A Compendium of Forms, Instructions and Legal Information for Secretaries of Corporations, with Extracts from, and References to, the Judicial Decisions of the Courts of Last Resort of the Various States and of the United States, as to the Rights, Duties and Liabilities of Stockholders, Directors, Officers, Agents, etc.; by Whom and in What Manner Corporate Contracts can be Legally Made and Executed, How Ratification is Effected and Consent of Stockholders Secured. Nature of Liability of Stockholders, etc.
There are many points of law which are necessary to be known in order to avoid uncertain results, but the Law of private corporations is ordinarily widely diffused through, and only accessible in, expensive law books. To concisely present so much of corporation law as every stockholder, director and officer should be familiar with, has been the aim of the author in issuing the second edition of The Secretary's Manual. Wherever necessary to amplify or illustrate the text, apt and authoritative quotations have been made from the judicial decisions from the Courts of last resort.
How many persons, for instance, connected with corporations, can define the precise meaning of the term, "Organization," as applied to corporations, know what constitutes the charter of the corporation, are aware under what circumstances a director is entitled to compensation for ordinary services, and whether or not he can vote on the question of giving himself a salary?
There is need for such a book; hundreds of corporations are formed every week in the United States, and a work of this kind is now needed to qualify directors and officers as to their duties, and enable them to discharge such duties with celerity and certainty. The numerous forms given will save the time of the experienced.
The secretary who is desirous of recording the proceedings of the stockholders and board of directors in "good form" will find the purchase of this book an investment which will soon be many times repaid.
THE "MANUAL" IS NEATLY BOUND IN CLOTH,
Price, - - - - $1 50
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Or 43 BOND STREET, NEW YORK.
Woman Suffrage and Prohibition
Thus the New York Voice speaks of "woman suffrage," and its effects on prohibition of the liquor traffic: "It has been freely predicted that woman suffrage would prove the 'enacting clause' of prohibition. But the fact is that in Kansas there was never at any time, during the eight or ten years of prohibition preceding the grant of municipal suffrage to women, such a letting down in the enforcement of the prohibitory law in cities as in the last few years. Of course we do not for a moment consider that municipal woman suffrage is to blame for this, but so far as we can see, it has had no marked tendency to prevent it." This will be rather discouraging to those who hoped that woman suffrage would settle the whisky question. Women are not all temperate or Prohibitionists.
HOW TO STRENGTHEN THE THROAT.
SIR MORRELL MACKENZIE, who was a specialist of high reputation in throat troubles, always insisted that a great many of the ailments that were brought under his notice could have been escaped but for injudicious coddling of the throat. The throat must not be wrapped up too much; the great thing is to try to harden it. By care and persistence the neck can be made as weatherproof as the face. Many people who are not in the secret are amazed that the patriarchal Gladstone can stand for hours with head uncovered in the open air while a strong breeze is blowing. The ability to do this with impunity was gained by sitting habitually at a window through which a draught was created, so that the head became accustomed to all variations of temperature and all degrees of air motion. In the same way the throat can become habituated to varying conditions. It should be kept free from wrappings. Women should dispense with their great feather boas and Medici collars, and men should cast aside their stifling mufflers. It is an excellent practice to wear turn-down collars, and gargling with cold salt and water in the morning has sovereign virtue, as well as bathing the throat first with very hot water and then with very cold. The throat thus receives a sudden shock, and is braced up and permanently strengthened.—Phrenological Journal.
Drunkenness After Christmas in Oakland
THE following is one of the results of Christmas in Oakland, as given in the Times of December 27: "From the time that the court adjourned on Saturday, until ten o'clock last night, twenty-four men and one woman had been arrested for drunkenness. They were in all classes of life, and included two shoemakers, fourteen laborers, one tinker, one contractor, one blacksmith, one printer, one domestic, and four had no occupation at all."
THE SUPERNATURAL IN MISSIONARY METHODS.
By Editor
THE following from the pen of A. J. Gordon, D.D., will, we believe, be of interest to our readers:—
In the naturalistic drift which is now sweeping the church into its current, we cannot emphasize too strongly the supernatural elements in the work of missions. If the preaching of the gospel shall make a powerful impression upon the heathen, it will not be by what is human in it, but by what is superhuman. There has been no change of method since the day of Pentecost. The gospel is still to be preached "with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven;" and the Lord is pledged still to work with his servants, "confirming the word with signs following." Therefore all supernatural phenomena appearing in connection with the missionary's work should be emphasized, not ignored. There are few minds so stupid that they do not reason from effect to cause. If the effects attending missionary effort are only such as can be traced to natural causes, the mind is very likely to rest in such causes without being carried further. Teaching, doctoring, civilizing, mechanical and agricultural training, are all good and not to be depreciated in connection with missions to the heathen. But the evidential value of such works is very slight, unless accompanied with miracles of regeneration and wonders of moral transformation.
Of this question of the supernatural in connection with evangelical labors among the heathen, we have space to speak only of a single phase, viz., the one about which there has recently been considerable discussion in missionary magazines.
The late Professor Christlieb, of Bonn, in his powerful chapter on miracles, after defending their perpetuity and present possibility, says: "The work of missions is outwardly, at least, more extended than it ever was before. In this region, therefore, according to our former rule, miracles should not be entirely wanting. Nor are they. We cannot, therefore, fully admit the proposition that no more miracles are performed in our day. In the history of modern missions we find many wonderful occurrences which unmistakably remind us of the apostolic age. In both periods there are similar hindrances to be overcome in the heathen world, and similar palpable confirmations of the word are needed to convince the dull sense of men. We may, therefore, expect miracles in this case."
He then cites many instances from missionary history in confirmation of this view, especially instances of bodily healing in answer to the prayer of faith.
Is there anything in this paragraph of Professor Christlieb which is worthy of our consideration? Hostility to his view is sufficiently pronounced at the present time, not only in such conservative and guarded criticisms as those of Professor Tyndale on the prayer cure, but especially in the severe animadversions of some high evangelicals upon the same point, whose motto seems to be, "Allopathy or homeopathy, as you like, but no theopathy." "Palpable confirmations of the word are needed to convince the dull sense of the heathen." It is the palpable confirmations that are most direct and obvious. Something must be done to persuade the heathen of the beneficent character of Christianity, as well as much said. Hence medical missions, hospitals, surgery, nursing, Blessed and true servants of Christ are they who go forth to the heathen with such ministries as these. If only, as they are bestowed upon the blind, and the lame, and the leprous, they do not take their eyes from Christ, and fix them upon human benefactors or benefactions. At home or abroad this is the difficulty with all secular helps to Christianity.
An eminent missionary lady in Burmah recently gave us the following chapter from her experience. In one of her tours she came upon a village where the cholera was raging. Having with her a quantity of the famous antidote, Perry Davis' Pain Killer, she went from house to house administering the remedy to the sick ones, and left a number of bottles to be used after she had gone. Returning to the village some months after, the missionary was met by the head man of the town, who cheered and delighted her by this intelligence: "Teacher, we have come over to your side; the medicine did us so much good that we have accepted your God." Overjoyed at this news, she was conducted to the house of her informant, who, opening a room, showed her the pain killer bottles solemnly arranged in a row upon a shelf, and before them the whole company immediately prostrated themselves in worship. We believe that all help possible should be derived from medicinal remedies. But the instances are numerous enough in which medicine can go no further, and the doctors surrender the case, with the confession that they can do no more. In such instances God no doubt often interposes in answer to believing intercession, and restores the sufferer. Here is the peculiar sphere of the prayer of faith for the sick, in which, we boldly say, the healing ministry of Jesus Christ should not be despised. For now it is possible, since the hand of man has failed, that the hand of the Lord should be recognized, and glory won for his name. Missionaries are naturally shy in revealing their experiences in this field, if they have such, owing to the opprobrium attaching to so-called "faith healing." But the writer, from the fact of his views on this subject being known, has had the honor to be much confided in by missionaries, especially those of the China Inland Society, who have made successful use of intercession for the sick. Their testimony as to the impression of supernatural cures upon the heathen is very strong.—Missionary Review.
"NOT TO BE MINISTERED UNTO, BUT TO MINISTER."
Could we know the woes and sorrows
Of each precious human heart,
Would we not, with Christian spirit,
In each burden share a part?
If we all, with self rejected,
Stood with ever open hand,
How we might, with loving fingers,
Scatter truth o'er all the land,
Lifting up the poor and needy
From the depths of sin and woe,
Throwing sunshine o'er sad spirits,
Scattering smiles where'er we go,
Lighting up each darkened pathway
With a song of Jesus' love,
Making life a beauteous picture,
For the heavenly courts above.
We should live each for the other,
Sharing every joy and pain,
Working for the blessed Master
In his fields of rip'ning grain.
Should the way be hedged with briars,
And the clouds hang dark the while,
Thy reward will be the greater,
Sweetened by God's loving smile.
—Selected.
PONAPE ISLAND.
PONAPE is one of the Caroline group of islands, in the Pacific Ocean. The American mission property there was destroyed some months ago by the Spanish authorities, and it was reported that the matter had been satisfactorily settled by the demand of our government. But the Missionary Herald contradicts this report, and says: "Indemnity for property destroyed will not satisfy the American Board. Liberty for the missionaries to preach, as well as for the people to follow their leadership, is the only settlement that can meet our claim." The people of Ponape are strictly prohibited from holding any service except under direction of the Catholic priest. The Mission Dayspring says: "There have been great changes at Ponape, where the first missionaries of Micronesia were stationed. The Spaniards have destroyed all the mission property and built up for themselves quite a modern little city, with fine roads, electric lights, and many of the conveniences that civilized people have."
SHOULD MISSIONARIES BE SENT TO PAPAL COUNTRIES?
SHALL we send missionaries to Roman Catholic countries? Many are asking it. They usually know of Christ, and we should go to the heathen, we are told. But our missionaries in those countries say the destitution and immorality are appalling, and that they are real mission fields. Professor Townsend hints at the real reason for this when, in another connection, he declares that Bishop Spottswood says: "I had rather one-half of the people of this nation should be brought to the stake and burned than that one man read the Bible and form his judgment from its contents." Twenty-seven catechisms used by that church entirely omit the second commandment.—Herald and Presbyter.
SCIENCE in the KITCHEN
By Mrs. E. E. Kellogg
By MRS. E. E. KELLOGG, A. M.
Superintendent of the Sanitarium Experimental Kitchen and Cooking School, and of the Bay View Assembly Cooking School, Superintendent Mothers' Meetings for the N. W. C. T. U., and Chairman of the World's Fair Committee on Food Supplies for Michigan.
A Remarkable Book Brim Full of Information on Subjects of Interest to Every Housekeeper and Civilized Human Being.
A Thousand Important Questions Answered Clearly and Simply, most of which are not answered elsewhere.
This book has long been looked for, and anxiously waited for, by thousands who have known that it was in preparation. It is not a compilation of the detestable and unwholesome mixtures called "recipes," which are the product of unskilled and aimless experimentation, but is the result of carefully directed researches carried on in the light of the most modern knowledge upon the mixture of food and the hygiene of dietetics.
This work is the product of many years of patient toil and experimental inquiry. The large opportunities for investigation, research, and experience which Mrs. Kellogg has had in the constant supervision of the cuisine of the Sanitarium and the Sanitarium Hospital, and the ever increasing necessity for new methods and original recipes to supply the growing needs of an immense health institution numbering always from 500 to 700 inmates, have served to develop an altogether new system of cookery, the outcome of which is this valuable work.
AGENTS WANTED to introduce this popular and rapidly selling work. Send $1.25 for outfit with first, second, and third choice of territory.
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PACIFIC PRESS PUB. CO.,
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Angels; Their Nature and Ministry
ANGELS; THEIR NATURE AND MINISTRY. Contains also some hints on the origin, history, and destiny of Satan as gleaned from the Scriptures. Bible Students' Library, No. 83. Pacific Press Pub. Co., Oakland, Cal. 140 pp.; 20 cents.
Untouched Mission Fields in Africa and India
It is said that Africa has 150,000,000 people yet untouched by any missionary enterprise, and India has large populous districts as destitute to-day as when Schwartz, Carey, and Duff entered the country.
FIELD NOTES.
By Editor
BRETHREN J. H. and J. M. Pogue, of Minnesota, have gone to Bermuda to open up the canvassing work.
AS FAR as heard from, good spiritual results were experienced during the week of prayer, December 17 to 25.
IT has been decided to hold a canvassers' school in this city, beginning on the 10th inst., and continuing two months.
ELDER B. J. CADY and wife, of Wisconsin, arrived in this city on the 28th inst., destined to accompany the ship Pitcairn on her next missionary journey.
BROTHER F. L. MEAD, general canvassing agent, closed his institute work in this city on the 26th inst., and left for Los Angeles the following day, to conduct a similar work.
OUR sisters in Washington, D. C., who have been contributing spare time and dimes to the worthy object, have sent to the Orphans' Home at Battle Creek, Mich., a large box filled with blankets, quilts, and wearing apparel, amounting in value to about forty dollars.
ELDER E. E. MILES, district canvassing agent of District No. 1, who has had a varied experience, says that "the busiest men, men who have their hearts and heads and hands full already, are the ones who will take hold of an extra job most readily, and who will do it the quickest." This in a measure explains why some people are overloaded with work, while others seem to have nothing to do.
OUR brethren in the mission at Hamburg express heartfelt thanks to God for their complete immunity from the cholera, which during the fall months did such a disastrous work in that city. And truly their brethren elsewhere rejoice with them. "Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling." Ps. 91:9, 10.
THE American Sentinel, 43 Bond Street, New York City, has entered upon its eighth year of publication. It has done a noble work for the cause of religious liberty, and grows stronger as the cause it advocates becomes more threateningly menaced by the inflowing tide of Church and State union and its inevitable consequence, religious persecution. It is already seeing the marked fulfillment of predictions made in its columns in the past, and the publishers are thus assured that the lines on which it is conducted are correct. The Sentinel will be especially interesting and valuable during the present session of Congress, and should be widely circulated. Eight pages; issued weekly; $1.00 a year.
MEN sometimes do good when they try to do evil. We have an instance in Talbot County, Maryland, of a Methodist minister publicly advertising a book which he really desired to squelch. Here is his notice:—
"The undersigned, with the fear of God and the public good before his eyes, would call the attention of all Christians, whether Protestant or Catholic, that there is a man in Talbot County seeking to sell a book called "Bible Readings for the Home Circle," and he is also talking against the observance of the Lord's day. The book is in the interest of the Second or Seventh-day Adventists. Christians, beware of his craftiness and book. Yours,
J. D. LECATES,
Pastor of the Tilghman M. E. Church."
We hope that the canvasser will appreciate the good fortune of having even an enemy go before him to advertise his work. But it does seem strange to hear a professed minister of the gospel warning his neighbors against "Bible Readings for the Home Circle." A true minister would encourage such reading.
SISTER LOTTIE MULLIN, Cottage Grove, San Jose, Cal., desires late copies of the SIGNS and American Sentinel for missionary work.
SISTER E. J. HUTCHINSON says of the church at Parkersburg, West Virginia: "Nearly every member has subscribed for a copy of the American Sentinel for three months, to send to someone not in the truth; and some are making a house-to-house canvass for it."
THE WORK AND THE REWARD.
By B. F. Burgess
BY B. F. BURGESS.
Go PREACH the gospel to all men
Who do not know the love of God,
And tell them of the lepers ten
Whose spots were cleansed by Christ our Lord.
And strangers on our street pass by
Who do not even know our Lord,
And heathen who in darkness lie
Should now be taught his holy word.
If we but do our duty well
As time is swiftly passing by,
We will the story gladly tell
Of Christ, who did for sinners die.
Then scatter now some seeds of love,
The precious truths we know so well,
The message of our God above;
His mighty words we all should tell.
With joyful heart we near the goal
Where we may lay our burdens down,
And rest the weary, wayworn soul,
Then with the faithful wear a crown.
With golden harps and voices raised
We'll joyful hallelujahs sing,
And thus with hearts filled full of praise
We'll make the heavenly arches ring.
And then before our blessed Lord
Lay down the burden, cease the strife,
And each receive the great reward,
The conqueror's meed, the crown of life.
Oakland, Cal.
FAITHFUL DEVOTION.
THOSE who are handling sacred things should be wholly consecrated to the work. They should possess an unselfish interest in it, and a fervent love for perishing souls. If they do not have this, they have mistaken their mission, and should cease their labor of teaching others; for they do more harm than they can possibly do good. Some ministers display themselves, but do not feed the flock that are perishing for meat in due season.
There is a disposition with some to shrink from opposition. They fear to go into new places because of the darkness and the conflicts they expect to meet. This is cowardice. The people must be met where they are. They need stirring appeals, and practical, as well as doctrinal, discourses. Precept backed up by example will have a powerful influence.
A faithful shepherd will not study his own ease and convenience, but will labor for the interest of the sheep. In this great work he will forget self; in his search for the lost sheep, he will not realize that he himself is weary, cold, and hungry. He has but one object in view,—to save the lost and wandering sheep, at whatever expense it may be to himself. His wages will not influence him in his labor nor turn him from his duty. He has received his commission from the Majesty of Heaven, and he expects his reward when the work intrusted to him is done.—Testimony for the Church, No. 17.
HIS LIGHT NOT HID.
A BUSINESS man in a certain city was at the point of death, and was asked by his wife whether he would like to have a minister come and pray with him. "No," said he, "I have never been able to feel that he is a thoroughly serious man; but if you care to ask John [the porter of his establishment], I would like to have him come in and pray. He has worked for me twenty years, and if there ever was a Christian, he is one."—Selected.
RISE AND PROGRESS
By Editor
--OF--
Seventh-Day Adventists.
Tokens of God's Hand in the Movement, and Brief Sketch of the Advent Cause from 1831 to 1844.
By J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH.
This new book, fresh from the pen of one of the oldest ministers in the advent movement, cannot but be of great interest to all, and especially to those who have become Seventh-Day Adventists in recent years and know but little of the early history of the cause and its leaders.
The following are some of the chapter headings: Extent of the Advent Proclamation; The Tarrying Time; The Midnight Cry; The Disappointment; Fresh Tokens of Divine Guidance; Perils, Reproaches, Victories; New Features in the Work; Providence of God in the Publishing Work; Organization; Rapid Advancement; Though Workers Faint, God's Work Advances; Truth Advanced Even by Opposition.
The book contains nearly 400 pages, with 50 illustrations, several of them full page, and is neatly bound in cloth, and furnished in two styles.
Address,
PACIFIC PRESS PUB. CO.,
OAKLAND, CAL.
Or 43 Bond St., New York.
A HOLIDAY BOOK.
By Editor
Useful as Well as Ornamental.
Most children like picture books, and most people who have children buy picture books for them. But about holiday time many people buy picture books for other people's children.
A nice picture book is a nice present. A good picture book is a good present. An instructive picture book is an instructive present.
All these qualifications are included in the BOUND VOLUME of
OUR LITTLE FRIEND.
There is no use in buying books that teach children folly and nonsense. They learn too much of that incidentally. They get too much without buying it. Let the money be spent for something useful.
Volume II contains over 400 pages, 7x10 inches, and is bound in cloth and also in paper, with a handsome design on first page.
Price, in Cloth.....................................$1 00
Price, in Paper..................................... 60
These prices include postage. Address
OUR LITTLE FRIEND,
OAKLAND, CAL.
The Talents
By M. C. Wilcox
THE TALENTS. By M. C. Wilcox. A brief essay on "The Parable of the Talents," showing that the talents represent the various gifts of the Spirit which God bestows as he will upon those who are consecrated to him, with the duties and blessed privileges involved therein, Bible Students' Library, No. 77; 16 pp., price 2 cents.
International S. S. Lessons.
"So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading." —Neh. 8:8.
LESSON IV.—SUNDAY, JANUARY 22, 1893.
JOSHUA THE HIGH PRIEST.
[NOTE.—The questions which follow are merely suggestive for the student on the leading points of the lesson; it is presumed that the thorough student will think of many more as he studies the subject. References, where verses are given, always refer to the lesson scripture printed above. All other references are given in book, chapter, and verse. The text printed is that of the Revised Version, not because it is especially preferred, but because it is not found in every family, as is the common version.]
1. And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary.
2. And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; yea, the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?
3. Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.
4. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take the filthy garments from off him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with rich apparel.
5. And I said, Let them set a fair miter upon his head. So they set a fair miter upon his head, and clothed him with garments; and the angel of the Lord stood by.
6. And the angel of the Lord protested unto Joshua, saying, 7. Thus saith the Lord of hosts: If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou also shalt judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee a place of access among these that stand by.
8. Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee; for they are men which are a sign; for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch.
9. For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; upon one stone are seven eyes; behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.
10. In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbor under the vine and under the fig tree.
Golden Text.—"We have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens. Jesus, the Son of God." Heb. 4:14.
The Time.—Zechariah seems to have come in to confirm Haggai and to reveal additional truth. He began prophesying between the second and third recorded prophecies of Haggai. Compare Haggai 2:1, 10 with Zechariah 1:1. The prophecy of our lesson was spoken in the following year (Zech. 1:7), sometime in the beginning of our March, 519 B. C. The place was Jerusalem. Zechariah was himself one of the priests (see Neh. 12:16); he continued to prophesy two years (Zech. 7:1). The effect of his and Haggai's prophesying is given in Ezra 6:14. The Jews "prospered." Ezra, chapters 5 and 6, and the prophecy of Haggai, will throw light on the condition of affairs.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
1. How did God reprove and encourage his people when they became discouraged in building the temple?
"Now the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem; in the name of the God of Israel prophesied they unto them." Ezra 5:1.
2. What had been the result of their ceasing the work? Note 1.
3. Who was their high priest, the representative of Israel? Ans.—Joshua, the son of Josedech. See Hag. 1:1; Ezra 5:2.
4. How was Joshua represented in vision to Zechariah? Verse 1.
5. In what was he clothed? Verse 3. Note 2.
6. What enemy had Joshua? Verse 1. Note 2.
7. Who rebuked him, and with what words? Verse 2. Note 3.
8. What change did he make in Joshua? Verses 4, 5. Note 4.
9. What instruction and promises did he give him? Verses 6, 7. Note 5.
10. What special promise did God give? Verse 8. Note 6.
11. What else did he promise in Christ? Verses 9, 10. Note 7.
12. Who is our great high priest? Golden text.
13. With what assurance may we seek him?
"For we have not a high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but one that hath been in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help us in time of need." Heb. 4:15, 16.
NOTES.
1. When Haggai and Zechariah began to prophesy, the work of building the temple had entirely ceased. The people, hindered and annoyed by their enemies, seem to have lost faith and courage, and with loss of faith came increase of sin and selfishness. They turned to their own gain, builded their own houses, sought their own prosperity, and left the house of God to lie waste. Therefore, the Lord withheld rain, and dew, and blessing, till the people were brought low, and some among them began to intermingle with the heathen. Two lessons they must learn if they would keep their place and nation: (1) That they were utterly dependent upon God for success; and (2) that to have success they must separate from sin and yield themselves wholly to God.
2. Clothed with filthy garments.—Joshua, as the high priest, was the representative of his people. Ex. 28:12; Lev. 16:16. The filthy garments were representative of the sins of Israel. Satan, who had led Israel to sin, stands at the side of the representative of Israel and accuses him before Christ. Rev. 12:10. He declares that God cannot accept such a sinful, wicked, rebellious people. And truly they were a sinful, guilty, rebellious nation.
3. The Lord rebuke thee.—God himself interposes for his people. He had chosen Jerusalem. He had chosen Israel. He had chosen Judah and David. Through them was coming the promised Seed. The hope of the world was at stake. God had preserved them throughout all their checkered career; he had saved them from the hand of the great and mighty nations; he had plucked them as a brand from the burning, a stick, though charred, which was of value in his eyes; he would not yet relinquish it. He therefore rebuked the adversary by his own mighty power; Israel was the Lord's.
4. Take the filthy garments from off him.—Israel, under the reproof and admonitions of the prophets, had become humbled before God on account of their sins. The humble soul shall be exalted. God takes off the filthy garments, and places upon him the change of raiment. That is, God removes by his pardoning word the filthy garment of sin and puts upon the repentant, humbled sinner his own blessed robes of righteousness. As says the prophet: "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels." Isa. 61:10. Miter.—The crown symbolical of character, "holiness to the Lord." See Ex. 28:36-38.
5. Walk in my ways.—Continuance of God's favor is contingent on continued submission to his law. Keep my charge.—The written ordinances and appointments of God. Judge my house.—Rule in his house, give judgment in cases brought before the priest. See Deut. 17:9. Among those that stand by.—The angels of God. While the house was God's, angels would be the invisible keepers of its courts; Joshua and his followers would walk among those favored of God. See Luke 1:8-11. God had, and has, gracious blessings waiting for his people.
6. Men which are a sign.—"Men wondered at," the common version. Truly such was the Jewish people, the brand plucked from the fire of affliction, persecution, and enmity of the nations. They were a sign of God's power to all the world. Their salvation was a sign to them of God's goodness and faithfulness; and their deliverance was a sign of the great final deliverance under Him who was the greater sign, namely, The Branch.—When the fullness of time should come, God would bring forth his Son (Gal. 4:4), the rod of Jesse, the branch out of his roots (Isa. 11:1), and the Shiloh of the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10), the seed of Abraham (Gen. 22:18), the Branch of Jeremiah, the LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS (Jer. 23:6, 7). Until that time Judah would be kept. Unto that Branch would be the gathering of the people. Gen. 49:10.
7. The Stone.—Perhaps the cornerstone of the temple used as a symbol of the "Chief Corner Stone," the "Tried Stone." See Eph. 2:20; 1 Peter 2:6, 7; Isa. 28:16. Seven Eyes.—Symbolical of the seven spirits of God, and God's wondrous watchful care over all his people. See Rev. 5:6. Remove the iniquity.—Christ died for the sins of the world. He made expiation for those sins when he died on the cross. His offering was efficacious for all. But the "one day" may look forward to that time, that great "day of the Lord," when all sin will be forever removed; when "the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick; the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity" (Isa. 33:24); where "the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness [Christ's righteousness upon his people] quietness and assurance forever" (Isa. 32:17). See Jer. 50:20. Blessed result, in which all the Israel of God shall rejoice. For that Jesus, our great High Priest, lives. He invites all to come boldly in his name; and, though our sins be as scarlet, they shall be made white as snow.
