The Yale expositor., 1895-11-08

Nv last SUNDAY. Inc
W&N subject was 1.-THE
Disabled" the text
selected being: 1. Sam. 1924, "As his
part is that goeth down to the oatIie'
SO shall his part be that tarrieth by the
stuff"
If you have never seen an army
change quarters, you have no IDEA Oh
the amount of baggage-twenty loads'
hfty loads, hundred loads OF baggage
David and his army were about to start
on double-quick march for the recoV-
cry OF their captured families from the
Amalekites. So they left by the brook
Besor their blankets. their knapsacks'
their baggage. and their carriages. Who
shall be detailed to watch this stuit?
There are sick soldiers, and wounded
soldiers, and aged soldiers who are not
able to go on swift military eXpedi-
tlons, but who are able to do some
work, and so they are detailed to watch
the baggage. There is many soldier
who is not strong enough to march
thirty miles in a day and then plunge
into ten hours fight, who is able with
to pace up and down as a sentinel to
keep off an enemy who might put the
torch TO the baggage. There are two
hundred of those crippled and aged
and wounded soldiers detailed to watch
the baggage. Some of them, I suppose,
had bandages across the brow, and
some Of them had their arm in sling,
CANA 0f fhov, 'lra1 IN nrut rhag
They were not towards Sinking duty.
They had fought in many fierce bat
tie for their country and their God.
They are now part of the time in hos
pital. and part OF the time on garrison
duty. They almost cry because they
cannot go with the other troops to the
front. While these sentinels watch the
baggage. the Lord watches the sentinels
! There is quite a different scene being
enacted in the distance. The Amale-
kites, having ravaged and ransacked
and robbed whole countries. are cele-
brating their success in roaring ca
rousal. Some of them are dancing on
the lawn with wonderful gyration OF
heel and toe, and some Of them are ex-
amining the spoils of victory-the fin
ger-rings and earrings, the necklaces.
the wristlets, the headbands, diamond
starred, and the Golfers with coronets.
and carnelians, and pearls, and sap
phires. and emeralds, and all the wealth
of plate. and jewels, and decanters, and
the silver and the gold banked up on
the earth In princely profusion. and the
iembroideries, and the robes, and the
nurbans. and the cloaks of an imperial
wardrobe The banquet has gone on
until the banqueters are maudlin and
weak and stupid and indecent and
handsomely drunk. What time it is
now for David and his men to sweep
ION them. So the English lost the bat
tie of Bannockburn, because the night
lhefore they were in wassail and bibu-
lions celebration, while the Scotch were
In prayer. So the Syrians were over
thrown in their carousal by the Israel
ties So Cherdorlaomer and his army
,vere overthrown in their carousal by
Abraham and his men. So, in our Civil
rVar. more than once the battle was lost
'hecause one of the generals was drunk.
!Nov is the time for David and his men
Ia swoop upon these carousing Amale-
kites. Some of the Amalekites are
hacked to pieces on the spot, some OF
Them are Just able to so staggering and
biccoughing off the field, some of them
crawl on camels and speed off in the
distance. David and his men gather to-
qethar the wardrobes, the jewels, and
nut them upon the back OF camels, and
into wagons, and they gather together
the sheep and cattle that had been
stolen. and start back toward the gar
rison. Yonder they come, yonder they
l.ome. The limping men of the garri-
son come out and greet them with wild
lhuzza. The Bible says David caluted
them. That is, he asked them how they
all were. How is your broken arm?"
"How is your fractured jaw" HAS
the stiffened limb been unlimbered?"
"Haye you had another chilli" Are
YOU getting better?" He saluted them.
But now came very difficult thing.
the distribution OF the spoils of vie
tory. Drive up those laden camels now.
Who shall have the spoils? Well, some
selfish soul suggests that these treas
ures ought all to belong to those who
had been out in active service. I'VE did
all the fighting while these men stayed
at home in the garrison. and we ought
TO have all the treasures" But David
looked into the worn faces of these vet
Grams who had stayed in the garrison,
and he looked around and saw how
cleanly everything had been kept, and
he saw that the baggage was all safe.
and he knew that these wounded and
crippled men would gladly enough have
been at the front II they had been able,
and the little general looks up from I'M
der his helmet and says: mo. no. let
us have fair play" and he rushes up to
one OF these men and he says. Hold
your hands together" and the hands
are held together, and he fills them
with silver. And he rushes up to an
other man who was sitting away back
and had no idea OF getting any Of the
spoils, and throws a Babyionish gar
ment over him and fills his hand with
gold. And he rushes up to another man
who had lost all bis property in serving