When any word or phrase is oft repeated in a chapter or book, put consecutive numbers in the margin over against the text. Thus, in the second chapter of Habakkuk, we find five "woes" against five common sins; (1) verse 6, (2) verse 9, (3) verse 12, (4) verse 15, (5) verse 19. Number the ten plagues in this way. When there is a succession of promises or charges in a verse, it is better to write the numbers small at the beginning of each separate promise. Thus, there is a seven-fold promise to Abraham in Gen. 12, 2-3: "(1) I will make of thee a great nation, (2) and I will bless thee, (3) and make thy name great; (4) and thou shalt be a blessing; (5) and I will bless them that bless thee, (6) and curse him that curseth thee: (7) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed." In Prov. 1, 22, we have (1) simple ones, (2) scorners, (3) fools.
Put a "x" in the margin against things not generally observed: for example, the laws regarding women wearing men"s clothes, and regarding bird-nesting, in Deut. 22, 5-6; the sleep of the poor man and of the rich man compared, Ecc. 5, 12.
I also find it helpful to mark: 1. cross-references. Opposite Gen. 1, 1, write "Through faith, Heb. 11, 3"--because there we read--"Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of G.o.d." Opposite Gen. 28, 12, write--"An answer to prayer, Gen. 35, 3." Opposite Matt. 6, 33, write "1 Kings 3, 13" and "Lu. 10, 42," which give ill.u.s.trations of seeking the kingdom of G.o.d first. Opposite Gen. 37, 7, write--"Gen. 50, 18"--which is the fulfilment of the dream.
2. Railroad connections, that is, connections made by fine lines running across the page. In Daniel 6, connect "will deliver" (v. 16), "able to deliver" (v. 20), and "hath delivered" (v. 27). In Ps. 66, connect "come and see" (v. 5) with "come and hear" (v. 16).
3. Variations of the Revised Version: thus Romans 8, 26 reads--"the Spirit Himself" in the R. V., not "itself." Note also marginal readings like Mark 6, 19, "an inward grudge" instead of "a quarrel."
4. Words that have changed their meaning; "meal" for "meat" in Leviticus. Or where you can explain a difficulty: "above" for "upon" in Num. 11, 31. Or where the English does not bring out the full meaning of the original as happens in the names of G.o.d: "Elohim" in Gen. 1, 1, "Jehovah Elohim" in Gen. 2, 4, "El Shaddai" in Gen. 17, 1, and so on.
5. Unfortunate divisions of chapters. The last verse of John 7 reads--"And every man went unto his own house." Chapter 8 begins "Jesus went unto the mount of Olives." There ought to be no division of chapters here.
6. At the beginning of every book write a short summary of its contents, something like the summary given in some Bibles at the head of every chapter.
7. Key words and key verses.
8. Make a note of any text that marks a religious crisis in your life. I once heard Rev. F. B. Meyer preach on 1 Cor. 1, 9, and he asked his hearers to write on their Bibles that they were that day "called unto the fellowship of His Son Christ our Lord."
TAKING NOTES.
When a preacher gives out a text, mark it; as he goes on preaching, put a few words in the margin, key-words that shall bring back the whole sermon again. By that plan of making a few marginal notes, I can remember sermons I heard years and years ago. Every man ought to take down some of the preacher"s words and ideas, and go into some lane or by-way, and preach them again to others. We ought to have four ears--two for ourselves and two for other people. Then, if you are in a new town, and have nothing else to say, jump up and say: "I heard someone say so and so;" and men will always be glad to hear you if you give them heavenly food. The world is perishing for lack of it.
Some years ago I heard an Englishman in Chicago preach from a curious text: "There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise." "Well," said I to myself, "what will you make of these "little things"? I have seen them a good many times." Then he went on speaking: "The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." He said G.o.d"s people are like the ants. "Well," I thought, "I have seen a good many of them, but I never saw one like me."
"They are like the ants," he said, "because they are laying up treasure in heaven, and preparing for the future; but the world rushes madly on, and forgets all about G.o.d"s command to lay up for ourselves incorruptible treasures."
"The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make these their houses in the rocks." He said, "The conies are very weak things; if you were to throw a stick at one of them you could kill it; but they are very wise, for they build their houses in rocks, where they are out of harm"s way. And G.o.d"s people are very wise, although very feeble; for they build on the Rock of Ages, and that Rock is Christ." "Well," I said, "I am certainly like the conies."
Then came the next verse: "The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands." I wondered what he was going to make of that.
"Now G.o.d"s people," he said, "have no king down here. The world said, "Caesar is our king;" but he is not _our_ King; our King is the Lord of Hosts. The locusts went out by bands; so do G.o.d"s people. Here is a Presbyterian band, here an Episcopalian band, here a Methodist band, and so on; but by and by the great King will come and catch up all these separate bands, and they will all be one; one fold and one Shepherd."
And when I heard that explanation, I said; "I would be like the locusts." I have become so sick, my friends, of this miserable sectarianism, that I wish it could all be swept away.
"Well," he went on again, "the spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings" palaces." When he got to the spider, I said, "I don"t like that at all; I don"t like the idea of being compared to a spider."
"But," he said, "If you go into a king"s palace, there is the spider hanging on his gossamer web, and look-down with scorn and contempt on the gilded salon; he is laying hold of things above. And so every child of G.o.d ought to be like the spider, and lay hold of the unseen things of G.o.d. You see, then, my brethren, we who are G.o.d"s people are like the ants, the conies, the locusts, and the spiders, little things, but exceeding wise." I put that down in the margin of my bible, and the recollection of it does me as much good now as when I first heard it.
A friend of mine was in Edinburgh and he heard one of the leading Scotch Presbyterian ministers. He had been preaching from the text, "Every eye shall see Him," and he closed up by saying: "Yes, every eye. Adam will see Him, and when he does he will say: "This is He who was promised to me in that dark day when I fell;" Abraham will see Him and will say: "This is He whom I saw afar off; but now face to face;" Mary will see Him, and she will sing with new interest that magnificat. And I, too, shall see Him, and when I do, I will sing: "Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee.""
ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES.
Turn to Exodus 6:6-7-8. In these verses we find seven "I wills."
_I will_ bring you out from under the burden of the Egyptians.
_I will_ rid you out of their bondage.
_I will_ redeem you with a stretched-out arm.
_I will_ take you to me for a people.
_I will_ be to you a G.o.d.
_I will_ bring you in into the land [of Canaan].
_I will_ give it to you for a heritage.
Again: Isaiah 41:10. "Fear thou not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy G.o.d; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
Mark what G.o.d says:
He is _with_ His servant.
He is his _G.o.d_.
He will _strengthen_.
He will _help_.
He will _uphold_.
Again: Psalm 103:2: "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits." If you can not remember them all, remember what you can. In the next three verses there are five things:
Who _forgiveth_ all thine iniquities.
Who _healeth_ all thy diseases.
Who _redeemeth_ thy life from destruction.
Who _crowneth_ thee with loving kindness and tender mercies.
Who _satisfieth_ thy mouth with good things.
We can learn some things about the mercy of the Lord from this same Psalm:
v. 4.--Its quality, "tender."
v. 8.--Its measure, "plenteous."
v. 11.--Its magnitude, "great," "according to the height of the heaven above the earth." See margin.
v. 17.--Its duration, "from everlasting to everlasting."
Twenty-third Psalm. I suppose I have heard as many good sermons on the twenty-third Psalm as on any other six verses in the Bible. I wish I had begun to take notes upon them years ago when I heard the first one.
Things slip away from you when you get to be fifty years of age. Young men had better go into training at once.
With me, the Lord.
Beneath me, green pastures.
Beside me, still waters.