The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1890-12-24
BY THE WATERS OF MEROM.
The Place Where Joshua Fought
His Last Battle.
Rev. Dr. TaImage Continues His Sermons
on tho Holy Land-Lessons Drawn
S. from tho Victorious Campaign OF
the Isrseiltes Under Their
Mighty Chlsftaln.

Dewitt Talmage preached last Sunday
from the text, Joshua xi., 5-.".Apd when
all these kings had met toglSner they
came and pitched together at the waters
Of Merom to fight against Israel" The
discourse follows:
We are encamped tonight in Pales
tine by the waters OF Merom. After q
long march we have found our tents
pitched, and our fires kindled, an.b
though far away from civilization, va
riety Of food that would not compro-
mise first class American hotel, for
the most Of our caravan starts an hour
and half earlier in the morning. We
detain only two mules carrying so much
Of our baggage as we might accidentally
need and a tent for the MONDAY lunch
con. The malarias around this Lake
Merom are sopoisonous thatatany other
season OF the year encampment here Is
perilous, but this winter night the air is
tonic and healthful. In this neighbor-
hood Joshua fought bis last great bat
tie. The nations had banded themselves
together TO crush this Joshua, but along
the banks OF these waters Joshua left
their carcasses. Indeed, 1t is time that
we more minutely examine the Joshua
OF whom we have in these discourses
caught only momentary glimpse, al
though he crossed and recrossed Pales-
tine, and next to Jesus is the most SUR
ring and mighty character whose feet
touched the Holy Land.
Moses was dead. A beautiful tradi-
ton says the Lord kissed him, and in
that act drew forth the soul Of the dying
lawgiver. He bad been buried, only
one person at the funeral, the same one
who kissed him. But God never takes
man away from any place ofusefulness
but He has some one ready. The Lord
does not go looking around amid great
variety OF candidates to find some one
especially fitted for the vacated position.
He makes man for that place. Moses
has passed of the stage and Joshua, the
hero, puts his tpot on the platform OF
history so solidF that all the ages echo
with the tread. He was magnificent
fighter, but no always fought on the
right side, and he never fought unless
God told him to fight He got his mill
tary equipment from God, who gave
him the promise at tho start; There
shall not any man be able TO stand be-
fore 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 stone wall;
and tho next leading on regiment Of
whipped towards; and the next battle,
against darkness, wheeling tho sun and
moon into his battalion, and the last
against the King of Terrors, Doath-iive
great victories.
For the most part, when the General
OF an army starts out in conflict he
would like to have a small battle in or
der that he may get his courage up and
he may rally his troops and get them
drilled for greater conflicts; but this
first undertaking Of Joshua was greater
than the leveling OF Fort Pulaski. or
the laundering down OF Gibraltar, or
the overthrow Of the Bastile. 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 was raging tor
rent. So the Canaanites stand on one
bank and they look across and see Joshua
the Israelites, and they laugh and say:
say: "Ah! aha! they can not disturb us in
time--until the freshets fall; 1t is i'm
possible for them to reach u.s." But
after whilo they look across the water
and they see a movement in the army
OF Joshua. They say: whats the
matter now. Why, there must be a
panic among those troops and they arc
going to fly; or perhaps they are going
to try to march across the River Jordan.
Joshua is a lunatic," But Joshua, the
chieftain, looks at his army and cries:
Forward, march!" and they start for
the bank OF the Jordan.
One mile ahead go two priests carry
ing glitterlng box four feet long and
two feet wide. 1t is the ark Of the Gov
enant. And they come down, and nc
sooner'do they just touch the rim OF the
water with their feet than by an al.
mighty fat Jordan parts. The army Of
Joshua marches right on without get
ting their feet wet over the bottom oi
the river, path OF chalk and broken
shells and pebbles, until they get to the
other bank. Then they lay hold Of the
oleanders and tamarisks and willows
and pull themselves up bank thirty OF
forty feet high, and having gained the
other bank, they clap their shields and
their cymbals, and sing tho praises oi
the God OF Joshua. But no sooner have
they reached the bank than the waters
begin TO dash and roar, and with ter
rife rush they break loose frsm their
strange anchorage. Out yonder they
have stopped, thirty miles OF distance
they halted. On this side the waters
roll of toward the Salt Sea But as the
Hand OF the Lord God is taken away
from the thus uplifted waters-watert
perhaps uplifted half mile-as the Al
mighty hand is taken away, those waters
rush down, and some OF tho unbeliev'
ing Israelites say; "Alas, alas,
what a misfortune Why could moi
those waters have stayed parted? Be-
cause perhaps we may want TO go back.
o Lord. we are engaged In a risky bust
ness. Those Canaanites may eat us up.
How II wc want to go back? Would II
not have been more complete miracle
II tho Lord had parted the waters to lei
us come through, and kept them parted
TO let us 90 back II wo are defeatedg'
Ny friends, God makes no provision for
Christians retreat. He clears the
path all tho way to Canaan. To 80 back
Is TO die. The same gatekeepers that
swing back the amcthyStinc and crys.
talline gate OF the Jordan to let Israel