The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-05-09
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S SUN
DAY SERMON.
Subject: "The Star Wormwood, or
Brilliant Bitterness"

TEXT: "Tnere fell q great star from
.sauen, burning as 1t tcere lamp, and I!
upon the fountains Of ,raters;; and the name
Of the star is called WormWood." Reyela,
tions viii, 10-1I
Patrick and Lowth, Thomas Scott, Mat.
: thew Henry, Albert Barnes and all the other
commentators agree in saying that the Star
Wormwood Of my text was Attila, King OF
the Huns He was so called because he was
brilliant as q star, and, like wormwood, be
embittered everything he touched. We have
studied the Star Of Bethlehem, and the Morn.
ing Star of the Revelation, and the Star OF
Peace, but my subject this hour calls us to
gaze at the Star Wormwood, and my theme
might be called Brilliant Bitterness.
A more extraordinary character history
does not furnish than this man referred to
! In my text, Attila, the king Of the Huns.
One day wounded heifer came hmping
along through the fields, and q herdsman
followed its bloody track on the grass to see
where the heifer was wounded, and went on
back, further and further, until he came to
q sword fast in the earth, the point downward
as though it had dropped from the heavens,
heifer had been cut. The herdsman pulled
up that sword and presented it to Attila.
Attila said that sword must have dropped
from the heavens from the grasp Of the god
Mars, and its being given to him meant
that Attila should conquer and govern
the whole earth. Other mighty men
have been delighted at be called
liberators or the merciful or the good,
but Alta called himself and de.
manded maj that others call him the SOURCE of
God. At the head Of roc, 600 troops, mounted
on Cappadocan horses, he swept everything
from the Adriatic to the Black sea. He put
his iron heel on Macedonia and Greece and
Thrace. he made Milan and Pavia and
Padua and Verona beg for mercy, which he
bestowed not. The Byzantine castles, to
meet his ruinous levy, put up at auction
massive silver tables and vases Of solid gold
A city captured by him, the inhabitants
The first class, those who could bear arms,
( who must Immediately enlist under Attila or
be butchered; the second class, the beautiful
women, who were made captives to the
Huns; the third class, the aged men and
women, who were robbed Of everything and
let 90 back to the city to pay heavy tax.
It was common saying that the grass
never grew again where the hoof OF Attilas
: horse had trod. His armies reddened the
|, waters of the Seine and the Moselle and the
Rhine with carnage, and fought on the Cat
alonian plains the fercest battle since the
world stood, 100000 dead left on the field.
!, On and on until all those who could not op-
pose him with arms lay prostrate on their
Faces in prayer: and, a cloud OF dust seen in
the distance, bishop cried: ut Is the aid
of God;;n and all the people took up the cry:
was blown aside the banners Of reinforcing
armies marched in to help against Attila,
the scourge of God. The most unimportant
occurrences he used as supernatural re-
source and after three months Of failure 70
capture the city of Aquileia and his army
! had given up the siege, the fight Of stork
and her young from the tower OF the city
was taken by him as a sign that he was to
capture the city, and his army inspired with
: the same occurrence resumed the siege and
took the walls at point from which the
: stork had emerged So brilliant was the
econqueror in attire that his enemies could
not look at him, bnt shaded their eyes or
turned their heads
Slain on the evening of his marriage by
his bride udico, who was hired for the as
.sassination, his followers bewailed him not
with knives and lances. He was put into
/ three coffins-the first Of iron, the second Of
silver, and the third Of gold. He was buried
at night, and into his grave were poured the
most valuable coin and precious stones,
amounting to the wealth Of kingdom. The
grave diggers and all those who assisted at
Z the burial were massacred so that It would
never be known where 30 much wealth was
-entombed. The Roman Empire conquered
the world, but Attlls conquered the Roman
: Empire. He was right in calling himself q
.scourge, but instead Of being the scourge Of
God he was the scourge Of hell Because OF
his brilliancy and bitterness the commente-
tors were right in believing him to be the
star Wormwood OF the text. As the regions
he devastated were parts most opulent with
fountains and streams and rivers, you see
how graphic my text is: "There fell a great
star from heaven, burning as it were lamp,
and it fell upon the third part Of the rivers,
and upon the fountains Of waters: and the
name Of the star is called Wormwood."
Have you ever thought how many embit-
tered lives there are about US, misanthropic,
morbid, acrid, saturninea The European
plant from which wormwood is extracted,
artemisia absinthium, Is perennial plant
and all the year round it Is ready to exude
Its oil. And in many human lives there is q
perennial distillation Of acrid experiences.
Yes, there are some whose whole work is to
shed baleful influence on others There are
Attilas of the home, or Attilas of the social
circle, or Attilas Of the church, or Attilas Of
the state, and one-third of the waters Of all
the world, if not two-thirds the waters, arc
poisoned by the falling Of the star Worm
nature that most men, as soon as they get
great power, become overbearing. The more
power men have the better. if their power be
used for good The less power men have the
better, II they use it for evil,
f Birds circle round and round and round
before they swoop upon that which they are
aiming for. And if my discourse so far has
been swinging round and round. this moment
1t drops straight on your heart and asks the
question: Is your life to others a benedic
ton or an embitterment, blessing or q
curse. balsam or wormwood!
Some Of you, know, are morning stars,
and you are making the dawning life Of your
children bright with gracious influences, and
you are beaming upon all the opening enter
prises OF philanthropic and Christian en-
deayor, and you are heralds Of that day Of
gospelization which will yet flood the noun
tains and valleys Of our sin cursed earth.
hail, morning star! Keep on shining with
encouragement and Christian hope
Some Of you are evening stars, and you
are cheering the last days Of old people, and
though cloud sometimes comes over you
through the querulousness or unreasonable
ness OF your old father and mother, it is only
for moment, and the star soon comes out
clear again and is seen from all the balconies
Of the neighborhood. The old people will
forgive your occasional shortcomings, for
they themselves several times lost their
patience with you when you were young and
slapped you when you did not deserve it.
Hail, evening start Hang on the darkening
sky your diamond coronet
But are any Of you the star Wormwood?
Do you scold and growl from the thrones
paternal or maternal! Are your children
everlastingly pecked at! Are you always
crying, "Hushl'' to the merry voices and
swift feet and their laughter, which occa-
sionally trickles through at wrong times and
Is suppressed by them until they can holl it
no longer and all barriers burst into un-
limited guffaw and cachinnation, as in high
weather the water has trickled through q