king, so he had done to Ai and her king; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them; "That they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty. "Wherefore Adoni-zedec King of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham King of Hebron, and unto Piram King of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia King of Lachish, and unto Debir King of Eglon, saying, "Come up unto me, and help me, that we may smite Gibeon: for it hath made peace with Joshua, and with the children of Israel. "Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the King of Jerusalem, the King of Hebron, the King of Jarmuth, the King of Lachish, the King of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon, and made war against it. "And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us for all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the mountains are gathered together against us. "So Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valour. "And the Lord said unto Joshua, Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee. "Joshua therefore came unto them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night. "And the Lord discomfited them before Israel, and slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah. "And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Beth-horon, that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword. "Then spake Joshua to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon. "And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. "And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened unto the voice of a man: for the Lord fought for Israel" (Josh. x. 1-15). NOTE.-Discomfited means threw into confusion. QUESTIONS. How many kings attacked Gibeon? Why? To whom did they look for help? Where was Joshua? What did God tell him? How did he attack them? How was he helped? Which way did he chase them? What miracle did he perform? What was the effect? How long did the sun stand still? that mean? Why did Joshua want a longer day? What does CHAPTER CI. MIRACLES UNDER THE JUDGES. THE chief miracles in the time of the Judges are THREE. 1. THE ANGEL'S SIGN TO GIDEON, in causing fire to burn his food. "There came an angel of the Lord, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the wine-press, to hide it from the Midianites. "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. "And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all His miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. "And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? 66 And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. "And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. “And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me. "Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And He said, I will tarry until thou come again. "And Gideon went in and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it. "And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. "Then the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord departed out of his sight. "And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face. "And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not thou shalt not die. "Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites" (Judg. vi. 11-24). 2. THE LORD'S TWO SIGNS TO GIDEON. "And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said, Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said. "And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water. "And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew. "And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground" (Judg. vi. 36-40). 3. THE PRESERVATION OF THE ARK IN THE LAND OF THE PHILISTINES. "The Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Eben-ezer unto Ashdod. "When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. "And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. "And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him. "Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day" (1 Sam. v. 1–5). Wherever the ark went it brought a plague and famine upon the Philistines, till they were very glad to get rid of it, and send it back to Israel; but we shall read of that when we come to the "history of the ark." NOTES.-Jehovah-Shalom means "The Lord send peace." Dagon was the "Fish-God," having the head of a man and the tail of a fish. QUESTIONS. Who came to Gideon? What was he doing? Where was he? Of whom was he afraid? What did the angel tell him to do? What sign did He shew him? Why was Gideon afraid? What promise was made him? What two signs did God give him? Explain them in your own words. Where was the ark taken ? Where was it put? What was Dagon? What happened to him in the night? Why did not the priests tread on the threshold of Dagon's temple? What other evils happened to the Philistines! Why? What did they do with the ark at last? THE GUARDIAN ANGEL. SWEET angel of mercy! by Heaven's decree, All thanks for thy love, dear guardian and friend Support me in weakness, my spirit inflame; skies. When Satan his snares for my ruin shall lay, Be thou, gentle comrade, my comfort and stay; When I wander in error, my footsteps recall; May God and His glory be ever in view. |