The apostle Paul follows a similar plan, in applying the practical lessons drawn from the conduct of the Israelites in the wilderness, for fortifying the Corinthians against temptations to which they were likely to be exposed,[26] and tells them that this is the use to be made of Old Testament history. These lives are "ensamples," and are "written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come."--In like manner he forewarned the Hebrews against discontent and covetousness,[27] by drawing a _general_ lesson from a _special_ promise made to Joshua; and then exhorts every Christian to apply it to himself personally, by employing the language which he puts into their mouths, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man can do unto me." In the same way, when our Lord repeatedly says, "Have ye not read?" and, "Thus it is written," he gives us obvious indications of the importance of the duty of thus preparing for temptation, by the application of our lessons from Scripture. They are each and all of them examples of practical lessons derived from knowledge formerly acquired, and now employed in the way of application, to connect that knowledge with corresponding circumstances as they occur in ordinary life. The lesson, it will be observed, and as we formerly explained, is always made the connecting link which unites the two; and without which there is no such thing as the bringing of knowledge and its use together, when that knowledge is required. In other words, without the lesson, knowledge is _useless_; and, without the application of the lesson, knowledge is _never used_. Both therefore are necessary, and both should be rendered familiar to the young. It is only necessary here to observe, that in teaching the children to _draw_ the lessons, the teacher proceeds forwards from the knowledge communicated, and, by deducing the lesson, prepares the child for the events in life when they shall be necessary;--but in _applying_ the lessons, he proceeds backwards, from the events, through the lesson to the knowledge from which it is derived. We have a beautiful example of this in the recorded temptations of our Lord. He was tempted to turn stones into bread; here was the event which required a knowledge of the corresponding duty; and he immediately applied the lesson that "we should not distrust God," and through this lesson, though not expressed, he went directly back to the source from which it was drawn, by saying, "Thus it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." When in like manner he was tempted to throw himself from the temple, he immediately, through the lesson "that we should not unnecessarily presume on the goodness of God," went to the passage of Scripture from which it was drawn;--and, in the same way, when tempted to worship Satan, there was precisely the same process;--a lesson, derived from previous knowledge and applicable to the circumstances, used as a uniting link to make the