Paramount Lesson of Israel--No.2

Israel's policies became changed, and a monarchy was organized, that they might pattern after their neighbors. Soon they dis­agreed among themselves, and the kingdom was rent in twain. Civil war ensued. Pride, prejudice, and greed caused even the rulers to turn against God's plan, destroying the prophetic roll, casting God's messengers into prison, defying Jehovah Himself, and de­claring that Jerusalem should stand forever. Even subjugation of their land and captivity itself did not teach them the lesson of co­operation with ''the supreme Reality of the universe."

The four centuries preceding Christ's ad­vent saw a curious but definite commingling of the nations organized on the principle of exploited polytheism with that nation chosen by God as His peculiar people. In a few years the forces of Greece under Alexander the Great swept the world. To the astonished peoples suffering under the exploitation of monarchs for centuries, and weary of the pageant and fable of the various religious ceremonies, the policies of this new power seemed as the rosy Utopian dawn. In the place of servitude, man was now offered citi­zenship, with a voice in public affairs.

Although commercially obtained oracles from Oriental gods, renamed and placed in the Greek Pantheon, indicated an outward acceptance of ritualism, inwardly atheism, Gnosticism, and fatalism advanced the fasci­nating theories of supremacy of the mind, of the development of the body, and of the sub­mission of every subject to the touchstone of sensation. Serfs, ground down for centuries. could now enter a new life of selfish aggran­dizement, indulgence, and license. Greek phi­losophy dominated the world, not by persecu­tion, but by favoritism shown any individual adopting the principles controlling this new and less austere life.

Watching with jealous eyes the phenomenal growth of this new force, and yielding to the desires of the majority, the leaders in the Hebrew temple service clutched at the apparent freedom offered by this Helleniza­tion. They bought the priesthood and con­nived with assassins to do away with their rivals. God was given the name of Zeus Olympus. Greek sports and gymnasia were introduced near the temple area. The youth exercised nude. The people became citizens of Antioch and wore the hat as a symbol of this new Western culture. Offerings were sent from the temple treasury to Hercules.

Priests set aside many of the ancestral customs, adopted pagan names, and forsook their altar service to partake in the sports and be present at the athletic contests. They rebelled at their conservative brethren and be­trayed them to the king. Factions strove for power, discarding any thought of Levitical succession. This new culture proved to be one of the most attractive things that had ever come to the world, especially to the youth. They were offered a new patriotism, new dress, new thought, an entirely new life—no wonder it went like wildfire! And note please, that this was not brought about so much by the command of Antiochus Epiphanes as by the desire of the majority in Jerusalem. See­ing that there are many today who are trying to make Daniel's 230o-day prophecy apply in part to Antiochus, it might be well to notice what Dr. A. T. Olmstead, one of the world's foremost ancient-history scholars, has to say about the persecution of the Jews by this king.

"In our study of the persecution of the Hasideans, too much emphasis has been laid on the somewhat bizarre character of Antiochus IV. We may doubt whether he was more inclined than his predecessors to Hellenize his subjects; we may certainly doubt whether he was any more conscious of his godlike character as king than Alexander, Ptolemy the savior, or Antiochus the god. In so far thus as we have persecution and not prosecution, we have some­thing un-Greek. The real cause, unless we com­pletely misread our primary sources, must be found in the internal conditions of the Jewish nationality, in the hatred of the Hellenized leaders for the Hasi­dean lower classes. . . . In this picture the author of Maccabees I is less •true than his fellow, with his naive belief that the process of Hellenization began in the reign of Antiochus IV, that it was due to separation from the nations round about, a separa­tion possible on the part of the extreme pious, not the nation as a whole, who were in the closest contact with the surrounding peoples. Nor is he correct in making the persecution almost exclusively that of the king: the second book shows the part played by the Hellenizing Jews."—"Wearing the Hat," American Journal of Theology, Vol. XXIV, p. 10

The persecution by Antiochus seems to have been rather a tempest in a teapot, compared to the urge inside Israel's ranks. God's require­ments, seemed old-fashioned, and it was not long before they merged themselves com­pletely with the nations about them by making overtures to Rome. Just notice the degrada­tion to which people in this period had fallen :

"The bodies of human beings, made for the dwell­ing place of God, had become the habitation of de­mons. The senses, the nerves, the passions, the organs of men were worked by supernatural agencies in the indulgence of the vilest lust. The very stamp of demons was impressed upon the countenances of men. Human faces reflected the expression of the legions of evil with which they were possessed. Such Was the prospect upon which the world's Redeemer looked. What a spectacle for Infinite Purity to be­hold !"—"The Desire of Ages," p. 36.

It is a pitiful scene, but it was in that very environment that God was looking for leader­ship. And He did not look in vain!

Man's wanderings far afield had not at any time affected God's eternal purpose. He de­lighted to make His everlasting covenant with any individual who would cooperate with Him. He found His followers among the nations of the world, as well as among His chosen people; as, for example, Rahab the harlot, Ruth the Moabitess, Nebuchadnezzar the Chaldean. His call always has been to individuals—it is still that today. Those accepting His call were placed in a "royal line," and in each individual we see characteristics that must be in our lives in this, the crisis of the ages. Let us note some of the outstanding qualities:

1. Abraham (faith in God versus sight). He knew not where he was going—he was content to follow opening providences, refusing to accept proffered op­portunities to return to the old life.

2. Isaac (surrender to God). A whole life spent so that the neighbors could say, "We saw plainly that the Lord was with thee." Gen. 26 :28.

3. Jacob (governed by God). The name Israel may signify, as one of its root meanings, governed by God, as a prince is controlled by his king.

4. Joseph (service for God). Purity, unselfish­ness, and confidence in God,—his life should be a type of that found today.

5. Moses (free moral agency). Within his grasp lay power, wealth, fame; yet he chose God and His service.

6. Samuel (obedience at personal sacrifice). Lead­ership was never easy. It is as full of thorns today as in his day.

7. David (no animosity—a perfect heart). The man who learned how to hold no grudge against his enemies.

8. Elijah (turning failure into personal victory). After failing at his task, he carried out the appoint­ment of his successor in a way to win the commenda­tion of Jehovah.

9. Jeremiah (faith amid ruin). Not the "weeping prophet," but the one who could cry out amid the ruin of his city: "Thus saith the Lord. . . I will visit you, and perform My good word toward you... for I know the thoughts that I think toward you, thoughts of peace, and not of evil." Jer. 29:1o, If.

10. Daniel (leadership by youth—a covenanter). In the worst possible environment he demonstrated the "mystery of godliness"—God dwelling in man.

God Does the Seemingly Impossible

But where, you say, did God find in the period just before Christ's first advent, in­dividuals who would fit into His royal line? Let us watch Him choose His leaders :

a. Zacharias and Elisabeth (power of God to re­create). An ordinary priest who yielded himself as witness to this fact.

b. Mary (willingness to cooperate regardless of personal sacrifice). Facing the criticism of the people, she said,"Be it unto me according to Thy word."

c. Joseph (builder of a temple of' obedience and faith). In his temple of faith, the world's Master Teacher was trained.

d. Simeon (longing to behold the unseen). The man who reaped the reward the high priest might have obtained, because he was humble and longed to see the Lord's Anointed.

e. Anna (cultivation of spirituality). She turned resolutely from the environment of her time to con­template things divine.

f. Shepherds (controlled by the unction of the Holy Spirit). The most vital need then—even as now.

g. Wise men (to give and not to get). God is no respecter of persons. He calls from every rank. In giving all, they secured all.

There is no need to show in detail how his­tory is repeating itself in this our day, how mass conformity to the world has become al­most an overpowering delusion, even as in the days just prior to Christ's first advent. But let us rejoice that that wonderful promise of God shines just as brilliantly today as of yore: "The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong in the behalf of those who keep the covenant relationship with Him." It is His plan, too, that His faithful followers today join His royal line. Heb. 11 :40. It was Abra­ham's delight to become a member. Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, each determined to rise above his environment and let God lead him as a father leads his son. Down through the cen­turies it was the same plan. God's eternal purpose has never failed—it never will. It has always found men and women grateful for the opportunity it affords and anxious to accept its terms.