Part 100 (1/2)
”'Ah! still depressed and dim with dew, but wait a little while, And radiant with the deathless rose the wilderness shall smile, And every tender, living thing shall feed by streams of rest, Nor lamb shall from the fold be lost, nor nursling from the nest.'”
”That reminds us of what the prophet said about the time when all the beasts even shall lose their cruel traits and live at peace with each other, and even play with little children.”
”Could that ever be true, mamma?” interrupted Harold.
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”Well, even now, my dear,” replied mamma, ”wild and fierce animals have been wholly tamed by kindness. We cannot tell what beautiful things might happen if all evil and unkindness should be driven from the world and men should live as Christ taught us to live.
”Here are the prophet's words: 'And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.'
”These verses are from the Psalms and the Proverbs:--
”'For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
”'I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.'
”'The merciful man doeth good to his own soul; but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.'
”'A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.'
”And here are some of the words of Jesus about animals and birds and about kindness:--
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”'Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.'
”'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.'
”'The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.'
”'Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? Behold the birds of the heavens, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not of much more value than they?'
”'Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and not one of them shall fall on the ground without your Father; but the very hairs of your head are all numbered.'”
”And now it is late and my little lambs must go to their beds. I am sure that you both will be kind in every way to your little brothers of the air and the woods and fields, and your little dumb brothers in the streets of the city.”
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SHEPHERD HYMNS
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