Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1892-03-04
REV. DIR. TALMAGB.
The Eminent Brooklyn DivineS Sum
day Sermon.
Subject: "The Glories of the Christian
Religion"


desert as a highway for his caravans. He
built the city of Palmyra around one of the
| principal wells of the east so that all the
long trains of merchandise from the east
were obliged to stop there, pay toll and
leave part Of their wealth in the hands Of
Solomons merchants. He manned the
fortress Thapsacus at the chief ford OF the
Eupbrates, and put under guard everything
that passed there.
The three great products of PALESTINE
wine pressed from the richest clusters, and
celebrated all the world over; oil, which in
that country is the entire substitute for but
ter and lard, and was pressed from the olive
branches until every tree in the country be-
came an oil WELL and honey which was the
entire substitute for sugar-these three
great products Of the country Solomon ex-
ported and received in return fruits and
precious woods and the animals of every
cline.
He went down to Ezion.geber and ordered
fleet of ships to be constructed, oversaw
the workmen, and watched the launching of
the fotilla which was to go out on more than
years voyage to bring home the wealth OF
the then known world. He heard that the
Egyptian horses were large and swift, and
long named and round Iimbed and he re-
solved to purchase them, giving eighty-five
dollars apiece Tor them, putting the best Of
these horses in his own stall and selling the
surplus to foreign potentates at great profit.
He heard that there was the best of tim
her ON Mount Lebanon, and he sent one
/ hundred and eighty thousand men to hew
lown the forest and drag the timber through
the mountain gorges to construct it into
RATS TO be hoated to Joppa and from thence
to be drawn by OK teams twenty-five miles
across the land to Jerusalem. He heard that
there were beautiful flowers in other lands
He sent for them, planted them in his own
gardens. and to this very day there are
| flowers found in the ruins of that city such
as are to be found in no other part of Pales-
tine the lineal descendants OF tne very
flowers that Solomon planted. He heard
that in foreign groves there were birds of
richest voice and most luxuriant wing. He
sent out people to catch them and bring them
| there and he put them into his cages.
Stand back now and see this long train Of
camelS coming up the kings gate, and the
OK trains from Egypt. gold and silver and
precious stones, and beasts of every hoof,
and birds of every wing, and fish OF every
scale See the peacocks strut under the
cellars, and the horsemen run and the char
lots wheel Hear the orchestra, GAIA
upon the dance Not stopping to look into
the wonders of the temple. step right on the
causeway and pass up TO Soiomon's palace.
Here we find ourselves amid a collection
of buildings on which the king hal lavishe1
the wealth Of many empires. The genius or
Hiram. the architec', aud OF the other
artists is here seen in the long line OF corri-
doris and the suspended gallery, and the APP
proach to the throne. Tracere1 window
opposite traceried window. BronZed orna-
ments busting into lotus and lily and pome.
granate Chapters surrounded by network
Of leaves in which imitation fruit seemed
suspended as in hanging baskets.
Three branches-SO Josephus tells us
three branches sculptured OH the marble, 80
thin and subtle tdat even the leaves seemed
TO culver A laver capable of holding five
hundred barrels OF water on six hundred
brazen OK heads, which gushed with water
and filled the whole place with GOODNESS AMI
crysta line brightness and musical plash.
Ten tables chased with chariot wheel and
lion and cherubim. Solomon sat on throne
of ivory. At the seating place Of the throne,
on each end of the steps, brazsn lion.
Why. my friends, in that place they
trimmed their candles with shutters of gold,
and they cut their fruits with knives of gold,
and they washed their faces in baSlus OF gold,
and they scooped out the ashes with shovels
Of gold, and they stirred the altar fires with
tongs Of gold Gold reflected in the water!
Gold flashing from the apparel! Gold blaz-
ing in the crown Gold! gold gold.
OF course the news of the affiuence of that
van and by wing of every ship, until soon
the streets Of Jerusalem are crowded with
curiosity seekers What is that long pro.
cesson approaching Jerusalem, ] think
from the pomp of it there must be royalty in
the train smell the breath of the spices
which are brought as presents, and bear
the shout of the drivers and | see the dust
covered caravan showing that they come
from far away Cry the news up TO the
DalaCa Tho Ouaaf, ~ Sheha a1yaucaS ct
all the people come out to see. Let the
mighty men of the land come out on the
palace corridors. Let Solomon come down
the stairs Of the palace before the Queen has
alighted Shake out the cinnamon and the
saffron and the calamus aud the franklin.
cence and pass it into the treasure house.
Take up the diamonds until they glitter in
the sun
The Queen of Sheba alights. She enters
the palace. She washes at the hath. She
sits down at the banquet. The cupbearers
bow. The meat smokes. You hear the dash
of waters from molten sea. Then she rises
from the banquet and walks through the
Conservatives, AMI gazes on the archi-
lecture and sha asks Solomon many strange
questions, and she learns about the religion
OF the Hebrews, and she then and there be-
comes servant Of the Lord Col.
She is overwhelmed She begins 10 think
that all the spices she brought, ami all the
precious woods which are intended to b.
turned into harps and psalteries and into
ratings for tho causewIy between the
temple and the palace, aLd tle one hundred
and eighty thousand dollars i'll money-she
be gins to think that ali these presents
amount to nothing in such place and she Is
al most ashamed that she has brought them,
and she says within herself: II heard
great deal about this wonderful religion OF
the Hebrews but find it far beyond my
highest anticipstionS. l must add more
that fifty per cent. 70 what has been re-
latel. II exceeds everything that | could
have expected. The half-the half was not
told me-"
Learn from this subject what a beautiful
thing it is when social position and wealth
surrender themselves to God. When religion
comes to a neighborhood, the first to receive
il are the women. Some men say 1t is be.
cause they are weakminded, 1 say 1t is be-
cause they have quicker perception OF what
is right, more ardent aft .ction and capacity
for sublimer emotion. After the women
have received ths Gospel then all the dis
tresse1 and the poor Of both sexes, those who
have no friends, accept Jesus. Last OF all
come the people of affiuence aud high social
position. Alas, that it is 80,
II there are those here to-day who have
been favored o. fortune, or as | might bet
ter put it, favored OF God, surrender all you
have and all you expect to be to the Lord
who blessed this Queen Of Sheba Certainly
you are not ashamed TO be found In this
queens company. | am glad that Christ
has had His imperial friends in all ages
Elizabeth Christina. queen OF Prussia; Maria
FeOdorovna, queen o. Russia: Marie, en-.
press of France; Helena the imperial moth
er OF Constantine. Arcadia, from her great
fortunes building public baths in CONSTANT
nople and toiiing for the alienation of the
masses; Queen Clotilda, leading her husband
and three thousand OF his armed warriors
to Christian baptism; Elizabeth, OF Burgun-
dy, giving her jeweled glove to beggar and
scattering great fortunes among tbs dis
tresss1: Prince Albert. singing Rock OF
Ages in Windsor castle, aud Queen Victo-
ria, incognita, reading the Scriptures to a
dying pauper.
bless God that the day is coming when
royalty will bring all its thrones, and music /
ali its harmonies, AMI painting all its pic.
lures, and sculpture all its statuary, and
architecture all its pillars aud conquest all
its scepters: and the queens OF the earth, IN