OlnurS^-iPtrat f far * NOV 1 1904 * THE CHRISTIAN STUDY COURSE for Young People's Societies and other organizations in the Church and also for Private headings The Committee appointed by the General Assembly on Youiii; Teople's Societies have prepared a Christian Study Course for the ad- vanced training of members of Young People's Societies and of other clmrch organizations, and also for the benefit of private readers,- in order tliat they may be instructed in matters of the Bible, and of Presbyterian history, doctrine, polity, and missions, and so become J)etter fitted to be workers and leaders in the service of Christ and the Church. The three handl^ooks, named below, were selected by the Committee for easy study, and will be sent, together, postpaid to any address, by the Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work in Phila- delphia, or by any of its Depositories for $i.io. 1. BIBLICAL: Subject : Sources of the English Bible. Handbook: "How We Got Our Bible," by Paterson Smyth, LLTO. Price, 50 cents jwstpaid. (Singly.) 2. HISTORICAL: Subject : Church History to tlie Close of the Reformation. Handbook: "Landmarks of Church History," by the Rev. Henry Cowan, D. D. Price, 40 cents postpaid. (Singly. ) 3. DOCTRINE AND POLITY : Subject: Our Creed as Related to Civil and Religious Liberty. Handbook : "The Creed of Presbyterians," by Rev. p:gbert Watson Smith, D.I). Price, 60 cents postpaid. (Singly. ) 4. MISSIONARY: Under this depaitment, clnssrs nnd readers arc rclcrrr.l to the BV 1533 .S32 1904 jnte f the A^pw Sabbath-school teacher- training course PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION SABBATH=SCHOOL WORK 1319 Walnut Street 156 Fifth Avenue 102 Hichigan Avenue PhiladelDhia New York Chicagu 1516 Locust Street 23 Grant Avenue St. Louis San Francisco Sabbath -School Teacher -Training Course FIRST YEAR A Series of Thirty-nine Lessons, designed for use in Normal Classes PHILADELPHIA Zbc Westminster press 1904 Copyright, 1904, by J. H. Scribner. Teacher-Training Course. FOREWORD This Training Course has been prepared in answer to an earnest desire among Sabbath school teachers themselves. They realize the great importance of their work and its responsibility and wish to know how they can do it better. The Course has been prepared with much thought and care. It is believed that it will guide teachers in obtaining a wider knowledge of the Bible, of the nature of their work and of the best methods of teaching. To-day, the wise father, desirous of giving his son the very best educational advantages, does not select a college in which there is one great teacher, to whom he sends his boy for the purpose of getting all that that one mighty instructor is able to impart. On the contrary, he chooses an institution in the faculty of which there are well-known specialists in their various departments, and places his son under their guidance. Wherefore? Because he knows that in these times of great increase in knowledge and of exact specialization, it is impossible for any one person to be prepared to be an excellent teacher in many things. Hence, in- struction is sought at the hands of those who by special study have become masters in their own fields of investigation. It would have been much easier for the Editor to have one person prepare this volume than for him to adopt the plan which he followed. This would not, however, have proved so helpful for the student. Instead of one writer, seven have given of their very best in the endeavor to make this text-book of the greatest value to the student. Each of these is an expert in his own particular line of study, who, after years of successful teaching, is qualified to offer that which will do the learner the most good. The number of writers will account for the diflferences in style and method in the various sections of the book. As a compensation, the student has the advantage of the personality of each writer as manifested in his lessons. The time has long since passed when Bible students feared an antagonism between intellectuality and spirituality. The most in- tellectual persons may be the most spiritual. On the other hand. IV FOREWORD no person dare belittle intellectual preparation on the part of the most spiritual teacher of the word. The command is explicit: ''Give diligence to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, handling aright the word of truth" (TI Tim. 2: 15 A. R.). It is to help the sincere teacher to obey this command that this text-book has been prepared. It is soon to be followed by a companion volume. In these two manuals the student will be led in such lines of study as will enable him to know the Book and much connected with it ; to know the pupil for whom the Book is intended ; and, what is of supreme importance, to learn how to bring the Book to influence ^he every- day life of the pupil. Of course, there must be work on the part of the student, but the necessity for this is reduced to the minimum by the writers, who present in an easily memorized form the very essence of the results of their studies. A number of churches have united in the preparation of this Course — The Presbyterian Churches North and South, the United Presbyterian Church, the Presbyterian Church in Canada, the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and the Reformed Church in the United States. Representatives of all these Churches have aided in the preparation of this volume and the one which is to follow. This second book will be issued in good season. It treats of the Books of the New Testament, of Church History, of Christian Doctrine, of Christian Service in Winning Souls, of the Christian Church, and of the Church at Work in the Sabbath school. SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY Wherever it is possible, it will be best to organize a class to pursue the Training Course. There is always an inspiration in numbers, and, as a rule, better work is done in a class than where the pupil studies alone. Two classes may be formed in the average school. One may be composed of those actually in service as teachers or officers in the Sabbath school. As these are likely to be very busy people, with but little spare time on their hands, instead of being called upon to do much outside study, their principal work should be in the class, in which the various lessons may be taken up in order and considered in a conversational way until their facts are grasped and their principles understood. Another class may be made up of young people of the church and Sabbath school who are not yet teachers in the latter. For such students the suggestion is made that they not only strive to understand the purport of the various lessons, but that they also actually memorise the facts, truths, and principles stated therein, as a foundation for future study. The student who masters this volume and the companion one, will have a fund of informa- tion and a knowledge of how to impart that information which will be extremely helpful when the actual work of teaching begins. The members of this second class should not be asked to teach until they have finished their course. Occasionally, if they are willing to do so, they will be greatly helped by acting as substitutes. However, such teaching must be voluntary and not under compulsion. Many teacher-training classes have been broken up because the superintendent of the school insisted on the members thereof teaching before they were prepared to do so, and when they should be in the training class. Where a class cannot be formed, individuals may study by them- selves with great profit. If several individuals connected with a school would pursue the course by themselves, and meet occasionally for comparison and suggestions, it would be the plan next best to the class method. V SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY Whatever the method of study pursued, too much cannot be written as to the value of thoroughness. The lessons are grouped into studies for a quarter. Only three terms' study are presented for the year. This is in order to allow one quarter to be free from study. The term may begin at any time. If, for any reason, the whole book cannot be taken in the year, one or two terms' study will be much better than none. A word as to the teacher. The principal qualification for such a person is a high appreciation of the value of the work of • the Sabbath school. Where a trained teacher is available, so much the better, but where such a one cannot be found, that is no reason why a teacher-training class should not be formed. One who really desires to be helpful, who will look to God for assistance, and who will keep just a little ahead of the members of the class will make an excellent teacher. There is no efifort that will pay larger dividends for the kingdom of Christ than this work of training the future teachers of the word of God. In places where the Interdenominational Sunday School Asso- ciation does not provide an examination on this text-book, our Board will furnish the examination questions, mark the papers, and grant certificates to all who get seventy per cent or over as the result of the examination. Those who obtain certificates for the two years' courses will be awarded a Teacher's Diploma. For further particulars concerning these or any other matters connected with the course, address The Editorial Superintendent, Board of Publication, Witherspoon Building, Philadelphia. CONTENTS FIRST TERM— PART I Six Lessons on the Book By Prof, Amos R. Wells, A. M. Lesson Page I. Bird's-eye View of the Bible 3 II. The Old Testament 6 III. The New Testament 9 IV. How God's Revelation was Written and Preserved I2 V. The Story of the English Bible i6 VI. The Bible as Literature 2i FIRST TERM— PART II ^ Seven Lessons on Bible History By Pres. George B. Stewart, D. D. Lesson Page VII. Adam to Moses 27 VIII. Moses to Saul 30 IX. Saul to the Babylonian Captivity 33 X. The Babylonian Captivity to Christ 35 XL The Life of Christ 38 XII. The Life of Paul 41 XIII. The Apostolic Church 43 SECOND TERM— PART I Five Lessons on the Lands of the Bible By the Rev. Charles A. Oliver Lesson Page I. The Old Testament World 49 II. The New Testament World 52 III. Palestine : Facts Concerning 56 IV. Palestine: The Physical Divisions 58 V. Palestine: The Political- Divisions 60 vii CONTENTS SECOND TERM— PART II Four Lessons on Bible Worship and Customs By Robert J. Miller, D. D. Lesson Page VI. The Tabernacle 65 VII. The Temple and Synagogue 68 VIII. Sacrifices and Feasts 73 IX. Jewish Institutions 76 SECOND TERM— PART III Four Lessons on the Sabbath School By H. L. Phillips, D. D. Lesson Page X. Its History 83 XL Its Purpose, Book, and Work 86 XII. Its Organization and Equipment 88 XIII. Its Relation to Church and Home 92 THIRD TERM— PART I Seven Lessons on the Teacher By the Rev. A. H. McKinney, Ph. D. Lesson Page I. The Teacher's Life and Influence 97 II. The Teacher Preparing the Lesson 99 III. The Teacher at Work loi IV. The Teacher Questioning 104 V. The Teacher's Illustrations 106 VI. The Teacher and his Pupils 109 VII. The Teacher's Model m THIRD TERM— PART II Six Lessons on the Pupil By Prof. Walter C. Murray, D. D. Lesson Page VIII. Play 117 IX. Infancy "9 X. Childhood 121 XI. Childhood (Continued) .123 Xn. Youth 125 XIII. Youth (Continued) 128 FIRST TERM— PART I SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK Lesson I. Bird's-eye View of the Bible. II. The Old Testament. III. The New Testament. IV. How God's Revelation was Written and Preserved. V. The Story of the English Bible. VI. The Bible as Literature. LESSON I* BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF THE BIBLE I. What is the Bible? It is God's written revelation of his will, made to his chosen people, the Hebrews, become the sacred book of the Christians, and destined to guide the lives of all mankind. Discussion: Is this definition accurate? complete? Five-Minute Essay: The influence of the Bible on the world's history. Research: How widely is the Bible now used? About how many copies have been printed? II. Other "Bibles," so called, the sacred books of other religions, are : In China, the books of Confucianism and Taouism, which deal with morality and do not claim to reveal anything beyond this earth ; in India, the Vedas and other writings, a vast literature; in Burma, Siam, and other Buddhist countries, the Tripitaka; in Persia, the Zend Avesta of the Zoroastrians; in Turkey, the Koran of the Mohammedans. A study of the dreary wastes of these "Bibles" leaves one with a most grateful sense of the unapproached and unique character of our inspired Scriptures. Five-Minute Essay: How far have these so-called "Bibles" been responsible for the deplorable condition of the countries that hold to them? Research: The opinion of great men regarding the Bible. Discussion: What has the Bible done for the Protestant nations? III. The name, Bible, comes from the Greek, biblia, meaning "books," which came from biblos, the name of the papyrus reed whose fibers made the leaves of ancient books. (Our word "paper"- is derived from papyrus.) Biblia, the Greek plural, came to be used as a Latin singular, and so "the Bible" means "the Book." Discussion: Is the name appropriate? why? IV. Bible names for the Bible are "the word of God" (Eph. 6:17), "the oracles of God" (Rom. 3:2), "the scriptures"— that is. * Note. — Lessons I to VI inclusive give suggestions for study, and for blackboard work with questions for review and examinations. In order to economize space these suggestions and questions are omitted from the other lessons. They are given here to show the teacher and the student what may be done. The class teacher is urged to suggest similar exercises for the 3 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE the writings (John 5:39), "the holy scriptures" (II Tim. 3:15), "the law, the prophets, and the psalms" (Luke 24:44), "the book of the law" (Josh, 1:8). "Holy Writ" is a term often applied to the Bible. Discussion: What different aspect of the Bible does each of these names bring out? Blackboard: A vertical list of these names, each followed by a brief statement of its significance. Research: The Bible's account of itself, as shown in such passages as Psalm 119. V. Many, yet one. The Bible is, as Jerome called it, "the divine library," a collection of books rather than one book, the literature of the Hebrew race. It was written by about forty different authors, extending from Moses to John through sixteen centuries. The writers were of many occupations, — kings, prophets, priests, fishermen, a farmer, a tax-collector, a tent-maker, a governor, etc. The books were written in Rome, Greece, Asia Minor, Palestine, Babylonia. Some are written in Hebrew, some in Greek. There is a wide range of theme and manner. Yet, notwithstanding this diversity, the books are bound together into a wonderful unity by their common ideals and by the thought of Christ that runs through them all. Discussion: What is the bearing of these facts on the inspiration of the Bible? VI. Divisions. The Bible is divided into the Old and New Testaments. St. Paul used these terms in II Cor. 3 : 6, 14. The word Paul used was translated by the Latin word testamentum (will), whence our Testament; but the word "covenant" is a better translation. Discussion: Why is "Covenant" a better name than "Testament"? What was the Old Covenant? the New? VII. The number of books in the English Bible is sixty-six, but originally several of these, such as Samuel and Kings, were joined together. In the Old Testament there are thirty-nine books and in the New Testament twenty-seven. pupils, varying tliem from time to time in order to prevent that monotony which has caused the failure of numberless attempts at teaching-training. Where students have not the help of a class teacher, they should make up for themselves, in connection with their study of the other lessons, exercises such as are suggested in this series of lessons. SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK Blackboard: Old Testament=39 books. 3 letters, 9 letters. New Testament=27 books. 3x9. VIII. The Canon of Scripture Is the list of books properly in the Bible, as distinguished from the apocryphal, or spurious, books, The canon of the Old Testament was largely determined by Ezra, the Great Synagogue, and Nehemiah. As nearly all the books of the Old Testament are quoted in the New Testament, the Old Testament canon must have been established by the time of Christ. The canon of the New Testament was gradually fixed by the agreement of Christian readers, and was authoritatively settled by the Council of Carthage, A. D. 397. The apocryphal writings are in every way inferior to the canonical books, and are evidently uninspired. Discussion: What books might seem, at first sight, less needed in the Bible? Why are they needed? QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW (Suggestion: The leader may appoint some member of the class to question the others.) Define the Bible. Name the so-called "Bibles" of other religions. What is the origin of the word "Bible"? What are some of the Bible names for the Bible? About how many persons wrote the books of the Bible? What were some of their occupations? In what countries were the books written? In what languages were they written? Through how many centuries did the writing extend? What unites these many books into one ? What are the main divisions of the Bible? Explain the origin of the word "Testament." What would be a better translation? How many books in the Bible? in the Old Testament? the New? How may we remember these numbers? What is the canon of Scripture? the Apocrypha? How was the Old Testament canon settled? the New Testament canon ? Why are the apocryphal books omitted from the canon? TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE LESSON II THE OLD TESTAMENT I. TLe language of the Old Testament is Hebrew, with the ex- ception of Dan. 2: 4 to 7: 28; Ezra 4: 8 to 6: 18; 7: 12-26; Jer. 10: 11, which are written in Aramaic, the language of Aram, the country between the Euphrates and the Tigris. Hebrew is one of the Semitic group of languages, to which belong Arabic, Syriac, and Ethiopic. Research: Why were those passages written in Aramaic? What are some of the characteristics of the Hebrew language? II. The Jewish division of the books of the Old Testament is threefold: (i) the Law — the five books of Moses; (2) the Prophets — ^Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Kings, Samuel, the Major Prophets (ex- cept Daniel), the Minor Prophets; (3) the Writings or Hagiographa (sometimes called "the Psalms") — Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesi- astes. Song of Solomon, Lamentations, Daniel, Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles. Discussion: What is the significance of this division? III. A logical division of the Old Testament books is three- fold: (I) Historical, (2) Poetical, (3) Prophetical. The Historical may be subdivided into the Pentateuch (the first five books), and the other histories. The Prophetical may be subdivided into the Major and Minor Prophets. Blackboard: Draw a six-pointed star. Print the letters O-L-D en the upper points and N-E-W on the lower points. In another color, print on the upper points the contractions H., Po., Pr. (Historical, Poetical, Prophetical). Some represent these divisions by the five fingers of the hand, but they are obliged to consider as major divisions the Pentateuch and the two subdivisions of the prophets, which is incorrect. IV. The Historical Books are seventeen: (i) the Pentateuch- Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; (2) the other historical writings — Joshua, Judges, Ruth, First and Second Samuel, First and Second Kings, First and Second Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther. Exercise: Break up the second division into three subgroups, relating to the judges, the kings, and th^ qxile. SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK Mnemonic: The initials of the Pentateuch books are Ge-l(a)nd. Ge is the Greek root for land, as in ge-ography, ge-ology. Note also that the other books follow in chronological order. Research: See the Dictionary for the etymology of Pentateuch. Sometimes Joshua is added to make the Hexateuch. Discussion: What pieces of poetry are found in these books? (See the Revised Version, in which the poetical parts are printed as poetry.) What elements of prophecy are mingled with these books? V. The Poetical Books are six : Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesi- astes, Solomon's Song, Lamentations. No single term properly in- cludes these six books, as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes belong rather to the "Wisdom" literature of the Bible. Job is dramatic, the Psalms and Lamentations are lyric, Solomon's Song is idyllic. Blackboard: The initials of these books are to be written (in still another color) in the proper point of the star. VI. The Prophetical Books are sixteen: (i) the four Major Prophets — Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel; (2) the twelve Minor Prophets — Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. Discussion: What poetical elements enter into these books? What admixture is there of the historical element? Mnemonic: The Major Prophets are arranged in chronological order. Remember the order of the Minor Prophets by their first syllables, joined in the sing-song words: Ho-jo-a'-mos, Ob-jo-mi'-na, Ha-ze-ha'-ze-ma. Research: Are the Minor Prophets arranged in chronological order? VII. The Old Testament Apocrypha consists of the Book of Baruch and Epistle of Jeremiah ; the Prayer of Manasses (the re- pentant king) ; three additions to Daniel — the Song of the Three Children, Susanna and the Elders, Bel and the Dragon; First and Second Esdras (additions to Ezra and Nehemiah) ; Tobit, and Judith (two romances) ; the Wisdom of Solomon, and Ecclesiasticus (two proverbial books) ; two books of the Maccabees (leaders in the Hebrew struggle for independence in the second century before Christ). These books have come to us in Greek, though some had 8 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Hebrew originals. They are of varying worth and interest, but all are manifestly uninspired. Essay: Why the Old Testament apocrypha is excluded from the canon. VIII. Useful Drills. Name the books of the Old Testament. Name them backward. Test your ability to turn readily to the less- known books. "Bound" various books, naming the division in which the book is found, and the books immediately before and after it. The class may draw slips of paper each containing the name of a book which must be "bounded" thus. Wooden strips on which are printed the names of the books may be hung from hooks in a horizontal row, and the scholars drilled to hang them rapidly in the proper order. Give out for spelling the less familiar names — Haggai, Habakkuk, ecc. Spell the names liable to mispronunciation and have them pro- nounced — Zechariah, Isaiah, Habakkuk, etc. Let the class dictate the contractions of the names of the books, as you write them on the blackboard. QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW Suggestion: The leader may write these questions on slips of paper, which will be drawn by the scholars, and answered in any ©rder. In what languages was the Old Testament written? To what group of languages does Hebrew belong? What is Aramaic? What is the Jewish division of Old Testament books? What is a more logical division? Name the historical books of the Old Testament; the poetical; the prophetical. Show how historical, poetical, and prophetical elements mingle throughout the Old Testament. What are well-marked subdivisions of the historical books? of the prophetical books? Of the poetical books, which two are "Wisdom" books? which are lyric? which is an idyll? which is dramatic? What does the Old Testament apocrypha contain? In what lan- guage has it come to us? What is its general character? SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK LESSON III THE NEW TESTAMENT I. The New Testament (see Lesson I) is more exactly called "The New Covenant." Sometimes this part of the Bible is simply called "The Testament." The books of the New Testament were written during the half century from A. D. 52, or even earlier, to about A. D. 96. Four of the writers were apostles, two were companions of the apostles, two were our Lord's brothers and probably not apostles. One purpose unites all the books — to set forth the character and teachings of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. Research: Arrange the books according to their authors; accord- ing to the places where they were written. Discussion: The size of the New Testament as compared with the Old Testament. The connection between the two. Their comparative influence in modern life. II. The language of the New Testament is Greek. It is not the classical Greek, however, but "Hellenistic," a Judaeo-Greek lan- guage that has been called "Hebrew thought in Greek clothing." The Gospel of Matthew may have been written originally in Hebrew. Research: How the Hebrews came to use the Greek language. Essay: The principal differences between classical and New Testament Greek. Discussion: How was it providential that the New Testament was written in Greek? III. The divisions of the twenty-seven books of the New Testa- ment are three: (i) Historical, (2) Doctrinal, (3) Prophetical. The Historical may be subdivided into the four biographical books and The Acts; the Doctrinal, into the Pauline Epistles and the Epistles written by others. Blackboard: Using these subdivisions as main divisions, we have five divisions, which some represent by the fingers of the hand. The three-fold division, however, is more logical, and may be represented by the lower half of the six-pointed star drawn in the previous lesson. Print on the points the initials H., D., and Pr. 10 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Discussion: Show how, to some extent, the historical, doctrinal, and prophetical elements appear in each of the three di- visions. IV. The Historical Books are five: (i) the four lives of Christ, written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; and (2) The Acts, the history of the early church. The four biographies are often called the Gospels. John's is called "the Fourth Gospel," and the others are "the synoptic Gospels," so called because of their general similarity, while John's Gospel was written later and supplements the first three. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, are called "the four evangelists." Luke wrote also The Acts. Research : See the Dictionary for the origin of the words "synop- tic," "gospel," and "evangelist." Essay: How account for the many exactly parallel passages in the synoptic Gospels? V. The Doctrinal Books are twenty-one: (i) the Pauline Epis- tles — Romans, First and Second Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, First and Second Thessalonians, First and Second Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews; (2) the Epistles by others than Paul — James, First and Second Peter, First, Second, and Third John, Jude. These last are sometimes called the Gen- eral or Catholic Epistles, because all but Second and Third John were written for the church at large, and not to persons or to individual churches. The letter to the Hebrews is anonymous, but it is Pauline in thought and in much of its language. Mnemonic: Remember the order of Galatians, Ephesians, Philip- pians, Colossians by the vowel order, a, e, i, o. Exercises: Arrange Paul's letters according to the order of writing. Which were written to persons? which to churches? Which are the "prison Epistles"? What three are called the "pastoral Epistles," and why? VI. The Prophetical Book is The Revelation {not "Revela- tions"), written by St. John. It is sometimes called the Apocalypse — a word of Greek origin, meaning "disclosure" or "revelation." The apocalyptic book of the Old Testament is Daniel, and the two books are closely related. VII. The New Testament Apocrypha consisted of such books as the Epistle of Clement, the Epistle of Barnabas, and the Shepherd SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK 11 of Hermas, together with apocryphal Gospels (like the recently discovered Gospel of Peter), and apocryphal Acts, Epistles, and Apocalypses. These were written later than the New Testament, and were compiled from it, or fanciful additions to it, chiefly writ- ten to bolster up heresies. The miracles they describe are fantastic, their accounts of the childhood of Christ are absurd, and in every way they are unworthy of a place in the Bible. Most of them have come down to us only in name or in a few fragments. By contrast, they afford the strongest possible testimony to the authenticity of the New Testament. VIII. Useful Drills. Exercises in naming the books of the New Testament, "bounding" them, in spelling, pronunciation, and contractions. See Section VIII of the preceding Lesson. QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW Suggestion: The leader may conduct this review as a written examination, dictating the questions to the class and pausing for them to write their answers. How did the name, "New Testatment," originate? What is a better translation? When was the New Testament written? by whom? for what purpose? What is the New Testament language? In what language may Matthew have been written originally? Name the three divisions of New Testament books. Make sub- divisions. Name the Historical books. What are the synoptic Gospels? What name is sometimes given to the writers of the Gospels? Name the Doctrinal books, placing them in subdivisions. Which of the "General Epistles" are not general? Which Epistle is anonymous? Which are the "prison Epistles"? the "pas- toral Epistles"? What is the prophetical book of the New Testament? What other name is given to it? With what Old Testament book is it most closely connected? Name some of the New Testament apocryphal writings. Why were they excluded from the canon? 12 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE LESSON IV HOW GOD'S REVELATION WAS WRITTEN AND PRE- SERVED I. The Old Testament was written with ink on rolls of skin or parchment, and anciently in a script that differed from the modern square characters of the Hebrew. Only the consonants were writ- ten, the vowels being supplied by the reader. Several of the letters were very much alike, and there was no system of punctuation or clear spacing between words. The traditional pronunciation was embodied in vowel signs above, below, and within the letters, inserted during the sixth or seventh century after Christ by scribes known as Massoretes ("masters of the tradition"). II. The oldest extant manuscripts of the Old Testament are of the ninth century after Christ. The loss of earlier manu- scripts is largely due to the Jewish custom of destroying or bury- ing worn-out manuscripts. We are brought nearer the ancient texts by two means: (i) When the Hebrews (perhaps during the exile) adopted Aramaic as their common speech, Bible Hebrew became largely unintelligible, and interpretations of it, called Targums, were prepared, first oral and then written, (2) Transla- tions or Versions of the Old Testament also help to show the ancient text. The oldest is the Septuagint translation into Greek, begun at Alexandria under Ptolemy Philadelphus 285-247 B. C. The Septuagint (Greek "seventy") takes its name from the legend that seventy (or seventy-two) Jewish scholars were shut up in separate cells, from which in time they emerged each with a translation, all the translations being precisely the same ! Other an- cient versions are the Syriac of the first or second century, and Jerome's Latin translation (the Vulgate), about A. D. 400. III. The New Testament was written first, probably, on rolls of papyrus, an imperfect paper made of the pith of the papyrus reed (Moses' bulrush). Very early in the Christian era, however, the supply of papyrus failed, and the skins of young calves (vellum) or sheep and goats (parchment) were used. Coarse paper from cotton rags was introduced in the ninth century, and linen paper in the twelfth, just before the invention of printing. The ink SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK 13 was soot or lampblack mixed with wine-lees or gum. The pen was a reed or a metal stylus. It was the custom for authors to dictate to amanuenses (as Paul, we know, did), and copies were made by hand at little expense, slave labor being used. Later, the Christian scribes in the monasteries were most painstaking and accurate transcribers. Finally, in 1456, came Gutenberg's Latin Bible, the first printed book. IV. Uncials are the most ancient manuscripts of the New Tes- tament. They are so called from the Latin uncia, an inch, the letters being sometimes an inch long. They are all Greek capitals, of small size, with no break between "the words or sentences, so that the lines look like one long word. The lines are of even length, no matter where the words are divided. It was very grad- ually that the simplest punctuation points were introduced, and the large initials at the beginning of sections, which in later centuries were so elaborately "illuminated." The early chapter-divisions, when there were any at all, were much shorter than ours, and were usually merely marked in the margins. Some manuscripts were written "stichometrically," each line containing one word or very few words, the columns being narrow, and several on a page. All of the manuscripts of the New Testament that have been preserved are books (Latin, codex), and not rolls (Latin, volumina). Blackboard: Print, in inch-long letters, some passage of the English New Testament in the fashion of these ancient Greek documents : — ANDWHENTHEYLOOKEDTHEYS AWTHATTHESTONEWASROLLE DAWAYFORITWASVERYGREAT Also stichometrically (Acts 7:2): — ANDHESAID BRETHREN ANDFATHERS HEARKEN V. The number of uncials discovered is about 120, but only one of these contains the entire New Testament. Some are mere fragments, one containing only six leaves. Each separate docu- ment is called a codex, and is distinguished by a letter or number and often by a descriptive name. 14 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE VL Palimpsests are manuscripts from which the vegetable ink of those early days has been scraped or washed ofif, and the costly vellum used again for other writings. Sometimes this happened twice. Occasionally the older writing grew strong again, or by chemical preparations it can be rendered legible, thus giving the scholar the task of deciphering two and sometimes three sets of writings, one above the other — a work of enormous dif^culty. Exercises: See the dictionary for the etymology of "palimpsest." Have each member of the class write a sentence and then another sentence over it, passing the document to his neigh- bor to decipher. Write a passage in invisible ink (lemon juice), and above it a passage in black ink. Warm the paper before the class, thus exhibiting the double writing. VII. The most ancient uncials are three: (i) Codex A, the Alexandrine manuscript, in the British Museum. It came from Egypt, and was written about the middle of the fifth century. At the close is added the only known copy of the earliest of the Apostolic Fathers, the Epistle to the Corinthians written by Clement of Rome. This was the first manuscript critically used to determine the true text of the New Testament. (2) Codex B, the Vatican manuscript, is jealously guarded in the Vatican library. It was written in the fourth century, perhaps as early as A. D. 325. It contains the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testa- ment), and most of the New Testament. The Epistles of Paul are written as one continuous book. (3) Codex X (Aleph, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet), the Sinaitic manuscript, in the Imperial Library at St, Petersburg. (Note that these three chief manuscripts belong to the three great divisions of Christendom — Protestant, Roman, and Greek.) The Sinaitic manuscript belongs to the fourth century. It was discovered in a most romantic way, by the great German scholar Tischendorf, in the convent of St, Catharine on Mount Sinai. The ignorant monks were on the point of using the priceless document to kindle fires. It contains a part of the Septuagint, all the New Testament (being the only complete uncial), and adds the Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas. Research: Learn about Codex D (at Cambridge, England), and Codex ^ (Sigma, the Greek S), found in a most interesting way at Rosanna, Italy, SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK IS Essay: The remarkable lives and labors of the three great bibli- cal scholars, Lachmann, Tischendorf, and Tregelles. VIII. What has become of the originals and earlier copies of the New Testament? They were doubtless written on papyrus, a fragile material that soon wore away. Besides, during the great persecutions the most bitter zeal was manifested in the destruction of all Christian books. Even as it is, however, our New Testament documents far exceed in antiquity and number those of the Greek an.d Roman Classics. IX. Cursives (Latin, curro, run) is the name given to the later manuscripts. About the beginning of the tenth century a more rapid running hand was used by the monks in copying, the letters being smaller, slanted, and often connected. There are about 2,400 cursives, but they are of less value than the uncials on account of their more recent origin. X. "Varied readings" are the variations in the text discovered by a study of these ancient manuscripts. They number, perhaps, 120,000, but the vast majority of them are unimportant, consisting of variations in single letters; very few affect the sense, and still fewer have any relation to the doctrines of the New Testament. XI. Early translations of the New Testament (called "ver- sions") are very valuable in determining the text. The old Latin version, made in North Africa (Carthage) in the second century, is older than the oldest uncial. The Vulgate (or "Common" Bible), the Latin translation still used by the Church of Rome, was made by Jerome in the fourth century. The Peshito ("Simple" or "Clear") version is in Syriac, and may have been made in the second century. Still more ancient Syriac versions come closest of all to the actual speech of our Lord; one of the oldest of these was discovered in palimpsest on Mount Sinai by Mrs. Agnes S. Lewis, in 1892. The ^thiopic version was made, in the fourth century, for the newly formed Christian church of Abyssinia. The Memphitic and Thebaic versions were made for the Christians of ancient Memphis and Thebes in Egypt. Other translations were made into Gothic, Anglo-Saxon, Persian, Arabic. XII. The Christian writers of the early centuries quote often from the New Testament, and thus afford us conclusive evidence for its authenticity. Among these are Irenseus (A. D. 177), 1 6 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Clement (born about A. D. i6o), Justin Martyr (born about A. D. lOo), Polycarp (disciple of St. John), and the authors of such ancient documents as the so-called "Epistle of Barnabas" (A. D. 120) and "the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles" (A. D. 140 or earlier). QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW Suggestion: The leader may divide the class into two parts, a question to be proposed by each half in turn, and answered by the other half. Describe the ancient Hebrew manuscripts. What did the Massoretes do for the Old Testament? How old are the oldest manuscripts of the Old Testament? What are the Targums? What is the Septuagint? What is the Vulgate? Describe the ancient manuscripts of the New Testament. What are uncials? What is stichometrical writing? What is a codex? What is a palimpsest? Name the three most ancient uncials, and describe them. What has become of the first New Testament manuscripts? Compare the New Testament with the manuscripts of Greek and Latin classics. What are cursives? What are varied readings? Their number and importance? Name the earliest versions of the Bible. Why are they valuable? How far back may the New Testament be traced by quotations in the writings of the Apostolic Fathers? LESSON V THE STORY OF THE ENGLISH BIBLE I. Anglo-Saxon Translations. Like Luther's Bible to Ger- many, our English Bible has been to the Anglo-Saxon race the fountain head of its language and literature. The people of Eng- land, however, were Christian for centuries before they possessed the Bible in their own language. The first attempt at translation was rather a poetical paraphrase, and was made about A. D. 680 by Caedmon, the poor Saxon cowherd, whose beautiful gift came, as he thought, in response to a celestial dream. Prose translations SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK \^ of portions of Scripture followed, the most famous being the work of the Venerable Bede, who died in A. D. 735, just as he was finishing his version of the Gospel of John. King Alfred himself was among these translators. Essay: The influence of the Bible on the great English writers (Shakespeare, Milton, Browning, Tennyson, Ruskin). Research: The character of Caedmon's poems. II. Wyclif s Translations. John Wyclif, "the Morning Star of. the Reformation," "the Evangelical Doctor," was also the first translator of the Bible into English. His struggles against the Church of Rome led him to see the need of the Bible in the lan- guage of the people, if any reform was to be accomplished, and by the middle of 1382 he, with the aid of Nicholas de Hereford, had completed the first English Bible — 150 years before Luther. Wyclif's Bible, and John Purvey's revision that followed, were tianslations of a translation, being derived, not from the Greek, but from Jerome's Vulgate; but the diction was nobly clear and forcible, and the common people read the book gladly. Blackboard : A specimen of Wyclif's translation. Essay: The persecution of Wyclif, and how he met it. III. Tyndale's Version. During the century following Wyclif, printing was invented, Erasmus issued (1516) the first edition of the Greek New Testament, the Hebrew Bible was first printed (1488), and in 1520 came the "Complutensian Polyglot"— the Bible in the original languages, with grammars and vocabulary. All these aids were used by William Tyndale, whose passion for Bible- translation caused his exile from England and his martyrdom in 1536. He succeeded in translating into English a large part of the Bible, sending out in 1525 the first printed New Testament in English, and in 1530 the Pentateuch. His translation was inde- pendent of Wyclif's, and became the father of all later versions, even the Victorian Revision going back to many of his translations. Essay: Tyndale's heroic life. Blackboard: A specimen of Tyndale's translation. Research: What our Bible owes to Erasmus. The first printed Bibles. IV. Coverdale. Matthews. Taverner. One of Tyndale's friends, Miles Coverdale, also an exile, published in 1535 the first l8 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE complete English Bible. This version was based on "Luther, the Vulgate, and Tyndale, rather than on the Greek and Hebrew. In 1537 there was issued from Holland an English translation of the Bible by "Thomas Matthew," who was probably John Rogers, the first martyr in the reign of "Bloody Mary." Matthew's Bible is a compound of Tyndale's and Coverdale's works, with useful notes and chapter headings. The first English concordance was based upon it, made by Warbeck and published in 1550. Matthew's Bible was published with the permission of Henry VHI, and was therefore the first authorized version. It was revised (1539) by Richard Taverner, who made some of the renderings more pointed. Research: Luther's translation of the Bible, and what Germany owes to it. Discussion: The value of chapter headings in the Bible. The wise use of concordances. Essay: The martyrdom of John Rogers. V. The Great Bible (so-called because it was a large folio) was published in 1539. It was edited by Coverdale, on the request of Henry VIII's great minister, Thomas Cromwxll. It is a careful revision of Matthew's Bible, and its melodious version of the Psalms is the one still used in the English Prayer Book. Copies of this Great Bible were ordered placed in every church, and it was a common sight to see groups of peasants gathered about them, while one of their number read the blessed words aloud. Research: A comparison of the Psalms in the English Prayer Book and in our modern versions. VI. Whittingham. The Genevan Bible. The persecutions of Queen Mary's reign drove many reformers to Geneva. One of these, William Whittingham, published in 1557 a valuable transla- tion of the New Testament based upon Tyndale. He was the first to use different type to indicate words not found in the original but inserted to make the meaning plain, like the italics of our Bibles. He also introduced into English the verse divisions, which in 1560 were applied to the entire Bible. In that year the Genevan Bible was published, the work of a company of exiled scholars, of whom Whittingham was one. Discussions: The advantage and disadvantage of verse divisions. The wise use of marginal references. SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK IQ VII. The Bishops' Bible, of 1568, was a revision of the Great Bible, designed to supplant the Genevan version. It was planned by Archbishop Parker, who divided the work among certain scholars, many of them bishops. The result is a translation of varied excellence, the use of which was rather a matter of authority than of value, though it contained many happy and original ren- derings. VIII. Roman Catholic Translations. The success of these Protestant versions compelled the Roman Catholics to issue a trans- lation into English. This was made during Elizabeth's reign by English Roman Catholics who had fled to Douai in Flanders. Their New Testament was first published at Rheims, in 1582. It is a trans- lation of Jerome's Latin translation, with occasional use of the Greek, but is extremely literal, and full of Latin terms — some of which, however, have been transferred into our Protestant Bibles and have become common English words. Romish doctrines strongly influenced the translation and the marginal notes. It was not till 1610 that the Douai Old Testament appeared. Essay: Differences between the Roman Catholic Bible and ours. IX. The Authorized (or King James) Version of 1611. The Great Bible, Genevan Bible, and Bishops' Bible, were all in use, which was confusing. Under the patronage of James I, therefore, a new version was formed, which was to be supreme for two and a half centuries. Forty-seven translators were selected, eminent scholars, and to each was assigned a portion of the Bible. Two and three-fourths years were spent on the task. A very full and careful use was made of all the work that had gone before, even the Roman Catholic Bible, and the excellencies of all versions were incorporated in this great one. Nevertheless, it seems never to have been formally "authorized" by any authority, and it passed only slowly, and against bitter opposition, into the universal favor it came gradually to enjoy. Essay: The preface (not the dedication) of the King James ver- sion, as illustrating the spirit of the translators. X. The Revised (or Victorian) Version. Through all these years many unauthorized editors and publishers introduced im- provements in the translation of 161 1; but the discovery of the most ancient manuscripts, that were entirely unknown in King James's time, the changes in our language, and the defects even in TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE the noble version itself, made a thorough revision necessary. This was undertaken by the Church of England, which formed two companies of distinguished scholars from all denominations, one for the Old Testament and one for the New, with corresponding American companies working in close cooperation. After ten and one-half years of labor, in 1881, the Revised New Testament was published, and after four years more, in 1885, the Revised Old Testament. In 1901 (having waited according to agreement) the American revisers published the American Revision, containing their own preferences, so far as they had not been adopted by the English companies, and making many improvements. These ver- sions, like the King James Bible, are coming into use very slowly; but earnest students of the Bible use them with great delight and profit. Discussion: Reasons why the Revised Version is so slowly adopted. Essay: Examples of the improved renderings in the Revised Version. Discussion: Which is to be preferred, the American or English revision? QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW Suggestion: The leader may divide the class into two "sides," and conduct the review like a spelling match. Who first translated the Bible into English? In what year? Who preceded him with paraphrases and partial translations? Who was the second great English translator? What Bible translators were martyred? Who published the first printed English Bible? What was the Complutensian Polyglot? What translator was martyred by ''Bloody Mary"? What was the first authorized version? Who edited the Great Bible? when? Why was it so called? In what European city were English Protestant translations made? Catholic translations? What was the Puritans' Bible? Why was the Bishops' Bible so called? When was the King James Bible published? the Revised Bible? the American Revision? Name in order the great English translations of the Bible. SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK 21 LESSON VI THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE I. Hebrew verse is not based on rhyme or meter, but on "parallelism," the balancing of clauses, one thought being followed by another which reflects it. Example: Job, ch. 41. Canst thou draw out leviathan with a fishhook? Or press down his tongue with a cord? etc. The verse may run in couplets (as in Job, ch. 41), in triplets (Ps. 1:1), in quatrains (Ps. 121), and also in longer groups. The re- frain is sometimes used (Ps. 136). Hebrew poems are often ar- ranged in more complicated stanzas called strophes, all of the same form (Ps. 107 — note also the double refrain). In the Revised Version the poetry is generally printed in verse form. Exercise: Find other examples of couplets, triplets, quatrains, refrains, and strophes. II. Symmetrical arrangement is common in Hebrew prose as well as verse, and the two often run into each other. Note, for example, the balanced structure of the first two chapters of Amos. Arrangement in sevens is often made, as in the seven letters to the churches (Rev., chs. 1-3); or in fives, as the five books of Psalms. Sometimes the poems are acrostics, the stanzas or the lines be- ginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Ex- amples are Psalms 119, iii, 34, the Lamentations of Jeremiah. III. Poems are Lyric (poems of thought and emotion), Epic (poems of description), and Dramatic (poems of action). The Bible contains nothing that may be called exactly a drama, the nearest approach to it being the Book of Job. Bible lyrics, how- ever, are often dramatic (for example, the Song of Solomon), and the prophets often use dramatic action as the text of their dis- courses (e. g., Jer. 19: 10). Exercise: Find other examples of dramatic action throughout the Bible. Essay: A literary study of the Book of Job. IV. The Lyrics of the Bible take many forms. Some are elaborate odes, such as the Song of Deborah (Judges, ch. 5), the Song 22 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE of Moses and Miriam (Ex., ch. 15), and the patriotic ode, Psalm 78. Some are simpler, and may be called songs, like the ''Songs of Degrees" or "of Ascents" (Psalms 120-134), the songs of pilgrim- age, sung as the Hebrews went up to the feasts at Jerusalem or returned from the Exile. Some are elegies, and have a peculiar rhythm, the second member of each couplet being shortened or failing to parallel the thought of the first. The Lamentations of Jeremiah is an elaborate elegiac poem; other elegies are Psalms ^37 > 74, 80; II Sam. i: 19-27. The Bible contains one exquisite idyl, Solomon's Song. Exercise: Find psalms that may be called odes, and others that may be called songs (hymns, prayers, meditations, etc.). Find songs in the prose portions of the Bible, like the Song of the Sword, in Gen. 4 : 23, 24. Essay: A literary study of Solomon's Song. V. Epics, in the conventional sense, like the Iliad or ^neid, are not found in the Bible, for the Bible epics are all in prose, save that sometimes, as in the story of Balaam, they mingle prose and verse. Many stories, however, like that of Joseph, are treated in the epic style, being creative, rather than prosaic, description. They are none the less true, of course, because of their poetical style. Other Bible stories that stir the imagination after the fashion of an epic are the accounts of Esther, Gideon, Jephthah, Jacob, Samson. The Book of Ruth is an "epic idyl," and the epic characteristics appear in the narratives of the great prophets, Elijah, Elisha, Daniel, and Jonah. Exercise: Find other examples of prose epics in the Bible. Essay: The essentials of an epic, as illustrated in the history of Elijah. VI. Histories (including these epic passages) occupy a large part of the Bible. Genesis is the ancient history of the Hebrews. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, make up their constitutional history, the establishing of the national order. The Book of Chronicles is ecclesiastical history — history considered from the standpoint of church authority, as distinguished from the record of the same events in Second Samuel and Kings, which is national history. The Acts is the ecclesiastical history of the New Testament. Essay: Bible histories as models of clearness, simplicity, and power. SIX LESSONS ON THE BOOK 23 VII. Biographies, of course, are interwoven with the Bible his- tories, as in the prose epics already mentioned. The leading Bible biographies are the four Gospels, which present the character of our Lord in four aspects: Matthew, as the Messiah of prophecy; Mark, as the Saviour of the Gentiles; Luke, as the Redeemer of the world; John, as the Son of God, and the personal Saviour of the individual reader. Discussion: Is this characterization of the Gospels just? VIII. Bible Orations. Discourses of various lengths are found in nearly all the books of the Bible, and illustrate all styles of oratory — rhetorically elaborate, as in Job; argumentative, as Paul's on Mars' Hill; historical, as Stephen's; invective, like Christ's de- nunciation of the Pharisees; diplomatic, like the Rabshakeh's before Jerusalem; ilhtstrative, like Christ's parables. The book of Deuter- onomy is throughout an oratorical masterpiece. Exercise: Find other examples of Bible oratory. Essay: What an orator could learn from Deuteronomy. Discussion: Bible prayers — what are the chief examples? IX. Epistles are written discourses, and partake largely of the nature of orations, or oral addresses. The epistles of the Old Testament are unimportant, and scattered through the various books (as Jer., ch. 29), but the New Testament epistles are second only to the Gospels in power and influence. They are letters to churches (like Paul's to Corinth), or to individuals (Timothy, Philemon), or to races (Hebrews, Romans). Sometimes, in the form of a letter, they are theological treatises (Rom., Heb.), and sometimes special instructions and exhortations (Peter, Col.). Exercise: Find other Old Testament letters. Essay: St. Paul as the world's greatest letter-writer. X. Philosophy is always called "wisdom" in the Bible, and the philosophy of the Scriptures may be called their "wisdom litera- ture." The simplest form is the proverb, either a simple verse couplet (Prov. 27: i), or a riddle like Samson's, or a prose maxim (Jer. 31:29). The proverbs may be grouped, those of kindred thought being loosely brought together (Prov. 26: 1-12). They may be expanded in epigrams (Prov. 22: 22, 23) or in longer poems analogous to sonnets (Prov. 30:18, 19; 23:29-35). The thought may be enlarged and rendered consecutive in an essay (Jas. 3:1-12). 24 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE The book of Ecclesiastes is a series of essays bound together by one plan— a study of Hfe-objects. Exercise: Find proverb couplets, triplets, and epigrams. Find other prose maxims. Find some Bible essays. Essay: A literary study of Ecclesiastes. XI. Prophecy is the loftiest department of Bible literature, and the most characteristic. It must not be confounded with our restricted modern sense of prediction; the prophet was the man who spoke forth the oracles of God. "Burdens'' is the technical term sometimes applied to the message. Hebrew prophecies are sometimes discourses analogous to our sermons (Isa., ch. i) ; some- times they pass into lyrics (Zeph.) ; sometimes they are based on symbols (Jer., ch. 13); sometimes they are visions (Ezek., ch. 27), or revelations (Dan., ch. 7, etc.); sometimes parables (Isa., ch, 5 and Christ's discourses); sometimes dialogues (Mai.); sometimes they pass into complex dramatic rhapsodies, which combine with sublime power many of the highest forms of verse and prose (Joel). Exercise: Discover other examples of these classes of prophecies. Essay: How the book of The Revelation takes up and carries on the prophecies of the Old Testament. QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW , Suggestion: Instead of using these questions, the leader may ask the members to propose questions of their own. What is the basis of Hebrew verse? What are some of the Hebrew verse-arrangements? What symmetrical arrangements are sometimes adopted in He- brew verse and prose? Name the three divisions of poetry. What portions of the Bible are dramatic? Name the principal forms of Hebrew lyrics. Give examples. In what form is the epic found in the Bible? Give examples. Classify the historical books of the Bible. Characterize the leading Bible biographies. What kinds of oratory are found in the Bible? Give examples. Discuss the various forms of epistles found in the Bible. Name (with examples) the types of philosophical literature which the Bible contains. What is prophecy? What are its leading forms? Give examples. FIRST TERM— PART II SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY Lesson VII. Adam to Moses. VIII. Moses to Saul. IX. Saul to the Babylonian Captivity. X. The Babylonian Captivity to Christ. XI. The Life of Christ. XIL The Life of Paul. XIII. The Apostolic Church. LESSON VII ADAM TO MOSES NOTES 1. The Bible is the history of divine revelations to men, culmin- ating, in the revelation in Jesus Christ and the founding of the Christian Church. Its central theme is the divine grace toward men, which reaches its highest expression in Jesus the Christ and the preaching of the gospel of salvation in all the world. 2. It is obvious to a casual reader that the Bible contains a well- defined scheme of history, that it interprets events, giving them their religious rather than their secular meaning, and that it repre- sents God as one of the active agents in the history of this world and of men. 3. The scheme of history as set forth in the Bible is conveniently divided as follows:* I. Adam to Moses. II. Moses to Saul. III. Saul to the Babylonian Captivity. IV. The Babylonian Captivity to Christ. V. The Life of Christ. VI. The Life of Paul. VII. The Apostolic Church. ADAM TO MOSES I. The Book of Genesis treats of this period, and this book ought to be read through in preparation for this lesson. II. The progress of the history of the world from the Creation * There is much chronological data in the Bible, but it has not yet been arranged into an entirely satisfactory order. The dates found in our reference Bibles are those computed by Archbishop Ussher (A. D. 1581-1656). Their inaccuracy in many cases is well established. It is now generally agreed that the period from Adam to Christ is much longer than 4,000 years. The dates given in these lessons are for the most part simply approximate, and are not uniformly accepted by the most competent scholars. 27 28 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE to the Exodus of Israel from Egypt is traced through seven epochal events: (i) The Creation of Man. (2) The hifroduction of Sin. (3) The Deluge. (4) The Dispersion. (5) The Call of Abraham. (6) The Wanderings of Jacob. (7) The Descent of Israel into Egypt. III. These events are deeply significant to the purpose of the Bible, which is to show God's connection with the world and with men, and his self-revelation to men; and this record of them is concerned solely with this religious purpose. IV. The historical religious value of these epochal events may be briefly indicated as follows: (i) The Creation of Man (Gen. i : i to 2:25). (a) God was the Creator of all things, including our first parents, who were the very crown and glory of creation, and who were made in the image of God. (b) The date of this event cannot be determined in the present state of our knowledge, but there is general agreement among scholars that it was so remote that the 4,000 years ordinarily assigned between it and the birth of Christ are but a small fraction of the interval. (2) The Introduction of Sin (Gen. 3: 1-24). (a) This disastrous event began in a temptation to man to yield to the gratification of his lower physical nature rather than to follow the command of God. (b) It was due to man's voluntary and willful disobedience of God's command. (c) It came at the end of a severe moral struggle. (d) It involved both parents. (e) It entailed terrible consequences upon man in his relation to God, to himself, to the rest of creation; e. g., sin, enmity, sorrow, death. (f) It gave birth to a hope of a redemption from all of these ter- rible consequences, expressed in the first promise, the "protevan- gelium" (Gen. 3: 15). (3) The Deluge (Gen. 6: i to 10: 32). SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 29 (a) This widespread natural calamity, involving the whole race, revealed man's close connection with nature, so that his moral conduct is rightly regarded as at times a cause of natural phenom- ena; God's close connection with nature so that he is really the power back of natural processes; God's merciful concern for the race, so that he did not utterly destroy it as it justly deserved because of its sins. (b) The Deluge was followed by new religious rites (Gen. 8: 20) ; new emphasis of God's close relations with man and his merciful in- tentions toward him (Gen. 9: 8-17). (4) The Dispersion of the Race (Gen. 11: 1-9). (a) This was due to God's displeasure at man's conduct and moral condition. (b) It resulted in the destruction of the bonds of unity among men and in the origin of the various races. (5) The Call of Abraham (Gen. 12: i to 25: 10). (a) Abraham, a native of Mesopotamia, is called of God to leave his people and go into an unknown land, where, according to the divine promise, he would become the father of a mighty nation, (b) In Palestine, the land promised to him and his seed forever, he is not permitted to have a fixed abode, but in his wanderings he consecrates the land to the One God by erecting altars to his worship. (c) In his old age God gave him a son, Isaac, who became the heir to the divine promise, and whose son Jacob was the father of the Hebrews. (d) Through Abraham the Hebrews were close of kin to the powerful nations that subsequently were their neighbors and often their enemies. (e) The distinguishing characteristic of Abraham was his faith in God, and he is called the father of all those who believe (Gal. 3: 6, 7). (6) The Wanderings of Jacob (Gen. 25: 19 to 36:43). (a) To this point in the narrative righteousness and sin have been represented as embodied in different individuals, but now they are embodied in the same individual, Jacob, causing a complex char- acter. (b) The divine purpose is wrought out through all the good and bad in Jacob, who suffers for his sin, grows in goodness, and ad- vances in the knowledge of God. 36 TtACHER-TfeAiNlNG COURSE (c) The divine promise, the right to which he obtained in his youth from his brother Esau by fraud, he subsequently received from God on the basis of character. (7) The Descent of Israel into Egypt (Gen. 37 : i to 50:26). (a) Of all the children of Jacob, the history selects Joseph as the one whose life-story is of deepest significance, because through him the Hebrews are brought into Egypt, where, under the bitter discipline of slavery, the beginnings of their national life are nur- tured. (b) The providence of God is conspicuous in the overruling of the follies and sins of Jacob, of his sons, and of Joseph's enemies in Egypt. (c) Moral worth is now seen (in Joseph's life) not always to bring its temporal reward, but it does not thereby lose its worth- iness. V. Through these epochal events the Book of Genesis traces the origin of man, of sin, of the great divisions of mankind, of languages, of the nations kindred to the Hebrews, of the Hebrew tribes, and of their separated life. Thus is the history of the race rapidly sketched from the creation of man to the death of Joseph, a long and indefinite period, with the manifest religious purpose of showing God's character, his agency in human history, and his unfolding plan to save the world. LESSON VIII MOSES TO SAUL I. The chronology for this period is uncertain. In the present state of our knowledge. 1317 B. C. and 1030 B. C., are as probable as any dates for the Exodus and the Coronation of Saul respectively. II. This period may be subdivided as follows: (i) The Oppression in Egypt. (2) The Exodus. (3) The Wilderness Wanderings. (4) The Conquest of Canaan. (5) The Heroes. (i) The Oppression in Egypt (Exod. 1:1 to 11: 10). SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 3I (a) Some time subsequent to the death of Joseph, the Pharaoh reduced the Hebrews to cruel bondage, and becoming alarmed at their rapid increase in numbers and their manifest power, sought, but in vain, their extinction. (b) God watched over this people; they came to have a growing sense of their unity and their destiny, and their exceeding bitter cry by reason of their task-masters reached unto heaven. (c) God provided a deliverer, Moses, whose infant life he pre- served and whose long training for his high mission he directed. (2) The Exodus (Exod. 12: i to 15: 27). (a) At the end of a long series of national calamities the Pharaoh permitted Moses and Aaron to lead forth Israel from Egypt, who, miraculously guided and guarded, came to Mount Sinai. (b) Here Israel formally entered into covenant with Jehovah (Ex. 19:1 to 20:21) renounced idolatry, received the Ten Com- mandments, improved their national organization and their ritual of worship. (c) The Feast of the Passover was estabHshed to celebrate their deliverance from Egypt and the divine care. (3) The JVilde7')iess JVanderings. (a) The remaining portion of the Pentateuch contains the data of these wanderings, which covered a period of about forty years. (b) Notwithstanding all their experiences of the divine grace and power, Israel soon broke the covenant made at Sinai, frequently lapsed into idolatry and other gross sins, and, once and again, were punished for their follies (Num. 11: 1-3; 16: 1-35; 21:4-9; 25: 1-5). (c) Their most serious error was at Kadesh-barnea, on the bor- ders of Palestine, whither they came shortly after leaving Sinai. They lost heart because of the perils and hardships of the way and resolved to return to Egypt. Moses by his wise leadership saved them from this folly, and God mercifully pardoned their unbelief. Nevertheless, all save Joshua and Caleb were to die before the tribes entered Palestine (Num. 13 : i to 14:38), (d) The discipline of the wilderness gave them an increased sense of tribal unity, an army of veterans, possession of the region east of the Jordan, and many signal evidences of God's care (Num. 9: 15-23; 20:2-13; 21:21-31). (e) Moses, their leader, one of the greatest men of ancient times, is permitted to see but not to enter Palestine, and, having brought them to the borders of the land on the east, he dies, and 22 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Joshua becomes his successor (Num. 27:12-23; Deut. 31:14-23; 34: 1-12). (4) The Conquest of Canaan (Josh, i : i to 11:23; 15:13-19; 17: 14-18; cf. Jud. 1 : 1-36). (a) Under the leadership of Joshua, during a period of twenty- five years, Israel crossed the Jordan, captured Jericho and other fortified places, and established themselves in southern Pales- tine. (b) But the time was not long enough, nor were they sufficiently united, to conquer the whole land or to present a united front against their numerous and powerful neighbors on the west and north. (5) The Heroes (Jud. 2 : i to 21 : 25 ; Ruth, chs. 1-4; I Sam. i: i to 7: 17). (a) Israel, having only partially conquered Palestine and being surrounded by enemies, were subject to frequent and disastrous attacks. (b) From time to time strong leaders arose, called "Judges," more properly Deliverers or Heroes, who successfully resisted attacks or wrought deliverances for their enslaved tribes. (c) The more notable of these Heroes were Gideon, Deborah (with Barak), Samson, Eli, and Samuel, the last and greatest of them. (d) This period extends from the death of Joshua to the Early Monarchy, a period of great disorder and of uncertain duration, perhaps not above two hundred years, during which Israel was more or less influenced by the Canaanites in their political, in- dustrial, and religious views and practices. (e) Many of the influences from their neighbors were corrupting, but Jehovah graciously continued to watch over them, once and again saved them from being overwhelmed, and caused the dis- cipline of these years to bring them to better things. III. At the beginning of this period the Israelites were in bondage in Egypt, then they became a body of nomadic tribes, and at the end of the period, they are in their own land, leading an agricultural and merchant life, with a growing sense of unity, and a desire for the expression of that unity and for the preserva- tion of peace and order in a central government under a king. IV. Throughout the period the Israelites have been under SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 33 the care and the discipline of Jehovah, and although they have been disobedient and have shown marked disposition to lapse into idolatry, yet they have signal and effective lessons in the power, grace, and righteous character, of God. LESSON IX SAUIi TO THE BABYLONIAN" CAPTIVITY I. A new era in Israel's history begins with the Coronation of Saul, 1030 B. C, and continues with varying fortunes to the Downfall of Jerusalem, 587 B. C. The tribal life ends and the national life begins, although the old order survives in many and influential ways, so that the national unity was more than once imperiled. II. The history of the period is told in two separate accounts, First and Second Samuel and First and Second Kings being one; First and Second Chronicles being the other. The period covers about 460 years. III. The period may be subdivided into four subperiods: (i) The United Kingdom. (2) The Divided Kingdom. (3) The Downfall of the Northern Kingdom. (4) The Downfall of the Southern Kingdom. (i) The United Kingdom. (a) Saul came to the throne in the midst of a great Philistine oppression (I Sam. 13: 1-23). He was of the tribe of Benjamin, yet the other tribes were loyal to him in varying degrees; his reign was one unbroken series of conflicts with the Philistines, and came to an end, after a reputed duration of 40 years, in a disastrous battle in which he and his son Jonathan lost their lives and Israel was defeated. (b) David was the founder and organizer of a powerful state; a man of rare intellectual power; a general, poet, musician, and ruler of consummate ability. His reign, which covered another reputed 40 years, was marked by the choice of Jerusalem as the capital, the ascendance of the tribe of Judah. and the establishment of the nation as one of the world-powers. His dynasty continued to reign 34 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE in Jerusalem until the nation lost its independence, and his family continued until his last and greatest descendant, Jesus of Nazareth, (c) Solomon reigned for another reputed 40 years, signalized his reign by building the Temple in Jerusalem and also palaces and cities (I Kings 9: 10-19). His reign was magnificent, despotic, and oppressive (I Kings 10:23-29; 12:4). He left an empire ex- tending far beyond the limits of Palestine, but so unstable that it fell to pieces upon his death (I Kings 4:20, 21), (2) The Divided Kingdom. (a) Upon the death of Solomon, Jeroboam led ten of the tribes in revolt against the house of David (I Kings 12: 12-20) established the "Kingdom of Israel," or "Northern Kingdom," built his capital at Shechem, and made new religious centers (I Kings 12:25-33). The capital was subsequently removed to Samaria (I Kings 16: 24); nineteen kings representing seven dynasties reigned over "Israel"; the relations with "Judah" fluctuated from bitter hostility to close alliance ; conflicts and alliances with Syria, Assyria, and Egypt, were frequent and eventually brought about the downfall of the kingdom. (b) The revolt of the ten tribes left to the house of David the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, which ever remained loyal to that great house through all its varying fortunes and formed the "King- dom of Judah," or "Southern Kingdom," with its capital at Jerusa- lem. During this period nineteen kings of the dynasty of David reigned over "Judah." (c) Among the kings of "Israel" Jeroboam I (II Chr. 12:15 to 13:20), Jehu (II Kings 9: i to 10:36), Jeroboam II (II Kings 14: 16-29) were conspicuous; among the kings of "Judah" Jehosha- phat (I Kings 15:24; II Chr. 17:1 to 20:34), Uzziah (II Chr. 26: 1-23), Hezekiah (II Chr. 28: 27 to 32: 32) were prominent. The great prophets were Elijah (I Kings 17:1 to 19:21; II Kings 2:1-11), Elisha (II Kings 2:12 to 9:10; 13:20) in the Northern Kingdom, and Isaiah (Isa. 1:1) in the Southern Kingdom. (3) The Downfall of the Northern Kingdom. (a) Through the misrule of its sovereigns, its internal dissen- sions, its unfortunate foreign alliances, the disintegrating influence of its flagrant idolatry and immorality, "Israel" came to an end in the downfall of its capital. Samaria, in 721 B. C, at the hands of Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, and the ten tribes were carried into captivity and disappeared from history (II Kings 17:5-23). SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 35 (b) Into the territory of the Northern Kingdom the king of Assyria brought other captive peoples, v^ho, minghng with the poor Jews left by the conquerors, became the Samaritans of later times (II Kings 17:24). (4) The Downfall of the Southern Kingdom. (a) The forces which led to the overthrow of "Israel'' were at work in "Judah," though more slowly. By some degrees its re- ligious and moral life were less corrupt, therefore it had greater stabihty and a longer career. Yet as the result of its political, social, and religious decay, 134 years after Samaria fell, Jerusalem was taken by the Chaldeans in 587 B. C, and king and people were carried to Babylon. (b) Jeremiah and Ezekiel were the great prophets of this period. (c) Thus came to an end because of the follies and sins of the kings and people, the City of David, the Nation, the Temple-center of Jehovah worship, and the Jews' possession of Palestine. IV. This catastrophe was the closing scene of four hundred and sixty years of the Hebrew Monarchy, which began in a weak confederacy of the twelve tribes, grew to the strength and brilliancy of a great world-power, was rent asunder, lost its prestige, and finally perished; which was never free from the deadl^^ evil of idolatry and its consequent immorality; and which, notwithstanding the heroic efforts of prophets and God-fearing kings and a godly portion of the people, perished because it kept not the covenant with Jehovah. LESSON X THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY TO CHRIST I. This period extends from 587 B. C. to 4 B. C. Of its first one hundred and fifty-four years there is some record in the Old Testament; of the remaining four hundred and twenty-nine years Josephus and other secular writers are our sources of information. II. During the whole of this period, with one brief exception, Palestine was subject to foreign power, and the condition and life of the people present marked contrasts with those of the pre- ceding period. 36 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE III. The period divides into five epochs: (i) Captivity under the Chaldeans. (2) Restoration under the Persians. (3) Greek Supremacy. (4) Independence under the Maccabees. (5) Subjection to the Romans. (i) Captivity under the Chaldeans. (a) From the Fall of Jerusalem to the First Return of the exiles was about forty-nine years, (b) During this period the land lay waste, Jerusalem was a heap of ruins, and the few inhabitants were reduced to great poverty (Neh. i: 2, 3). (c) The Jews of the Captivity were differently treated in the different provinces of Babylon (Jer. 29:4-7, 22; Is. 14:3-6). (d) Yet the hearts of the faithful, godly Jews were homesick for their home land and their temple worship (Psa. 137). (2) Restoration under the Persians. (a) Cyrus, the Persian, overthrew the Chaldean empire, and in his first year, i. e., about 538 B. C, issued an edict for the rebuild- ing of the temple at Jerusalem, invited the Jews to undertake the task, and surrendered the golden vessels taken from the temple by Nebuchadrezzar (Ezra i: i-ii). This First Return probably was not participated in by many, met with opposition from the inhab- itants of Palestine (Ezra 4:4, 5), and was not a success. (b) A Second Return took place under Zerubbabel and Joshua, at the beginning of the reign of Darius Hystaspis, about 522 B. C, which included over 40,000 people besides servants, who began to lay the foundations of the temple, but, quickly deserting the work in order to build their own houses (Hag. 1:9), did not finish the temple until six years later (Ezra 6: 15). (c) In 458 B. C, Ezra, of the high-priestly family, went up to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and temple, to restore the purity of the temple worship and to isolate the Jews from other nations (Ezra 7: i-io; 9:1-4; 10: 16) ; in 445 B. C, Nehemiah went up to assist in the same work (Neh. 2:11; 6:15; 13:1-3). These two men worked for the same end, and together they accomplished the restor- ation of the Jewish people in their own land freed from every tendency to idolatry and filled with a spirit of exclusiveness which subsequently developed into bigotry of the most offensive type. SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 37 (3) Greek Supremacy. (a) In 333 B. C, Alexander the Great vanquished the Persians and obtained control of Palestine. He died before he consolidated his empire. (b) Palestine frequently changed masters; each change brought fresh oppression and suffering; large numbers of Jews were de- ported to Egypt; many others voluntarily sought new homes in other lands, leaving their hearts behind them. These foreign Jews became a connecting link between their Nation and the Gentiles, and were an influential factor in preparing the world for the preach- ing of the gospel. (c) Intrigues among the priests and nobles involved Jerusalem in serious political trouble and led Antiochus, in i68 B. C., to attempt the reduction of the afifairs of the city to order by massacre, en- slavement, and the occupation of a citadel by the Syrians. (4) Independence under the Maccabees. The blundering cruelty of Antiochus and his counselors pro- voked the Jews to revolt, and in two years, under the leadership of Judas Maccabseus, they had gained their independence. Civil war, treachery, bloodshed, and anarchy, characterized a large por- tion of this period, and yet the independence of the people was maintained for a hundred years. (5) Subjection to the Romans. (a) In 63 B. C., Pompey appeared in Syria at the head of a Roman army and, being appealed to by the contending factions in Jerusalem, took peaceful possession of the city, except the temple, where some of the Jews entrenched themselves, and which he reduced by siege. In 40 B. C., Herod was made king of the Jews by decree of the Roman Senate, but he did not come into pos- session of his kingdom until three years later, when he captured Jerusalem after the usual obstinate resistance. The reign of the Hasmonaeans, as the Herodian family is called, continued until the end of our Period. IV. With the reign of the Hasmonaeans, who were the repre- sentatives of the Romans, Jewish independence came to an end. The Jews were no longer a nation, only a people separated from other peoples by strong national and religious prejudices, yet torn into factions and warring sects by mutual distrust and hatred. V. The Messianic expectation, which had appeared In the ear- 38 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE liest period of their history, during these bitter years of subjection to other nations, had become intense and "would be content with nothing less than a miraculous restoration of the throne of David to an undoubted descendant of that king." It was the universal expectation that the Messiah would immediately appear, to deliver his chosen people. LESSON XI THE LIFE OP CHRIST I. The life of Jesus, the Christ, extends from 4 B. C. to A. D. 30. The Birth of Christ was adopted about A. D. 400 as the beginning of the era, and a mistake of four years was made in fixing it in the year 757 from the founding of Rome. It has since been found that it really occurred four years earlier, in 753 A. U. C, which puts it 4 B. C. II. The record of his life is found in the four Gospels, from which we are able to construct with reasonable accuracy a "har- mony," and present its main events in chronological order. III. His coming and mission had been foretold by the prophets and foreshadowed in sacrifices and temple ritual. He is the hope of the nations and the glory of his people. All the lines of past history converge and focus in him, and all the lines of subsequent history find their starting point in him. IV. His life may be divided into seven periods: (i) Infancy and Boyhood. (2) Preparation for the Ministry. (3) Judcean Ministry. (4) Galilcean Ministry. (5) Percuan Ministry. (6) Passion Week. (7) Resurrection and Ascension. (i) Infancy and Boyhood (Luke, chs. i and 2; Matt., ch. 2). The thirteen recorded events of the thirty years ought to be familiar to all. They are: Annunciation of the Birth of John the Baptist. Annunciation of the Birth of Jesus. SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 39 Visit of Mary to Elisabeth. Birth of John. Circumcision of John. Birth of Jesus. Visit of the Shepherds. Circumcision of Jesus. Presentation in the Temple. Visit of the Wise Men. Flight into Egypt. Return to Nazareth. Visit to the Temple at the Age of Twelve. (2) Preparation for the Ministry (Matt. 3:1 to 4:11; John 1:19-28). While all his previous years were a preparation for his ministry, yet the following four events were the more immediate preparation: Preaching of John. Baptism of Jesus. Temptation of Jesus. Witness to Jesus by John. (3) Judccan Ministry (John 2: 13 to 4:42). The first six months of his ministry were spent in Jerusalem and Judaea, with a brief stay in Galilee and again in Samaria. (4) Galilcean Ministry. (a) This was the longest period of his public life, covering about two and one-half years, and was characterized by intense activity in healing and preaching. (b) The most notable of his miracles were: The casting out of demons. Healing all manner of diseases. Raising from the dead Jairus's daughter and the widow's son. Feeding the five thousand. (c) The most notable of his teachings were: The Sermon on the Mount (Matt., chs. 5-7). The parables of the kingdom (Matt., ch. 13). His distinct claim to be the Messiah (Matt. 16: 13-20; John, chs. 5 and 6). (d) The most notable events were: The confession of his Messiahship by Peter (Matt. 16: 16). The Capernaum Crisis (John 6: 66-71). (e) This ministry began in great popularity, which was followed 40 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE by criticism, hostility, and opposition from the leaders of the people, and ended in the loss of his popularity, his practical withdrawal from public work, and devotion of himself to" the training of the Twelve. (5) Pcrccan Ministry. (a) This covered about the last six months of his public life, and was spent in Persea, east of the Jordan, where great crowds waited on his ministry of preaching and healing, while the rulers in Jeru- salem were plotting his death. (b) The most notable of his miracles was the raising of Lazarus from the grave, and the most notable of his teachings were the three parables of the lost found (Luke, ch. 15). (6) Passion Week. (a) The events of this week are: The Feast in his honor in Bethany. His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. Conflict with the Rulers. Last Supper. Agony in the Garden. Betrayal. Trial. Crucifixion. Burial. (b) The notable teachings of this week were the "Discourses in the Upper Room" (John, chs. 13-17). (c) This was the darkest week in the world's history, when the most beneficent life the world had known fell a victim to the most malignant hate, and the forces of evil triumphed over the forces of righteousness, and the Light of the world was extinguished. (7) Resurrection and Ascension. (a) On the third day after his crucifixion Jesus arose from the grave. On that first Easter and during the next Forty Days Ife appeared at intervals to his disciples, giving them many infallible proofs that he was alive. (b) At the end of the Forty Days, while he was with his disciples on Olivet, he was visibly taken up into heaven. \ (c) Thus did the Light of the world shine once more never to be extinguished, and thus was Jesus declared to be the Son of God with power (Rom. 1:4). SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 4I LESSON XII THE LIFE OF PAUL I. The greatest of the early disciples of Jesus, and the one who had more influence than any other in extending the church and determining the character of Christianity, was Saul of Tarsus, afterwards known as Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles. II. His life may be divided into four periods: (i) Before his Conversion to Christianity. (2) His Conversion to his Missionary Activity. (3) His Missionary Activity to his Arrest at Jerusalem. (4) His Arrest at Jerusalem to his Death. (i) Before his Conversion to Christianity. (a) He was born in Tarsus of pure Jewish blood (II Cor. ii : 22), a Pharisee (Acts 23: 6), a Roman citizen (Acts 22: 25), educated at Tarsus and at Jerusalem (Acts 22:3). (b) He was bitterly hostile to Christianity, as was shown by his participation in the stoning of Stephen and activity in the subsequent persecution of the disciples. There is no hint that he ever saw Jesus. It is supposed by some that he was a member of the Sanhedrin. (2) His Conversion to his Missionary Activity. While he is still a young man, and on his way to Damascus from Jerusalem to persecute the Christians he is suddenly converted to Christianity by a vision of the risen Jesus. He proceeds to Damas- cus, where he is baptized, is admitted to the company of the disciples, and continues with them, preaching the gospel, until he is driven from the city by his unbelieving countrymen. He flees to Jerusalem, and thence to Tarsus. There and elsewhere in Cilicia and Syria he preaches for about three years. Subsequently. Barnabas brings him to Antioch to assist him in establishing the church in that city (Acts II : 25, 26). (3) His Missionary Activity to his Arrest at Jerusalem. For about ten years, from A. D. 48, he was a tireless missionary. He made three notable missionary journeys, always starting from Antioch. The first was taken with Barnabas through the provinces of Asia Minor, resulting in the conversion of many Gentiles and the found- 42 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE ing of many churches, c. g., the churches of Galatia (Acts, chs. 13, m). The second was with Silas after the Council of Jerusalem, — which gave the Gentiles the same status in the church as the Jews, — in which they visited the churches of Asia Minor, entered Europe and founded among others the churches at Philippi, Thessalonica, and Corinth (Acts 15 : 36 to 18: 22), The third was devoted to visiting the churches already founded, to training Christian workers at Ephesus for evangelizing other places, and to collecting offerings for the poor saints at Jerusalem (Acts 18: 23 to 21 : 16). (4) His Arrest at Jerusalem to his Death. (a) Having brought the offering to Jerusalem, he is beaten by a mob of Jews in the temple, is imprisoned by the Roman captain, is tried before the Sanhedrin, is delivered from its unjust fury by the Roman captain, and is sent to Csesarea in order to thwart a conspiracy against his life, all within twelve days (Acts 21 : 17 to 23:35; 24: II). (b) At Caesarea he is brought several times before the Roman governors, Felix and Festus, and before Herod Agrippa, but is un- able to obtain justice, although he is not chargeable with wrong- doing. Hence, he appeals to Caesar at Rome, which he as a Roman citizen had a right to do (Acts 24: i to 26 : 32). (c) After many months of imprisonment at Csesarea, he is sent with other prisoners to Rome, whither he arrives after a perilous and eventful voyage (Acts 27: i to 28: 15). (d) His case does not come on for two years, and in the mean- time he is allowed liberty to preach to all who care to come to him (Acts 28: 16-31). This is as far as the biblical narrative brings us. (e) The date of Paul's death is uncertain; we are sure only of this, that he suffered martyrdom at Rome under Nero. There is a tradition accepted by many, though of doubtful credibility, that he was released at the end of two years, and made a journey into Spam, thence returned to Asia Minor, where he was re-arrested, hurried to Rome, and after a brief imprisonment was beheaded. III. Paul's influence in determining the extent and character of Christianity both in his own generation and for all time was due in a preeminent degree to his letters, of which we have thirteen pre- served to us. SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 43 LESSON XIII THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH I. When our Lord ascended he left no organization to per- petuate his work, nor did he leave with his disciples instructions with reference to the constitution and development of such an organization. He left the twelve apostles, whom he had particularly trained for the continuance of his work, and who with other disciples subsequently became the nucleus of the Christian Church. IL As time passed, the number of disciples increased, new communities and conditions were met. new problems emerged, and in their effort to solve these problems and meet the conditions the disciples were led to form an organization, which, gradually and with- out apparent design on the part of man and under the guidance of the divine Spirit, became the highly organized Christian Church of later history. III. The history of the Church covered by the New Testament extends from the Ascension of Christ to the Death of John, the last of the apostles, a space of seventy years, which may be divided into four periods : (i) The Christian Church in Jerusalem. (2) The Christian Church in Judcea and Samaria. (3) The Transition from Jewish to Universal Christianity. (4) The Christian Church in all the World. (i) The Christian Church in Jerusalem (Acts, chs. 1-7). (a) Before Pentecost, there were one hundred and twenty dis- ciples of Jesus, men and women in Jerusalem, who met for prayer, and who in other ways revealed a sense of community of feeling and of interest (Acts i : 12-26). (b) At Pentecost, May 27, A. D. 30, the Christian Church was born in a great miracle (the gift of the Holy Spirit), a great sermon (by Peter), and a great revival (three thousand were added to the company of disciples). These three characteristics have marked the subsequent progress of the church : The Holy Spirit in receptive men. The preaching of the truth as it is in Jesus. 44 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE The winning of new disciples through the combined power of the truth, of believers, and of the Holy Spirit. (c) After Pentecost, this first Christian community was char- acterized by : Apostolic teaching. Social worship. Celebration of the Lord's Supper. Temple worship. Gladness. Simplicity. Good repute. Growth. Community of goods (Acts 2 : 43-47) • A consciousness of its own independence and emancipation from the Jewish Church (Acts 4: 13-31)- Internal differences and increased organization (Acts 6: 1-6). Opposition and persecution, which led to the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, the dispersion of the disciples from Jerusalem and the spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire (Acts 6 : 8 to 8 : i ; 11 : 19) (2) The Christian Church in Judaea and Samaria (Acts, ch. 8). Through the preaching of Philip and others, Who were driven out of Jerusalem by the persecution that arose about Stephen, many disciples were won in this region, and with the sanction of the apostles churches were organized. (3) The Transition from Jezcish to Universal Christianity. The Christian Church was to be not a Jewish sect but a Catholic Church, therefore it must do an effective work among the Gentiles and must admit Gentiles to the same standing as the Jews. This transition must be made without breaking with the past; must be a development, not a revolution. This transition was effected through a series of important events (Acts, chs. 9-12). The call of Paul to be the Apostle to the Gentiles. The selection of Antioch as a new center of Christian ac- tivity. The winning of the first Gentile converts by Peter and the formal recognition of them by the mother church. (4) The Christian Church in all the World. (a) With its enlarged life and vision, the church at Antioch under the divine guidance of its able leaders, especially of Paul (Acts SEVEN LESSONS ON BIBLE HISTORY 45 13:1-4), began those missionary activities, which won Asia Minor and southern Europe to Christ. (b) The internal development of the church in the unfolding of its life under apostolic direction and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is indicated in the epistles of Paul and others in the New Testament. (c) Tradition says that through the labors of the apostles and their companions Egypt, northern Africa, Abyssinia, Arabia, Mesopotamia, and even India and China heard the gospel, and that before the death of John, the last of the apostles, about A. D. lOO, the same was true of all the world. SECOND TERM— PART I FIVE LESSONS ON THE LANDS OF THE BIBLE Lesson I. The Old Testament World. II. The New Testament World. III. Palestine : Facts concerning. IV. Palestine : The Physical Divisions. V. Palestine : The Political Divisions. lESSON I THE OLD TESTAMENT WORLD The Old Testament World extended about one thousand four hun- dred miles east and west, and about one thousand miles north and south. 1. Canaan, the little country bordering on the Mediterranean Sea, was the center of interest. The boundaries of other countries were fixed by Jehovah with reference to the Land of Promise (Deut. 32 : 8). Jerusalem, the chief city, was "set in the midst of the nations" (Ezek. 5:5). The principal cities and towns of Canaan were as follows: Jerusalem, the Holy City, was built upon several hills in the moun- tains of Judah. It was thirty-two miles from the Sea and twenty- four miles from the Jordan. Here David ruled over the united people of Israel (II Sam. 5:6-9). Here Solomon built the temple and ruled as king (II Chron., chapters 1-7). It was afterwards the capital of the kingdom of Judah. Hebron, twenty miles south of Jerusalem. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were often here and at Beer-sheba (Gen. 21 : 31-34), thirty miles farther southwest. Near Hebron is the cave of Machpclah, where these three patriarchs were buried (Gen. 49:31). Hebron was a city of refuge (Josh. 20: 7). David reigned here seven years and six months over the tribe of Judah (II Sam. 2: i), and here he was anointed king of all Israel (II Sam, 5:3). Bethel, ten miles north of Jerusalem, where God appeared to Jacob (Gen. 28:11; 35:15), and where Jeroboam established idolatry (I Kings 12: 32). Gilgal, the first encampment of Israel in Canaan (Josh. 4:19). Here stones from the Jordan were placed as a memorial (Josh. 4 : 20). It was a station in Samuel's judicial district (I Sam. 7: 16). Shiloh, twenty miles north of Jerusalem, where the ark of the covenant was kept from Joshua's time till the days of Samuel (Josh. 18: I ; I Sam. 4:4). Shechem, thirty miles north of Jerusalem, was a city of refuge (Josh. 21 :2i). Here Joshua's last address was delivered (Josh., ch. 24), and here Jeroboam reigned over the kingdom of Israel (I Kings 12:25). It is now called Nablous. 49 50 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Samaria, five miles northwest of Shechem, was built by King Omri (I Kings 16:24), and became the capital of the ten tribes. Jopf^a was the chief seaport (Jon., ch. i; II Chron. 2: 16; Acts 9:36). II. Chaldea was separated from Canaan by the Arabian Desert. Babylon, the capital, was on the Euphrates River, five hundred and fifty miles east of Jerusalem. The city formed an exact square, six- teen miles on each side. Its walls were eighty-seven feet thick, three hundred feet high, and pierced by one hundred gates of solid brass. It was Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who took the children of Israel into captivity (Jer. 21 : 7; Dan. 1:1). The Garden of Eden and the Tower of Babel were possibly located in Chaldea. Ur, of the Chaldees, was the early home of Abraham. III. Persia was east of Chaldea, and was about eight hundred miles from Jerusalem. Media and Elam were united to the Persian Empire (Esther 1 : 2, 3). The Persian capital, Sliushan, was in the province of Elam. Here Daniel served as prime minister of the Persian Empire. Here Esther lived as the queen of Ahasuerus, and later Nehemiah was cupbearer of the king in the same palace (Neh. i : i ; 2: i). By direction of the king of Assyria the captive Israelites were placed in the provinces of Media and Elam (II Kings 17 -6). IV. Assyria was north of Chaldea and Elam. Nineveh, the great city and capital to which Jonah was sent (Jon.), was located on the Tigris, six hundred miles from Jeru- salem. Like Babylon and Shushan, Nineveh became an utter ruin, but excavations have revealed the former splendors of these cities. V. Mesopotamia was located between the Tigris and Euphrates west of Assyria. It is also called Padan-aram (Gen. 25: 20). Haran, the capital city, was the stopping place of Abraham when with his father he journeyed from Chaldea toward Canaan (Gen. 11:31). VI. Armenia was situated north of Mesopotamia and about six hundred miles northeast from Jerusalem. The name Armenia is sometimes translated Ararat. It is thought to be the place where Noah's Ark rested after the f^ood (Gen. 8:4). TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE VII. Syria was west of Mesopotamia and in the line of travel between the Euphrates and the Sea. Damascus, the capital, was one hundred and fifty miles north of Jerusalem, and was built on an oasis in the desert, fertilized by the waters of the Abana and Pharpar (II Kings 5: 12). It was the home of Naaman whom Elisha healed of leprosy (II Kings 5: 14), and was the city to which Saul of Tarsus was journeying when con- verted. Damascus is now the oldest city of modern times. VIII. Egypt, the land of Hebrew bondage, was situated two hundred and fifty miles southwest of Jerusalem. Abraham came here in time of famine (Gen. 12: 10). Jacob and his family emi- grated to this country and were given the land of Goshen. On, or Heliopolis, was the home of Joseph's father-in-law (Gen. 41:45), and here it is thought Moses attended school. Remains of a great university have been found in this place. The Israelites built treasure cities for Pharaoh, Pithom and Raamses (Ex. i: 11). Explorers have located these in recent years. Alexandria, the modern capital, is on the Mediterranean Sea. LESSON II THE NEW TESTAMENT WORLD New Testament Geography embraces Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, Macedonia, Greece, and Italy. The important places in these lands may be conveniently grouped in two divisions, those visited by our Lord, and those visited by Paul. I. Places visited by Jesus: Bethlehem, where he was born (Matt. 2:1), was located on a hill six miles south of Jerusalem. This was also the birthplace and early home of David (I Sam. 17: 12). Here Ruth and Naomi lived (Ruth 1:22), and near this place Rachel was buried (Gen. 35: 19). Bethlehem is now a prosperous Christian village with a population of eight thousand people. Nazareth, where he spent his boyhood and early manhood (Luke 4: 16). It nestles in a cup-shaped valley in the mountains of Galilee, seventy miles north of Jerusalem. Early in his ministry Jesus preached here and was rejected (Luke 4:16-29; Matt. 13:56-58). FIVE LESSONS ON THE LANDS OF THE BIBLE 53 The most interesting object in modern Nazareth is the Fountain of the Virgin, to which Jesus and Mary must often have come. The population is six thousand, and like Bethlehem it is a Christian village. Bethany, where Jesus was baptized by John (John 1:28 A. R.), was on the Jordan River. Cana, where he performed the first miracle (John 2:1). "At the wedding of a humble pair he adorned and beautified the holy estate of matrimony." Cana was a short distance north of Nazareth. Sychar (John 4:5). Here at Jacob's Well Jesus conversed with the woman of Samaria (John 4:6). The distance from Jerusalem was thirty miles. Nain, in Galilee, where Jesus raised the widow's son (Luke 7: II-I5)- Capernaum, our Lord's home during the Galilaean ministry, was ninety miles northeast from Jerusalem, at the north end of the Sea of Galilee, whose waters were "plowed by four thousand vessels of every description from the war vessel of the Romans to the rough fisher boats." He taught in the Capernaum synagogue (John 6: 59), and wrought many miracles (Mark 1:21-34), Bethsaida and Chorazin (Matt. ii:2i> were situated near Caper- naum, Magdala, on the southwest border of the lake (Matt. 15: 39), and Dalmanutha one mile farther south (Mark 8: 10). Bethsaida- Julias and Gadara (Luke 9: 10-17; 8:26) were on the east side. Jericho, seventeen miles northeast of Jerusalem. Here Jesus healed the blind man (Luke 18:35-43), and saved Zacchaeus (Luke 19: i-io). The city was prominent in Old Testament times (Josh., ch. 6). Bethany, on the Mount of Olives. Jesus was often entertained here at the home of Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42). Here he raised Lazarus from the dead (John, ch. 11). Jerusalem, where he taught, wrought miracles, was falsely accused and condemned. Emmaus, to which he went with two disciples on the resurrection morning (Luke 24: 13-15). Fizr mountains of Jesus' ministry: Quarantania. near Jericho and the Jordan, is the mount of Christ's temptation (Matt., ch. 4). Horns of Hattin, a mountain near the Sea of Galilee, is the tradi- tional mount of the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:1). 54 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Mount Tabor (Jer. 46:18), in the plain of Esdraelon, is the traditional mount of the Transfiguration, but this theory has been abandoned. Mount Hcnnon, in the north, being now regarded as the place (Matt., ch. 17). Mount Calvary, a small skull-shaped hill on the north side of the Jerusalem walls, was the place of the Crucifixion. Mount of Olives, on the east side of the city, is the Mount of the Ascension. II. Foreign lands visited by Paul: The First Journey. Paul and Barnabas, having been set apart as foreign missionaries, started from Antioch in Syria, and, going to the seaport of Seleucia, sailed for the island of Cyprus. They preached in Salamis and Paphos, and thence sailed for Asia Minor. Landing at Perga, they went up to Antioch in Pisidia. After preach- ing there they turned eastward to Iconium and Lystra, where Paul was stoned, and went to Derbe. Thence they retraced their steps and came again to Antioch in Syria (Acts 13: i to 14: 26). The Second Journey. Silas was Paul's companion on this jour- ney. They started north from Antioch, and visited the churches at Derbe and Lystra, where Timothy joined them. Then they went westward through Phrygia and Galatia, and were led of the Spirit to Troas on the coast of the ^gean Sea. By a vision they were called into Europe. They came first to Neapolis in Macedonia, preached in Philip pi, where Lydia and the jailer were converted, and passed through Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessalonica, and Bercea. Thence they proceeded to Athens and Corinth. After that they sailed to Ephesus and from there to Jerusalem, ending their tour at Antioch (Acts 15: z^ to 18: 22). The Third Journey. Paul visited the churches in Galatia and Phrygia and came to Ephesus, where he labored for more than two years. Then he passed over to Macedonia and to Greece, where he remained three months. He visited the church at Philip pi, then crossed the sea to Troas and Assos. He sailed along the sea to Mitylene, Chios, Trogyllium, and Miletus, where he bade farewell to the Ephesian elders and sailed for Tyre, thence he came to Ptolemais, to Ccesarea, and to Jerusalem, where he was made a prisoner (Acts 18:22 to 21 : 17). The Journey to Rome. Paul was taken to Ccrsarca where he remained in prison two years. He appealed his casQ to Caesar anci 56 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE was taken under guard to Rome. The vessel stopped at Sidon and passed by Cyprus. At Myra they changed ships. They passed by Crete, were driven many days by a tempest and wrecked on the island of Melifa. Another ship carried them to Syracuse, they came to Rhegium, landed at Puteoli, and traveled by land to Ronw (Acts 23:31 to 28: 14). LESSON III PALESTINE: TACTS CONCERNING I. Its Name. It has been called "The Lord's Land" (Hos. 9:3), "The Land of Promise" (Heb. 11:9), "The Holy Land" (Zech. 2:12), "The Pleasant Land" (Dan. 8:9). Generally, however, it was one of the following : Canaan before it became the home of God's people (Gen, 16:3^ 17:8). Israel from the conquest till the Babylonian captivity (II Kings 5:2). Judcca after the Babylonian captivity (Neh. 5: 14; Mark 1:5). Palestine since the days of Christ. Palestine is the same word as Philistia. It was first used for the country of the Philistines. Josephus applied it to the whole land. II. Its Position. Palestine was the center of the ancient world (Ezek. 5:5), the "high bridge" connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa. It was near the great nations of Egypt and Assyria that Israel might observe their manners and be helped by that civilization that was worthy of imitation. It was favorably located for a rapid spread of the gospel to centers of influence when the missionary era should come. It was separated by natural barriers from the surrounding coun- tries. Though near other nations, Israel was thus kept apart from them that the people might be peculiarly under the training of Jehovah (Num. 23:9; Deut. 33:28). The Mediterranean Sea and the harborless coast guarded the west. The Lebanon mountains defended the north. The deep Jordan Valley and the Arabian Desert protected the east, and the dry barren desert was on the south. The land was, therefore, both "near to and aloof from" the world's activities, where the people could "at once enjoy communion with FIVE LESSONS ON THE LANDS OF THE BIBLE 57 God and yet behold the events that were occurring around them." *'There is no land which is so much a sanctuary and an observatory as Palestine." III. Its Extent. As promised to Abraham and to Moses, the land was to extend to the Euphrates River (Gen. 15: 18; Ex. 23: 31). The dominion of David and Solomon reached that limit for a short time (I Kings 4:21; II Chron, 9:26). The Jordan River is now generally regarded as the eastern limit. Palestine of to-day is about the size and shape of New Hampshire, the Connecticut River an- swering to the Mediterranean. The distance north and south from Dan to Beer-sheba is about one hundred and forty miles ; the distance east and west from the Mediterranean to the Jordan is about twenty miles in the north and seventy-five to eighty miles in the south, the average width being about forty miles. IV. Its Climate and Productions. The climate of Palestine varies from the tropical heat of the Dead Sea region to the frigid cold of snow-capped Mount Hermon. The year is divided into the wet and dry seasons. From the middle of October till the middle of March rains are frequent, but not continuous. During March and early April there are occasional showers. From May until October the sky is cloudless, but heavy dews fall. The winds of Palestine are of great importance. In the winter the prevailing winds are from the v/est, and coming damp from the sea they touch the cold mountains and heavy rains fall upon the land (Luke 12:54). "In summer the winds blow chiefly from the drier northwest and meeting only warmth do not cause showers, but greatly mitigate the heat. The north wind blows chiefly in October and brings dry cold." The south winds bring intense heat and often clouds of fine sands from the desert (Luke 12: 55). In Bible times the harvests were abundant. It was a land flowing with milk and honey. Wheat, barley, and other grains were plentiful (Deut. 8:7-9). The vegetable gardens produced lentils (Gen. 25:34), cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, garlic, beans (II Sam. 17:28), pulse, millet. The orchards provided apricots, figs, oranges, citron, pomegranates, mulberries, pistachio, almond, and walnuts. Flowers of rarest beauty were found in every valley and on every plain. 58 TEACHER-TRAIXIXG COIT.FE LESSON IV PALESTINE: THE PHYSICAL DIVISIONS The land is divided into four parallel sections: I. The Mediterranean Plain is a low, flat strip of land extend- ing from Mount Carmel on the north to the southern end of Pales- tine, six miles broad at Carmel, and gradually widening till at Joppa it is twelve miles, and farther south thirty miles wide. North of Joppa it is called the Plain of Sharon (Isa. 35 : 2 ; Song of Solo- mon 2:1). "The whole maritime plain possesses a quiet but rich beauty. The land is chocolate brown. Over its wide expanse, in the spriuQ:, a million flowers are scattered,— poppies, pimpernels, anemones, the con- volvulus, the mal- low, the narcissus, the blue tris-roses of Sharon, and the lilies of the valley." This is one of the oldest high- zvays of the world. It was the path of commerce between Egypt and As- syria ; the great caravans would pass up the plain as far as Carmel, then turning northeast would move through the plain of Esdraelon up to Damascus, thence southeast to Assyria. It was also a renowned warpath. Up and down this coast-plain the great armies of the old world passed. Sennacherib the Assyrian, Alexander of Macedon, Pompey, Titus, Saladin, Napoleon, all led their armies over this highway. The Israelites were rarely disturbed, however, because their mountain home was inaccessible from the coast-plain. II. The Hill Country runs parallel with the Mediterranean Plain, and is separated from it by the Shcphclah or low hills, "a rough THE PLAIN OF ESURAELON AS IT NOW APPEARS FIVE LESSONS ON THE LANDS OF THE BIBLE 59 happy land with glens and moors and brushwood and barley fields." It was the scene of Samson's exploits. From Hebron in the south to the Plain of Esdraelon is a moun- tainous district eighty miles long by thirty miles wide, with an average height of two thousand two hundred feet ; the lower half of this territory was called the mountains of Judali, the upper the mountains of Ephraim. Here, in the center of the land were mounts Ehal and Gcvizim, where the blessings and cursings of the law were read in the hearing of all the people (Deut., ch. 2y; Josh. 8:32-35). A spur from mount Ephraim running northwest to the Mediter- ranean is called Carmcl North of the mountains of Ephraim lies the famous valley of Esdraelon, also called the valley of Jezreel. It was the battlefield of Canaan, where Gideon won his great victory (Jud. 6:32), where Ahab defeated the Syrians (I Kings 20:29), where King Josiah was slain (II Kings 23:29). This valley is twenty miles long by ten miles wide. On the southeast of the Plain of Esdraelon is Mount Gilboa, where Saul and Jonathan were slain (I Sam. 31: 1-6). North of Gilboa is Mount Tabor, where Barak assembled his army for the attack upon Sisera (Jud., ch. 4). On the extreme north are the mountains of Lebanon, two parallel ranges nine thousand feet high. It was here that David got cedars for his palace, and Solomon for the temple (II Chron., chs. 2, 8, 16). South of these ranges stands Mount Hermon, ten thousand feet high. All the cities of the Israelites were in the hill country. They never occupied the plains or valleys. God's i.eopIe lived on the mountains, the heathen in the valleys. III. The Jordan Valley consists of a plain five or six miles wide and the Jordan River, which extends the length of the land. The sources of the Jordan are three or four little streams that descend from the Lebanon mountains and empty into the Waters of Merom, thence flowing into the Sea of Galilee, also called Sea of Tiberias and Lake of Gennesaret, which is twelve miles long, with an average width of six miles. Leaving the lake the Jordan flows through the land and empties into the Dead Sea, forming a body of water forty miles long and ten miles wide. This remarkable sea receives six million tons of water every day and has no outlet. Here the water becomes heavy, oily, and briny, 'Tt is famous for its 6o TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE density, its bitterness, and its buoyancy." The Jordan Valley forms a trench which at the Dead Sea lies one thousand two hundred and ninety-two feet below the sea level. IV. The Eastern Table-Land is the elevated district east of the Jordan River. The northern part was called the hill of Bashan (Ps. 68:15). Here were many famous oak trees (Isa. 2:13). It was also a rich pastoral region. South of Bashan was Gilead, famous for its balsams. This was the home of Jephthah the judge, and Elijah the prophet. In the time of Christ part of this region was known as Pcrcca, and was visited by our Lord. South of Gilead was the land of Moah. Here were Mount Pisgah from which Moses saw the promised land and where he died (Deut. 34:1-6) and Mount Peor connected with the story of Balaam (Num. 23:28). LESSON V PALESTINE: THE POLITICAL DIVISIONS I. Before the Conquest the inhabitants were chiefly descendants of Ham. (i) The Canaanitcs (lowlanders) occupied the Mediterranean Plain, the Plain of Esdraelon, and the Valley of the Jordan (Gen. 10: 18, 19). The Canaanites of the Jordan Valley built a circle of cities at the north end of the Dead Sea ; among these were Sodom and Gomorrah. (2) The Philistines were a Canaanite tribe occupying the lower part of the Mediterranean Plain, where they built hve great cities, Gath, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gaza, and Ekron. (3) The Phwnicians, another tribe, occupied the plain north of Carmel, and established two strong commercial cities, Tyre and Sidon. (4) The Amorites (highlanders) occupied the hills east of the Jordan (Deut. 3:8; Josh. 9: 10), and the highlands in the eastern part of southern Canaan w^est of the Jordan. Among the most famous Amorites were Og, king of Bashan, and Sihon, king of Heshbon. (5) The Anakim (giants) dwelt near Hebron (Josh. 11:21). (6) Tlie Ilorites, as their name indicates, were dwellers in caves. FIVE LESSONS ON THE LANDS OF THE BIBLE 6l (7) The Periz.ziics (farmers) dwelt in the plains of lower Galilee (Gen. 13:7). (8) The Jehusitcs were dwellers in Jebus, afterwards called Jerusalem (Josh. 15:63; I Chron. 11:4-7). (9) The Hivites (villagers) dwelt in the mountains of Ephraim and also near Mount Hermon (Josh. 11:3; Jud. 2>'-3)- They were the earliest inhabitants of Shechem, Kirjath-jearim, and Gibeon. (10) The Hittites lived in the mountains of Judaea and in the far north (Josh. 1:4). Esau married a Hittite woman, and two of David's generals, Uriah and Ahimelech, were Hittites. II. After the Conquest by Joshua the land was divided among the tribes of Israel. (i) Two and a half tribes, Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh, were placed, by their own request, on the east side of the Jordan. These tribes were shepherds and desired the rich, roomy fields for their flocks and herds. Manasseh occupied the north. Gad the center, and Reuben the south. (2) The tribes on the west of Jordan were placed as follows: Judah had the south land with Simeon on the west, little Benjamin north, and Dan, another small tribe, west of Benjamin. Ephraim and Manasseh occupied the rich central territory. Issachar, Zehulon, Ashcr, and Naphtali, occupied the north. III. Under the Kings. When the kingdom was divided, the country north of Bethel and Jericho fell to the kingdom of Israel, and that south became the kingdom of Judah. The tribes of Ben- jamin and Judah formed the southern kingdom. Simeon was actu- ally a part of this kingdom, but it had become so insignificant that it was counted with the ten tribes of the kingdom of Israel. IV. In the New Testament Period the land was divided into five provinces, three on the west, and two on the east, of Jordan. (i) Galilee was the name given to the northern Province west of the Jordan (Matt, 4: 12). This name had been applied to a little circle (Galil, a circle) of cities given by Solomon to Hiram, king of Tyre, in return for his services in furnishing timber for the temple (I Kings 9:11). In course of time the entire north section was called Galilee. It had a mixed population of Jews and Gentiles. (2) Samaria means a watch mountain, and was first applied to a high hill standing in the midst of a valley near Shechem. 62 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Eventually the surrounding district was called Samaria (John, chap. 4). The inhabitants were descended from Assyrians and Jews who had intermarried (II Kings 17:24-29). (3) Judcea was the southern district and was the strictly Jewish section of the land. (4) Percua was the region east of Jordan referred to in the Gospel of Matthew (4:25). (5) Bashan was the province north of Persea spoken of as Philip's Tetrarchy (Luke 3: i). SECOND TERM— PART II FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS Lesson Vt. The Tabernacle. VII. The Temple and the Synagogue. VIII. Sacrifices and Feasts. IX. Jewish Institutions. LESSON VI THE TABERNACLE The Altar was the earliest meeting place between God and man. In antediluvian and patriarchal times it consisted of a heap of stones or a mound of earth. To such places of worship Cain and Abel, Noah and Abraham, brought their offerings (Gen. 4:3, 4; 8:20; 12:7, 8). The Tabernacle was the central place of worship frori the Exodus until the building of Solomon's temple — about five hun- dred years (I Kings 6: i). About one-third of the book of Exodus is devoted to a description of the tabernacle and its appliances. The great importance of the tabernacle is seen in the fact that it fur- nished an illustration of the way of approach by sinful man to a holy God. The pattern of the tabernacle was divine (Ex. 25:40). I. The Name. It is called "The Tabernacle of the Congrega- tion" (Ex. 29: 10, 30, etc.), more properly in the Revised Version, "The Tent of Meeting." It was the meeting place between God and man. "There I will meet with thee," etc. (Ex. 25:22). The tabernacle was God's dwelling place, and was always "in the midst" of the tribes (Num., chs. 2 and 10; Psalm 46: 5). II. The Frame. This consisted chiefly of forty-eight boards (Ex, 26: 15-29). These boards were eighty-five feet long (counting the cubit at eighteen inches), two feet three inches wide, and according tc Jewish tradition nine inches thick. They were made of acacia wood, were overlaid with gold, set up on sills or sockets of silver which were made out of the ''atonement money" (Ex. 38:25-27). They were held together by five gold-plated bars on each of the three sides of the tabernacle. Four of these bars were held in place by rings or staples; the middle bar was made "to shoot through the boards from the one end to the other" (Ex. 26:28; 36:33). The most natural interpretation of this specification is that the boards were mortised and that the middle bar passed through these mortises. III. The Coverings. These were four in number (Ex. 26: 1-14) : (i) Fine linen curtains, on which were wrought figures of 65 66 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE cherubim, constituted the ceihng as seen from within the taber- nacle. The colors of these curtains were blue, purple, and scarlet. There were five of them, each forty-two feet long and six feet wide. (2) Curtains of goats' hair. There were eleven of these, forty-five feet long and six feet wide. Both the linen and the goats' hair curtains extended over the sides of the tabernacle. (3) A covering of ranis' skins dyed red. (4) A covering of badgers' skins (R. V. "sealskins," possibly the dolphin of the Red Sea), The last two coverings formed a secure protection. They were obtained through the death of animals and therefore symbolized the sure protection of all who trust to the atoning blood. The priests who ministered under the figures of the cherubim on the inner curtains were always under the shadow of God's wings, a favorite figure among devout Hebrews (Ruth 2:12; Psalms 17:8; 57: i; 91: i). Were these coverings stretched flat across the boards, or were they supported by a ridge pole in the center? Ex. 40: 19 seems to favor the latter view: "And he spread abroad the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it." IV. The Compartments. There were two rooms in the taber- nacle — the Holy Place and the Most Holy, which were separated by a veil (Ex. 26:33). Like the oracle of the temple, the inner room of the tabernacle was probably a perfect cube, fifteen feet each way (I Kings 6:20). This room, so perfect in form, symbolized heaven, while the outer room represented the church upon earth. V. The Court. The tabernacle proper was surrounded by a court, or yard, one hundred and fifty feet long and seventy-five feet wide (Ex. 27:9-18). It was inclosed by linen curtains seven and one-half feet high, supported by twenty brazen pillars on each of the longer sides, ten pillars on the west end. and six pillars on the east end, there being an opening in this end twenty cubits wide. The idea of scparatcness ran through the entire structure of the tabernacle. Into the court the congregation of Israel might enter, into the holy place only the priests were admitted, and into the most holy only the high priest on the day of yearly atonement. VI. The Furniture. In the court of the tabernacle stood: (i) Ihe altar of burnt offering. It was situated just witliin the FOUR LES;'OXS OX BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS 07 1 entrance to the court. It was seven and one-half feet square and four and one-half feet high. The frame was overlaid with bronze. It had a grating, ash pans, etc. Its daily ofiferings symbolized atonement and consecration. Find its description in Ex. 27: 1-8. (2) The Laver (Ex. 30: 17-21). It stood between the altar of burnt offering and the tabernacle door. It was constructed out of the women's bronze mirrors (Ex. 38:8). The washings in this layer symbolized regenera- tion (Tit. 3:5). Within the first room of the tabernacle stood : (3) TJw golden candlestick. For its description see Ex. 25 : 31-33. It stood on the south side of the tabernacle (Ex. 26:35)- (4) The table of shoivhread. This was on the north side of the same apartment. For its de- scription and use see Ex. 25 : 23-30. (5) The golden altar of in- cense. This symbolized prayer, and stood close by the veil (Ex. 30: i-io). In the holy of holies stood : (6) The ark of the covenant (Ex. 25:10-22). It was over- shadowed by the cherubim. The covering of the ark constituted the mercy seat where God met with man. GROUND PLAN OF THE TABERNACLE VII. The Arrangement of the Furniture. The parts were so arranged as to illustrate how sinful man may draw near to God — through atonement for sin, regeneration, illumination by God's truth and Spirit, feeding upon the bread of life, praying with all prayer and supplication. Draw a line from the altar of burnt offering to the mercy seat, intersect this OLA^^I^ □ 68 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE by another joining the candlestick and the table, and you have the outline of a cross. The way of the cross is the way of approach to the throne of grace. VIII. The Cost. Dr. Kitto estimated the cost of the entire tabernacle at not less than $1,250,000. Nearly thirty talents of gold, more than one hundred talents of silver, and more than seventy talents of brass were employed (Ex. 38: 24-31). LESSON VII THE TEMPLE AND THE SYNAGOGUE I. THE TEMPLE I. Its History. Its erection was David's thought (II Sam. 7: 2). The plan was divine (I Chron. 28: 12). The building was Solomon's work. The foundation of his temple was laid four hundred and eighty years after the Exodus (I Kings 6:1). It was dedicated seven years later (I Kings 6:38). Its site was the threshing- floor which David purchased from Araunah (I Chron. 21:18-30; 22:1). This temple was destroyed by the Chaldeans 587 B. C. The cornerstone of the second temple was laid 537 B. C, the second year after Zerubbabel's return (Ezra 3:8). The building was completed twenty years later, seventy years after the destruction of the first temple (Ezra 6: 15). Herod the Great began to rebuild this temple 20 B. C, having gathered the materials before the old building was torn down, a pledge to the Jews that the temple would be rebuilt. The main structure was completed in eighteen months, but additions continued to be made as late as A. D. 64. In A. D. 26 the Jews said to Jesus, "Forty and six years was this temple in building" (John 2:20). This temple was destroyed by the Romans A. D. 70. II. The Plan. The general plan of the temple corresponded to that of the tabernacle. There was an open court surrounding the building proper, in which were two principal compartments, the Holy Place and the Most Holy. The dimensions of these rooms in Solo- mon's temple were double those of the tabernacle (I Kings 6:2). The dimensions of the second temple were greater than those of the first (Ezra 6:3). Surrounding the two principal rooms were series FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS 69 of chambers, which were probably occupied by the priests and other temple ministers. As in the tabernacle the two principal rooms were separated by the costly and curiously wrought veil or curtain. Mention is made of only two courts in the description of Solomon's temple, the court of the priests and the great court (II Chron. 4:9). The descriptions given by Josephus indicate that there were three courts attached to Herod's temple. (i) The court of the Gentiles, the great court surrounding the temple and its inclosures. (2) The court of the women. (3) The court of the priests. The court of the Gentiles was separated from the inner inclosures by a stone balustrade, with pillars bearing the announcement : "No stranger is to enter within the balustrade and embankment around the sacred place. Whoever is caught will be answerable for his death, which will ensue." One of these pillars was discovered by the French consul, Clermont-Ganneau, in 1870. It is now preserved in the Imperial Museum in Constantinople. III. The rurniture. Find descriptions in I Kings, ch. 7 and II Chron., ch. 4. 1. Contents of the court (II Chron. 4: 1-6). (a) The brazen altar, thirty feet square and fifteen feet high (II Chron. 4:1). (b) The molten sea, fifteen feet in diameter, seven and one-half feet deep, resting upon twelve oxen. Some supposed that the water with which this sea was kept filled was discharged by pipes through the oxen's mouths. (c) Ten lavers with their bases or stands. These bases were mounted on wheels. The water in the lavers was used for washing the flesh of the sacrifices, which explains their being made movable; that in the molten sea was for the priests to wash in (II Chron. 4:6). 2. Contents of the Holy Place (II Chron. 4: 19-22). (a) Ten golden candlesticks, five on each side of the room. They furnished the only light in the temple proper. (b) Ten tables of showbread, similarly arranged. (c) The golden altar of incense. 3. Contents of the Most Holy Place. The ark of the covenant, the ark which was made in the days of Moses. This was wanting in the second temple. > u UJ ^r;dff» z o a O Ql^iHQl WOME N LJ COURT OP T\-\ E GENTILES APPROXIMATE PLAN OF HEROD S TEMPLE AND ITS COURTS FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOAIS J I IV. The Purpose of the Temple. In general this was the same as the purpose of the tabernacle. It taught the way of approach to God through atonement, intercession, etc. The rooms of the temple were separated by a veil, indicating that the way into the holiest was not yet fully opened. There was this difference between the design of the tabernacle and that of the temple — the former symbolized God's dwelling in the midst of his church during its early existence, the temple more directly foreshadowed the grandeur and glory of its heavenly estate. II. THE SYNAGOGUE I. The Name. The term synagogue means a coming together, or assembling. This verbal form is found in Heb. 10:25: "For- sake not the assembling of yourselves together." The Emperor Augustus called the synagogue "Sabbeion," a Sabbath-keeping, because the Jews always assembled in it on the Sabbaths. The term synagogue is first found in Psalm 74: 8. II. The Origin. It dates from the time of the captivity of the Jews in Babylon. Deprived of the temple services, places of wor- ship were instituted in the land of their captivity. The Jewish rabbis saw in this a fulfillment of Ezek. 11 : 16: 'T will be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come." So helpful did they find the synagogue services that these were continued in all parts of the land after they returned to Palestine, and wherever the Jews were established in later ages. Even in Jerusalem there are re- ported to have been from three hundred and ninety to four hundred and eighty synagogues prior to its destruction by the Romans. Find reference to the synagogues of the Libertines. Cyrenians. Alexandrians, Silicians, and Asians in Acts 6 : 9. Jesus taught in the synagogues of Nazareth. Capernaum, and other towns in Gali- lee. Mention is made of synagogues in nearly all places visited by the apostles and other missionaries. III. The Architecture and Furniture. The synagogue build- ings were usually rectangular in style. In Palestine their longest dimensions were from north to south, the entrance being on the side nearest Jerusalem. In other lands they seem to have taken a different direction owing to their situation in relation to Jerusalem. •JZ TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE The furniture of the synagogue was plain, consisting chiefly of a pulpit and a chest in which were kept the sacred rolls. The sup- posed ruins of a synagogue in Capernaum indicate that the building had been a substantial stone structure IV. Membership and Officials. At least ten men were required to constitute a congregation in any locality. Women were not counted as members, but, as in modern churches, were often the more numerous attendants. The principal official was the ruler of the synagogue, who presided at all meetings, calling on those who took part and directing the services, much like the leader of the modern prayer meeting. There was also the "minister" or "at- tendant," who had charge of the building, the sacred rolls, etc., (see Luke 4:20). This official was often the synagogue school- master. V. The Services. These consisted of the chanting of psalms, prayers, reading of Scripture, and addresses, either by the ruler of the synagogue or by persons whom he named. Visitors of renown were often called upon to address the people. See Acts 13 : 15. Regular lessons were assigned from the law and the prophets which were read usually by members. The rabbis pre- scribed that on the Sabbaths seven men should take part in the meetings, on festival days five men, on the day of atonement six, etc. The readings were followed by words of exposition or ex- hortation. VI. Uses of the Synagogue. During week days a school of instruction was maintained in it, the Jewish Scriptures being the principal subject of study. From numerous references in the New Testament the synagogue seems to have been also a place of trial and punishment. See Matt. 10: 17; 23:24; Mark 13:9; Acts 26: 11. The establishment of the synagogue was one of the great provi- dential means for the spread of the gospel. It furnished an open- ing for its heralds wherever it went. Thus we read of the apostles teaching in the synagogues at Damascus. Salamis, Antioch, Tconium, Ephesus. Thessalonica. Beroea, Athens, Corinth, etc.^ (Acts 9: 20; 13: 5; 13: 14; 14: i; 16: 13; 17: I ; 17: 10; 17: 17; 18: 4-7; 18: 19). The synagogue also furnished a pattern for religious services during the Christian dispensation. FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS 73 LESSON VIII SACRIFICES AND FEASTS I. SACRIFICES The offering of sacrifices seems to have begun at Eden's gate. The skins from which God made coats for our first parents were probably obtained from animals which had been offered in sacrifice (Gen 3: 21). God not only made coats for them, but he put them on Adam and Eve, suggesting that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ he has provided a perfect righteousness, and also that by his grace he puts this covering upon all who receive him. The sacri- fices continued by Adam and his family were doubtless by divine appointment. So also were the sacrifices offered by Noah. Abra- ham, and other patriarchs. The exodus from Egypt was marked by the sacrifice of the paschal lamb, its blood being sprinkled upon the doorposts of the Hebrew houses. When the people of Israel reached Mount Sinai a general sacrifice was there made after the giving of the law, when both the representatives of the people and the book of the covenant were sprinkled with blood (Ex. 24:5-11). After the erection of the tabernacle sacrifices were con- tinually offered on the altar of burnt offering. The fire upon this altar was never to go out. When the first offerings were laid upon that altar they were consumed with fire which came from heaven (Lev. 9: 24). Several specific offerings are described in the Levit- ical order: I. The Burnt Offering (Lev. i: 17). The offering itself was to be taken either from the herd or the flock, and must be without blemish. It must be brought of the offerer's voluntary will. A distinguishing feature of this offering was that it was entirely con- sumed with fire. The offerer laid his hands upon the head of the victim, signifying the confession and the transferring of guilt. This offering also signified the entire dedication of the life to God. From that well-known custom Paul drew his exhortation in Rom. 12 : I, *T beseech you therefore, brethren . . , that ye present your bodies,'' etc. II. The Meal Offering (Lev., ch. 2, R. V., A. V., "Meat Offer- ing"). This offering consisted of fine flour, oil, and frankincense, 74 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE always mingled with salt. It might consist of unleavened cakes or parched grains. A handful of the oblation was to be burned as an offering to the Lord, with all the frankincense. The remainder be- longed to the priest. This offering seems to have been preceded by a burnt offering (compare Num. 15:3, 4; 28:11-13; 29:13, 14). The meal offering was chiefly a thank offering, mingled with prayer, as expressed by the frankincense. III. The Peace Offering. (Lev., ch. 3). Part of the flesh of this offering was burnt upon the altar (Lev. 3: 14), part was given to the priests (Lev. 7: 14), and part was eaten by the worshiper and his friends (Lev, 7:16-18). This offering was expressive of peace and good will, peace with God and men. IV. The Sin Offering (Lev., ch. 4). This offering made provision for satisfaction for sins which were unknowingly committed, such as fraud, oppression, or robbery. The law first required restitu- tion for the wrong done, one-fifth to be added to the amount wrongfully taken (Lev. 6:5). Then a ram without blemish was brought to the altar and slain, its blood sprinkled upon the altar and portions of the sacrifice burned upon the altar. The remainder fell to the priests. V. The Trespass Offering made especial provision for cases in which one had wronged another. He was required to make restitu- tion for the wrong done, adding one-fifth, and should also bring sacrifices to the altar (Lev. 6: 1-7). The offering specially illus- trates and emphasizes our Lord's injunction in Matt. 5: 24. VI. The Solemn Atonement (Lev., ch. 16). The offerings of the great day of atonement were of peculiar importance. It was the most solemn day in the Hebrew calendar.. A bullock was offered for a sin offering for the high priest and his house (v. 6). Two he-goats were presented for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. One of the goats was offered as a sin offering, the other was led into the wilderness; the former symbolizing satisfaction for sin, the other the bearing away of guilt. With blood of the sin offering and burning incense the high priest entered the most holy place, where he sprinkled the blood on the mercy seat, and burned the incense before it. As the tables of the Law were in the ark, beneath the mercy seat, the sprinkling of the blood symbolized the covering of the broken law. The incense was burned on coals FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS 75 taken from the altar of burnt offering, which symbolized that atone- ment is the basis of acceptable intercession. The whole ritual of that day symbolized the atonement and intercession of Jesus our great High Priest. See Hebrews 9: 24-28. VII. The Water of Cleansing. The offering was a red heifer which had never borne the yoke (Num., ch. 19). She was slain with- out the camp. Her blood was sprinkled toward the tabernacle seven times, then her flesh was burned with cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet. The ashes were laid in a clean place. Then, when one had become ceremonially unclean, some of these ashes were min- gled with water and sprinkled upon the unclean person, who used a bunch of hyssop. This furnishes the key to the prayer in Ezek. 36 : 25 : "I will sprinkle clean [cleansing] water upon you." There was the same efficacy in the ashes as in the blood of a fresh sacri- fice. This ordinance illustrated the perpetual cleansing virtue of the blood of Jesus, See Hebrews 9: 13, 14. H. RELIGIOUS FEASTS Find the general calendar for these in Lev., ch, 23. See how the number seven runs through the list — seven days, seven weeks, the seventh month. The weekly Sabbath furnished the basis. The law of the Sabbath was instituted in Eden (Gen. 2:3), and was therefore intended for the whole race. It was also incorporated into the Hebrew laws. I. The Passover. This began on the fourteenth day in the first month, the first full moon after the vernal equinox. It began with the sacrificing and eating of the paschal lamb. The festival con- tinued seven days, during which no leaven was to be used; hence, it was also called the feast of unleavened bread. It commemorated the deliverance from Egypt and foreshadowed the greater redemp- tion through Christ our Passover (I Cor. 5:7). II. The Offering of the First Fruits (Lev. 23:9-14^ This occurred "on the morrow after the Sabbath" following the observ- ance of the passover. The first ripe sheaf from the harvest was brought in and waved before the Lord. If the slaying of the passover lamb foreshadowed the death of Christ, the presenting of this sheaf prefigured the resurrection of Christ, the first fruits from the dead. 76 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE III. Pentecost. Seven weeks were counted from the day when these first fruits were presented. On the morrow after this seventh Sabbath the feast of weeks, or Pentecost, was observed. Two loaves of bread, made of fine flour, were presented unto the Lord. These loaves represented the completed fruits of the harvest. The significance of this festival is found in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the great day of Pentecost (Acts 2: i-ii). In the observance of these two festivals "on the morrow after the Sab- bath'' was there not also a prefiguring of the change of the Sab- bath to the first day of the week? IV. The Feast of Tabernacles. This was ushered in by the solemn atonement^ which was made on the tenth day of the sev- enth month (Lev. 23:34). The feast of tabernacles began on the fifteenth day of the same month and continued eight days. During its observance the people lived in booths or tents, a reminder of the tent life in the wilderness. Find the peculiar laws for the sacrifices of the feast of tabernacles in Num. 29: 13-24. I, III, and IV were the three great festivals which all Hebrew men were required to attend (Deut. 16: 16). In later periods there were added: V. The Feast of Purim, which commemorated the deliverance wrought through Esther's heroic efforts (Esth. 9: 26-32). It was observed on the 13th and 14th of the month Adar, the twelfth month of the Hebrew year — February-March — about one month before the passover. VI. The Feast of Dedication commemorated the cleansing of the temple and the rebuilding of the altar after Judas Maccabseus had driven out the Syrians. It is mentioned only once in the canonical Scriptures, John 10:22. It was observed on the 25th of the month Chisleu, the ninth Hebrew month (November-De- cember). LESSON IX JEWISH INSTITUTIONS I. Sabbath-keeping. This was not a distinctly Jewish in- stitution. In Gen. 2: 1-3 and in Ex. 20: 11, the Sabbath is declared to be a memorial of the finished work of creation. That the Sabbath was observed in the days of Noah appears from the recognition of FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS ']'J the weekly division of time (Gen. 8; lo, 12). The Sabbath is men- tioned in Ex. 16:23 and 20:11, not as a new institution, but as one already in existence. Yet the Sabbath served a special purpose among the Jews. It was a sign that they were God's covenant people (Ex. 31: 13, 17; Ezek. 20: 12, 20). Strict laws were given concerning it, with severe penalties, that they might not be robbed of their rich inheritance. See Isa. 58 : 13, 14. II. The Sabbatic Year (Lev. 25: 1-7). The law required that the land should rest during this year. Prior to the captivity in Babylon this law was not faithfully observed, and this is assigned as one of the reasons for the captivity (Jer. 25: 9; II Chron. 36: 21). It was plainly foretold that disobedience in this matter would be punished with captivity that the land might have her rest (Lev. 26:33-36). Neither nations nor individuals can attempt to rob God without suffering the penalty. , Closely related to the law of the Sabbatic year, though not directly connected with it, was the law which required every Hebrew bond- servant to be set free at the end of six years of servitude (Ex. 21:1-6). In case the servant refused to be set free, voluntarily choosing to remain with his master, he was brought to the door of the house and his ear bored through with an awl — a sign of perpetual servitude. This law furnished the key to Psalm 40:6: ''Mine ears hast thou opened"— literally, "bored." The Psalmist declares his purpose to serve the Lord forever. So does everyone who has been redeemed. "I am thy servant; thou hast loosed my bonds" (Ps. 116: 16). In gratitude for such a redemption the renewed soul binds itself to the perpetual service of the Redeemer. III. The Year of Jubilee (Lev. 25:8-16, 23-55). Every Ameri- can should be familiar withv the proclamation of this year: "Proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof" (Lev. 25:10). This is the inscription on the old Liberty Bell. The law provided three things : (i) Rest for the land and its inhabitants. (2) Restoration of forfeited inheritances. (3) Liberation of bondslaves. This law provided a peculiar land system for the Jews. Having received their titles from God they were not permitted to sell their land outright. But one might lease or mortgage his inheritance until 78 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE the succeeding year of Jubilee, when it returned to the family of the original owner. This law worked no injustice, for the lessee or mortgagee was familiar with the law and could easily calculate the time until the next Jubilee. The law prevented the centralization of property, and provided for its continued equal distribution among the people. It provided also against oppression of man by his fel- low-man. There is no direct evidence that this law was observed, but that it was to some extent at least seems to be implied in Ezek. 46: 17 and Isa. 61:1, 2. A woe is pronounced on thos^ who added house to house and field to field, in Isa. 5 : 8. Naboth's refusal to sell his vineyard to Ahab was founded on the law which prohibited the alienation of property (I Kings 21 : 3 compared with Lev. 25 : 23). Forfeited estates might be redeemed at any time if the original owners or their kinfolk were able to do so. Thus Boaz redeemed the property of Elimelech (Ruth 4: i-ii). Our Lord used the year of Jubilee to illustrate the character of his mission (Luke 4: 18, 19). He was anointed to proclaim rest, liberty, and restoration to a for- feited inheritance. The year of Jubilee was ushered in on the day of atonement by the blowing of trumpets. The blessings of re- demption spring from his atonement and are proclaimed by the gospel trumpet. IV. The Cities of Refuge (Num., ch. 35 and Josh., ch. 20). From the days of Noah the law of capital punishment was in force (Gen. 9:6). To prevent this law from becoming the occasion for family feuds the Hebrew system of refuge for the manslayer was provided. (i) The purpose. It was not to screen the guilty from justice, but to afford protection for the innocent; also to lift the infliction of punishment out of the status of the mere gratification of per- sonal revenge into the unimpassioned exercise of justice. (2) Their number and location. There were six of these cities, three on either side of the Jordan, Kadesh among the mountains of Naphtali, Shechem in the center of the land, Hebron twenty-two miles south of Jerusalem. Bezer, Ramoth-gilead, and Golan, east of the Jordan were similarly located. The distance from Hebron to Shechem was fifty-two miles. The half-way point could be reached within a day's travel. This was about the average distance they were apart. The purpose was so to distribute them that they could be readily reached by those who had need of them. Paths FOUR LESSONS ON BIBLE WORSHIP AND CUSTOMS 79 leading to them were kept open and guideboards marked out the way. (3) Rules for their government (Num. 35:15-34). These pro- vided for the trial of every man who fled to the city for refuge. If it could be proven that he had intentionally committed the homicide he was to be put to death by the avenger of blood — the nearest of kin to the dead man. No ransom was to be accepted for his life. If it could be proven that the manslayer had cherished no enmity, but had been guilty only of unintentional homicide, even then there was a restriction put upon his liberty, while at the same time provision was made for his protection. He was required to remain in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest. If he went outside its walls it would be at his own risk. (4) The higher refuge. This system of protection furnished a basis for the representation of God as the refuge of his people, so frequently found in the Psalms, the prophets, and elsewhere (Ps. 9:9; 46:1; Isa. 25:4; 26:1; Heb. 6:18). He is always near at hand, a very present help; the way to this refuge is clear and plain; there is need to flee to it with all haste ; the sinner must abide in the refuge if he would be safe. Is there not a sweet suggestiveness in the very names of the six cities which were appointed for refuge among the Hebrews? Kadesh means "holiness," or "the holy one." Shechem means "shoulder,"' and is the seat of man's strength. "The govern- ment shall be upon his shoulder." Hebron means "a friend." El- khulil, the present Arabic name of the town, has the same meaning. "There is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother." Bezer means "precious." "Unto you who believe he is precious." Ramoth- gilead means "Heights of Gilead." "Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I." Golan means "exile." Our Friend became an exile that we who had exiled ourselves might be restored to the Father's favor and the Father's house. SECOND TERM— PART III FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL Lesson X. Its History. XL Its Purpose, Book, and Work. XII. Its Organization and Equipment. XIII. Its Relation to Church and Home. LESSON X THE SABBATH SCHOOL: ITS HISTORY Not only is the Bible the only source of knowledge as to salva- tion by Jesus Christ, but it is also the original fountain from which we draw our methods of religious education. In the covenant made with Abraham his children were included on equal terms with himself, and he was solemnly charged with the duty of training them as children of Jehovah. Gen. 17:7; 18 : 19. I. In the Old Testament (i) Before the Captivity. When God gave the moral and cere- monial law to Moses for Israel, he commanded the people to teach it diligently to their children. The offerings, sacrifices, and feasts, were to be explained so that they could not easily be forgotten. Ex. 13:8; Deut. 6:6-9; 11: 19; 31 : 12. It is probable that in early Israel there was no institution just like our Sabbath school. The teaching of children was done for the most part at home and at the great religious festivals. Gradually, however, as study revealed the nature and capacity of childhood, the people divided it into at least seven periods or grades, differing from one another by stages of physical and mental growth. In the course of time they adapted the instruction to the age and capacity of the child, thus laying the foundation of a graded system. (2) After the Captivity. Soon after the return from the Baby- lonian Captivity, we find Ezra and Nehemiah holding a great meet- ing of "the men and women and all that could understand" in the streets of Jerusalem, before the Water Gate, for teaching them the law. The eighth chapter of Nehemiah gives the details of this remarkable gathering. After this time the Hebrews, while still re- garding Jerusalem as their religious capital and the temple as their chief place of worship, built synagogues in all their larger towns. These buildings were designed for scriptural instruction and prayer, not for sacrifices. Those who worshiped in them were governed by elders, and services were held every Sabbath. Instruction was given in reading, writing, the Hebrew language, and the Scrip- tures. For the Hebrews who were scattered abroad the synagogue became the most powerful aid to education. 83 84 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE II. In the New Testament (i) When Christ began his ministry he found Hebrew society or- ganized. Their reHgious and civil customs and laws were definitely fixed. He did not establish new places of worship, nor did he open new schools. No doubt when a boy he went to the synagogue school, and when a man he worshiped with the people in their accustomed places, and there taught them. He used childhood freely to aid in the working of his wonderful signs, or to serve as an illustration of the regenerated life. As a direct result of his teaching and example, childhood came to a new dignity and importance. (2) His apostles followed his example and worked with the in- stitutions that existed around them. They have given us most valuable instruction on the nurture of children, and have settled the theology concerning them. III. Since the Apostolic Days (i) Down to Luther's Catechism, 1329. After apostolic times the Christian Church spread very rapidly for some five hundred years. Many of the first Christians had been members of the Hebrew synagogues. The members of the early churches imitated the schools which they had seen, and in many cases no doubt they had attended the synagogue. Says Dr. S. B. Haslett : "They were graded ac- cording to proficiency, some having as many as four grades. The courses of study varied. Many of the best schools had sacred biography, sacred history, Jewish customs, memorizing of Scripture passages, and the biblical doctrines, — God, sin, grace, prayer, re- generation, resurrection, and the like. The chief text-books were the Bible, dialogues, Jewish history, and religious poetry." As time went by the church nearly lost sight of the religious training of its children through absorption in lust of power and worldly conquest. Here and there small sects remembered their duty, and did valiant work for their youth. (2) Down to Robert Raikes, 1780. Luther wisely wrote cate- chisms for adults and for children, and through their use made an indelible impression on all Germany. After him Calvin's catechism appeared in 1536, and many others soon followed. For more than two hundred years the instruction of children was mainly doctrinal. Protestants gave no little attention to the teaching of their chil- dren., but it was almost entirely theological. A good example may FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL 8$ be seen in the catechizing of Christiana's children in Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. During all these ages of darkness and strife, God was gradually leading his church to see the real condition and need of the children in the church and out of it, and to devise means for their instruction and salvation. It is generally believed that God led Robert Raikes, of Gloucester, England, to establish the first modern Sabbath school in 1780 or 1781. On the continent of Europe, in England, and in America, many years before, pastors and others had gathered the children into classes in private houses and in the churches for re- ligious instruction. The Rev. Thomas Stock shares with Robert Raikes the honor of establishing this work upon a solid basis of organization, instruction, and discipline. (3) Down to May 25, 1824. In America, during the last ten years of the eighteenth century and the first quarter of the nineteenth, there were conventions of local character held in several cities. Finally, the workers in different localities concluded that great good would come to the cause if they could form one association. At the convention held in Philadelphia, which "was largely attended by prominent ministers and laymen of several different denomina- tions, and from fifteen to twenty states (there were only twenty- four states then) and, after able addresses by several representatives, the name and constitution of the 'American Sunday School Union' were unanimously approved, May 24, 1824." This Union has been greatly blessed of God in planting thousands of schools over the whole country, and in carrying the gospel to multitudes of the spiritually destitute. It furnished books for libraries, and provided text-books for Bible study, before the denominational publishing houses were formed. (4) Down to 1872. One of the most helpful results of the organi- zation and work of the American Sunday School Union has been the wonderful stimulus which it has given to denominational Sabbath- school work. After the Civil War this work of organizing new schools and of improving the old ones in quality of instruction, in equipment, and in methods of work, progressed very rapidly through- out the country. Great conventions were held in different sections of the land, attended by hundreds of delegates representing all the evangelical churches. The largest and most varied experience was brought to the service of all the schools. In 1872, at Indianapolis, Indiana, the International Sunday-School Convention adopted a 86 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE uniform system of lessons. This International Convention has been through its Executive Committee, a most powerful agency for good in advocating effective organization, in commending the best methods of instruction and discipline, and in raising the Sabbath- school cause to a high place in the mind and heart of the church. Catching inspiration from the great Convention, all the larger, and many of the smaller, denominations have organized Sabbath-school departments, which with great vigor have organized and equipped schools, planted libraries, established great publishing houses, and provided a varied and useful literature for explaining and teaching the uniform lessons. The modern Sabbath school is now recognized as one of the most powerful agencies in the church for bringing people to Christ and building them up in him. LESSON XI THE SABBATH SCHOOL: ITS PURPOSE, BOOK, AND WORK I. Its Supreme Purpose (i) The supreme purpose of every Sabbath school should be the salvation of every pupil. Bible knowledge, however good and useful in itself, is not the chief object in view. It is only a means to be used in leading the pupils to a personal faith in Jesus Christ. Nothing must be allowed to divert attention from this aim. Intellectual at- tainments and growth flow naturally and largely from Sabbath- school teaching, but they must be made secondary. (2) While we must insist upon this as our chief aim, we must also strenuously insist that the Sabbath school must be made as good a school as possible. The Spirit of God can use a poor school in his gracious work, but common sense and experience combine to cause us to believe that he will make a more powerful use of a good one. II. Its One Book. The Sabbath school has either directly or indirectly to do with but one book, the Holy Bible. Its words must be stored up in the memories of children that they may be a source of light and strength through maturity, and a solace in old age. (i) Its history should be learned continuously from beginning to end. FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL 87 (2) Its doctrines must be appropriated in order that the life may be right. (3) Its geography requires attention in order to its clear under- standing. (4) Its literature is the most varied in form and sublime in thought in all the world, and claims our study. (5) But it is chiefly as the revelation of Jesus Christ as the only Saviour and Lord that we must teach it patiently, wisely, and prayerfully to our pupils. III. Its Work (i) Ingathering. With this purpose in view and this book in hand, the Sabbath-school worker goes forth to gather in the people from every direction and in every condition of life, of every age and race. The work of ingathering should be done systematically and constantly in order that none may be overlooked. The pastor in teaching God's flock, the superintendent, officers, and teachers, in their regular daily intercourse, as well as by special effort, should look for new pupils. A holy purpose to enlarge the school should animate every pupil, old and young. Special efforts to bring in new pupils should be a part of the regular work of every school, such as a careful house-to-house canvass of the vicinity. (2) Bringing to Christ. From the time a pupil enters a Sabbath school until he leaves it, he should be kept face to face with Jesus. In the prayers and songs and teaching, Christ should be constantly held up in his beauty and power. When he is thus faithfully held before the scholars he will draw them to him. (a) Here the wise and faithful pastor will work eagerly, gently leading the young life into captivity to Jesus. (b) The superintendent by tact and watchfulness may seize upon many an opportunity to speak for the Master. (c) The teacher has an unsurpassed opportunity to press home the claims of our Lord in class and in private interview. (d) Special effort under wise leadership, without undue excite- ment, is to be commended, such as Decision Day, or Communion season. For such especial effort careful and prayerful preparation should always be made, and under the direction of the pastor or church officers. We have abundant encouragement to undertake this work. It has been established beyond a doubt that it pleases the Holy Spirit to convert more people at the age of about fifteen years TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE than at any other age. Jesus himself made the way very open for eager mothers to bring their little ones to him. (3) Building up in Christ. A newly converted soul is, indeed, a babe in Christ, and has immediate need for nurture. It is evident that the Sabbath school has here a most important part of its work. (a) Each pupil must first of all be carefully taught the Bible, since accurate knowledge thereof is the foundation for all Christian living. The International Lessons give us the portions of Scripture to be used. They are being more and more adapted to the age and capacity of our pupils. (b) Besides these lessons it is important that there should be graded supplemental lessons, which shall provide for general Bible study and for the study of denominational doctrine and history, Here is a golden opportunity to train the young to right views and practices as to worship. (c) The pupils' prayer-life needs the most sympathetic and wise training, so that daily prayer may become a fixed habit in every life. (d) Here is an excellent opportunity to train young Christians in systematic, universal, proportionate, and cheerful giving. (e) In a great many cases the Sabbath school is the only place where children can learn to sing the songs of Zion, and here the great hymns should be memorized and sung. (f) Here different forms of Christian zvork may be commended and begun. (g) Particularly do missions need to be held up in every possible way as worthy of large gifts and demanding the lives of the faithful soldiers of Jesus Christ. (h) The watchful teacher has here innumerable opportunities to strengthen the tempted in the hour of trial. LESSON XII THE SABBATH SCHOOL: ITS ORGANIZATION AND EQUIPMENT Wherever there is life there is some form of organization in which it resides and through which it does its work. If the Sabbath school is a living thing, it must have organization ; it cannot live without it. After many years of work, all Sabbath-school workers have come to agree upon the main features of organization. FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL 89 I. Oflacers. Great care should be taken in the choice of the officers of the Sabbath school. Before Jesus said to Peter, "Feed my lambs," he pressed the question, ''Lovest thou me?" The love of Christ in the heart is essential in those who are to care for the children. (i) There should be a superintendent, (a) He should be a man who knows the Bible, loves children, possesses executive ability and tact, i*nd, above all, who walks daily with Jesus. (b) His office requires him to open the sessions of the school ; maintain order during the session ; conduct the closing exercises ; provide for teacher-training; suggest methods of grading; visit the homes of the pupils ; devise plans for enlargement ; promote scripture giving; use especial effort to bring all the children to Christ for salvation. (c) He should seek in all possible ways to become acquainted with the most approved methods of organization and work. (2) There should also be an assistant superintendent, whose character and fitting should be much the same as the superin- tendent's, in whose absence he should act. To him may be given some special work, such as the promotion of regular attendance and home study of the lessons. (3) Every school needs an intelligent and interested secretary. To him belongs the duty of keeping a neat and accurate record of attendance on part of the officers, teachers, and pupils; of making the weekly report at the close of each session of the school, and the annual report for the Session of the church; of ordering, receiv- ing, and distributing, lesson and other papers taken by the school. (4) The treasurer should keep a careful record of the time and purpose of every collection ; give due notice to the school concerning each; take up the offerings of the school weekly; keep a careful record of receipts and payments ; make written reports when asked by the superintendent ; be diligent in promoting universal, systematic, and proportionate giving. (5) The librarian should order all books selected by the library committee; properly label them; protect them from injury; keep a careful record of the persons who take them out ; and should be familiar enough with the library to give guidance to those who may seek certain kinds of books. (6) The leader of the music, whether the organist or some one especially selected for the purpose, should provide suitable music go TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE for the whole school, with a view to intelligent, reverent, general, and joyful praise. II. Departments. In every well-organized school to-day the pupils are carefully classified according to age, capacity, and ad- vancement in learning. In the larger city schools there are at least six departments. In the smaller schools these departments may be called classes. (i) First comes the Primary Department, embracing children under nine years of age. This department is now divided into three subdepartments. (a) First we have the Cradle Roll, for children up to three years old. (b) Then we have the Beginners, between three and six. (c) Finally comes the General Primary Class up to nine years. (2) Next to the Primary is the Junior Department for children between nine and twelve years. (3) Then we have the Intermediate Department for pupils between twelve and fifteen years. (4) All above fifteen or sixteen years are to be classified in the Senior Department. (5) For providing the school with trained teachers, we have the Teacher-training Department, with a special course of study. (6) In every congregation there are persons who cannot come to the school because of sickness, infirmity of age, or necessary work, and others who do not attend the sessions. To reach all these there is the Home Department. (7) To-day many anxious workers are asking for the organiza- tion of the Missionary Department for bringing the schools into active interest in the great cause of missions at home and abroad. In the best schools each of the first four departments has its own course of lessons providing for memory work, Bible history, doctrine, geography, and literature, in addition to the regular International Lesson for each Sabbath. These lessons are called supplementary, and should be carefully graded. Promotion from one department (or class, or grade) to another should be made only after the pupil has stood a satisfactory test on the work of the lower class (or grade, or department). III. Equipment. An adequate equipment is necessary to the best work of the school. FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL 91 (i) Wherever it is possible each class should have its ozun room. It is especially desirable to have a separate room for the Primary Department, and when a room cannot be had a space should be curtained or screened so that the little ones may be private. (2) Comfortable seats should be provided, especially for the Pri- mary pupils. (3) Every school should have a good blackboard, and if there are separate rooms, every room should have one. (4) Ready-made or spe- cially prepared charts may be used to profit. (5) An abundant supply of good maps is of great im- portance. (6) There should be enough hymn books to en- able every one to sing. (7) A suitable place and shelves should be provided for the library, which should be catalogued. (8) There should be a full supply of children's and young people's papers for home and Sabbath read- ing and the denominational lesson helps of every kind are a necessity to the high- est usefulness of the school. (9) Special effort should be made to have each pupil bring a Bid/e to school and use it during class. (10) The secretary's book and the treasurer's book should be of the best and most useful form. (11) Attractive offering baskets should be used. (12) It will be of the greatest aid to any school to have a carefully selected teacher's reference library, containing a Bible dictionary, commentaries, books on child-study, and on teaching and methods of work. 92 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE LESSON xm THE SABBATH SCHOOL: ITS RELATION TO CHURCH AND HOME I. Its Relation to Church, (i) To be faithfully cared for. To teach its children and youth is necessary to the life and growth of any church. Jesus tells us that the children's angels always behold the face of the Father, always have access to him. The church should care most sacredly for those who are so dear to God. . (a) The greatest care should be taken in choosing those who shall teach the children. (b) There should be an intelligent, and conscientious oversight of the literature used in the school. (c) So great and far-reaching is this work that every pastor should endeavor to attend every session of the school, that he may be in touch with the workers and with the youth. When possible he should take an active part in the school work. Undoubtedly it is the duty of every ruling elder to attend the school and be closely identified with it. (2) Financial Support. A careful estimate of the necessary ex- penses of the school should be made before the beginning of each church year. This sum should be included in the church's budget for the next year, and should be provided by the church, thus allowing the school to cultivate the benevolence of the pupils by giving to objects other than its own support. (3) Church Attendance. The school may be made a powerful agency for increasing attendance upon the public worship of the church by frequently giving sympathetic and attractive invitations to it, and by earnest and faithful instruction concerning it in the class. (4) Faithful Instruction. Every school owes the church of which it is a vital part, faithful, efficient, and sound instruction. Its teach- ing should be a powerful supplement to the pulpit utterances of the pastor. Ignorance and inefficiency should not be given a place for any length of time. Here should be provided a symmetrical and thorough system of religious training in order that the life of the church may be enriched. FOUR LESSONS ON THE SABBATH SCHOOL 93 II. Its Relation to the Home (i) What the School Ozves the Home. Few things can be more disastrous to genuine religion than for parents to transfer their responsibility for the training of their children to any individual or institution. The Sabbath school is not intended to take the place of parents, but is designed to supplement their teaching. There are thousands of children who would grow up in ignorance of God and salvation if they depended entirely upon their indifferent parents. To such children the Sabbath school is an opportunity of supreme value. To all the homes connected with it the school owes : (a) The most perfect organization attainable. (b) The completest equipment. (c) The most thorough instruction. (d) The most effective discipline. (e) The most practical and progressive methods of work, and the most diligent efforts to bring all the pupils to Christ for salvation. (2) What the Home Ozves the School. On the other hand the home is under a heavy debt to the school. (a) Parents should, as far as possible, attend its sessions, bringing their children with them. (b) They are responsible in a very real way for the regularity and punctuality of their children's attendance. (c) They can greatly promote their children's progress in Bible knowledge by faithfully teaching the lesson at home. (d) Their children would be greatly encouraged if they knew that their parents were regular and diligent students of the word. Ex- ample in this particular is of the very highest importance. If parents would use at family zvorship the Daily Readings connected with each lesson, the whole family would be kept daily in touch with the school. (e) Fathers and mothers can aid the school by speaking kindly and respectfully of the superintendent and teachers, thus putting honor on the work, and so leading their children to value it at all times. THIRD TERM— PART I SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER Lesson I. The Teacher's Life and Influence. II. The Teacher Preparing the Lesson. III. The Teacher at Work. IV. The Teacher Questioning. V. The Teacher's Illustrations. VI. The Teacher and His Pupils. VII. The Teacher's Model. LESSON I THE TEACHER'S LIFE AND INFLUENCE "None of us liveth to himself." Note. — There is no question that the Sabbath-school teacher may exert very great influence over his pupils. In many cases this in- fluence is greater than that exerted by the parents or even by the pastor. The consecrated teacher, longing for the spiritual develop- ment of those put under his care, seeks out and employs every means for increasing that influence. THE TEACHER'S INFLUENCE IS CONDITIONED BY: I. His Personality. All thoughtful Christians recognize the truth of the axiom : To be is better than to do. From one end of the land to the other have been rung the changes on the declaration of Emerson : "What you are speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say." Character rather than reputation is to be striven for. Truth incarnated is the only kind of truth that makes an eflfective appeal in these days of intellectual independence, scientific research, and material advancement. The teacher who would make a strong and permanent impression must be : (i) IV hat God zvants him to be. (2) What he wishes others to think he is. (3) What he asks his pupils to be. (See Jesus' Personality in Lesson VII.) II. His Private Life. The man who had his cellar stocked with choice wines was a fool to attempt to teach the temperance lesson. The man who deliberately and frequently cheated the car company out of a nickel had only himself to blame when he lost his influ- ence in the Sabbath school of which he was the superintendent. Al- though the teacher's private life is continuous, and the incidents connected therewith are multitudinous, the elements thereof may be summed up for convenience of study under three headings : (i) Fellowship with God. (2) Integrity in all the relations of life. (3) Fidelity in the performance of all duties both great and small. 97 98 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE III. His Public Life. From the^ standpoint of the influence that he is exerting on the class, the Sabbath-school teacher must be: (i) A church member. {2) A church attendant. (3) A worker for the advancement of the kingdom. (4) Interested in those things which are for the uplifting of humanity. (5) Fair and square in his dealings ivith all. IV. His Professional Life. Here the term professional is used in relation to the individual's work as a teacher in the Bible school. Such work is a profession that should be recognized, appreciated, and magnified. In the ratio that this is done may we expect solid, influential work performed. In this profession the things most to be guarded against are narrowness and selfishness. The teacher should be big in more senses than one, big in purpose, big in out- look, big in the willingness to cooperate. His sympathy, thought, and prayers, should go out for : (i) The kingdom as a whole. (2) Sabbath-school work as a whole. (3) The organized Sabbath-school work of his state, county, and town. (4) His school as a tvhole. (5) His fellow-workers. (6) The members of his class. (7) Outsiders whom he may iniluence. V. His Preparation. Pupils in the Sabbath school cannot be ex- pected to study if their teachers neglect to make proper preparation. The teacher cannot expect to influence the pupils by pursuing slip- shod methods in preparation. The kinds necessary and the methods of preparation are given in Lesson II. VI. His Power. The Sabbath-school teacher, because he is deal- ing with spiritual realities, needs most of all spiritual power. The greater his physical power and his intellectual power the greater will be his influence, provided that he has that sine qua non for effective service, spiritual power. No formula can be prepared nor rules laid down in reference to the ways of obtaining this power. Every individual must find and follow the way for himself. To advocate a SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER QQ cut-and-dried method is to limit God's Spirit. The following is given as merely suggestive. Spiritual power depends on : (i) Union with God through Christ. (See John 15:5; Philip- pians 4: 13.) (2) The motive that actuates one in serving. (See Lesson III.) (3) Preparation. (As suggested in Lesson IL) LESSON II THE TEACHER PREPARING THE LESSON "A workman that needeth not to be ashamed." When a young teacher in the Sabbath school, the writer was quently almost discouraged by what he heard from platform orators concerning the necessity for spending much time on the preparation of the lesson. According to them it would take almost the entire week to get ready to teach on the next Lord's Day. Such harangues as he listened to were worse than useless. The purpose of the following suggestions is to make the teacher's preparation easy by making it systematic and scientific. There are three elements in the Teachers' Preparation: The physical, the intellectual, and the spiritual. A. PhysicaL Many teachers, impressed with the importance of the spiritual side of their work neglect physical preparation therefor and are handicapped by this neglect. The physical preparation should be along the lines of : I. General Health. Anything that the teacher can do in order to get and to keep a high physical tone will help him to be a better teacher. II. Clearness of Mind. The effect of a disordered stomach or of a sluggish liver is well known, but frequently but little considered in preparing for lesson-teaching. Very heavy midday meals just before going to teach in an afternoon Sabbath school has been the cause of countless defeats. III. Self-Mastery. A good night's sleep will frequently do more to quiet the teacher and to prepare him for his work than can any- thing else that may be suggested. To learn to rest religiously so 100 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE as to be prepared to render more efficient service is a high art and one that must be practiced by many. B. Intellectual. Intellectual preparation may be grouped for convenience under four headings: I. Study. Two questions suggest themselves: (i) What should the teacher study F In a general way the answer is, Everything that the teacher studies may be helpful in his work of teaching. But specifically he should study: (a) His Bible generally. (b) The Lesson for the day particularly. (c) His pupils. (d) Himself. (e) Methods of teaching. (See Lesson VII.) (2) Where should the teacher study? Here again the answer may be general. He can study everywhere. But in particular he should study : (a) At home. (b) At the teachers' meeting, where he can get the help that comes from contact with others engaged in the same work, and where he can contribute his portion to the general knowledge and experience of the teaching force of the school. (c) Here and there. Odd moments on the street cars and in other places may be utilized for the study of the lesson. II. Conversation. The farmer, the housekeeper, the dress- maker, the salesman, the professional man and woman, all increase their stock of knowledge concerning, and their skill in, their various vocations by conversing with those engaged in like pursuits. Why should not the Sabbath-school teacher do the same? III. Outlining. Nothing will help the Bible teacher more than the formation of the habit of outlining as early in the week as pos- sible the lesson for the coming Lord's Day. Nothing is more diffi- cult to begin, nothing is more easily learned if persisted in, than this art of outlining. IV. Thought. With his outline in mind, the teacher may think of it as occasion offers from time to time. As he thinks, the lesson will crystallize, and he will get hold of it, or rather it will get hold of him, so that when the Sabbath comes it will not be a task but a delight to teach. SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER lOI C. Spiritual. The teacher who has power in imparting spiritual truths is the one who is able to say in reference to them, / know. The knowledge need not be very large, but it should be positive as far as it goes. Spiritual preparation may be carried on along three 'lines : I. Prayer. When Jesus had some important truth to teach or some far-reaching labor to perform, he prepared for it by prayer. Shall the disciple not imitate the Master? As to the time, place, and manner of prayer each one must decide for himself, but as to the fact of praying there can be no dispute. Real, spiritual work must be preceded and carried on in the spirit of prayer. II. Fellowship with Christ. Fellowship has been defined as "community of interest and feeling." To have real fellowship with Christ we must have a knowledge of, and a sympathy with, his purpose for mankind. What was that purpose? "To seek and to save," says one. "To develop character," says another. Combine these two answers and we have a fairly good statement of the pur- pose of Christ. A large part of the teacher's spiritual preparation should consist in communion with Christ, so as really to understand his purpose and to receive the inspiration and strength to do his part in the carrying out of that purpose. III. Practice of Righteousness. If the teacher is to strive to get the pupils to be right and to do right, and if the pupil will imitate the teacher's life rather than obey his words, surely it needs no argument to prove that a very large and most important element in the teacher's preparation is his practice of righteousness ; that is his putting into practice in his own life what he teaches his pupils. LESSON III THE TEACHER AT WORK "Rightly dividing the word of truth." The old statement, "Teaching is causing another to know," does not adequately define the work of the Sabbath-school teacher of to-day, whose aim should be to help his pupils to know, to he, to do. His effectiveness in this will be conditioned chiefly by four things, TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE namely, his motive, his material, his method, and his manner in teaching. I. The Motive. "I teach my class out of gratitude to God for what he has done for me,'' was the declaration of a business man who gives much time, thought, and prayer, to his Bible class of men. If there were more who could thus positively state their motive in teaching there would be better work done in the Sabbath school. What should be the Sabbath-school teacher's motive? At least two-fold: (i) Love to God. This love should lead us to ask ourselves: What is the best work that I can do for him who has done so much for me? Surely there is no better, no greater work than that of teaching others about God, so as to get them to be what he wants them to be and to do what he wants them to do. (2) Love to the Pupils. Love is unselfish. Love desires the very best for the object upon which it is centered. Hence, with love as the motive power, the teacher will work for his pupils in reference to their (a) Conversion. (b) Culture. (c) Character-building. II. The MateriaL The material used by the teacher in the class will depend very largely upon his attitude toward the principles con- sidered in the last lesson. (i) What is the teacher's material? (a) It is generally an assigned portion of Scripture w'th the selection of which the teacher has nothing to do. (b) From this he should make a selection for teaching. (c) As a rule, that selection should be made in answer to the question : What will be most helpful to the largest number in my class? (d) Occasionally, the selection should be made to fit the especial need of some member of the class. (2) Hoiv should this material he used? (a) But a little at a time. (b) So that the various lessons shall have a unity, either his- torically or doctrinally. (c) It should be reviewed from time to time so that the facts and truths may be remembered. SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER IO3 (d) It should be connected with the everyday Hfe of the pupils. III. The Method. Which is worse, to have no method or always to employ exactly the same method? is a question very difficult to answer. Methods should not only differ according to the ages and the environments of the pupils, but the same general kinds of methods should vary from time to time. There are four general methods : (i) The question method. This is undoubtedly the best method in most classes, but one that finds little favor in many quarters because of the difficulties connected therewith. (2) The lecture method. There are some excellent lecturers who get good results by employing this method, but a grave danger to be guarded against is the possibility of the lecture degenerating into a mere talk. (3) The manual method. Much is being said and written in reference to the manual method, but comparatively little has yet been done with it. It is destined, however, to change much of the work done in Junior and Intermediate classes. It is the method of getting the pupils to use their hands (manus, hand) as well as their eyes and ears. Bibles are given to the pupils to be actually handled. Pads and pencils are provided for work to be done in the class. Notebooks and pictures are given to the pupils to be used at home. Those who have the courage to employ this method will obtain large results. (4) The combination method. This is one that combines any two or all three of the methods named above, and is the one most employed. For Juniors and Intermediates a combination of two and three would make a good method. For Seniors and Adults a combination of one and two will prove effective. IV. The Manner. No method will succeed in the class if em- ployed by a teacher whose manner is non-magnetic or repulsive. A teacher's manner in order to accomplish good results must be : (i) Loving. In many classes, especially those composed of young adolescents, any demonstration of affection, any exhibition of sen- timentality, provokes the pupils, but young people soon know whether a teacher loves them or not. (2) Alert. Inertia is a good thing, but not in a Sabbath-school class. Listlessness in dealing with divine truths creates the im- pression that they are not considered to be of much value. The 104 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE alert, active teacher will be listened to and followed when the dull, prosy one will not have a hearing. (3) Tactful. A study of Jesus as the model teacher, a study of self, and a study of his pupils, will do much toward making a tactful teacher. (4) Helpful. After all is said, it is the teacher who most helps his pupils that is listened to and obeyed. Therefore, the teacher should know his pupils' needs and strive to adapt every lesson to those needs. LESSON IV THE TEACHER QUESTIONING *'A wise question is the half of knowledge." — Bacon. We hear and read very much in these days concerning the Socratic method of teaching, and its use in the Sabbath school is advocated. The employment of this method would tend to empty our schools, because he whose name it bears asked questions first to show those questioned their ignorance, and then to get them into a condition of doubt and perplexity in order that afterwards they might receive instruction. Questions should not be asked in the Sabbath school for the purpose of exposing ignorance or of confusing the learner. All questions should be so formed as to draw out what those who are questioned know, and they should always be constructive in their aim. FOR PROPER QUESTIONING THERE ARE NEEDED: I. Preparation. Perhaps no one element of successful teaching presupposes so many things as does effective questioning. In order to ask good questions the teacher must know : (i) The Bible as a zvhole. (2) The lesson for the day. (3) The pupils. (4) Himself. (5) How to frame questions. As four of these points are dealt with elsewhere in these lessons they need but be recalled here. Our suggestions here are con- cerning the methods of questioning. II. Perspicuity. That is to say clearness or transparency. Not SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER IO5 only should the teacher understand what his question means, but the pupils also should be able to see through it. In order to secure this clearness the teacher must strive for definiteness of (i) Knowledge. (2) Thought. (3) Language. It is better to know some few things definitely than to have hazy notions concerning many things. It is better to think clearly on one truth connected with a given portion of Scripture than to speculate concerning a number of truths. It is better to use short, terse words understood by both teacher and taught than to use long ones con- cerning whose meaning there may be differences of opinion. It is better to ask one short, crisp question that is understood, than to have the reputation of being a walking dictionary. III. Pointedness. Every question should have a point which will make it stick just where it is aimed. This does not mean that a question should be offensive or cutting. A good exercise for the teacher would be to study the pointed questions of Jesus. For examples, see Mark 8 : 27, 29, 36. and 37. IV. Piquancy. Not the sharpness that wounds, but the pun- gency that sparkles and attracts. No matter how true to fact ques- tions may be, if they are asked in a dull, prosy manner, they will meet with but little response from anyone, especially from the young. Even in those momentous questions and directions of John, ch. 21, where we have the record of Jesus giving Peter his commis- sion to teach, the Master plays on words. This raciness of speech was not unusual with him. Let our questions sparkle with life, freshness, and sanctified wit, and our pupils' minds will leap to receive them. V. Personality. A personal question that would hurt the feel- ings of the one questioned should be avoided by every possible means. On the other hand, indefinite, vague questions on subjects concerning which the pupil need have no interest should not be employed except as foundations upon which to base the questions that are to tell. The personality of the teacher should be put into his questions, and the personality of the pupils with all that inheres in it should be considered in framing questioiis. See for example Luke 13 : 2, 4 and 18. I06 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE VI. Patience. In the matter of asking questions we must not be in haste. Questioning, like any other art, takes time to enable one to master it. VII. Perseverance. It is so much easier to talk than to ask questions that many teachers give up the attempt after a few failures in propounding questions. The old motto, Perseverance conquers all things, is true in the matter of asking questions as in all other things. What the one who fails needs is VIII. Practice. The following lines of practice are suggested: (i) Listen whenever possible to a master of the art of questioning. (2) Study the questions in the lesson book. (3) Occasionally write out the questions to be asked. (4) Note the efTect of questions asked by yourself and others, (5) Do not expect others to know what is in your mind. (6) Welcome all attempts at answering. (7) Accept wrong or imperfect answers and use them to lead up to correct ones. (8) Never blame anyone but yourself for wrong answers to an ambiguous question or to one that may be answered in many ways. LESSON V THE TEACHER'S ILLUSTRATIONS "Without a parable spake he not unto them." NOTES The meaning of the term illustration is obvious, yet how frequently it is forgotten in practice ! "To light up," "to make luminous," is the purpose of the illustration, but, alas! it is not seldom employed to hide the truth under consideration and to befog the mind of the learner. The classes of illustrations are numerous. The principal ones are maps, pictures, diagrams, symbols, objects, stories, and parables. They may appeal either to the sight, to the imagination, to the reasoning pozccr, or to the memory. As to what illustrations should be, Groser has well said: "They should be somewhat short in all cases, but more so in elder class teaching than in the instruction of juniors; they should be simple, SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER IO7 not needing themselves to be explained or illustrated — and therefore familiar — lying within the scope of the pupil's thoughts or observa- tion, and obvious — not obscure or farfetched in their applications." I. Illustrations are found: (i) In the Bible. Too much cannot be said, nor can it be repeated too frequently, concerning the necessity that the teacher of spiritual truth shall be familiar with his Bible. (See Lesson II.) For the purpose of illustration the Bible is an exhaustless mine. Alas ! that it is not better worked. (2) In nature. Jesus was not only a profound and appreciative student of the Bible, but also of nature, to which he constantly referred in his teaching, and from which he drew many tflling illustrations. (3) In everday life. "Last week, when I was coming along Walnut Street, I saw" — the teacher gets no further than this before every eye in the class is fixed upon her and every ear is attent to hear what she is going to say, because an appeal is being made along the plane of the pupil's everyday life. (4) In reading. A successful teacher of teachers declares that he gets many of his illustrations from the newspapers. History and biography are teeming with striking illustrations for our Sabbath- school lessons. From his reading in science the teacher will get many helpful illustrations. In a word, all that the teacher reads or studies may be made contributory to his power in making clear the word of God. (5) In conversation. The good things that are heard in ordinary conversation are too frequently neglected by those who need only to form the habit of preserving them to be continuously increasing their resources for effective illustrating of the Sabbath-school lesson. Perhaps the difficulty is not so much in obtaining illustrations as in preserving them so that they will be available for use when required. H. Illustrations may be preserved: (i) In the memory. This is the very best place in which to pre- serve an illustration. But how can I get it there and keep it there? The answer is simple. As soon as possible after hearing a good I08 TEACHER-TRATNINC COURSE illustrations tell it to some one. Then tell it again and again. The way to make it your own is to give it away. (2) Iji a notebook. If it is impossible to tell the good thing that you have received, the second best method of retaining it is to write it down. A notebook should be kept for the purpose of preserving good illustrations, but beware of leaving them in the book unused. (3) In a scraphook. This is for clippings and for pictures. (4) In a card index. Better than a scrapbook is a box of cards like those used for library catalogues, on which may be written or pasted illustrations, which should be arranged alphabetically accord- ing to subjects. (5) In a cabinet. Pictures, objects, symbols, drawings, etc., may be preserved in a cabinet. This may be nothing more than a paper box or it may be as elaborate as the collector's taste may dictate or his means will allow. It will be of little value, however, unless an alphabetical index of its contents is made and used. III. Illustrations should, be employed: (i) With care and discrimination. Not too many illustrations should be used. The same illustration should not be used frequently nor in connection with different truths. (2) To interest the pupil. In order to serve this purpose the illustrations must be on the plane of the pupils' knowledge or ex- perience and given in language which they understand. (3) To illustrate truth. The oft-quoted architectural principle, "Ornament construction, do not construct ornaments," is applicable here. Occasionally an illustration may be given for its own sake for the purpose of gaining the attention of the pupils, but such a practice should be guarded against. The habit of looking up illus- trations before the truth to be taught has been selected is a harmful one. (4) To impress the truth. This was the Master's object in using illustrations, and should be ours. We are not true to our office as Bible teachers if we neglect the spiritual side of illustrations. There is nothing that will help us more in our efforts to make our illustrations effective in the highest sense than such a development of our own spiritual life as will make us keenly sensitive to spiritual realities. SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER lOQ LESSON VI THE TEACHER AND HIS PUPILS "He knew what was in man." In the consideration of the Sabbath-school teacher's relation to the pupil it is taken for granted that the teacher is a Christian and therefore that he (i) Prays for the pupils. (2) Studies the Bible in order to teach. (3) Sets the pupils a good example. In addition to these things the teacher who appreciates his priv- ileges and the possibilities of his work must bear the following rela- tionship to his pupils. That of I. Study. Any teacher who neglects to study his pupils cannot do justice to himself, to them, or to the truth he wishes to impress. Truth is truth, but not all truths are for all individuals. They cannot all be understood nor received by all persons. Therefore, in order to know what truths an individual needs and is able to receive, the teacher must study him in relation to his (i) Ways of thinking. (2) Knozvledge. (3) Language. (4) Temperament. (5) Reading. (6) Home life. (7) Companions. (8) Progress in sin or in righteousness. This task may seem to be an almost impossible one, but it may be accomplished by the teacher's taking such a real interest in his pupil that he will (i) Visit his home. (2) Talk with him outside of the Sabbath school. (3) Talk zvith those who have opportunities to observe him. (4) Keep his eyes and ears open in order to get better acquainted with him. (5) So put together the facts observed that he zvill be able to make the proper deductions therefrom. no TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE It is very helpful for the teacher to understand the various char- acteristics that are manifested by pupils during the different stages of their development, so that when they appear they will suggest how the pupils should be treated. II. Sympathy. One great drawback to our success as teachers is that the older we become the more prone are we to get away from the viewpoint of those who are young. In order to sympathize with our pupils we should know: (i) Their point of viezu. (2) The difficulties from zvithout and zuithin with zvhich they have to contend. (3) Their misconceptions of truth, due to ignorance, had example, or improper instruction. For pupils in the Beginners' Class and in the Primary Department, the teacher's sympathy may be manifested by evidences of affection. As the pupils grow older they resent any exhibition of sympathy on the part of the teacher. Many pupils of the adolescent period have been driven from the Sabbath school by foolish teachers who loved them not too much but too openly. With these older pupils, sym- pathy should be manifested by (i) Patience with their infirmities. (2) Helpfulness in their struggles. (3) Refusal to think or to speak ill of them. (4) An attitude of hopefulness as to their triumph over self and sin. III. Sincerity. A little child soon detects insincerity on the part of an older person. In that literal, matter-of-fact period from nine to twelve years of age there is nothing that will vitiate the teacher's influence so quickly or so completely as the manifestation of the least insincerity. The young people may tacitly or verbally claim for themselves the right to deviate from the straight lines of honesty and rectitude, but woe to that teacher who attempts to do as the pupils do. Later on, the adolescent who takes such liberties with truth and honesty that one might almost conclude that he has no moral sense, is closely watching his elders and is greatly disappointed if they descend to any insincerity. IV. Simplicity. One of the greatest charms of the Master's teaching is its simplicity, lie taught the people that which they could understand, reduced great truths to their simplest terms, and ex- SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER III pressed them in language with which his hearers were familiar. A very helpful exercise for one who really wishes to influence others for good is to make an especial study of the simplicity of Jesus, his simplicity of thought, of language, of method, of life. V. Suggestion. Many teachers fail because they speak dog- matically. The pupils get the impression that certain things are said, not because they are true or helpful in themselves, but because the teacher wants to say them. The value of suggestion has yet to be fully realized. The teacher may suggest by his (i) Language. (2) Manner. (3) Life. (4) Attitude toward truth. LESSON VII THE TEACHER'S MODEL "Never man spake like this man." The Sabbath-school teacher may have many models, but there is one who stands preeminently as his exemplar, that is Jesus, the Master Teacher, he who taught with authority and not as the scribes and Pharisees. We will look at three of the elements of his teach- ing power, namely : — JESUS ) PERSONALITY KNOWLEDGE METHOD I. Jesus' Personality. This was unique. No other teacher like him has ever appeared. Attempts have been made to compare him with Zoroaster, Buddha, Confucius, and others of the world's great teachers, but such attempts have always resulted only in emphasizing the contrast between him and them. Again, his personality was suggestive. That is to say, he became man in order to show what man might become. Hence, in all manifestations of himself he suggested what man might be and do. Moreover, his personality is transmitted to those who desire to become like him. "Christlikeness" is a term that is frequently TT2 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE Uttered very lightly, but it stands for a great and blessed reality, namely; the possibility of the disciple becoming like the Master. II. Jesus' Knowledge. If knowledge alone were the necessary preparation for an effective teacher, then Jesus was qualified in a preeminent degree. He knew his subject thoroughly and he also knew those whom he was to instruct. In these respects the success- ful teacher must take him as his model. Among the things that Jesus knew were : (i) His Father. Speaking from the standpoint of his humanity, he was most intimately acquainted with God. (2) The truth. In one sense Christ himself was the truth, in another sense he apprehended truth as no other one has ever done. This should encourage the teacher in his effort to get acquainted with Jesus in order to know the truth itself. (3) The Scriptures. It is evident, not only that Jesus had mas- tered the Scriptures as they existed in his day, but also that he had great power as the result of his knowledge. To him they were indeed, on the one hand, a veritable sword, and on the other hand, the seed from which he expected a great harvest. (4) His pupils. How much of the Master's effectiveness resulted from his knowledge of those whom he instructed, it is very difficult, to assert, but we know that this knowledge was not only great and accurate, but was applied with wonderful results. (5) Methods. While the Gospels say nothing about pedagogical methods, they show that Jesus was a master of method. For ex- ample : Take the conversation of Jesus with the woman of Samaria at the well, and see how he applied the three great pedagogical prin- ciples of apperception, correlation, and concentration. To-day, as never before, the Sabbath-school teacher who accepts Christ as a model must be a student of methods. III. Jesus' Method. The most noticeable characteristic of the Master's teaching is the seeming absence of all method. In this respect one who most closely imitates him will be the best teacher. The greatest fault in many teachers is that they fall into ruts (which they imagine are methods), to the great weariness and often the repulsion of those whom they are trying to influence. There are some characteristics at the base of Jesus' teaching which should be considered until their importance is realized. (i) Loz'e. At the foundation of all of his work was love. SEVEN LESSONS ON THE TEACHER ll3 "Lovest thou me?" was the question asked of Peter when he was to be sent out as a spiritual shepherd of young and old. (2) Tact. This is the power to touch. Everywhere in the min- istry of Jesus it was his touch that counted for most. So, to-day, the personal touch of the teacher counts for much. (3) Helpfulness. Jesus' ministry was one of helpfulness. A teacher may be profound or brilliant or both, and leave the pupil just where he was before. Great teachers, like Phillips Brooks, have been helpful ones. (4) Simplicity. The Master's teaching was simple, not in the sense that it was not worthy of consideration, but in the sense that it was free from affectation, artificiality, intricacy, or complication. The common people heard him gladly because they understood what he said. (5) Illustration. The common things of life were made by Jesus vehicles for conveying to the people the wonderful truths which he taught. (6) Personality. Not only was the personality of the Great Teacher marked, but he appealed to the personality of his pupils. He did not instruct people in great masses so much as individually. (7) Earnestness. There was a tremendous earnestness about the Master's teaching. To him God, duty, the life here, and the life hereafter, were realities. He taught for time and eternity. The real imitator of the Great Model will so strive to teach that his pupils will live the proper kind of life here and be prepared for the eternity beyond. JhMLr? AT JACOBS WELL THIRD TERM— PART II SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL Lesson VIIL Play. IX. Infancy. X. Childhood. XL Childhood (Continued). XIL Youth. XIIL Youth (Continued). LESSON VIII PLAY I. Teaching and lecturing are different things. The teacher thinks, first and last, of the scholars before him. The good teacher does not do all the talking. The lecturer tells his story without much thought of the individuals in his audience. He is like a steam- ship which plows its way through the sea without regard to wind or wave. The captain of the sailing ship, on the other hand, must study the whims of the wind and not forget how the waves are running. So must the true teacher study the peculiarities of his scholars and adapt hooks, courses of study, and methods of instruc- tion, to their needs. If to know his scholars is as important for the teacher of the public school as to be learned in the subject to be taught, much more important is it for the teacher whose chief in- terest is the religious character of his pupils. II. It is not an easy thing to read the mind of a child. An amusing story is told and the child joins in the laugh. You credit the child with a good sense of humor, because you think that his laugh was prompted, like yours, by a lively sense of the ridiculous. In reality, he laughed because the others did so. Imitation, not a keen sense of humor, was the cause. The infant of a few days old smiles, and the nurse is charmed with the child's response to her fondling. The physician calls it a "colic smile." We read too much of ourselves into the young. A little child is not a man in miniature. In like manner, lovers of animals attribute to them the intelligence and graces of man. HI. How discover the secrets of the child's mind? (i) Speech cannot reveal them. Even the old find that speech but half reveals and half conceals. (2) Gestures are less reliable than speech. Not only in ability to reveal the hidden things of the mind is the child lacking, but also in inclination. (3) Perhaps the plays of the child are the best signs. Play has no definite aim like work. It is the expression of the tendencies of the child's nature in those forms which are easy, and therefore pleasant. Some have thought play a mere outlet for surplus energy; others ?7 Il8 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE have attributed it to imitation. These are partial truths. There is Httle or no play where energy is lacking; imitation directs play into certain channels. But plays are not merely ways in which the in- herited tendencies of the child find expression ; they are also ways in which the child prepares for life. Strength of limb and lung, skill in deed and knowledge of fact, come from play. (4) To the teacher, then, whose business it is to prepare the young for life, plays are doubly significant. They not only reveal the nature of the child's mind, but they point out the ways in which the child may be prepared for life. Education is little more than or- ganized play. So Froebel thought; and so even the austere John Locke believed. Should not our Sabbath schools strive to use rather than suppress the activity of the child? IV. Well marked are the differences between the plays of the different periods of early life. They indicate equally great differences in the mental characteristics of those periods. The plays of the infant do not attract the boy. The youth views with con- tempt the games of the child. (i) The infant takes delight in pulling, handling, shaking, rattling a new toy, in looking at it from every side, in experimenting with it. He is content to play alone. (2) The child longs for a playmate with whom he may race, climb, shout, jump, measure strength and skill. His games require more strength and suppleness of muscle, more skill and knowledge, than those of the infant. (3) The youth delights in puzzles, games of skill, feats of strength. Not only do his games require more "head-work," they also involve "team-work." While the infant is solitary in his play, and the child strives to surpass his playmates, the youth cooperates with his team. (4) The plays of infancy are experimental and non-competitive; those of childhood are competitive but individualistic; those of youth are competitions between teams. QUESTIONS 1. How does teaching differ from telling? 2. Why is it difficult to read the mind of a child? 3. What is the best clue to the nature of the child? 4. "Plays are doubly significant." Explain. 5. In what respects do the plays of infancy, of childhood, and of youth, differ? SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL IIQ LESSON IX INFANCY For the sake of convenience we may divide the life of the young into three periods: (i) Infancy, covering the first five years; (2) Childhood, or the Primary school age, extending from the fifth to the twelfth year; (3) Youth, the transitional period, closing with the beginning of manhood at twenty-one. In the early years of infancy physical groiuth is at its greatest. Thereafter follows a period of slower but uniform growth, with per- haps a slight pause about the seventh year. About the beginning of youth there is another rapid increase, first in height, later in weight. "This rapid increase begins earlier with girls., but lasts longer with boys." After the twentieth year there is little increase in height. The various parts of the body do not grow at the same rate. But more important than increase in size is change of structure or of the character of the tissue. This change in character accom- panies or speedily follows increase in size, and is of great significance for mental development. Such changes are greatest in the early days of infancy and in the first years of youth. The clay cottage is undergoing extensive repairs for the accommodation of the new life within. I. Characteristics of Growth What are the leading characteristics of the grozvth of the mind during infancy f What do the plays of the child reveal? (i) As you watch him handling, shaking, rattling, a new toy, rub- bing it with his fingers, putting it into his mouth, turning it over and looking at it from every side, you are impressed with his curiosity. Later his questions, increasing and unanswerable, confirm the earlier impression. He is possessed of an insatiable curiosity. (2) Again, when you see him trying to make the sound or gesture which you have made, trying to copy you in word and deed, or trying to reproduce in the nursery what he has seen and heard of the life around him, you marvel at the strength and persistency of his tendency to imitate. (3) Curiosity and imitation are the keynotes of infancy. They do not disappear in after life, nor may they lose much strength ; yet in 120 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE infancy they reach the height of their power. Curiosity lays the foundations of knozvlcdge, imitation of character. The child's knowledge of an apple is made up of the colors which appear to the eye, the tastes which are received by the mouth, the roundness, smoothness, softness, and weight, which appear to the touch. Curiosity impels him to touch, to handle, to taste, to in- spect, the apple or any new object which may come into his ken. In all this, he is accumulating sensations or adding to his stock of ideas. Later, curiosity, when properly directed, converts him into a scientist, ingenious in experiment and persistent in research. II. Habits and Character (i) The habits which enter into character are the results of actions well or ill directed. The direction of these actions makes or mars character. How may they be directed? The proverb says: "Ex- ample is better than precept." Why? Because it makes use of the strong tendency to imitate. Imitation appears in the first year, grows with the boy's growth, and strengthens with his strength. The ear- liest actions of the child cannot be controlled by precept. His intel- ligence is unequal to the task. Thus, imitation being useful and strong, when habits are being formed, practically molds character. (2) To him who is interested in the child's growth in character it is self-evident that the all-important thing is to fashion his environ- ment in the likeness of that which you wish him to become — to surround him with objects of moral beauty, be they graven in marble, embodied in literature, or caught up into the lives of men, and his life will glow with their beauty as the lake returns the glory of the sunlit sky. III. Eye- gate To him who seeks an easy entrance into the mind for that knowl- edge of men and nature which all prize, the question arises, "For which kind of intellectual food does curiosity crave most?" Is the hunger for sights greater than that for sounds, or for touches, or for tastes? In early infancy this hunger for sensations is so great in every form that the slight advantage which sight and touch have over the others may almost be neglected. But later, sight becomes despotic, and few there be who care to starve it in order that touch or hearing may become great. Appeal to the eye if you seek an easy entrance ; but success is certain where a joint appeal to eye, car, and touch, is possible. Such an appeal is made in blackboard SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL 121 drawings, done in the presence of all, according to directions. The Sabbath school should strive to make as much of pictures, illustra- tions, blackboards, drawings, as the public school. QUESTIONS 1. Into what periods may the life of the young be divided? 2. State the more important facts about the growth of the body. 3. What parts do curiosity and imitation play in the mental growth of the child? 4. How can character be molded? 5. Which gate opens most easily — eye-gate, ear-gate, or feel- gate? LESSON X CHILDHOOD I. Characteristics of: (i) The chief characteristic in the plays of childhood is the spirit of rivalry or competition. The child is becoming conscious of his growing power and increasing skill, and is anxious to prove it to all the world. He boasts of his speed, his strength, his skill, his possessions, the marvelous things which the members of his family have or can do. In deed as in word he is ready to show his su- periority. Racing, jumping, climbing, simple games of skill, he enters into with a strong desire to surpass his fellows. (2) The child is absorbed in self. Competition springs from regard for self. The world to the infant is centered in self, but he is quite un- conscious of the extent to which he claims a monopoly. The child is more conscious of the conflict between the interests of self and of others, and he strives to assert himself. Still his self-regard lacks the stain of vice which marks the selfishness of the youth, who realizes the meaning of the conflict and consciously prefers the selfish course. The child's self-regard has its good side. It leads to the strength and knowledge afterwards needed, when aid is given to others. The philanthropist must first accumulate wealth before he can dis- tribute it. How should the teacher deal with the spirit of rivalry and the selfishness from which it springs? Should he try to suppress or to 122 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE regulate and use it? Some recommend that to every boy be as- signed a rival, whom he is urged to surpass. Others would abolish all prizes and records and appeal only to a sense of duty. The danger of the lirst course lies in converting the self-regard of childhood into a selfish character, fixed and settled for life. The second course tends to indolence and inefficiency. Rivalry is the spur to industry. Besides, an appeal to motives beyond his years may breed a lasting aversion in the child. (3) Childhood is an age of intense activity. Competition means activity. The little girl will skip till she drops exhausted. The boy never seems to tire of running, shouting, jump- ing, playing ball. II. Habit Formation in: Activity results in increase of skill in the habits that make up character. (i) Character shows itself in what we do and how we do it; and habits are simply ways of doing things. (2) The foundations of habits are laid in infancy. Childhood deepens these habits, adds new ones, groups new and old together in various ways. (3) Physical illustrations throw much light on the way habits are formed. If you wish a piece of paper to acquire a certain habit or way of folding, you must at first crease it deeply. Repeated pres- sure but confirms the habit. If you fold it once in one direction and a second time in a slightly dift'erent direction the paper is un- certain in the manner of its folding. (4) Certain rules are suggested by this illustration : (a) In beginning a habit let your first act be as decided as possible. (b) Repetition strengthens a habit. (c) Never suffer an exception to occur until the habit is estab- lished. III. Character Molding in: How mold the character of the child? In childhood as in in- fancy the child is like an instrument played upon by the acts, speech, and emotions, of those about him. So amenable to control is he that this has been called the age of obedience. There is a difiference, however. As the cliild grows older he becomes more susceptible to influences beyond the home circle. Thus SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL I23 it has been found that of a large number of boys at the age of eight about three out of every four expressed a desire to be Hke some one in the circle of the home or near friends, but at the age of thirteen five out of every six selected a hero from the characters of history and biography. Hence the appeal to the child should be made through the lives of others, at first as seen in the flesh, later in biography or fiction. Persons, not dogma, move. QUESTIONS 1. State a leading characteristic of childhood. 2. In w^hat sense is the child selfish? 3. How deal with the spirit of rivalry? 4. What benefits result from the activity of the child? 5. State rules for forming habits. 6. What influences shape the character of a child? LESSON XI CHILDHOOD (Continued) IV. Growth in Knowledge in: (i) How does our knowledge grow/ Our knowledge of an orange, e. g., consists of a yellow color, a round shape, a rough touch, a soft pressure, sweetish-acid taste, and so on. Does knowledge grow by adding a color to a touch, a taste to a pressure as we add "a'' and "x" to "c"? Or does it grow like the dark mass on the sailor's horizon which gradually takes form and color until the shore with all its rich detail stands forth clear and distinct before the eye? In other words, does knowledge grozu like a building by adding brick to brick, or does it grow like the unfolding of a leaf? The question is important ; for as our knowledge grows so must our method of teaching be. Thus, if knowledge follows the brick and mortar type, we must begin with the clear, distinct parts, and by putting them together reset the whole ; but if it follows the other type, we must begin with the vague general impression and work to details. For example, in teaching reading according to the brick and mortar type, we should begin with the letters and through syl- lables and words reach sentences; or, in teaching the story of the turning of water into wine, we should give each minute detail about guests, time, customs, water, and wine, as we proceed. The other 124 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE type counsels us to begin with the general impression and follow the leading of interest as it moves toward details. Which does the child note first, vague object or minute detail? To the little child every man is "daddy." The approaching dog, the mooing cow, the trotting horse, appear as "puss." The green apple, the white bun, as well as the colored ball, are recognized as "ba." Even by the adult the stranger seen for a moment is remembered in a general way with perhaps one or two striking features. (2) These and other facts seem to lead to the conclusion that our knowledge begins with a vague something which gradually takes shape and decks itself with colors, sounds, touches, tastes, etc. V. Memory in: (i) In childhood the memory is tenacious. Though the child's memory may be less useful than that of the adult, relatively to his other powers it is stronger. The boy who forgets or twists a mes- sage is probably deficient not in memory but in the power to grasp the meaning of things new and numerous. (2) The boy's memory is haphazard. So miscellaneous are the facts remembered that the contents of his memory have been likened to those of his pocket. All sorts of information, useful, useless, and indifferent, are to be found there. Later, when this chaotic memory fails, the man must rely upon system. His systematic memory is more under control. (3) In childhood the memory should be fed. Then must the rich stores of language, fact, and formulae, be laid away. Arbitrary dates, symbols, words singly or joined in prose or poetry, are now re- membered with less dependence upon their meaning than later. VI. Imagination in: (i) The games of childhood reveal strong imaginative pozver. (2) There are three stages in the growth of imagination. (a) The fancy of the infant sees startling resemblances in com- mon things. The fallen feather is a "hen's leaf," the butterfly, a "flying pansy," a dewdrop, "God's tear." Increasing knowledge ob- scures these likenesses. (b) The imitative imagination opens a new world in which the •hild may live. The little street arab, playing millionaire, gets more joy out of life than his model. The little lass fondles the dirty rag doll with a passion as intense as that of a young mother. This is no SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL 125 make-believe world. The little actor is unconscious of his part. So shadowy are the boundaries between the worlds of fancy and of fact that truth and fiction melt into each other. Here again in- creasing experience checks childish exaggeration. From four to seven this imitative imagination is at its height; and through it the child enters into the life of the large world round him. (c) Later, constructive imagination appears in- new plans, new stratagems, new devices. When the hunting passion becomes strong, the boy's desire to overcome stimulates his imagination to invent new snares, adopt new devices, form new traps. Thus he hopes to deceive the shy trout, to snare the suspicious rabbit, to outwit the crafty fox, to dupe the wary crow. He plans his campaign with all the care of the general who holds in his mind's eye the various possible moves in the game of war. (3) Appeal to the imagination in teaching from pulpit or desk. Vivid images, palpitating with life and action, hold the boy when abstract statements fail. The successful teacher makes actors and scenes living and real. QUESTIONS 1. How does our knowledge grow? 2. What light does your answer throw upon the proper way to teach — e. g., the geography of Palestine? 3. How does the memory of the boy differ from that of the man? 4. What is the best time to teach (a) memory verses, (b) cate- chism? 5. Describe the three varieties of imagination. 6. How would you teach the lesson of the Prodigal Son so as to appeal to the imagination of the boy of (a) seven, (b) twelve, and (c) sixteen? LESSON XII YOUTH I. Characteristics of: (i) Upheaval. (a) The upheaval of youth is startling and significant. It means the awakening of new powers. Hitherto the child has taken on the impress of the world without. He has been as wax in the hands 126 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE of parent, teacher, or companion. Now he begins to assert himself, to see things for himself, to form his own opinions, to act as he himself thinks best. (b) This upheaval is accompanied or preceded by a rapid increase in growth about the eleventh or twelfth year. The boy soon comes to believe that the customs and opinions of his parents are like his old clothes, too short and too tight for a man of his capacity. But this comes not without intense emotion. (2) Passion. Youth is a tempestuous season. The youth is startled, may be appalled, by the intensity and the suddenness of the changes in his emotions. From the mount of enthusiasm he plunges into the abyss of despair. Wild gusts of passion strike him, and for a time bear him toward destruction, then leave him a prey to remorse. He is overburdened with a consciousness of his imper- fections, a biting sense of sin, a brooding melancholy. With these there alternate enthusiasms, a consciousness of powers, apparently without limit, longings and dim consciousness of great things within his reach. (3) Enthusiasm. The enthusiasm of youth knows no barrier, the despair no limit. Possessed of an enthusiasm the youth rivals the fanatic in his capacity for doing the impossible. In the clutches of despair he lacks the enterprise of a baby. These experiences are extreme and not normal. Yet youth is a time of abnormalities, and its nature is best revealed in those ab- normalities. The enthusiasm takes various forms — a craze for reading, a passion for music or art, a love for poetry and verse-making, a devotion to nature, a delight in solitude. The new life surging within seeks expression in some form of art. The discovery of the new life within opens the youth's eyes to the possibility of an inner life in nature. In solitude he seeks and finds communion with nature in her various moods. The emotional experiences of youth are accompanied by equally intense intellectual experiences. He claims the right of a free man to think for himself. This involves recasting, reforming the ideas and opinions received from tradition. (4) Imagination. In constructive imagination the boy begins the exercise of his right to intellectual freedom. He constructs or arranges his ideas in a new way which is his own. The rapid development of the reasoning power, this power of making new SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL 127 combinations, shows itself in the first stages in the boy's delight in puzzles. At first the puzzles are rather mechanical and therefore not too great a tax upon his power of thinking without images. Later the more intellectual games and puzzles become more fas- cinating. This passion for reforming attacks the opinions and cus- toms handed down from father to son. (5) Doubt. The developing reason, the self-assertiveness, the growing consciousness of the opposition between himself and the world, combine in making the youth a doubter. His growing logical sense makes him a remorseless critic. His doubt is not unbelief, but a state of indecision, an unstable state. Soon it may and, indeed, in time, it must pass over into a more stable state — into belief or unbelief. The awakening con- sciousness of self showing itself in his self-assertion makes the task of the wise counselor more difficult. Attempt to repress the doubts and you prepare for a terrific ex- plosion. Attempt to drive them away, and you find the doubter in arms, defending an opinion once distrusted but now championed with all the tenacity of one holding to a vital belief. Repression, driving, yield disastrous results. But when it is realized that each youth must work his own way to the truth, much help may be given by wise suggestion and patient sympathy. (6) Self-assertion. In the sphere of conduct a change is also taking place. Hitherto the law from without, the suggestion or com- mand of parent or teacher has been accepted as authoritative. The child is obedient. Now the youth is self-assertive, rebellious, inclined to go his own way at his own pace. He frames a new ideal for himself. At first, perhaps, he adopts a hero whom he glorifies, adding perfection unto perfection. Later he constructs his own ideal, maps out his own course in life. This ideal is no simple requirement, ministering to man's ease. The youth has as little patience with the frailties of human will as with those of reason. Rigor and vigor are the watchwords. Intense and variable emotions, severe criticism, and unstable doubt, self-assertion and new ideals, are characteristic of the experiences of youth. (7) Boys differ from girls. In this period the mental dififcrences between boys and girls emerge. The girl develops a year or two earlier than the boy. Her experience is more emotional ; his more 128 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE intellectual. Her susceptibility to the influence of society is stronger ; his self-assertion and individuality are stronger. These characteristics will explain many differences. The girl is more subject to moods; the boy, once aroused, more deeply moved. He resists social pressure and suffers a more intense emotional re- action as a consequence. Thus the intense religious experience of men is more prolonged, the fainter experience is shorter than that of women. Women's susceptibility to social suggestion has made her more self-sacriticing, more amenable to law, more moral, more devout in the discharge of religious duties. QUESTIONS 1. What is meant by the upheaval of youth? 2. Describe characteristic emotional experiences of youth. ^3. Does doubt differ from unbelief? Is doubt a disease? 4. Is there any change in the attitude of the young toward tradition during youth? 5. "Love is the fulfilling of the law." Has this statement a sig- nificance for youth? 6. How does sex manifest itself in mental development? LESSON XIII YOUTH (Continued) II. The Religious Experiences of: (i) These are very striking. (a) Religious customs recognize youth as a time of awakening. At the age of twelve Jesus was taken to the temple by his parents, according to the custom of the Hebrews. The confirmation prac- tices of some Christian churches, the initiation rites of ancient and of savage peoples recognize this as a time of unusual religious ex- perience. (b) Religious biography and autobiography abound with sug- gestions about the awakening of the spiritual life in youth. The modern statistician, anxious to reach conclusions true for all classes and creeds, has cast his net far and wide, and gathered a motley collection of experiences. The elaborate study of Starbuck, the SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL suggestive review of Coe, and the fascinating interpretation of James, may be taken as representative. (2) Types of: (a) There seem to be tzvo types of religious experience: The dramatic experience of the convert from an attitude of hostihty, and the silent aivakening to a new sense of the value of spiritual things. The difference between them seems to be due to surroundings as much as to temperament. (b) The gentler spiritual awakening is like the breaking of the day. Silently the darkness of the night softens into the gray of the dawn. Brighter and brighter it grows in the east until rays of light shoot quiveringly across the heavens and herald the coming of the king of light. Then a rim of gold, crested with fire, slowly emerges above the horizon, and the sun stands forth in all his majesty, and the day with all its life gathers round his throne. (c) The dramatic experience in its suddenness, brilliancy, and overmastering effect, is like the flash of the meteor. In either case all things receive illumination and meaning from the new center of light. (d) The gentler spiritual awakening usually appears earlier in life than the more intense conversion. It is less emotional and seems to give results as permanent as the other. Social pressure plays a smaller part in it. The gentler spiritual awakening is not unlike the youth's awakening to a new meaning in the customs of society, the requirements of morality, or a new meaning in some branch of science or body of facts. Youth is a time when a new sense of values appears, when old things are seen in new relations. (e) Starbuck found that in the case of the intense or conversion experience of women there were two great tidal waves at the ages of thirteen and sixteen ; and that among men a great wave appeared at sixteen, preceded by a wavelet at twelve and followed by a surging up at eighteen or nineteen. (f) Coe found that of several hundreds of cases studied, including both the gentler and more intense experiences, the average age at which this new experience came was about sixteen; and that for seventy per cent it came between the ages of twelve and twenty, that is, during youth. For but sixteen per cent did it occur after twenty. (3) Influences affecting: (a) Of the influences at work the most common and apparently 130 TEACHER-TRAINING COURSE the most potent is social pressure. Second to it in frequency and importance is the desire for a higher life. (b) Why should social pressure be so effective? Perhaps the most striking and important of the tendencies which manifest them- selves in youth is the gang, or social, instinct. It appears when the youth is entering upon the last stage of his preparation for life, his preparation for the privileges and responsibilities of membership in society. (c) This social instinct differs from the fondness for companions shown by the little child, differs from the sympathy which shows itself when the sight of pain or joy calls up similar feelings in the child, differs from the boy's love of approbation. It means that the youth will subordinate his interests to those of others, is ready to endure self-sacrifice, will efface himself in order that others may rejoice. This is all the more startling since this is also the age of self-assertion, of the demand for emancipation from the control of others. But like the democracies of old, the youth throws off the authority of one tyrant, tradition, only to become a slave to a greater, the gang. As he grows older the gang broadens, including first party or sect, then country, then humanity, and last of all history. He has completed the full circle, and returns to a tradition fraught with new meaning. (d) Sheldon found that eighty-five per cent of a thousand boys and more were members of societies organized by themselves; that the gang instinct was strongest at the ages of eleven, twelve, and thirteen. Furthermore, seventy-five per cent of these gangs or clubs were athletic and predatory. "Physical activity," says For- bush, "is the keynote of these societies at all ages." (e) Perhaps the best illustration of the gang instinct is to be found in the games of the youth. He will do anything for his team, toil without limit, forego the most cherished pleasures, even starve himself under the name of dieting, in order that his team may win. He presses mind as well as body into service. He will elaborate the most intricate plays, spend sleepless hours in detecting defects in his team, and planning how to remedy them. One-half the energy spent on Euclid would make him a prizeman. The powers of elo- quence have been exhausted in describing the power of love. Love of fellows ranks with love of women in intensity and devotion. (f) The youth's conscience serves the gang. Should loyalty to them demand falsehood, theft, cruelty, even violence at times, he SIX LESSONS ON THE PUPIL I3I will acquiesce, nay, will even rejoice in violating all that he has been taught to hold sacred. To such extremes will that spirit, which later appears as unquenchable patriotism, go. Lamentable as are the consequences of a gang at war with society, there is still hope. The gang conscience is still true to its members. The instinct is now perverted, but it may be converted into a powerful agent for the good of the larger society. If in this case it has gone beyond the bounds, a wise foresight may anticipate its appearance in others and turn it into useful channels. When the boy approaches ten, see that his surroundings and companions are good, an:' that opportuni- ties for beneficial organizations, such as he delights in, are placed within his reach. QUESTIONS 1. Describe two types of religious experience characteristic of youth. 2. At what ages do these religious experiences occur? 3. What influence is most potent? why? 4. Distinguish the social instinct from (a) gregariousness, (b) sympathy, (c) love of approbation. 5. At what ages and in what forms may it show itself? 6. Describe and explain gang ethics. 7. How deal with the gang spirit? Should it be suppressed or utilized? A Historical ''\^^^ b_ calkin Geography of Bible Lands Principal of the ISormal College Truro, N. S. With Colored Maps Price. $1.00 Net TPHE author of this book has had wide experience in teach- ing and training teachers in the Normal School, and he should, therefore, know how to present what teachers most re- quire to learn This historical geography of the Holy Land is not the tlrst book that he has written on a geographical subject, U)r he has made himself well known, not only as an. educator, and as a writer on educational .topics, but as the author of a text book t»n world geography. *« A Historical Geography of Bible Lands*' is not meant for teachers only. It is equally well suited for the average Bible reader. The matter it contains is arranged systematically and not in an encyclopaedic or dictionar-y way. It is consecutive, well analyzed, and clear, so that one can read it with interest. It is needless to say that it is based upon the very latest writings and discoveries concerning the Holy Land. The publishers have supplied numerous colored* maps, suf- ficient to illustrate the geographical relations of every topic discussed. THE WESTMINSTER PRESS 1319 Walnut Street, Philadelphia^. P&. ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦• 1012 01040 4665 ♦ SOME INTERESTING BOOKS For Sunday-school Teachers The Teaching Problem A Message to Sunday-school Wt.ikeis. Ey J. W. Axtell, author of " 1 he Organized Sunday-scliool." Price, 50 cents, postpaid. The Organized Sunday-school A working manual for oft.cers. l>y J- W- Axtell. Price, 50 cents, postpaid. The Boy Problem By William Byron l""orl)Ush. (Third Edition. Re- vised and Enlargeil.) With introduction by G. Stan- ley Hall. Price, 75 cents net; postpaid, 83 cents. A Young Man's Questions Ry Robert K. Speer. Price, 80 cents net ; postpaid, 89 cents. Things That MaKe a Man By Robert E. Speer, Price, 5 cents postpaid. Guidance in Prayer By M. E. H. Price, 40 cents postpaid. The College Man in Doubt By \ol:in R. Best. i6nio, cloth. Price, 55 cents postpaid. 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