two things must happen. Either we shall succeed in triumphing over the wrong done us, or that wrong will triumph over us. On the morning of a battle, according to an old story, a Scottish chieftain brought his Highland regiment in front of the enemy and said, "Now, my lads, there they are: if ye dinna ding them, they'll ding you." That is exactly what Paul says about the wrongs that other people do us: "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good."

It is natural for us to be quick to meet evil with evil. Revenge is sweet to the lowest passions of the human heart. The world has no want of apt sayings which encourage revenge. It says, for example, "Give him a Roland for his Oliver." Or again, "Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander." Or once more, "Be six to his half-dozen."

But it is quite impossible that by meeting evil with evil we can ever be victorious over it. The result will be the very opposite. Instead of triumphing, we shall be ourselves "overcome." We shall be defeated and disgraced by our own bad temper and ill feeling.

There is only one way of conquering injury, when it is done to us; and that is, to return good for evil.

One day, when the horse of a good man in Massachusetts happened to stray into the road, a churlish neighbor put the animal into the public pound. Meet ing the owner soon after, he told him what he had done, and added, "If I catch him in the road after this, I'll do just so again." "Neighbor," replied the other, "a night or two ago I looked out of my window, and saw your cattle in my meadow, and I drove them out and shut them in your yard; and if ever I catch them there at any other time, I'll do it again." The man was so struck with the reply that he at once took the horse out of the pound, and paid the charges himself.

The Gospel plan of dealing with injuries sometimes yields a double victory. First, it often disarms the enemy. But there is another thing which it never fails to do. It enables the person who has been wronged to gain a victory over self. It helps him to overcome the evil that is in his own heart. To seek the good of those who have wronged us leads to the subduing of bad feeling towards them. Revenge is weakened and destroyed by being resisted. And our whole nature, too, is sweetened.

Those persons have praise both of men and of God who kill their enemies with kindness. King Henry VI of England had this beautiful word spoken of him, "He never forgot anything but injuries." It was said about Archbishop Cranmer, "If you want to get a favor from him, do him a wrong.' Those who act so are "the children of their Father which is in heaven; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." It is to be like God to suffer wrong, and yet to forgive. Condensed from Gospel Milk and Honey, by Charles Jerdan.

III ACCORDING TO THE PACE OF THE LITTLE ONES

I will lead on gently. What Jacob said to Esau about the children with him being tender, and his flocks and herds having their young which would die if overdriven, was only the excuse which he offered Esau for not going with him. He did not purpose following after Esau but going another way, down to Canaan. Yet his words show that he was capable of thoughtful care for the dumb beasts and the little ones. I will lead on gently, according to the pace of the cattle that are before me and according to the pace of the children, he declared. Slowly the world since Jacob's day has been learning the lesson that it must consider the pace of the little ones.

Toiling Babies. Could you imagine any three-year-old that you know making his own shoes? What are the pace, the rights, of a three-year-old? In Central Africa a little boy three years old begged a traveler to give him some leather, and on receiving it the youngster set to work like an old shoemaker, cutting off strips for laces and fashioning the sandals wonderfully well. He had no one to look after him, and was going to follow a caravan, he said, till

Quarter

April 20

he came to some large village, where he could earn his living by minding goats and sheep.

One of the first things that strikes a stranger in Africa, said the traveler, is the wonderful rapidity with which children develop. Real childhood is unknown, although manhood is never reached. The little ones are thrown on their own resources at such an early period that they quickly learn to act for themselves in providing for the passing hour, and little more than this is attained in after life.

There are babies toiling in Christian lands who should be playing. A leaflet issued by the Christian Social Union of London, says that of the great army of children employed in that city five thousand were "babies under eight, and sixteen thousand under nine." According to the National Child Labor Committee, there are sixty-thousand little children in our southern cotton mills, one hundred thousand little boys in mines and on the breakers, six thousand four hundred children in glass factories, and hundreds of them at night work. Two million boys and girls under sixteen are at work in our country while other children are having their schooling.

Natividad and the Baka. In the Philippines (writes a missionary in "WorldWide") we do not often meet anything but out-and-out indifference to the condition of animals. One day in Bacolod I had sent the servant to drive the girls home from school, for the rain was coming down in torrents. Our Kelis (vehicle), was drawn by a baka (ox) who was old and not the swiftest pacer in the world, and there were many trips to be made before the girls could all be safely brought to the dormitory. So the coachman thought he could hasten matters along a bit by whipping up the ox to a better speed. But he had reckoned without Natividad, who happened to be one of the load that time. Out popped her hand through the little window in front, as she imperiously bade him stop whipping the animal.

"Our baka is very thin and old, isn't he, Natividad?" I said to her that evening. "And he doesn't run very fast, does he? I heard of your kindness to him today, and I was so glad to know that you care about a poor, helpless, dumb beast."

The tears came freely as the dear girl told me how badly she had felt about the ox. You have no idea how little most people know and think about_such things here. No one has read such beautiful books as "Black Beauty," or "Beautiful Joe," or "Dicky Downy,” and no one has talked to them about the needs and sufferings of the brute creature; such a thing is all very new to them.

SENTENCE SERMONS

When prayer has preceded trial, the trial turns out to be much less than we anticipated. F. B. Meyer.

The crisis of life is usually the secret place of wrestling. Spurgeon.

O brothers! are ye asking how

The hills of happiness to find?

Then know they lie beyond the vow

"God helping me, I will be kind." Nixon Waterman.

Having chosen our course, without guile and with pure purpose, let us renew our trust in God, and go forward without fear and with manly hearts. Abraham Lincoln.

For still in mutual suffrance lies

The secret of true living;

Love scarce is love that never knows

The sweetness of forgiving. Whittier.

THE LESSON'S MEANINGS FOR US

Has not "this Man" that wrestled with Jacob found you out? Have you not found a holy discontent with yourself? Have you not felt that certain things,

long cherished and loved, should be given up, though it should cost you blood? Have you not felt that you should yield your whole being to God, but there has been a rebellious uprising of self-will within you, as if it were impossible for you to make the surrender? Each one of us is dowered with that wonderful power of holding our own against God; and he knows, sorrowfully, that he cannot prevail against us, without_taking_some severe measures which will give us no alternative but to yield. F. B. Meyer.

"The heroic Gordon used to say that, in his lonely camel rides, he often in prayer encountered and disarmed hostile chiefs, before he rode, unaccompanied, into their presence. None can guess, if they have not tried it for themselves, what a solvent prayer is for the difficulties and agonies of life!" So Jacob disarmed Esau in communion with God.

What is the trouble with our family life? Unkindness. What is the bane of business life? Unkindness. What is the central shame of our social life? Unkindness. George A. Gordon.

SUBJECTS FOR BIBLE CLASS DISCUSSION

1. The story of Jacob as a study in the development of character. 2. Settling old scores.

WORK TO BE ASSIGNED FOR THE NEXT LESSON

Questions to look up. 1. Where did Jacob go after parting with Esau? (Clipping, ¶3, p. 173.) 2. Where was Joseph born? 3. How old was he when he was taken to Hebron? 4. What were the names of Jacob's three oldest sons? 5. What were Joseph's early dreams of future greatness? (Gen. 37.5-11). 6. How did the brothers regard the dreams? 7. What do their words in v. 19 indicate? 8. How did his father regard them? 9. Where did Joseph meet his brothers? 10. How old was Joseph at this time? (Gen. 37.2.) II. Where was Dothan? what did the name mean? (Clipping, p. 173.) 12. What prophet was put into a dungeon similar to the "pit" into which Joseph was cast, as we learned in our lesson two years ago? (Jer. 38.6.) 13. Whose food were the brothers eating while Joseph was in the pit? 14. What is said in Acts 7.9 about the motive of Joseph's brothers? 15. What does Prov. 14.30 say about envy? 16. Long afterwards what did the brothers say about their treatment of Joseph at this time? (Gen. 42.21.) 17. What did Joseph say long afterwards about God's hand in his captivity? (Gen. 50.20.)

Questions to think about. I. What kind of a boy was Joseph? 2. Why was Joseph envied of his coat of many colors? 3. Was the brothers' jealousy natural? 4. Was it right? 5. What two earlier lessons have shown to what jealousy leads? 6. What do you suppose Joseph thought about his dreams of greatness when he found himself abandoned in the pit? 7. What does the word Pharaoh mean? (Clipping, p. 171.) 8. What is the meaning of Jacob's words in v. 35? (Clipping, p. 171.) 9. What might we call the "captain of the Guard"? 10. What sins did Joseph's brothers commit? (They were cruel to Joseph and to their father, inhuman in calmly enjoying their meal while Joseph was in the pit, guilty of purposed murder, of selling Joseph as a slave, of lying to their father, of hypocrisy in trying to console him.) 11. Were the brothers as guilty as though they had actually put Joseph to death? 12. What did Jesus say about murder, in one of our last year's lessons, which shows how he would have regarded the brothers' deed?

Note-Book Work. In your Biography of Jacob write:

Scene IV, Jacob's Life at Haran;

Scene V, Jacob's Wrestling with an Angel;

Scene VI, Jacob's Meeting with Esau.

On your map locate Haran, and trace Jacob's journey from thence to the Jabbok.

LESSON IV-April 27

JOSEPH SOLD INTO EGYPT

Golden Text

Love envieth not. I Cor. 13.4

HOME DAILY BIBLE READINGS—M. Gen. 37.23-36. Joseph Sold into Egypt. T. Gen. 37.1-14. Joseph's Remarkable Dreams. W. Gen. 39.1-9. God Protects Joseph. T. Ps. 102.13-22. God's Pity for Prisoners. F. Rom. 5.1-11. Peace and Joy for God's Friends. S. Dan. 6.7-23. A Wicked Plot Defeated. S. Prov. 4.10-19. The Two Ways.

STUDY Gen. 37 READ Gen. 35-37 COMMIT vv 26, 27

23 And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stripped Joseph of his coat, the coat of many colors that was on him; 24 and they took him, and cast him into the pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.

25 And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a caravan of Ismaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. 26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brethren hearkened unto him. 28 And there passed by Midianites, merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they brought Joseph into Egypt.

29 And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. 30 And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go? 31 And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a he-goat, and dipped the coat in the blood; 32 and they sent the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, This have we found: know now whether it is thy son's coat or not. 33 And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces. 34 And Jacob rent his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down to Sheol to my son mourning. And his father wept for him. 36 And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, the captain of the guard.

WORDS AND PHRASES EXPLAINED

Review Outline. I. Jacob's Favoritism, 1-4. II. Joseph's Dreams, 5-11. III. Joseph's Journey in search of his Brothers, 12-17. IV. His Brothers' Plot, 18-22. V. Joseph in the Pit, 23. VI. Joseph sold into Slavery, 25-28. VII. The Deception practised on Jacob and the Latter's Grief, 29-35. VIII. Joseph sold to Potiphar in Egypt, 36.

23-24. They stripped Joseph of his coat. They intended to use this coat so as to explain to their father what had happened to Joseph, Gen. 37.31-33.-Of many colors. The Hebrew word occurs only here: some scholars think it means "long-sleeved."

25. A caravan of Ishmaelites. The plain near Dothan is still part of a regular trade route from Gilead through the plain of Sharon to Egypt.—Spicery. Or,

gum tragacanth; or, storax, RVm.-Balm. Or, mastic, RVm.-Myrrh. Or, ladanum, RVm. These gums were used in Egypt for embalming and also for incense and medicine.-Going down to Egypt. There are passages from the papyri which show that the expressions "to go up" to Palestine, "to go down to Egypt" were in common use among the Egyptians as well as among the Hebrews.

26. If we slay our brother and conceal his blood. "The crime would seem to a Hebrew less if no blood was shed; besides, according to the ancient idea, blood would cry to God from the ground, Gen. 4.11"

(McFadyen). Compare Ezek. 24.7,8; Is. 26.21; Job 16, 18.

28. Midianites, merchantmen. The Midianites were distant kinsmen of the Hebrews, since Midian was a son of Abraham and Keturah. Verse 25 speaks of a caravan of Ishmaelites. There may have been several tribes traveling together in one caravan for the sake of safety, or the term Ishmaelite may be here used as a general name, while Midianite is the special name of the tribe.They. This is usually taken to refer to Joseph's brothers, who sold Joseph during the absence of Reuben. Another explanation suggests that "they" refers to the Midianite traders, who passed by and kidnapped Joseph while his brothers were at their meal, and then sold him to the Ishmaelites. This would account for Reuben's surprise mentioned in verse 29, and also for Joseph's statement in Gen. 40.15 that he was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews. Some scholars see here duplicate accounts which agree

in the main points, but in one of which the credit A Branch of Astragalus Gummifer in of saving Joseph's life is given to Reuben, and bloom and a piece of the trunk exuding the Gum Tragacanth in the other to Judah; and in the one he is taken

to Egypt by the Midianites, in the other by the Ishmaelites.-Twenty pieces of silver. About twelve dollars. The average price of an adult slave was, according to Ex. 21.32, thirty shekels. "A slave afterwards cost just as much in the market of Alexandria. The Midianites would, of course, make a profit by the transaction" (Delitzsch).

35. I will go down to Sheol to my son mourning. "Jacob will wear the mourner's garb till his death, so that in the underworld his son may know how deep his grief has been. The shade is believed to appear in Sheol in the condition in which it left the world" (Skinner). "The Hebrews down to the time of the exile, had the gloomiest thoughts of the condition after death. Personality was retained-even worldly station was acknowledged (Isa. 14.10)-but it was a condition without gladness, hope, or release" (Taylor).

36. Midianites. Hebrew, Medanites, RVm.-Potiphar. The name means "Dedicated to the Sun god."-Pharaoh's. The word Pharaoh was the royal title of all the rulers of Egypt, just as Czar is today of the rulers of Russia, and Kaiser of the rulers of Germany. The title is thus explained by M. Pierret: Just as the Turks say "The Porte (Gate) for the court of the Sultan, the Egyptians, instead of speaking of the king said "the Palace," the great dwelling, per-aa, whence the Hebrew Pharaoh. The Pharaoh at this time was probably one of the Hyksos Kings: see p. 193.-Captain of the guard. "Head of Police," we might call him; his position was one of much power and dignity.

SUGGESTIVE THOUGHTS FROM HELPFUL WRITERS

23. They took him and cast him into the pit. His face is flushed with the dreams of conscious power; and he is a prisoner entombed in a well, from which there seems to be no escape. Power often brings upon its possessor the jealousy of others, and that jealousy often does not hesitate to express itself in cruel and unscrupulous ways. So this is the sequel of the dream. As soon as