Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-03-14
A GIANTS BEDSTEAD.
1t is a Quite Good Indication Of the
Size of the Man Himself.
LESSONS FROM THE CAREER OF 0G.
Moral Monsters That Beset the Christians
Patc Through Life.
TEE UNIVERSAL NEED OF A COUCH
.ESSONS FROM THE CAREER OF OG.
TEE UNIVERSAL NEED OF A COUCH
-sPrc1AL TELEGRAM TO THE DISPATCH,

of giants; behold, his bedstead was a bed
stead of iron; is it not in Rabbath of tn,
children of Ammon? Nine cubits was the
length thereof and four cubits the breadth
of it"
The story OF giants is mixed with myth
William the ConQ1eror was said to have
been of overtowering attitude, but when, in
aftertime, his tomb was opened, his bones
indicated that he had been physically ol
only ordinary size. Roland the hero was said
to have been of astounding stature, and his
armor was found only large enough to flt an
ordinary man. Alexander the Great had
helmets and shields of enormous size made
and left among the people whom he had con
Quered, so TO give the impression that he
was giant, although he was rather under
than over the usual height OF a 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 a half feet high. In q museum in Lon
don 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.
Nothing Supernatural About Og-
lam not incredulous when 1 come to my
text and find King og giant, and the size
text into feet-the beadstead of og, the king,
must have been about lS1a feet long. Judg-
ing from that the giant who occupied it was
probably IL feet in stature, or nearly twice
the average human size. There was no need
Of RabOinical writers trying 60 account for
the presence of this giant, King Og, as they
did. by saving 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 passengers
nTOyldlnP
IooG There was nothing supernatural about
him. He was simply monster in size.
CYRUS aud solomon slept on beds OF gold,
and Sardanapalus had $50 bedsteads of gold
burned up with him, but this bedstead OF
my text was of iron-everything sacrificed
foi strength TO hold this excessive avoirdu-
This couch was kept as curiosity at Rab-
bath. and people went from far and near to
sec it, just a. 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 breast
plate corTesponded to the size of mis- bed
stead, and his stride across the battlefield
aud the full stroke of his arm must have
been appalling. With an armed host he
comes down 10 drive back the Israelites,
who are marching on from Egypt to Canaan.
The Big King Not Invincible.
The battle of Edrel opened. Moses and
lis army met the giant and his army. The
rHe gigantic strides that 0g had made when
sdvancing into the battle were more than
cggalcd by the gigantic strides with which
lie rctreateG. Huzza for triumphant Israel!
Sixty fortified cities surrendered to them.
4 land OF indescribable opulence comes
into their possession. and all that is left OF
the giant king is the iron bedstead.
Why did not the Bible give US the size of
the giant instead OF the size of the bedstead?
Why did il not indicate that the man was
OF n re-
couch was l3la feet long? No doubt among
other things II was to teach us thatyou can
judge Of man by his surroundings.
snow me a mans associates, show me
mans books, show me mans home, and-1
viii tell you what he is. You cannot only
tell a man according to the old adage, "By
the company he keeps - but by the books he
reads. by the pictures he admires, by the
church he attends: by the places he visits.
Moral giants and moral pigmies, intellectual
giants and intellectual plgmles, like physl-
cal giants or physical pignies may be Judged
bV their surroundings.
That man has been 30 years faithful in at
tendance upon churches and prayer meet
ings and sunday schools and putting him
self among intense religious associations. He
may have his imperfections, but he is a very
good man Great is his religious stature.
That other man has been for 80 years among
influences intensely worldly: and he has
shut himself out from all other influences,
and his religious stature is that of dwarf
Mourning Very Good Test.
When a man DEPARTS this life you can tell
what has been his influence in a community
for good by those who mourn for him and
by how sincere and long-continued are the
regrets OF his taking of. There may be no
pomp or obsequies and no pretense at
enttapheology, but you can tell how high he
was III conservation, and how high in useful
ness 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
intelligence of its people. Show me its
tpll you the artistic advancement of its citi-
Zrus. show me its churches, and i will tell
Won the moral and religious status of the
place.
But let no one by this thought be induced
20 surrender to unfayorable environments.
A man can make his own bedstead. Chan
trey and Hugh Miller were born stone
masons, but the one became an immortal
sculptor and the other a Christian Scientist
whose name will never die.
Notice Furthermore that even giants must
rest. such enormous physical endowment
on the part OF King Og might suggest the
capacity to stride across all fatigue and
omit slumber. No. He required an iron
bedStead. Giants must rest. Not appreci-
ating that TACT, how many of the giants
yearly break down. Giants in business
giants in art, giants in eloquence, giants in
usefulness They live not more than half
their days.
They try TO escape the consequence Of
overwork by n voyage across the sea or a
sail in summer yacht, or call on physicians
for relief from insomnia or restoration Of
unstrung nerves or the arrest of apoplexies,
when all they need is what this giant of my
text resorteG to-an iron bedstead. Let no
one think because he has great strength of
body or mind that he can afford to trifle |
with his unusual gifts. God, all up and
down the Bible, honors sleep. The only case |
O accident 10 sleep mentioned in the Bible |
was when Eutychus fell from a window dur |
ing a sermon oil Paul, VINO had preached un-
iii midnight. but that was not so much a |
condemnation of sleep as censure of long
SERMONS. More sleep is what the world |
wants. Economize in everything but sleep. |
Notice. furthermore, that Gods people, on 1
the way to Canaan need not be surprised if |
1 .aF- confront some sort of a giant. Had not |
fIe Isfaelitish host had trouble enough al |
ready? NoI Red Sea not enough. Water |
anime not enough. Long marches not |
enough. Opposition by enemies of ordinary |
s-arure not enough. They must meet Og
I he giant of the iron Dedstead. Why not let |
t csc Israelites go smoothly into Canaan
v ithout this gigantic opposition? Oh, they 4
needed to have their courage and faith |
farther tested and developed,
Giants in the Christians Path.
And blessed the man who, in our time. in
his march toward the Promised Land, does
rot meet more than one giant. Do not con-
rlpde that you are not OH the way to Canaan
because of this obstacle. Standing in your
-,av is some evil propensity, some social
r.erseclItion, some business misfortune some
,,l,,-sical distress. Not one of you but meets
riaut ho would like to hew you in twain |
brethren have made up my mind that
re will have to fight all the way up to the
Promised Land. used to think that after