Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1892-03-05
REV. DR.. 7ALMAGE.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun.
day Sermon.
Subject: The GIofies of the Christian
Religion"
TEXT: Behold, thehatf ,oas not told ms"

Solomon bad resolved that Jerusalem
should be the centre of all sacrel, regal and
commercial magnifcence. He set himself
TO work and monopoliZsd the surrounding
desert as a highway for his caravans He
built the city of Palmyra around one OF this
principal wells of the east so that all thu
long trains of merchandise from the east
were obliged to stop there, pay toll apI
leave part of their wealth in the hands Of
Solomon's merchants. He manned tls
fortress Thapsacus at the chief ford OF tina
Euphrates, 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, an 4 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
feet of ships to be constructed, oversaw
the workmen. and watched the launching of
the fiotila 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 Imbed and he re-
solved to purchase them, giving eighty-fve
dollars apiecs 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
Der on Mount Lebanon, ami he sent one
/ hundred and eighty thousand men to hew
| down the forest and drag the timber through
the mountain gorges to construct it into
I RATS to be hoated to Joppa, AMI 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.
1 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-
I tine the lineal descendants of tue 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
scalel See the peacocks strut under the
! cedars, and the horsemen run and the char
lots wheel! Hear the orchestral Gazs
upon the dancel Not stopping to look into
the wonders of the temple, step right on the
causeway and pass up to Solomon's palace.
/ Here we find ourselves amid a collection
of buildings on which the king hal lavisned
the wealth of many empires. The genius of
Hiram the architecf, and 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. Tracerie1 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 on the marble, SO
thin and subtle that 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 an
crystalline brightness and musical plash.
Ten tables chased with chariot wheel and
lion and cherubim. Solomon sat on q throne
OF ivory. At the seating place of the throne,
on each end of the steps, a brazen 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 basins 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 b!az-
ing in the crownl Gold! gold goldl
OF course the news of the affiuence of that
place went out everywhere by every cara
van ard by wing OF every ship, until soon
the streets of Jerusalem are crowded with
curiosity seekers What is that long pro
cession approaching Jerusalem? J 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 | hear
the shout of the drivers and | see the dust
covered caravan showing that they come
from far away Cry the news up to the
pelace. The Queen OF Sheba advances. Let
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
,Glighted Shake out the cinnamon and tia
saffron and the caiamus and the franklin
cence and pass it INTO the treasure house,
Take up the diamonds until they glitter i'll
the sun.
The Queen of Sheba aligats. She enters
the palace. She washes at the hath. Sht
sits doxn at the banquet. The cupbearer.
bow The meat SMOKES. You hear the dasi
of waters from molten sea. Then she rise
from the banquet, and walks through tn
Conservatives, ana gazss on the archf
lecture, and she asks Solomon many Strang,
questions, and she learns about the religion
of the Hebrews. and she then and there be
comes servant of the Lord God
She is overwhelmed. She begins to think
that all the spices she brought, and all tbs
precious woods which are intended to b.
turned into harps and psalteries and int
ratings for the causeway between the
temple and the palace, aid the one hundred
and eighty thousand dollars in money-she
begins to think that ali these presents
amount to nothing in such a place and she is
almost ashamed that she has brought them,
and she says within herself: II heard a
great deal about this wonderful religion OF
the Hebrews, but fluid it far beyond my
9 llVhpSt / oId
that fifty per cent. 20 what has been re.
lated 1t exceeds everything that | could
have expected. The half-the half was not
told me-"
Learn from this subject what beautiful
thing it is when social position and wealth
surrender themselves to God. When religion
comes to a neighborhood, the first to receive
1t are the women. Some men say it is be
cause they are weakmin1ed [ say it is b.
cause they have quicker perception of what
Is right, more ardent affection and capacity
for sublimer emotion. After the women
have received ths Gospel then all the dis
tressed and the poor of both sexes, those who
have no friends, accent Jesus. Last OF all
come the people of afflueace and high social
position. Alas, that it is 50,
If there are those here today who have
been favored OF fortune, or as | might bet
ter put it, favored OF God, surrender all you
have and all you expect to be to the Lord
VIM Oi7oosl buip ~ len Dl SDSD4. Cerua lHlV
you are not ashamed to be fouul in this
queens company. | am glad that Christ
has had His i'm srial friends in all ages -
Ehzabsth Christina, queen of Prussia; Maria
Feodorovna, queen o, Russia; Marie en-
press of France: Helena, the imperial moth
er of Constantine. Area Tia, from her great
fortunes building public baths in CONSTANT
nople and toidng for the alienation of the
masses; Queen Clotilda, leading her husban
and three thousand OF his armed warriors
to Christian baptism; Elizabeth, OF Burgua-
dy, giving her jewelej glove to beggar and
scattering great fortunes among the dis.
tresse ;: Prince Albert. singing Rock of
Ages" in Windsor castle, and Queen Victo-
ria, incognita, reading the Scriptures to a
dying paupsr
bless God that the day is coming when
royalty will bring all its thrones, ami music
all Its harmonies, AMI printing all its pic
lures, and sculpture all its statIary and
architecture all its pillars, and couqusst all
Its scepterS; aud tn queens of the earth, in
long line OF advance, frankincense filling the
air ami the clmels la leu with gllI, sh ali ap-
proach Jerusalem, AMI the gates shall b.
holsted, and the great burle1 OF spen Tor
shall b. liftei into the palace OF this grelter
than Solomon.
Again, my subject teaches me what is
earnestness in the search of trutl Do YOU
| know where Sheba was? 1t was in Abys-
| sina or some say in the southern part OF
Arabia Felix. In either case it was a great
way off from Jerusalem. To go from there
to Jerusalem she hal TO cross a country in
Tested with bandits and go across blistering
deserts. Why did not the Queen OF Sheba
stay at home and sen l a CON ,nittee to inquire
about this new religion, AMI have the dele