Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1893-01-12
AMONG THE CENTURIES,
THE BROOKLYN DlVINE'S ELO-
QUENT DISCOURSE.
The Chronology OF the Bible, or God
Among the CenturieS--The
Distinction Between Time
and acknowledgements
allty as Virtue.

DR.. Talmage appropriately took for
the subject for his New Years Day
sermon 1.-The Chronology OF the Bible,
or God Among the Centuries"
We make distinction between time
and eternity, but time is only piece
OF eternity, and chronology has been
engaged in the sublime work OF divid
ing up this portion OF eternity that
we call time into compartments, and
putting events in their right compart-
ment. 1t is as much an injustice
against the past to wrongly arrange
its events, as it would be an injustice
if, through neglect OF chronological &C
curacy, it should. in the far distant
future, be said that America was dis
covered in 177G, and the Declaration
OF Independence was signed in 1892,
and Washington was born on the 22d
of March, and the civil war OF the
United States was fought in 1910. AS
God puts all the events OF time in the
right place, let us be careful that we
do not put them in the wrong
place. The chronology OF the Bible
takes six steps, but they are steps SO
long, it makes us hold our breath as
we watch the movement. From Adam
to Abraham. From Abraham to the
foundation OF Solomon's Temple.
From the foundation of Solomon's
Temple to the destruction OF that
Temple. From the destruction OF the
Temple to the return from Babylonish
captivity. From Babylonish captiv-
ity to the birth OF Christ. Chro-
nology takes pen and pencil, and call
ing astronomy and history to help,
says: "Let us fix one event, from
which to calculate everything. Let it
be star the Bethlehem star, the
Christmas star" And from that we
90 back and see the world was created
4O04 years before Christ, the deluge
came 234S years before Christ, the
exodus out OF Egypt occurred 1491
years before Christ, and Solomon's
Temple was destroyed $50 years be-
fore Christ. Chronology enters the
first chapter OF Genesis and says the
day mentioned there is not a day OF
twenty-four hours but OF ages the
word there translated as day" in
other places meaning ages, and so the
Bible account of the creation and the
biologists account OF the creation are
completely harmonious. Chronology
enters the book of Daniel, and says
that the words time and a half'
mean a year and a half. Chronology
enters at another point and shows
us that the seasons OF the year were
then only tws-summer and winter.
We find that the Bible year was $50
days, instead of 365; that the day
was calculated from g O'Clock in the
morning to = o'clock at night; that
the night was divided into four watch
es, namely, the late watch, the mid
night, the cock-crowing, the early
watch. The clock and watch were in
vented so long after the world began
their mission that the day was not
very sharply divided in Bible times.
1t was not until the fourteenth CEN
tury that the almanac was born, the
almanac that we toss carelessy about,
not realizing that it took the accumu-
lated ingenuity OF more than 5000
years to make one. Chronology had to
bring into its service the monuments
OF Egypt, and the cylinders a Assyria.
Think it must have been in recogni-
ton OF the stupendous work OF max
ing an almanac that all the days OF
the week are named after the gods.
Sunday after the sun, which was OF
old worshipped as a god; Monday al
ter the moon, which was also wor-
shipped as q god. Tuesday after
Tuesco. the god OF war. Wednesday
after Wooden, the chief god OF the
Scandinavians. Thursday after
Thor, the god OF thunder, Friday
after Frea, the goddess of Marriage
And Saturday after Saturn.
1t is something to thank God for
that the MODES are SO complete for
calculating the cycles, the centuries,
the decades, the years, the months,
the days, the hours, the seconds.
Think Of making appointments, as in
the Bible days, Tor the time OF the new
moon. Think of making one of the
watches OF the night in Bible times q
ROSTERS Growing. The Bible says,
"Before the cock crow thou shalt
deny me thrice'; I'll the Master
cometh at cock growing" and that
IlIC way ltlC lllldlllSllC Nc1CCll " tIo
indicated. The growing OF that barn
yard bird @has always been most I'M
certain. The Growing is at the lowe
temperature OF the night, and the
amount of dew and the direction of
the wind may bring the lowest TEN
perature at IL o'clock at night or 2
o'clock in the morning, and at any
one OF six hours. just before rain
the Growing of chanticleer in the night
is almost perpetual.
But, notwithstanding all the imper-
feet modes OF marking hours or years
or centuries, Bible chronology never
trips up, never faters, never contra
diets itself, and here is one OF the best
arguments for the authenticity OF the
Scriptures. If you can prove an alibi
in the courts, and you can prove be-
You'd doubt that you were in some
particular place at the time you were
charged with doing or Saying some
thing quite another place. you gain
the victory, and i:,hdel!ty has tried
81; ,..,,.,~1;,,, bot