The Bible Story Part 91

"Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces.

"For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.

"Because of the house of the Lord our G.o.d I will seek thy good."

Another poet who was living in a foreign land, wrote another poem:--

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.

"We hung our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.

"For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.

"How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?

"If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.

"If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy."

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When one Bible writer hoped for some great good in the future, and wanted to make a very glorious picture, as splendid as he could, he told of a city coming down from heaven, and called it the New Jerusalem, because that city was dearer to him than any other place he knew, and he said:--

"AND I JOHN SAW THE HOLY CITY, NEW JERUSALEM, COMING DOWN FROM G.o.d OUT OF HEAVEN."

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THE JORDAN

Up among the mountains in the North of the land of the Bible a little stream flows down from a rocky valley. After wandering through beautiful hills with many trees and vines, it comes into a wide valley and pa.s.ses through a little lake. Then it goes tumbling and roaring down a narrow gorge with high rocks on each side.

After that it widens out into the beautiful lake of Gennesaret, or Sea of Galilee. In the time of Jesus there were many towns about this lake and many boats sailing over it.

After leaving this lake, the river flows through a valley, winding from one side of it to the other. The valley grows deeper and deeper, until at last to get into it one must go down, down long, steep hills by winding roads, down narrow valleys where the rocks are piled high above one. At last the river flows through a wide, sandy plain into the Dead Sea.

The Jordan is the largest river of the Bible {225} land. The Hebrews used to tell their little children that in the ancient time, when they first came into the land, the Jordan stopped flowing so that their fathers, with all their little children, and cattle and sheep, crossed it on dry ground. Later King David crossed it, once when he found that all his country had gone over to his enemies. A few weeks later he came back, and many people went down to the river to welcome him. The great general who had leprosy was sent to wash in the river, and he was healed.

Jesus was baptized in the river. He often crossed it, and he lived and taught on the banks of the Sea of Galilee, through which it flows.

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THE DEAD SEA

The strangest lake in the world is the lake that is called the Dead Sea. It is east of Canaan. The Jordan runs into it, but no river runs out of it. It lies deep down between mountains. On one side the hills rise so steep that one cannot climb them. On the other, there is only here and there a place where a man on horseback can scramble down the rocks into the valley.

Why is it called the Dead Sea? Because the water is so salt that no fish live in it. It looks very clear and beautiful as it lies in the suns.h.i.+ne, but no one can drink it, it is so salt. Sometimes people bathe in it. It is so heavy that no one can sink. No towns were ever on its sh.o.r.e. Not a single person lives near it. Few people have ever sailed on its waters. The valley in which it lies is so deep that it is much lower than the ocean. All these things make it the strangest lake in the world.

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[Ill.u.s.tration]

ON THE Sh.o.r.eS OF THE DEAD SEA

From a photograph in the possession of Rev. Louis F. Giroux of the American International College, Springfield, Ma.s.s., and used by his kind permission.

"The water is very nauseous to the taste and oily to the touch, leaving on the skin when it dries a thick crust of salt. But it is very brilliant. Seen from far away no lake on earth looks more blue and beautiful. Swim out upon it, and at a depth of twenty feet you can count the pebbles through the transparent water. It is difficult to sink the limbs deep enough to swim; if you throw a stick on the surface it seems to rest as on a mirror, so little of it actually penetrates the water. No fish or any living thing can exist in its waters."--_Smith_ [End ill.u.s.tration]

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BETH-LEHEM

Moab A country east of Palestine.

Glean To follow after the reapers and pick up what they have left behind.

The "little town of Beth-lehem," as it lies among the hills of Judaea, is one of the most famous places in all the world. But it is not famous because of its wealth or its size, it is famous because of the people who lived there. Beth-lehem means in the Hebrew language, "House of Bread," and it was in the fields of Boaz about Beth-lehem that the beautiful Ruth of Moab gleaned.

Then it was David's home. In the pastures beyond the town he used to feed his father's flocks. Sometimes it has been called "the city of David."

But what makes it more famous than all else is the fact that in "Beth-lehem's manger" the little child Jesus was born, and over the old town hung in the night the star of Beth-lehem. It was here that the shepherds {230} who were keeping their flocks outside the town came to see the newborn child, and it was here that the Wise Men came to wors.h.i.+p him and bring him gifts. It is true that Jesus did not stay here long. The wicked King Herod wished to kill him, and Mary and Joseph took him to Egypt. When they came back they lived in the town of Nazareth. But all the world loves the little town of Beth-lehem because it was Jesus' birthplace.

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HYMNS FOR THE DAY

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LORD OF ALL BEING

Lord of all being; throned afar, Thy glory flames from sun and star; Center and soul of every sphere, Yet to each loving heart how near!

Sun of our life, Thy quickening ray Sheds on our path the glow of day; Star of our hope, Thy softened light Cheers the long watches of the night.

Our midnight is Thy smile withdrawn; Our noontide is Thy gracious dawn; Our rainbow arch Thy mercy's sign; All, save the clouds of sin, are Thine.

Lord of all life, below, above, Whose light is truth, whose warmth is love, Before Thy ever-blazing throne We ask no l.u.s.ter of our own.

Grant us Thy truth to make us free, And kindling hearts that burn for Thee, Till all Thy living altars claim One holy light, one heavenly flame.

--_Oliver Wendell Holmes_.

By permission of Houghton, Mifflin & Co.

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ON OUR WAY REJOICING