Democratic messenger., 1894-01-20
MOTHERS IN ISRAEL.
REV. DR. TALMAGe'S ELOQUENT SEa-
MON AND UNIQUE TEXT.


MON AND UNIQUE TEXT.
How sisera Was Killed by Jacl-The Hat
News brought Ia Ills Mother-SittIng nj
the Palace WIndow-A Euiogy of tn.
NeedIe-AnxIous Mothers.
BROOKLYN, Jan. 14.-This novel and
unique subject was presented by DIR.
Talmage this forenoon To the usual
;hrongs crowiing the largest Protestant
'hurch in America. The congregation.
led by organ and cornct. sang a gospel
hymn to the tune Of Home. Sweet
Home Text. Judges V. :s. The
mother of Sisera looked out mt win.
dow.
Spiked to the ground IF .Iael's tent
lay the dead commander i'm chief of the
Canaanitish hest. General Sisera. not
far from the river Kishon. which was
only dry bed of pebbles when in 1889.
in Palestine. we crossed it. hut the gul
lies and ravines which ran into il indi-
Gated the possibility of great freshets
like the one at the time of the text.
General Sisera had gone ont with 800
iron chariots. Int he was defeated. and,
his chariot wheels intcrlocked with the
wheels of other chariots. he could not
retreat fast enough, and SO he lcaped ia
the ground and ran till. exhausted. he
went into .Dael's tent for safety. She
had Just been churning. and when he
asked for water she gave him butter
milk. which in the east is considered n
most refreshing drink. Very tired. and
surprising he was safe. he went to sleep
upon the floor. hut .Jael, who had re-
solved upon his death. took tent pm.
long and round and sharp. in one hand
and hammer in her other hand. and,
putting the sharp end Of the tent pin 10
the forehead Of Sisera. with her other
hand she lifted the hammer and
brought il down on the head of the pin
with a stout stroke. when Sisera strug-
gled To rise. and she struck him again.
and he struggled to rise, and the third
time she struck him. and the command
er in chief of the Canaanitish host lay
dead
MEANING OF THE TENT.
Meanwhile in the distance Sisera q
mother sits amid surroundings of wealth
and pomp and scenes palatial waiting
for his return. Every mother expects
her son to he victorious. and this moth
er looked out mt the window expecting
to see him drive mp in his chariot fol-
lowed by wagons loaded with embroid-
cries and also 10y regiments of men van
quished and enslaved. | see her now
sitting at the window. in high expecta-
tion. She watches the farthest turn of
the road. She looks for the flying dust
of the swift hoofs. The first flash of
the bit of the horses bride she will
catch.
The ladies of her court stand round.
and she tells them Of what they shall
have when her son comes up-chains of
gold and carcanets Of beauty and dresses
of such wondrous fabric and splendor
as the Bible only hints at. but leaves MS
to imagine. He ought to he here by
this time, says his mother. THAT hat
tie is surely over. hope that fl'cshet
of the river kishon has not impedeti
him. ! hope those strange appearances
we saw last night in the sky were not
ominous. when the stars seemed to fight
in their courses. No! No! He is so brave
in battle ! know he has won the day.
He will soon he here But alas for the
disappointed mother! She will not see
fha .,l,tt.r;u.r hauI.,oar .,f kb., bnra..s AZ
full gallop bringing her son home from
victorious hattie. As solitary mes
senger arriving in hot haste rides up 10
the window at which the mother of Sis
era sits. he cries. Your armies are de-
feate,l. and your son is dead. There is a
scene of horror and anguish from which
we turn away.
Now you sec the full meaning Of my
short text. The mother Of Sisera look
ed ont at n window" Well. my friends,
we are all ont in the battle of life; il
is raging now. and the most of us have
"A mother watching and waiting for news
of our victory or defeat. IL she be not
sitting at the window Of earth. she is
sitting at window Of heaven. and she
,s going 10 hear all about it.
BY all the rules of war Sisera ought
to have been triumphant. He had 900
iron chariots and n host Of many thou
snnds vaster than the armies OF Israel.
But God was on the other side, and the
angry freshets of Kishon. and the hail.
the lightning and the unmanageable
warehouses;. and the capsized chariots
and the stellar panic in the sky discom-
tited Sisera. Josephus in his history
describes the scene in the following
words: When they were come To a
close fight. there came down from heav-
en- great storm with a vast quantity
of rain and hail. and the wind blew the
rain in the face of the Canaanites and
so darkened their eyes their arrows and
slings were of no advantage TO them,
nor would the coliness of the air permit
the soldiers to make use of their swords.
while this storm did not so much in
commo,le the lsraelites because il came
on their backs. They also took such
courage upon the apprehension that God
was assisting them that they fell upon
slew great number Of them. so that
some Of them fell by the lsraelitcs. some
fell by their own horses which were put
into disorder. and not few were killed
by their own chariots.
Hence, my hearers, the bad news
brought to the mother of Sisera looking
ont at the window. And our mother.
whether sitting at window of earth
sr Il window of heaven. will hear the
news Of omr victory or defeat not ac-
cording 10 our talents or educational
equipment - our opportunities. but ac-
cOiding as a. whether God is for us OF
against us.
Where's MOTHER ia the question
most frequently asked in many house
holds. II is asked by the husband as
well as the child coming in at nightfall,
Where's mother" II is asked by the