The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1878-02-07
FIRE AND BlIMSToNE.
Talmage's View Of future Punish
rnent.


New YORK, January 13.-Rev. DR.
Talmage this morning preached or
hell, in which he holly believes
His text was ''Thus saith the
Lord" taken from eight different
passages, and repeated eight diff.
ferent times. He said it made very
little difference what Dewitt Tai
mage thinks on the subject of hell,
or Dean Stanley or Canon Farrar
or Mr.. rockingham thinks, fol
they were never in the eternal
world. He cast aside all human
authority. There is only one being
who can tell whether he'll exists,
and that is God.
& start out" continued he, "with
the assumption that the Bible is
true. If anybody chooses to deny
that, 1 will argue with him some
other Sabbath. 1t being granted
here is God, and that he is good
He gave some revelations or guide
to man. What Is that revelation
Is it Shakespeare, or Josephus, Rol-
Inns History of the Koran? If any
one can point out'a better book
than the Bible, 1 will preach from
it. 1t is easy to deny, but denials
amount to nothing.
1 have no sympathy with a flip
pant discussion of the subject OF
hell. 1t should be approached,
not in the spirit of criticism, but
as a measure of present safety. We
should find out what the only au-
thority worth anything says about
it. In Matthew is the statement;
The angel shall come forth to sep
arate the wicked from the just, and
shall cast them into a furnace of
fire. What is the use of trying to
explain away the furnace and the
fire when they are there? If the
statement is wrong, it is the AL
mighty who has made q mistake.
Paul says: The Lord Jesus Christ,
who shall be revealed from heaven
with mighty angels in flames of fire.
taking vengeance on those who
knew not Cod John says: fThey
shall be tormented with fire and
birthstone, and they have their part
in lake which burneth with fire
and birthstone, and they shall both
be cast into a lake of fire and brim-
stone Christ says: Depart from
me We cursed, into everlasting fire.
But it may be claimed that all
this is fgurative. 1 am not OPP
posed 20 saying that it may be so;
but if there is not to be fire, there is
something as severe as ire-torments
unmitigated. prefer Gods COM
parison, because l know God to be
right. God says: Fire and fur
mace He may mean them liter
ally. The Bible says fire sixteen
times; and says we shall be plunged
into it, except on one condition.
Those who won't believe this
should at least be consistent and
pitch their Bibles into the stove or
the East river. Out of one hun
bred sermons ninety eight are on
the love, mercy and kindness OF
God; and if minister preach two
on the Indignation of God he is
called sulphuric. Our preaching
needs reconstruction. So rccreant
are our ministers that the people
don't know that the Bible speaks
more frequently of the wrath Of
God than of His love. flood were
never angry, He would be imbecile.
"The Bible speaks twenty-eight
times of Gods love, and sixty-one
times of his wrath and indignation.
God says fifty-six times in his most
stupendous way that there is hell
burning now. L say it is probable
that there are some in this house
to day who will spend internity in
that lost world. Nothing but the
hand of an insulted, outraged, in
lignant God keeps this whole audi
ence from sliding like an avalanche
into it. But there is no more need
to go there than to jump into the
geysers of California or the crater
of Cotopaxi. Gentlemen of the
Press, tell them that 1 say there
is no need for any one to go
there.
"The Lord Jesus Christ, by one
magnificent stroke, made it possible
for all to be saved. He not only
told us that there is a hell, but he
went into 1t. He put his foot into
the hottest hole of its darkest fur
mace. 1t is cheap to get saved. 1t
won't cost as much as a loaf of
bread. If a man has his choice OF
heaven or hell, and refuses heaven,
ask you as common sense men
and women if he doesn't deserve to
be lost God knows l never prayed
over sermon as l have done over
this. Yet how powerless / am to
make you see the truth as you will
see it when the front gate of eter-
nifty opens to your spirit"