Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1895-06-26
NO. %

1 In0 6XClLem6nt Oh tne IlEt tne Two pdrtbus an
the first and second decades OF dvy were FOL
ever lost. Pliny wrote twenty books Of hi.
tory. All lost. The most Of Menander'
writings lost. OF 100 comedies Of Plautu
all gone but twenty. Euriptdes wrote 10
| dramas. all gone but nineteen. Eschlyu
wrote roo dramas, all gone but seven. VAN
wrote the laborious biographies of TOO Ro
| his favorite book on the corruption OF elo
| quence, all lost. Thirty books Of Tactitu
lost. Dion Cassius wrote eighty books, onl
twenty remain. BerosiuS's history all Lost
Nearly all the old books are mummifle,
and are lying in the tombs OF old Libraries
snd perhaps once In twenty years some mai
someS along and picks up one OF them Ant
blows the dust of and opens it and finds
she book he does not want. But this ol,
book. much OF it forty centuries old. stand
today more discussed than any other book,
and it challenges the admiration OF all the
good S1G the spite and the venom, and the
animosity, and the hypercriticism of earth
and hell. 1 appeal to your common sense II
4 book 50 divinely guarded and protected In
its present shape must not be In just the way
that God wants 1t to come to US. and IL II
pleases God ought it not to please US?
Not only have all the attempts to detract
from the book failed, but all the attempts to
add to it. Many attempts were made 70 add
the apochryphal books to the Old Testament.
the bishops OF Hippo, all decided that the
apochryhal books must be added to the Old
Testament. "They must stay In, ;" said those
learned men. but they staid out. There Is
not an intelligent Christian man that to-day
will put the book Of Maccabees or the book
OF Judith beside the book OF Isaiah OF
Romans. Then great many said, 1--WE
must have books added to the New Testa-
ment," and there were epistles and gos-
pels and apocalypses written and added
to the New Testament, but they have all
fallen out. You cannot add anything. You
cannot substract anything. Divinely pro-
tected book in the present shape. Let no
man dare to lay his hands on It with the in
ention Of detrarting from the book or cast
nG out any of these holy pages.
Besides that i am opposed to this expurga
don Of the Scriptures because II the attempt
were successful. it would be the annihilation
Of the Bible. Infdel geologists would say,
"Out with the Book Of Genesis;" tnfldel as
tronomers would say, "Ont with the Book
Of Joshua;" people who do not believe in
the atoninS sacrifice would say, "Out with
the Book of Leviucus;' people who do not
believe in the miracles would say, "Out with
all those wonderful stories in the Old and
New Testament; and some would say,
"Out with the Book OF Revelation;" and
others would say, "Out with the entire Pen
.ateuch," and the work would go on until
there would not be enough OF the Bible let
10 be worth as much as last years almanac.
The expurcation OF the Scriptures means
heir annihilation.
1 an also opposed to this proposed expur-
sation OF the Scriptures for the fact that In
proportion US the people become self-sacri-
1cinS and good and holy and consecrated,
they like the book as il is. have yet to find
! man or a woman distinguished for self
Iacrifice, for conservation to God, for holi.
hess Of life, who wants the Bible changed.
Many OF us have inherited family Bibles.
Those Bibles were in use twenty, forty, fifty,
perhaps 100 years in the generations. To-
lay take down those family Bibles, and find
,ut il there are any chapters which have
been erased by lead pencil or pen, and II in
my margins you can find the words, "This
,hapter not fit to real" There has been
plenty Of opportunity during the last half
century privately to expurgats the Bible.
Do You know any case OF such expurgation?
Did not your grandfather give II to your
iather, and did not your father give it to
rou?
Besides that am opposed to the ex.
,urSation OF the Scriptures, because the So
,alled indelicacies and cruelties OF the Bible
lave demonstrated no evil result cruel
book will produce cruelty. An unclean book
will produce uncieanness. Fetch me vic
I'm. Out OF all Christendom and out OF all
he ages fetch me victim whose heart has
)een hardened to cruelty or whose life has
,een made impure by this book. Show me
)ne. One OF the best families I ever knew
,vening, had all the members gathered to-
sether, and the servants Of the household,
and the strangers that happened TO be within
he gates-twice day, without leaving out
; chapter or verse, they read this holy
,ook, morning by morning. night by night.
Got only the older children, but the littla
,hild who could Just spell her way through
Ia Jrbila her rDOfhar halpeI hpr
ather beginning and reading one verse and
hen all the members OF the family In turn
reading verse. The father maintained his
integrity, the mother maintained her integ-
ity, the sons grew up and entered pro-
,essions and commercial life, adorning every
sphere in the life in which they lived, and
he daughters went into famihes where
Christ was honored, and all that was good
and pure and righteous reigned perpetually.
For thirty years that family endured the
scriptures. Not one OF them ruined by
hem.
Now, If you will tell me OF family where
he Bible has been read twice day for thirty
Fears, and the children have been brought
Up in that habit, and the father went to
ruin, and the mother went to ruin, and the
IONS and daughters were destroyed by it
you will tell me Of one such incident,
will throw away my Bible or I will doubt
FOUR veracitv. Itellyou il a man is shocked
Will Wldl ub CdliS Oh tl9
word of God he Is prurient in his taste and
II man cannot read Solo
Hon's Song without impure suggestion, he
g either in his heart or in his life libertine.
The Old Testament description OF wicked
iess. uncleanness OF all sorts, Is
ourposely and righteously disgust
ng account, instead OF the Byronic
md the Partisan vernacular, which makes
fn attractive instead of appalling. When
hose old prophets point you to a lazaretto,
tou understand it is a lazaretto. When a
nan having begun % 90 ttyht fSzfs bssk into
EickedneSs and gives up his integrity, the
Bible does not say he was overcome by the
ascinations of the festive board, or that he
surrendered to conviviaiities, or that he be-
ahne a little fast in hts habits. I will tell
rou what the Bible says, "Ihe dog is turned
o his own vomit again and the SOW that was
washed to her wallowing in the mire." No
Riding of iniQuity. No garlands on deaths
lead. No pounding away with a silver mall
ct at iniquty when It needs an iron sledge
lammer.
I can easily understand how people brood
ng over the description Of uncleannesF in
he Bible may get morbid In mind until they
ire as full of it as the wings, and the beak,
md the nostril, and the claw OF a buzzard
ne full Of the odors Of carcass, but what
b wanted is not that the Bible be disinfect-
NJ, but that you, the critic, have your mind
md heart washed with carbolic acid.
/ tell you at this point in my discourse
fRt man who does not like this book, and
who Is critical as to its contents, and who ID
ihocked and outraged with its descriptions,
>as never been soundly converted. The lay
ng on OF the hands OF presbytery or epis-
.opacy does not always change a mans
,earr, and men sometimes get into the pub
pit. as well as into the pew, never having
oeen changed radically by the sovereign
grace of God. Get your heart right and the
Bible will be right. The trouble is mems
natures are not brought into harmony with
the word OF God. All, my friends. expurga-
non of the heart is what is wanted.
SANDER is the revenge of coward,
ard discrimination his defence.
One says, "There are people who
are encyclopedias of everything thai