Lesson 151 - Senior
Memory Verse
"Praise ye the LORD. I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, in the assembly of the up-right, and in the congregation" (Psalm 111:1).
Cross References
I Thanksgiving of the Faithful
1. In that day the people will praise the Lord because His anger has been turned away and He comforts them, [ISA:12:1].
2. The people will not be afraid, because the Lord is the strength, song" and salvation of His people, [ISA:12:2]; [EXO:15:2]; [PS:83:18].
3. With joy they will draw water out of the wells of salvation, [ISA:12:3]; [JHN:4:10], [JHN:4:14]; [JHN:7:37-38].
4. They will exalt the name of the Lord and declare His doings among the people, [ISA:12:4]; [1CH:16:8]; [PS:105:1]; [PS:34:3].
5. The inhabitants of Zion will cry out and shout and sing, for great is the Holy One of Israel in their midst, [ISA:12:5-6]; [EXO:15:1]; [PS:68:32]; [PS:98:1].
II Rejoicing Through Adversity
1. The saints will rejoice in the God of their salvation, although there is no fruit and the herds are cut off, [HAB:3:17-18]; [JOB:13:15]; [ISA:41:15-17]; [ISA:61:10].
2. In those trying times the Lord God will be their strength, [HAB:3:19]; [2SM:22:34]; [PS:27:1]; [PS:18:33]; [PS:46:2].
Notes
In the chapter just preceding our lesson, Isaiah gives a remarkable description of the Millennial Reign of Christ. He draws a picture of peace, righteousness, and happiness here on this earth, where nothing will destroy or make the people afraid. It will be just the kind of life that every person longs for here below, when the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as waters cover the sea. Isaiah's vision gives us a glimpse of what the people will do and 'say in that wonderful time.
A Song of Thanksgiving
This chapter is a hymn of praise and thanksgiving for the day of glad triumph when all enemies have been put down. It has been said that this is one of the songs in the hymnbook of Heaven, which we shall all sing when we get there.
The child of God has a praise and thanksgiving in his heart every day for the Lord's mercies and blessings that have been extended to him throughout the year. Yet we are thankful that our Government sets aside one day in the year for special thanksgiving to the Lord for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us.
From earliest history, it has been the custom of the people, when God would bring them through to some triumphant victory, to sing praises unto the Lord. An example of this is the incident of the Lord's bringing the Children of Israel through the Red Sea, where the waters piled up on both sides and they went through on dry ground, and the Egyptians essaying to do the same thing were drowned. At that time Miriam took a timbrel and led the people in a song of praise.
Isaiah's vision extended to the latter days when the devil will be bound, the curse lifted from the earth, and the people freed from the hand of the enemy. "Though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me." These words express the feeling that is in the heart of every person when he has been forgiven for his sins, and God's smile of approval has come into his heart. Condemnation and the guilt of sin has been taken away and the peace of Heaven is flooding his soul.
The Joy and Strength of the People
In this lesson the Lord, Jehovah, is pictured as the joy and strength of His people. Prosperity and temporal or material blessings are not necessarily the strength and joy of God's people, but God Himself is their joy and strength and has become their salvation.
When we gather on Thanksgiving Day to praise God for the plenteous harvest which we have gathered during the past year, it is not so much the bounty that is our cause for rejoicing, but the fact that God has given it to us. We praise Him because all blessings flow from His bountiful hand.
Wells of Salvation
"With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation." He speaks here of wells. He is trying to show us that the abundance of the never failing supply of the Holy Spirit is like a well. The wells they dug in olden times lasted for centuries. They were a never failing supply of blessing to the people. We remember in Jesus' time that the woman of Samaria came to Jacob's well to draw water. That well had been there more than 2,000 years. She came for natural water; but that day, beside that well, she found a well of Living Water springing up unto eternal life. That well was greater than Jacob's well, so she left her water-pot and ran all the way into the city to tell the people that she had found a well of Living Water. God provides the well, but we must do the drawing. Through faith we must draw the water out. The more faith we exercise, the greater the supply of water we receive. Some exercise such little faith that their supply is meagre.
The Last Day of the Feast
On the last day of the feast of tabernacles, the people used to bring water in a golden pitcher from the fountain of Salome, and pour it, mingled with wine, on the sacrifice on the altar, with great rejoicing. The pouring out of the water indicated repentance. This custom was not ordained in the Law of Moses but was one they instituted as an emblem of future blessings, prophetically applying it to the time of the Messiah's coming.
When our Saviour stood, on the last great day of the feast, and cried out, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink," He applied their traditional ceremony and the intention of it to Himself, and the effusion of the Holy Spirit to be given by Him.
Declaration of His Doings
When a person is jubilant over something, he wants to tell it. It flows spontaneously from the heart. "And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted." Testimonies given in our services fulfil that passage of Scripture more than anything else does. The redeemed can praise the Lord. They can exalt His name. They can declare His doings among the people. The more one trusts the Lord and receives blessings from His bountiful hands the more one has to tell. "Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD" (Isaiah 43:10).
Habakkuk's Confidence
The Prophet, Habakkuk, having finished his account of the wonders done by Jehovah in bringing their fathers from Egypt into the Promised Land, saw the future desolations of the land. He knew that God was merci-ful and gracious, and with confidence he placed his faith in God's never failing promise and exclaimed, "Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation."
This was Habakkuk's firm and sincere confession, that though all the crops failed, and the cattle died, yet he would continue to rejoice in the Lord, his salvation and strength, who would make him to walk upon high places. He had a joy born of confidence in God, a hope that adverse circumstances could not quench. He began his prayer with trembling; he ended it with a song of triumph! He began it with a cry to God to do again His wonders as of old, yet with sublime resignation and confidence in the security of God's people. The lesson is one of faith. Faith is the ability to feel so secure in God that, no matter how dark the day, there is no doubt as to the outcome.
Questions
1. When was this hymn sung?
2. How often should we praise the Lord?
3.Who is the joy and strength of the saints?
4. Why does the Lord compare salvation to a well?
5. How do we draw the waters of salvation out of the wall?
6. Name some ways in which we may declare God's doings among the people.
7. What was Habakkuk's confidence in God?
8. What is our confidence in God today?