No. 352
NAHUM – As an introduction to his translation of this book, Doctor Rotherham has this to say: “Out of the full‑orbed perfection of Yahweh comes the Twofold manifestation, designed to alarm his foes and assure his friends. From Nineveh proceedeth a wicked schemer against Yahweh.” Then verse 1: “The oracle of Nineveh – the scroll of the vision of Nahum, the Elkoshite.”
In previous papers we have given sketches of Nineveh – how it was started by Nimrod, “A hero of hunting before the Lord.” (Gen. 10:9) In his work he was aided by the reprehensible Semiramis, one of the vilest women that ever lived. From those two sprang depraved religious rites of their devotees, which tended to fill the land with violence and moral corruption, the orgies of dissipation and debauchery.
However, Nineveh eventually was wiped off the face of the earth – so completely that not a trace of it was left on the surface. This then became a rare object for the smart boys – the higher critics – who contended that the Bible was misleading and untrue, that Nineveh was simply a myth and not to be believed. But during the nineteenth century some archeologists unearthed its buried remains, the king’s palace and other confirmatory items that left no doubt that there was indeed once a Nineveh, which completely silenced the wiseacres.
The three chapters of Nahum are replete with criticism and warnings of the evils of that time, but which are more important in the prophecy of this our time, and foretell the destruction of that great city which is “spiritually called Sodom – where also our Lord was crucified.” (Rev. 11:8) “A mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall Be found no more at all.” (Rev. 18:21) Nineveh was truly a striking forecast of the eventual fate of Babylon!
Here we digress a little to repeat the great defeat of Sennacherib, King of Assyria, who had come to take Jerusalem, but here is the record of what actually happened: “For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand (185,000): and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.” (2 Kings 19:34, 35) This is a graphic picture of what will befall those Arabs now who are plotting to spoil Israel; and it is well for our readers to ponder this record carefully, so they will not become discouraged concerning any success or advantage those Arabs seem to have at this time.
Again we quote Gen. 12:3: “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee.” At the time of the foregoing Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, and the great defeat occured about 700 years BC. This is emphatic assurance to all who accept the Bible as God’s word, and we quote here Isa. 54:17: “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord.” This was the heritage of God’s servants at the time it was written and it is equally the heritage of God’s servants now. “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for he is faithful that promised.’’ (Heb. 10:23)
SOME GENERALITIES
The name Nahum means compassionate. He was born at Elkosh, probably a village in Palestine. His prophecy was directed at Judah (1:15), and not to the ten tribes then in captivity. His writing occurred some 600 years BC. It has been suggested he wrote his book about 623 (?) – after the unsuccessful attack of Cyaxeres upon Nineveh. He was the seventh of the Minor Prophets.
The main theme of the book has to do with Nineveh – typical of Christendom here in the end of the Gospel Age. He repeats the very familiar expression that Jehovah is a “jealous God” – a punisher of adversaries, but a stronghold to all those who trust in Him (vs. 2‑8); and he urges the people to turn a deaf ear to the counsel of those who were speaking of Jehovah’s tardiness and advising the abandonment of His service (vs. 9‑11); and he declares the unalterable purpose of the Lord to deliver His people (vs. 12:14); and exhorts them to unswerving loyalty to their God and the faithful observance of His worship. On the basis of his truth Nahum proceeds to describe the overthrow of the worldly power which was then oppressing the kingdom of God. He pictures the siege of the city (2:1‑10), and takes occasion to taunt the city which has been as a den of lions (2:11‑13). In further comment about the siege, he attributes the judgment which befalls the city to the whoredoms of the rulers (3:1‑4). Then he changes the figure and he describes the punishment as the punishment of a harlot (3:5‑7); he then mentions Nineveh, which had gone into captivity (3:8‑10).
The prophet begins his writing with an address that is poetic in character; but it is not an alphabetic Psalm of the ordinary kind. He teaches the ear to listen for certain sounds and to hear them obediently. His recitation is in two parts: Chapter One describes the majesty of God while Chapters 2 & 3 pronounce judgment upon Nineveh. He enunciates a doctrine of Jehovah God of Israel in the first clause of v. 2, a doctrine that forms the basal truth of his prophecy – that Jehovah, though slow to anger, yet takes vengeance on His adversaries. Then he describes the majesty and might of Jehovah in nature: He is in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebukes the waters that they dry up, and vegetation languishes; the mountains and the hills tremble before Him: the fierceness of His indignation none can withstand. The truth that has been set forth involves the goodness of Jehovah to His people, and His understanding of them. (“Jesus needed not that any should testify of man, for He knew what was in man” – John 2:25) He overthrows evil. Here the climax of doctrine has been reached.
And a new section of the exalted discourse opens in which Nahum bases prediction on the truth that he had already set forth. He reiterates the impotence of opposition to Jehovah – first in the form of a question (v. 5). Next he repeats the conclusion of the doctrinal section. Then he foretells the destruction of God’s foes. (1:10‑13) Then he predicts the deliverance of God’s people, and in view of the truth that has been presented, he exhorts God’s people to continue steadfast and undismayed in His service and worship.
Nahum concentrates his prophetic statements on Ninevah, and for good reason. Nineveh was the hated oppressor, not only of Judah, but upon all the surrounding nations; and his prophecy that Nineveh’s end was in sight was most welcome news to all of them. In a sense the Hebrews and those heathen had become brothers – afflicted by a common cause, Nineveh. Amos, Hosea and Isaiah had foretold their people that they would be besieged and carried into captivity. In their inscriptions the Assyrian kings had boasted of their sieges, conquests, and cruelties. All the heathen gods are depicted as cruel, very cruel. But Nahum prophesied that retribution would come upon Nineveh, and mark her end. Thus, his statements did not bring upon him the sad treatment accorded to many of the prophets. The date and manner of his death are not known. It is written of him that “as a poet he occupies a high place in the first rank of Hebrew literature. His style is clear and uninvolved, though pregnant and forcible; his diction sonorous and rhythmical.”
HABAKKUK
He is the eighth of the Minor Prophets. The date of his birth, and the date and manner of his death are not definitely known. At the time of his prophecy the Chaldeans were a prominent power in that section of the world. It should be noticed here that Chaldea and Babylon were sometimes rival powers; at other times one was subject to the other. Both of those nations were typical of Great Babylon here in the end of the Age. Isaiah referred to them as Assyrians; but which ever name we use, it is evident that God used them to punish Israel, although those nations themselves were wicked heathen.
Here is a quote from Isa. 10:5,6: “0 Assyrian’ the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.” Note now the close similarity of Hab. 1:5‑10: “Behold ye among the heathen, and regard. and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you. For lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwelling‑places that are not theirs. They are terrible and dreadful; their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves; and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; for they fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. They shall come all for violence; their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand, and they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them, for they shall deride every stronghold; for they shall heap dust and take it.”
The foregoing is certainly a very vivid portrayal of the present‑day radicals – the Communists, the Socialists, the Nihilists, etc. They see the wealth and prosperity of the capitalist nations, which they do not have the ability to gain; thus they are now minded to steal that wealth.
Following we quote from one writer about their religion; “In the Neo‑Babylonian empire the Chaldeans were the prominent race, and doubtless possessed themselves of all offices of influence. So exclusively did they fill ecclesiastical offices at the capital that at Babylon their name became synonymous with priests of Bel‑marduk. These priests were esteemed as possessors of wisdom and equated with magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and diviners.” (Dan. 1:4; 2:2,4)
And further: “The Chaldeans had been long known to the Hebrews. They attracted renewed attention by their successful revolt of the Assyrians some 600 years B. C.; and they began their great career of subjugation and attained to the leading place among the powers of the world on the fall of Nineveh, and by their victory over the Egyptians at Carchemish. From internal evidence it is supposed that Habakkuk prophesied during the reign of Jehoiakim, but it is difficult to fix the precise period. The subjection of Judah had long been predicted by the Hebrew prophets (Isa. 11:11 39:6, 7; Micah 4:10); and their fierce, warlike character, their habitual cruelty and rapacity in war, and their method of battle were known to all nations. There was thus, even before their victory at Carchemish, full justification for the declaration made in Hab. 1:5‑l0. The prophet lamented the carnival of wickedness which he witnessed in Israel or in the world at large.
Now follows the comment of another writer: “The prophecy consists of three chapters, in the first of which he foreshadows the invasion of Judea by the Chaldeans, and in the second he foretells the doom of the Chaldeans. The whole concludes with the magnificent Psalm in Chapter 3, a composition unrivaled for boldness of conception, sublimity of thought and majesty of diction.”
CHAPTER THREE – In view of the excellent compliment given above, we think our readers will benefit from Chapter 3 with some bracketed comments by us:
“O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years (in this Time of Trouble); in wrath remember mercy.... He stood and measured the earth (Society as presently organized); the everlasting mountains (strong autocratic governments, such as Russia, etc.) were scattered (by the radical elements); the perpetual hills (the Democratic governments) did bow (in fear and trembling, as they notice the advancing store). Was the Lord’s wrath against the sea (the restless unlawful masses of humanity)? The mountains saw thee, and they trembled (as they are now doing in all quarters). The sun and moon (the Gospel and the Law Covenant) stood still.. Thou didst search through the land in indignation. Thou wentest forth with thine anointed (the Christ company, the true Christians); thou woundedst the head of the wicked (Satan), by discovering the foundation (the complete overthrow) unto the neck... Thou didst walk through the sea (the great masses not at present under religious restraint) with thine horses (various true doctrinal teachings)... I trembled in myself that I might rest in the day of trouble (in this day only those can rest who are built upon the Rock, rooted and grounded in the great Truths that are due at this time, and living up to their privileges).”
In 3:7 there is this: “I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction:” Rotherham tranalates it this way: “I saw the tents of Ethiopia in affliction.” And this is probably the correct way of stating it. Cushan was probably the land where Cush (the Cushites) dwelt. He was the son of Ham and grandson of Noah. In the separation after the great Deluge Cush went into Africa and became the progenitor of the black race, the Ethiopians. In Numbers 12:1 we have this story: “Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.” In the marginal reading it is said “He had married a Cushite” – a descendant of Cush. Cush means darkness; and Africa is still known as the Dark Continent. Thus, when God saw the tents of Cushan in affliction, it simply means God saw the great darkness of Africa, with its attendant evils. Shakespeare states it a little differently: “O conspiracy, shamest thou to show thy dangerous brow by night (in darkness), when evils are most free?” When Habakkuk wrote his book he probably wrote, “but understood not,” just as Daniel had also written some of his prophecy. (Dan. 12:8)
ZEPHANIAH
He is the ninth of the Minor Prophets. And, while he is classified as a “Minor,” he has left us some very potent writings. First, we offer the meaning of his name “He whom Jehovah has hid.” And when he says in v. 1:4, “I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place”, it seems clearly enough that he lived in Jerusalem. Additionally, he was very familiar with the different localities in the City, and with the various classes inhabiting the City. In vs. 4‑8 he makes reference to a number of them.
In v. 1 he tells us that he was the great‑great‑grandson of Hiskiah. Generally, the other prophets of the Old Testament simply give the name of their father, so there is some reason why Zephaniah goes back four generations – a reason not made clear to us. It would seem that he was of royal descent. Thus, he was in position to condemn the members of the royal house without resorting to hear‑say. The Word of the Lord came to him “in the days of Josiah” (v. 1). He describes the religion and manners of his day, the high‑handed injustice of the ruling officials, and the general corruption of all classes.
The general tenor of his book is “the day of the Lord,” the judgment of God upon the whole earth. Therefore, his expressions have emphatic reference to the time in which we now live, and we may make profitable study of it from that standpoint. He tells us this is a day of darkness and supernatural terrors; and our news media carry plenty of this in every day’s editions. It is also “the day of the trumpet”; and we have been hearing of the Seventh Trumpet now since 1874. It will continue to sound throughout the entire Millennium.
“I will punish all those that leap on (over) the threshold.” (v. 1:9) This fact is given because of the very interesting episode recorded in 1 Sam. 5:1‑7. The Philistines had been overly successful in a war with the Hebrews – so much so that they even captured the golden ark that had been built for the Tabernacle in the wilderness at Sinai. They quickly brought this excellent trophy into “the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.” But when they arose the next morning “Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark.” They then set Dagon in his place again; but when they came early the next morning, Dagon again “was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord”. This struck fear into them – so much so that “neither the priests, nor any that came into Dagon’s house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.” Instead, they leap over the threshold when entering or leaving Dagon’s house. And it seems that some of the Jews had fallen to this pernicious heathen idol; and the Prophet told them, “I will punish those that leap on (over) the threshold, and will fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.”
The Philistines after the second morning saw it, and said, “The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our God” (I Sam. 5:7). The Lord also smote the Philistines “with emerods” (a kind of tumor or boil that came upon those afflicted with the bubonic plague) v. 6. They then sent the ark to Ekron; and those in Ekron were also smitten with emerods. It should be noticed here that God had threatened the Jews with emerods (Deut. 28:27) if they should commit evil before the Lord.
But the Philistines had had enough of the Emerods, so they decided to send it back to the Jews. They were advised by “the priests and diviners” (1 Sam. 6:4) to send along with it a “trespass offering” of five golden Emerods and five golden mice. And “ye shall give glory to the God of Israel... peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.” (6:5)
All of the foregoing has had an impressive antitypical fulfillment, but it is quite intricate, and not specially explanatory of the Prophet Zephaniah, so we close this part of our discussion. However, we observe that the mouse is an unclean animal; therefore, an offering not at all acceptable to the God of Israel.
ANOTHER COMMENT – The name Zephaniah, “Yahweh had hidden” may indicate that the prophet was born during the time of the atrocities perpetrated by Manasseh, who, tradition says, ‘sawed asunder’ the prophet. His book is preeminently concerned with the Day of Yahweh, which had earlier appeared as a factor in the prophecies of Amos.
The religious state of the kingdom of Judah deteriorated markedly following the death of Hezekiah. Manasseh, his son, rebuilt the altars of Baal which Hezekiah had destroyed. Religion was debased to the level of crass externalism. The revival of idolatrous worship, common in the days of Ahaz, was from the prophetic viewpoint a rejection of Israelis covenant with Yahweh. His prophecy begins with a message of gloom. He denounced the idolatry which he saw in Jerusalem, where there had been no spiritual revival since the days of Hezekiah. Zephaniah declared that God’s judgment was imminent both on Judah’s idolatrous neighbors, and on Judah and Jerusalem.
However, he is not a total pessimist. Beyond the impending doom he sees a better day. God must bring his people through the afflicting fires in order to prepare them to be a means of blessing to all mankind.
From the above standpoint he has much in common with our own writings of today. Presently, the Messianic Kingdom is the only hope from the terrible mess we see in all the nations. [in effect, Zephaniah was praying, “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
JONAH
The name means “dove”; but there is very little known about him except that he was the son of Amittai; he was from Gath‑hepher, a Zebulunite town near Nazareth. His Book contains but four short chapters – less than two pages in the Bible.
However, those four short chapters contain two outstanding incidents, in the first of which he openly disobeyed what God told him to do. He was to go to Nineveh, instead, he went to Joppa where he found a ship going to Tarshish – to go with them “from the presence of the Lord.” The Hebrew prophets generally explicitly obeyed what God told them to do; in fact, many of them did as they were told, although they knew it would bring much trouble to them. An outstanding example is the course of Jesus Himself: “When the time had come for him to be delivered up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem,” knowing exactly what would befall Him when he reached there.
But Jonah was not to escape his disobedience in light fashion. When the ship to Tarshish was well out to sea the Lord sent a “mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was likely to be broken.” At that time most of the sailors were highly superstitious; and those on that ship were no exception. Each one cried to his god, but to no avail. The shipmaster looked about, and found Jonah fast asleep. The sailors had cast lots to discern which one of them was responsible for their plight. The lot fell upon Jonah, and they asked him his occupation and the name of his god. When he told them, they at once asked why he had done this to them, because he had previously told them he was running away from his God.
Jonah then told them to cast him into the sea, which they did; and the sea immediately ceased its raging. Now the Lord had “prepared a great fish” (Jonah 1:17 – not a whale as commonly believed, but a sea monster) to swallow up Jonah; and he was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed, “I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.” (Jonah 2:9,10) Then the Lord told him again to go to Nineveh. Here it is in order to describe Nineveh at that time. Says the encyclopedia: “It had achieved magnificence as the capital of the Assyrian empire,” Assyria then being the overlord of the earth.
Therefore, we make some allowance for Jonah. He reasoned that if he saved Nineveh, the Assyrians would come and take over Judah as they had already done to the surrounding nations. And he was probably afraid to go there in fear of losing his own life.
But man’s reasoning under stress is often very faulty, and this was true of Jonah, In 3:3 we are told that “Nineveh was an exceeding great city”; but Jonah was much surprised at the reception he received. Instead of killing him, they “proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.” Even the king “arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes ... And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way, and he repented of the evil that he had said he would do unto them,”
This made Jonah very angry; and the Lord said unto him, “Doest thou well to be angry? ... Should I not spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand?” But with all that ignorance Jonah had accomplished the impossible – the conversion of all from the king to the least, something no other prophet had ever done.
Follows now some comment from another writer: “The motive that led Jonah to flee was probably a narrow and mistaken patriotism. He feared that Nineveh would repent and that God in his mercy would spare the city. Jonah wished Nineveh to perish, for it was a powerful foe of Israel and, if it were not destroyed, the doom of Israel was sealed.
“Nineveh repented at the preaching of one prophet; whereas, Israel repented not, although many prophets were sent to it. ‘They made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore, came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts.’ (Zech. 7:12) This seems to be a type, related to and looked forward to a general truth – that the Gentiles yield a readier acquiescence to the doctrines of God than Israel had done, not more readily to the moral law indeed, but to the revelation of God as a whole; for example, to his method of salvation as outlined in Hosea, ch. 14.
“Jonah, an Israelite and God’s servant sent to preach to the Gentiles, is an evidence of God’s will that the people of God’s kingdom shall lead the Gentiles to repentance and to God. Jonah was not the only Israelite to whom this truth was exemplified. Elijah was sent to a woman of Zarephath, Elisha cured Naaman the Syrian, Christ talked to a woman of Samaria about the things of God, and healed the daughter of a Syrophoenician woman.
“Jonah, an Israelite and God’s servant fleeing from duty, is cast into the sea, but is delivered in order that he may fulfill his mission. This incident accordingly received an allegorical interpretation: Jonah symbolizes the nation of Israel. Israel, as a nation, had been chosen to be a witness and upholder of divine truth, but Israel often apostacized and failed to execute its mission. It was in consequence swallowed up in Exile by Babylonia, as was Jonah by the fish. In exile, however, the nation, like Jonah, sought the Lord. There followed a return from the Exile; in other words, the nation was disgorged, as was Jonah. Upon the return from Babylon, many Jews were disappointed that the judgment uttered by the prophets did not at once take effect, just as Jonah was displeased that God spared Nineveh. But God’s purposes will be carried out, and the remnant survived, and the Covenant survived to fulfill Israel’s mission.
“The book may be regarded as a great work on foreign missions. It has been observed that the book nowhere claims to have been written by that prophet. However, it should be borne in mind that the spiritual lessons to be derived from the book are far more important than the question whether a large fish could have swallowed Jonah and whether he could have survived three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.”
That the book should be accepted as a genuine and inspired part of the Bible may be shown from the two stacks of shewbread (six each) on the golden table of the Tabernacle, 66 being the correct number of books that should be there. And may the contemplation of the book prove a blessing to all our readers. “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in him.” (Nahum 1:7)
“So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isa. 58:11)
Sincerely your brother, John J. Hoefle, Pilgrim. Written January & February 1983
==========================
QUESTION OF GENERAL INTEREST
QUESTION: – Has the plowman overtaken the reaper? (Amos 9:13)
ANSWER: – The following is That Servant’s answer:
“In the text of Scripture which speaks of the plowman overtaking the reaper, we are to remember that the reaper is the Lord, and that the plowman is the great time of trouble. This time of trouble will overtake the reaping work and bring it to a close. But the time of trouble will go on, the plowman will keep on plowing, after all our efforts have ended in respect to the reaping. But meantime, before this dark night fully sets in, we are to go right on with the work which the Lord has put into our hands. The truth is designed, not only to perfect the ‘bride’ of Christ, the chief of the firstborns, but to develop the great company class, and also to be a witness to the whole world. Any carelessness on our part, or any cessation of activity in the service of the truth while opportunity yet remains, would in our estimation be a great mistake. If we are loyal, the Lord will give us far greater opportunities in the future – the blessing of all the nations, all the kindred, all the families of the earth. (Gal. 3:8,16,29)
“THOSE CONSECRATING BETWEEN THE AGES”
“It is our thought that with the closing of the ‘door’ of this Gospel age there will be no more begetting of the holy Spirit to the spirit nature. Any afterward coming to God through consecration, before the inauguration of the restitution work, will be accepted by him, not to the spirit plane of being, but to the earthly plane. Such would come in under the same conditions as the ancient worthies (emphasis ours) who were accepted of God. The ancient worthies came in, no call being opened to them – the high calling not being yet open, and the restitution opportunities not open. But they freely gave themselves up to God without knowing what blessings their consecration would bring, except that they had the intimation that they would, in the future life, have a “better resurrection” than would the remainder of the world.
“Our thought is that whoever under such conditions as these will make a full consecration to the Lord, to leave all to follow in his ways, and will live up faithfully, loyally, to that consecration, may be privileged to be counted as a similar class to those who preceded this Gospel age. We know of no reason why the Lord would refuse to receive those who make a consecration after the close of the Gospel age high calling and before the full opening of the Millennium.” (Reprints 5761, col. 1, 2)
More from That Servant: “Quite likely, therefore, there will be some in the end of this age who, although faithful unto death, will not have been begotten of the holy Spirit and not attain the spirit plane of being in the resurrection, but who will come forth members of the same class as the ancient worthies, (emphasis ours) who were developed before this age began.” (Reprint 4836, col. 1)
We trust that our readers will note, when Brother Russell uses a “similar” class, he means the same class with the Ancient Worthies. So this class could not include the Consecrated Epiphany Campers, as they will not have the resurrection of the just.
The following are poems in Brother Hoefle’s memory:
He Told The Truth
“I am not a preacher,” he often said,
But he faithfully taught the Word, instead.
“I take no collections from you,
So I can tell you the Truth, as due.”
He plainly expounded God’s Word,
So it was understood by all who heard.
He used no gesture of flowery phrase
To put his audience in a daze.
But spoke the Truth in language plain
And repeated it to us again and again.
For over our souls a watch he did mount,
As one that must give an account.
So Lord be with us we do pray,
Comfort us in this our sad day.
We grieve greatly for our loved one
Who from our presence now has gone.
Keep us ever in Thy way,
And never let us go astray,
That our lives may ever be
A testimony to his memory!
In Brother Hoefle’s memory – Delta Clinard.
-------------------------
JOHN J. HOEFLE ‑ PILGRIM
In Memoriam
He has slipped away to a peaceful rest,
With trust in God’s sure Word.
To awaken later, and to be
Forever with his Lord.
Brother Harold Dart