Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-12-22
Thirteenth of DR.. Talmage's Sc
ries on His Recent Journey.
Tenting, After a Long March, in the
Neighborhood OF Where Joshua
Fought His Last Great Battle.
and When al These Kings We're Net 10
gether, They Came and Pitched To-
gether at the Waters of Merom TO
Fight Against Israel"
THE WATERS OF MEEoM.

morning in the academy OF music III tuis
city, and again III the evening ct the
Christian Herald service in New York
His text was Joshua ii, 3: ''And when
all these kings were met together, they
came snd pitched together at the waters
Of Merom TO light against Israeli
We nre encainped tonight i'll Pales-
une BY the waters Of MsrOm. After Il
long march we have found our tents
pitched, our fires kIudled, and though
far away from civilization q variety of
rood that would not compromise u first
class American hotel, for the most of our
caravan starts an hour end a half earlier
in the morning. We detain only two
mules carrying so much of our baggage
ms we might accidentally need and d tent
for the MONDAY luncheon. Tbs maia-
Tias around this Lake Merom are so pois-
oEous~ that at any other season of the
year encainpment here Is peri!ous, but
this winter night the air is tonic and
healthful. in this neiGhborhood joshua
fought hs last great battle. The
nations had banded themselves together
10 crush this Joshua, but along the
banks Of these waters Joshua left their
carcasses. indeed il is time that We
iutTt uLt.N FAaIL-1Lt Ails SUI ~
whom We have in these discouFses caught
only a m0mentary glimpse, although he
crossed AID recrOssed Palestine, anu
next to Jesus is the most stirring and
mighty character whose foot ever
TOUCHED TIE HOLY LAND.
Moses was dead. 4 beautiful tradition
rays the Lord kissed him and in that act
drew forth the soul of the dying law
giver. lie had been buried, only one
Person at the funeral, che same One who
kissed him. But God never takes q man
away from any plecs of usefulness but
lie has some one ready. The Lord does
not 70 looking around amid a great
variety of candidates 10 find some one
especially fitted for the vacant position.
He makes II man for that place. Moses
has passed on the stgge, and Joshua,
the hero, puts his foot on the platform
of history so solidly that all ages echo
with the tread. He was u magnificent
lighter, but he always fought on the
right side, and he never fought unless
God told him TO fight. lie got his mill
tar y equipment from GOD who gave him
III promise at the start: ''There shall
not any man be atle TO stand before
thee all the days OF thy life. Cod full
hlled this promise, although joshua
}lrsI DaItIe WIS Win iue spring lTesHel,
and the next with d stone wall; and the
next, leading Gu a regiment of whipped
towards; and the next battle, against
darkness wheeling the sun and the moon
into his battalion, and the last, against
the king of t%errors,
pEATH-FIVE GREAT VICTORIES.
For the most part, when the genera. of
an army starts out ia n conflict ne would
like TO have II small battle in order that
he may get his courage up and he may
rally his troops and get them drilled for
Ereater conflicts: but this first uEdertak-
ing of Joshua was greater than the lev
cling of Fort Pulaski or the laundering
down of Gibraltar, or the overthrow of
the Bastille. Ii was the crossing OF the
Jordan at the time of the spring freshet.
The SHOWS OF Mount Lebanon had just
been melting and they poured down into
the valley, and the whole valley YVES u
raging torrent. SO the Canaanites stand
gu one bank and they look across and
see Joshua and the lsraeilres, and they
laugh and say: AHA! ah9! they can
not disturb ns in time-uBtil the freshets
fall; it is impossible for them to reach
u.s. But after a while they look across
fhe water aud they see Il movement IN
the army of Joshua. They say Whats
the matter now? Why there must be u
panic among these troops, aud they are
going to fly or perhaps they are going 70
try TO march across the river Jorda IL.
Joshua is II lunatic.' Bat Joshua. the
chieftain, looks Mt his army and cries:
Forward, march, and they start for
THE BANK OF IL JORDAN.
One mile ahead go two priests carrying
q glIttering box four feet long and two
faaf uiRa II ia tha ark nj fha pnvAnnnf
Ard they come down, and no sooner do
they just touch the rim of the water with
their feet, than by an almighty fiat,
Jordan parts. The army of Joshua
marches right on without getting their
feet wet, over the bottom of the river, Il
path of chalk and broken shells and
pebbles, until they get to the other
bank. Then they lay hold of the oleand-
ers and tamnrisks and willows and pull
themselves up Il bank thirty or forty
feet high, and having gained the other
bank, they clap their shields and their
cymGals, and sing the praises of the God
of Joshua. But no sooner have they
reached the bank Than the waters begin
TO dash and roar, and with a terrific
Eush they break loose from their strange
anchorage. out wonder they have
stopped, thirty miles Of distance they
halted. On this side the waters roll off
toward the salt sea. But as the hand
of the Lord God is taken away from the
thus upLIfied waters-waters perhaps up
lifted half q mile-as the almighty haud
IS taken ava those waters rush down,
aud some of the upbelisving lsraelites
say: ALIAS, alas, what a misfortune.
Why could not those waters have stayed
parted? Because perhaps We may want
10 go back. o Lord, VT are
IN A RISKY
Those Canaanitss may eat us up. How
if We want TO 90 back? Would it not
have been O more complete miracle if
the Lord q parted ths waters 10 let us
come through and kept them parted
TO let us go back il we are defested?'
My friends, God makes no provision Tor
q Christian s retreat. He clears the
path all the way TO Canaan. To go back
Is TO die. The same gatekeepers that
swuDg back the smethy slime and crys-
taIline gate of the Jordan TO let Israel
pass througf now swing shut the anne
thystine aud Crystalline gate of the Jor-
dan to keep the Israslites from going
back. l declare it in ycur hearing to-
dsy-victory ahead, water thirty feet
deep in the rear. Triumph ahead, Ca
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