Unit 37: Time
Pictured Words
New Words
| 1.swimming baths
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| 2.competition
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| 3.cat
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| 4.heater
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| 5.volcano
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| 6.cloud
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| 7.pipe
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| 8.the earth
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| 9.seas
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| 10.countries
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| 11.guns
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| 12.bird
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| 13.boy
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Noun
Sayings
Please take me to a hotel which has heating to make the place warm.
Coal is used to give heat, here, because it is commonly better than electricity.
At least one volcano can be seen in all the countries of the world.
Swimming in warm water is much more pleasant than in cold.
Most records are made in warm swimming baths.
It is much easier to get a bird with a gun than to put a cat to flight.
A bridge is used for getting over a difficult place from one side to the other, such as over a river or a road.
Time
We all have knowledge of the passing of time.
At first men had only the simplest measures of that.
Time used to be measured by natural events.
The months were recorded from the changes of the moon.
Men said that an event took place a certain number of moons past.
Two days were "two suns".
Divisions of each day were measured with a sundial.
Agriculture was dependent upon the ways of animals, birds and insects.
In an old book in China, written in the fifth century A.D., we may read "light soils are to be ploughed when the apricot trees begin to flower.
Plough again when the flower falls".
At first, the passing of time was measured in England with a stick of wax on which there were marks.
When this was lit the wax burned past these lines and a rough measure of time could be made.
Much the same means was made use of in China with sticks of other material that were lit to tell the time at night.
A better measure of time was invented in China.
This was a clock whose workings were dependent upon falling water.
The clock was made a lot better over the years and at last came to Europe.
There, it became very important.
Many fine examples were made by first class inventors.
Some of these clocks show the motions of the stars, the sun, the moon and so make clear the division of the year into months as well as the division of the day into hours and minutes.
Then a way was found to make clocks smaller by the use of metal parts and with industrial processes.
Now, we may all have small clocks that show seconds as well as hours, days and months.
Divisions of Time
It is necessary for you to know the words we use for the divisions of time.
The year is divided into twelve months by Englishmen.
The month has 30 or 31 days, or a little over four weeks.
The week is divided into 7 days.
The day has 24 hours, and the hour 60 minutes.
A minute has 60 seconds.
It is a bit much to be learning these details all at once.
In fact, it is much better to get your knowledge of time by connection with the country of your choice in first hand experience.
For example, in European countries the hours of the day are numbered from 1 to 24, but in Britain the division is into two sets of 12 hours, one before midday and the other after.
Different countries make use of either system.
So it is best to know that the divisions of time differ in different countries but are of the general nature given.
Lazarus Come Out!
Now a certain man named Lazarus was ill;
he was of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.
When this came to his ears, Jesus said, The end of this disease is not death, but the glory of God, so that the Son of God may have glory because of it.
Now Jesus had love in his heart for Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So when the news came to him that Lazarus was ill, he did not go from the place where he was for two days.
Then Jesus said to them clearly, Lazarus is dead...
Now when Jesus came, he made the discovery that Lazarus had been put into the earth four days before.
Now, Bethany was near to Jerusalem, about two miles away;
and a number of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to give them comfort about their brother.
When Martha had the news that Jesus was on the way, she went out to him, but Mary did not go from the house.
Then Martha said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here my brother would not be dead.
Jesus said to her, Your brother will come back to life again...
Then he said in a loud voice, Lazarus come out!
And he who was dead came out, with linen bands folded tightly about his hands and feet, and a cloth about his face.
Jesus said to them, Make him free and let him go.
Additional Reading
The name Lazarus has the meaning, "God is my help".
This meaning is clear here because when his two sisters said to Jesus that their brother was ill, Jesus came to see him.
But, not straight away, the help of God would be greater if he put it off for a while.
There is an account of a man who had been wounded in war and was all alone on the field.
His friend came at night to help him and the wounded man simply said, "I knew you would come".
Jesus came quietly to this house, giving full meaning to "God is my help".
And, what a help it was, he gave back his life to Lazarus.
There were very complex social reactions to the death of anyone in Palestine.
These were kept up for days.
However, the important act of putting the body into the earth was done quickly because of the danger of its destruction in that climate.
The place was a hole in the rock which was large enough for several bodies.
It was made shut by a large stone that had been made ready to be rolled over its mouth.
There was general belief that the soul of the dead person kept near the body for 4 days.
After that, the soul could no longer see the likeness of the face because its destruction had become serious.
It was said that the soul then went from the place.
The point we should take note of is that it was at such a serious time that Jesus called on Lazarus to come out.
It must have seemed a fearful thing to see Lazarus come "with linen bands folded tightly about his hands and feet, and a cloth about his face".
Such an event was given the name "sign" because it showed the close relation of Jesus to God.
We would now say a "miracle" took place.
The strange outcome of this was that the religious authorities saw a competition coming about between themselves and Jesus.
The priests were all against anything which seemed to make a division between them and their power.
They could have no approval of this twist in events.
Their reaction was to put an end to Lazarus for he was an example of the powers of Jesus.
To them such an event was the same as making a political attack.
We now have knowledge that such a thing was not in the mind of Jesus at all.
In fact, he could see the dangers to himself of being in that place at all.
Yet, he was there.
He had a strong desire to do the will of God and he had made the decision to go to Jerusalem with the full knowledge that it would not be safe.
This would send him to the cross as his reward.
But, Jesus had in mind that this would be his rich reward, even though it is hard for us to have belief in such a thing.
He often said that if a grain of wheat has fallen into the ground, when it has died it gives much fruit.
In the same way he had in mind that death on the cross would give him and all men new life when he himself came back to life again.
The turn of events for Lazarus was an example of what would come about later for Jesus himself.
History has shown this to be so.
There has been a great increase in the numbers of those who have felt a close relation with these events.
Helpful Notes
| Bethany
| a small place near Jerusalem.
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| perfumed oil
| very special, often kept for after death.
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| love in his heart
| the heart was seen as the center for deep feelings.
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| linen bands, cloth
| after death these cloths were put on the body.
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| social reactions
| ways of behaviour, crying, noise, loud talk .
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| destruction in that climate
| due to hot conditions.
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| soul of the dead
| the part of a person living after death.
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| twist in events
| change in conditions.
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