The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1891-01-01
DIR. TALMAGES SERMON.
he breaches ON THE WATERS
OF MERoM.

Continuation of His Series Descriptive Of
His Trip Through the Holy Land-A
Beautiful Series of Word Paintings-A
BROOKLYN, Dec. 2l.-Dr. Talmage
preached the following sermon this
morning in the Academy of Music in
this city, and again in the evening at
The Christian Herald service in New
York. His text was Joshua XII D;
Sand when all these kings were met
together they came and pitched to-
gether at the waters of Merom to fight
against Israel"
We are encamped tonight in Pales-
tine by the waters of Merom. After a
long march we have found our tents
pitched, our fires kindled, and though
far away from civilization variety of
food that would not compromise "
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 accidentally
need, and tent for the MONDAY
luncheon. The malarias around this
Lake Merom are SO poisonous that at
any other season of the year encamp-
ment here is perilous, but this winter
night the air is tonic and healthful 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 carcases.
Indeed it is time that we more minute
ly examine this Joshua, of whom we
have in these discourses caught only
a momentary glimpse, although he
crossed and recrossed Palestine, and
next to Jesus is the most stirring and
mighty character whose foot ever
touched the Holy Land.
A TRADITION OF THE DEATH OF MOSES.
Moses was dead A beautiful tradi
ton says the Lord kissed him, and in
that act drew forth the soul of the dy-
ing lawgiver. He had been buried,
only one Person at the funeral, the
same One who kissed him. But God
never takes man away from any place
Of usefulness but he has some one
ready. The Lord does not go looking
around amid great variety of candi-
dates 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 fight
er, but he always fought on the right
side, and he never fought 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 all the days of thy life." God full
filed this promise, although Joshua's
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
the moon into hiss battalion, and the
last against the king of terrors, Death
five great victories.
For the most part, when the general
of an army starts out in a conflict he
would like to have small battle in or
der that he may get his courage up
and rally his troops and get them
drilled for greater conflicts; but this
first undertaking of Joshua was greater
than the leveling of Fort Pulaski, Oh
the laundering down of Gibraltar, OF
the overthrow of the Bastile 1t was
the crossing of the Jordan at the time
of the spring freshet. The ssnews 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 and the Jsraelites, and they
laugh and say, AHA! ahal they can
not disturb us in time-until the fresh
cts fall it is impossible for them t.
reach u.s." But after awhile they lool
across the water and they see a move
ment in the army of Joshua. They say
Whats the matter now3 Why, thers
must be a panic among these troops
and they are 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 hi.
army and cries, Forward, march! ?
and they start for the bank OF tn,
Jordan
THE ARK OF THE COVENANT.
One mile ahead go two priests carry
ing glittering box four feet long ant
two feet wide. 1t is the ark of tn,
covenant And they come down, ant
no sooner do they touch the rim of tn,
water with their feet than by an al
mighty fiat Jordan parts. The arm.
of Joshua marches right on withou
getting their feet wet over the bottom
of the river, path of chalk and broker
shells and pebbles, until they get t.
the other bank Then they lay holt
of the olcanders and tamarisks ant
willows and pull themselves up banl
thirty or forty feet high, and having
gained the other bank they clap thei
shields and their cymbals and sing tn
4 praises OF the God of Joshua. But n,
sooner Lave they reached the banl
than the waters begin to dash and roar
and with terrific rush they breal
loose from their strange anchorage
Ont yonder they have stopped; thirt
miles OF distance they halted. On thi
side the waters roll off toward the sal
sen,
But as the hand of the Lord God
taken away from the thus uplifte
watcrs-w waters perhaps uplifted half
milc-as the AlmiShty hand is take
away, those waters rush down, AM
some of tho unbelieving Israelites say
'Alas, alas, what misfortune! VIII
could not those waters have stat