The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-02-02

many stories Of flial fidelity. Epaminondas, the
warrior, found his greatest joy in entertaining
his parents by the recital of his victories Look
there at Eneas, flying from burning Troy, his
old father Anchises on his shoulder. Death was
the penalty inflicted by the Athenians upon un-
filial conduct See young Ruth, escorting across
the wilderness venerable Naomi See John
Lawrence, burnt at the stake in. Colchester while
his children encouraged him, crying: Lord,
strengthen thy servant and keep thy promise"
Christ, yet suspended in excruciation, provides
for the old age of his mother. 'Over the hills
to the poor house is the exquisite ballad by Will
Carleton who had talked with an old woman
turned off by her prosperous sons but am glad
that in my text it is over the hills to a palace.
81 will go and see him before l de-" resolved
Jacob, and in little while the decrepit shepherd
is treading the tesselated corridors OF an en-
peror.
For the most of you the old folks have made
their last visit to your house. or soon will make
it, and / am wondering If they Will ever visit
you at the Kings palace. | hope SO. All the
provision has been made for your arrival at the
shining habitation of the King But you say,
Il am yet in the pit of sin. So was Joseph
once in pit But" you say II am in prison
of iniquity." So was Joseph once in prison.
but" you say, Il had grown up without
mothers care" So had Joseph been denied
maternal attentions. But" you say II am not
in the land of my nativity" So was Joseph far
away from home But" you say, II have been
exasperated by betrayal Did not Joseph's
brothers sell him to passing lshmaelitish cara
van! But God brought him to emblazoned resi-
dence, and if you will trust in Christ Jesus you
all will be empalaced.
On! what day that will be when the
old folks come from the neighboring man
sion to see you amid the alabaster pill
lars OF the throne room, and find you
living with the King. They are coming up
the steps, and the epauletted guards of the
palace rush in and say: ''Your father has come!
Your mother has come" and when you meet
them under the arches of precious stone, and on
the pavement of porphyry, the scene will
eclipse the meeting on the Goshen highway,
where Jacob and Joseph fell on each others
necks and wept good while. But how
changed the old folks! Their cheeks smoothed
into the flesh of little child, their bent back
Strengthened into immortal symmetry and their
step feet as that of q on the mountain
they say: 1--WE heard by a spirit passing this
way from earth that you were dssipated and
hayward after we left the world but God has
heard ourprayer, and nowyou are here and as we
went to see you before we died, now we come to
see you after our ascension" And father will
say, Mother, Joseph is yet alive;" and mother
then they will recall all their earthly anxieties
in regard to you and their midnight supplica-
tons in your behalf, and they will recite the old
passage with which on earth they cheered their
staggering faith, Il will be God to thee and thy
seed after thee"
Baxter called 1.-THE Saints Everlasting Rest" that
is what John Bunyan called '"The Celestial City,"
that is ''Youngs Night Thoughts" turned into
morning civilizations; that is ''Gray's Elegy in a
Churchyard" become q resurrection spectacle;
That is THE Cotters Saturday Night" changed
herd of Salisbury Plain" amid the focks on heav-
emily hills; that is famine-struck Paden Aram
exchanged for the pasture fields of Goshen. That
is Jacob visiting Joseph at the Emerald Castle.