Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1890-12-26
REV. DIR. 9ALMAGE.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun
day Sermon.
Subject, "The water. of,Isrom."

by the waters OF Merom. After n long
march we have found our tents pitched,
our fires kindled, and, though far away
from civilization. a variety OF food that
would not compromise a first class American
hotel, for the most of our caravan starts an
hour and a half earlier in the morning.
We detain only two mules carrying
so much of our baggage as we might acct
dentally neei and tent for the monday
luncheon. The malerias around this Lake
MerOm are so poisonous that at any other
season of the year encampment here is peril
Gus, hut this winter night the air is tonic aud
health,u In this neighborhOOd Joshua
fought his last great battle. The nations
had b inded themselves together to crush this
joshua hut along the banks of these waters
Joshua LETT their carcassas Indeed il is time
that we more infinitely examine this Joshua
of whom we have III these discourses caught
only a momentary glimpse, although he
crosse and recrOssed Palestine, and next to
Jesus is the most stirring and mighty charac-
ter whose foot ever touched the Holy Land.
Moses was dead. A beautiful tradition
says the Lord kissed him, and in that act
drew forth the soul OF the dying lawgiver.
He had been buried. only one Person at the
buriai, the same One who kissed him. But
God never takes a man away from any place
of usefulness but he has some one ready.
4 ne IOIO lOtS bOJ 70 ADONluk AiOuul ANU
great variety of candidates 10 find some one
especially lifted for the vacant position. He
makes a man for that place. Moses has
passe off the stage, and Joshua, the hero,
puts his foot on the platform of history SO
solidly that all the ages echo with its tread.
He was magnificent fighter but he
always fought on the right side, and
he never fought unless God told
him to fight. He got his military equipment
from Goa, who gave him the promise at the
start: There shall not any man be able to
stand before thee all the days of thy life"
God fulfilled this promise, although Joshua's
first battle was with the spring freshet, and
the next with a stone wall, and the next
leading on a regiment of whipped towards.
and the next battle against darsness, wheel
ing the sun and the moon into his battalion,
and the last against the king Of terrors,
death-five great victories.
This first undertaking OF Joshua was
greater than the leveling Of Fort Pulaski, or
the laundering down OF Gibraltar, or the
overthrow If the Bastle. 1t was the cross
ing of the Jordan at the time Of the spring
freshet. The SHOWS Of Mount Lebanon had
Just been melting. and they poured down in
TO the valley, and the whole valley was a
raging torrent. So the Canaanites stand on
one hank. and ne, look across and see
JO-lliU ana tue .ciAti4L'Ns anu butl 4du,u
and say, AHA, iha they cannot disturb us
IN tine-until I'll a freshets fall; it is impossi.
be for them to reach ns.' But after a
while they look across the water and they
see a movement in the army OF Joshua.
They say: What's the matter nowi Why,
there must be a panic among these troops
and they are going to fly, or perhaps they
are going 20 try n march across the River
.Jordan. Joshua is q lunatc' But Joshua,
the chieftain. LOOKS at his army and cries
Forward, march, and they start for the
bank Of the Jordan.
One mile ahead 90 two priests carrying a
glittering box four feet long and two feet
wide Ii is the ara of the covenant. And
they come down, and no sooner do they just
touch the rim OF the water with their feet
than 10y an Almighty fat Jordan paris. The
army Of Joshua marches right on with jut
getting their feet wet over the bottom OF the
river a path o. chalk and broken shells and
pebbles. until they get 70 the other bank.
Then they Law hold o, the Oleanders and tam
aris.s ami willows and pull themselves up
bank thirty or forty feet high, and, having
Ga ned the other bank they clap their shields
and their cymbas and sing the praises OF the
God of Joshua. But no sooner have they
reached the bank than the waters begin to
dash aud roar. and with a terrific rush they
break loose from their strange anchorage.
Out Wonder they have stopped, thirty miles
Of distance they halted. On this side the
waters roll of tow rd the salt sea.
But rs the land OF the Lord God ia taken
away from the thus uplifted waters
waters perhaps upifted half a mile -asthe
Almighty hand is taken away those waters
rush down, and some OF the unbelieving
Israelites say; Alas, alas what a misior-
tune, Why coull not those waters have
staid parted! Because perhaps we may want
to 90 back o Lord, we are engaged IN
risky business those Canaanites may eat
us up. How if we want 10 90 back' Would
it not have been a more complete miracle II
the Lord had parted the waters to let US
coma through and kept them parted to let us
90 back # we ara defeatauY My friends
God makes NJ provision for Christians re-
treat He clears the path all the way TO
Canaan. To 90 back is TO die. The same
gatekeepers that swing back the amethystine
and crystalline gate OF the Jordan to let
Israel pass through now swing SMUT the anne
thystinc and crystalline gate.
But this is no time for the host to stop.
Joshua gives the command, Forward,
march, In the distance there Is long
grove Of trees, and at the end of the grove
is a city. Ii is a city OF arbors, city with
walls seeming to reach TO the heaven, 70
buttress the very ssy. II Is the great me-
tropolis that commands the mountain pass.
IL is Jericho. The city was afterward cal6
tured by PomDey, and it was aiterward
captured by Herod the Great, and il was
afterward captured 10y the Mohammedans;
but this campaign the Lord plans. There
shall be no swords. no shields, no bait aring
ram. There shall be only one weapon OF
war, aud that rams horn. The horn OF
the slain ram was sometimes taken, aud
holes were punctured in it, and then the
musician would put the instrument to his
lii nd he would run his fingers over this
~ musical instrument and maks great
deal of sweet harmony for the people. Idat
was the only kind of weapon. Seven priests
were to take these rude rustic musical in
struments and they were 10 go around the
city every day for six days-Once day for
six days aud then on the seventh day they
were to 90 around blowing thes rude musical
instruments seven times, and then at the
close Of the seventh blowing OF the rams
horns on the seventh day the peroration oil
the whole scene was TO be a shout at which
those great walls should tumble from cap
stone to base
The seven priests with the rule musical
instruments pass all arOun1 the city walls Oh
the first day, and failure. Not 50 InucA as
a piece OF plaster broke iOO55 lIOul Nuc No'ls
not 80 much as a loOSene rock not so much
as piece of mortar lost fro n It's place.
"Theren say the unbelieviny lsraelltes,
didn't tell you 80; Why, those ministers
arefools. The idea Of going around the city
With those musical instruments, md expect
ing in that way TO DESTROY III Joshua has
been spoiled; he thinks because he has over
thrown and destroyed the spring freshst
he can overthrow the stone wall.
Why, It is not philosophic Don't
you see there Is no relation
between the blowing Of these musical instru-
ments and the knocking down Of the wall;
1t isn't philosophy" And I suppose there
were many wiseacres who stood with their
brows knitted and with the forefinger OF the
right hand to the forefinger of the left hand
arguing it all out and showing that it was
not possible that such a cause could produce
such an effect And | suppose that night in
the encampment there was plenty o. philos-
ophy and caricature. and if Joshua had been
nominated for any high military position ne
would not have got many votss.
Joshua's stock was down. The second day
the priests blowing the musical instruments
go around the city, and failure Third day,
and failure: fourth day, and failure; fifth
day, and failure; sixth day, and failure.
The seventh day comes, the climacteric day.
1ochno Il 49,. oarls- l., tho t,,ornfpu mud nv.