captured him in a moment, as in the case of Saul; but He chose
otherwise.

It may be asked: Whence such a difference in reclaiming these two men?
They seem to have been much of the same spirit. It is said of Saul that
he "breathed out threatening and slaughter against the disciples of the
Lord;" and it is said of Nebuchadnezzar that he was "full of fury." It
is said of Saul, too, that he witnessed against God's saints, and
hounded them to their death. And it is said of Nebuchadnezzar that he
cast the three faithful Hebrews into the burning fiery furnace. The main
difference was, that Saul compassed the death of the saints by law;
whereas Nebuchadnezzar himself was the law. In spirit and life the two
men seem to have been much alike. Yet they were both reclaimed. But how?
Certainly, by very different means.

As accounting for the different means so effectually used in these two
cases, it may be said that they were men of different light, and hence
their different treatment. Or it may be said that the world required
Saul's services at once, and hence his immediate transformation; whereas
the world could wait for the reformation of the king. Yet all such
reasoning may be entirely beside the mark. It is a mystery profound.
With our present limited outlook I think it would be wiser and more
reverent to bow our heads in submission, and say, "Even so, Father; for
so it seemed good in Thy sight." It seems to me that Nebuchadnezzar and
Saul are typical cases of God's reformatory processes in the next life.
Some of these processes may be sudden, and others more prolonged. And
their severity or duration does not seem to depend on the depth of
iniquity into which a man has sunk. It depends rather on his repentance.
Some may require a long and severe discipline, like Nebuchadnezzar;
others--possibly some of the greatest transgressors--may yield to the