(Romans) God's Dealing With Israel Explained — Willie Mullan

Romans 9 and God's Dealings With Israel

The letter to the Romans, and we're at chapter 9 again this evening. Paul's letter to the Romans, and the chapter 9, and we're going right through from verse 19 this evening, right to the end of the chapter, from verse 19 to verse 33.

You remember last week, those of you who were at the class, as we started the exposition of chapter 9, that I pointed out to you that this was a new section in this great letter to the Romans. You remember that we had the first section, and we scribbled over it, the condemnation of sinners.

And if ever you want to really convict the world, you go to those first chapters of Romans, the condemnation of sinners. And then you remember the second section, parts of chapter 3, chapter 4, or chapter 5,.

And then you remember in chapter 6 and 7 and 8, we have the sanctification of saints, practical sanctification, how to live for God. And you remember those great gateways that led us to godly living. Now we are starting a new section, and chapter 9 goes right through 10 and all 11, and this is the explanation of God's dealings with Israel.

And what a wonderful explanation this is. Let me try to recapture what went before in the chapter last week, just quickly. In the first two verses of chapter 9, my Paul tells us of his own personal burden for his kinsmen according to the flesh.

For on saved Jews. And what a word we have in that second verse. Paul said, I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. If you take the last two phrases of the third verse, I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh.

You know, he wasn't the Calvinist that sat down with his toes in the grapes and said God will work it out. No, he had great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart. My, this fellow really felt for souls.

Some of these so-called Calvinists tell me never to get anxious, you know. Well, they wouldn't have told the apostle that. Because continually, I onshapingly, there was great burden upon his soul for his on saved friends.

Good to God we have the church inoculated with this, where she did all things that they might say some. And then not only did we look at the personal virgin of Paul, but in verses four and five, we looked at the national blessings of Israel.

The adoption, the glory, the covenant, the law, the service, the promises, the Father, the Christ. My, Paul went into this, didn't he? And last week we went into this. We looked at the personal burden and then the national blessing.

And then in that sixth verse, Paul notes for us the eternal bond of the word of God. You see, when God made covenant with Israel and gave them precious promises, well, he meant to keep them. He will never break the covenants with Israel, and the promises must be kept.

My God doesn't throw them away as though the word of God had taken on effect. And so after looking up the personal virgin of Paul and the national blessings of Israel and the eternal bond of the word, Paul began to explain for us the historical background of the Jews.

And there's a great verse here in verse six at the end, for they are not all Israel which are of Israel, neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children. But in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

You see, Abraham had two sons, hadn't he? Ishmael. Well, God didn't call Ishmael. So they're not all children, you know, that are of the seed of Abraham. Only in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And then we found out when we examined this more carefully, that even the children of Isaac.

For Isaac had two, you remember, Jacob and Esau. And remember, even one of the twins was hated, and the other loved. And you know, that set the cat among the pigeons, didn't it? My, it makes some people even to this day say what's said in verse fourteen.

Divine Sovereignty and God's Righteousness

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? I would never like a believer to say that. Whether you understand electing grace or not, whether you can follow the ways of divine sovereignty or not, you ought to know that there is no unrighteousness in God.

Before we go into the thing at all, we must settle it. For I'll not be God of all the earth to write my, no matter whether I understand what's happening or not, no matter about tragedies, no matter about the congle, no matter about what may come to my home, I know in my soul that my God is righteous.

My, if I would ever think anything else, I wouldn't want an unrighteous God. So you settle this before you start into the argument at all. There is no unrighteousness with God? There couldn't be. And then Paul begins to answer this, doesn't he?

Paul says in verse thirteen, for he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. And then Paul sums this up in verse fifteen, and therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardness.

You know, that just makes people ask more questions, doesn't it? And so that's where we start this evening, and we start to tease all this out now properly. So many asking questions. So Paul anticipates in verse nineteen, what the natural man would ask, the interrogations of man.

The Natural Man's Objections to God's Will

My, when man hears that God hates Esau, and loves Jacob, and he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardness, so my, the natural man's got some questions, hasn't he? With one of them, Paul anticipated this, verse nineteen, thou wilt say then unto me, why doth God yet find fault?

You know, man would look into God's face and say, well, if you love Jacob, and hate Esau, and if you're going to have mercy on whom thou wilt have mercy, and if you're going to harden whom you will, why do you find fault with me?

Think of the audacity of man, of the creature accusing the creator for a moment. Just think of it. Why doesn't man really think he's something? He would have the audacity to look into the eyes of God, and accuse God, a poor, helpless, hopeless, condemned sinner, accusing God.

You see, he looks at God and says, why doth he yet find fault? Then the second question, for whom hath resisted his will? My, if God's clowning things out, who's resisted his will? Why doth he find fault?

You know what I have found? A long experience. I have found that there are men who will talk like this to God, and who will accuse God, and try to put God in an unrighteous position. But there are always people who are unwilling to accept Christ.

You get that? That's the boys that do the talking. Men and women, take a stand with Christ, and they'll do a lot of talking. Take a stand with Christ before the family, oh yes. Unwilling to take a stand with Christ before the church, oh yes.

Unwilling, I say, to accept the Lord Jesus as their Saviour. They'll do a lot of talking, won't they? They're the boys that do the talking. Now you just shut up, because you're going to hell, because you've rejected the faith.

Last week we ended the note like this, that election is God's word, but reception is yours. You just worry about receiving Christ. You'll find out, you'll get this teasled out all right. But don't go flying in the faith of God when you're not willing to accept Christ.

Just shut up, because when you get to the judgment bar of God, your mouth will be closed. What a natural man, you know, thinks he's a big fellow, and he would ask questions. Now, Paul anticipated these, didn't he?

And then he asked a few questions back again. These are the interrogations of Paul. Paul said, verse 20, Nay, but, O man, who art thou that replies against God? Isn't that good talk? One man should always remember who he is.

He's got dust and ashes. Who art thou that hath the audacity to reply against God? Who art thou? You know, I think that man forgets, first of all, what he is. He forgets that he's unwilling to accept Christ, and that's why he's on faith.

Then he forgets who God is. We want to have a good look at the God that he's trying to accuse. One should be very careful about that bit this evening. You know, we could put it like this. I think I've preached somewhere once like this.

Who art thou that replies against the God that so loved the world that he gave his life to us? That just pulls you off a wee bit, doesn't it? You know, men forget the God that they would really argue with.

Let's not forget them this evening. You know, the God that unwilling, stubborn, rebellious men that would dare to accuse is the God that so loved the whole world that he gave his life. Don't forget that.

So just shut up a wee bit. Just be very careful who you're talking to, and always remember who you are. Let's go to 1 Timothy for a moment. 1 Timothy, and up the second chapter, Paul opens up a few things here that we would need to look at very carefully.

1 Timothy, and up the second chapter, and we'll read from the first verse just to get the proper connection. 1 Timothy, chapter 2, verse 1. I exhort, therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who then shall be saved? Like an altar. You know, I want you to get this. This is the God they talk about. Now, the will in the verse here is not a divine decree, you know.

If it was a divine decree, then all men would be saved. Now, the will in the verse is just exposing to us the longings for the life of God. My God didn't only love the world, God loved all men. It might be said.

So, don't go talking about it. There's a way deep in the heart of God. He longs that you would come and get the salvation that the Son provided. And He does, you know. Now, let me go just a little bit further.

God's Desire for All to Be Saved

This is the God they talk about, because they don't know him properly. If you go to the fourth chapter, we're at 1 Timothy, and we're at chapter 4, verse 10. For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God.

Now, what's the living God? Who is the savior of all men? Now, what's this we meant? Specially of those that believe. Now, if I were talking to the super-Calvinists, of course, they would say, here we've got the elect in this last phrase, specially of those that believe.

Well, they're the elect, all right, aren't they? All right, what does the other phrase mean? The living God who is the savior of all men. If the all men just meant the elect, why go on and put the other bit in?

Boy, I think it's climbing up a little bit, isn't it? You know, God, our great God, He not only loves the world so much that He gave His Son, but deep in the very depths of His heart He longs that all men would come, black and white and red and yellow, and accept His Son and get saved.

You know, God wants to be the savior of all men, but He can only be the savior of those who will accept Christ, those who believe. We find out that the word received, to as many as received Him. To them give me power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe, so that believe and receive are the same thing.

My God wants us to receive the savior, and there is a savior to be received, you know. Now, here's another one to put beside that. I want you to get this very clearly before we leave it, or before we go on.

Have a look at Acts chapter 17, and Paul's preaching way up yonder on Mars Hill. We're at Acts 17, and this is a part of the message on Mars Hill. There was a very wonderful day when Mr. Irvine and I, Mr. Torrance was in the meeting, we stood together on Mars Hill.

A very wonderful moment. I'm not sure just now which one of them read this passage. It was either Mr. Irvine or Mr. Torrance, and we read this through on Mars Hill. But on your own spot, here's what Paul said, verse 30,.

On the times of this ignorance God went out, but now commanders everywhere who repent. Now that's the God they talk about. Paul, they tried to make him out unrighteous. They tried to say he's unfair. They tried to say, you know, he chews the crowd and the other judges go to hell.

Don't you believe it? My dear friend, I want to impress upon you that God loves the world. I want to tell you that God wills that all men should be saved. I want to tell you that He's the Savior of all men.

I want to tell you that God now commanders all men everywhere to repent. Don't you dare to talk about my God, until you know. And the problem with the whole crowd is that they don't see their own sinful selves.

They're unwilling to be saved, and then they'd like to be in God. And then they don't know the greatness of the heart of God. Then of this God that loved and longed, this God who claims to be the Savior and commands all men everywhere to repent, this God is the God of all grace, and the grace of God is bringing salvation in the night on the basis of Calvary to all men.

And if you want to receive Christ, you'll go to hell, you know. But don't blame God. Just go easy about it. Now, haven't he told that out a little bit? Let's get back to Romans. You see, Paul anticipated exactly what they would say.

And now he's bringing these interrogations to them. Who art thou that replies against God? Shall the thing he formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Shall it? Do you think that unwilling, stubborn, rebellious sinners who won't take their stand beside the Savior should be allowed to talk to God like this?

Talk to God like this? I don't think so. Not for a moment. Then Paul begins in verse 21 and says, Hath not the potter power over the clay? Well, you would believe that he had, wouldn't you? Why, you would believe that he has power over the clay.

But you know, sometimes there are little things in the clay that spoil exactly the work that's about to be done, isn't that true? There are little chips and little hard pieces and little stubborn things, ah, but they're in the clay.

Vessels of Wrath and Vessels of Mercy

Now, let's get this teasled out and you'll see this clearly. We're down to the place in the notes now where we're looking at the differentiation of vessels. Now, have a look at these vessels. Verse 21.

Hath not the potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour? What if God weaned his wrath and to make his power known endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction?

And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had aforeprepared unto glory. Now, you'll notice the differentiation in the vessels. There is a company of vessels and they're called vessels of wrath fitted to destruction.

And then we have vessels of mercy which he had aforeprepared unto glory. Of course, this brings the argument back to the man of the world, doesn't it? And if you know, if I'm fitted for destruction, ah, but wait a wee minute now, just wait a wee minute.

You know, this is where the trouble has come all down through the years. Men have read into this passage and into many other similar passages that God fitted them for destruction. Not at all. Oh, not at all.

Don't you get off of that. I know that God prepared the vessels of mercy for glory. Ah, but you're fitting yourself for destruction. You're fitting yourself for destruction. You know, friends, there would be no use preceding that word fitted for destruction with these words.

Watch what goes before. What if God, willing to do his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering? So what's God doing to come to me this evening? He's enduring with longsuffering.

Some of the scholars are quick to step in and say, yes, yes, you know, he's putting up with them on the way to hell. Not at all. My dear friends, if they were this, this kind for hell, there would be little use in commanding them to repent, would there?

This evening, he is enduring with longsuffering, waiting for yours. And there are some of you out there who have never repented yet, and you're going to hell. You're fitting yourself for it. Neither are men in this meeting who have had God for years.

God loves them. He longs for their salvation. The grace of God has brought it to the very door, whom God has endured with longsuffering, waiting for their repentance. Ah, but you're fitting yourself for hell.

But don't go blaming God. Don't go blaming God. It's your stubborn, unbended will, and you'll take yourself to the caverns of the damned, just because you're too small or miserable or something else, to take your stand beside Jesus Christ, and are big enough, is that it?

Are you afraid of the clouds? Are you afraid of what it will cost you? What's keeping you from Christ? You're fitting yourself for hell. Don't go blaming God. But you know, if you would yield this evening, yield to the love of God, yield to the claims of Christ, yield to the pleas of the Savior, yield because of the work of the Spirit, yield because of the weight of the Word this evening.

If you would yield and accept Christ, then I could tell you before you would get off your knees, you're one of the vessels of mercy, and you've been prepared for glory. I'd like to take some of you boys on who talk about being lost again.

All right, are you on now? Are these vessels of mercy prepared, vital? Come ahead, I'll take any of you on, because I can manage you. I'd love to toss one or two of you out of the room. My dear friend, I get fed up with you, because you're not bent to God's Word enough.

But this is exactly what it says here. In my these vessels of mercy, and there are no mistakes about verse 23, are there, that he might make known the riches of glory of the vessels of mercy which he had afore prepared unto glory.

Pledging for glory this evening, the captain of all salvation, greeting many sons, to glory. When God called me, he called me unto his eternal glory. Who lost again about that thing? Not a bit. So that when I get there, I can't boast.

It was God's salvation the whole way through. And if you go to hell, you can't complain, can you? Because you didn't bow to the Savior. So none of the truth is much to talk about. Are you getting it? Because it's all here now.

All right. You see, Paul is showing the differentiation of the vessels here. And then he talks about the vessels of wrath, ready for destruction, the words such as come to the word ready. And he talks about the vessels of mercy which God had afore prepared unto glory.

And if you bow before the Savior, I can assure you that you're one of them. Paul says, even us. That's a lovely way. And he was writing to the Romans, wasn't he? And he was taking a stand beside them.

Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles. My, yes, God's called both Jew and Gentile to be vessels of mercy, heading for glory, through faith in Christ. We'll find that out in a moment.

The Prophets and the Remnant of Israel

Now, he comes to let these people who might question him, that this very thing is done by the prophets. So that we not only have the interrogations of man, and the interrogations of Paul, and the differentiation of vessels, but the proclamation of the prophets.

As he says also in LZ, that's the Greek way of saying the Hebrew word, Hosea. I will call them my people which were not my people. Now, I have come into the Bible class, and you're not one of the people of God.

Ah, but you can become one of the people of God before you leave, if you trust the Savior. Who has doubted about that? My, you may have come in like Esau, and you think you're not beloved. I can tell you that before you leave, you can be beloved.

Them and her beloved which was not beloved. Verse 26,. And it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said unto them, ye are not my people, there shall they be called the children of the living God.

Oh, friends, how God has worked this out in some of our lives. My, when Mr. Irvine and I go back to euthanasia, we can go back to spots, you know, we ran about together as boys, and we can go back to spots where we did things together, that people certainly didn't think we were the people of God.

We were not thought about, not thought upon as people of God. Oh, but when we go back tonight, my, then know that now are we the children of God. Oh yes, God did this for us. And then you see, he brings in Isaiah, and again that's the Greek form of the Hebrew Isaiah.

Isaiah chapter 5, concerning Israel, Will the number of the children of Israel be at the time that we see a remnant salvation? Oh yes, God won't break his covenant, not his promises. You know, he's going to do a work on this earth, for he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness, because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth.

My, this will be this short, swift, sudden work of judgment. And as Isaiah said before, except the Lord of Sabbath had left us a feat, we had been a sodom, and been made like unto Gomorrah. You know, when the judgment day dawns and God visits this wooden rock, unless God would spare the remnant of Israel, my, there wouldn't be a feat left.

Not a feat left, but that God will keep his promises. He's saving Jews and Gentiles, and putting them in the church tonight, and getting the day to come when the judgment of God are abroad, and that short work is being done upon the earth, and remember, upon the earth.

My brethren, we shall be saved. Now, Paul, having got all this off his chest, I want you to get this. He comes to conclusions now. The city. What shall we say then? What do we want to say to all this?

That's the way to come to conclusions, isn't it? We have talked about Ishmael being left out, and we've talked about Isaac being brought in, and we've talked about Esau being hated, and Jacob being loved, and we've talked about vessels of mercy prepare to fall for glory, and we've talked about vessels of wrath setting themselves for destruction, and all this was foretold in the prophets.

Righteousness by Faith in Christ

What are we going to say about it? Ah, this is where we come to the real conclusion now. Now watch this, this is very lovely to me. What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, isn't that wonderful?

You know, the fellows that weren't following after the thing at all, they caught up on it. And then he goes on and says then, but Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.

But you notice the little phrase that I left out in between the two verses. What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness. Now watch this, even the righteousness which is of faith.

You know, when we talk about the righteousness of faith, or the righteousness by faith, it should be very clear about what we're talking about. You know, we should never talk about justification by faith, or righteousness by faith, or righteousness by faith, without having this in our minds.

It's justification by faith in Christ. Hope you've got that. I know we clip it short sometimes. By faith in Christ. By faith in Christ, the righteousness of God. And you'll only attain to this by faith in Christ.

Well, let's get that very clearly now. Because it is interesting. I went to a very large Sunday school one Sunday, to pitch to the open school, to all the children, and I confess that I'm very little use of it.

We have some of the younger folks here could leave me speak behind when it comes to talking to the kids. But I went along to do as best as I could, and I talked to the whole Sunday school from the story of the sudden conversion of the Philippine jailer.

You remember this. You remember how Paul and Silas were put in prison, in the innermost prison. You remember how the earthquake came. You remember how the Philippine jailer ran in and cried, what must I do to be saved.

You remember how Paul answered, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and out you'll be saved. And when I got this story over to them, I thought I'd test them out to see how they were getting on. And I said, now this Philippine jailer, he's gloriously saved now.

At five minutes to twelve, he was sound asleep and didn't care. And at twelve o 'clock he was awakened by the earthquake, and at five past twelve he's gloriously saved, rejoicing in God is the word. Rejoicing in God with all his heart.

So I said, can any of you children tell me how he got saved? Unlike a flash, there was a wee blonde haired girl on her feet who said, sir, it was the earthquake that saved him. I said, no, oh no, that won't do, dear.

I said, dear, the earthquake only awakened him that he might get saved. That won't do. And then there was a wee loud girl up and he said, sir, it was the message that saved him. Oh no, oh no, I said, that won't do either.

I said, uh, the message only told him how he could be saved. Just the message, that's all. Told him how he could be saved. And then a little fella jumped up and said, sir, it was faith that saved him.

I said, no, can only give you half a chance for that. I'll give you another chance to get affixed now. That won't do, you're only halfway there, you know. This little girl couldn't get it, standing up.

And a wee lad came out to the front and said, sir, it was faith in Christ that saved him. Ah, she got it, hadn't she? Faith in Christ. Mind you, it's not faith in what? That won't do. I haven't tried that, man.

It didn't save him. It's not faith in wonder. And I'm a Baptist. Not faith in wonder. Not a bit of it. And there's some wee old Methodist faith in my, and it's not faith in Jesus Christ. But the Methodists that are here tonight know that.

They're just too well taught for that. Thank God for it. But all you know is faith in Christ. And you remember when you put your trust in Christ. By the moment that you handed yourself over and committed everything to him and trusted him as your own and trust in the Saviour, you attained to the righteousness of God by faith in Christ.

From that moment, you're clad in the righteousness of God. It's wonderful, isn't it, isn't it? So he says, that's what we're concluding. We're concluding that believers... Oh, this is a great word, isn't it?

My dear friend, it's just the difference between believers and unbelievers that's going to pass us for all it ends. ...into God and arguing with God and accusing God because of his election, sovereign grace, and all the rest of it.

He that believeth not, send already. And you can't be condemned already for not believing something that's not there for you to believe, can you? If there's not that Saviour for you, you can't be condemned for not believing in somebody that's not there, can you?

My, you ultra-Calvinists, you just annoy me, that's all. You'd wonder where your logic is sometimes. Oh, yes. Sir, if you're in the meeting and God has endured with you in long suffering to this moment, if you come out tonight and bow at the feet of Christ and give yourself over to him and take your trust in him, praise God, you'll be acceptable of mercy, and you'll begin for heaven tonight through faith in Christ.

But don't worry yourself about it. Just come on out and get right with God, and we'll tell you you're going to be elect. Now, watch this. I think this is the wonderful bit, after Paul had come to this conclusion, he makes an explanation.

Israel's Stumbling and the Universality of the Promise

Of course, they have to explain this, haven't they? You see, verse 32 begins with, Wherefore? Wherefore all this? Well, this is the explanation. Now, watch it. It's lovely. Why are these Israelites that went after the law and all the rest of it, why are they not ashamed?

And why did these Gentiles which followed not, why are they ashamed? Because they sought it not by faith. These Jews sought it not by faith. But as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone.

A stumbling stone. Christ, they should stumble them. If they couldn't exercise faith in Christ, oh, they stumbled at that stumbling stone. Now, watch this last bit, and he's really coming out with the explanation, as it is written, Behold, I lay in Zion.

Who laid this in Zion? God. A stumbling stone and rock of offense. Watch this bit. And whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. Now, watch me expand the last bit for you. Whosoever. Oh, the immensity of this word.

Don't go creeping into a corner and blaming God. Don't sit on your high pedestal accusing God. Listen to it. Oh, the immensity. Whether you're black, or white, or red, or yellow, whether you belong to Etho or Ishmael, matter who you are or what you think you are, listen to it tonight.

The stumbling bit. Whosoever. Oh, the immensity of this word. Watch this bit. Whosoever believeth. Oh, the simplicity of this. The immensity of the word, whosoever. The simplicity of the act. Believer.

You remember what I said about this word? It's the same word that's in John, chapter 2, when it says, Commit. It's just a poor sinner, undone, lost, unclean, who's been stubborn for years, and God's been long-suffering with him, and he's at the end of his tether, and he knows if he goes on, he'll be in destruction forevermore, and he comes with soul and life and everything else, and he commits everything into the hands of the Savior, and he's trusting Christ for all.

And you just bring it along. Your soul, your life, your all, and you put everything into the hands of the Lord, and where else can you go? Oh, the immensity of the word, whosoever. They're not shut out, you know.

Whosoever believeth of the simplicity of the act. Whosoever believeth on him. Oh, the sufficiency of the person. One hears the Savior for you. He is the Savior. One that came to Zion. One that died in Mount Calvary.

One that made the atoning sacrifice. One that met the highest requirement of the Holy God. One who not only died an atoning death, but rose again, and tonight he's alive. And if you come to him, oh, the sufficiency of the promise.

Do you see the immensity of the word, whosoever? That's you, yes. Believeth, just commits everything to him. Oh, the simplicity of the act and the sufficiency of the person. But what's this? What's the purity of the promise?

Whosoever believeth on him shall not attend for all eternity. I don't go arguing with God anymore. Don't go blaming God anymore. God loves you, sir. God loves that you would come and get right. God wants to be your Savior in Christ.

God is commanding you to repent, and he's waited for a long time to. So, you know, if you just come under his simple childlike faith, trust him. Trust him. You know, it was Lord Birkinghead, he was a great man among the brethren.

Lord, he was a great man in parliament in those early days. He went and worshipped in the little brethren meeting every Sunday morning. And, you know, one evening he was standing just about to cross the streets to the little brethren hall, when a tiny little lass about seven years of age came, put her hand in his hand, and looked up and said, will you take me across the street, please?