Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1895-06-12
REV. DR.. TaLuaGE.
rhe Brooklyn Divine's Sunday
Sermon.
Subject: "The Greatest Soldier oj
All Time.o

In the Emburv Memorial Church, BrooR.
iyn, large audience listened to the annual
sermon OF Chaplain T. De Witt Talmage. OF
members OF the regiment occupied the body
OF the church. DIR. Talmage chose for his
subject "rhe Greatest Soldier OF ALI
Time" the text being: "There shall not any
Of thy ylife."-Joshua l., s.
The "Sallant Thirteenth as this reg
iment Is generally and appropriately called
has gathered tonight FOR the worship ol
God and 10 hear the annual sermon. And
nrst l look with hearty salutation into tha
In active service, have the same patriotic and
military enthusiasm which characterized
them when, In 1863, they bade farewell to
home and loved ones and started for the
Held and risked all they held dear on earth
for the re- establishment of the falling United
will he give for his lfe," and you showed
yourselves willing to give your lives. We
hail you! We thank you! We bless YOU. the
veterans Of tho Thirteenth. Nothing can
ever rob you Of the honor Of having been
soldiers in one Of the most tremendous war;
OF all history, war with Grant and Sherman
and Hancock and Sheridan and Farragut on
one side, and Lee and Stonewall Jackson and
| Longssreet and Johnston on the other.
As IN Greek assemDlaSes, when speaker
would arouse the audience, they shouted
"Marathon!" so If wanted to stir YOU to sc-
olamation would only nsed to speak the
words. Lookout Mountain," "Chancellors-
Vile, "Gettysburg." Aud though through
the passage OF years you are forever free
from duty Of enlistment, il European nations
should too easily and too quickly forget the
Monroe doctrine and set aggressive foot upon
/ this continent think your ankles would be
supple again. and your arms would grow
strong again, and your eyes would be keen
| enough to follow the stars Of the old faa
wherever they might lead.
| And next greet the colonel and his stan
| and all the officers and men Of this regiment
Il has been an evantful year in your history:
II never before, Brooklyn appreciates some
| thing Of the value OF its armories, and the
| Importance Of the men who there drill for
| the defense and safety of the city, The
blessing of God be upon all of you, my com.
| rades OF the Thirteenth Regiment! And
| looking about for a subject that might be
| most helpful and inspiring for you, and our
veterans here assembled, and the citizens
gathered tonight with their good wishes,
| have concluded t. hold up before you the
greatest soldier OF all time-Joshua the hero
Of my text.
He was magnificent fighter, but he al
ways fought on the right side, and he nsve
| fought unless God told him to fight. In my
| text he gets his military equipment and one
| would think 1t must have been plumed hel.
| feet, habergeon for the breast. "Thers shall
not any man be able to stand before thee all
the days Of thy life." "Oh." you say, "any-
body could have courage with such back.
ing up as that" Why, my friends, have to
| tell you that the God Of the universe and the
Chieftain OF eternity promises to do Just as
much for US as for him. All the resources Of
| eternity are pledged In our behalf, If we 20
out In the service of God, and no more than
that was offered to Joshua. God fulfilled this
promise Of my text, although Joshua's first
battle was with the spring freshet, and the
on regiment Of whipped towards, and the
next battle against darkness, wheeling the
sun and the moon into his battalion, and the
last against the king OF terrors, DEATH Vi
great victories.
For the most part, when the general of Al
army starts out in Q conflict he would like
to have small battle In order that he NAV get
his courage up and he may rally his troops
and get them drilled for greater conflicts,
but this first undertaking Of Joshua was
the laundering down Of Gibraltar, or the
overthrow OF the Bastile. 1t was the crossing
OF the Jordan At the time Of the spring
ireshet. The SHOWS Of Mount Lebanon had
lust been melting, and they poured down
Into the valley, and the whole valley was q
raging torrent. 30 the Canaanites stand on
ono bank, and they look across and see
Joshua and the Israelitss, and they laugh
and say: "Aha! aha! They cannot disturb
us until the freshets fall. 1t Is impossible
for them to reach u.s." But after awhile they
look. look across e. @ the water, and they see move
"what's the matter now? Why, there must
be panic among these troops, and they are
going to fly, or perhaps they are going to
try to march across the river Jordan. Joshua
is lunatic." But Joshua, tho chieftain OF
the text, looks at his army and cries, "For-
ar QYf for fhA han
of the Jordan.
One mile ahead go two priests, carrying 4
glittering box four feet long and two feet
wide. 1t is the ark Of the covenant. And
they come down, and no sooner do they
Just touch the rim Of the water with theil
The army OF Joshua marches right on with
out getting their feet wet over the bottom OF
the river, path Of chalk and broken shells
and pebbles, until they get to the other bank.
Then they lay hold Of tho oleander. and
tamsrisks and willows and pull themselves
up bank thirty or forty feet high, and hav.
ing gained the other bank they clap theil
shields and their cymbals and sing the
praises Of tho God sf Joshua.
But no sooner have they reached the bsnl
than tho waters begin to dash and roar, and
with . terrific rush they break loose from
their strange anchorage. Out yonder they
have stopped; thirty miles up yonder they
halted. On this side the waters roll OF
toward the salt sea. But As the hand of the |
Lord God Is taken away from the thus ups |
lifted waters-waters perhaps uplifted half d I
mile-as the Almighty hand is taken away
those waters rush down, and some Of the un. |
believing Isrselites say: ''Alas, alas, what |
misfortune! Why could not those waters |
have stayed parted? Because, perhaps, we
may want to go back. Oh, Lord, We are en-
may eat us up. How II we want to go back2
Would It not have been a moro complete
miracle II the Lord had parted the waters to
let US come through and kept them parted
TO let US go back II We are defested?" Ny
friends, God makes no provision for =
all the way to Canaan. To go back Is to die.
Tho same gatekeepers that swing back the
smethystine and crystalline gate of the
Jordan to let Israel pass through now swing
shut tho amethystine and crystalline gate OF
the Jordan to keep the Israelites from going
back. declare 1t in your hearing to-day.
victory ahead, water forty feet deep in the
rear. Triumph ahead, Canaan ahead, be,
hind you death and darkness and woe and
hell. But you say, why didn't thoss
on the top OF the bank
thirty or forty Ieet nigh-compaeteiy oe-
molish those poor Braelties down In ths
river?" will tell you why. God had made
, promise, and He was going to keep it. I
''Tnero shall not any man be able to stand .
octOIo tue0 Au tuo DAYS OI tny llIc.
But this Is no place for the host to stop
Joshua gives the command, Forward,
In tho distance there Is . long
grove Of trees, and at tho end Of the grove b
, city. 1t Is . city of arbors, city with
walls seeming to reach to the heavens, to
buttress the very sky. It is the great metro
polls that commands the mountain pass. Il
Is Jericho. That city was afterward captured
by Pompey, and it was afterward captured
by Herod tho Great, and it was afterward
captured by the Mohammedsns, but this cam,
paign the Lord plans. There shall be nc
swords. NO shields. NO batterine ram. Their.
han DO only one weapon of war, and that q
rams horn. Tho horn Of the slain ram was
sometimes taken and holes were punctu, ed
In 1t, and then the musician would put thu
to his lips, and he would run his
fingers over this rude musical instrument, and
make great deal Of sweet harmony for the
people. That was the only kind of weapon.
Seven priesta were to take these rude rustic