THE HERALD
of Christ's Kingdom

VOL. XLII May 1959 No. 5
Table of Contents    

Pentecost

Words of Life

Israel Today

Lights and Shadows in Christian Experience

The Gospel

Sidney Smith, Canadian Foreign Secretary, Dies

The Question Box

Useful Reference Books on Israel For the Student

Recently Deceased

Pentecost 

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come then were all with one accord in one place"-Acts 2:1

OUTSTANDING amongst the seven feasts of the Lord enumerated in Leviticus 23 were three, as we read: "Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord thy God in the place which He shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of taber­nacles; and they shall not appear before the Lord empty; every man shall give as he is able, accord­ing to the blessing of the Lord thy God which He hath given thee." (Deut. 16:16, 17.) The same three festivals are elsewhere prescribed. (See Exod. 23:14-17; 34:18, 22, 23; Lev. 23.)

The second of these great national festivals was that known to us by the name of the feast of Pentecost. In the law of Moses it is called "the feast of the harvest, the first-fruits of thy labors"; also "the feast of weeks"; that is, the feast celebrated the day after the completion of seven weeks from the second day of the Passover, when the sheaf of the first-fruits of the harvest was presented before the Lord (Lev. 23:15): in other words, the feast occurring fifty days after the second day of the Passover. Hence its later Hebrew name, day of fifty, which becomes in Greek, day of the Pente­cost (Greek, "pentekoste," fifty). - See Exod. 23:16; Lev. 23:15-21; Num. 28:26-31; Deut. 16:9-12.

The day of Pentecost was properly the celebra­tion of the close of the harvest of wheat and bar­ley. As a sheaf of the ripening harvest had been presented at the sanctuary on the second day of the Passover, as an acknowledgment that it was God's gift, and as such belonged to Him, so now two wave-loaves of fine flour, made from the gath­ered harvest and baked with leaven, were present­ed before Jehovah. This was the distinguishing rite of the feast. The loaves were made with leaven because they were not intended for the altar, but were a thanksgiving offering for God's bounty in furnishing food for His people. At the same time the priests were commanded to offer seven lambs of the first year, ore bullock, and two rams, as a burnt-offering, with the customary meat and drink offerings also one kid of the goats for a sin-offer­ing, and two lambs of the first year as a peace-of­fering. On the same day was a holy convocation, and all servile labor was forbidden. It was a joy­ous festival to the Lord, every one being enjoined to bring with him a free-will offering, according as God had blessed him, and to eat it at the sanctu­ary with his children, his servants, the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.

The Jews also called it "the feast of the joy of the law," as occurring, according to their tradi­tion, on the very day when the law was given from Mount Sinai, the fiftieth of the Exodus, from the night of the first Passover. It must be acknowl­edged, however, that this cannot be clearly made out from the sacred record, nor is there any ref­erence to such coincidence in the Old Testament. God, however, honored the day in a preeminent manner by choosing it as the time for the gift of the holy spirit, and thus for the inauguration of the Christian dispensation. The Jewish tradition, nevertheless, does beautifully cause the feast of Pentecost to associate the old dispensation of the law with the new dispensation of the Gospel; the organization of the Old Testament church under Moses with a partial ministry of the spirit, with its reorganization under the apostles with the fulness of the holy spirit.

Waiting for the Promise

It was on this day that we find the disciples, in the words of our text, gathered "with one accord in one place," and thus included probably not only the apostles but also the one hundred and twenty mentioned in Acts 1:15. Ten days before, the apostles had witnessed the ascension of Him whom they loved. During the forty days since His res­urrection, through His various manifestations, they had gradually realized His change from hu­man to the divine nature. He was raised from the dead a life-giving spirit-being (1 Cor. 15:45) and was no longer a man, of the earth, earthy. He was no longer human in any sense or degree, but the full implications of His change were as yet un­perceived by the disciples, as we note from their question recorded in Acts 1:6. True, He had already breathed on them, saying, "Receive ye the holy spirit." (John 20:22.) We may not speak with certainty as to the meaning of this, but the rela­tionship was incomplete according to the plan and purpose of God, for He soon "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." (Acts 1:4; Luke 24:49.) The "promise of the Father" was of the spirit, but evidently concerning that yet unexperienced min­istry of the spirit coming "upon" them for power. With this parting instruction, the Son of God was received from their sight, nevermore to be seen until that happy day, "face-to-face in all His glory."  For ten days they had "continued with one accord in prayer and supplication," awaiting that they knew not.

The Spirit's Descent

While thus gathered, having given themselves entirely to the business of devotion, "suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the holy spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the spirit gave them utterance."

It burst upon them at once. Though they were waiting for the descent of the spirit, yet it is not probable that they expected it in this manner. As this was an important event, and one on which the welfare of the Church depended, it was proper that the gift of the holy spirit should take place in some striking manner, one which even their physical senses, such as sight or hearing, could attest so as to convince their own minds that the promise was fulfilled, and so as deeply to impress others with the greatness and importance of the event. The sound appeared to rush down from the sky. It was fitted, therefore, to attract their attention no less from the direction from which it came than on account of its suddenness and violence. Wind in the sacred Scriptures is often put as an emblem of a divine influence. It is invisible, yet mighty. In this place the sound as of a gale was emblematic of the mighty power of the spirit, and of the great effects which its coming would accomplish among men. It does not appear that there was any actual wind; all might have been still; but the sudden sound was like such a sweeping tempest. It was the sound, and not the wind, that filled the house. And it is this which makes the miracle really far more striking than the common supposition makes it to have been. A tempest might have been terrific. A mighty wind might have alarmed them. But there would have been nothing unusual or remarkable in it. Such things often occurred; and the thoughts would have been directed, of course, to the storm as an ordinary, though perhaps alarming occur­rence. But when all was still, when there was no storm, no wind, no rain, no thunder, such a rush­ing sound must have arrested their attention, and directed all minds to so unusual and unaccountable an occurrence.

Possibly the "cloven tongues like as of fire" were first seen by them in the room before they rested on the heads of the disciples. Perhaps the fire ap­peared at first as scintillations of flame, of slender and pointed appearance, moving irregularly around the room until it became fixed on their heads. The word "tongue" occurs often in the Scriptures to denote the member which is the instrument of taste and speech, and also to denote language or speech itself. The common opinion is that these tongues, or flames, were, each -one of them, split, or forked, or cloven. But this is not the sense of the expression. It means that they were separated or divided one from another; not one great flame, but broken up, or cloven into many parts; and probably moving without order in the room. li­the Syriac it is: "And there appeared unto them tongues which divided themselves, like fire, and sat upon each of them." The old Ethiopic version reads it: "And fire, as it were, appeared to them, and sat on them." The fire, in the form of a gentle flame, rested upon the head of each one. This evinced that the prodigy was directed to them, and was a very significant emblem of the promised de­scent of the holy spirit. After the rushing sound, and the appearance of the flames, they could not doubt that here was some remarkable interposi­tion of God. The appearance of fire, or flame, has always been regarded as a most striking emblem of the Divinity, and was thus used on several oc­casions, as recorded in the Old Testament. And now to the disciples, the tongues would be em­blematic of: first, God's presence and power; and second, of the diversity of languages which they were about to be able to utter.

"They Were Filled with the Holy Spirit"

To be filled with any thing is a phrase denoting that all the faculties are pervaded by it, engaged in it, or under its influence. Acts 3:10, "were filled with wonder and amazement"; Acts 5:17, "filled with indignation"; Acts 13:45, "'filled with envy"; verse 52, "filled with joy and the holy spirit." The disciples were entirely under the sacred influence of the power of God, which revealed itself in the miraculous ability to speak languages which they had not before learned. No such outpouring of the divine spirit had ever occurred before as re­spects the children of Ad-am. Indeed, no such new 'begetting on God's part was possible until first the sin-offering had been made and accepted. The phenomenon itself witnessed the acceptance of the merit of the great antitypical High Priest, who ten clays before had ascended into the antitypical Most Holy. (See Heb. 9:24.) It is probable that this great work is referred to in Revelation 8:1-5. - See "The Revelation of Jesus Christ," R. E. Streeter, Volume I, page 367.

This outpouring of the holy spirit on the waiting Church had been preceded by its descent upon our Lord at the time of his consecration at baptism in Jordan. He there received the holy spirit in the same sense. Fifty days previously, the resurrection of Jesus, which reveal­ed His acceptableness to God, occurred on the same day as the offering of the barley sheaf of first­fruits, which typified Christ our Lord, as "the first­ fruits of them that slept." (1 Cor. 15:20.) And now God manifests His acceptance of the Church, the body of Christ, by this remarkable manifestation of divine approval, by the outpouring of His holy spirit upon the waiting disciples who represented the Church collectively. And this on the very day that the two wave-loaves were offered in the temple, picturing the presenting of the Church be­fore God, "a kind of first-fruits of His creatures" (James 1:18), and its acceptance through the merit of the great High Priest.

Various Manifestations of the Spirit

God's holy spirit had indeed been manifested in various ways previously, but all of them differed from this manifestation. For instance, it was the holy power of God which moved upon the waters in connection with the world's creation. (Gen. 1:2.) Again, as the Apostle Peter declares, "holy men of old spoke and wrote as they were moved by the holy spirit"; mechanically. (2 Pet. 1:21.) He further explains that what they spoke and wrote they did not comprehend, because their utterances and writings were not for themselves but for us of the Gospel Age. We are, therefore, to recog­nize the fact that the spirit-dispensation had its beginning in Jesus, when He was thirty years of age; but so far as others were concerned, its be­ginning was in the sanctified ones at Pentecost, as recorded in this lesson. Neither are we to think that this Pentecostal outpouring requires a repe­tition, for the holy spirit thus once poured upon the Church was to abide, to continue, with the Church, not to be withdrawn and poured out afresh repeatedly. A collective anointing was here in­dicated, and its authority extends to the last called one of this Gospel Age even "like precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard; that went down to the skirts of his garments." - Psa. 133:2.

It was appropriate, that the giving of the holy spirit should be with a certain outward demonstration and manifestation; not merely to impress and convince the apostles and the early Church, but also for the benefit of those who should subsequently come into relationship with the Church. Faith must have a ground to rest upon, an assur­ance that there was at the beginning such a direct recognition of the Savior's sacrifice and of the di­vine acceptance of the consecrated ones who trust­ed in Him. The reality and certainty of this miracle of tongues is strongly attested by the early tri­umphs of the Gospel. That the Gospel was early spread over all the world, and that, too, by the apostles of Jesus Christ, by men of Galilee, is the clear testimony of history. They preached it in Arabia, Greece, Syria, Asia, Persia, Africa, and Rome. Yet how could this have been affected without a miraculous power of speaking the languages used in all those places? It requires the toil of many years to speak in foreign languages; and the recorded success of the Gospel is one of the most striking attestations to the fact of the miracle that could be conceived.

Under the influence of this remarkable power from God, we find Peter, who in fear had denied his Master, now powerfully moved, in the very city of Christ's crucifixion and in the presence of his enemies, to boldly proclaim the Word of truth. Here it was that he used one of the two "keys" entrusted to him (the second at Cornelius' con­version, three and one-half years later, the first of Gentile believers) and moved thousands to acknowledge Christ. And ever since, from its "birthday" at Pentecost, the true Church hay con­tinued to manifest God's power and glory. Some have concluded that there were times when the holy spirit was not in the world at all, but this was because they were looking for it in a wrong direction or under wrong conditions. At time' s the nominal church of outward professors has been so overgrown with the "tare" element that the true "wheat" could not readily be "discerned, yet we are confident that the Lord never left Himself without a witness, and that even in the darkest hour of the Dark Ages there we're some of God's true people in the world; some representatives of the body of Christ; some, therefore, possessing the holy spirit; some who therefore constituted the salt of the earth and the lights of the world, even though the darkness was great around them and its influence so powerful that no record of the true Church is to be found, but only the records of the apostasy.

Fruits Superior to Gifts

The fact that the holy spirit upon the disciples was accompanied by miraculous manifestations or gifts, tongues, etc., does not imply any greater favor of God toward the primitive Church, which had those gifts, than toward the Lord's people of a later day, after those gifts had ceased; for, as the apostle points out, it was possible for some to have those gifts without having much of the real spirit of the Lord. He says, "Though I speak with the tongues 'of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. Though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing." (1 Cor. 13:1, 2.) We are, therefore, to esteem love for the Lord and for the brethren and for the neighbor-active love, which does, as well as wishes and says-to be the best evidence of an ac­ceptable condition with the, Lord, the best evi­dence of a filling with His holy spirit, a far better evidence than the possession, of the "gifts" describ­ed. Far greater, far more precious gifts of the spirit. then, are the gifts which the spirit develops in us -- the fruits of the spirit -- joy, peace, faith, love, etc.­

Jesus has ascended to His Father, but this other "paraklete" (comforter) has come to dwell in His people forever. The holy spirit's work is three­fold. First, with reference to Christ's immediate disciples, it was the revealer-Jesus had instruct­ed and opened truth to their minds, but their minds were weak, their memories treacherous. The holy spirit comes to bring to mind Jesus' works, to strengthen memory, to fill them with the, truth thus spoken in all its vividness and power, and open the true meaning of what was obscure and dark. Nor is this all. There were many things Jesus had for them, which they could not bear, were not able to receive, before His departure. These the spirit should make known to them; these things to come it should unfold to them. This promise is the foundation on which; the, whole New Testament rests as the inspired truth of God. They spoke, they wrote the things pertaining to Christ and His Kingdom, as they were moved by the holy spirit.

The second office is that of the convictor and regenerator. It is to convince the world of sin, of righteousness, of judgment; and as it convinces and convicts, it is to renew and lead them to Jesus. On the day of Pentecost this power was demon­strated; thousands were pricked in their, hearts: thousands believed in Jesus. Ever since, its pres­ence has been revealed in conviction and conver­sion. Religion advances; Jesus is received; the Gospel is victorious only as the holy spirit brings the truth home to the hearts of men. And this tremendous power will be recognized in the glori­ous time near at hand when God shall pour out His spirit upon all flesh, in the times of restitu­tion long promised.

The third office is that of quickener, guide, and comforter. To the soul penitent and believing, this blessed spirit comes and quickens it to see and feel the fulness, and richness, and power of the truth as it is in Jesus; stimulates it to sacri­fice and labor; excites to prayer; strengthens against temptation; supports and comforts amid .trial, sorrow, and death. Jesus sends this divine spirit, in fulfillment of His promise to work in His Church and thus completes the cycle of redemp­tion.

"Our blest Redeemer, ere He breathed
His tender last farewell,
A Guide, a Comforter bequeathed
With us to dwell.
 
"And every virtue we possess, 
And every victory won,
And every thought of holiness
Are' His alone."

- W. J. Siekman

Words of Life

Shortly after the publication of our booklet "Is Israel Emerging from Hell?" a copy came to the attention of the Editor of Words of Life, a monthly magazine published in England. He gave the booklet a very kindly re­view, and added some additional exposi­tory remarks, which we thought of suffi­cient interest and value to bring before our readers in the January 1958 issue of the Herald.

In his "Notes and Comments" for March 1959, the Editor of Words of Life again takes favorable notice of our Journal, this time with particular refer­ence to Brother Lanowick's report from Jerusalem, published in January. We quote:

Israel Today-Last month we were pleased to print an extract from the Jerusalem magazine, in which the Israel Army Commander, Yigael Yadin, ex­plaining the reason for his success against the Egyptian army, asserted that "The secret is in the Bible." This very gratifying surprise, revealing the Com­mander's confidence in the Bible, has been followed by another. In an Ameri­can magazine, The Herald of Christ's Kingdom, there is a report published that was received direct from the Holy Land. We cannot include the whole of it, but the following paragraphs will be of spe­cial interest to our readers, and especially to those who, while looking for "that blessed hope" as the consummation of the expectation of the Church which is his body, nevertheless look beyond to the hope cherished by the faithful Israel­ites at the time of our Savior's birth, who were waiting for the consolation, the re­demption, of Israel. Any move towards the acceptance of Jesus as the Messiah by leaders of the nation who so brutally rejected him, must be regarded as "a sign of the times" in a movement that will yet lead to the development of a company that will be prepared to wel­come him, and acclaim his arrival in the words given by our Lord himself: "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

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* This booklet was published as a sequel to an earlier one bearing the title, "The Place of Israel in the Plan of God." Both booklets are still available, free on request.

Israel Today

Jerusalem, March 20, 1959

NEWS from Israel today "is like an underscoring of the prophetic messages of the Old Testament" is the way one of the friends expressed it re­cently, and so it is. For instance, note Israel's relationship to a development that is gaining world attention -- the nationalist movement in Africa, as well as in Asia, which is gripping the West­ern nations with a large measure of trepidation. (Luke 21:24.) Many of these backward peoples who are gaining or clamoring for independence are not prepared for true democratic govern­ment, and economically they are not able to stand on their own feet. They are faced with innumerable problems that are very difficult to solve.

So what is happening? They are be­ginning to look to little Israel for guid­ance, because the fame of Israel as a source of technical assistance, skilled man-power, moral strength, and social progress has spread throughout colonial Africa. Mr. Wilhelm Baidoi Ansah, Deputy Speaker of the Ghana Parlia­ment and a relative of Premier Nkrumah, compared his newly inde­pendent country to children of kinder­garten age who needed the guidance of an experienced kindergartner rather than the lectures by a university pro­fessor. Speaking to the Rotary Club in Tel Aviv, Mr. Ansah said that "we see this kindergartner in Israel," which was a young country but with tremend­ous experience in different fields of development.

Not so long ago almost fifty army officers and men from Burma, with their respective families, arrived in Israel to spend a year studying the collective and co-operative settlement methods that have been developed in this country. On their return it is expected that they will apply the lessons they have learned here and will set up a number of agri­cultural settlements for ex-servicemen in Burma, on co-operative lines.

Representatives of these newly estab­lished Afro-Asian nations have stated that they much prefer to look to Israel for help such as technical assistance be­cause aid received from Israel would have no strings attached. Mr. David Ben-Gurion, Prime Minister of Israel, has said that one of the deeper impli­cations of the cold war was the struggle for the hearts of the awakening peoples of Asia and Africa. These two con­tinents had not been independent politi­cal factors before World War II. It was only since -- then that the real world revolution had taken place -- a revolu­tion perhaps greater than that of the first half of this century, he continued. The big powers are exploiting their tre­mendous military and economical strength to frighten these countries. Nevertheless, they are neither able nor willing to accept the capitalism of the U. S. on the one hand or the Communist regime on the other. At the same time, Mr. Ben-Gurion went on, they are con­scious that Israel, which, like themselves has recently gained its independence, has already succeeded in creating new social forms of which no equal is known.

The Israel Digest observes, "To a Ghanaian or a Nigerian, Israel is not a 'tool of imperialism,' as the Arabs de­scribe it, but a small, progressive coun­try, which has freed itself from foreign rule not long ago and already has strik­ing achievements in nation-building to its credit. The idea is spreading amongst them that they can only gain from con­tact with us, and that it is worthwhile for both them and ourselves to develop mutual interests, and pool experience. More and more of them come here to visit us, and to study our ways, while a growing number of Israelis are engaged in their countries on various joint enterprises and technical projects."

It is interesting to note that very re­cently the Afro-Asian Co-op Seminar was held in the Land of Promise. The International Federation of Travel Agen­cies convened in Jerusalem this past week. Soon an International Farmers Convention meets here. Every year now various international conclaves are be­ing scheduled for Israel, attracting many non-Jewish attendants. For instance, an International Harp Contest, the first of its kind, will be held in Israel during September, 1959. This musical instru­ment has a strong Biblical association.

Is not all this getting the nations in practice for the much larger pilgrimages to come? - Isa. 2:2, 3; Micah 4:1, 2.

ISRAEL'S NATIONAL HOBBY

We were quite thrilled the other day in reading a statement in a book review by Prof. William F. Albright, the emi­nent Biblical archeologist, of Dr. Nelson Glueck's book Rivers in the Desert - A History of the Negev, which has just come off the press. Dr. Glueck is a Jew and one of the foremost archeologists of our time. Prof. Albright, in discussing the merits of Dr. Glueck's volume, has this to say:

"Some may feel that Mr. Glueck is too uncritical in his approach to the tradi­tions of Abraham and Moses. He was once an orthodox disciple of the Well­hausen school (after the German scholar, Julius Wellhausen, 1844-1918) which analyzed the text of the Pentateuch so painstakingly that critical dissection be­came an end in itself and historical con­tent was neglected. Thirty years of archeological investigation  have com­pletely changed the author's attitude. While he notes that 'the purpose of the Biblical historian and archeologist is not to prove the correctness of the Bible,' he stresses the fact that a mass of new evidence is now piling up in the arche­ologist's workshop and the philologist's study to support a rapidly increasing trend towards recognition of the his­toricity of Hebrew tradition. As he puts it, 'the Bible's almost incredibly correct historical memory' has been many times validated by the progress of discovery. 'No archeological discovery,' he points out, 'has ever controverted a Biblical reference."'

The last sentence of the above para­graph should definitely be underscored. Does it not make a Bible student elated to read of such a conclusion reached by a scholar who had been a modernist­from the school of Wellhausen? Isn't it wonderful that Dr. Glueck has come forth with such incontestable proof of the authenticity of the Bible, on the basis of his research in stone? Truly, the stones are crying out!

Archeology is really a live subject here. A group of Italian archeologists arrived in the country this week to con­duct excavations at Caesarea. They are expected to stay for three months. An­other report, appearing in The Jerusalem Post, states that an underwater arche­ological expedition will be carried out at the ancient harbor of Caesarea this summer by Mr. Herbert Link. of the United States, in co-operation with the Hebrew University's Department of Archeology. Mr. Link, the inventor of the "Link Trainer" for pilots, is an enthusiastic underwater explorer. On a previous visit to Israel he decided to investigate some of the ancient relics now covered by the sea. The harbor at Caesarea, Roman capital of Palestine, was built by Herod the Great in the First Century B.C. Through the cen­turies it gradually sank into the sea. Mr. Link hopes to recover some of the statuary which, according to the his­torian Flavius Josephus, once decorated the jetty. To Christians these excavation projects hold high interest, as this loca­tion is where the Gospel first went to the Gentiles.

On the 31st of this month Queen Elizabeth of Belgium will dedicate the Institute of Archeology Building at the Hebrew University, which has been named in her honor.

The interest here in "digging up the past" is well pointed up by Shimon Applebaum, when he writes, "Arche­ology as a popular science has been at­tracting an ever-wider circle of devotees, to the point where some consider it Israel's national hobby."

WORLD HEADQUARTERS FOR BIBLE STUDY PROJECTED

A couple of weeks ago Mr. David Ben-Gurion toured a number of sites in Jerusalem with members of the Biblical Research Society and the World Jewish Bible Society, looking for the best loca­tion where the Bible House for World Jewry could be built. The planned Bible House will contain study rooms, a cen­tral library and collections of Biblical flora and fauna and will be the world

headquarters for study of the Bible by Jews. Something that we cannot empha­size too strongly is the profound inter­est manifest by not only the Prime Min­ister of Israel, but also the President, Mr. Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, and other leaders in the Government, in Biblical matters.

SCRIPTURAL IMPRINTS

'The Israel Post Office has issued a "Human Rights Stamp" depicting a rough archeological stone on which are carved, in Hebrew, the words of Levi­tic-as 19:18: "Thou shalt love thy neigh­bor as thyself." The tab of this stamp has the same Biblical quotation in the five official languages of the United Nations.

A IL5 commemorative coin to be issued by Israel this spring features the Biblical quotation, "and the people shall return to their homeland." This refer­ence to the important ingathering of the exiles serves to point up one of Israel's most significant projects. This third coin in Israel's commemorative series, in addition to the Bible quotation, shows the exiles from all over the world symbolically joining hands and march­ing to their new home in Israel.

The World Committee for Israel's Tenth Anniversary has issued a medal­lion intended to commemorate Israel heroism, to honor Hebrew fighters be­ginning with the days of Hashomer down to the Israel Defense Forces of our day. The medallion carries the image of the Roaring Lion of Tel Hai on one side and the verse, "For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side." (Nehemiah 4:18.) The reverse side of the medallion carries the sword and olive branch emblem of the Israel Defense Army, with the inscription: "Peace be within thy walls." - Psalm 122:7.

These little news briefs give a pretty good idea of the way the Bible enters into so many facets of life in the Jewish State.

FROM SAND DUNE TO METROPOLIS

Fifty years ago a group of Jews pro­cured a tract of sandy soil just north of the Arab town of Jaffa. A few years previous the land had been bought by the Jewish National Fund. Some sixty houses were built by a small Jewish company called Ahuzat Bayit. The pio­neers of the new suburb called the place Tel Aviv. It was a happy conceit.

The word appears in the Bible as one of the centers of exiled Babylonian Jewry after the fall of the First Temple. But it had another connotation. Tel means "hill" and Aviv means "spring" or "budding of new life." Theodor Herzl had written his Zionist utopia called Altneuland (Old-New Land) and the Hebrew translator called it Tel Aviv. So the new suburb, on the lone and level sands that stretched far away, was also hopefully called Tel Aviv.

The small colony grew very rapidly. From the first, one of its most important buildings was the high school-the Herzliya Gymnasium, as it was called­the first Hebrew town had the first Hebrew school. Soon Tel Aviv began to be the pride of Jewry throughout the world as the first all-Jewish city. Today it is but one of hundreds of points of settlement in a Jewish State but, after half a century, it is in many respects the heart and soul of the Jewish common­wealth. Tel Aviv is a bustling city of 400,000 inhabitants, who are celebrating their metropolis' fiftieth (golden) anni­versary.

THE IMPRESSION OF A VISITOR

A letter to the Editor of The Jerusalem Post:

"Dear Sir: I am nearing the end of five unforgettable weeks in this country as a guest of your Government, collect­ing material for a book I have been commissioned to write on Israel, for the youth of the English-speaking world. Will you allow me to express from the depths of my heart my gratitude to all who have made this visit possible, and all who have in so many ways made it so easy, so happy, and so memorable since my arrival.

"It has been the dream of my life, as a specialist-teacher of Scripture, to visit the Land of the Book. Unlike many dreams, this one has utterly outclassed any previous idea or vision I held.

"I return to England, regretfully of course, but burning to begin talking (as I have been asked to do, publicly, to many bodies) of this wonderful land, its gallant people and their achieve­ments, and with two messages for those who will hear me: 'If you can visit only one foreign land, that land should be Israel, no matter what your interest or your idea of pleasure,' and secondly, 'Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.'

"This feeble letter of thanks, and the words I shall speak at home, will be the best I can do to show my homage and gratitude to a great people."

- Mary Willcox

WEATHER IS TOPIC OF CONVERSATION

The long drought finally was broken by some late winter rains which saved some of the crops, but only after con­siderable damage had already been done. February was the coldest month in many a year in Israel. Jerusalem was blank­eted with snow near the end of last month, so much so that one day traffic came to a standstill. Since the Holy City is 2500 feet above sea level, it is showered with snowflakes once in two or three years, usually in February. This always proves a heyday for many chil­dren who have never seen snow before.

Tomorrow is officially the first day of spring, but for a number of days now we have been enjoying bright, sunny days, with cloudless skies. It has been so balmy that we have had to exclaim with the Wise Man,

"For lo, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come; the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

"The fig-tree putteth forth her green figs." - The Song of Solomon 2:11-13

And veritably, the "fig-tree" is putting forth! - Matt. 24:32, 33; Luke 21:29-30.

(Foregoing is the seventh report from the Land of Promise, from Brother Casimir Lanowick, Editor of Jews in the News. Ed. Com.)

Lights and Shadows in Christian Experience

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy
to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." - Romans 8:18.

FOR our closing meditation we once more visit, in thought, a peaceful and happy home scene in the same Bethany household. The severed links in that broken chain are again united. It was on a Sabbath evening, the last Sabbath but one, of the waning Jewish dispensation, when Spring's loveliness was carpeting the Mount of Olives and clothing with fresh verdure the groves around Beth­any, that our dear Redeemer was seen approaching the village.

Imagine the joy with which the an­nouncement would be received that the Lord was approaching, and the welcome which would be given to him in a home consecrated alike by his love and power! Now every tear was dried. Feelingly alive to all they owed him, the restored brother and rejoicing sisters, with hearts overflow­ing with gratitude, could say with the Psalmist: "Thou hast put off my sack­cloth, and girded me with gladness; to the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever." - Psalm 30:11, 12.

THE ANOINTING

But does the love and affection of that household find expression in nothing but words? No, indeed! Sup­per is being made ready and the Apostle John, in his delightful way, adds a few words so full of meaning - "and Martha served" (John 12:2). We can, be sure the lesson learned by Martha on a former occasion remained with her, and that now her service was within the bounds of sanctified common sense. During the course of the evening, the gentle spirit of Mary prompts her to a significant proof of the depth of her gratitude. Some fragrant ointment of spikenard (contained, as we gather from the other Evangelists, in a box of alabas­ter) had been procured by her at great cost; either obtained for this anticipat­ed meeting with her Lord, or it may in some way have fallen into her pos­session, and been carefully kept among her treasured gifts till some befitting occasion occurred for its use. With her own hands she pours it on his feet. Stooping down, she wipes them, in further token of her devotion, with her loosened tresses, till the whole apartment was filled with the sweet perfume.

And what was it that constituted the value of this tribute-the beauty and expressiveness of the action? It was this: She gave her Lord the best thing that she had. The poet Tenny­son has expressed it:

"Her eyes are homes of silent prayer, 
Nor other thought her mind admits;
But, he was dead, and there he sits, 
And He that brought him back is there.
 
"Then one deep love doth supersede
All other, when her ardent gaze
Roves from the living brother's face
And rests upon the Life indeed.
 
"All subtle thoughts, all curious fears, 
Borne down by gladness so com­plete;
She bows, she bathes the Savior's feet
With costly spikenard and with tears."

Are we willing to give our Lord the best of what we have -to consecrate time, talents, strength, life, to him? Not as the many, to give him the mere dregs and sweepings of existence, but, like Mary, anxious to take every op­portunity of testifying the depth of obligation under which we are laid to him? Let us not hold back, saying: "My sphere is lowly, my means are limited, my best offerings would be in­adequate." Hundreds of more im­posing deeds may have been left un­recorded by the Evangelists; but "wheresoever this Gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her" (Matt. 26:13). Would that this love for Jesus were paramount with all of us! "Lovest thou me more than these?" is his own searching test and require­ment (John 21:15). Happy for us if it be so. There will be a joy in the very consciousness of making the ef­fort, feeble, and unworthy as it may be, for his sake, and in acknowledge­ment of the great love wherewith he loved us. Again, the poet has expressed it:

"Thou hast thy record in the mon­arch's hall,
And on the waters of the far mid sea;
And where the mighty mountain shadows fall,
The alpine hamlet keeps a thought of thee.
Where'er, beneath some oriental tree,
The Christian traveler rests -- wher'er the child
Looks upward from its mother's knee,
With earnest eyes, in wondering reverence mild,
There art thou known. Where'er the Book of Light
Bears hope and healing, there be­yond all blight,
Is borne thy memory -- and all praise above.
Oh! say what deed so lifted thy sweet name,
Mary, to that pure, silent place of fame?
One lowly offering of exceeding love."

Let it be our privilege and delight to give him our pound of spikenard, whatever it may be; let us offer the fragrance of holy hearts and lives re­vealed by kindness, gentleness, amia­bility, unselfishness, flowing from a principle of grateful love to him, who, though unseen, has been to us as to the family of Bethany -- Friend, Help­er, Guide, Deliverer, and Portion. "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." - Psalm 51:17.

THE LORD'S SUPPER INSTITUTED

The two days preceding the begin­ning of our Lord's betrayal seem to have been spent at Bethany. We may still follow him in imagination as he and his disciples quietly rested for the coming turbulent experiences. We have no recorded incidents in con­nection with these two. days. We are left only to realize in thought the refreshment alike for body and mind which our Lord enjoyed. The last evening that he spent there must have been full of sorrowful thoughts. He left the threshold on the Thursday of that week, not to return again until death had claimed him. On that same morning he had sent two of his dis­ciples into the city to make preparation for the keeping of the Passover Sup­per. He himself followed with the other ten, probably towards the after­noon, and joined them in the upper room, where, after celebrating for the last time the old Jewish rite, he insti­tuted the Lord's Supper, a Memorial of the antitype. This ended, the disci­ples, probably, contemplated nothing but a return, as on preceding evenings, by their old route to Bethany. Singing their Paschal hymn, they descended the Jehoshaphat ravine, by the side of the Temple. The brook Kedron was crossed and they are once more on the Bethany path. They have reached Gethsemane; their Master retires into the depths of the olive grove, as was often his wont, to hold secret com­munion with his Father. The crisis hour has at last arrived! Rude hands arrest him on his way. In vain shall Lazarus and his sisters wait for their expected Lord. For him that night there is no voice of earthly comfort -- no couch of needed rest; when the shadows of darkness have gathered around Bethany, and the pale Pass­over moon is lighting up its palm trees, the Lord is standing buffeted and insulted in the hall of Annas. The remembrances of Bethany are here absorbed and overshadowed for a time by the darker memories of Gethsemane and Calvary.

VIA DOLOROSA

In vain do we picture the feelings of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary on that day of ignominious crucifixion. Can we imagine that they could linger be­hind, unconcerned, in their dwelling? We cannot think so. Rather we may believe that among the tearful eyes of the women that followed Jesus along the "Dolorous way," not the least anguished were the two Bethany mourners; and that as he hung upon the cross, the presence of Lazarus would be soothing and comforting in that hour of need. We may well be­lieve that when the first day of the week had come and the glad an­nouncement spread from disciple to disciple: "The Lord is risen" (Luke 24:34), on no home in Judea would the tidings fall more welcome than on that of Bethany. Martha and Mary had, a few weeks before, experienced the happiness of a restored brother. Now it was that of a restored Savior. Whether he revisited the home in the days immediately after his resurrec­tion, we cannot tell. We think it more than probable that he would. Perhaps we have a hint of such a thing in the words of John: "There are also many other things which Jesus did." - John 21:25.

THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE

With what a new and glorious meaning to Martha must her Savior's words have now been invested: "I am the resurrection and the life" (John 11:25). What saddening thoughts are associated with our final visit with a beloved friend. He was in health when we last met; we little dreamt, in parting, we were to meet no more. Every circumstance of that visit is stored up in the most hallowed cham­bers of the heart. His last words, his last look, his last smile, they live there in undying memorial. Such was now the case with the disciples. They had had their last walk together with their beloved Lord. Ere another sun goes down over the western hills of Jeru­salem he will have returned to his Father. And what is the spot which he selects as the place of the ascension? It is Bethany (Luke 24:50). We may imagine it, in all likelihood, the early dawn of the day. The gray mists of morning were still hovering over the Jehoshaphat valley, as for the last time he descended the well-known path. He must have crossed the brook Kedron -- that brook which had so oft before murmured in his ear during nights' seasons of deep sorrow; he must have passed by Gethsemane, the thick olives pendant with dew, the shadows of early day still brooding over them. Their gloomy vistas must have recalled terrible hours, when the sod underneath was moistened with "as it were great drops of blood" (Luke 22:44). Had he dashed to the ground untasted the cup which his Father had poured for him, his work would not have been done. But he shrank not from that baptism of blood and suffering.

In these final hours of early com­munion, we may be sure the Lord was occupied in preparing the hearts of the sorrowful band around him for his approaching departure. He would unfold to them the glorious conquests which, in his name, they were to achieve on earth, as his standard­bearers and apostles. The disciples had in their hearts a full and tender impression of three years of unvary­ing kindness and affection; sorrows soothed, burdens eased, ingratitude overlooked, denial forgiven. Of many others they could think only in con­nection with altered tones and changed affection. But he was ever the same. Now, however, comes the parting. No more tender counsels in difficulty; no more gentle rebukes in waywardness; no more joyous sur­prises as on the sea of Tiberias, or on the road to Emmaus when, with joy they would exclaim, "It is the Lord."

THE PROMISE OF THE FATHER

Whether Jesus visited the home at Bethany on this occasion we cannot tell. All the notice we have regarding it is: that "He led them out as far as to Bethany." - Luke 24:50.

He cheers them with the promise of another Comforter -- the Holy Spirit -- which would continue with them and the entire Church throughout the Gospel Age, taking of the things of Jesus and revealing them in their true and deeper meaning. He enjoined the disciples to linger in Jerusalem until the fulfillment of the promise of the Father, that they might be qualified for their ministry (Acts 1:4). Have we known, in the midst of our weak­nesses and wants, our griefs and sor­rows, the power and grace of the promised Paraclete? To what is much of the deadness and dullness and languor of our frames to be traced­ -- the poverty of our faith, the luke­warmness of our love, the little hold and influence of divine things upon us? Is it not to the feeble realization of the quickening, life-giving power of the Holy Spirit? "It is the spirit that quickeneth." - John 6:63.

THE APOSTLES' COMMISSION

Another theme of Christ's converse was the nature of his Kingdom. "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel," was the inquiry of the disciples. "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." - Acts 1:6, 7.

The thoughts of his followers were clinging, to the last, to the dream of earthly sovereignty. The Lord tells them there is to be no present fulfill­ment of these visions of Millennial glory. The Church may not attempt rashly and inquisitively to lift the veil. She is not to know the time of the Savior's appearing until that day when the cry shall be heard, "Behold the Bridegroom" (Matt. 25:6). Then the Father would make known the time of the Second Advent accompanied by signs attesting it. Meantime the dis­ciples were to proclaim his name throughout the world. But was Jerusalem -- the scene of the Lord's suf­ferings and death -- to be an excep­tion? Nay, rather they were to begin there. But beginning at Jerusalem it was to embrace Judea, then Samaria, and then the uttermost parts of the earth. From the elevated ridge of Olivet, on which he now stood, he might tell them to gaze, in thought at least, far north beyond the cedars of Lebanon and Hermon; southward to the desert and the isles of the ocean; westward to the fair lands washed by the Great Sea; eastward across the palm trees of Bethany and the chain of the Moabite mountains on to unexplored continents. The Gospel was to be preached as "a witness unto all nations." - Matthew 24:14.

THE ASCENSION

And now his themes of instruction and counsel are over and he is about to ascend. "He lifted up his hands, and blessed them" (Luke 24:50). His last words are those of mercy; his last act is outstretching his arms to bless. There is something, moreover, signif­icant in the words: "While he blessed them" (Luke 24:51). The benediction was unfinished when the cloud bore him away. It would seem as if he wished to indicate that the act begun on earth would be carried on beyond the veil: "He ever liveth to make intercession" for us. - Hebrews 7:25.

The time has come when the dis­ciples must leave the crest of Olivet and return to Jerusalem. Were they borne down with grief? Nay, "They returned to Jerusalem with great joy" (Luke 24:52). Oh, the wonders of the grace of God! And here the earthly vision of Bethany is sealed. Let us rise from our Olivet ridge and be going; and though traversing different foot­paths to the same home -- be it ours, like the disciples, to reach at last the true heavenly Jerusalem -- "with great Joy."

- A. L. Muir

The Gospel

"I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God
unto salvation to every one that believeth." - Rom. 1:16.

AT ONE time it was the custom to preach discourses which fore­told the worst of bad news for all except a very select few. These were called Gospel sermons. A consulta­tion of any dictionary would have in­formed the preacher his topic was a misrepresentation, for "gospel" is de­fined as "good news," not just "good news for a few." Dictionaries are very useful, but a Bible student is still safer if he can find his definitions in the Bible.

The Bible tells us also the nature and the effects of that Gospel. See, for instance, Matthew 4:23, where we read that "Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom." He was definitely preaching an entire­ly different kind of kingdom from the one with which they were familiar at the time, for otherwise it would not have been really good news. The Roman kingdom under which they were living was to them a kingdom of servitude, actually a curse visited upon them because of the unfaithfulness of their forefathers. The difference is made very apparent by Mark 1:14, which says that Jesus preached "the gospel of the kingdom of God." A God of love and peace could not but plan a universe where love and peace would abound (1 John 4:8; Phil. 4:9). Actually the Gospel is called in Ro­mans 10:15 "the gospel of peace"; and that "kingdom of peace," we are as­sured by Isaiah (9:7) and Luke (1:33), will be eternal. How exceedingly "good" is such news.

Second Corinthians 4:4 informs us of Satan's hatred for the Gospel. Two very different ideas are given us by translators as to what Gospel it is that Satan hates. One makes it that "the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ [Christ's Gospel] . . . should shine unto them." A modern transla­tion reads: "lest the gospel of the glory of Christ [Christ's glory], should shine unto them." With either of these Paul's definition fits, as also does that by Webster.

Paul adds the thought that the Gospel is Good News regarding the bringing of God's favor to the subjects of the Kingdom he preached (Gal. 3:8). His zeal for it was so great that though the holy spirit witnessed in every city that bonds and afflictions awaited him, he permitted none of these things to move him, nor did he count his life dear unto himself, for he felt that otherwise he could not finish his course with joy or accom­plish the service to which he was ap­pointed, testifying "the gospel of the grace of God." Favor from "the God of all grace" cannot but be in very generous measure. Back of it is the power that created all things; for Paul writes, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation" (Rom. 1:16). Thus he associates with the Gos­pel another in whom we have full confidence as to his power and his faithfulness. The reason for this as­sociation is made clear by 1 Corin­thians 1:24, in which Paul declares Christ is "the power of God." These verses are harmonized by St. Paul's further words where he says that "[the cross] is the power of God" (1 Cor. 1:18).

This whole ground is covered again in the thirteenth chapter of Acts, re­porting Paul's discourse in a syna­gogue at Antioch. Acts 13:29-30 declare Jesus' death and resurrection, and on the basis of these things the verses that follow associate the Gospel with promises made to the Ancient Worthies, saying, "We declare unto you glad tidings [the Gospel], 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." A death as a substitute for Adam was an essential, but it was also necessary that the One so dying should be "raised for our justification" (Rom. 4:25) The Gospel is indeed "good news" for all in that we have not only a Savior that died, but one who was also raised that all may have life -- (1 Cor. 15: 22).

THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL ANALYZED

This subject is covered in the fifteenth chapter of first Corinthians, which opens with, "Brethren, I declare unto you the Gospel ... by which ye are saved." To accomplish this thing it was necessary that Jesus die, so the third verse con­tinues, "Christ died for our sins accord­ing to the Scriptures" --such Scriptures as Isaiah 53:5: "He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Brother Paul continues: "He was buried, and ... he rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures." Please hold the thought of our being saved by it as Point Num­ber One regarding the effect of the Gospel for the Church-"we are saved by the Gospel." - 1 Cor. 15:2.

Though salvation is an essential at­tainment for any who will have life eternal, yet if that is all we have, we have no better prospect than earth's millions. But the Apostle carries us a step further: "He [God) called you by our Gospel." (2 Thess. 2:14.) The dis­courses that were misnamed "Gospel" but proclaimed eternal suffering for the vast majority of mankind, repelled us if we had love for mankind in our hearts; but as soon as we heard the message which the inspired definition calls "Gospel," we were drawn, "called" by it. 

THE BIBLE DEFINITION

Paul's definition is in Galatians 3:8: "The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the Gospel unto Abra­ham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed." That to us was really good news, a godlike Gospel. For most of us the response to the call was prompt when we understood that God's plan is for a blessing to all the families of the earth. Beyond our power of appraisal is a call such as this, for it is "To the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." No one would dare to think such a call were meant for him unless there were some definite evidence given us that arrangement had been made whereby we could attain that call. It is Brother Paul who is permitted to inform us of that means, assuring us of one more step in the Lord's plan for us. In 1 Corinthians 4:15 he reveals that the power of begetting is in that Gospel. "I have begotten you through the Gospel." And Peter adds two items of information regarding our begetting: "According to his great mercy he hath begotten us again" first, "unto a living hope"; second, "by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." (1 Peter 1:3.) This is Point No. 2 to be noted­ that we are "begotten" by it.

Zacharias, the father of John the Bap­tist, is recommended as a trust-worthy prophet, for of him it is written: "Zacharias was filled with the holy spirit, and prophesied, saying: 'The Lord God of Israel ... spake by the mouth of, his holy prophets, . . . that we should be saved from our enemies ... to perform the mercy promised to our fathers [the Ancient Worthies), and to remember his holy covenant; the oath which he sware to our father Abraham."' (Luke 1:67-78.) Jesus, the chief heir of that promise (Gal. 3:16), nearing the hor­rors of the cross, drew not back, but "for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising the shame." (Heb. 12:2.) He knew well, from experi­ence, that "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35.) So he gave his life that all mankind might receive the gift of deliverance from the curse and a chance for life. He antici­pated bestowing the blessings promised to come through Abraham's heir.

"It is a faithful saying, If we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: if we suffer [with him] we shall also reign with him." (2 Tim. 2:12.) "If ye be Christ's [suffering with him], then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" -- the promise stated in the eighth verse, the promise of blessing all the families of the earth. Only unselfishness and an unconditional acceptance of the joy set before us can bring us to share with him the ex­periences of the cross, not only without complaint, but with joy. (Gal. 2:20; Acts 20:24; 1 Pet. 4:13.) "Every one that hath this hope in him purifieth himself" from many things, including the selfishness that would make him willing to keep this Gospel to himself, or as if just for himself. The unselfish, as far as there is opportunity, will share in carrying Paul's Gospel into all the world for a witness (Matt. 24:14); but he will do so effectively only if he has "feet shod with the preparedness [Greek] of the Gospel of peace." That one is not argumentative, quarrelsome, contentious. Nor should our gospel be a mixture of human and divine wisdom. It should be clean as was Paul's: "The Gospel which was preached of me is not after man." (Gal. 1:11.) It was not a mix­ture of Paul's, nor any one else's, and God's thoughts. It is "first pure, then peaceable"-not contentious or argu­mentative. - 1 John 3:3; James 3:17.

"The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it" (Psalm 68:11), and they were "not slothful [witnesses) but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. When God made promise to Abraham, he sware by him­self, . . . willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the im­mutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things.... we might have a strong con­solation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us, which hope we have as an anchor"; and, note, that hope is the promise made to Abraham; and we are the heirs, joint­heirs with Jesus of the precious promise of blessing "all the families of the earth." - Heb. 6:13-20.

Verily Jesus "brought life and im­mortality to light by the Gospel"-life for "the sands of the seashore" class, and immortality for "the stars of heaven" class; and in this message of the angel to Abraham, it was proclaimed thus in symbolic language many years before his advent. In one of his parables (Matt. 25:34), Jesus intimated that the blessing f or the world will be an earth made perfect; saying, "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." That foundation, laid in the Garden of Eden, was in every detail, perfect. (Deut. 32:4.) But to those members of the "stars of heaven" class living with him in the beginning of the Age, he said: "I go to prepare a place for you." Heaven must be entered with the merit of his sacrifice before that place could be theirs-and ours.

Jesus' message, from the beginning of his ministry, was the Gospel. Note the first report of a discourse by Jesus in Luke 4:18, "The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel." The quoting of this portion from the 61st chapter of Isaiah was Jesus' confirmation to John the Baptist that he was the one who was to come to preach the Gospel.

One more thing, and a very important one, is accomplished by the Gospel­ -- one thing to add to those we have already referred to-that is, to establish us. (Rom. 16:25, 26.) Thus being "established" by this Gospel, we will not make the mistake of the Galatian breth­ren. In this passage the Apostle again has reference to the Ancient Worthies as testifying of the message, calling it his "Gospel" "made manifest by the Scrip­tures [the writings) of the Prophets." Peter also assures us of the permanency of this Gospel: "The word of the Lord endureth forever, and this is the word by which the Gospel is preached unto you." (1 Pet. 1:25.) And Paul was willing to be "made all things for all men that he might by all means save some, and this I do [he said} for the Gospel's sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you." (1 Cor. 9:22, 23.) Though he found the preaching of the gospel of the cross foolishness to the perishing world, Paul was not discour­aged, for his commission, as is ours, was not to convert-that is God's part-but to witness. He never grew weary of following in the footsteps of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, for it was the Gospel of Peace he was sent to proclaim, the good news of that day when Jesus shall reign from pole to pole, to "fill the earth with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the deep." Like the faith­ful missionaries of the true Gospel to­day, doubtless he was spurred on by Isaiah 52:7: "How beautiful . . . are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings [the Gospel as preached to Abraham), that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation."

It was according to him "good news" that eventually the world will be judged, for he had "a hope toward God," "that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust." (Acts 24:15.) Thus the judgment blessing will be for all, good and bad-for them to receive or reject (see Isa. 26:10), agreeing with the Old Testament that "When the judgments of the Lord are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." (Rom. 2:16; Isa. 26:9.) Paul testifies that they of his nation according to the flesh were enemies that we of the Gentiles might be grafted into the Olive Tree, which he uses as a figure to represent the Abra­hamic Covenant. (Rom. 11:1, 17, 28.) By the simple method of fellowship, or, better-partnership with our breth­ren, the ones of God's choosing, a part­nership in this precious Gospel may be enjoyed. A collection for the poorer brethren of Jerusalem won a place in the Gospel for the Corinthian brethren (2 Cor. 9:13), and a box to supply the needs of the Apostle, accomplished it for the brethren of Philippi. (Phil. 1:5, 7, 27.) The Greek of Ephesians 1:13 indicates a sealing power, an assurance of God's favor, in the "spirit of the promise." Doubtless the promise of all promises is the one that is to bring blessings to both Jew and Gentile.

"HIS SPIRIT BEARETH WITNESS WITH OUR SPIRIT"

The spirit of that promise is the spirit of the God who is Love, the one who gave his best that the Abrahamic Covenant might be effective -- a spir­it that does not erect barriers, but ac­cepts the Scriptural basis of fellowship, the ransom and consecration. Hebrews 3:8 warns us not to harden our hearts as did Israel in the wilderness, "fear­ing lest a promise being left us of en­tering into his rest any of us should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached as well as unto them." No promise was more familiar to them than that all inclusive one made to Father Abraham, yet it failed to soften their hearts. This lost for them the privilege of a share with their Messiah in the work of blessing all the families of the earth. We fear the Scriptures indicate that the selfish­ness that excludes from the blessings of our fellowship any whom the Lord takes into his fellowship will mean for us loss of life itself. On the other hand, "Whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it" (Mark 8:35; 10:29). "Let us consider one another to en­courage unto love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of our­selves together [all who have any claim to membership in the Master's. Body] . . . for if we sin willfully" -­- then follows that very familiar threat of the second death. Amputated members of a body cannot be kept alive.

The urgency of the matter inspired the great Apostle to count but light afflictions the many trials he encoun­tered in preaching that Gospel, that he might be "the minister [servant] of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, minis­tering the Gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the holy spirit," the spirit of love and sacrifice. "This is what the grammarians call the genetive of apposition. The Gen­tiles are the offering . . . a bloodless sacrifice" (American Commentary). Paul is not ignoring the necessity of justifying faith, but warning us not to overlook the necessity of the sanc­tified life that the bodies presented as a living sacrifice may be daily accepta­ble (Rom. 12:1, 2). The Goodspeed translation is especially clear, calling Paul "a minister of Jesus Christ among the heathen to act as a priest of God's Good News, to see that the heathen are an acceptable sacrifice." Only the transforming power of that spirit can open our minds to prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God for us.

"He called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." "Be thou a joint-sufferer of the gospel according to the power of God" - not according to our weak­ness, but his power to make us more than conquerors through Jesus Christ who strengtheneth us (Rom. 15:15, 16; 2 Thess. 2:14; 2 Tim. 1:8).

What a wonderful Gospel these Scriptures have proved to be! - a Gospel saving us, calling us, begetting us, establishing us! Nothing more can be provided for our eternal wel­fare than this message to Abraham assures us. Truly, we can say with the Apostle: "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16).

-P. E. Thomson

Sidney Smith, Canadian Foreign Secretary, Dies

DISTINGUISHED AS STATESMAN, EDUCATOR, AND RELIGIOUS LEADER

Subscribers to the Herald, only re­cently received the Institute's booklet titled Beliefs That Matter. In the open­ing paragraph, reference is made to a YMCA forum with this theme, some years before, which was presided over by Dr. Sidney E. Smith-at that time Presi­dent of the University of Toronto.

Just as our completed booklet came from the bindery, the public press car­ried the news of Dr. Smith's unexpected death on March 17, at the age of 62, apparently from a heart attack. With his background in the field of education he had taken up the heavy responsibilities of statesmanship and had been Canada's Foreign Secretary for 18 months at the time of his death. It came only one day preceding arrival of Britain's Prime Minister Macmillan in Ottawa for Canadian discussions of the Berlin crisis, in which Dr. Smith was to have an important part. The news caused shock and distress to the arriving British guest. Numerous expressions of loss and appreciation for public service came im­mediately from Mr. Dulles and other world figures, as well as from Canadian leaders and the people generally.

Born in Nova Scotia, the future For­eign Secretary graduated from Dalhousie University in Halifax. Subsequently he received an LL.D. degree from Harvard. Becoming President of the University of Manitoba at the age of 37, Dr. Smith was the youngest such administrator in Canada, and when he went to Toronto in 1945 he headed the country's largest university. He remained in this post until joining the government as Foreign Secretary.

Association with Dr. Smith was a great privilege for the author of our booklet, Beliefs That Matter, as the dis­tinguished educator and statesman ex­emplified the dedicated individual who holds and undertakes constantly to carry out the precepts of broad service to God and mankind.

The Question Box

"As concerning the rest o f the beasts, they had their dominion taken away; yet their
lives were prolonged for a season and time." - Daniel 7:12.

 Question:

How are we to understand this text?

Answer:

The vision given to Daniel which he records in chapter 7 is of four beasts which, it was revealed to him, sym­bolized four kings. (Dan. 7:16, 17.) Students of the Scriptures have long understood these beasts to represent the four world-governments -- the only four mentioned by name in the Word of God -- Babylon, Medo-Per­sia, Greece, and Rome (Dan. 2:38; 8:20; 8:21, and Luke 2:1). These four, as history shows, succeeded each other without any gap and, as the prophecies show, are to occupy the entire interval from Daniel's day to the establishment of the Kingdom of God.*

---------------------------

*See "The ABC of Bible Prophecy" book­let. Free on Request.

The foregoing is very generally un­derstood. Not so general, however, is the understanding that the first three beasts continue alive long after they lose their dominion. Nevertheless this is clear from the language of Daniel 7:12. As each beast in turn is conquered by its successor, its domin­ion is taken away but its life is pro­longed.

Just when the lives of the first three beasts come to an end is not stated. The implication is that this occurs when both the dominion and the life of the fourth beast are termi­nated (Dan. 7:26, 11).

This view, furthermore, agrees very well with the parallel prophecy re­corded in the second chapter of Daniel. When the stone struck the image in the feet, "then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together" (Dan. 2:35)

In Daniel's vision it is probable that these four beasts emerged from the sea one after another, each in turn being vanquished by its successor. Eventu­ally, however, all four must have been present to his view at the same time since, while the dominion of the first three had been taken away, their lives had been prolonged. How is this dis­tinction between the life and the do­minion of the beasts to be understood, as it relates to the four world -- empires symbolized?

To us it seems that there is only one satisfactory explanation. It lies, as has been pointed out by an able writer, in recognizing "that prophecy regards the four empires as being as distinct in territory as in time: as distinct in geo­graphical boundaries, as in chronologi­cal limits. They rise in a definite se­quence; the supreme dominion of one does not in point of time overlap the supreme dominion of the following one, nor is the territory of a former 'beast' or empire ever regarded as be­longing to a later one, though it may have been actually conquered. Each has its own proper theatre or body, and the bodies continue to exist after the dominion is taken away. This is distinctly stated, both in connection with the fourfold image and with the four beasts. In the first case the stone falls upon the clay and iron feet only, but the iron legs, the brazen body, the silver breast, and the golden head, are all by it 'broken to pieces together.' Now the empires represented by these have long since passed away. They (as universal empires) cannot therefore be 'broken to pieces' by the Second Ad­vent. But the territory once occupied by them is still existing and still popu­lous, and exposed to the judgments of the day of Christ just as much as Rome itself.

"Similarly, we read that the three earlier beasts did not cease to exist when the fourth arose. 'Their domin­ion [was] taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time' (Dan. 7:12). That is to say, the first three empires are regarded as coexist­ing with the fourth, after their domin­ion has ended. This proves that they are regarded as distinct in place as well as in time. They continue to be recog­nized as territorial divisions of the earth after the disappearance of their political supremacy." - H. G. Guin­ness.

Many years before Guinness, this had been clearly seen by the world's great mathematician, Sir Isaac New­ton. In his "Observations on the Prophecies of Daniel and the Revela­tion," he wrote: "All the four beasts are still alive, though the dominion of the first three be taken away. The nations of Chaldea and Assyria are still the first beast. Those of Media and Persia are still the second beast. Those of Macedonia, Greece, Thrace, Asia Minor, Syria, and Egypt are the third beast. And those of Europe on this side are still the fourth beast. See­ing, therefore, the body of the third beast is confined to the nations on this side of the river Euphrates, and the body of the fourth beast to the nations on this side of Greece, we are to look for all the four heads of this third beast on this side of the Euphrates, and for all the eleven horns of the fourth beast among the nations on this side Greece; and therefore, in the breaking up of the Greek empire into four king­doms, we include no part of Chaldea, or Media and Persia in these king­doms, because they belong to the body of the first two beasts. Nor do we reckon the Greek empire, seated at Constantinople, among the horns of the fourth beast, because it belongs to the body of the third."

This principle of identifying govern­ments not only chronologically but geographically -- in accordance with the territory originally occupied -- is helpful in reaching a proper under­standing not only of this prophecy but of others. As above noted, it has proven a safe guide in the identi­fication of the ten horns (or king­doms) of the fourth beast (or em­pire) which must "none of them be sought in the realms of the third, sec­ond, or first, but exclusively in the realm of the fourth, or in the territory peculiar to Rome, and which had never formed part of the Grecian, Medo-Persian, or Babylonian empires. " It is a principle, moreover, which should not be forgotten in seeking to identify the power symbolized by the "king of the north" (Dan. 11:40) to which brief reference was made in our Question Box in the October "Herald."

There is yet one other point which ought to be mentioned ere we close this discussion. It is this: Not only is each world-government regarded in the prophecy as distinct in territory and in time; each is shown also as ex­isting before its predecessor falls. Medo-Persia existed before it conquered Babylon. Greece came into existence before it challenged and over­came Medo-Persia. Rome existed be­fore it vanquished Greece. Has this point any special significance? Indeed it has. It suggests that before the do­minion of Rome is taken away-be­fore the beast is slain and its body given to the burning flame, the fifth world empire comes into existence.

However, this thought, that the fifth world-empire comes into existence be­fore the overthrow of the fourth, is more than a suggestion; much more than a strong probability based on the fact that each of the others is shown as existing before the fall of its prede­cessor. It is specifically stated in the Scripture. It is "in the days" of these kings, not after their days, that the God of heaven is to set up his King­dom (Dan. 2:44).

Brethren, unless we greatly err, the God of heaven has for years been in the process of setting up this Kingdom. For more than half a century the "judgment has been sitting" and his dominion (the dominion of the fourth beast in its "little horn" stage) has been in the process of being taken away. What yet remains? We answer: "To consume and destroy that do­minion unto the end." Immediately thereafter will occur that which, is de­scribed by the words: "I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame" (Dan. 7:26; 11). And then? Ah! then -- the Kingdom will be given to One like the Son of Man; and the people of the saints of the Most High. That Kingdom will not pass to a sixth world-empire. It will be everlasting (Dan. 7:14, 27).

- P. L. Read

Useful Reference Books on Israel For the Student

time to time we are asked to recommend books on Israel which, in addition to our own publications, might be helpful especially to students. Today there are quite a number of scholarly works, copies of which may be seen in the public libraries. Among many books on Israel, we are glad to briefly mention here three, that have recently reached., our desk.

THEY LIVED IN ISRAEL

by Laurence H. Bunker

This is the title of a new book by the author of "Israel has a Destiny," the little brochure with which most of our readers are acquainted. According to a review appearing in the Bible Study Monthly, this new book "is planned on the lines of a survey from prehistory to the modern State, and comprises some 60 pages with about 30 illustrations and maps. The scope includes sections on the land, the language, weights and measures, the Law, women in Israel, home and social life, the countryside, Bible cities, the people and their home­land, and 'the way ahead.' The book contains a mass of interesting informa­tion expressed in concise language and should be useful to any who are fol­lowers of the developments now taking place in the land of Israel." The price is $1.50 in the U.S.A. and Canada.

THE BIBLE AS HISTORY

by Werner Keller

Writing in the St. Louis Post-Dis­patch, A Mervyn Davies tells of the effect which this book had on himself. For him it brought the Bible to life "as, perhaps, no other book published in our century has done. It brings it to life, not as previous scholars have done ... by interpreting its ideological develop­ment, but by showing it to be an his­torical document of astounding accuracy....

"If any one among the readers of this review has tended to assume that such old familiar Bible stories as those of the Flood, or Sodom and Gomorrah, the cfossing of the Red Sea, the Manna in the wilderness, the fall of Jericho and scores of others far too numerous to mention are just myths, without any historical foun atiod n, let him hurry to the bookstore and obtain a copy of 'The Bible as History."'

Not the least- interesting chapter is one which comes towards the end of the book, devoted to the Dead Sea Scrolls. This book consists of 452 pages and retails at $5.95 a copy.

THE REBIRTH OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL

by Arthur W. Kae, M.D.

The sub-title of Dr. Kac's work is in the form of a question: "Is it of God or of Men?" In The American Hebrew Christian, a reviewer amplifies this ques­tion. He asks: "In the long centuries of their bitter exile, the Jewish people attempted many a time to get back to the land of their forefathers-and failed each time. Why did they fail in those ages when the course of history was moving in much calmer waters, and suc­ceed in their effort in this most turbulent era of human history? Why is it that during the centuries when the Jews were away from the Holy Land, Palestine dis­appeared from the world's political map, while with their return to their national Homeland, Palestine emerged into the front-line of world events? To answer these and other significant questions is the aim of Dr. Kac's work."

Dr. N. J. Stone, a member of the staff of the Moody Bible Institute comments on Dr. Kac's book as follows: "It is much more than merely an account of Israel's returning to its ancient land and its progress. It embraces the State of Israel in every phase of Israel's spiritual history, past, present, and future. It deals with the religious crisis and with Israel's relationship to its neighbors of the Arab world. It could well serve as a manual of prophecy as well as history in this respect, and with regard to world political and religious conditions and their solution. It is an able .. . [defense of] Christianity especially in relation to Judaism, and as the fulfil­ment of Messianic prediction and ex­pectation."

This book consists of 388 pages and is priced at $3.00.

For the convenience of "Herald" sub­scribers we are maintaining a small stock, of the three books above men­tioned. Orders, therefore, may be sent direct to: Pastoral Bible Institute, Inc., 177 Prospect Place, Brooklyn 38, New York.

Recently Deceased

Sr. Clara N. Alexander, St. Louis, Mo. -­ (Apr.) 
Bro. R. E. Fuller, Newton, Kans.- (Mar.)
Sr. Emma Hamlin, Somerville, Mass.- (Mar.) 
Bro. John MacIntosh, Grants Pass, Ore.- (Mar.) 
Bro. T. S. McGraw, Santa Cruz, Cal.- (Jan.) 
Sr. Della Millen, Cincinnati, Ohio- (Dec.) 
Sr. Mae Mortensen, Chicago, Ill.- (Mar.) 
Sr. G. Nairn, Santa Cruz, Cal.- (Sept.) 
Bro. W. B. Sterrett, Carnegie, Pa.- (Feb.) 
Bro. W. I. Wells, New Albany, Ind.- (Jan.) 
Sr. Thelma W. Wilson, Fresno, Cal.- (Apr.) 
Sr. Mary Yingling, Denver, Colo.- (July)

1959 Index