Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

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The Editor's Page
Heritages At Bargain Prices
We are frequently reminded by the press that
the whole of Manhattan Island comprising much of
the land on which Greater New York is situated
(about 22 square miles, more or less as the sur
veyors say) was sold to Peter Minuit, Dutch Gover
nor
General, for $24.00 in goods reckoned at retail
prices, of course. But that was back in 1626 before in
flation began, and the same real estate, exclusive of
the improvements, is now worth $10,000,000,000.00,
more or less. That is what inflation has done to us.
However, it is probable that both the seller and the
purchaser was quite satisfied at the time that they
each and serverally had gotten the best of the bar
gain. But it is also reasonable to suppose that the
descendents of the party of the first part, namely,
the Indians, if any survive, feel that their progenitors
did them a great injustice in disposing of their right
ful heritage at such a ridiculous price, approximately
$1.00 per square mile.
We mention the above deal because it is usually
cited as the I-deal, the greatest bargain ever put
over by shall we say a proverbial New Yorker
on an unsophisticated fellow human being. Maybe
so, maybe so not. The land of Palestine and its ad
jacent surroundings, the Cross Roads of the World,
has had a number of changes of
ownership, usually
at great cost of blood but not always. At one time
this land flowing with milk and honey, of gold and
brass and iron, of cities walled to heaven, of grapes
and oranges, olives and pomegranates, extending
from sea to sea, and from the rivers to the ends
of the earth, changed hands in a single day, and the
price would you believe it One large bowl of pot
tage "that
.
(stuff) The price of a bowl of chili
at any hamburger stand. "Thus Esau despised his
birthright."
And it was not just a vast section of
fertile land that he esteemed so lightly, but it was
all those precious promises made to Abraham and
to his father Isaac. Esau said, "Behold I am at the
point to die: and what profit shall this birthright
do to me '' Was Satan thinking of him when he said
to God, "All that a man hath will he give for his
life"
The counterbalance of this story occurred some
centuries later, and concerned a mere fraction of
that land so lightly esteemed by Esau, perhaps forty
acres, or possibly eighty, or a quarter section, but
not likely a whole section of land. As a family herit
age it had passed from father to son since the time
of Joshua. It is possible that Joshua's own signa
ture was on the abstract. But it had increased in
value with every generation. This family specialized
in grape culture. I suppose they sent to Eschol for
some of those mammoth varieties so famous in the
days of Caleb. By selection and cross fertilization
both the size and the quality had been improved.
They had built up the soil with fertilizers and
mulches, and by pruning and cultivation and spray
ing they had made those vines to bring forth more
fruit until that vineyard was the envy of all the
neighbors. But unhappily King Ahab was the nearest
84
neighbor and he coveted it. That weedless plot of
ground would raise vegetables fit for a king. And the
king must have it.
The king condescends to make a proposition. "I
will give you a better vineyard for it, or I will pay
you cash on the barrelhead. Name your
"It is not for sale at any price. It does not
really belong to me; it belongs to the coming gen
erations. In fact, it belongs to God, and we are only
the tenants in trust. God has forbidden us to sell.
That is the tradition in our family." The man was
adamant, the argument was sound. He would even
defy the King to take it by force. Ahab was used to
getting whatever he asked for. He was King, but that
didn't seem to make any difference with Naboth;
this was a matter of principle. You know the rest of
the story, but read it again in I Kings 21. Naboth
died a martyr to principle, but his death was precious
in the sight of the Lord, and was avenged in full.
These two men are an allegory. The Lord has
given to all mankind an heritage of truth. To those
that maintain the truth there is made plain the
Way, the Truth and the Life. But to those who sell
their heritage of
truth, turning it into a lie, the
wrath of God is eventually revealed against all their
unrighteousness. "Buy the truth and sell it
is God's counsel to us. To some the mess of pottage
makes a tremendous appeal. Others are willing to
go to their death rather than surrender this most
precious possession. The Naboths of our day are
still the insignificant minority numerically. The
great majority have sold their birthrights, or are
in the process of doing so. The pressure, as in the
days of Esau, is tremendous, sometimes a question
of life or death ; at least so it seems.
Pressure Groups Are the Schools, The Press, Etc.
The following clipping from TIME magazine of
Jan. 24 is an example of what I mean :
THE COVENANTER WITNESS
Issued each Wednesday by the Publication Board of the
REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
OF NORTH AMERICA
at 129 West 6th Street, Newton, Kansas or
through its editorial office at 1209 Boswell Avenue, Topeka Kansai
to promote Bible Standards of Doctrine, Worship and Life
For individuals, churches and nations
Opinions expressed in our columns are those of the individual writers
not necessarily the views of the Covenanter Church or of the Editor.
Contributing Editor
Frank E. Allen. D.D.
Prof. William H. Russell
Walter McCarroll, D.D.
Remo I. Robb. D.D.
Subscription
10 cents.
The Rev. R.
British Isles.
Dr. Raymond Taggart, D.D., Editor
1209 Boswell Avenue, Topeka Kansas
rates
Departmental Editors.
Rev. John O. Edgar
Mrs. J. O. Edgar
Mrs. Ross Latimer
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Entered as second class matter at the Post Office in Newtnn Kbnam
"ewton, Kansas
under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Address communications to the Topeka office.
COVENANTER WITNESS