The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1891-01-01
DR.. Talmage Describes Some
Of the Victories of the
Great Hebrew Warrior.
The Sun Stood Still While he
Defeated His Enemies and
Captured Five Kings.

waters Of Merom to fight against Israel"
We are encamped tonight in Palestine by
the waters of Merom.
In this neighborhood Joshua fought his
last great battle. The nations had banded
themselves together. to crush this Joshua,
but along the banks of these waters Joshua
left their carcas $685. Indeed it is time that
we more infinitely examine this Joshua OF
whom we have in these dscourses caught
only momentary glimpse, although he
crossed and recrossed Palestine and next o
Jesus is the most stirring and mighty
character 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 ut the
funeral, the same One who kis sed him. But
God never takes a man away from any
place Of usefulness but he had 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 a man for that place.
Moses has passed off the stage and Joshua,
the hero, puts his foot on the platform of
history SO solidly that all the ages echo with
the tread. He was a magnificent fighter.
but he always fought on the right side. and
he never ought unless God told him to
fight. He got his military equipment from
God, who gave him the promise at the start:
There shall not any man be able to stand
before thee oil the days Of thy life God
first battle was with the spring freshet; and
the next with stone wall; and the next,
leading on a regiment of whipped towards;
and the next battle, against darkness,
wheeling the sun and moon into his bat
TALON, and the last. against the king OF ter
rors, death-fve great victories.
For the most part. when the general of an
army starts out in a conflict he would
like to have small BAT tie in order 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 Josiua
was greater than the dwelling Of Fort Pull
hski, or the laundering down Of Gibraltar,
or the overthrow OF the Bastile. 1t was the
crossing OF the Jordan ut the time of the
spring 1reshet, The SHOWS of Mount Lehan-
on had just been melting and they poured
down into the valley, and the whole valley
stand on one bank md they look across and
Joshua and the Israelites, and they laugh
and say: aha! aha! they cannot disturb
Us in time-until the treshets fall; it is impos-
sble for them to reach u.s." But after
while they look across the water and they
y
say. whats the matter now? Why there
must be panic among these troops, and
they are going to fly. or perhaps they are
going to try to march across the river Or
dan. Joshua is q lunatic." But Joshu q,
the chieftain, looks at his army and cries:
Forward, march," and they start for the
bank of the Jordan. . -,~
One mile ahead 20 two priests carrying
n glittering box four teet long two feet wide.
1t is the ark OF the covenant. And they
come down and no sooner do they just touch
the rim of the water with their feet, than by
of Joshua marches right OH without getting
their feet wet, over tho bottom of the river,
n path of chalk and broken shells and peb-
bles, until they get to the other bank. Then
they lay hold OF the oleanders and lamar
-isks and willows and pull themselves up e
the other bank, they clap their shields and
their cymbals, and sing the praises of the
God of Joshua. But no sooner have they
renched the bank than the waters begin to
dash and roar, mud with terrific rush they
break loose from their strange anchorage.
distance they halted. On this size the waters
roll off toward the salt sea. But as the
hand of the Lord God is taken away from
the thus uplifted waters-waters perhaps up
lifted half Il mile-as the almighty hand is
taken away. those waters rush down, and
alas, what misfortune! Why could not
those waters have stayed parted? Because
perhaps we may want to go back.
Lord, we are engaged in risky bust.
ness u Those canaanites may eat us
back? Would it not have been a more com
plete miracle if the Lord had parted the
waters to let through, and Ike p1
them parted to let us go back ii we are de
feated?' Ny friends. God makes no provis
ion for q Christians retreat. He clears tn.
path all the way to Canaan. To 60 back il
to die. The same gatekeepers that swing
back the anethystine and crystalline gait
OF the Jordan to let Israel pass through nov
swing shut the amethystine and crystallip,
gate.
But this is no place for the host to stop
Joshua gives the command. "Forward
grove Of trees, and at the end OF the grow,
is city. 1t is a city of arbors, a city will
walls seeming to reach to the heaven, tt
buttress the very sky. 1t is the great me
tropolis that commands the mountain pass
1t ID Jericho. That city was afterward cap
tured by Pompey. and it wns afterward ca .
tured by Herod the Great and it was otter
ward captured by the Mohammelans; bu
this campaign the Lord plans. There shall
b. no swords, no shields, no battering ram
There shall be only one weapon OF war, ant
that rams horn. The horn of the slail
ram sometimes taken and holes wer
punctured in it. and then the musician woult
put the instrument to his lips and he woul,
run his fingers over this rude instrument
and make q great deal Of sweet harmony 10
the people. That was the only kind OF weapon
Seven priests were to take these rude rust
instruments, and they we're to go around tn
city every day for six days-once day 70
six days, and that on the seventh day the
were to go around blowing these rude mus
cal instruments seven times: and then at tn
close Of the seventh blowing Of the rams
horns on the seventh day, the peroration O
the whole scene was to be shout at whic
those great walls should tumble from cor
stone to baAe.
The seven priests with the rude musics
r instruments pass all around the city wall
on the first day and a failure. Not so niue
as a piece of plaster broke loose from tn
wall-not SO much MS loosened rock. no
80 much as piece of mortar lost from it
place. There" say the unbelieving Isrne
lies. didn't tell you 20? Why, those minis
ters are fools. The idea Of going around tn
city with those musical instruments and e,
pecting in that way to destroy it! Joshu
has been spoiled; he thinks because he hn
overthrow and destroyed the spring freshe
he con overthrow the stone wall. Why. it
not phlosophic Don't you see there il n
relation between the blowing OF these mus
cnl instruments and the knocking do wn