LESSON XIII.--MARCH 27.

REVIEW OF THE FIRST QUARTER.--HEB. 11:1-10; 17-20.

      GOLDEN TEXT.--In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou hast hearkened to my voice.--GEN. 22:18.
      TIME.--From Creation 4004 B. C. to 1739 B. C.
      PLACES.--Eden, the Land of Noah, Haran, in Mesopotamia, the Land of Canaan.
      HELPFUL READINGS.--The entire Scripture Lessons for the Quarter should be reread during the week.
      LESSON ANALYSIS.--1. Sin and Death; 2. The World Destroyed; 3. Walking by Faith.

INTRODUCTION.

      There can be no more profitable way of spending the thirteenth Sunday of the Quarter than in a review of the wonderful story that has been unfolded in the past twelve weeks. Our lessons have reached over a period of 2265 years, covering the most ancient history of the world, the earliest history of our race. The events that are described are some of the most startling in the history of the world. Our own experience with mankind, as well as our own consciousness, bears witness to the awful fact that sin reigns in the earth, and that death is the heritage of mankind. These lessons answer the questions that must arise concerning the origin of sin and death. We also rejoice in the knowledge of a Redeemer from sin, and the hope of eternal redemption from the power of death. These lessons point out the beginning of God's preparation to send the Redeemer into the world; gradual unfolding in prophecy of Him who is the Promised Seed.

      I have divided the great Lesson of the Quarter into three parts: I. Sin and Death, embracing Lessons I., II. and III., giving an account of the creation of man pure and holy of his disobedience to God and expulsion from [95] Eden, of the first murder and the punishment of Cain. This section gives an account of the first man and woman, of the first sin, of the first sorrow of our race; of the first children, of the first death, and the first murder. II. The World Destroyed, embracing Lesson IV., and giving an account of the wicked world, the revelation of its fate to Noah, of the building of the ark at the divine command, and his salvation by the obedience of faith. III. Walking by Faith, embracing Lessons V.-XII. inclusive, and giving the history of the call of Abraham, his going forth by faith not knowing whither he went, of the covenant of Christ, in which the great Messianic promise that in his seed all the families of the earth should be blessed was given, of the promises of the Land of Canaan to his seed, of his separation from Lot, his importunity for Sodom, the fate of Sodom, the offering of Isaac by faith, Jacob's vision at Bethel and the renewal of the covenant with him, and the wrestling in the darkness at Peniel when his name was changed to Israel.

      GEOGRAPHY.--The probable site of Eden was between the Euphrates and Tigris; the place where the ark rested, Mt. Ararat, in Armenia; Ur of the Chaldees, not far from the site of Babylon; Haran, in northern Mesopotamia; Sichem, or Shechem, Bethel, Beersheba, Sodom and Mt. Moriah, in the Land of Canaan; Peniel, on the Jabbok east of the Jordan. These places ought all to be pointed out on the map.

      PRINCIPAL EVENTS.--The Creation of Adam and Eve; The Eating of the Forbidden Fruit; The Murder of Abel by Cain; The Building of the Ark; The Call of Abraham in Haran; The Covenant of Christ given Four Hundred and Thirty Years before the Giving of the Law; The Promise of the Land of Canaan to Abraham's Seed; The Separation from Lot; The Destruction of the Cities of the Plain; The Offering of Isaac; The Ladder to Heaven at Bethel; The Wrestling with the Angel at Peniel.

      POINTS FOR TEACHERS.--I would assign to some of the brightest pupils the following subjects for three-minute essays: Eden; The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil; Cain; The Flood; Life in the Time of Abraham; Canaan in the Time of Abraham; Sodom; Jacob's Change of Name.

      LESSONS.--Let it be noted that sin is a destroyer. It destroyed the happy home in Eden; destroyed the peace and happiness of the family of Adam; destroyed the Antediluvian world: destroyed Sodom; destroys still all who are subject to its dominion.

      There is Salvation from sin by walking in obedience to God by faith. Obedience would have saved Adam and Eve from all their sorrows; "by faith Noah built the ark" and was saved by the obedience of faith; by faithful obedience Abraham was saved from evil and called the friend of God. By the obedience of faith we can all be delivered from the power of sin and death and enjoy the hope of eternal life.

      Christ is Revealed in our Lessons in prophecy. Gradually the great Christ idea is unfolded to the world. It is first indicated, not clearly, but still unmistakenly, when it is declared that The Seed of woman shall bruise the serpent's head; it is stated far more clearly to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob when the promise is made "In Thy Seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed." [96]

Source: Barton Warren Johnson. The Christian International Lesson Commentary for 1887. Des Moines, IA: