Project Gutenberg's The Peep of Day, by Mrs. Favell Lee (Bevan) Mortimer

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Title: The Peep of Day

Author: Mrs. Favell Lee (Bevan) Mortimer

Release Date: January 5, 2017 [EBook #53894]

Language: English

Character set encoding: UTF-8

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[Illustration: THE INFANT JESUS.]




    The Peep of Day


    By the Author of
    “Line Upon Line,” “Precept Upon
    Precept,” Etc.


    PHILADELPHIA
    HENRY ALTEMUS COMPANY




CONTENTS.


    LESSON.                              PAGE.
     1. Of the body                         7
     2. Of a mother’s care                 10
     3. Of the soul                        14
     4. Of the good angels                 17
     5. Of the wicked angels               20
     6. The world, Part I                  25
     7. The world, Part II                 28
     8. The world, Part III                30
     9. Adam and Eve                       35
    10. The first sin                      37
    11. The Son of God                     40
    12. The Virgin Mary                    43
    13. The birth of Jesus                 46
    14. The shepherds                      47
    15. The wise men                       49
    16. King Herod                         50
    17. The temptation                     52
    18. The twelve disciples               56
    19. The first miracle                  59
    20. Several miracles                   61
    21. The sinner and Simon               63
    22. The storm at sea                   65
    23. Jairus’ daughter                   67
    24. The loaves and fishes              69
    25. The kindness of Jesus              73
    26. The Lord’s Prayer                  75
    27. Jesus foretells his death          77
    28. Lazarus                            79
    29. Jesus enters Jerusalem             83
    30. The Temple                         85
    31. Judas                              87
    32. The Last Supper, Part I            89
    33. The Last Supper, Part II           92
    34. The Last Supper, Part III          94
    35. The garden                         97
    36. Peter’s denial                    100
    37. Pontius Pilate                    103
    38. Death of Judas                    107
    39. The Cross, Part I                 108
    40. The Cross, Part II                111
    41. The Cross, Part III               113
    42. The soldiers                      115
    43. The grave                         116
    44. The resurrection                  119
    45. Mary Magdalene                    121
    46. The two friends                   123
    47. Thomas                            128
    48. The dinner                        130
    49. The ascension                     134
    50. Peter in Prison                   136
    51. John                              142
    52. The Judgment Day                  146




PREFACE.


THIS little work aims to be the very least of all;—not in _size_, but
in the humility of its contents. It aims at the superlative degree of
littleness; and in this point seeks to resemble the least watch ever
made—the least picture ever painted—the tiniest flower that ever grew.
It desires to be among books as the humming-bird among birds.

As soon as a child’s mind is _capable_ of receiving _systematic_
instruction, this humble work attempts to convey it.

From a very early period a pious mother will, by _casual_ remarks,
endeavor to lead her child to the knowledge of his Creator and
Redeemer; and in due time she will impart _systematic_ instruction. It
may be at _three_ years of age—it may _not_ be till _five_—that the
child is prepared to listen to these little lessons. But—sooner or
later—he will give evidence of his immortality by willingly hearkening
to discourse concerning the INVISIBLE—the ETERNAL—the INFINITE.

The simplicity of the language may seem unworthy of the sublimity
of the subject treated of in these pages; and some may smile at the
contrast;—but the little one will not smile—except with joy to hear
of his Heavenly Father, and of his Incarnate Redeemer; for the merry
inmates of the nursery are capable of tasting higher pleasures than
toys and dainties can afford.




THE PEEP OF DAY.




LESSON I.

OF THE BODY.


DEAR CHILDREN:—You have seen the sun in the sky. Who put the sun in the
sky?—God.

Can you reach up so high?—No.

Who holds up the sun that it does not fall?—It is God. God lives in
heaven; heaven is much higher than the sun.

Can you see God?—No. Yet He can see you, for God sees everything.

God made everything at first, and God takes care of everything. God
made you, my little child, and God takes care of you always.

You have a little body; from your head down to your feet, I call your
body.

Put your hand before your mouth. What do you feel coming out of your
mouth? It is your breath. You breathe every moment. When you are
asleep, you breathe. You cannot help breathing. But who gives you
breath? God does everything. God gave you this little body, and he
makes it live, and move, and breathe. There are bones in your body. God
has made them strong and hard. There are some bones for your arms, and
some bones for your legs. There is a bone for your back, and more bones
for you sides.

God has covered your bones with flesh. Your flesh is soft and warm.
In your flesh there is blood. God has put skin outside, and it covers
your flesh and blood like a coat. Now all these things, the bones, and
flesh, and blood, and skin, are called your body. How kind of God it
was to give you a body. I hope that your body will not get hurt.

Will your bones break?—Yes, they would, if you were to fall down from a
high place, or if a cart were to go over them.

If you were to be very sick, your flesh would waste away, and you would
have scarcely anything left but skin and bones.

Did you ever see a child who had been sick a very long while? I have
seen a sick baby. It had not round cheeks like yours, and a fat arm
like this. The baby’s flesh was almost gone, and its little bones were
only covered with skin. God has kept you strong and well.

How easy it would be to hurt your poor little body!

If it were to fall into the fire, it would be burned up. If hot water
were thrown upon it, it would be scalded. If it were to fall into deep
water, and not be taken out very soon, it would be drowned. If a great
knife were run through your body, the blood would come out. If a great
box were to fall on your head, your head would be crushed. If you were
to fall out of the window, your neck would be broken. If you were not
to eat some food for a few days, your little body would be very sick,
your breath would stop, and you would grow cold, and you would soon be
dead.

You see that you have a very weak little body.

Can you keep your own body from being sick, and from getting hurt?

You should try not to hurt yourself, but God only can keep your body
from all harm, from fire and water, from wounds and bruises, and all
kinds of sickness. Kneel down and say to God, “Pray keep my poor little
body from getting hurt.” God will hear you, and go on taking care of
you.

    My little body’s made by God
    Of soft warm flesh and crimson blood:
    The slender bones are placed within,
    And over all is laid the skin.

    My little body’s very weak;
    A fall or blow my bones might break:
    The water soon might stop my breath;
    The fire might close my eyes in death.

    But God can keep me by his care;
    To him I’ll say this little pray’r:
    “O God! from harm my body keep,
    Both when I wake and when I sleep.”




LESSON II.

OF A MOTHER’S CARE.


I HAVE told you about your little body. Was your body always as big as
it is now?—No. Once it was very small indeed.

What were you called when your body was very small?—A baby.

Now you can take a little care of yourself, but then you could take no
care at all. Can babies walk, or talk, or feed themselves, or dress
themselves?—No.

But God sent you a person who took great care of you when you were a
baby.

Who was it?—Your dear mother; she took care of you then. She nursed you
in her arms, and fed you, and took you out in the air, and washed you,
and dressed you. Do you love your mother?—Yes.

I know you do. But who gave you a mother? It was God who sent you to a
kind mother.

A little while ago there was no such little creature as you. Then God
made your little body, and he sent you to your mother, who loved you as
soon as she saw you. It was God who made your mother love you so much,
and made her so kind to you.

Your kind mother dressed your poor little body in neat clothes, and
laid you in a cradle. When you cried she gave you food, and hushed you
to sleep in her arms. She showed you pretty things to make you smile.
She held you up, and showed you how to move your feet. She taught you
to speak, and she often kissed you, and called you sweet names.

Is your mother kind to you still?—Yes, she is, though she is sometimes
angry. But she wishes to make you good: that is why she is sometimes
angry.

Your mother has sent you to this nice school, and she gives you supper
when you go home. I know she will be kind to you as long as she lives.

But remember who gave you this mother. God sent you to a dear mother,
instead of putting you in the fields, where no one would have seen you
or taken care of you.

Can your mother keep you alive?—No.

She can feed you, but she cannot make your breath go on.

God thinks of you every moment. If he were to forget you, your breath
would stop.

Do you ever thank your mother for her kindness?—Yes. You often say,
“Thank you,” and sometimes you put your arms around her neck, and say,
“I do love you so much, dear mother!” Will you not thank God who gave
you a mother, and who keeps you alive? You should kneel down when you
speak to God; then you should say, “O God, how good you have been to
me! I thank you, and love you.”

Would God hear your little thanks?—Yes, God would hear and be pleased.

    Who fed me from her gentle breast,
    And hush’d me in her arms to rest,
    And on my cheeks sweet kisses press’d?
                                    My Mother.

    When sleep forsook my open eye,
    Who was it sang sweet hush-a-by?
    And rock’d me that I should not cry?
                                    My Mother.

    Who sat and watch’d my infant head,
    When sleeping on my cradle bed,
    And tears of sweet affection shed?
                                    My Mother.

    When pain and sickness made me cry,
    Who gazed upon my heavy eye,
    And wept for fear that I should die?
                                    My Mother.

    Who ran to help me when I fell,
    And would some pretty story tell,
    Or kiss the place to make it well?
                                    My Mother.

    Who taught my infant lips to pray,
    And love God’s holy book and day,
    And walk in wisdom’s pleasant way?
                                    My Mother.

    And can I ever cease to be
    Affectionate and kind to thee,
    Who wast so very kind to me?
                                    My Mother.

    Ah no! the thought I cannot bear,
    And if God please my life to spare,
    I hope I shall reward thy care,
                                    My Mother.

    When thou art feeble, old, and gray,
    My healthy arm shall be thy stay,
    And I will soothe thy pains away,
                                    My Mother.

    And when I see thee hang thy head,
    ’Twill be my turn to watch thy bed,
    And tears of sweet affection shed,
                                    My Mother.

    For God, who lives above the skies,
    Would look with vengeance in his eyes
    If ever I should dare despise
                                    My Mother.




LESSON III.

OF THE SOUL.


HAS God been kind to dogs? Has he given them bodies?—Yes.

Have they bones, and flesh, and blood, and skin?—Yes.

The dog has a body as well as you. Is the dog’s body like yours?—No.

How many legs have you?—Two.

How many legs has the dog?—Four.

Have you got arms?—Yes, two.

Has the dog got arms?—No, it has no arms, nor hands. But the dog has
legs instead. Your skin is smooth, but the dog is covered with hair.

Is the cat’s body like yours?—No; it is covered with fur.

Is a chicken’s body like yours? How many legs has the chicken?—Two.

And so have you. But are its legs like yours?—No; the chicken has very
thin, dark legs, and it has claws instead of feet.

Have you feathers on your skin? Have you wings? Is your mouth like a
chicken’s beak? Has the chicken any teeth?—No; the chicken’s body is
not at all like yours. Yet the chicken has a body—for it has flesh, and
bones, and blood, and skin.

Has a fly got a body?—Yes, it has a black body, and six black legs, and
two wings like glass. Its body is not at all like yours.

Who gave bodies to dogs, horses, chickens, and flies? Who keeps them
alive?

God thinks of all these creatures every moment.

Can a dog thank God. No; dogs and horses, sheep and cows, cannot thank
God.

Why can not they thank God? Is is because they cannot talk?

That is not the reason.

The reason is, they cannot think of God. They never heard of God. They
cannot understand about God.

Why not?—Because they have no _souls_, or spirits, like yours.

Have you got a soul?—Yes, in your body there is a soul which will never
die. Your soul can think of God.

When God made your body, he put your soul inside. Are you glad of that?
When God made the dogs, he put no soul like yours inside their bodies,
and they cannot think of God.

Can I see your soul?—No; I cannot see it. No one can see it but God. He
knows what you are thinking of now.

Which is the best, your soul or your body?—Your soul is a great deal
the best. Why is your soul the best?—Your body can die, but your soul
cannot die.

Shall I tell you what your body is made of?—Of dust. God made the dust
into flesh and blood.

What is your soul made of?—Your soul, or spirit, is made of the breath
of God.

That little dog will die some day. Its body will be thrown away. The
dog will be quite gone when its body is dead. But when your body dies,
your soul will be alive, and you will not be quite gone.

Where would you be put if you were dead?—Your body would be put in a
hole in the ground, but your soul would not be in the hole. Even a baby
has a soul, or spirit.

One day as I was walking in the streets, I saw a man carrying a box.
Some people were walking behind, crying. There was a dead baby in the
box. Was the soul of the baby in the box?—No; its soul was gone up to
God.

Will you not thank God for giving you a spirit? Will you not ask Him to
take your spirit to live with him when your body dies?

Say to God, “Pray, take my spirit to live with Thee when my body dies
and turns into dust.”

    CHILD.
    Tell me, mamma, if I must die
      One day, as little baby died;
    And look so very pale, and lie
      Down in the pit-hole by his side?

    Shall I leave dear papa and you,
      And never see you any more?
    Tell me, mamma, if this is true:
      I did not know it was before.

    MAMMA.

    ’Tis true, my love, that you must die;
      The God who made you says you must;
    And every one of us shall lie,
      Like the dear baby in the dust.

    These hands, and feet, and busy head,
      Shall waste and crumble quite away;
    But though your body shall be dead,
      There is a part which can’t decay.

What is that part which can’t decay? It is your soul.

Your body will decay; it will turn into dust; but your soul will live
forever: it will never decay.




LESSON IV.

OF THE GOOD ANGELS.


YOU know that God lives in heaven. He has no body, for he is a spirit.

Does he live in heaven alone?—No; angels stand all round his throne.

What are angels?

Angels are spirits. They are bright like the sun, but they are not so
bright as God, for he is brighter than the sun. The angels are always
looking at God, and it is God that makes them shine so bright.

They sing sweet songs about God. They say, “How good God is! how wise!
how great!”

There is no night in heaven, for the angels are never tired of singing,
and they never wish to sleep. They are never sick, and they will never
die.

They never weep; there are no tears upon their cheeks, but sweet
smiles, for angels are always happy.

If the angels were naughty, they would be unhappy. Naughtiness always
makes people unhappy. The angels are quite good. They love God very
much, and mind all he says.

They have wings, and can fly very quickly. God sends them down here to
take care of us. As soon as God tells an angel to go, he begins to fly.
They are very strong, and can keep us from harm.

Should you like the angels to be near you at night? Do you know this
pretty verse or hymn?

    I lay my body down to sleep,
      Let angels guard my head,
    And through the hours of darkness keep
        Their watch around my bed.

You must ask God to send the angels, for they never go, except when God
sends them.

God is their Father. They have not two fathers, as you have. The angels
are the children of God, and live in God’s house in heaven. When you
mind what your father tells you, then you are like the angels who mind
God.

The angels love us very much. They wish us to grow good, and to come to
live with them in heaven. When a child is sorry for its naughtiness,
and prays to God to forgive it, the angels are very much pleased.

When a little child who loves God falls sick, and is going to die,
God says to the angels, “Go and fetch that little child’s soul up to
heaven.” Then the angels fly down, the little darling shuts its eyes,
it lays its head on its mothers bosom, its breath stops;—the child is
dead. Where is its soul? The angels are carrying it up to heaven.

How happy the child is now! Its pain is over; it is grown quite good;
it is bright like an angel. It holds a harp in its hand, and begins
to sing a sweet song of praise to God. Its little body is put into a
grave, and turns into dust. One day God will make its body alive again.

Dear children, will you pray to God to send his angels to fetch your
souls when you die?

    Around God’s glorious throne above
      The happy angels stand,
    And ever praise the God they love,
      And fly at his command.

    Their faces, like the sun, are bright,
      And sweetest smiles they wear;
    They never sleep; there is no night,
      Nor need of candle there.

    But though the angels live so high,
      They love us men below,
    And hope to see us in the sky
      In garments white as snow.

    And when a dying infant lies
      Upon its mother’s breast,
    The angels watch it while it dies,
      And take its soul to rest.




LESSON V.

OF THE WICKED ANGELS.


WHEN did God begin to live in heaven? God always lived in heaven.

Once there was no such little child as you, but there always was God.

Once there was no sun, but there always was God.

Once there were no angels, but there always was God.

No one made God; God was the first of all things, and God made
everything.

A very long while ago God made the angels. How many angels did he make?
No one could tell how many. There were more than could be counted. They
were all good and happy.

But some of the angels grew bad. They left off loving God, and grew
proud, and disobedient.

Would God let them stay in heaven after they were bad? No; he cast them
out, and put them in chains and darkness.

One of these bad angels was called Satan. He is the chief, or prince of
the bad angels. He is called the devil.

The devil is very wicked, and hates God. He can never go back to heaven
again, but he comes here where we live, and he brings the other devils
with him.

We cannot see Satan, because he is a spirit, but he is always walking
about, and trying to make people naughty.

Satan loves mischief; he does not wish to be good. It pleases Satan to
see people in pain and in tears; but it pleases him best to see them
naughty, because then he thinks that they will come and live with him
in his dark place. He wishes that there should be a great many people
in hell, so he tries to make us do wicked things, and keep us from
praying to God.

I cannot tell you how very bad Satan is. He is very cruel, for he likes
to give pain. He is a liar and teaches people to tell lies. He is
proud, and wishes people to mind him more than God. He is envious, and
cannot bear to see people happy.

The devil hopes very much that you will come and live with him when you
die. He knows that if you are bad like him, you will live with him. So
he tries to make you like himself. When you are in a passion, you are
like the devil. When you say, “I don’t care,” you are like the devil.
When you think yourself good, you are proud like the devil.

Can God keep you from minding the devil? Yes; he can: for God is a
great deal stronger than Satan. Besides this, God is always near you,
for God is everywhere. Now Satan cannot be everywhere at the same time.
It is true that Satan has a great many angels who go where he tells
them; and that Satan and his angels come near you very often. But God
is always with you; he is before you and behind you, and on every side
of you; he is about your bed when you sleep, and about your path when
you walk. Therefore you need not be afraid of Satan; only ask God to
help you, and he will do so.

Satan is much stronger than you are; but God is stronger than all. If
anybody were to come to hurt you when you were alone, you would be
frightened; but if you saw your father coming you would run to him, and
you would not be frightened any more. Now God is our father; he can
keep Satan from hurting you. Pray to him, and say, “O dear father, keep
me from being wicked like the devil, and from going to hell.”

    Satan was once an angel bright
      And worship’d God on high;
    But now he dwells in darkest night
      And endless misery.

    Daring his God to disobey,
      He lost his happy state:
    Sinners above could never stay
      Around God’s throne to wait.

    Thousands of angels with him fell,
      Who own him as their king;
    Hoping with us to share their hell,
      They tempt our souls to sin.

    CHILD.

    God, unto thee I’ll lift my pray’r,
      (He’ll hear an infant cry,)
    “Save me, O Lord, lest I should share
      In Satan’s misery.”

_On the subjects of the preceding Lessons._

      God lives on high—beyond the sky,
    And angels bright—all clothed in white,
      The praises sing—of heaven’s king.

      This God can see—both you and me;
      Can see at night—as in the light;
      And all we do—remembers too.

      ’Tis he bestows—my food and clothes,
      And my soft bed—to rest my head,
      And cottage neat and mother sweet.

      And should not I—forever try
      To do what He—has ordered me,
      And dearly love—this Friend above?

      I always should—be very good:
      At home should mind—my parents kind;
      At school obey—what teachers say.

      Now if I fight—and scratch, and bite,
      In passions fall—and bad names call,
      Full well I know—where I shall go.

      Satan is glad—when I am bad,
      And hopes that I—with him shall lie
      In fire and chains—and dreadful pains.

      And liars dwell—with him in hell,
      And many more—who cursed and swore,
      And all who did—what God forbid.

      And I have not—done what I ought;
      I am not fit—with God to sit.
      And angels bright—all clothed in white.

      I will confess—my naughtiness,
      And will entreat—for mercy sweet
      O Lord! forgive—and let me live.

      My body must—be turned to dust.
      Then let me fly—beyond the sky,
      And see thy face—in that sweet place.




LESSON VI.

THE WORLD.—PART I.

GENESIS i. 1-10


THIS large place we live in is called the world. It is very beautiful.
If we look up we see the blue sky, if we look down we see the green
grass. The sky is like a curtain spread over our heads, the grass like
a carpet under our feet, and the bright sun is like a candle to give us
light. It was very kind of God to make such a beautiful world, and let
us live in it.

God was in heaven, and all his bright angels around him, when he began
to make the world. God’s Son was with him—for God always has a Son,
just like himself.

His Son’s name is Jesus Christ. He is as good and as great as God his
Father. The Father and the Son are God: they always lived together,
and they love each other exceedingly. The Father and the Son are one
God, and they made the world.

How did God make the world?—By speaking. First of all, God made the
light. God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. No one can
make things by speaking but God: God made things of nothing. He only
spoke, and the light came.

Then God made the air. You cannot see the air, but you can feel it. The
air is everywhere. You can sometimes hear the noise it makes, for you
hear the wind blow, and the wind is air.

Next God put some water up very high. The clouds are full of water, and
sometimes the water comes down, and we call it rain.

God made a large deep place, and filled it with water. God spoke to the
water, and it rushed into the deep place. God called this water the sea.

The sea is very large, and it is always moving up and down, and tossing
itself; but it cannot get out of the large deep place in which God has
put it; for God said, “Stay there.”

When the wind blows hard, the sea makes a loud noise, and roars.

God made some dry land for us to walk upon: we call it ground. We could
not walk upon the sea nor build houses on the sea: but the ground is
hard, and firm, and dry.

Now I have told you of five things that God made:—

1. The light. 2. The air. 3. The clouds. 4. The sea. 5. The dry land.

Let us praise God for making such a large and beautiful world.

    ’Twas God who made this world so fair,
    The shining sun, the sky, the air;
    ’Twas God who made the sea, the ground,
    And all the things I see around.

    When he began the world to make,
    These were the mighty words he spake;
    “Let there be light;” his voice was heard,
    And the obedient light appeared.

    The angels saw the light arise,
    And with their praises filled the skies.
    “How great our God! How wise! How strong!”
    Such is their never-ending song.




LESSON VII.

THE WORLD.—PART II.

GENESIS i. 11-19.


WHEN God made the dry land, there was nothing on it: it was bare. So
God spake, and things grew out of the ground.

Trees came out of it; they were covered with green leaves of different
shapes. Some were called oak trees, and some were called elm trees, and
some beech trees. And some bore nice fruit, such as plum trees, apple
trees, orange trees and fig trees.

Vegetables grew out of the earth; potatoes and beans, cabbages and
lettuces: they are called vegetables.

Corn came out of it. Some corn is called wheat, and some corn is called
barley, and some is called oats. The ears of corn bend down when they
are ripe, and look yellow like gold.

God made the soft green grass to spring up, and flowers to grow among
the grass: flowers of all colors, and of the sweetest smell. The yellow
buttercup, the white lily, the blue violet, and the rose, the most
beautiful of all flowers.

I have told you of five sorts of things that grow out of the earth:

1. Trees. 2. Vegetables. 3. Corn. 4. Grass. 5. Flowers.

The world looked very beautiful when it was covered with grass and
trees. But only God and the angels saw its beauty.

Afterward God placed the sun in the sky, and bade it shine all day, and
go from one end of the world to the other. God made the moon to shine
at night, and he covered the sky with stars.

You never saw anything so bright as the sun. It is very large indeed,
only it looks small, because it is a great way off. It cannot fall, for
God holds it up. God makes it move across the sky. Did you ever hear
this pretty verse about the sun?—

    My God, who makes the sun to know
      His proper hour to rise,
    And to give light to all below,
      Doth send him round the skies.

The moon does not shine as brightly as the sun, for God lets it be dark
at night, that we may rest and sleep soundly.

Who could count the stars?—No one but God. He knows their names and
their number too. When we look at the moon and stars, let us think,
How great God is! Yet he cares for the little birds, and loves little
children.

    CHILD.

    I saw the glorious sun arise
      From yonder mountain gray;
    And as he travel’d through the skies,
      The darkness went away;
    And all around me was so bright,
      I wish’d it would be always light.

    But when his shining course was done
      The gentle moon drew nigh,
    And stars came twinkling, one by one,
      Upon the shady sky.
    Who made the sun to shine so far,
      The moon and every twinkling star?

    MAMMA.

    ’Twas God, my child, who made them all
      By his almighty skill;
    He keeps them, that they do not fall,
      And guides them as he will:
    That glorious God who lives afar,
      In heaven, beyond the highest star.




LESSON VIII.

THE WORLD.—PART III.

GENESIS i. 20-25.


GOD had made a great many things, but none of these things were alive.
At last he made some living things. He spoke, and the water was filled
with fishes, more than could be counted.

Some were very small, and some were very large. Have you heard of the
great whale? It is a fish as long as a church. Fishes are cold, and
they have no feet, and they cannot sing, nor speak.

God made some creatures, more beautiful than fish, to fly about in
the air. The birds:—they perched upon the trees, and sang among the
branches.

Birds have wings, and are covered with feathers of all colors. The
robin has a red breast; the goldfinch has some yellow feathers; and the
jay some blue ones: but the peacock is the most beautiful of birds. It
has a little tuft upon its head, and a long train that sweeps behind;
sometimes it spreads out its feathers, and they look like a large fan.
The thrush, the blackbird and the linnet can sing sweetly: but there
is one bird that can sing more sweetly still—it is the nightingale. At
night, when all the other birds have left off singing, the nightingale
may be heard in the woods.

Some birds swim upon the water; such as geese, and ducks, and the
beautiful swan, with its long neck and its feathers like the snow.

Some birds are very tall. The ostrich is as tall as a man. It cannot
fly like other birds, but it can run very fast indeed.

The eagle builds its nest in a very high place. Its wings are very
strong, and it can fly as high as the clouds.

The gentlest of the birds is the dove. It cannot sing, but it sits
alone and moans softly, as if it were sad.

I cannot tell you the names of all the birds, but you can think of the
names of some other kinds.

There is another sort of living creatures, called insects. God made
them come out of the earth, and not out of the water, like fishes.
Insects are small, and creep upon the earth; such as ants. Some insects
can fly also; such as bees and butterflies. The bee sucks the juice
of flowers, and makes wax and honey. How gay are the wings of the
butterfly! they are covered with little feathers, too small to be seen.

All the insects were good and pretty when God made them.

[Illustration: CHRIST RAISING TO LIFE THE LITTLE MAID.]

At last God made the beasts. They came out of the earth when God spoke.
Beasts walk upon the earth; the most of them have four legs. You know
the names of a great many sorts of beasts. Sheep and cows, dogs and
cats, are beasts. But there are many other sorts besides: the squirrel
that jumps from bough to bough, the rabbit that lives in a hole
underground, and the goat that climbs the high hills; the stag with his
beautiful horns, the lion with his yellow hair, the tiger, whose skin
is marked with stripes. The elephant is the largest of beasts, the lion
is the strongest, the dog is the most sensible, the stag is the most
beautiful, but the lamb is the gentlest. The dove is the gentlest of
the birds, and the lamb is the gentlest of the beasts.

Now God had filled the world with living creatures, and they were all
good; even lions and tigers were good and harmless. I have told you of
four sorts of living creatures:

1. Fishes. 2. Birds. 3. Insects. 4. Beasts.

All these creatures have bodies, but they have not souls like you. They
can move and breathe. God feeds them every day, and keeps them alive.
The Lord is good to them all.

    When God first clothed the earth with green
      And sprinkled it with flow’rs,
    There was no living creature seen
      Within its pleasant bow’rs.

    Soon by his word God fill’d the earth,
      And waters underneath,
    With things above the plants in worth,
      That feel and move and breathe.

    The fishes, cover’d o’er with scales
      In ocean swiftly glide;
    With their vast tails the wondrous whales
      Scatter the waters wide,

    The birds among the branches sing,
      And chief the nightingale:
    The peacock shines with painted wing,
      The dove does softly wail.

    Insects with humming fill the air,
      And sparkle in the sun:
    The butterfly by colors fair
      Surpasses every one.

    The beasts tread firmly on the ground;
      The goat has nimble feet,
    The stag’s with branching antlers crown’d;
      The lamb’s most soft and sweet.

    Pleasure the whole creation fills;
      They leap, they swim, they fly;
    They skim the plains, they climb the hills,
      Or in the valleys lie.

    With herb for meat the Lord provides
      His numerous family;
    The lion with the lamb abides,
      The dove and hawk agree.

    In all the woods and no sound of strife,
      Or piteous moans arise;
    None takes away his fellow’s life,
      And none expiring lies.

    Those happy days, alas! are past,
      And death has entered here;
    Why did they not forever last,
      And when did death appear?




LESSON IX.

ADAM AND EVE.

GENESIS i., 26, to the end of Chap. ii.


NOW I shall tell you of the last thing God made.

God took some of the dust of the ground, and made the body of a man;
then he breathed on it, and gave it a soul; so the man could understand
about God. Adam was quite good like God. Adam loved God very much.

God put him in a very pretty garden, full of trees covered with fruit.
This garden was called the garden of Eden. God showed Adam all the
beasts and birds, and let Adam give them what names he pleased. He said
to Adam, I give you all the fishes, and insects, and birds, and beasts;
you are their master. So Adam was king over all things on the earth.

God said to Adam, You may eat of the fruit that grows on the trees in
the garden. Still God did not let him be idle, but told him to take
care of the garden. You see how very kind God was to Adam.

But Adam had no friend to be with him; for the beasts and birds could
not talk to Adam. Then God said he would make a woman, to be a friend
to Adam. So God made Adam fall fast asleep. God took a piece of bone
and flesh out of his side, and made it into a woman. When Adam woke, he
saw her. He knew that she was made of his flesh and bone, and he loved
her very much. Her name was “woman,” and afterwards her name was Eve.

You have heard of all the things God made. They were all beautiful:
and all the living things were quite happy; there was no pain, and no
sighing, and no sin in all the world.

God had been six days in making the world. And when he had finished it,
he rested on the seventh day, and made no more things.

The angels saw the world that God had made: they were pleased, and sang
a sweet song of praise to God. Jesus Christ the Son of God was pleased,
for he loved Adam and Eve.

How did I know about the world being made? It is written in the Bible,
which is God’s own book.

Let us count over all the things that God made:

1. Light. 2. Air. 3. Clouds. 4. Sea. 5. Dry land. 6. Things that grow
out of the earth. 7. Sun, moon, and stars. 8. Living creatures.




LESSON X.

THE FIRST SIN.

GENESIS iii.


ADAM and Eve were very happy in the garden of Eden. They talked to each
other, and walked together, and they never quarreled, and they praised
God for all his kindness to them.

God used to talk with them sometimes. They were pleased to hear his
voice, for they were not afraid of him.

There was one thing that God had told them not to do. There was a tree
in the middle of the garden. Some beautiful fruit grew upon it; but God
said to Adam and Eve, You must not eat of the fruit of that tree; for
if you eat of it, you shall die. Adam and Eve liked to obey God, and
they did not wish to eat of this fruit.

You know that the wicked angel, Satan, hates God, and he hated Adam and
Eve. He wished to make them naughty, that they might go to hell and
be burned in his fire. So he thought he would ask them to eat of that
fruit. He went into the garden, and looked like a serpent. He saw Eve
alone near the tree. He said to her, Why do you not eat of this fruit?

Eve answered, No, I will not; we must not eat of that fruit. If we do,
God has said we shall die. Then the serpent said, You shall not die;
the fruit will make you wise.

Eve looked at the fruit, and thought it seemed nice and pretty, and she
picked some and ate it; and she gave some to Adam, and he ate it.

It was very wicked of them to eat this fruit. Now they were grown
naughty, and did not love God.

Soon they heard God speaking in the garden; then they were frightened,
and they went and hid themselves among the trees. But God saw them; for
he can see everywhere.

So God said, Adam, where art thou? Then Adam and Eve came from under
the trees.

God said to Adam, Have you eaten of the fruit that I told you not eat?
And Adam said, It was this woman who asked me to eat some.

And God said to Eve, What is this that thou hast done? And Eve said,
The serpent asked me to eat.

God was very angry with the serpent, and said he should be punished
forever and ever.

God said to Adam and Eve, You shall die. I made your bodies of dust,
and they will turn to dust again.

God would not let them stay in the sweet garden. He made them go out.
He would not let them come back. He told one of his bright angels to
stand before the gate with a sword of fire and to keep Adam and Eve out
of the garden.

    Near Eden’s land in days gone by,
      A lovely garden stood:
    The trees were pleasant to the eye;
      The fruit was good for food.

    Two holy creatures spent their days
      Within that garden fair:
    In love they dwelt; they sang God’s praise,
      And humbly knelt in prayer.

    In that sweet land one tree was placed,
      Their faithful love to try
    “That fruit,” said God, “you shall not taste:
      Who eats shall surely die.”

    O why did Eve to Satan’s lies
      So readily attend?
    Upon the fruit why fix her eyes,
      Then pluck it with her hand?

    No more shall Eve or Adam stay
      Within that garden fair
    An angel stands to guard the way,
      That none may enter there.




LESSON XI.

THE SON OF GOD.

GENESIS iii. 14-15.


ARE you not very sorry to hear that Adam and Eve were turned out of the
garden?

It was not so pleasant outside of the garden. A great many weeds and
thistles grew outside; but in the garden there were only pretty flowers
and sweet fruits.

Adam was forced to dig the ground till he was hot and tired, for he
could not always find fruit upon the trees.

Now Adam felt pain in his body sometimes; and his hair became gray, and
at last he was quite old.

Eve was very often sick and weak, and tears ran down her cheeks. Poor
Adam and Eve! if you had obeyed God you would have been happy forever.

Adam and Eve knew that they must die at last. God gave them some little
children; and Adam and Eve knew that their children must die too. God
had told them that their bodies were made of dust, and that they must
turn to dust again.

But there was something more sad still. They were grown wicked. They
did not love praising God, as they once had done, but they liked doing
many naughty things. They were grown like Satan; so Satan hoped that
when their bodies were put into the ground, their spirits would be with
him; for Satan knew that the wicked could not live with God in heaven.

And they would have gone to hell, and all their children too, had not
God taken pity upon them. God, who is very kind, had found out a way to
save them.

To his Son, a long, long while before, God had said, Adam and Eve and
all their children must go to hell for their wickedness, unless you
die instead of them. My beloved Son, I will send you; you shall have a
body; you shall go and live in the world, and you shall obey me, and
you shall die for Adam and his children.

The Son said to his Father, I will come: I will do all that you desire
me to do. It is my delight to obey you.

So the Son promised that he would die for Adam and Eve, and for their
children.

How kind it was of the Father to spare his dear Son, whom he loved so
very much! How kind it was of the Son to leave his throne of light, his
bright angels, and his dear Father, and to take a body and to die!

You know that we are some of Adam’s children’s children. It was for us
that Jesus came to die. We are wicked, and we should go to hell, if
Jesus had not promised to die for us. We ought to love the Father and
the Son, because they had pity on us.

Let us praise God with the angels, and say,—

“We thank thee, O Father, for thy tender love, in giving up thine only
Son.

“We thank thee, O Son, for thy tender love, in coming down to bleed and
die.”

The Father waited a long while before he sent his Son down to be a man.

All the time the Son waited in heaven he thought of what he promised to
do; but he would not go and be a man till his Father pleased to send
him.

    Adam has sinn’d: and on the ground
      Shall thorns and thistles grow;
    His body lies in dust; his soul—
      Ah! whither shall it go?

    Shall one who dared to disobey,
      With God forever dwell?
    When angels sinn’d God did not spare,
      But cast them down to hell.

    Yet long before the world was made
      Our God contrived a plan,
    By which his sinful soul to save,
      And pardon guilty man.

    The Father said his Son should die,
      The Son replied, “I will:
    A feeble body I will take;
      This body men shall kill.”

    Father, how great thy love to man,
      To send thy Son from high!
    How great thy love, O glorious Son,
      To come, and bleed, and die!




LESSON XII.

THE VIRGIN MARY.

LUKE, i. 26-55.


GOD told Adam and Eve that he would send his Son down some day to die
for them. But Adam and Eve did not love God; for they were grown wicked.

Could God make them good?

Yes; he could: for there is the Holy Spirit in heaven, and the Holy
Spirit could come into them and make them good.

You know, my little children, we are wicked, and God can make us good
with his Holy Spirit. If God puts his Holy Spirit in us, we shall not
go to hell, and live with Satan.

I hope you will ask God to give you his Holy Spirit. Say to God, O
give me thy Holy Spirit, to make me good!

Adam had a great many children and grandchildren, and they had more
children; at last the world was full of people—more people than you
could count.

After Adam and Eve had been dead a long while, and when the world was
full of people, God said to his Son, Now, my beloved Son, go down into
the world.

But God chose that his Son should be a little baby at first—because
everybody is a little baby at first.

God sent his Son to be the baby of a poor woman. This woman’s name was
Mary. Mary had no little children. She was a good woman and loved God.
God’s Holy Spirit was in her, and made her meek and gentle.

One day an angel came to her. When Mary saw the bright angel, she was
frightened: but the angel said, “Fear not, Mary; God loves you. He will
send you a baby, that shall be the Son of God. You shall call his name
Jesus. He will come to save people from Satan.”

Mary was much surprised at what the angel said. She thought she was not
good enough to have such a baby as the Lord Jesus.

When the angel was gone back to heaven, Mary sang a sweet song of
praise to God for his goodness.

Mary said, My soul praises God, and my spirit is glad because of my
Saviour.

Mary called her baby her Saviour, for she knew that he would save her
from hell.

    I wonder not that Mary fear’d
    When Gabriel to her appear’d:
    How could she know he came to bring
    So sweet a message from his King?

    Full long the Son in heaven had stay’d
    Since first the promise had been made
    To shed his blood for Adam’s sin,
    And happiness for man to win.

    But yet the Son had ne’er forgot,
    And what he said he changed not;
    The time was come he should be born,
    And in this world should live forlorn.

    Mary shall be the mother dear,
    Who in her arms the child shall bear;
    The angel came this news to bring,
    And Mary listen’d wondering.

    And did the Lord a poor maid choose—
    And all the great and rich refuse?
    High honors God delights to place
    On those who humbly seek his face.




LESSON XIII.

THE BIRTH OF JESUS.

LUKE, ii. 1-7.


MARY had a husband called Joseph. He was a good man, and very kind to
Mary.

Now before Mary’s baby was born, a great king said that everybody must
have their names written down. So Mary and Joseph left their house, and
went a great way off. At last they came to a town called Bethlehem.

It was night. Where could they sleep? They went to an inn, and said, Do
let us in. We have come from a great way off.

But the master of the inn said, I have no room in my inn for you.

What could poor Mary do? Must she sleep in the street? Mary said she
would sleep in the stable, if the master would let her.

So Mary and Joseph went into the stable. There were cows and asses in
the stable.

While Mary was in the stable, God sent her the little baby he had
promised her. She knew he was the Son of God, though he looked like
other little babies.

She wrapped him in some long clothes, called swaddling clothes; but
she had no cradle for him to sleep in, and she could not lay him on the
ground, lest the beasts should tread upon him; so she put him in the
manger, and she sat by him to take care of him.

How dearly Mary loved this sweet babe!

This baby had not a naughty heart, as other babies have. Jesus had no
sin, but was quite meek and lowly. Yet other babies have cradles and
soft pillows, while Jesus lay in a manger.

I will tell you a verse to say to your little baby brother when you
rock his cradle:

    Soft and easy is thy cradle;—
      Coarse and hard thy Saviour lay
    When his birthplace was a stable,
      And his softest bed was hay.




LESSON XIV.

THE SHEPHERDS.

LUKE, ii. 8-20.


THERE were some fields near Bethlehem. On the night when Jesus was
born, some shepherds were sitting by their sheep in those fields. Why
did they sit up at night? To keep their sheep from the wolves and
lions which walk about at night. There are no lions where we live, but
near Bethlehem there were some.

These shepherds saw a great light. A beautiful angel came from heaven.
The poor shepherds were afraid; but the angel said, Fear not, I have
sweet news to tell you. God has sent his own Son from heaven to save
you from hell. He is a baby now, lying in a manger. Go to Bethlehem,
and you will find him.

When the angel had done speaking, hundreds and hundreds of bright
angels filled the sky, and began singing and praising God for having
sent his Son to save men.

At last the angels went back to heaven, and the shepherds were left
alone.

Did they stay with their sheep? No; they said, Let us go and see the
Son of God.

They ran to Bethlehem, and went to the stable of the inn. There was
a babe in the manger; Mary and Joseph were sitting by. The shepherds
said, This is the Son of God. Angels have spoken to us to-night, and
told us where to find him.

All the people in Bethlehem were much surprised when the shepherds told
them about the angels and the Son of God.

    Blessed Babe! what glorious features!
      Spotless, fair, divinely bright:
    Must he dwell with brutal creatures?
      How could angels bear the sight?

    Was there nothing but a manger
      Wretched sinners could afford,
    To receive the heavenly stranger?
      Did they thus affront the Lord?

    See the kinder shepherds round him
      Telling wonders from the sky;
    Where they sought him, there they found him.
      With his virgin mother by.

    See the lovely babe a-dressing,
      Lovely infant, how he smiled!
    When he wept, the mother’s blessing
      Sooth’d and hush’d the holy child.




LESSON XV.

THE WISE MEN.

MATTHEW ii.


THERE were some wise and rich men. They lived a great way from
Bethlehem. They knew that God had sent his Son to be a babe but they
did not know where to find him; so God put a beautiful star in the sky,
and God made it move toward the place where Jesus was. So the wise men
left their houses, and set out on a long journey; but first they said,
Let us bring some presents for the Son of God: for he is a king. They
took some gold, and some sweet-smelling stuff to burn. They looked at
the star as they went. At last it stopped over a house in Bethlehem.
The wise men were very glad indeed. They longed to see the Son of God.
They went in, and there they saw Mary and her child Jesus: they fell
down, and began to praise him, and to call him the Son of God, and the
King.

They took out their presents, and gave them to him. Mary was poor; but
now she had some money to buy things for her little baby.




LESSON XVI.

KING HEROD.

MATTHEW, ii. LUKE, ii. 51, 52.


THERE was a very wicked king called Herod. He lived a little way from
Bethlehem. He heard that a babe was born in Bethlehem, and that some
people said that the babe was a king.

Now Herod did not like that there should be any other king besides
himself. Herod did not like that even the Son of God should be king.
So Herod said, I will kill this babe that is called a king.

Herod knew that this babe was in Bethlehem; but there were many babes
in Bethlehem, and Herod did not know which was the babe that was called
a king.

Some people knew which it was; but they loved Jesus, and they would not
tell Herod. A very wicked thought came into Herod’s mind. He thought, I
will kill all the babes in Bethlehem. Do you think God would let Herod
kill his Son? No. God knew what Herod meant to do. God sent one of his
bright angels to speak to Joseph when he was asleep.

The angel said, A wicked king wants to kill the baby. Get up, Joseph;
take Mary and the baby a great way off. So Joseph got up quickly; he
took his ass, he put Mary on it, and she held the baby. It was dark
when they set off. Nobody saw them go.

The next morning some men came with swords. Herod had sent them. They
were come to kill all the babies. They opened every door, and said,
Is there a baby here? Then they snatched it from its mother, and
killed it, and the poor mother cried bitterly. Had you walked down the
streets, you would have heard nothing but women weeping and crying
out, My pretty babe is dead; I shall never see it more!

Was Jesus killed?

No: he was gone far away. His Father, God, had sent him away. Herod
could not kill him, for God would not let him die so soon.

At last King Herod died. Then God sent an angel to speak to Joseph when
he was asleep. The angel said, Joseph, go back to your own country;
Herod is dead. So Joseph took the ass, and Mary, and the sweet child,
Jesus, and they all came back to their own country.

Joseph was a carpenter. Jesus lived with Joseph and Mary, and minded
all they said. He was a wise child, and loved to think of God. God his
Father loved him, and everybody loved him, because he was so meek and
kind. The older he grew the more they loved him.




LESSON XVII.

THE TEMPTATION.

MATTHEW iv. 1-11.


AT last Jesus grew to be a man. He knew that he must go from place to
place, and teach people about God.

But first he went into a place by himself—called a wilderness. He had
no house to sleep in there, no friend to speak to, no food to eat. In
the night it was cold, in the day very hot.

There were no men, but there were lions, wolves and bears. At night
they roared and howled; but Jesus trusted in his Father.

He ate nothing for forty days and forty nights, God kept him alive.
When Jesus was alone, then he spoke in his heart to his dear Father.

At last someone came and spoke to him.

Who was it?

Not a man, not a bright angel, not God; it was Satan. I do not know how
he looked. He was come to tempt Jesus to do wickedly, and not to mind
God his Father. Satan knew that Jesus was hungry. He said to him, Turn
these stones into bread! but Jesus would not, for God had promised to
feed him himself.

After that, Satan took Jesus to the top of a great building, that was
much higher than a church. It is dreadful to be on the top of a very
high place; it makes one tremble to look down from the top.

Satan said to Jesus, Throw yourself down from this place; your Father
will send his angels to keep you from being hurt, for you know that he
has promised to take care of you.

Would Jesus have done right had he thrown himself down? No: Jesus knew
that his Father would be displeased if he threw himself down; and Jesus
always did the things that pleased his Father.

Then Satan took him to the top of a very high hill. He showed him the
most beautiful things in the world, gardens and houses, ships and
carriages, and fine clothes and feasts. He said, Look at these fine
things. I will give them all to you. You shall have all the world for
your own; only kneel down and call me God.

But Jesus said, I will pray to my Father, and not to you.

Jesus loved his Father better than all the things in the world.

Adam and Eve minded Satan, and disobeyed God; but Jesus did all his
Father had told him. Adam was disobedient, Jesus was obedient.

Then Satan went away, and angels came from heaven and fed Jesus.

Satan goes about, trying to make children naughty. A lion could only
eat your body, but Satan wants to have your soul and body in hell.
Satan hates you. He is your enemy. But God is stronger than Satan. Say
to God, Keep me from minding Satan, and God will keep you.

    Upon that mountain’s height
      Two mighty princes stand;
    Jesus the Prince of Light,
      Satan at his right hand.
    Below them lies the prospect fair
    Of all earth holds of rich or rare.

    Tables are seen around,
      Spread with delicious meats;
    Gardens where fruits abound,
      And thousand tempting sweets:
    Silver and gold and precious stones,
    Chariots and palaces and thrones.

    Satan did once prevail
      On Eve to disobey:
    And now why should he fail
      To tempt the Lord astray?
    For Eve abundant food possess’d,
    While Christ with hunger is distress’d.

    In vain the tempter tries
      The Saviour to deceive,
    For Jesus left the skies
      Our misery to relieve:
    His Father dear he sought to please,
    Nor wish’d for earthly joy and ease.

    He had seen brighter things,
      And sweeter joys had known,
    Where angels touch the strings
      Around his Father’s throne.
    And shall he from that throne descend
    Before the evil one to bend?

    No! He will hunger bear,
      And suffer sharpest pain,
    Till God shall hear his prayer,
      And his weak life sustain.
    And lo! ashamed the tempter flies,
    And angels feed him from the skies.




LESSON XVIII.

THE TWELVE DISCIPLES.

MARK, i. 16-20.


WHEN Jesus was a man, he began to teach people about his Father. Jesus
used to preach.

Where did he preach?

Sometimes he preached to people in a place like a church; sometimes
he preached in the fields; sometimes he sat on the top of a hill and
preached; and sometimes he sat in a ship, and the people stood by the
edge of the water to hear him. Jesus did not always live in the same
place: he used to walk about from one place to another.

Did Jesus walk about alone? No; he had twelve friends always with him.
He called them his twelve disciples.

How many are twelve? Let us count the little children in this room.
Here are twelve. Jesus had just so many disciples.

One was called Peter, and another John, and another James, and another
Thomas. I will not tell you the names of all, lest you should forget
them.

Peter was a fisherman. He had a little ship, and he used to catch fish
in the day and in the night. James and John had another little ship,
and they used to catch fish.

One day Jesus passed by their ships, and Jesus saw Peter and his
brother Andrew throwing a net into the sea to catch fish, and Jesus
said to them, Come with me. And Peter and Andrew left their nets, and
their ships, and went with Jesus.

And Jesus went a little further, and he saw James and John sitting in
their ship, mending the holes in their nets, and Jesus said to them,
Come with me; and they left their nets and went with Jesus.

Jesus called what people he pleased to come with him.

Shall I tell you why Jesus chose to have twelve friends always with
him? What do you think was the reason?

Jesus wished to teach them about God his Father, that they might teach
other people about him. They liked being with him, and listening to his
words. Would you have liked to be always with Jesus?

When Jesus was alone with his disciples, he used to tell them secrets
about God and heaven. They loved him very much indeed; they called him
Master, and Lord. Jesus loved them still more than they loved him, and
he called them his friends.

Jesus used to give them part of his things. But Jesus had no house to
live in, and he had very little money. Sometimes Jesus and his friends
were very much tired with walking far, and sometimes they were very
hungry and thirsty. But kind people often asked them to come into their
houses, and gave them food. Other people laughed at Jesus, and called
him names.

Were the disciples good?—They were bad like us; but Jesus put his
Spirit into them, and made them better. The disciples were not quite
good like Jesus; they often quarreled with each other, and sometimes
they were unkind to poor people.

    How happy they who shared the bread
      Of Jesus here below!
    From place to place he traveled,
      And they with him did go.

    What though they never had a place
      Where safely to abide,
    They saw their loving Master’s face,
      And followed by his side.

    They heard him preach from hills and ships
      Of things to men unknown;
    But sweeter words dropped from his lips
      When they were all alone;

    For then he would the things explain
      They could not understand,
    That heav’nly wisdom they might gain,
      And teach it through the land.

    CHILD.

    ’Tis true I can not here below
      With thee, my Saviour, dwell;
    To heaven I one day hope to go,
      And there to know thee well.




LESSON XIX.

THE FIRST MIRACLE.

JOHN, ii. 1-11.


I TOLD you that some people used to ask Jesus to come into their
houses. I shall now tell you of a man who did ask Jesus. This man gave
a feast, and Jesus came to the feast. Mary, the mother of Jesus, came;
and the disciples came. There were a great many more people besides at
the feast.

There was some wine for the people to drink: but there was so little,
that very soon it was all gone.

Jesus knew that the wine was gone. Could not Jesus give the people more
wine?—Yes; for he made the world and all things in it.

There were some large stone jars in the room. Jesus said to the
servants, Fill the jars with water, and they filled them quite full.

Then Jesus said, Take some, and give it to the master to drink. The
servants did so; but Jesus had turned the water into wine.

When the master had tasted it, he said, What nice wine this is! Where
did it come from?

The servants told him how Jesus had told them to fill the jars with
water. Then all the people at the feast knew that Jesus had turned the
water into wine.

This was the first wonder that Jesus did; it was called a miracle.

Why did Jesus do miracles? To show people that he was the Son of God.

The disciples now felt quite sure that Jesus was the Son of God.

    Once Jesus to a marriage went;
      The numerous guests surround the board,
    When lo! they find the wine is spent;—
      This—Mary hears, and tells the Lord.

    Before the guests’ astonished eyes
      Christ makes his heavenly glory shine;
    The thing desired he soon supplies.
      And changes water into wine.

    How ready does our Lord appear
      Our fond desires to satisfy!
    And all that we can wish for here
      He is well able to supply.




LESSON XX.

SEVERAL MIRACLES.

LUKE, vi. 11-16.


AFTER Jesus had turned the water into wine, he did a great many
wonders. He made blind people see, and deaf people hear, and dumb
people speak, and lame people walk.

When Jesus came to a place, all the sick people crowded round him.

Jesus did not send them away because they disturbed him, but he cured
them all—yes—every one.

This was the way in which he cured one blind man. He said, See! and the
man could see that moment.

This was the way in which he cured a man who was deaf and dumb. Jesus
put his fingers into his ears, and touched his tongue, and looked up to
his Father in heaven, and said, Be opened! and immediately the string
of his tongue was loosed, and he could speak plainly.

Once Jesus saw a poor sick man lying on a bed, and Jesus said to him,
Should you like to be made well? The poor man said he wished very much
to be made well. Then Jesus said, Get up, carry your bed, and walk. The
man tried to get up, and he found that he could; for Jesus gave him
strength.

One day Jesus was in a place like a church; he was preaching; when he
saw a poor woman whose back was bent, so that she could not lift up her
head. Jesus said, Woman, I have made you well; and then Jesus touched
her with his hands, and her back grew straight, and she began to praise
God.

Sometimes Jesus made dead people alive again. That was more wonderful
than making sick people well.

Once Jesus was walking on the road. A great many people were walking
after him, for people liked to see him do wonders, and to hear him
talk. They met some men carrying a dead man to put him in the ground.

A poor old woman came after, crying very much. She was the mother of
the dead man. He was her only son. Jesus was very sorry to see her cry.
He came up to her and said, Do not cry, and then he touched the coffin.
There was no top to it; the dead man was lying in it.

Jesus said, Get up, young man. He sat up and began to speak. Then Jesus
said to his mother, Here is your son.

All the people were surprised, and said, This must be the Son of God.
He can make dead people live again.




LESSON XXI.

THE SINNER AND SIMON.

LUKE, vii. 36 to end.


WHY did Jesus come into the world?—To save us from hell.

But why did God say that people must go to hell?—Because everybody was
naughty.

Jesus can forgive people their naughtiness, and make them good. But
Jesus will not forgive people who are not sorry. I will tell you of a
proud man who was not sorry, and of a poor woman who was sorry.

A rich proud man asked Jesus to come and dine with him. Why did he ask
Jesus? he did not love him;—he only asked him, that he might hear him
talk: but Jesus said he would come.

The proud man treated Jesus very unkindly. He gave him no water to wash
his feet, put no sweet ointment upon them, gave him no kiss.

A poor woman, who had been very naughty, saw Jesus go into the rich
man’s house. She came up behind Jesus, and began to cry for all her
naughtiness. She knew Jesus could forgive her, and she loved Jesus.

She had brought a box of ointment with her: she stooped down, and her
tears fell upon Jesus’ feet, and with her tears she washed them: she
wiped them with her long hair, and then poured the sweet ointment upon
them, and kissed them.

[Illustration: JESUS AND THE DOCTORS.]

The rich man looked at the woman very angrily; he knew she had been
very naughty, and he was angry at seeing Jesus so kind to her.

But Jesus said to the proud man, This woman has been very naughty: but
I have forgiven her, and she loves me very much. She loves me a great
deal more than you do. You gave me no water for my feet; but she has
washed my feet with her tears. You gave me no kiss; but she has kissed
my feet ever since I came in. You gave me no ointment; but she has
poured very sweet ointment upon my feet.

Then Jesus spoke kindly to the woman, and said to her, Your sins are
forgiven.

So Jesus comforted this poor woman, but the proud man and his friends
grew still more angry.

Jesus will forgive your sins if you are sorry, and if you ask him; but
if you think yourself good, he will not forgive you; for Jesus cannot
bear proud people. Though you are but a little child, you have done a
great many wrong things; and you do not deserve to go to heaven. Oh, I
hope Jesus will forgive you! I hope the Holy Spirit will come into
your heart, and make you feel very sorry for your sins. Then Jesus will
forgive you, and you will love him, as this poor woman did.




LESSON XXII.

THE STORM AT SEA.

LUKE, viii. 22-25.


JESUS often went into a ship with his disciples. Peter had a ship of
his own, and John had another ship, and they liked to lend their ships
to Jesus.

Once they were all in a ship when the wind blew very hard and the water
moved up and down, and came over the ship. The disciples were afraid
that they should be drowned.

Jesus had fallen asleep, and was lying on a pillow. The noise of the
wind and of the water had not awakened him.

His disciples ran to him and cried, O Master! do you not care for us?
will you let us die?

Then Jesus got up and said to the wind, Wind be still! and he said
to the water, Be still! The wind left off blowing, and the water was
smooth and quiet.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, Why are you afraid? Why did you not
believe that I would take care of you?

Jesus knew that they were tossed about, and he would have kept them
safe, though he was asleep.

The disciples said to one another, Jesus is the Son of God; even the
wind and the water obey him.

    The disciples, with Jesus their Lord,
      At sea in a vessel were toss’d;
    The winds loudly blew, the waves roar’d;
      They fear’d that they all should be lost.

    The waters rush’d into the ship:
      For Jesus all eagerly look:
    He lies on a pillow asleep—
      Had he his disciples forsook?

    Not so; while he slept he still thought
      Of them, and their bitter distress:
    His merciful eye slumbers not,
      But watches his children to bless.

    He rises his work to perform:
      The wind and the waters obey:
    Soon hush’d is the terrible storm,
      The hurricane passes away.

    How ready is Jesus to save!
      How strong is his arm to protect!
    His mercy we ever will crave;
      And deliv’rance will ever expect.




LESSON XXIII.

JAIRUS’ DAUGHTER.

LUKE, viii. 41 to end.


A RICH man came to Jesus and fell down at his feet and said, I have one
little girl, and she is very sick; pray come and make her well. Jesus
went with the rich man.

When they were near the house, some servants came out and said, The
little girl is just dead; no one can make her well now.

But Jesus said, Do not be afraid; I can make her well.

Jesus said to the father and mother of the little girl, Come with me
into the house. Peter, James, and John, you may come in, but no one
else.

So they went up into the room where the little girl was lying in bed. A
great many people were in the room, playing sad music, and singing sad
songs, and crying, because the child was dead. But Jesus said, Leave
off crying. The girl is only sleeping: she is not dead. Jesus said she
was asleep, because he meant to make her alive so soon again. But the
people laughed at Jesus, and said, She is dead, and they would not
believe that he could make her alive again.

Jesus said, These people must be put out of the room. So he sent them
out, and shut the door; but he let the father and mother, and Peter,
and James, and John, stay in the room. He took the little girl’s hand,
and said, Arise! At first she sat up, and then she rose up out of bed,
and walked about the room. She was twelve years old. Jesus then said,
Bring her something to eat.

The father and mother were much surprised at what had happened.

    Hark! ’tis a father crying,
      And this is what he saith:
    “My little daughter’s lying
      Just at the point of death.”

    The Saviour soon consented
      To come and heal the maid;
    Nor was he e’en prevented
      By hearing she was dead.

    He found the people weeping
      Because her breath was gone;
    And when he said, “She’s sleeping,”
      They laughed him to scorn.

    The Lord no sinful mocker
      Would suffer to remain;
    Then by the hand he took her,
      And bade her rise again.

    Ah! see the maid arising
      According to his word;
    Does not the deed surprising
      Show Jesus to be Lord?

    See in their fond embraces
      The parents clasp the maid;
    Ashamed are now the faces
      That mocked at what he said.




LESSON XXIV.

THE LOAVES AND FISHES.

MATTHEW, xiv. 13-22.


ONCE Jesus went into the wilderness with his disciples, and a great
many people came after him; then Jesus preached to the people, and told
them about his Father, and how he himself had come down from heaven to
save them from Satan. They listened to him from morning till night.

When it was getting dark, the disciples came to Jesus and said, Will
you not send the people home, for it is late?

But Jesus knew that the people had had nothing to eat all day, and he
did not like to send them home tired and hungry. So he said to his
disciples, Cannot you feed them?

No, said they; we have only five loaves and two small fishes, and see
how many people there are!

But Jesus said, Make them sit down on the grass, and bring the loaves
and fishes to me. So the disciples made them all sit down.

There were a great many people, as many as would fill ten churches—five
thousand men, besides women and little children. How tired the little
children must have been! it was time for them to have their supper and
go to bed. We shall hear how Jesus fed all these people.

They sat down on the green grass. Jesus took the loaves and fishes;
first he lifted up his eyes to his Father, and thanked him for the
food, and then he took a piece of bread and gave it to Peter, and said,
Feed all those people sitting there; and he gave another piece to John,
and said, Feed those people; and he gave a piece of bread and fish to
each of the disciples, and told each to feed some people.

One little piece of bread would not be enough for all the children in
this room; but Jesus made the bread enough for all the people. Everyone
had enough, and they threw upon the grass a great many little pieces.
But Jesus said to his disciples, Take some baskets, and pick up the
crumbs; and they filled twelve baskets full of little bits of bread.
Then Jesus told the people to go home.

What a wonder Jesus had done! Yet you know that he feeds you, my little
children, and all the people in the world.

How does he feed you?—He gives you bread.

Of what is bread made?—Of flour.

Of what is flour made?—Of corn.

Who makes corn?—God makes the corn.

Of what does he make it?—Of nothing. God makes things of nothing. Jesus
is God, and makes the corn grow; so you see that Jesus feeds you. If
he did not make corn grow in the fields we should die. But he will not
forget us. He even remembers the little birds. They are too silly to
plow, or to sow corn, or to reap or to put corn into barns, yet God
does not let them starve. The birds cry to God, and he hears them, and
lets them find food. Now God loves us much better than he loves the
little birds, because we have souls; so he will certainly hear us when
we pray to him.

If your mother had no bread in her cottage, and if she could get no
money to buy some, yet God would hear her, if she loved him. He would
not let her starve. Will you not ask God for bread every day, and say,
Give me this day my daily bread?

We ought to thank God for the food we eat: before we eat breakfast, or
dinner, or supper, we should say, I thank thee, O Lord, for this nice
food.

    Behold where on the green hill spread,
      Close by the water-side,
    The hungry multitudes are fed,
      At peaceful eventide.

    Upon the grass they sit at ease,
      In rows of ten times ten,
    Women with children on their knees,
      Besides five thousand men.

    In list’ning they had spent the day;
      Their homes far distant lie:
    They would have fainted by the way
      Without this kind supply.

    The Lord, whose words they came to hear
      Has pity on their need,
    He loves the weary heart to cheer,
      The hungry poor to feed.

    He gives them of his little store
      By his disciples’ hands:
    Though little, he can make it more,
      For all things he commands.

    ’Tis he provides the beasts with food,
      To him the ravens cry:
    He watches over us for good,
      And does our need supply.

    He once himself did hunger bear,
      For forty days alone:
    And still the hungry are his care;
      He hears them when they groan.




LESSON XXV.

THE KINDNESS OF JESUS.

MATTHEW, xv. 21-28. MARK, x. 13-16.


I TOLD you that the disciples were sometimes unkind; but Jesus was
always kind. Once a poor woman came crying after Jesus, saying, O Lord,
I have a little daughter who is very sick. Jesus did not answer her at
first, and the disciples were unkind, and wished her to be sent away.
She cried so loud, they said to Jesus, Do send her away.

The poor woman fell down at Jesus’ feet, and said, Lord, help me! And
Jesus had pity on the woman, and said, I will do what you wish.

The poor woman was glad to hear this, and she went home, and found that
her daughter was quite well.

Another time the disciples were unkind to some little children. Some
poor women brought their children to Jesus, but the disciples were
standing round, and they would not let the women come near. Go away,
they said; you must not bring the babies here to trouble us. But Jesus
heard them speak, and was very angry with the disciples. Jesus would
not let the children go away.

He said to the disciples, Suffer them to come to me; do not send them
away.

Then he took the children in his arms, and put his hands upon them, and
prayed to his Father, and blessed them.

O happy little children, to be taken into the arms of Jesus.

Jesus loves meek and gentle children. They are Jesus’ lambs. Jesus is
their shepherd, and he will take them to heaven when they die.

    Young children once to Jesus came,
      His blessing to entreat;
    And I may humbly do the same
      Before his mercy-seat.

    For when their feeble hands were spread,
      And bent each humble knee,
    “Forbid them not,” the Saviour said;
      And so he says to me.

    If babes so many years ago
      His tender pity drew,
    He will not surely let me go
      Without a blessing, too.

    Then while his favor to implore
      My little hands are spread,
    Do thou thy sacred blessing pour
      Dear Jesus, on my head.




LESSON XXVI.

THE LORD’S PRAYER.


WHEN Jesus was in the world, he loved to think of his Father in heaven.
He liked to be alone, that he might pray to his Father: sometimes the
tears ran down his cheeks while he prayed. One night Jesus prayed all
night alone upon the top of a high hill.

Sometimes Jesus prayed to his Father while his disciples stood near and
listened.

Once when Jesus had been praying with them they said, Lord, teach us to
pray. Then Jesus taught them a little prayer.

It was this: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed by thy name; thy
kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven: give us
this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive
them that trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the
glory, forever and ever. Amen.

I know, little children, that you say this prayer night and morning.
Your mothers taught you to say it. But did you know who said it first?
It was Jesus, the Lord: so it is called “The Lord’s Prayer.” It is a
very beautiful prayer, for Jesus said it; but it is hard for children
to understand it.

What is the meaning of “Hallowed be thy name?” Let God’s name be
praised.

What are “trespasses?” Trespasses are sins.

Ask God to forgive your sins, or your trespasses.

Do you ever pray to God when you are alone?

You may pray to him in any PLACE—in the house or in the garden.

You may pray to him at any TIME—in the night or in the middle of the
day.

You may ask him for anything you want, just as you ask your father.

What will you ask him for? Will you ask him to give you bread, and
clothes, and a house to live in?

Yes, ask him for these things, but most of all—ask him for his Holy
Spirit.

It is better to have the Holy Spirit than to have all the toys, all the
money, all the flowers, all the birds, all the beautiful things in the
world.

Why is it better?

Because the Holy Spirit will make you love God, as the angels do, and
will make you live forever and ever.

Will you say this little prayer to God?—“O my Father, pray give me thy
Holy Spirit, for Christ’s sake.”

    Our Father, seated in the sky,
      Thy holy name be praised still:
    Be thou obeyed as King most high,
      Let men, like angels, do thy will.

    Do thou our daily bread supply:
      Forgive our sins as we forgive:
    Yet help us still from sin to fly:
      Great, glorious King, forever live!




LESSON XXVII.

JESUS FORETELLS HIS DEATH.

MATTHEW, xvi. 21 to end.


JESUS knew everything that would happen, and he knew that he must soon
die.

He used to tell his secrets to his disciples; so he took them into
a place by themselves, and said, I soon shall leave you: the wicked
people will take me, and bind me with ropes, and beat me, and laugh at
me, and nail me on a cross; but I shall soon be alive again.

The disciples could not bear to hear Jesus talk of dying, for they
loved him very much. They all looked very sad, and Peter said, You
shall not die; but Jesus said, I must die to save men, and to please my
Father.

The Father had desired Jesus to die, and he would not disobey his
Father.

Most of the people who wished to kill Jesus, lived in a great town
called Jerusalem.

Jesus used to go to Jerusalem very often, and he used to preach there.

Why did some people hate Jesus?—Because he told them of their
wickedness.

He used to say to them, You do not love God, who is my Father, but you
are proud and vain. You wish to kill me. You tell lies. You are unkind
to poor people. You pretend to love God, but while you are saying your
prayers, you are thinking how good you are. Your hearts are full of
wickedness. You are the children of the devil.

Jesus wished them to turn from their wickedness. It grieved him to see
how they hated his Father, and that they would not turn from their
wicked ways.

The wicked people were angry with Jesus, and said, God is not your
Father. But Jesus said, He is my Father, and I came down from heaven,
where he lives, and I shall go back to him some day.

At last the people took up stones to throw at him: but Jesus did not
choose to die yet, so he easily got away and went to a place where they
could not find him.

There he staid with his disciples a good while.




LESSON XXVIII.

LAZARUS.

JOHN, xi. 1-17.


JESUS staid with his disciples in a place by himself. The wicked
people, who wanted to kill him, could not find him, but Jesus’ friends
knew where he was.

Jesus had more friends besides his disciples.

One of his friends was called Lazarus. Lazarus had two sisters; their
names were Martha and Mary. These three all lived together. They all
three loved Jesus, and Jesus loved them. Jesus used often to come and
see them, and sit in the house and talk to them. Martha liked to make
a fine dinner when Jesus came, but Mary liked to sit and listen to his
sweet words.

At last Lazarus fell very sick.

Martha and Mary loved their brother Lazarus very much indeed. They knew
that Jesus could make Lazarus well; so they sent a man to tell Jesus
that Lazarus was sick.

The man went a great way to look for Jesus. Lazarus grew worse and
worse. At last he died. His friends wrapped white cloths round his
face, and his arms and his legs, and put him in a great hole, and
rolled a stone before it.

Martha and Mary waited and longed for Jesus to come.

Four days passed, and at last Jesus came. Martha and Mary did not think
that Jesus would make Lazarus alive again, for he had been dead so
long; so they sat upon the ground and cried.

When Martha heard that Jesus was on the road a little way off, she came
to Jesus and said, If you had been here, my brother had not died; and
even now you could make him alive.

Then Jesus said, Your brother shall rise again.

Yes, said Martha, I know he will rise again at the last day, when all
the dead people rise.

Martha was afraid that Jesus would not choose to make Lazarus alive
soon; but she knew that he was able to do it.

Martha went back to the house, and found Mary still sitting on the
ground, and a great many friends round her.

Martha whispered in her ear, and told her that Jesus wanted to speak to
her. So Martha and Mary went together, and found Jesus waiting for them
in the road.

Mary’s friends went with her, and they cried; and Mary cried very much
indeed: and when she saw Jesus she fell down at his feet and said,
Lord, if you had been here, my brother had not died.

Jesus was very sorry to see her so unhappy, and to see so many people
crying: he felt very sad indeed, and he sighed very deeply. Jesus does
not like to see anyone in trouble, he is so kind.

Then Jesus said, Where have you put Lazarus?

Martha and Mary and their friends said, Come and see; and they showed
him the way.

As Jesus walked along, the tears rolled down his cheeks.

At last they came to the grave. It was a hole, and a very large stone
was before the hole.

Then Jesus said, Take away the stone.

Martha thought that Jesus was going to look at Lazarus lying dead; and
she said, Do not go in: his flesh has a bad smell by this time. He has
been dead four days. But Jesus told her to believe that he could make
him alive.

They then rolled away the stone.

Then Jesus lifted up his eyes to his Father in heaven, and thanked him
for helping him to do wonderful things.

A great many people were standing by, looking at Jesus, and wondering
what he would do.

Poor Martha and Mary were longing to see Lazarus alive again.

Then Jesus spoke loud and said, Lazarus, come forth.

Lazarus heard, though he was dead; for the dead hear the voice of
Jesus. He got up and walked to the door of the hole. His hands were
tied with cloths, and his feet wrapped round with cloths, and a cloth
was over his face.

But Jesus said, Undo the cloths.

How pleased Martha and Mary must have been to see his face again! How
they must have thanked the Lord Jesus for his kindness!

The people who saw all this were surprised, and said, Jesus must be the
Son of God.

    Why flow the blessed Saviour’s tears?
    Is it because the cross he fears?
    Because he knows he soon shall die,
    And shall within the cold grave lie?

    He weeps to see the sisters weep
    Of Lazarus, who lies asleep;
    So tender is his heart, and kind,
    That all from him may pity find.

    CHILD.

    When I see others full of fears,
    I will remember Jesus’ tears;
    And not upon my pleasures think,
    While their sad hearts with sorrow sink.




LESSON XXIX.

JESUS ENTERS JERUSALEM.

MATTHEW, xxi. 1-11, 14-17.


WHICH was the greatest miracle that Jesus ever did? It was making
Lazarus alive again; because he had been dead four days.

Many of the wicked people who hated Jesus heard of it; but they only
hated him the more. They said, We must kill him soon, or everyone will
believe that he is the Son of God.

Jesus knew that they wanted to kill him, and so he went again and hid
himself in a place they did not know of. They looked for him, but they
could not find him.

But could Jesus always stay in that little quiet place, where he was
hid with his disciples? No. He came down to die for us. He only waited
till the time came for him to die. Then he said to his disciples,
We must go to Jerusalem, and I shall be laughed at, and beaten, and
killed; but I shall come out of my grave after three days.

The disciples did not like to hear this; but they chose to go with
Jesus wherever he went.

Jesus walked fast along the road; at last he came near Jerusalem. Then
he stopped and said to his disciples, I shall ride into Jerusalem upon
an ass. Jesus had no ass of his own; he always walked from place to
place. But Jesus could put it into a man’s heart to lend him one.

He said to two of his disciples, Go along the road a little way, and
you will see an ass and a young ass tied, and a man standing near;
bring the ass and the young one to me, for I know that the man will let
them come.

So the two disciples went: when they had gone a little way they saw an
ass tied up, and a young one. They began to untie the ass; but a man
standing near said, Why do you untie the ass?

They said, The Lord hath need of them; and then the man let them go.

I suppose that man loved the Lord Jesus, and liked to lend him his
things.

The two disciples brought the two asses to Jesus. They took off some of
their clothes, and put them on the young ass, and Jesus sat upon it.

A great many people came out of Jerusalem to see Jesus, for they had
heard of his making Lazarus alive again. The people began to praise
Jesus, and call him king. They took off some of their clothes, and laid
them down upon the road for the ass to tread upon; and they picked
branches off the trees that grew near, and laid them too on the road.

So Jesus came to the great town of Jerusalem: all the people came
into the streets to look at him, and even the little children began
to praise him, and to call him King. The proud men, that hated Jesus,
were very angry at hearing all these praises. They did not like to hear
Jesus praised. They came to him and said, Why do you let these children
call you king?

But Jesus liked to hear the children sing his praise, and he would not
tell them to be silent.

Jesus loved little children, and these little children loved Jesus.




LESSON XXX.

THE TEMPLE.

LUKE, xix. 47, 48; xx. 19, 20; xxi. 37, 38.


THERE was a large place in Jerusalem, like a great church, called the
Temple. It was white outside, and very beautiful. The doors were open
all day, and people used to go in to pray to God. It was God’s house:
Jesus used often to be there with his disciples. Poor blind and lame
people came to him there, and Jesus cured them all, and talked to them
about his Father.

The little children sang his praises in the Temple. All day long Jesus
taught the people about God, and they listened to what he said, and
liked to hear him.

The wicked and proud men came to the Temple to laugh at Jesus, and to
speak rudely to him; but he bore all as meekly as a lamb.

At night he left the Temple, and went out of the town to a high hill,
where he prayed to God alone in the dark.

The wicked men longed to catch Jesus to kill him. They said to each
other, How can we get him? the people will not let us take hold of him
if they see us, or we would go to the Temple to catch him. If we could
find him alone in the dark, then we would put ropes on him, and take
him to the judge. This is what the wicked people said to each other as
they sat together.

    Within the Temple fair and grand,
      (Where holy men are wont to pray,)
    Behold the gentle Saviour stand,
      Teaching sweet wisdom all the day.

    And many round him fondly press,
      The blind, the lame, the weeping poor,
    Who suffer sickness or distress,
      Or grace or pardon would implore.

    But see, another troop is near,
      And much his words their pride displease;
    Like hungry lions they appear,
      Who long a gentle lamb to seize.

    The Saviour all their malice knows,
      And how his precious life they seek;
    But still his lips he will not close,
      Because his Father bade him speak.

    Nor does his heav’nly patience fail,
      Nor does he cease his love to show;
    But while they mock, and jeer, and rail,
      He strives to save their souls from woe.

    CHILD.

    And if, when trying to be kind,
      I too should with unkindness meet,
    O let me show a patient mind,
      And ever let my words be sweet!




LESSON XXXI.

JUDAS.

JOHN, xii. 6. MATTHEW, xxvi. 3, 4, 14-16.


JESUS had twelve disciples. Did they all love him?

Peter loved Jesus, and John loved him, and all the rest loved him, but
one; his name was Judas. He did not love Jesus, but only pretended to
love him. He was like the devil.

Did Jesus know how wicked Judas was? Yes, he saw into his heart; but
the disciples thought Judas was good; for Judas used to kiss the Lord
Jesus, and speak kindly to him, and talk about God like the rest.

But Judas loved something; he loved money. He wanted to get a great
deal of money.

He was covetous, and he was a thief. The disciples had a bag, and when
they had money they put it in the bag; and all the disciples put their
money in the same bag. But there was very little money in the bag, for
they were very poor. Judas used to take care of the bag, and he used to
steal some of the money out of it, and keep it for himself; but no one
found him out, or thought he was a thief, except Jesus, and he knew it
well.

Judas was always thinking, How shall I get money?

One day, when the proud men were sitting together, Judas came in. Judas
said to them, You want to find Jesus when he is alone: will you give me
some money, and I will show you where he goes at night?

The proud people said, Yes, we will.

Judas said, How much money will you give me?

They said, Thirty pieces of silver.

Then Judas said, Some night I will bring you to Jesus when he is alone.

The wicked people were very glad to hear this.

Now, thought they, we shall soon catch him and kill him.

Judas went back to Jesus, but he did not tell the disciples what he had
done. Jesus knew what he had been doing; for Jesus could see all his
thoughts, and he knew all that Judas did, both in the day and in the
night. Yet Jesus did not tell Judas that he knew his wicked plans.




LESSON XXXII.

THE LAST SUPPER—PART I.

LUKE, xxii. 7-14. JOHN, xiii. 1-17.


JESUS said to his disciples, I am going soon to be killed, but before I
die I shall eat a supper with you in Jerusalem.

Then Jesus said to Peter and John, Go and get the supper ready; but
they said, Where shall we get it ready? For Jesus had no house in
Jerusalem: but Jesus knew how to find a room.

So Jesus said to Peter and John, Go into Jerusalem, and you will meet a
man carrying a jug; go after him: he will go into a house. The master
of the house will lend me a room. Tell him that I am going to die, and
that I want to eat a supper with my disciples.

Then Peter and John went into Jerusalem.

Whom did they meet? A man carrying a jug.

They followed him. He went into a house. Peter and John went in after
him, and they said to the master of the house, Jesus wants a room to
eat supper in with his disciples before he dies.

Then the master took them up stairs, and showed them a large room, with
a table in it, and seats all round the table, and a jug, and a basin to
wash their feet in, and a cup and dishes.

Then Peter and John got some bread and wine and other things, and
made the supper ready; and they went back and told Jesus (who was a
little way in the country) that supper was ready. So Jesus and all his
disciples came to the house in the evening; they went up stairs, and
they all sat down.

Jesus loved John better than all the rest, and John sat next to Jesus.

After they had been a little while at supper, Jesus got up and took a
towel, and tied it round his waist; and he took a jug and poured water
into a basin, and he began to wash his disciples’ feet, and to wipe
them with the towel round his waist.

But when he came to Peter, Peter said, You shall never wash my feet.

Peter thought it was too kind of Jesus to wash his feet, as if he
were a servant; but Jesus was not proud, but loved to be kind to his
disciples.

Then Jesus said to Peter, If I wash you not, you cannot be mine; but I
have made you clean already. Jesus had made Peter’s heart clean.

Then Peter was glad that Jesus should wash his feet.

All the disciples had clean hearts, except Judas, and his heart was
full of wickedness; Satan was in it. Yet Jesus washed Judas’ feet. He
was kind even to wicked Judas, who hated him.

When Jesus had washed all the disciples’ feet he sat down again, and
began to talk to them.

He said, Do you know what I have done to you? I have washed your feet,
though I am your Lord and Master. I wish to teach you to be as kind to
each other as I have been to you.

    When the sad hour was almost come,
      That Jesus must depart,
    He gathered in an upper room
      Those dearest to his heart.

    Ah! great was their astonishment
      When, rising from his seat,
    Upon the floor he lowly bent
      To wash his servants’ feet.

    Beside the board again he sat,
      And thus expressed his mind:
    “If I, your Lord, upon you wait,
      O should not you be kind?

    “O! let the love that I have shown
      By you remembered be;
    And by _your_ love let it be known
      That you belong to me.”




LESSON XXXIII.

THE LAST SUPPER—PART II.

JOHN, xiii. 21-30.


YOU know the wicked thing that Judas meant to do. Jesus knew that he
would bring the wicked people to take him and kill him. Jesus had been
very kind to Judas, and Jesus was sorry that he was so wicked.

As Jesus was sitting at supper, and all the twelve disciples sitting
round, he said, One of you will give me to the wicked men to be killed!
one of you, my disciples.

All the disciples were very sorry, and Peter said, Is it I? and John
said, Is it I? and each of them said, Is it I? but Jesus did not tell
them which.

Now John was leaning his head on Jesus’ bosom, and Peter whispered to
John and said, Do ask the Lord which it is that will show the wicked
people where he is?

So John whispered and said, Which is it?

And Jesus said, The one that dips the bread in the sop with me.

For there was a dish of sauce on the table, and Jesus dipped his bread
in it, and as he dipped it one of the disciples put his hand in the
dish too. Which was it?

Judas: he dipped his bread in the dish with Jesus. So John knew which
it was that was so wicked.

Then Jesus said to Judas, Go, and do what you mean to do.

And Judas got up and went out of the room.

Where did he go?

He went to the wicked people, to bring them to Jesus in the dark. But
the disciples thought he was going to buy something at a shop, or to
give money to the poor.

    One night the Saviour said,
      “My hours to live are few:
    I soon shall be betray’d,
      My friends, by one of you.”
        “Lord, is it I?”
        They all do cry.

    Beloved above the rest,
      John lean’d his gentle head
    Upon the Saviour’s breast,
      And, softly whisp’ring, said,
        “Lord, tell me who
        This thing shall do?”

    “One of this little band,”
      The Saviour, answ’ring, said,
    “Will hither reach his hand,
      And dip with me his bread.
        Who dips with me,
        The same is he.”




LESSON XXXIV.

THE LAST SUPPER—PART III.

MATTHEW, xxvi. 26-36. JOHN, xiv. 1-4; xviii. 1-3.


AFTER supper Jesus took some bread and broke it in little bits, and
gave a piece to each of the disciples, and said, This is my body: I am
going to die: eat this, and think of me.

Then Jesus poured some wine into a cup, and told them all to drink out
of it. He said, This is my blood; I shall soon bleed and die; drink
this, and think of me.

Jesus said, I shall not eat supper with you again before I die. I am
going to my Father; I must leave you, but I shall come back again.

Then they all sang a hymn.

Afterward Jesus got up from the table and went down stairs into the
street, and the disciples followed him. It was dark; but Jesus talked
to them as they went along. He said, I am going to die to-night, and
you will all leave me.

But Peter said, I will not leave you; I will go to prison with you; I
will die with you; but I will never leave you.

Jesus said to him, Yes, you will, Peter; you will say that you do not
know me; you will say that you are not my friend. This night, Peter,
you will say so, before the cock crows. (For cocks crow in the morning
when it is light.)

Jesus talked sweetly to his disciples. He said, Do not be sorry because
I am going away. I shall go back to my Father, and I shall soon come
back to you. When I am in heaven, I shall get ready a place in heaven
for you. I command you to love one another, and I will send the Holy
Spirit to comfort you.

At last Jesus came to a garden. He had often been to that garden with
his disciples, and wicked Judas knew the place.

Where was Judas now?

He was with the wicked, proud men.

You will soon hear how he came to the garden, and how he brought the
_servants_ of the wicked men with him. For these wicked men meant to
send their servants to catch Jesus.

    “This is my flesh,” the sorrowing Saviour said,
    And, as he spoke, he gave the broken bread:
    “This is my blood,” and then he bade all drink,
    And of their dying Master ever think.

    “This night I die: this night my body’s bruised;
    This night by wicked men my name’s abused;
    And even you, my dearest friends, shall fly,
    And leave your Master all alone to die.”

    His friends in sorrow heard; then promised
    With him they fondly loved their blood to shed;
    And Peter loudest said, “With thee I’ll die,”
    And little thought he should his Lord deny.

    CHILD.

    Sometimes I think I never will offend,
    By doing wrong, my best, my heav’nly Friend;
    How soon my heart forgets! To God I’ll pray
    For grace to keep me in his holy way.

[Illustration: CHRIST’S ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM.]




LESSON XXXV.

THE GARDEN.

MATTHEW, xxvi. 30-57. JOHN, xviii. 1-12.


WHEN Jesus was come to the garden, he told all his disciples to stop in
one place till he came back, except three that he took with him.

Who were they?

Peter, James, and John. He took them further on in the garden, and then
said to them, I feel very sad indeed. I am going to pray. Do you stay
here. Do not go to sleep, but pray while I am praying.

Then Jesus went a little way off by himself, and fell upon the ground,
and began to pray to his Father to help him. He ended his prayer by
saying, O Father, do thou what thou wilt, not what I will.

He prayed very earnestly, and he felt so unhappy that the blood came
out of his skin, and fell on the ground. Then he got up and went back
to Peter, and James, and John, but he found them asleep. He waked them,
and told them to pray.

Then he went back and prayed again to his Father, to help him in his
great sorrow; then he came back to his disciples, but they had fallen
asleep again.

Then Jesus prayed again, and his Father sent an angel from heaven to
comfort him. I do not know what the angel said, but I know the angel
loved him, and could speak sweet words to him, and tell him how his
Father loved him. The angel did not stay long; he soon went back to God.

Then Jesus came again to his disciples, and found them still asleep.
But Jesus waked them and told them to get up; for Judas is near.

While Jesus was saying this, a great many people were seen walking in
the garden. These were the servants of the proud men in Jerusalem. They
had swords, and sticks, and lanterns in their hands. And Judas went
before them to show them where Jesus was. But Judas came up slily to
Jesus, and gave him a kiss, pretending to love him.

Jesus knew what Judas was doing, and he said, Friend, why do you come
here? and why do you kiss me?

Jesus did not run away, but he went up to the wicked men, and said,
Whom are you looking for?

They said, For Jesus.

He said, I am he.

When he said that, God made all the wicked people fall upon their backs
upon the ground. Then Jesus could have run away; but he chose to stay,
that he might die for sinners.

The wicked people soon got up; God let them get up; but Jesus said to
them, If you want to have me, you must let my disciples go away.

It was kind of Jesus to think of them, and they were frightened and
glad to get away; they did not wish to stay to die with Jesus.

But Peter took a sword and cut off one of the wicked men’s ears. Peter
wished to fight; but Jesus said, Put up your sword. If I were to pray
now to my Father, he would send thousands of angels to help me. Then
Jesus touched the man’s ear, and made it well.

Why did not Jesus pray to God to send the angels?

Because he chose to die to save us. Had the angels come, and taken
Jesus back to heaven, then we should all have gone to hell.

Peter and all the rest of the disciples ran away, and left Jesus quite
alone with the wicked men. They took ropes, and tied his hands and
feet, and they led him away into Jerusalem; and he went along meekly as
a lamb.




LESSON XXXVI.

PETER’S DENIAL.

MATTHEW, xxvi. 57 to end.


THE wicked proud men, who hated Jesus, had sat up all night. They had
sent their servants with some soldiers to fetch Jesus. They were in
a fine house seated on seats round the room, talking together, and
longing for Jesus to be brought.

They said one to another, We will have him killed when he comes—we will
take him to the judge.

At last Jesus came in with the wicked servants. The proud men were glad
to see him. They made him stand up in the midst of the large room. Then
they spoke roughly. Are you the Son of God? they said.

And Jesus said, Yes, I am; and one day you will see me coming in the
clouds with the angels.

Then the wicked men were angry.

Do you hear what he says? they cried out. He calls himself the Son of
God! He must be taken to the judge to be killed.

Jesus stood meekly all this while, and hardly spoke a word.

What was become of his disciples? They had run away.

Had Peter run away? Peter said he would die with Jesus. But he ran away
too.

At last Peter thought, I will go and look for Jesus; I should like to
see what the wicked men are doing to him.

So Peter came to Jerusalem, and into the fine house. He came into the
hall first: the wicked servants were sitting round a fire in the hall;
a door was open, and through the door Peter could see Jesus. There he
was, standing before the wicked men. Peter hoped that nobody would know
that he was one of Jesus’ disciples, lest he should be killed. But as
Peter was sitting by the fire, warming himself, a maid said to him, You
are one of the disciples of Jesus.

Then Peter was frightened, and said, No, I am not; I do not know the
man you speak of.

Then Peter got up, and went outside the door; but another maid said to
him, I am sure you are one of the disciples of Jesus.

Peter said, I am not. So Peter went back again to the fire, and began
talking with the servants.

But some of them remembered having seen Peter in the garden, and
they came to Peter and said, We are certain that you are one of the
disciples. I saw you in the garden, said one.

Then Peter began to swear, and to say that he was not.

While Peter was speaking so wickedly he heard a cock crow. Then Peter
remembered what Jesus had said, and he looked at Jesus, and Jesus
turned round his face and looked at Peter. It was such a look! Jesus
did not speak, but his look seemed to say, Is this Peter, my friend,
who said he would die with me? Is this his love for me? Does he say he
does not know me?

Peter felt very sorry; he felt as if his heart would break, and he went
out of the house, and began to cry very much indeed. For Peter did
really love Jesus; only Satan had tempted him to be so wicked as to say
he did not know him.

If Peter had prayed in the garden instead of going to sleep, he would
have behaved better. But Christ had often prayed for Peter, that Satan
might not get his soul at last.

    When Peter sat within the hall,
    To see what should his Lord befall,
    He said he never knew the man,
    And e’en to curse and swear began.
    His sorrowing Master turn’d his head,
    And by his look he sweetly said,
    “Does Peter say he knows me not?
    Has Peter then my love forgot?”

    Soon Peter wept most bitterly
    That he had dared his Lord deny.
    His Lord is mine: I love him too,
    Oh! may I prove to him more true!
    But if I sin, oh! grant that I
    May weep like Peter, bitterly;
    And may it pierce me like a sword,
    To think I’ve griev’d my dearest Lord.




LESSON XXXVII.

PONTIUS PILATE.

JOHN, xviii. 22 to end. MATTHEW, xxvi. 67, 68. JOHN, xix. 1-16.


ALL night long, Jesus stood in the great room; he heard all Peter said,
and that must have grieved him. The wicked people were like lions and
tigers, and Jesus like a lamb. They looked at him as if they hated him.

Once when he spoke, a servant slapped his face; but he bore this meekly.

The judge was not up yet, for it was night; so the wicked people were
forced to wait till the morning.

That night the servants came round Jesus and beat him, and pushed him,
and laughed at him, and even spat in his face.

When the morning came, the wicked people said, Now we will bring him to
the judge.

So they went out of their fine house and took Jesus with them.

The judge sat upon a high seat in the hall. His name was Pontius
Pilate. The judge did not know Jesus. The judge said, What has he done?

The wicked people said, He calls himself a king.

Then Pilate said to Jesus, Are you a king? And Jesus said, Yes, I am.
But Pilate thought that he looked very good, and he did not want to
punish him.

Then the wicked men made a great noise, and said, You must crucify him.

Pilate said, No, I will beat him, and that will be enough. So Pilate
gave Jesus to some soldiers, who took him into a house and beat him
with knotted ropes, (this way of beating is called scourging,) and all
the blood ran down his back. Then the cruel soldiers laughed at him
because he said he was a king. They took off his own clothes, and put
some fine clothes on him such as kings wear, purple and red.

Then they said, We must put a crown on his head. So they took prickly
thorns, sharp like pins, and twisted them together, and made a crown,
and put it on his head.

They said He must have a scepter, (for kings hold something called a
scepter in their hands), so they put a reed in his hand for a scepter;
then they took it from him, and beat him on the head: and they knelt
down to him laughing, and said, O king! O king!

Pilate saw the soldiers tormenting him, and he brought Jesus into the
street, where the wicked people were, and he showed Jesus to them, and
said, Look at your king.

Pilate hoped they would be sorry to see him so ill-used; blood upon his
forehead from the thorns, and his back scourged, and dressed in fine
clothes to mock him: but the wicked people were cruel like tigers.

Said they, Crucify him! Crucify him! All the people cried out, Crucify
him! though Jesus had always been so kind to them.

Will you crucify your king? said Pilate.

He shall not be our king, the people said. There was a very great noise
in the street, from the people all speaking at once.

Then Pilate thought he would please the wicked people, and he said,
Take him and crucify him. Then the people were glad. But first the
soldiers took the fine clothes off Jesus, and put his own clothes on
him again.

How wicked it was of Pilate to let him be crucified! Pilate thought
Jesus was good, yet he let him be killed to please the people.

    What! is there none to take _his_ part
      Who silent, trembling, bleeding, stands?
    Not one to cheer his broken heart,
      Or snatch him from those cruel hands?

    A thousand voices lifted high
      Now fill with horrid shouts the air—
    “Away with him and crucify!”
      Nor does _one_ friend for him appear.

    Behold how men his love reward!
      His tender flesh the scourge has torn,
    His gentle hands are bound with cord,
      His head is crown’d with prickly thorn.

    But why did God the Father let
      His only son be treated thus?—
    He sent his Son to pay our debt,
      And suffer all this pain for us.

    ’Twas I deserved, O dearest Lord,
      My flesh should be with scourging torn,
    My little hands be bound with cord,
      _My_ head be crown’d with prickly thorn.

    And now what can I do for him
      Who suffer’d all this pain for me?
    Whene’er I feel or hear of sin,
      I’ll think, O dearest Lord, of thee.

    Nor shall my hand in anger strike,
      When thy dear hands for me were bound;
    Nor shall my head with passion shake,
      When thine with prickly thorns was crown’d.

    And when I hear one smiling tell,
      Of sinful things that men have done,
    I will not smile, but sorrow feel,
      Because sin bruis’d God’s only Son.




LESSON XXXVIII.

DEATH OF JUDAS.

MATTHEW, xxvii. 3-5.


WHERE was Judas all this while? The wicked people had given him the
money, thirty pieces of silver: but Judas could not be happy.

Ah! thought he, I have killed my good Master! what a wicked thing I
have done!

Judas felt that he could not like the money: he could not bear to keep
it, because he had done such a wicked thing to get it. So Judas went
to look for the wicked men. They had been sitting up all night talking
against Jesus: but now they were in God’s house—the Temple.

Judas brought the thirty pieces of silver in his hands, and threw them
down on the floor near the wicked men. Judas said, I have done a very
wicked thing.

But the men did not care for _that_: all they wanted was to get Jesus
killed.

They picked up the pieces of silver from the floor, and went and bought
a field with the money.

And where did Judas go?

He went out to the field to kill himself. He did not go and ask Jesus
to forgive him, but went and hanged himself. I suppose he tied a rope
around his neck, and fastened the rope to a tree. Afterward he fell
down from the tree, and his body burst, and his blood was poured out on
the ground. O what a horrible sight it must have been! But it was more
horrible to think where Judas’ soul was gone. It was gone to hell—to
Satan.

It was very wicked of Judas to hang himself, instead of praying to God
to forgive him.

Judas is in the wicked place now; and Jesus will judge him at the last
day, and say, Depart, you cursed!




LESSON XXXIX.

THE CROSS—PART I.

LUKE, xxiii. 26-34.


THE wicked people were very glad when Pilate said Jesus was to be
crucified. They made a cross of two great pieces of wood like boards,
and made Jesus carry it. They took him out of Jerusalem into the
country. The wicked people came with him.

Jesus was so weak that he could hardly walk, and the cross was so heavy
that he could not carry it. He would have dropped down on the way, if a
man had not helped him to carry the cross.

There were a few people who were sorry for the Lord Jesus.

Some women, who loved him very much, came crying after him. Jesus heard
them crying, and he turned round and spoke very kindly to them.

He said, Do not cry for me; cry for yourselves, and for your children.
Why did Jesus tell them to cry for themselves? Ah! Jesus knew how God
would one day punish the people in Jerusalem for their wickedness.

At last Jesus came to the top of a hill. Then the soldiers made Jesus
lie upon his cross, and they put nails in his hands, and nails in his
feet. So they nailed him to the cross. Then the soldiers made a hole in
the ground, and stuck the cross in it.

They had taken off Jesus’ clothes; and when he was on the cross four
soldiers tore the clothes in four pieces, and each took a piece: but
when they looked at his coat they said, We will not tear it, because
there is no seam in it; then one of the soldiers took it for his own.
So the wicked people took everything away from Jesus.

Was Jesus very angry with them?

No, he was meek as a lamb. He prayed to his Father while he was upon
the cross; he could not lift up his hands, but he could speak to God.
He prayed for these wicked people, and said, Father, forgive them; for
they know not what they do.

    “Father, forgive,” the sufferer cries,
      “Because they know not what they do.”
    To Heaven he lifts his dying eyes:
      Was such a prayer e’er heard below?

    Tell me for whom the Saviour prays?
      For those who bear him deadly hate,
    Who spat upon his lovely face,
      And pierced his blessed hands and feet,

    And does the Saviour pray for these?
      Ah! then I see that I should pray
    For all who hurt me, vex, or tease,
      By spiteful things they do or say.

    Alas! I feel my heart’s inclin’d
      To do to them as they to me,
    And by my words and deeds unkind
      To let all such my anger see.

    Yet _I_ have sinn’d against my God,
      And disobey’d ten thousand times:
    Am I prepar’d to feel his rod
      Avenging my ten thousand crimes?

    And thus he says he’ll deal with me
      If I’m unwilling to forgive;
    For only those _like_ Christ shall see
      The glorious place where angels live.




LESSON XL.

THE CROSS—PART II.

LUKE, xxiii. 35-43.


PONTIUS PILATE wrote these words on the top of Jesus’ cross: This is
the King of the Jews.

Who were the Jews?

The people who lived in Jerusalem were called Jews.

All the wicked people laughed when they read these words; they shook
their heads, and pouted their lips at Jesus, and said, If you are the
Son of God, come down from the cross.

Could Jesus have come down?

He could do everything; but he chose to stay to die for sinners.

The wicked people said, If God loved him, he would not leave him to die
on the cross.

But his Father let him die to save us.

There was a cross on each side of Jesus, and a thief nailed upon each
cross. One of these thieves laughed at Jesus; he said, Why do you not
save us, if you are the son of God?

The other thief was sorry for his sins, and he loved Jesus.

The thief who was sorry said to the other thief, We have been naughty,
we deserve to be crucified; but Jesus is quite good. Then he spoke to
Jesus, and said, Remember me when you come to be king.

And Jesus said, You shall be with me in heaven to-day. So Christ heard
the poor thief’s prayer; for Jesus died that he might save all who
believed that he was the Son of God.

If you go to heaven you will see that poor thief.

    Upon the hill where Jesus died
    A thief was plac’d on either side,
      Each nail’d upon a tree.
    The one revil’d Christ’s name in death,
    The other cried, with dying breath,
      “O Lord! remember me.”

    The Saviour heard the poor thief’s prayer,
    And promis’d he would take him where
      Our God and angels dwell.
    Alas! his life was spent in sin:
    What joy a heaven at last to win
      And to escape from hell!

    And oh! for him what glad surprise
    When heavenly glories met his eyes,
      And Christ array’d in light!
    He just had seen the dying pains,
    That had releas’d his soul from chains
      And everlasting night.

    Ah! sure of all the hosts that sing
    The praises of their heav’nly King,
      His voice will loudest sound:
    For when just trembling on the brink
    And just about in hell to sink,
      Pardon and grace he found.




LESSON XLI.

THE CROSS—PART III.

JOHN, xix. 25-30. MATTHEW, xxvii. 45-54.


JESUS’ mother, Mary, stood near the cross. She came to see her son die.
She was very sorry; she felt her heart full of pain at the sight.

She loved her dear, good son, who had been kind to her ever since he
was a baby, and had never done one thing wrong, and she knew he was the
Son of God. Jesus was sorry to see his mother’s grief.

John had come to the cross, and he was standing near Mary. Jesus wished
John to take care of his mother, now that he was going to leave her. So
he said to his mother, Behold thy son. And he said to John, Behold thy
mother. John knew what Jesus meant, and he took Mary to be his mother,
and made her live with him. Jesus loved his mother, and thought of her
when he was dying.

Jesus was full of pain, and it was very hot. He said, I thirst! and the
soldiers took a sponge, and dipped it in vinegar, and put it on a reed
and gave it to Jesus.

Jesus just tasted the vinegar, and said, It is finished! and then he
died. His spirit went to his Father, but his body hung upon the cross.

It was three o’clock in the afternoon when Jesus died. He had been
nailed to the cross all the day. Before Jesus died, God had made it
very dark, to show he was angry with the wicked people. And God made
the earth shake, and the people were frightened; and when Jesus was
dead, some of them said, This must have been the Son of God.

    Mary beholds one dying there,
    Whom in her arms she once did bear,
      And to her bosom press.
    On her he casts his pitying eye,
    For who should now _his_ place supply,
      And cheer her loneliness?

    The loving John shall be her son,
    And cherish her till life is done,
      Within his humble home:
    And oft together they shall speak
    Of him who, once despis’d and weak,
      At last in clouds shall come.

    Oh! gentle Lord, how great the love
    Which made thy tender pity move,
      E’en in the hour of death!
    O let me show my parents dear
    The same kind love and thoughtful care,
      Until their latest breath.




LESSON XLII.

THE SOLDIERS.

JOHN, xix. 32-37.


AT last the soldiers came to see if Jesus and the two thieves were
dead, that they might bury them before night. The soldiers looked at
one thief, and they saw that he was not dead; so they broke his legs,
and that killed him. Then they looked at the other thief, and they saw
he was not dead; so they broke his legs. Then they looked at Jesus,
and they saw he was dead, so they did not break his legs: but one of
the soldiers took a long stick with a sharp point at the end, called a
spear, and put it in his side; and out of his side blood and water came
flowing upon the ground. John was standing near, and he saw the blood
poured out. Do you remember how Jesus, at supper the night before, had
poured wine in a cup, and said, This is my blood, which is shed for
sinners?

Now his blood was poured out.

The spear made a hole in Jesus’ side. There was a hole in his side,
and a hole in each hand, and a hole in each foot; and his forehead was
pricked with thorns, and his eyes had shed many tears, and blood had
come from his skin. All this he suffered for us, that God might forgive
us our sins.




LESSON XLIII.

THE GRAVE.

JOHN, xix. 38 to end. LUKE, xxiii. 55, 56. MATTHEW, xxvii. 60.


THERE was one rich man who loved Jesus; his name was Joseph (not Mary’s
husband, this was another Joseph); he had a garden, and in the garden
he had made a grave: perhaps he meant to be buried there himself when
he came to die.

But now Joseph thought, I should like to put the Lord Jesus in my
grave. It was a very nice grave, and no one had ever been put there yet.

So Joseph went to Pontius Pilate, and said, I want the dead body of
Jesus: may I take it down from the cross, and keep it myself?

And Pilate said, Yes, you may have it.

Then Joseph was glad. He bought some nice white clean linen. What do
you think that was for? To wrap Jesus in. And he bought some spices
(sweet-smelling things that grow out of the ground), and he brought
some men with him, and they took the nails out of Jesus’ hands and
feet, and, took his body down from the cross. Then Joseph wrapped a
cloth round his head, and another cloth round his waist, and he put
sweet spices on him; and then some men carried him along to Joseph’s
garden.

In the garden there was a high place called a rock, and a hole in the
rock, like a hole in a wall; and they walked into this large dark hole,
and they laid Jesus down quite alone. Now he was at rest; he felt no
pain, no sorrow: the wicked people were not near; and there lay the
Lord in his quiet grave. The men took a very large stone and stopped up
the hole, so that nobody could get in. No beast, no bird, could touch
the Lord Jesus. There were trees and flowers near him in this sweet
garden, and there were angels there watching over him, though no one
could see them.

Where were the poor women who loved Jesus?

They had been looking at him on the cross. How they must have cried
when they saw him bleed, and heard him cry out to God!

The poor women had seen the men take him down from the cross. They had
followed the men into the garden; they had seen him put so carefully in
his grave.

They said to each other, Let us get more spices, and make sweet
ointment to put on the Lord Jesus.

Joseph had put some spices, but they wanted to put more. So they went
home and made nice ointment.

    In the cold grave the Saviour is sleeping,
      While angels bright are watching near;
    At home his loving friends are weeping,
      For they have lost their Master dear.

    His painful suff’rings now are ended;
      His wounded body is at rest;
    His soul, from ev’ry ill defended,
      Reposes on his Fathers breast.




LESSON XLIV.

THE RESURRECTION.

MARK, xvi. 1-6. LUKE, xxiv. 3-10. MATTHEW, xxviii. 9, 10.


ONE morning very early, when Jesus had been dead only two days, the
poor women came into the garden. It was not quite light yet, for the
sun was just rising.

As the women walked along with their ointment they said to each other,
How shall we get into the grave? The men put a large stone before it;
the stone is so big, we cannot roll it away. The women did not know
what to do.

At last they came to the grave, but the stone was rolled away. The
women were quite surprised. Then they were afraid some wicked people
had rolled it away, and stolen the body of Jesus. This made them very
sad; they looked into the grave, and saw that Jesus was not there. Soon
they saw two beautiful angels standing by them. Their faces were bright
like the sun, their clothes whiter than snow.

The women trembled when they saw the angels; but the angels spoke
sweetly and kindly to them, saying, Do not be afraid; we know that you
are looking for Jesus. He is not here now; he is alive. Do you not
remember how he said he would come to life again, after he had been
crucified?

Come, said the angels, and look at the place where Jesus lay. Run
quickly, and tell his disciples that Jesus is alive, and that they
shall see him very soon.

The women were very glad indeed; they ran as quickly as they could to
tell the disciples. But as they were running, whom do you think they
saw? Jesus himself! He did not look as he once had looked; no tears
were on his cheeks; they were all wiped away. He was not weak and faint
as when he had carried his cross. He never could be sick any more; nor
could he ever die again.

How much pleased the women were to see him! They knelt down on the
ground, and held his feet that he might not go away, and they called
him their Lord and their God. Yet still they felt a little afraid; but
Jesus told them not to be afraid. Jesus said: Go, tell my brothers that
I shall soon see them again.

Whom did Jesus call his brothers?

His disciples. He had forgiven them for having run away when the wicked
men took him.

The poor women ran, as Jesus had told them, to the disciples, and said,
We have seen angels; we have seen the Lord Jesus! He is walking about,
and you will see him soon. But the disciples would not believe the
women.




LESSON XLV.

MARY MAGDALENE.

JOHN, xx. 1-19.


I HAVE told you of two Marys; Mary the mother of Jesus, and another
Mary, the sister of Lazarus. But there was another still, called Mary
Magdalene. She came very early to the grave, before the other women
came. She looked into the grave, but saw no angels; so she came running
back, and told Peter and John that Jesus was not in his grave. I am
afraid, said Mary Magdalene, that some wicked people have taken him
away, and that we shall not be able to find him.

So Peter and John began to run as fast as they could, but John ran the
fastest, and he came first to the grave. He stooped down and peeped in,
and he saw the clothes lying in the grave.

Soon after Peter came, and he went down into the grave, and he saw the
clothes neatly folded, and the cloth that was round Jesus’ head lying
in a place by itself. Then John went in, too; and John thought of what
Jesus had said about being alive again.

It is all true, thought John; he is alive, and has left his grave.

Then Peter and John came out of the grave, and went to their own house;
but they saw no angels, nor did they see Jesus.

Where was Mary Magdalene all this time?

She was standing crying outside the grave: she was quite alone; for
Peter and John were gone home.

At last she stooped down and looked into the grave, and she saw a
beautiful sight—two angels, one sitting where Jesus’ head had been, and
one where his feet had been!

The angels said to Mary, Why do you cry? but still she went on crying,
and said, Some people have taken away the Lord Jesus, and I cannot find
him!

When she had said this, she heard a man behind her saying, Why do you
cry?

She did not know who it was that spoke; she thought perhaps it was the
gardener. If you have taken him, said she, tell me where you have put
him, and I will take him away.

The man said, Mary! She knew that voice, and turning round she looked,
and saw that it was Jesus. How glad she was to see her Lord and Master,
whom she loved! But Jesus could not stay with her. He told her to go
and tell his dear disciples that he was alive. I am soon going up to my
Father in heaven; but I shall see my disciples first.

Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples. They were all crying, but
they would not believe what Mary said.

Mary was glad that she had gone to look for Jesus. She was the first of
all the people who saw Jesus after he was alive again.




LESSON XLVI.

THE TWO FRIENDS.

LUKE, xxiv. 13-48.


IT was early in the morning that the women went to look for Jesus. In
the evening two good men were taking a walk together in the country.
As they walked they talked about Jesus. They had not seen him since he
was alive again: they did not know he was alive. They talked about his
dying on the cross. It made them very sad to speak about it. At last
a man came and spoke to them; they thought he was a stranger, yet he
seemed to be a kind man.

He said, Why do you cry? I see you are talking of something very sad.

Yes, said these good men, we are talking of something sad. Did you
never hear of Jesus? What wonderful things he did, how he cured the
blind, and dumb, and sick; and how he taught people about God? And all
the people loved him; but at last he was crucified. We thought he had
been the Son of God: but now we are afraid he was not, for he is dead,
and we are afraid that we shall never see him again.

The kind stranger was sorry to see these good men cry. He began to talk
to them, and to tell them that Jesus was the Son of God, and that he
had been crucified to save men, and that he would rise again, and go
back to his Father.

This kind stranger said a great deal more. He knew all the verses in
the Bible, and told these men a great many things they did not know.
They liked to listen to the stranger, they did not feel so sad while he
was talking.

At last these men came to their own house: it was in the country. The
stranger seemed as if he was going on: but the good men said to him,
Pray stay at our house; it is getting dark. Come and sup with us, and
sleep here: pray, pray come in.

Then the stranger said he would come in.

The men went into a room where there was a supper. They all three sat
down together around the table. The stranger took some bread and broke
it, and began to pray to God; and then the two men found out who the
stranger was.

It is the Lord! they cried; and so it was. They looked towards him, but
they could see him no more. He opened not the door, but yet he was gone.

Then the men thought of all that Jesus had said. How sweetly he talked
to us! they said; did we not feel our hearts quite warm, while he
talked to us? they said; did we not feel our hearts quite warm, while
he was speaking about the Bible, and telling us the meaning?

Do you think these men went to bed that night? O no! they could not
sleep. Let us go, said they, and tell the disciples about our seeing
Jesus. So they left the supper, and set out in the night. They walked
quickly, and soon came to Jerusalem.

The disciples were all shut up in a room together. They had locked the
doors to prevent the wicked people getting in: but they let these good
men come in. The disciples were at supper.

We have seen Jesus! said these good men. He has walked with us, and
talked with us; but we did not know him till he sat down with us at
supper, and broke some bread, and gave thanks to his Father. The
disciples said, Some women have seen him, and Peter has seen him.

But while they were eating supper and talking about Jesus, they looked
and saw Jesus standing in the middle of the room. Though the door was
locked, yet he had come in.

How do you think the disciples felt? They were frightened: they could
not believe that it was indeed Jesus himself.

Jesus spoke kindly to them. Why are you afraid? he said. Look at my
hands and feet. It is I myself. Then Jesus showed his disciples the
marks that the nails had made in his hands and feet, and the hole that
the spear had made in his side.

Then the disciples saw that it was their own dear Master. They were
glad, very glad, to see him: they had been crying ever since they had
lost him. They saw that he had forgiven them for having run away. He
said nothing to them about it: he had even forgiven Peter. He knew that
Peter loved him, and that he was very sorry.

The disciples were so much surprised to see Jesus, that they could
hardly believe that he was alive. Jesus knew that they did not quite
believe; so he said, Have you anything to eat? Then the disciples gave
him a piece of fish and some honey from their supper; and Jesus took
them and began to eat, that the disciples might see that he was really
alive.

Then afterward he talked to them, and told them why he had died, and
that he was going back to his Father to pray for them.

That was a pleasant night for the poor disciples. It was not like that
sad night when Jesus was so sorrowful in the garden. His sorrows were
over, and he never would feel pain any more.

    There are but three around that table met:
    ’Tis their last meal, for now the sun has set,
    One breaks the bread. I know that lovely face,
    That voice—but lo! he’s vanished from the place.

    “Was it an angel? No, it was the Lord.
    He lives again—he is to us restor’d.”
    What joy now fills these hearts that late were fill’d
    With fears! Ah, now forever—ever still’d!

    “Well might our hearts burn in us by the way
    While Jesus spake,” the fond disciples say;
    “How sweet was his discourse! we little thought
    That it was he. How strange we knew him not!

    “But stranger far that we did not believe
    That he would rise again! Could _he_ deceive?
    O no, he is the faithful and the true,
    And what he says he evermore will do.”

    Were these their thoughts? And such too will be mine.
    When I in glory see my Saviour shine.
    For though I know he ever lives to save,
    I sometimes doubt his word, and fear the grave.




LESSON XLVII.

THOMAS.

JOHN, xx. 24 to end.


YOU have heard how the disciples saw Jesus in the evening. One of the
disciples was not there when Jesus came. His name was Thomas. I do not
know why he was not there.

When the disciples saw Thomas next, they said to him, We have seen
Jesus. On Sunday night we saw him. He came into the room as we were
sitting together, and he spoke to us. We are sure it was Jesus himself,
because he showed us the marks of the nails in his hands and feet, and
the hole in his side where the spear went in.

But Thomas would not believe the disciples. He said, I do not think you
saw Jesus himself. He died upon the cross. I never will believe, except
I put my fingers into the marks of the nails, and put my hand into the
hole in his side.

It was very wrong of Thomas to speak in this way. He should have
remembered that Jesus had promised to be alive again.

Jesus heard Thomas speak, though Thomas could not see him. But Jesus
was always with the disciples and heard all they said, because he is
God.

Next Sunday evening the disciples were in a room together. Thomas was
there too. The doors were locked to keep the wicked people out; but the
disciples knew that Jesus could come in. And he did come. They saw him
standing in the middle of the room. He spoke kindly to them, and said,
Peace be unto you!

Then he spoke to Thomas. Come, said he to Thomas, here are my hands;
put your finger in the marks: and here is the hole in my side; put your
hand in it.

Now Thomas knew that Jesus had heard him speak so naughtily, and he
felt ashamed and sorry. He saw it was Jesus himself, and he cried out,
My Lord and my God!

Then Jesus said to Thomas, Now you have seen, you believe. Blessed are
they who have not seen, and yet have believed.

Jesus quite forgave Thomas for what he had said, because Thomas really
loved Jesus.

    And can the Lord be risen?
      The doubting Thomas said;
    And has he broke the prison
      Where lately he was laid?
    Unless I feel, unless I see,
      I never can believe ’tis he.

    Come, feel these wounded places,
      To Thomas Jesus said;
    Come see the certain traces
      Of blood that I have shed.
    Behold, I stand before your eye,
    Oh! do you now believe ’tis I?

    My Lord, thou art living,
      And cloth’d in white array,
    The Holy Spirit giving
      To all who humbly pray:
    And though I neither feel nor see,
    I still believe that thou art he.




LESSON XLVIII.

THE DINNER.

JOHN, xxi. 1-19.


JESUS told his disciples to go a great way into the country, and he
said, I will come and see you again. So the disciples went away from
Jerusalem, and they went into the country. They came to the place where
they had once lived, by the water side. They had some ships on the
water, and they used to catch fish when they were in the ships.

One night Peter said to the disciples, I shall go and fish; and the
disciples said, We will go with you. So they got into a ship, and all
night long they tried to catch fish, but they could not catch any.

In the morning they were tired and hungry. They looked up, and saw a
man standing near the water side. They did not know who the man was.

The man called out to them and said, Children, have you anything to eat?

The poor disciples said, No; for they had caught no fish all night.

The man said, Let down your net on the right side of the ship, and you
shall find some fish.

They did as the man told them, and they caught such a number of fishes
in the net, that they could hardly lift it out of the water.

Now John found out who the man was: he said to Peter, It is the Lord.

Peter was very glad, and he jumped into the water, and swam first
to Jesus. The other disciples came soon after in their little ship,
with their nets and their fishes. Jesus knew that they were tired and
hungry. By the water side there was a fire, and some fish on the fire,
and some bread. How kind it was of Jesus to give some food to his poor
hungry disciples!

Jesus said to them, Bring some of the fishes that you have caught. So
Peter went and took up the net and found it full of great fishes: one
hundred and fifty-three.

This was a great miracle that Jesus had done. Then said Jesus to the
disciples, Come and dine. So they all sat down to dine together. Then
Jesus took the bread, and gave some to each; and he took the fish, and
gave some of it to each.

Now the disciples were quite sure that it was Jesus who was feeding
them. This was the way they used to dine together before Jesus had
died. Now he was alive, they dined together again: but they knew he was
not going to stay long with them.

When they had all finished eating, Jesus said to Peter, Do you love me?

Peter said, Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.

Then Jesus said, Feed my lambs, (that is, Teach other people to love
me. Go and tell people about my dying for them).

You, my little children, are Christ’s lambs, and I feed you when I talk
to you about Christ. I feed your souls, and the food is the love of
Jesus.

Peter did love Jesus, and Jesus knew he did. Yet Jesus said again, Do
you love me? Peter said again, Lord, you know I love you. Then Jesus
said, Feed my sheep.

Jesus asked Peter once more the same thing, Do you love me?

Peter was afraid Jesus did not believe him, and this made him sorry. He
said, Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.

Jesus said again, Feed my sheep.

If Peter loved Jesus he would do what Jesus bade him, and go and teach
people.

Do you love Jesus, my little children? What would you answer if Jesus
said to you, Do you love me? Could you say to Jesus, Look into my
heart, and you will see that I love you? If you do really love him, you
will hate lies and passions, and you will try to be kind and gentle,
and to please Jesus all the day.

Why did Jesus ask Peter so often whether he loved him? Why did he ask
him three times over?

Peter had said he did not know Jesus three times over. So Jesus wanted
to hear him say he loved him three times over.

Then Jesus told Peter what would happen to him when he was old. Jesus
said to Peter, When you were young, you walked about where you liked;
but when you are old some men will take you, and stretch out your
hands, and carry you where you do not like to go.

Jesus meant that Peter would be crucified; men would stretch out his
hands on a cross, and nail him as they had done Jesus. Wicked people
would crucify Peter because he loved Jesus; but Peter would never say
again that he did not know Jesus.

Peter was not proud now as he used to be. And Peter would pray to God
to keep him from sin.




LESSON XLIX.

THE ASCENSION.

MATTHEW, xxviii. 16 to end. LUKE, xxiv. 46 to end. ACTS, i. 4-14.


JESUS used to come and see his disciples after he was made alive again;
but he did not live always with them, as he once had done.

He told them he was soon going up to his Father. When I am gone, you
must tell people about me. You must tell the people who crucified me,
that I will forgive them if they are sorry. The Holy Spirit will come
down from heaven, for my Father has promised to send him down soon:
Wait at Jerusalem till he come. I will always be with you, though you
do not see me. Some day I shall come back again.

The disciples asked Jesus when he would come back; but Jesus would not
tell them when.

One day Jesus and his disciples walked together to the top of a hill.
Jesus began to pray with his disciples, and he lifted up his hands and
blessed them. While he was doing this he was taken up to heaven, and
a cloud hid him at last from the eyes of his disciples. They still
looked up, and saw the cloud go higher and higher till they could
see it no more. But still they went on looking. Then they heard some
persons speaking to them; they looked to see who it was, and they saw
two angels standing by them. The angels were dressed in white shining
clothes. They said, Why do you look so long at the sky? Jesus will come
some day again. So the disciples went back to Jerusalem, to wait for
the Holy Spirit.

Perhaps you think they were very unhappy, now Jesus was gone? No, they
were not. They knew he was gone to get a place in heaven ready for
them, and that they should live with him forever; and this made them
glad.

    Blessed Lord, I see thee praying,
      While thy friends around thee stand,
    Clouds I see thy form conveying
      To thy Fathers own right hand.
    Angels now thy friends are cheering
      With bright hopes of thy return:
    Looking for thy sweet appearing,
      Why should they thine absence mourn?


    CHILD.

    Art thou, Lord, for me preparing
      In thy Fathers house a place?
    Thy sweet prayers I would be sharing,
      Lest I should forsake thy ways.
    Saviour dear, I long to see thee
      On the clouds in glory ride,
    From all sorrow come to free me,
      And to place me by thy side.




LESSON L.

PETER IN PRISON.

ACTS, ii. xii. 1-23.


WHAT had Jesus promised to send when he was gone back to his Father?

The Holy Spirit.

And he did send the Holy Spirit, as he had promised. Then the disciples
began to speak of Jesus to all the wicked people.

They said to them, You have crucified the Son of God. He is alive, and
is gone up to sit on his Fathers throne; but he will forgive you, and
give you the Holy Spirit.

Some of the wicked people were sorry for what they had done to Jesus,
and begged God to forgive them; and some of the wicked people were not
sorry, but tried to kill the disciples.

A wicked king cut off the head of James with a sword, and then shut up
Peter in prison, meaning to kill him soon.

Did you ever see a prison?

It is a dark place with great doors, and bars, and walls all round.

Some soldiers took Peter, and put chains on his hands, and chains on
his feet, and they locked the door of the prison. Men sat at the door,
that no one might get in.

Peters friends were very unhappy because he was in prison; but they
could not take him out. Yet there was one thing they could do; they
could pray to God to save Peter, and so they did. Peter’s friends sat
up at night and prayed to God.

The wicked king said, To-morrow I shall have Peter killed. But God
would not let Peter be killed. So God told one of his beautiful angels
to go and let Peter out of the prison. The angel could go into the
prison without opening the doors.

It was night when the angel came. Peter was asleep. On each side of him
there was a soldier, and Peter was chained to them both. You would not
like to sleep in a prison with soldiers near you, and chains on your
hands; but Peter knew that God loved him, and that he was safe.

So the angel came. It was dark in the prison.

Could Peter see the angel?

Yes; for the angel was bright like the sun, and made the prison light.

The angel touched Peter on the side, and lifted him up, and the chains
fell off Peter’s hands.

He told Peter to put on his clothes; and Peter did so. Then the angel
said, Follow me. So the angel walked first, and Peter followed him.
They went through the prison; but the men at the doors did not see
Peter go out, for God made them sleep. Peter was quite surprised; he
thought he was dreaming, and that he did not see a real angel.

At last Peter came to a great iron gate. It was fast locked; but the
angel took no key to open it. It opened of itself, and let Peter and
the angel go through.

Now they were in the street. Still the angel went on, and Peter came
after him; but they did not speak a word.

All the people were asleep, and did not know that a bright angel was
walking in the street. The angel only walked down one street, and then
he went back to heaven, and left Peter standing alone in the street, in
the dark.

Peter stood some time thinking to himself, What a wonderful thing has
happened! I was shut up in prison; but God has sent his angel to let me
out. The king meant to kill me to-morrow, but now I shall not be killed.

I know that Peter thanked God for his kindness. Peter did not stay all
night in the street. He went to the house of a good woman whom he knew,
and he knocked at the door.

Were the people in the house asleep?

No, they were all awake, though it was night.

Why were they not in bed?

This good woman had heard how the king would kill Peter to-morrow; so
she and her friends were praying for Peter, and while they were praying
they heard a knock: it was a strange thing to hear a knock in the
night; but they never guessed who it was.

A maid named Rhoda went to the door, but she was afraid to open it,
lest it should be some of the wicked people come to kill the poor woman
and her friends; so she stopped at the door without opening it, to hear
who it was: but when she heard Peter speak, how much pleased she was!
she knew his voice. She did not say, Are you Peter? She was sure it
was Peter. She was so much surprised that she forgot to open the door;
but ran back to her mistress and the rest of the disciples, and said,
Peter is standing before the gate; but they said, No, it cannot be
Peter; he is shut up in prison.

The maid said, It is Peter; I am sure it is. While they were talking,
Peter was standing outside, and he went on knocking, because nobody
opened the door. Soon his friends ran and opened the door, and when
they saw Peter they were quite surprised.

How did you get out of prison? they said.

Then Peter made a sign with his hand to make them all quiet, that he
might tell them how he got out of prison.

God sent an angel, said Peter, who brought me out of the prison. Go and
tell all my friends what has happened, for I must go away. So Peter
went and hid himself in a place where the wicked king could not find
him.

What do you think the soldiers said when they could not find Peter in
the morning?

They were much frightened: they saw his chains, but not Peter. They
found the gates locked; they could not think how Peter got out of
prison.

So the king sent for Peter. This was the day when Peter was to be
killed. All the wicked people in Jerusalem were expecting to see him.
The king’s servants said, Where is Peter? Bring him out.

The soldiers answered, We cannot tell where Peter is: he is gone.

The servants went and told the king that Peter was not in prison. The
king was very angry; he said, Bring the soldiers to me. They must have
fallen asleep.

When the soldiers came, they could not tell the king how Peter had got
away. For God had made them sleep when the angel fetched Peter. The
king was in a great rage, and said, The soldiers must be killed.

What a wicked king this was! He loved to do wickedness. He was very
proud, and hated God and God’s people. He fell into passions, and only
cared to please himself. At last God sent an angel to kill him, and
worms ate up his flesh until he died.

God sends angels to punish the wicked, and to help people who love him
as Peter did.

    “Awake,” the angel cries; and from the hands
    Of wondering Peter fall the iron bands;
    The gates fly open of their own accord,
    And Peter is to liberty restor’d.

    His guide he follows through the gloom of night
    (Where angels are there needs no other light);
    The angel’s gone, and Peter, left alone,
    Sees and admires the love his God has shown.

    At yonder gate he knocks; thence prayer ascends,
    On this sad night, from Peter’s sorrowing friends:
    With glad surprise the maiden hears his voice;
    All round him flock and with one heart rejoice.


CHILD.

    So, when my body dies, shall angels guide
    My happy soul to my dear Father’s side:
    To meet me at the gate shall angels throng,
    With joy shall tune their harps and raise their song.




LESSON LI.

JOHN.

REV. i. 9-19; iv. 1-5; xxii.


ALMOST all the twelve disciples were killed by wicked men at last. When
Peter was old, some wicked men crucified him, because he loved Jesus.
Now he is in heaven with Jesus, clothed in a white robe, and all his
tears wiped away. His dear Lord Jesus is always near him, and this
makes him happy.

John lived till he was very, very old, indeed. A wicked king caught
him, and put him into a country far away from his friends: there was
water all round, so that he could not get away.

Was John unhappy there?

No; God was with him, and John loved to think of the Father, and of his
Son Jesus.

It was Sunday, and John was thinking of God, when he heard a voice
behind him, like the noise of a trumpet, very loud indeed. He turned
round to see who it was; and whom do you think he saw?

The Lord Jesus come down from heaven, all glorious and shining! When
John saw him, he could not speak or stand; he was afraid, and he fell
down on the ground, as if he were dead. But Jesus touched him with his
hand and said, Fear not; I am he that liveth and was dead, and behold,
I am alive for evermore. Then Jesus took John up into heaven, and an
angel showed him most beautiful things.

John saw a throne on which God sat. There was a rainbow round the
throne. There were a great many seats, and men sitting on them, clothed
in white, with crowns of gold on their heads. The men took off their
crowns, and threw them down before the throne and praised Jesus, the
Lamb of God.

John saw a great many angels, more than he could count, standing round
the throne, singing praises to the Lamb.

But of all the things John saw in heaven, there was nothing so glorious
as God himself.

In heaven there is no sun, nor moon, nor candle, nor lamp. Yet it is
always light, because God shines more brightly than the sun. The music
of harps and sweet singing are always to be heard; for all the angels
can sing the praises of God.

John wondered at the things he saw and heard; and he fell down at the
feet of the angel who had shown them to him.

But the angel said, You must not worship me; I am only a servant of
God: you must worship God.

Then the angel went on speaking and said, Jesus will soon come down
from heaven to judge the world. He will open the gates of heaven to let
those people in who mind God’s word; but those who tell lies, and do
wicked things, shall be shut out.

All people who love Jesus wish him to come again in the clouds.

Do you wish to see Jesus, my little children?

Then you may answer, Even so; come, Lord Jesus.

I hope that when you die your spirit will go to Jesus, and that when
Jesus comes again, he will bring you with him.

John wrote down in a book the things he had seen in heaven. All that
John wrote is in the Bible. At last John died, and his soul went to
God. He is with Jesus now in heaven. He is now playing on a golden
harp, and singing with the angels. But when Jesus comes again in the
clouds, John will come with him.

    When John was by the angel led
      To the bright world on high,
    He saw what joys await the dead
      When up to heaven they fly.

    He saw them round the Father’s throne,
      Gazing upon his face,
    Singing to harps of sweetest tone
      The praises of his grace.

    He saw them clothed in robes of white,
      Such as the angels wear,
    Shining like stars of morning bright,
      And like the angels fair.

    He saw the city where they dwelt;
      (Whose praises can’t be told);
    The walls of precious stones were built,
      The streets were purest gold.

    He saw the Lamb whose blood was spill’d,
      To give his people rest:
    With his bright beams the place was filled,
      And every heart was blest.

    Charm’d with the sight, John bent his knee
      Before that angel fair,
    Who said, “Thou must not worship me;
      To God address thy prayer.”




LESSON LII.

THE JUDGMENT DAY.

I. THESS. iv. 15-17. REV. xx. 11 to end.


YOU know that Jesus will come again in the clouds?

Little children, do you know when he will come? Shall I tell you when
Jesus will come? You would like to know; but I cannot tell you when: I
do not know. The angels do not know what day it will be. No one knows
but God. There will be many wicked people in the world then, and some
good people. An angel will blow a great trumpet, and Jesus will say to
the people who are dead, Come out of your graves.

The bodies of all the dead people will come out of their graves. Those
who love Christ will be like the angels, and will fly up into the air.
If you are alive when Jesus comes, he will catch you up in the air to
meet him.

As soon as you see Jesus you will be like him, all shining and
glorious. Jesus will be king over the whole world, and make all people
happy.

At last Jesus will sit upon a white throne, and everybody will stand
round his throne. He will open some books, in which he has written down
all the naughty things people have done. God has seen all the naughty
things you have done. He can see in the dark as well as in the light,
and knows all your naughty thoughts. He will read everything out of his
books before the angels that stand around. Yet God will forgive some
people, because Christ died upon the cross.

Whom will he forgive?

Those who love Jesus with all their hearts. He has written down their
names in another book, called The Book of Life. He will forgive their
sins, wipe away their tears, and let them live with him forever.

Do you hope that Jesus has written down your name in his book?

Ask him to give you his Holy Spirit. Then you will love Jesus, and hate
to do wickedly.

This is what God will do to those who do not love him—God will bind
them in chains, and put them in a lake of fire. There they will gnash
their teeth, and weep and wail forever.

God will put Satan in the same place, and all the devils. Satan is
the father of the wicked, and he and his children shall be tormented
forever. They shall not have one drop of water to cool their burning
tongues. Many people in hell will say, How I wish I had listened to the
words of my teachers! But I would not mind; and now it is too late. I
never can come out of this dreadful place. How foolish I have been!
Once God would have heard my prayers, but now I weep and wail in vain.

I hope, my dear children, that none of you will ever speak such sad
words.

Remember Satan goes about as a cunning serpent, trying to make you
disobey God; but Christ will keep you from wickedness, if you pray to
him.

One day God will burn up this world we live in. It is dreadful to see a
house on fire. Did you ever see one? But how dreadful it will be to see
this great world and all the houses and trees burning! The noise will
be terrible: the heat will be very great. The wicked will not be able
to get away. They will be cast into the lake of fire. The world will
not burn forever; God will make another world, much better than this.

If you are God’s child, you will not be frightened when the world is
burning, for you will be safe with Jesus, praising him for having loved
and saved you.

            How oft behind yon hill
              The sun has hid his face!
            How oft return’d to fill
              With joyful light the place!
    And shall the sun forever thus return?
    Shall morn succeed to eve, and eve to morn?

            Oh no! the day shall come,
              (And who can tell how soon!)
            When dark shall be that sun,
              And red the silver moon:
    When sun or moon shall never more return,
    But God on clouds shall come the world to burn.

            Oh! say shall I be there,
              To see the dreadful glare,
            The dreadful sound to hear,
              The dreadful heat to bear,
    Of falling crags and rocks, of roaring seas,
    Of smoking hills, and flaming earth and skies?

            Oh! yes, I shall be there;
              The graves shall open’d be;
            _All_ shall the trumpet hear,
              The Judge’s face shall see:
    In vain shall some upon the mountains call,
    To hide their heads from him who judges all.

            The books shall then be read,
              In which our God has wrote
            All that we ever said,
              Or ever did or thought;
    And many cheeks with burning shame shall glow,
    And many souls be plunged in deepest woe.

            And how shall I escape
              From endless misery?
            My sins, a mighty heap,
              Show I deserve to die.
    And yet to think upon that burning lake
    Makes my flesh tremble, and my bones to shake.

            Lord! by the blood he shed
              Who hung upon the tree,
            Before the books are read,
              May my sins pardon’d be!
    And then my tears shall all be wiped away,
    And I shall dwell in everlasting day.

    THE END.




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    2 GRACE HARLOWE’S SECOND YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.
    3 GRACE HARLOWE’S THIRD YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.
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    5 GRACE HARLOWE’S RETURN TO OVERTON CAMPUS.


Dave Darrin Series

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    1 DAVE DARRIN AT VERA CRUZ; Or, Fighting With the U. S.
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    1 MADGE MORTON—CAPTAIN OF THE MERRY MAID.
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By JESSIE GRAHAM FLOWER, A. M.

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    in Sleepy Hollow.—4 THE AUTOMOBILE GIRLS AT CHICAGO;
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       *       *       *       *       *

Transcriber’s Notes:

Obvious punctuation errors repaired.

Page 15, “canot” changed to “cannot” (cannot think of God)

Page 49, “dressinig” changed to “dressing” (babe a-dressing)

Page 64, repeated word “been” removed from text (has been very naughty)

Page 69, “arisinig” changed to “arising” (the maid arising)

Page 88, “wil” changed to “will” (I will show you where)

Page 119, “the” changed to “they” (they saw the angels)

Page 124, “crucifid” changed to “crucified” (crucified to save men)

Page 145, repeated word “to” removed from text (Singing to harps of)

Page 148, “prasing” changed to “praising” (praising him for having)





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