Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1889-09-06
THE BALANCES LIFTED.
DR.. TALMASE, THE ELOQUENT d.
VINE, IN OMAHA, NER.

Fhe Sermon Is Based on These Memora-
Bile Words, ''Thou Art Weighed In the
balances. and Art Found wanting.''-
Daniel '. ~.
OMAHA, Neb., Sept. l.-Great interest was
manifested hoFe today, the Rev. 7. De Witt
Talmage D. D., preaching to an immense
congregation His text was: Thou art
weighed in the balances, and art found want
ing. n-Daniel v, o. The preacher said;
Babylon was the paradise of architecture,
and driven out from thence the grandest
buildings Of modern times are only the evi-
ience Of her fall The site having been Sc
ected for the city, two million men were en-
ployed in the rearing Of her walls and the
building Of her works. It was city sixty
miles in circumference. There was trench
all around the city from which the material
for the building Of the city had been digged.
There we're twenty-five gates on each side
the city; between every two gates tower OF
defense springing into the skies; from each
gate on the one side a street running straight
through to the corresponding gate on the
other side, so there were fifty streets fifteen
miles long. Through the city ran branch
Of the River Euphrates. This river some
times overfiowed its banks, and to keep it
from the ruin Of the city lake was con-
structed, into which the surplus water Of this
river would run during the time of freshets,
and the water was kept in this artificial lake
until time Of drought, and then this water
would stream down over the city. At either
end Of the bridge spanning this Euphrates
there was a palace-the one palace a mile
and a half around, the other palace seven
and half miles around
The wife of Nebuchadnezzar had been born
and brought up in the country and in a
mountainous region, and she could not bear
this fat district Of Babylon; and so, to please
his wife. Nebuchadnezzar built in the midst
Of the city a mountain 400 feet high. This
mountain was built out into terraces sup
ported on.arches. On the topof these arches
a LAYER Of fat stones; on the top OF that
LAYER of reeds and bitumen; on the top Of
that two layers of bricks, closely cemented;
ON the top of that heavy sheet of lead, and
on the top of that the soil placed-the soil so
deep that Lebanon cedar had room to an
Choir its roots. There were pumps worked by
mighty machinery, fetching up the water
from the Euphrates to this hanging garden,
As IL was called, so that there were fountains
spoutimg into the sky.
Standing below and looking up 1t must
have seemed as if the clouds were in blossom,
or as though the sky leaned on the shoulder
, of a cedar. All this Nebuchadnezzar did to
please his wife Well, she ought to have
been pleased l suppose she was pleased.
If that would not please her nothing would.
There was in thas city also the temple OF
Belus. with towers-one tower the eighth OF
n mile high, in which there was an Observa-
tory where astronomers talked to the stars
There was in that temple an image, just one
image. which cost what would be our fifty
two million dollars
WEIGHED IN THE BALANCES.
o what city The earth never saw any
thing like it, never viii see anything like it.
And vet have to tell you that 1t is going to
be destroyed. The king and his princes are
at a feast. They are all intoxicated. Pour
out the rich wine into the chalices. Drink to
the health Of the king. Drink to the glory
of Babylon Drink to a great future
thousand lords reel intoxicated. The
king, seated upon chair, with vacant look,
as intoxicated men will-with vacant look
stared at the wall But soon that vacant
look takes on intensity, and it is an atfrighted
look. and all the princes begin to look and
wonder what is the matter, and they look at
the same point on the wall And then there
drops a darkness into the room ard puts out
TIE DldAt u AAtS oAIliA liAeteNi Ae- - eAA@
sleeve of the darkness there comes a finger
a finger of fiery terror circling around and
circling around as though it would write
4 and then it comes up and with sharp tip OF
flame it inscribes on the plastering Of the
wall the doom Of the king: weighed in the
balances and found wanting" The bang
of heavy fists against the gates of the pal
ace are followed by the breaking in Of the
doors. A thousand cleaning knives strike
i into a thousand quivering hearts. Now
Death is king, and he is seated on a throne Of
corpses. In that hall there is a balance lifted
God swung it, On one side of the balance
are put Belshazzar's opportunities, on th'
Y other side of the balance are put Belshazzar'
= sins. The sins come down His opportuni
: ties 20 up. Weighed in the balances-founC
J wanting.
There has been a great deal of cheating il
our.country with false weights and measure
and balances, and the government, t.
change that state of things, appointed com
missoners whose business it was to staml
/ weights and measures and balances, and I
great deal of the wrong has been corrected
But III, after all, there is no such thing as
nerfect balance on earth. The chain ma,
break or some Of the metal may be clipped
or in some way the equipoise may be littl
} disturbed.
GODS BALANCES ARE ACCURATE.
You cannot always depend upon earthl.
balances. A pound is not always pound
and you pay for one thing aud you get an
other. but in the balance which is suspende,
TO the throne of Col, pound is pound ant
: right is right, and wrong is wrong, and
]. soul is n soul, and eternity is eternity. Co
2 has perfect bushel and perfect peck and
perfect gallon When merchants weigh thei
goods in the wrong way, then the Lor
< weighs the goods again If from the impeI
= feet measure the merchant pours out wha
pretends to be a gallon Of oil and there is les
than a gallon, God knows it, and he call
upon his recording angel to mark it: IS
\ much wanting in that measure OF OIL" Th
farmer comes in from the country. He ha
anrles To sell He has an imperfect measure
Fie hours out the apples from this imported
measure. God recognizes it. He says to tn
recording angel MARX down 50 man
anDles too few-an imperfect measure.
We NAV cheat ourselves and we may chea
the world, but we cannot cheat God, and
e the great day Of judgment it will be toun
&c ont thai what we learned in boyhOod, &
Z school, is correct; that twenty hundre
weight make a ton, and one hundred an
en- twenty solid feet make a cord Of wood n
n more, no less And q religion which do
M not take hold Of this life as well as the life
o. come is no religion at all. But, my friend
that is not the kind Of balances am to spea
of today, that is not the kind of weights an
measures am TO speak of that kind of ba
/, ances which can weigh principles, weig
- churches, weigh men, weigh nations, an
e J, weigh worlds. 'Whatr' you say, sis it pc
sible that our world is to be weighedF' Ye
!. Why, you would think if God put on OIL
" side the balances suspended from the throl
the Alps, and the Pyrenees, and the Him
= layas, and Mount Washington, and all Il
M cities Of the earth, they would crush
SIS No. no. The time viii come when G.
will sit down on the white throne to see &
world weighed, and on one side viii be
- worlds opportunities, and on the other 81
VI tie u.nrld,s sins Down win 60 the sins q