Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1894-06-01
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S SUN
DAY SERMON.
The Subject: 'FRecovered Families
preached at Little Rock, Ark.).

were with him lifted up their voice and wept
until they had no moro power to weep.
David recovered alI."-I Samuel Xxx.
4,19
There is intense excitement In the village
Of Ziklag. David and his men are bidding
goodby to their families and are of for the
wars. In that little village of Ziklag the de-
fenseless ones will be safe until the warriors
flushed with victory come home. But will
the defenseless ones be safe? The soft arms
Of children are around the necks Of the
bronze warriors until they shake themselves
free and start, and handkerchiers and flags
are waved and kisses thrown until the armed
men vanish beyond the hills. David and his
men soon get through with their campaign
and start hOmeward. Every night on their
way home no sooner does the soldier put his
head on the knapsack than in his dream he
hears the welcome Of the wife and the shout
fthe child.
Oh, what long stories they will have to tell
their families of how they lodged the bat
tleaX, and then will roll up their sleeve and
show the half healed wound. With glad,
! quick step, they march on, David and his
| men, for they are marching home. Now they
| come ap to the last hill which overlooks Zik-
| lag, and they expect in moment to see the
| dwelling places of their loved ones. They
| look, and as they look their cheek turns pale,
and their lip quivcrs, and their hand inYol-
unfairly comes down on tho hilt Of the
sword. "Where is Ztllag? Where are our
| hOmesY' they cry. Alas, the curling smoke
above the ruin tells the tragedy!
The Amaiekites have come down and con-
sumed tho village and carried the mothers.
| and the wives, and the chiIdren Of David and
| his men into captivity. The sWarthy war
riors stand fora few moments transnxod with
horror. Then their eyes glance to each
other, and they burst into uncomfortable
weeping, for whom 4 strong warrior weepS
the grief is appalling. 1t seoms as if the
| ion NI,-t,S l.
''wept untilthey had nCmore power to weep"
But soon their sorrow turns into rage, and
David, swinging his sword high in air, cries,
| Pursue, for thou shalt overtake them, and
| without fail recover ALL" Now the march
| becomes "dOuble quick" Two hundred Of
| David's men stop by the brook BesOr, faint
with fatigue and grief. They cannot go
step farther. They are left there. But the
| other 400 men under David, with q sort Of
| panther step, march on in sorrow and in
! rage. They find by the side of the road q half
| dead Egyptian, and they resuscitate him and
| compel him to tell the whole story. He says,
| ''YOnder they went, the captor5 and the cap
| tives," pointing in the direction. Forward,
! ye 400 brave men of fire!
Very soon David and his enraged company
| come upon the Amalekitish host Yonder
| they see their own wives and children and
! mothers, and under Amalezitish guard. Here
| are the officers of the Amalekttish army hold
| ing a banquet The cups are full the music
| is reused the dance begins. The Amalekit-
| ish host cheer and cheer and cheer over their
| victory. But, without note of bugle or warn
! ing OF trumpet, David and his 400 men burst
! upon the scene. David and his men look up,
! and one glance at their loved ones in captiv-
| ity and under Amalekitish guard throws
! them into a very fury Of determination, for
! you know how men will fight when they fight
! for their wives and children. Ah, there are
! liShtnings in their eye, and every finger is a
| spear, and their voice Is like the shout OF the
| whirlwiad! Amid the upset tankar1s and
! the costly viands crushed underfoot, the
| wounded Amalckites lie, their blood min
! Cling with their wine shriezing for
mercy. No sooner do David and his men
win the victory than they throw their swords
! down into the dnst-what do they want with
| swords nOW?-anl the broken families come
| together amid n great shout of JOY that
| makes the parting scene in Ziklag seem very
| inspid in the comparison. The rough Old
| warrior has to use some persuasion before
he can get his child to come to him now
after so long an absence, but soon the little
finger traces tho familiar wrinkle across the
SCARED face. And then the empty tankards
are set up. and they are filled with the best
| wine from the hills, and David and his men,
the husbands, the wives, the brothers, the
! sisters, drink to the overthrow of the
| Amaleliites and to the rebuilding of Ziklag.
So, o Lord, lot Thine enemies perish
Now they are coming home, David and
HIS men anu Iuelr luInlllSS-t long pro-
cessiOn. Men, women and children, loaded
with Jewels and robes and with all kinds oi
trophies that the Amalekites had gathered
up in years of cOnquest-everything now IN
the hands of David and his men. Wher
they come by the brook BesOr, the placf
where staid the men sick and incompetent
to travel, the jewels and the robes and al
kinds of treasures are divided among the
sick as we'll as among the well. Surely the
lame and exhausted ought to have some oi
the treasures. Here IS q robe for a pale
faced warrior. Here IS a pillow for this
dying man. Here is a handful of gold foi
the wasted trumpeter. [ really think that
these men who tainted by the brook BesOl
may have endured rs much as those men
who went into the battle. Some mean fel
lows objected to the sick ones having any o
the spOils. The ObiectDrs said, "TheSe men
did not fight" DAVID. with amagnanimou:
heart, replies, Gas his part is that goett
down to the battle, so shall his part be that
tarrieth by the stuff"
This SUBJECTS practically suggestive to IL"
Thank God, in these times a man can 80 of
on a journey and be gone weeks and months
and come back and see his house untouche1
of inccndiary and have his family on the
step to greet him if by telegram he has fore
told the moment of his coming. But there
are Amalekitish disasters, thero are Amale-
kitish diseases that sometimes comes down
upon ones home, making rs devastating
work as the day when Ziklag took fire.
There are families you represent broken up.
No batterinS ram smOte in the door, nc
| icOnOcast crumbled the statues, no fl ans
leapod amid the curtains, but so far rs al
the Joy and merriment that once belonged
to that house are concerned the home has
departed.
Armed diseases came down upon the qui
etnCss of the scene-scariet fevers or pleu-
risies or consumptions or underlined disor
derS came and seized upon some member
OF that family and carried them away. Xix
lag in ashes And you go about, sometime
weeping and sometimes enraged, wanting tC
get back your loved ones as much as DaviC
and his men WantCd to reconstruct thei
despoiled households. Ziklag in ashes
Some of you went off from home. 1o1
counted tho days OF your absence. Ever
day seemed as long as a week. Oh, hoy
glad you were when the time came for yo
to go aboard the steamboat or railroad an
start for home! You arrived. You wen
up the street where Your dwelling was, an
i'll the night you put your hand on th
dOOrbell, and, behold it was wrapped wit
the signal OF bereavement. ana you toun
that Amalakitish death, which has deVaS
tated thousand other households, ha
blasted yours. You go about weeping ami
the desolation of your once happy hom'
thinking OF the bright eyes closed, and tn
noble hearts stopped, and the gentle hant
folded, and you weep until you have Z
more power to weep. Ziklag in ashes
A gentleman went to friend of mine
the city of Washington and asked tht
through him he might get consulship
some foreign port. My friend said to hin
"What do you want to go away from yo1
beautiful home for into foreign port
'.Oh," he replied, "my home is gone!
six children are dead. I must get away, 81
can't stand 1t in this country any longer
Ziklag in ashes
Why these long shadows OF bereaveme
across this audience? Why is it that IN a
most every assemblage black is the predon
inant color of the apparel? Is 1t because yo
do not like saffron or brown or violet! %
no! You say "The world is not so brig
to US as once l. was" and thee is a story
silent voices, and of still feet, and OF love
ones gone, and when you look over the hii
expecting only beauty and loveliness &c
find only devastation and woe. Ziklag
| ashes