a spiritual way, have the chosen people of the New Testament, the faithful, sprung from the twelve Apostles, who converted both Jews and Gentiles, receiving them into the Church of Christ.
Application. If you wish to die a happy death, you must fear God from your youth upward, and pray diligently for the grace of final perseverance, because this most important of all graces can only be obtained by prayer. Only the foolish and cowardly hope for a sudden death. The Church teaches us to pray: “From sudden and unprovided death, Lord, deliver us.” It is a great blessing not to die suddenly, but to watch death approaching as Jacob did, and be able to prepare ourselves for it. “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death.”
Some day you will stand by the death-bed of your father or mother. How you will then grieve, if you have caused them sorrow or suffering in their life-time!
Chapter XXVIII.
JOB’S PATIENCE.
[Book of Job 1 — 42 ]
IN the time of the patriarchs[1], there lived in Arabia[2] a man, whom God wished to give as a perfect model of patience to all mankind, and for all time. This man’s name was Job. He had seven sons and three daughters. He owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred she-asses, and had a great number of servants.
On this account, and still more because of his singular piety, he was held in high esteem among the people of the East. One day when the sons of God [3] came to stand before the Lord, Satan also was present among them, and the Lord said to him[4]: “Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in
- ↑ Patriarchs . This was the name given to the founders of the people of Israel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his twelve sons. Job lived during the time of the later patriarchs, after the death of Jacob.
- ↑ Arabia. South-east of the Dead Sea.
- ↑ The sons of God. i. e. the angels, who are witnesses and ministers of God's Providence.
- ↑ Said to him. The dialogue or speech must be understood as between Spirit and spirit. It is a spiritual manifestation and communication of thought.
