If wildness is tamed into usefulness, this in turn is followed by
honour. The ass's colt had the high dignity conferred on it of being
used by Jesus in His triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
The incident itself is full of meaning. Jesus was entering Jerusalem for
the last time. On reaching the Mount of Olives He sent two of His
disciples into the nearest village. He told them that there, "in a
place where two ways met," they would find a colt tied "whereon never
man sat." If the owner objected to his removal, they were to say "the
Lord hath need of him," and straightway the man would be willing to let
him go. And when the two disciples departed to do as they were bidden,
they found it even as Jesus had said.
But how did Jesus know that the owner of the colt would consent to this
arrangement? And why must the colt itself be one on which never man had
sat? These two questions are deeply significant, and we may do well to
try and answer them. As regards the first, Jesus knew that the man would
agree to what He had said, because, in all probability, this was not the
first time that he and Jesus had met. On some former occasion the man
had come under the spell of Christ's teaching and example, and although
he had not been added, like Peter or John, to the number of the twelve,
he had nevertheless become in heart and life a true and devoted friend.
And, no doubt, it was the man himself who informed Jesus that there, on
the little bit of common "where two ways met," his ass would generally
be found grazing; and if ever the Master required it to carry Him a
day's journey, He could come and get it for the taking. It was not a
great thing he had to offer, but such as it was the Lord was welcome to
it. And I think I see the eye of Jesus filling with a strange moisture
as He heard the quaint proposal of this humble villager. It was like
holding a cup of cold water to Christ's thirsty lips. And the young
people cannot possibly misread the lesson. Little things, when done for
the sake of Jesus, become great things. This man had done _what he
could_, and love made it immortal. "Wheresoever this gospel shall be
preached, this also that this man hath done shall be told for a memorial
of him."
On the other hand, the colt itself must be one on which _never man had
sat_. Does this not remind us of what is said regarding Joseph's new
tomb? It was "a new sepulchre _wherein was never man yet laid_." Why a
young colt and why a new tomb? Surely to teach us that even in His
humiliation, Jesus the Son of God was worthy of special honour; and
perhaps to teach this further truth, that in everything He was "separate
from sinners." He who came riding on an ass's colt was still the King
of Glory, and although He was "numbered with the transgressors," He was
still "holy, harmless, and undefiled." "Behold, thy King cometh unto
thee, meek, and riding upon an ass's colt." Let every child run, as the
children of Jerusalem ran, and hail Him with the happy acclaim,
"Hosanna, blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord." And this
will be _your_ highest dignity. Wildness will be tamed into usefulness,
and usefulness will be crowned with honour. "Them that honour Me I will
honour."
*The Redbreast.*
"The household bird with the red stomacher"--a bird that should be in
the Bible, but isn't. We must give it a page here.
Look! there on a sprig of holly,
Like a bunch of berries red,
He sits, wee bumptious Robin,
Cocking his little head.
Let us ask the little fellow,
Why he comes so late to sing,
For the autumn leaves are falling
In a whirling fairy ring.
Where did you go in summer
With that little purple vest?
Not away to the woods and hedges
To conceal a tiny nest?
Oh, you did! you sought the bracken,
Where the flowers are wet with dew,
And we never heard you singing,
You had something else to do.
You were feeding five wee Robins,
And they kept you on the wing;
But now that they've grown to _Red_breasts,
You can well afford to sing.
So you can, you little wise-head,
There is truth in what you say;
And may every lad apply it,
_That after work comes play_.
*The Bee.*
"And the Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you,
and chased you, as bees do."--Deut. i. 44.
Israel had determined at all hazards to storm the strongholds of the
Amorites. But as those who disobey God can never stand before their
enemies, the Israelites were no match for those hardy mountaineers of
Seir. Like infuriated bees rushing out from their nest, the Amorite
hordes swept out from their mountain fastnesses, and utterly overwhelmed
the hosts of Israel. They "chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in
Seir, even unto Hormah."
This is the only sense in which the bee is referred to in Holy
Scripture. The ant may be introduced as an emblem of industry and
instinct; but the bee is always regarded as one of the scourges of
mankind. It recalls an incident in the African travels of Mungo Park.
"Some of his people having met with a populous hive, imprudently
attempted to plunder it of its honey. The swarm rushed out in fury and
attacked the company so vigorously that man and beast fled in all
directions. The horses were never recovered, and several of the asses
were so severely stung that they died the next day." The bee was
clearly a savage and dangerous annoyance. They "chased you, as bees
do."
But turning to the bee itself, let us note the three principal materials
it uses in its hive.