Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1892-03-24
OG, KING OF BASHAN.
DR. TALMAeE breaches ABOUT THE
GIANTS sEpsTEAp.

ASAOOhLlNf II. gave
another illustration this morning in his
sermon at the Tabernacle Of his wonderful
power Of drawing useful, practical lessons
from an obscure text, which, to the ordi-
nary mind, seemed incapable of yielding
any spiritual ediiication. The text was
Deuteronomy iii, IL: "Only Og, king Of
Bashan, remained of the remnant of giants;
behold, his bedstead was bedstead of iron;
is it not in Rabbath of the children of Am
mon! Nine cubits was the length thereof
and four cubits the breadth of it."
The story of giants is mixed with myth.
William the Conqueror was said to have
been of overtowering altitude, but when in
aftertime his tomb was opened his bones
indicated that he had been physically of
only ordinary size. Roland the Hero was
said TO have been of astounding stature,
but when his sepulcher was examined his
armor was found only large enough to fit
an ordinary man. Alexander the Great
had helmets and shields of enormous size
made and left among the people whom he
had conquered, so as to give the impression
that he was giant, although he was
rather under than over the usual height of
man. But that in other days and lands
there were real giants is authentic. One
of the guards of the Duke of Brunswick
was eight and half feet high. In mu-
scum in London is the skeleton of Charles
Brine, eight feet four inches in stature.
The Emperor Maximin was over eight
feet.
Pliny tells of a giant nine feet high and
two other giants nine and half feet. So
am not incredulous when | come to my
text and find King Og giant, and the size
of his bedstead, turning the cubits of the
text into feet, the bedstead of Og, the king,
must have been about thirteen and a half
feet long. Judging from that the giant
who occupied it was probably about eleven
feet in stature, or nearly twice the average
human size. There was no need of Rab-
binical writers trying to account for the
presence of this giant, King Og, as they
did, by saying that he came down from the
other side of the flood, being tall enough
to wade the waters beside Noah's ark, or
that he rode on the top of the ark, the pas
sengers inside the ark daily providing him
with food. There was nothing supernat-
ural about him. He was simply monster
in size.
oG WAS A FIGHTER.
Cyrus and Solomon slept on beds of gold
and Sardanapalus had $50 bedsteads of
gold burned up with him, but this bed
stead of my text was of iron-everything
sacrificed for strength to hold this exces-
sive avoirdupois, this Alp of bone and
flesh. No wonder this couch was kept as
a curiosity at Rabbath, and people went
from far and near to see it, just as now
people go to museums to behold the armor
of the ancients. You say what fighter
this giant, King Og, must have been. No
doubt of it. | suppose the size of his
sword and breastplate corresponded to the
size of his bedstead, and his stride across
the battlefield and the full stroke of his
arm must have been appalling. With an
armed host he comes down to drive back
the Israelites, who are marching on from
Egypt to Canaan.
We have no particulars of the battle, but
! think the Israelites trembled when they
saw this monster Of q man moving down
to crush them. Alas for the Israelites!
Will their troubles never cease? What can
men five and half feet high do against
this warrior Of eleven feet, and what can
short swords do against a sword whose
CLEAN must have been like flash of light
ming? The battle of Edrei opened. Moses
and his army met the giant and his army.
The Lord of Hosts descended into the fight,
and the gigantic strides that Og had made
when advancing into the battle were more
than equaled by the gigantic strides with
which he retreated. Huzza afortriumphant
Israeli Sixty fortified cities surrendered
to them. A land of indescribable opulence
comes into their possession, and all that is
left of the giant king is the iron bedstead
Mine cubits was the length thereof and
four cubits the breadth of it."
BY THE COMPANY HE KEEPS,
Why did not the Bible give us the size of
the giant instead of the size of the bedstead?
Why did it not indicate that the giant was
eleven feet high instead of telling us that
his couch was thirteen and half feet long?
No doubt among other things it was to |
teach us that you can judge of a man by
his surroundings Show me mans asso-
ciates, show me mans books show me a
mans home, and will tell you what he is
without your telling me one word about
him. You cannot only tell man accord |
ing to the old adage, ''By the company he
keeps" but by the books he reads, by the |
pictures he admires, by the church he at
tends, by the places he visits. Moral |
giants and moral pygmies, intellectual
giants and intellectual pygmies like phys-
ical giants or physical pygmles may be
Judged by their surroundings
That man has been thirty years faithful
In attendance upon churches and prayer
meetings and Sunday schools, and putting
himself among intense religious associa-
tions. He may have his imperfections, but
he is very good man. Great is his reli-
gious stature. The other man has been for
rtN
worldly, and he has shut himself out from
all other influences, and his religious stat
ure is that of dwarf. No man ever has
been or can be independent of his surround
1ngs-sociai, intellectual, moral, religious.
The Bible indicates the length of the giant
by the length of his bedstead. Let no man
say, Il will be good, )" and yet keep evil
surroundings. Let no man say, II will he
faithful as Christian" and yet consort
chiefly with worldlings. You are propos-
ing an everlasting impossibility
When man departs this life you can
tell what has been his influence in COM
munity for good by those who mourn for
him and by how sincere and long con-
tinued are the regrets of his taking off.
There may he no pomp or obsequies and no
pretense at epitapheology, but you can tell
how high he was in conservation, and how
high in usefulness by how long is his
shadow when he comes to lie down. What
is true of individuals is true of cities and
nations. Show me the free libraries and
schools of city, and will tell you the in
telligence of its people. Show me it's gal
lery of painting and sculpture, and will
tell you the artistic advancement of it's
citizens. Show me it's churches, and will
tell you the moral and religious status of
the place.
From the fact that Og's bedstead was :,
thirteen and a half feet long, conclude the
giant himself was about eleven feet high
But let no one by this thought be induced
to surrender to unfavorable environments
man can make his own bedstead. Chan