The Sunday School

54. "He aróse from before the altar of fche Lord, from kneelingon his knees, with his hands spread lip to heavcm. " In that position on a brazen scaffolil (II Cln-on. vi, 13), In the light of all Israel had Solomon prayed to the Lord aa,he dedicated to Him the temple which he had been privileged to build. ïhe temple being flnished, they bronght to it the ark of the covenanfc from Zion, and the tabernacle from Gibeon, with all the holy vessels, and put all in the temple (verse 4 and II Chron. i, 3, 4). We are not told that any of the tabernacle furnlture was used in the temple except the ark of the covenant. Everything but the ark was on a much largor and grander scale. They had ten tables and ten candlesticks, etc, but the same ark containing nothing but the two tables of stone (verso 0). When Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire rarae down from heaven ftnd consumed the burnt offoriiig and the gaeriflees, and the glory of the Lord filled the house so that even the priests could not enter into the house because of the glory (II Chron. vil, 1, 2; v, 13, 14). 55. "And he stood and blessed all tlie congregation of Israel with a load voice. " The eight divisions of his prayer may be casily recognized by the eight times repeated, "Hcar Thou in hoavgn" (verses WO, 33, 34, 30, 39, 43, 45, 49). The object of the temple is seen in the oft repeated phrase, "An house for the name of the Lord," or "For Thy name" (verses 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 43, 44, 48), in order that "all peoplo of the earth may knovv Thy name, to fear Tn"3, as do Thy people of Israel (verse 43), for thcre is no God in heaven above or on earth beneath like the Lord God of Israel (verse 23), who doeth wonders for His servants, requiring of thom only that they walk bcfore Him with all th3ir heart. His people are a separated people Unto Him from all the people of the earth w be His inheritanco" (verse 53). 50. ' ' Blessed be the Lord that hath gi ven rest unto His people Israel, according to ill that He promised. There hath not failsd one word of all His good promise, which He nromised by the hand of liosos, His servant. " Bef ore he prayed he al so blessed the congrcgation, referring to the Lord's goodness and faithf ulness in ha ving f ulfilled with His hand all that He spake with Ilis mouth (verses 15, 24). ín Joshua's farewell he also sakl, "Ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing liath failed rL all the good things whieh the Lord your God spake concerning you" (Joshua xxiii, 14). 57. "The Lord our God be with us, as He was wlth our fathers. Let Him not leave us nor f orsake us. ' ' God had, through Moses, His servant, spoken of this rest for His pcople, and this place wheru He would cause His namctodwell (Dcut. xii, 10, 11), and He had also given them these promises: "The Lord thy God, He itis that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee nor forsake thee. Fear not, jncither be dismayed" (Deut. xxxi, 6, 8). His great encouragement to Moses himself and to Joshua and Gideon was "I will bo with thee" (Ex. iii, 12; Joshua i, 5; Judg. vi, 16). Ve may well be content with such things as we have since He hath said, "I will never leave thee norforsake thee" (Heb. xiii, 5). 58. ' ' That He may incline our hearts unto Him to walk in all Hisways. " To know Him is the greatest thing on carth, and perhaps in heaven too. It is better than wisdom or riches or might ( Jer. ix, 23, 24). He said in His great prayer, "O rightcous Father, the world hath not known Thee. but I have known Thee" (John xvii, 25), and in verse 3 He said that it was life eternal to know God and Jesus Christ. 59. " And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the Lord, be nigli unto the Lord our God day and ciglit. ' ' tíolomon asks this in order that the Lord may maintain his cause and the cause of Israel as each day shall require. See margin and R. V., and also Jer. Iii, 34, whero the Hebrew phrase is the same. It is a daily relying upon the Lord to manage all that concerns us; and He will ly do it for all who truly rely upon Him, not only day by day, but evcry nioinent (Isa. xxvii, 3). 00. "That all the people of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none elsc. " For that reason was Jordán divided (Joshua iv, 84), and for the sanie reason will God yet do wondrous things for Israel (Ezek. xxxviii, 23). He would do wondrous things for His people today if they would but live wholly for Him and serve Him in sincerity with all the hcart. He is still saying, "Cali unto Me and I will answer Theo and show Thee great and mighty things whieh Thou knowest not" (Jer. xxxiii, 3). It is written that "the pleasure of tho Lord shall prosper in His hand. " And if His saints would be cheerf ully in His hand and at His feet for His pleasure, what might He not do? (Isa. liii, 10; üeut. xxx, 3.) 61. "Let your hcart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in Hls scatutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day. ' ' David, ere he died, ndmonislied Solomon to serve tlie Lord with a perfect heart and with a willing mind, and prayed God to give him a perfect heart to keep His commandments (I Chron. xxviii, 9; xxix, 19). The Lord said to Abram, "Walk bef ore Me and be thou perfect," and to Israel, ''Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God" (Gen. xvii, 1; Deut. xviii, 13). As to daily life there is no one perfect in the sense of being without sin, for of all men the Lord Jesus Christ was the only man that ever lived without sin, but any redsemcd soul can by the grace of God live and walk uprightly and have a wholo heart for God, which Is the sense of perfect in these texts. 62. "And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice bef ore the Lord." Notice the oneness of the king and all Israel in the matter of tho sacrifico. Every sacrifico truly offered to God from the time that the Lord God made unto Adam and Eve coats of skins and clothed them (Gen. iii, 21) pointed to tho only sacrifico that could take away sins - that of the Lamb of God foreordaincd before tho foundation of the world (I Pet. i, 20). 03. "So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated tlio house oí the Lord. ' ' And the Lord accepted the house and fllled it veith His glory, as we have seeu. Wc are cornmanded to present our bodies a li.iing ' aíícrillce as temples in which God the Father, Son aiid Spirit may dweil (Rom. xii, 1, 3; John xiv, 17, 33). And as truly is we do this by virtue of His blood shed for us, He will accept the offering through the inerits of Jesus Christ and 1111 us wlth His Spirit, even with all the fullness of God (Eph. iii, 19). Thus sliall we know the ejcceeding greatness of His power toward uï who believe (Eph. i, 19).