Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

QUESTIONS.

What happened to the ten tribes of Israel during Hezekiah's reign?

How did Josiah show his reverence for God's word?

What prophetess lived in Jerusalem then, and what was her message to Josiah?

What was the covenant made by the king and people?

Repeat a text which speaks of entering into covenant with God.

THE CITY OF BABYLON.

I AM going to take you a long way off to-day, dear children-to a very large and fine city many miles from Jerusalem. This city was called Babylon; and, as I told you before, it was situated in the land of Assyria. It was surrounded by great walls, very thick, and very high. It had a hundred gates, and these gates were made of brass. Inside the gates, within the city, were houses, and gardens, and palaces, and temples, all very beau

tiful and magnificent, which had been built by the different sovereigns who had reigned in Babylon. Through the city flowed a noble river; you ought to remember its name, for I have mentioned it more than once before-it was

called the Euphrates. Babylon was divided into two parts by this river; so, in some places, there were bridges, by which to pass over from one part to the other; and there were flights of steps leading from the river to gates which opened into the different squares and streets of the city.

Babylon was a very large place; it measured about sixty miles in the extent of its walls.

It was

square; so each side was about

fifteen miles long. And what sort

of people lived there? They were very rich, very great, and very powerful; they had all kinds of fine things brought from other parts of the world, to beautify their city; and it was called "the glory of kingdoms; the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency."

xiii. 19.)

(Isa.

And yet, notwithstand

ing their greatness, the people of Babylon were not a happy people. Why not? If you had walked through their fine city, and gone into their temples, I think you would have been able to tell why. You would have found out that God was not worshipped there. You would have seen idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and wood, and stone; but no holy temple— no altars raised for the true God

no sacrifices offered to him; and, therefore, there was no blessing upon Babylon-so how could the people be happy!

And now you may fancy yourselves, many long years ago, wandering about this great city, and admiring its beauty, and mourning over its idolatry. At last you come to a large building, strongly barred, and guarded on all sides; it is the great prison-house of Babylon. Will you ask the guards to open those great gates, and to let you in? Many poor captives are there; but there is one whom you will pity, perhaps, more than all the others. There he sits, bound in fetters of brass, in his lonely prison. cannot see you.

Look at him; he

He rolls his eyes

« ZurückWeiter »