Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1855-05-12
THE BtBLE.

MANY sparkling passages occur in "Gii.
| fllan's Bards Of the Bible" The following
are illustrations :
It's words and its thoughts are alike poeti.
cal it has gathered around its eternal truths
all natural beauty and interest; it is temple
with one altar and one God, but illumned by
thousand different lights, and studded with
a thousand ornaments. 1t has substantially
but one declaration to make, but it utters il
in the voice Of the creation. Shining forth
from the excellent glory, its light has bee n
reflected to q myriad of intervening objects,
till it has become attempered for our earthly
vision. 1t now beams upon US at once from
the heart Of man, and from the countenance
of nature. 1t has arrayed itself in the charms
Of fiction. 1t has gathered new beauties from
the work OF creation, and new warmth and
uew power from the very passion Of clay
| 1t has pressed into its service, the very ami
mails Of the forest, the flowers of the field,
the stars Of hcaven--all the elements Of ma
ture. The lion spurning the sand Of the des-
ert the wild roe leaping over the mountains,
the lamb led in silence to the slaughter, the
goat speeding to the wilderness, the rose
blossoming in Sharon, the lilly dropping in
the valley, the apple-troc bowing. under its
fruit, ;le great rock shadowing u weary land
the river gaddening dry place. the moon
and the morning star, Carmel by the sea and
Tanbor in the mountains. the dew from the
womb OF the morning. the rain upon the
mown grass, the rainbow encompassing q
dark place, the light of Gods shadow, the
thunder Of His voice, the wind and the earth.
quake his footsteps-all such varied objects
creation TO represent him to whom the book
n nd oil itc nroN ba cair
of the book has ransacked creation to lay its
treasure on Jehovah's altar, united the innu-
merable rays Of far-streaming glory on the
hill of Calvary, and woven garland for the
bleeding brow Of Emanuel, the flowers OF
which have been cu!led from the garden Of
the universe
The power Of tie Bible over man has been
long and obstinatcly resisted. but sisted in
vain. For ages has this artless, loosely-piled
little Book been exposed to the fire of the
keenest Investigation "a fire, meanwhile,
which has consumed contemptuously the N.Y.
thology Of the Iliad, the hushandry Of the
Georges. the historical truth Of Livy, the Ia
bles Of Shaster, the Talmud and Koran, the
artistic merit Of many popular poem, the
authority of many work Of philosophy and
science. And yet there the Bible lies unhurt,
untouched. with not one of its pages signed,
and not even the smell OF FIRE having passed
upon it. Many an attempt has been made
to scare away the Fiery Pillar ofour wander
ings, to prove it mere natural product Of
the wilderness but still night after night it
rises, like one of the ever-shining stars Of the
vanguard Of the great march Of man, the old
column gliding slow, but guiding certainly 70
future lands ofpromise, both in the life that
is and that which cometh hereafter.
While other books are planets shiningwith
reflected radiance, this book, like the sun,
shines with kindred and unborrowed light.
Other books after shining theirlittle season
may perish in flames fiercer than those which
destroyed the Alexander library this must
in essence remain fine as gold, but inconsu-
mable as asbetos in the generalconaagration