The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1895-10-04

| now. Summer weather Will come, ana
the garden will be very beautiful" But
the gardener comes and cuts the vine
here and there with his knife The
twigs begin to fall, and the grapevine
cries out: Murder What are You cut
ting me for?" "Ah," says the garden
er, II don't mean to kill you. If l did
not do this, you would be the laughing
stock of all the other vines before the
season is over" Months go ON, and one
day the gardener comes under the trel-
lis, where great clusters of grapes hang,
and the grapevine says: "Thank you,
sir. You could not have done anything
SO kind as to have cut me with that
knife. " "Whom the Lord loveth he
chasteneth. No pruning, no grapes !;
no grinding mill, no flour; no battle,
no victory; no cross, no crown.
So Gods way, in the redemption Of
the world, is different from ours. If we
had our way, we would have had Jesus
stand in the door of heaven and beckon
the nations up to light, or we would
have had angels flying around the earth
proclaiming the unsearchable riches Of
Christ. Why is it that the cause goes on
SO slowly? Why is it that the chains
stay on when God could knock them
off? Why do thrones of despotism stand
when God could so easily demolish
them? 1t is his way in order that all
generations may cooperate and that all
men may know they cannot do the work
themselves. Just in proportion as these
pyramids of sin 60 up in height will
they come down in ghastliness of ruin.
o thou father Of all iniquity! If
thou canst hear my voice above the
cracking of the flames, drive on thy
projects, dispatch thy emissaries, build
thy temples and forge thy chains, but
know that thy fall from heaven was not
greater than thy final overthrow shall
be when thou shalt be driven disarmed
into thy fiery den, and for every lie
thou hast framed upon earth thou shalt
have nm additional hell of fury poured
into thine anguish by the vengeance Of
our God, and all heaven shall shout at
the overthrow, as from the ransomed
earth the song breaks through the skies
"Halleluiah, for the Lord God omnipo-
tent reigneth Halleluiah, for the king
doms of this world have become the
kingdoms Of our Lord Jesus Christ I"
Gods way in the composition of the
Bible, Gods way in the Christians life,
Gods way in the redemption of the
world, Gods way in everything-differ-
ent from mans way, but the best.
I learn from this subject that the
overthrow of Gods enemies will be
sudden and terrific. There is the army
Of the Midianites down in the valley of
JezreeL I suppose their mighty men
are dreaming of victory. Mount Gilboa
never stood sentinel for so large host
The spears and the shields of the Mid
ianites CLEAN in the moonlight and
glance on the eye of the Israelites, who
hover like battle Of eagles, ready to
swoop from the cliff. Sleep on, O army
of the Midianites With the night to
hide them and the mountain to guard
them and strong arms to defend them,
let no slumbering foeman dream of dis
aster Peace to the captains and the
spearmen.
Crash go the pitchers Up faro--ffe
lamps To the mountainsl Fly, fly
Troop running against troop, thousands
trampling upon thousands. Hank to the
scream and groan of the routed foe,
with the Lord God Almighty after
them How sudden the onset How
wild the CONSERVATION How utter the
defeat / do not care so much what is
against me if God is not. You want a
better sword or carbine than have ever
seen to go out and fight against the
Lord Omnipotent. Give me God for my
ally, and you may have all the battle
ments and battalions
Hopeless Fighters.
I saw the defrauder in his splendid
house. 1t seemed as if he had conquered
God as he stood amid the blaze OF
chandeliers and pier mirrors. In the
diamonds of the wardrobe l saw the
tears of the widows whom he had rob-
bed and in the snowy satin the pallor OF
the white checked orphans whom he had
wronged. The blood of the oppressed
glowed in the deep crimson of the i'm
ported chair. The music trembled with
puO SOllOW VI uO1A' A1N' VAIN
wave of mirth dashed higher on reefs
of coral and pearl. The days and the
nights went merrilg. No sick child
dared pull that silver doorbell. No beg
gar dared sit on that marble step. Nc
voice of prayer floated amid that ia
pestry. No shadow of a Judgment day
darkened that fresco No tear of human
sympathy dropped upon that upholstery.
Pomp strutted the hall, and dissipation
filled her cup, and all seemed safe as
the Midianites in the valley of JezreeL
But God came. Calamity smote the
money market. The partridge left its
eggs Unmatched. Crash went all the
porcelain pitchers Ruin, rout, dismay
and woe in the valley of Jezreell
Alas for those who fight against God
Only two Sides Man immortal, which
side are you on? Woman immortal,
which side are you on? Do you belong
to the 300 that are going to win the day
or to the great host of Midianites asleep
in the valley, only to be reused up in
CONSERVATION and ruin? Suddenly the
golden bowl of life will be broken and
the trumpet blown that will startle our
soul into eternity. The day of the Lord
a,,,,o+I ne a tbiaf IN tho NIGHT ona a,