who trneted in him. And thiR generl\l ide" of fatherhood becl\me specialized In his deep, reverential musings, and he could not but feel towards God as no Jew had ever felt. before. 1 Wheth~r he had &a " Child the further revelation yet made to him of his peculiar rdation t.o God 118 the Only Begotten, or rBllched this in the progress of the years, is what we cannot be certain of. At 1111 events, the temple was the Father's ll()u@e. To it the lonely La.d turned. He felt drawn to God irresistibly now tho.t hie earthly guardian~ had gone away. "When father and mother forsake 'me" he could sa?, "the Lord will take me up." The orphan Child, so to speak, turned to 'the temple as to bis real home. III. HE BEOAME A HOLY LEARNER THERE. Not only was the temple the scene of the sacrifices; it was l\lso the place of learning for those interested in the Law. Schools were established within the sacred precincts where the scribes discoursed to such pupils llE' chose to sit at their feet. The method seems to have been by dialogue-the question and answer which once were so prized. Here the Boy believed he would get light about the will of the great Father who dwelt there, and who had given his people the Law. As a faithful Son, he wished to get all possible light about his Father's busineBB, aud so he frequented the schools. He was a "model catechumen," as a suugestive writer on this whole passage calls him.1 Although he must have seen thro~gh the shallowness of some of his teachers, and had doubtless deeper insight than any, he was content to sit at their feet and get all the good from them he could. It was an instance, aurely, of great diligence in embracing every opportunity of improvement which came bis way. He wanted to learn all he could while he had the chance. And most natu- rally did his answers and questions astonish the doctors. They had never had such an apt scholar before. His insight led them along lines they never had travelled hitherto. And a.~ for the Father's business, it at least embraces such elements as these: 1. The undl':'T"standing of the terms of access to his presenre. The significance of the ritual which was celebrated in the temple, the meaning of sacrifice, of bloodshedding, of incense, and of approach by the appointed priests into the Divine presence,-all this belonged to the Father's business. 2. The understanding of the meaning of his com- mandments. The Law as the expression of the ~'ather's will, and read consequently in the light of love. 3. How far the knowledge of the Futher was to be extended. The kingdom of God in it.A universal range, as distinct from a narrow nationality,-this was part of the Father's business. Hence the lingering of the holy Learner about the temple schools. His apt answers would procure him lodging and food during the season of separation from his pa.rents. Having put God first, all these things were added unto him (Matt. vL 33). IV. HIS RECOVERY BT THE ANXIOUS HOTHEB. Joseph and Mary, on discovering at the end of the first day's march the absence of the Child, set out for Jerusalem to find him. They doubtless inquire all the way back, and tlien they go hither and thither throuuh the city, and at last think of the temple. There, in the midst of the doctors, he is fo~d and recovered by Mary. Her words are apparent rebuke, but really confession upon her part of the oversig~t. She had never before had any rea~on for fault-finding; it comes all the more surpnsrngly upon her now. Jesus defends h1m3elf on the ground that he was looking after h.is Father's business. In other words, he insists on putting God firtit, before Mary or Joseph. We get an insight into what godliness is. It means making God's buainess supreme. God claims first place, and this ia what the Boy Jesus gave him. The Revised Version translates the words," Wist ye not that I must be in my Father's house?" This would simply refer to their folly in not first seeking him t,hi,re. The Authorized Version iB as near the Greek, and of wider import. But Mary and Joseph did not understand hia meaning. These are the first recorded words of Je;;us; and how they harmonize with the last, when on the cross he said, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit"! 8 V. HIS OBEDIENCE A.ND DEVELOPMENT. He has got all the doctors can meanwhile give to him. It would not have bEen profitable for him to have remained longer in their schools, and to have merely witnessed their powers of disputation. He is to have collision with them soon enough. Besides, he will be safer out of their reach in the 1 Cf. Weiss's' Leben Jesu,' erster band, s. 268. • See Glover's' Finding of the Saviour in the Templo,' pp. 37-88. • er. Gerok's 'Aus Emste, Zeit.' s. 10!. OD. nL 1-38,) THE GOSPEL ACCORDING '1'0 ST. LUKE. 63
quiet of the northern home, And so he recognizes In his mother's call the voice of hie J!'a.ther In heaven, and in the privacy of Nazareth his Father's business. He has to wait llB well as work. Hence without a murmur he goes away with them and is sub- joot unto them. But this subjection and reverence did not hinder, but really helped, his denlopment, "He increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favour with God and man," As a person under parental authority, he found hie reward in wisrlom, and became beloved of all around him as well as of the Lord above. It was a beautiful example to set us of being subject under God to parents and superiors. His growth in wisdom was also so considerate. He would take wisdom as others have to get it, ,radually, and pass from the known to the knowledge of the unknown.1 And God'1 favour will rest as well as man's favour upon all who follow in the footsteps of his Divine Son in this beautiful subjection. 1 There is no truth more important at the present time than thiii of realizing our development in due subjection.-&. M. E.