Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1890-10-30

AS we sat there. n silence took possession
OF US and We thought: this is the centre
from which continents have been touched,
and all the world shall yet be moved. To-
ward this hill. the prophets pointed forward. |
towards this hill, the apostles and martyrs |
pointed backward. To this all heaven |
pointed downward. To this with foamins |
excavations perdit!on pointed upward. |
Round it circles all history, all time. all |
eternity, and with this scene. painters have
covered the mightiest canvas, and sculptors |
cut the richest marble, and orclrestras
rolled their grandest oratorios. and
churches lifted their greatest doxologies,
and heaven built its highest thrones.
Unable longer to endure the pressure OF
this scene we moved on. and into garden
OF olives. a garden which in the right season
is full OF flowers, and here is the reputed
tomb OF Christ You know the Book says,
SIN the midst Of the garden was a sepul-
chre' l think this was the garden, and
this the sepul'hre. 1t Is shattered OF
course. About four steps down VIC went
into this which seemed family tomb
There is room in it for abont five bodies
We measured 1t, and found it about eight
feet high. and nine feet WIDE and fourteen
feet long. The crypt where l think our
Lord slept was seven feet long. | think
that there once lay the King wrapped in his
last slumber. On some of these rocks the
Roman government set its seal. AT the gate
of this uausolcun on the first Easter morn
ing. the angels rolled the stone, laundering
down the hill. Up these steps walked the
lacerated feet OF tho Conqueror, and from
these heights, He looked OFF upon the city
that had cast him out. and upon the world
he had come to redeem. and at the heavens
through which He would soon ascend.
But wo must hasten back to the city.
There are stones in the wall which solomon
had lifted. Stop here and see startling
PROOF OF the truth of prophecy, In Jcre-
iniah 3lst chapter and 40th verse. it is said
that Jerusalem shall be built through the
ashes. What ashes. people have been asking!
We're those ashes just put into the proph-
ecy to fill upi No! the meaning has been
recently discovered. Jerusalem is now
being built out in a certain direction where
the ground has been submitted to chemical
anal sis and it has been found to be the
ashes cast out from the sacrifices OF tho
ancient temple, ashes OF the wood and
ashes OF bones OF animals. There arc
great mounds OF ashes, accumulation OF
centuries of sacrifices. 1t has taken all
these thousands of years to discover what
jeremiah meant when he said, Behold the
days shall come saith the Lord that the
city shall he built to tho Lord from the
tower OF llananeel unto the gate of the cor
ncr, and the whole valley Of the dead
bodies and of the ashes" The people OF Jcru
salem are at this very time fulfilling that
prophecy. One handful OF that ashes on
WHICH tntJ uTc butulDS enough 10 pTONe
! the divinity OF the scriptures! Pass by the
place where the corner stone Of the ancient
| temple laid 1900 years ago by
Solomon. Explorers have been digging and
| they found that corner stone IS feet beneath
| the surface. 1T Is IA feet long, and three
| feet eight inches high, and beautifully cut
and shaped, and near it was an earthen jar
that was supposed to have contained the oil
| Of conservation used ut the ceremony OF
laying the cornerstone. Yonder from adepth
of 40 feet, signet ring has been brought
up inscribed with the words "Haggai, the
| Son OF Shebnaiah," showing 1t belonged to
the prophet Hagga, and to that sealring he
| refers in his prophecy, saying, II will max
| thee as a signet." l walk farther on far
under ground, and l find myself in Sol
| onions stables, and SEQ the places worn in
the stone pillars by the haltcrs of some of
| his $4,000 horses. Further on look at the
pillars on which Mount Moriah was built
| You know that the mountain was too small
for the temple and SO they built the mountain
out on pillars, and saw eight of those pill
lars, each one strong enough to hold a
| mountain.
Here we enter tho Mosque OF Omar. i
throne OF Northumberland where we arf
met at the door by officials who bring slip
pers that we must put on before we take q
step further. lest our feet pollute the sacred
places. man attempting to so in withou
these slippers would be strucl: dead on The
spot These awkward sandals adjusted a:
well as we could. we are led to where we SET
rock with an opening in it through which
no doubt, the blood OF sacrifice in the an
ccnt temple relied down and away.
vast expense the mosque has been built, blu
So s0mbcr is the place l am glad TO ge
through it and take off the cumbrous Slip
pcrs, and step into the clear air.
Yonder is Il curve of stone which Is par
of n bridge which once reached from Noun
Moriah to Mount Zion. ana over it Davi
a. "a
pie. Here is the wailing place OF the Jew
where for centuries almost perpetuail
during the daytime, whole generations O
tho Jews have stood putting their head @
lips against the the wall OF what was ono
Solomou's temple. 1t was one OF Tn
saddest and most solemn and impressiv
scenes ever witnessed to see scores OF thes
descendants of Abraham with tears rlloin
J down their cheeks, and lips trembling wit
emotion, q book OF Psalms open befor
them, bewailing the ruin OF the ancien
temple and the captivity OF their race, an
, the temple in all its original SPLENDID
Most affecting scene! And such q praye
as that, century after century, am sur
God will answer, and In some way the de
parted grandeur will return, or somethin
better. looked over tia shoulders OF SON
: of them and saw that they were reading fro
1 the mournful psalms OF David. while
: have been told that this is the litany whic
y some chant:
'For the temple that lies desolate;
{ We sit In solitude and mourn;
D For the palace that is destroyed,
Il We sit in solitude and mourn;
q For the walls that are ovcrthrOwn,
o We sit in solitude and mourn,
IS For our majesty that is departed,
It We sit in solitude and mourn
= For our great men that lie dead,
e We sit In solitude and mourn;
3 For priests who have stumbled,
20 We sit in solitude and mourn
u think at rnat prayer Jerusalem will COZ
= again to more than its ancient magnl
cence: 1t may not be precious stones al
- architectural majesty. but in a moral sple
y, dor that shall eclipse forever all that Da'
20 or Solomon saw.
20 But l. must get back to the house-t
q where L stood early this morning, and I
~ ~ fore the sun sets that may catch VIC
~ - vision of what the city now Is and or
~ vas. Standing here on the housc-top l s
in that the city was built for military safe'
81 | Some old warrior I warrant selected I