The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-11-16

chinery was damp with descending per-
fumes. The walls multiplied the scene by
conceived mirrors Fountains tossed IN
! sheaves OF light and fell IN showers OF dia-
monds Praxiteles, the sculptor, and Apelles.
the painter. filed the place with their
! triumphs. Croesus, the weslthiest Of the
ancients. put here and there IN the temple
| golden heifers. The paintings were so vivid
| and lifelike that Alexander, who was moved
I at nothing or terror, shuddered at one battle
scene on these walls, and so true to life
was painting OF horse that when Alex
ander's horse was led up to it, he began to
neigh, as one horse is accustomed to greet
another. One painting In that temple cost
S1y3. $50. The treasures of all nations and
the spoils OF kingdoms were kept here for
safe deposit Criminals from ell lands fed
to the shelter # this temple, and the law
could not touch them. 1t seemed almost
strange that this mountain of architectural
snow outside did not melt with the fires of
color within. The temple was surrounded
with groves, in which roamed for the
temptation Of hunters. stays and bares
and wild bears, and all styles of game.
whether winged or four-foOted. There was
a cave with statue SO intensely brilliant
that it extIngUished the eyes of those who
looked upon 1t, unless, at the command OF
the priests. the hand of the spectator some
what shaded the eyes. No wonder that
even Anthony and Alexander and Darius
cried out in the words Of my text: Great
is Diana of the Ephesians.n One whole
month Of each year. the month of May,
was devoted TO her worship. Professions
in CARDS Of purple and violet and
scarlet moved through it, and there we're
torches and anthems and choirs in
white, and timbrels and triangles in
music, sacrifices and dances. Here young
men and maidens we're betrothed with i'm
posing ceremony. Nations voted large
amounts to meet the expense of the wor-
ship. Fisheries Of vast resource were
devoted to the support of this respendence.
II )race and Virgil and Homer went into
rhapsodies while describing this worship
All artists, all arch@ologists, all centu-
ries agreed In saying: "Great is Diana
of the Ephesians." Paul in the pres
ence Of this temple of Diana incor-
porates it in his figures OF speech
while speaking of the spiritual temple,
Now, il any man build upon this founda-
ton, gold, silver, precious stones, ETC., and
| no doubt with reference to one OF the pre-
vious temples which had been set on fire by
Herostratus just for the fame of destroying
| IL, Paul says: 'f any mans work shall
| be burned, he shall suffer loss, etc." and all
| up and down Paul's writings you realize
that he had not only seen but had been
nightly impressed with what he had seen
| of the temple of Diana.
= In this city the mother of Jesus was said
to have been buried. Here dwelt Aquilla
and Priscilla OF Bible mention, who were
professors in an extemporized theological
seminary, and they taught the eloquent
Apollos how to be eloquent for Christ.
Here John preached, and from here because
of his fidelity he was exlled to Patmos
| Here Paul warred against the magical arts
for which Ephesus was famous. The
sorcerers Of this city pretended that they
could cure diseases, and perform almost any
miracle, by pronouncing these senseless
words Ask Cataski Liz Te-
trax Damnameneus Alsion." Paul
having performed a miracle
| in the name of Jesus, there was a living
family of seven brothers who initiated the
apostle, and instead Of their usual words of
incantation. used the word of Jesus over
! man who was possessed Of a devil, and the
man possessed few at them in great fierce
ness and nearly tore these frauds to pieces,
and in consequence all up and down the
streets Of Ephesus there was indignation ex-
cited against the magical arts and great
bonfire OF magical books was kindled in the
streets, and the people stirred the blaze
until thirty-1ve thousand dollars worth of
black art literature had burned to ashes.
But, all the glory of Ephesus l have de-
scribed has gone now. At some seasons of
the year awful malarias sweep over the
place and put upon mattress or In graves
large portion OF the population. In the APP
proxImate marshes scorpions, centipedes
and all forms of reptilian life crawl and
hiss and sting. while hyenas and jackals at
night stink in and out of the ruins of build
ings which once startled the nations with
their almost supernatural grandeur.
But here is a lesson which has never vet |
been drawn out. Do you not see in that |
temple of Diana an expression of what the |
world needss 1t wants a God who can pro-
vide food. Diana was a huntress In |
pictures Of many Of the coins she held a |
stag by the horn with one hand and a
bundle Of arrows in the other. o, this is a |
hungry worldl Diana could not give one
pound of meat, or one mouthful of food to
the millions of her worshipers. She was
dead divinity, an imaginary god, and so in
idalatrous lands the vast majority of
people never have enough to eat. 1t is
only IN the countries where the God of
heaven and earth Is worshiped that the
vast majority have enough to eat. Let
Diana have her arrows and her hounds; our
God has tho sunshine and the showers and
the harvests, aud in proportion as he is
worshiped does plenty reign.
80 also In the temple of Diana the world
expressed its nsed of a refuge. To it from
all parts Of the land came debtors who could
not pay their debts and the offenders Of the
law that they might escape Incarceration.
But, she sheltered them only a little while.
and while she kept them from arrest she
could not change their hearts and the guilty
remained guilty. But, our God in Jesus
Christ Is refuge into which we may fly
from all our sins and all our pursuers, and
not only be safe for time but safe for
eternity, and the guilt is pardoned and the
nature is transformed. What Diana could
not do for her worshipers, our Christ &C.
oomplishes for U.S.
Rock of ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in thee.
Then in that temple were deposited
treasures from all the earth for safe keep
ing. Chrysostom says it was the treasure
house of nations; they brought gold and
silver and precious stones and coronets from
across the sea and put them under the care
of Diana of the Ephesians. But again and
again were those treasures ransacked capt.
ured or destroyed. Nero robbed them.
the ScYthians scattered them, the Goths
burned them. Diana failed those who
trusted her with treasures. but our God. to
him we may intrust ell our treasures for
this world and the next. aud fail any one
who puts confidence Ia him he never will.
After the last jasper column has fallen and
the last temple on earth has gone into ruins
and the world itself has suffered demolition.
the Lord will keep for US our best treas
ures.
But, notice what killed Ephesus. and
what has killed most of the cities that lie
buried in the cemetery of nations. Luxury
The costly baths, which had been the
means Of health to the city, became its ruin,
Instead OF the cold baths that had been the