The Yale expositor., 1895-05-31

thirty miles up yonder they halted. On
this side the waters roll off toward the
salt sea. But as the hand of the Lord
God Is taken away from the thus up
lifted waters-waters perhaps uplifted
half a mile-as the Almighty hand is
taken away, those waters rush down,
and some of the unbelieving Israelites
say: ALIAS, alas, what q misfortune!
Why could not those waters have
stayed parted? Because per-
haps we may want to so
back. Oh. Lord. we are engaged
In a risky business Those Canaanites
may eat us up. How IL we want to go
back? Would II not have been a more
complete miracle If the Lord had part
ed the waters to let US come through
and kept them parted to let us go back
If we are defeated?" My friends, God
makes no provision for a Christians
retreat. He clears the path all the way
to Canaan. To go back is to die. The
same gatekeepers that swing back the
amethystine and crystalline gate Of the
Jordan to let Israel pass through, now
swing shut the amethystine and crys-
talline gate of the Jordan to keep the
Israelites from going back. / declare II
in your hearing to-day. victory ahead.
water forty feet deep in the rear. Tri-
umph ahead, Canaan ahead; behind
you death and darkness and woe and
hell. But you say: why didn't those
Canaanites. when they had such
splendid demonstrating on top OF
the bank thirty or forty feet high, COM
pletely demolish those poor Israleites
down in the river 1 will tell you why.
God had made a promise and he was
going to keep it. There shall not any
man be able to stand before thee all
the days of thy life"
But this is no place for the host 10
stop. Joshua gives the command,
Forward, march, In the distance
there is long grove Of trees, and at
the end Of the grove is a city. 1t is
city OF arbors, a city with walls SEEM
ing to reach to the heavens, to buttres
the very sky. 1t is the great metropo-
lis that commands the mountain pass.
1t is Jericho. That city was afterward
captured by Pompey, and 1t was after
ward captured by Herod the Great,
and IL was afterward captured by the
Mohammedans; but this campaign the
Lord plans. There shall be no swords,
no shields, no battering ram. There
shall be only one weapon of war, and
slain ram was sometimes taken and
holes were punctured in 1t, and then
the musician would put the instrument
to his lips. and he would run his fin
gers over this rude musical instrument.
and make n great deal of sweet har-
mony for the people. That was the
only kind of weapon. Seven priests
were TO take these rude rustic musical
instruments. and they were TO go
around the city every day for six days
once a day for six days, and then IN
the seventh day they were to go around
blowing these rude musical instruments
seven times, and then at the close Of
the seventh blowing OF the rams horns
on the seventh day the peroration of
the whole scene was to be shout at
which those great walls should tumble
from capstone to base.
Joshua's troops may not halt here.
The command is: Forward, march!"
| There is the city of All II must be TAX
en-. How shall ii be taken? a scouting
| party comes back and says: Joshua,
we can do that without you; ii is going
| to be a very easy job; you Just stay
/ here while we go and capture It," They
| march with small regiment in front
of that city The men of Al look at them
and give one yell and the Israelites run
! like RENDERS. The northern troops at
Bull Run did not make such rapid time
/ as these Israelites with the Canaanites
| after them. They never cut such a sorry
| figure as when they were on the re-
| treat Anybody that goes out in the
| battles Of God with only half n force.
| instead OF your taking the men of Al
| the men Of Al will take you Look at the
| church Of God on the retreat The
! Bornesian cannibals ate up Munson.
| the missionary. Fall back" said q
great many Christian people-"Fall
| back, Oh church OF God! Borneo will
never be taken. Don't you see the Boz
nesian cannibals have eaten UP Nun
son. the missionary" Tyndall delivers
his lecture at the University Of Glas-
| gov. and a great many good people
say: Fall back, Oh church of God!
! Don't you see that Christian philosophy
/ Is going 60 be overcome by worldly phil
osophy? Fall back" Geology plunS IS
its orowbar into the mountains. and
there are a great many people who say;
Scientific investigation Is going 70
overthrow the Mosaic account Of the
creation. Fall back" Friends of God
have never any right to fall back.
Joshua falls on his face in chagrin
1t is the only time you ever see the back
! of his head. He falls on his face and
begins TO whine and ne says: "Oh, Lord
| God, wherefore has thou al all brought
this people over Jordan 10 deliver us in
to the hand of the Amorites. to destroy
us? Would to God we had been content
and dwelt on the other side Of Jordan
For the Canaanites and all the inhab-
| itantS Of the land shall hear of IT,, and
shall environ us round and cut off ouI
| name from the earth"
L am very glad Joshua said that. BE
| fore IL seemed as If he were a superna-
tural being. and therefore could not be
an example to us; but ] find he is Z
| man. he is only a man. Just as soma
times you find man under severe op.
| position, or I'm bad state of physical
health, or worn out with overwork, ly.
ing down and signing about everything
being defeated. 1 am encouraged wher
hear this cry Of Joshua as he lies IN
the dust
God comes and rouses him. How does
he rouse him? BY complimentary apos
trophe? No. He says: Get thee up
| Wherefore Hest thou upon thy face?'
| Toebra Yiepc and Warrant Won wifi