feed them also and lift
them up for ever. O let Thy church soon possess the world; give
Thy Son speedily the heathen for His inheritance, and the
uttermost parts of the earth for His possession. And all we ask
is in Christ’s name, and for His sake. Amen.
----------------
MORNING AND EVENING MEDITATIONS.
MONDAY.
Morning.
In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and
glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and
comely for them that are escaped of Israel.
And a man shall be as an hiding-place from the wind, and a
covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place; as
the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim: and the ears of
them that hear shall hearken.
The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the
tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.
Isa. iv. 2. Isa. xxxii. 2, 3, 4.
Evening.
Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how
that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the
Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and
believe.
And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving
them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us.
Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of
the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to
bear?
But we believe that, through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
we shall be saved, even as they.
Acts xv. 7, 8, 10, 11.
TUESDAY.
Morning.
Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly: but
the proud he knoweth afar off.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble thou wilt revive me; thou
shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine
enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.
The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me; thy mercy, O
Lord, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own
hands.
Light is sown for the righteous and gladness for the upright in
heart.
Ps. cxxxviii. 6, 7, 8. Ps. xcvii. 11.
Evening.
O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvellous
things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the
victory.
The Lord hath made known his salvation; his righteousness hath
he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of
Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our
God.
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth; make a loud
noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
Ps. xcviii. 1, 2, 3, 4.
WEDNESDAY.
Morning.
And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which
was made unto the fathers,
God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he
hath raised up Jesus again; as it is written in the second
psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.
And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no
more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give
you the sure mercies of David.
Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer
Thine Holy One to see corruption.
Acts xiii. 32, 33, 34, 35.
Evening.
These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an
abomination unto:
A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent
blood,
An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift
in running to mischief,
A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord
among brethren.
If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have
fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his
Son cleanseth us from all sin.
Prov. vi. 16, 17, 18, 19. 1 John i. 7.
THURSDAY.
Morning.
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have
loved you.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life
for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
Let that therefore abide in you which ye have heard from the
beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall
remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son and in the
Father.
And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal.
John xv. 12 13, 14. 1 John ii. 24, 25.
Evening.
The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath
he established the heavens.
By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop
down the dew.
My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom
and discretion;
So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not
stumble.
When thou liest down thou shalt not be afraid; yea, thou shalt
lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.
Prov. iii. 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24.
FRIDAY.
Morning.
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; and let men
say among the nations, The Lord reigneth.
And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations
afar off; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up a
sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
But they shall sit every man under his vine, and under his
fig-tree; and none shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the
Lord of hosts hath spoken it.
For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and
we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever.
1 Chron. xvi. 31. Micah iv. 3, 4, 5.
Evening.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall
lie down with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the
fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
And the cow and the ear shall feed; their young ones shall lie
down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the
weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the
earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters
cover the sea.
Ps. xxix. 11. Isa. xi. 6, 7 8, 9.
SATURDAY.
Morning.
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be
in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
For I rejoiced greatly when the brethren came and testified of
the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in
truth.
Beloved, thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the
brethren, and to strangers;
Which have borne witness of thy charity before the church: whom
if thou bring forward on their journey after a godly sort, thou
shalt do well.
3 John 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Evening.
But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith,
praying in the Holy Ghost,
Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our
Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
And of some have compassion, making a difference:
And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating
even the garment spotted by the flesh.
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to
present you faultless before the presence of his glory with
exceeding joy,
To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion
and power, both now and ever. Amen.
Jude 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25.
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