Josephine Pollard

“ The three Jews said to the king, Be it known to thee now that we will not serve thy gods, nor bow down to the new one thou hast set up. And if we are cast in the fire, the God whom we serve will save us from death and bring us out of thy hands, O king.
Then was the king in a great rage, and he sent word that a fierce fire should be made. And the three Jews were bound and thrown in-to the flames with all their clothes on. And the fire was so hot and they went so near that sparks flew out and killed the men who took up Sha-drach, Me-shach and A-bed-ne-go. ”

“ This is something better than anything we have yet said to you about the Bible. It gives life to those who are dead. You have seen a patch of ground early in the spring on which nothing was growing. But the rain falls, and the warm sunshine pours down, and the seeds in that soil burst into life and spring up and cover the earth with living plants and flowers. ”

“ This beautiful river that is doing so much for all who live on its banks,—it is the Bible, the Word of God, which tells us about Himself and about ourselves, which speaks to us of a Savior and of the life after death. ”

“ When troops are on the march, and through their ranks goes the cry of Halt! then each foot must stand still, and not a man moves from his place.
And when the wise men came to Beth-le-hem, lo, the star that had led them stood still in the sky, right o'er the place where the young child was. And when they went in-to the house they saw the young child, with Ma-ry, his mo-ther, and they fell on their knees and bowed down to him as if he had been a king. And they brought him gifts of great worth, and gold and myrrh and rich gums and spice that can be found on-ly in those lands in the far East. ”

“ Its felicities often seem to be almost things rather than mere words. It is part of the national mind, and the anchor of national seriousness. The memory of the dead passes into it. The potent traditions of childhood are stereotyped into its phrases. The power of all the man's griefs and trials are hidden beneath its words. It is the representative of his best moments; and all that there has been about him of soft and gentle and pure and penitent and good, speaks to him forever out of his English Bible. It is his sacred thing, which doubt has never dimmed and controversy never soiled. ”

“ This is a wonderful world we live in. You children know it and feel it, and some older people have got to become much wiser than they now are to be as wise as you are. Is not the Bible an interesting Book? My children will listen longer to the story of the Bible than anything else. And as you grow older, if you will only keep on studying the Bible, it will keep its interest till you die. ”

“ In this beautiful book, Miss Pollard, with admirable tact and skill, has made a path by which the children may draw near to that river and drink of the water of life; and the artists whose genius has been laid under such effective contribution by the liberality of the publisher, will help the little ones to gather the leaves and pluck the fruit of that tree. ”

“ Above all, you read of the perfect Child who was obedient to his earthly father and mother, and who did the will of his Heavenly Father, and who grew into the bravest, noblest, truest, most manly man that ever lived, and who died for us all—that Man whose words are, I think, the first words of the Bible that you learned by heart. I have heard of a little girl who lived where the Bible is not permitted to be read by the children. ”

“ When the crowd had left Je-sus, the twelve came near to ask him what he had meant to teach by this talk of seeds that were sown here and there.
Je-sus told them the seed was the good news that he came to preach. Those who preach, or teach, sow good or bad seed, which takes root in the mind or heart.
Some who heard his words would not care for them, but would go on in their sins and feel no change of heart. New thoughts and fresh scenes would come and eat up the seed-thoughts that Je-sus had sown, as quick as the birds ate up the seed sown by the road-side. ”

“ But why do we need the Bible to know about God? Do not the stars and the sun and the earth tell us that there must be a God who made all these wonderful things and rules them? Yes, they tell us that God is powerful, that He is very great, but they do not tell us that he loves us poor sinners. The Egyptians believed in God; yes, in many gods. ”

“ Je-sus said that at the last day some would call him Lord, Lord, and say they had served him and taught as he did. But he would say that he did not know them, for they had bad hearts, and had led lives of sin, and were not fit to dwell with the good and pure in the home on high, where all is love.
He said that men were like trees. Good trees brought forth good fruit; but a bad tree could not bring forth good fruit. And men were to be known by their works, just as a tree was known by its fruits. ”

“ He sends the rain on the field to make the grass grow and the flow-ers to spring up. He sends the cold and the heat, the frost and the snow, and the ice that stops the flow of the streams. He sends the clouds, and the roar and the flash that come from them when the storms rage. He made the horse that is so swift and strong, and has no fear in time of war, but will rush in-to the fight at the sound of the trump. ”

“ But there is another river more wonderful than the river of old Egypt. It flows down from God out of heaven, and flows over this world, and brings with it all that is beautiful and healthful and good. The waters of this river are carried off in little canals, and are brought into the homes and churches and Sunday-schools; and wherever they go tend to make lives good and happy. ”

“ When I say that the Bible is a beautiful book, I mean that it is full of beautiful thoughts and beautiful pictures and beautiful stories that speak to our minds. God often talks with children through pictures. You love things that speak to you through the eye, like flowers and birds, and your dear mother's face. ”

“ Je-sus sat in the midst of the wise men, whose place it was to teach and to preach to those who came up to the feasts, and the old men bent their heads to hear what the young lad had to say. For it was the first time they had met with one so young in years who was so wise in speech, and they felt in their hearts that he must have been taught of God.
When Jo-seph and Ma-ry saw Je-sus they were struck dumb, and could do naught but stare, as if it was a scene in a dream. Then Ma-ry said, My son, why didst thou vex us thus? we have sought for thee with sad hearts. ”

“ Now there is a fiend in this world, as we all know, who has a black heart, and can take on all sorts of shapes. He came to Eve in the form of a snake, and to Sam-son with a fair face. He tempts those to do wrong who have set out to do right, and we have to be on our guard all the time, and to watch and pray that we may be kept safe from him.
When this fiend saw Je-sus on his way to give new hearts to men, and to make them good and pure, he thought he would try and put a stop to such work. So he went out to tempt Je-sus, with the same smooth voice in which he spoke to Eve. ”

“ And when, after much hunting, it was found, she confessed that what distressed her most of all in the thought of losing her hand-bag was this, that it contained the little Bible which had been given to her when a child and which she had made her daily companion ever since. I hope that each of you owns a Bible which, the gift of a mother or of some dear friend, is growing more and more blessed to you as you go forward into your lives. There is much darkness in the future. You will have sorrows as well as joys. ”

“ Now it was thought no sin in those days for a man to have more than one wife. And some of Sol-o-mon's wives had been brought up to serve false gods. And it was a sin for the king to wed with such. And as he grew old these wives made him serve their Gods, and turn from the true God whom he had been taught to love and fear.
And this did not please to Lord, and he said that Sol-o-mon's son should not be king when Sol-o-mon died. For Da-vid's sake he would let him be a prince of two tribes all the days of his life. ”

“ A Testament is a will; and the Bible is God's will made for man's good, and for his guide through life. The Old Testament tells of God's love and care for the Jews, and His thought of Christ can be traced through all its pages. There is a good deal in the Bible that a child cannot understand, and the queer names make it very hard reading. ”

“ Je-sus was at school then, just as boys and girls in these days go to school, and strive to grow wise and to fit them-selves for the work they are to do in the world. And though he was to be a king he did not put on airs, or sit and fold his hands and bid those that were near wait on him and be at his beck and call. No! he was born and brought up with [256] poor folks, to teach us that Je-sus is more at home with the poor than he is with the rich; and to be Christ-like we must seek to please God, to do his will, to put down pride, and keep sin out of our hearts. ”

“ And foes rose up to plague Sol-o-mon, and for his sins he had to give up the peace and rest that had long been his. When he had been king for two-score years Sol-o-mon died, and his fame has come down to this day, for no man has been born in-to the world so wise and great as King Sol-o-mon. ”

“ See how they grow. They do not work, or spin the thread to weave in-to cloth as men must do, and yet I say to you that King Sol-o-mon did not wear such rich robes as theirs. If then God gives such fine clothes to that which grows in the field like grass, and which in a day or two is burnt up, how much more will he clothe you, though ye are so loth to trust him. ”

“ JESUS, THE GOOD SHEPHERD.—LAZARUS BROUGHT TO LIFE.—THE FEAST, AND THOSE WHO WERE BID TO IT.
Je-sus said to those whom he taught, I am the good shep-herd. The good shep-herd will give his life for the sheep. But he that is hired, and who does not own the sheep, when he sees the wolf will leave the sheep and run to save his own life. [338] Then the wolf lays hold of the sheep, and puts the flock to flight. He who is hired flees from the sheep, be-cause he does not care for them. ”

“ While the great Teacher is speaking of the foolish virgins, the picture appears of the thoughtless ones attempting in vain to find oil for their lamps. Thus the pictures of history combine with the suggestive sketches of the artist and engraver, to make, indeed, a Bible for Young People. The authoress came to her task with rare fitness, and while the young folks are reading her volume they will find not only the religious truths they all need, but they will also find the simplicity and power of their own English language. ”

“ He told the Twelve not to judge folks; he meant that they must take care how they found fault, and blamed them. For they may not have done wrong, or if they did they may have meant no harm. We can-not see men's hearts, or know how they felt at the time they did the deed. But God knows all, and may not blame them as much as we do. Je-sus said that we should strive to do right our-selves, and then we should see with clear eyes who did wrong, and have a right to tell them of their faults.
He said, that what we want men to do to us we must do to them. ”

“ God told Sam-u-el not to mourn for Saul, but to go down to Beth-le-hem, to the house of a man named Jes-se, one of whose sons was to be made king. And the Lord said he was not to look for one with a fine face or form. For the Lord sees not as man sees, and he looks on the heart. ”

“ There are some people who have traveled round the world and seen many very interesting lands and strange and curious people—white men, red men, black men, copper-colored men, yellow men, but they will tell you that they never saw men where the children were happy, where the homes were happy, and where people were trying to do each other good, unless this River of God went there first. ”

“ And then God made Man, and told him that he should rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all else that lived on the earth. And he told man that the fruit which grew on the trees and shrubs should be his food, while the beasts were to feed on the leaves, and on the grass that was spread out on the earth. ”

“ On the Day of Rest, Je-sus went in-to the church and taught the folks there. And in their midst was a man who was not in his right mind, and it was as if he were torn by fiends, and he cried out to Je-sus, Let us a-lone. What have we to do with thee, thou Je-sus of Naz-a-reth? Art thou come to kill us? I know thee, that thou art the Son of God. Je-sus said to the fiends that were in the man, Be still, and come out of him. ”

“ When to the sacred records of that long day and night of toil and progress are added the coming of the divine Christ and the moral phenomena of the first Christian century, a book is composed at which to scoff is a proof of a weak or a wicked mind, and in which to read often and thoughtfully is evidence of a willingness to seek after the living God and to find the best answers to the many problems of life and death. ”

“ And Ha-man's heart was full of pride, since the queen chose him and no one else to feast with her and the king. And when he went out he felt that all men ought to bow down to him. But Mor-de-ca-i would not. And Ha-man told all his friends how kind the king and queen were to him, and what high rank he held, and said that his life would be full of joy if it were not for the Jew at the king's gate. ”

“ The time was near for Je-sus to come on the earth. God had told Ad-am and Eve of one who would save them from their sins. Mo-ses, and all the seers and wise men, spoke of him who was to give men new hearts, and help them to lead new lives.
In the days of He-rod, king of Ju-dah, there was a priest named Zach-a-ri-as. His wife's name was E-liz-a-beth. They were both old, and had led pure lives, and sought to keep God's laws. But they had no child. ”

“ Children who live in cities love to ride, in summer, in the parks and see the wonderful figures which the gardeners have made with their plants and flowers, the stars and stripes, an elephant, the ball-player, a giraffe, a sun-dial, a calendar, an obelisk, sphinxes, and so forth. ”

“ But none of them could read what was on the wall, and the king knew not what to do. Then Dan-i-el was sent for, and the king said he should have great wealth and high rank if he could read the words on the wall.
Dan-i-el said, Keep thy gifts, O king, and give thy fees to some one else. Yet will I read the words on the wall and tell you what they mean. For the God who gives thee life and takes care of thee, thou hast no word of praise. And so God sent this hand to write on the wall.
Me-ne, Me-ne, Te-kel, U-phar-sin,
which means that thy reign as king is at an end. ”

“ Je-sus said that if we do as we ought to do our-selves, and teach men to keep all God's laws, we shall be called great in the place where God dwells. But if, like the Scribes and Phar-i-sees, we teach what is right and do what is wrong, we shall not see God's face, or live with him on high.
He said, you have been taught not to kill; and that he who puts one to death will be brought to the judge, and made to suf-fer for the crime. But I say to you that it is a sin to hate those who have done you no harm, and God will pun-ish you for it. ”

“ By and by there rose up a new King in E-gypt who knew not Jo-seph. He was called Pha-ra-oh, as this was the name by which all the kings of E-gypt were known. And he said there were more He-brews, or Jews, in the land than there ought to be, and if war should break out, and these Jews should take sides with the foes of Pha-ra-oh and his race, they would be sure to win. So he set them hard tasks, and made them bear great loads, and did all he could to vex them, and still they grew in strength. ”