Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1896-01-31
HOW TO TAKEA CITY.
ABlmELEcH WAS A RASCAL, BUT HE
KNEW HOW TO FIGHT.

Rev. Dr.. Talmage Shows How God Some
times Drives Straight Nail with Poo
Hammer-The Besieged City of shechen
and It's Lesson.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26-In his sermon
for today Rev. DR.. Talmago took for hi
subject The Power Of Example" Tn,
text selected was Judges tx IS: "Ant
Abimelech took an AK in his hand and cut
down boUgh from the trees and took II
and laid it on his shoulder and said unto
the people that were with him, What yC
have seen me do make haste aud do as
have done. And all the people likewise
cut down every man his bough"
Abimelech is a name malodorous in
Bible history and yet full Of profitable
suggestion. Buoys are black and I'M
comedy, but they tell where the rocks are.
The snakes rattle is hideous, but it gives
timely warning From the piazza Of my
summer home, night by night, l saw a
lighthouse 10 miles away, not placed there
for adornment but to tell mariners to
stand off from that dangerous point. So
all the ironbound coast Of moral danger is
marked with Saul and Horod and Reho-
I boam and Jezebel and Abimelech These
I bad people are mentioned in the Bible not
only as warnings, but because there were
sometimes flashes of good conduct in their
lives worthy of imitation. God sometimes
drives very straight nail with very
poor hammer.
Taking City.
The city of Sheohem had to be taken,
and Abimeleoh and his men were to do it.
I see the dust rolling up from their excited
march. hear the shouting of the cap
tains and tie yell of the besiegers The
swords clack sharply on the parrying
shields, and the vociferati0n of two armies
in death grapple is horrible to hear. The
battle goes on all day, and as the sun is set
ting Abimelech and his army cry, "Surren-
dern' to the beaten foe, and, unable lon
ger to resist, the city of Shechem falls,
and there are pools of blood and discovered
limbs, and glazed eyes, looking up beg
gingly for mercy that war never shows,
and dying soldiers, with their head on the
lap Of mother or wife or sister, who have
come out for the last offices of kindness
and affection, and groan rolls across the
city stopping not, because there is no spot
for it to rest, SO full is the place of other
groans. A city wounded A city dyingl
y
who know the horrors of a sacked town.
As 1 look over the city 1 can find only
one building standing, and that is the
temple Of the god Berth. Some soldiers
outside of the city in a tower, finding that
they can no longer defend Shechem, now
begin to look out for their own personal
safety, and they fly to this temple of
Berth. They go within the door, shut it, /
and they say, CHOW we are safe. Abim-
elech has taken the whole city, but he
cannot take this temple of Berth. Here
we shall be under the protection of tho
gods. " Berth, the god, do your best
now for these refugeosl If you have eyes,
pity them; if you have hands, help them;
if you have thunderbolts, strike for them. !
But how shall Abimeleoh and his army
take this temple of Berth and the men
who are there fortified? Will they do it
With swords Nayl viii they do it
with spearf Nay With battering ram
'olled up by hundred armed strength,
'rashing against the wallsY Nay Abim-
,lech marches his men to wood in Zal-
non. With his ak he hews off limb of
rec and puts that limb upon his own
houlder, and then he says to his men,
You do the same"
They are Obedient to their commander.
There is a struggle as to who shall have
xes. The whole wood is full of bending
coughs, and the cracking, and the hack
ng, and the cutting, until every one Of
be host has limb of a tree cut down,
nd not only that but has put it on his
boulder just as Abimelech showed him
ow. Are these men all armed with the 1
rec branch? The reply comes, Gan ,
rmedl" And they march on. Oh, what I
strange army, with that strange equip t
lentl They come up to the foot Of the /
ample at Berth, and A bimelech takes his ]
NIB of tree and throws it down, and [
10 first platoon of soldiers come up, and J
10y throw down their branches, and the q
3oond platoon, and the third, until all I
round about the temple Of Berth there i
a pile of tree branches The Shechemites Il
ok out from the window Of the temple 1
pom what seems to them childish play on v
10 part Of their enemies. But soon the t
nts are struck, ana the spark begins to g
indie the brush, and the flame comes up f
/ through the pile, and the red clements c.
ap to the easement, and the woodwork a
gins to blaze, and one arm Of flame is fl
rOwn up on the right side of the temple, 81
I'd another arm of flame is thrown up a!
the left side of the temple, until they fl
asp their lurid palms under the wild Of
ghb sky, and the cry of "FireW within
ID Fire'' without announces the terror, W
I'd the stRangulation, and the doom of W
g Shechemites, and the complete over Il
row of the temple of the god Berth st
zen there went up shout, long and v,
nd, from the stout lungs and swarthy Of
ests of Abimelech and his men as they 81
lod amid the ashes and the dust crying, W
Iictory, victoryr W
The Tactics Used. ar
Now learn first from this subject the fe
ly Of depending upon any one form Of m
'tics in anything we have to do for this u
rid or for God. Look over the weaponry =
olden times-javelins, battleaxes, haber- al
show mea single weapon with WI
itch Abimeleoh and his men could have re
mod such complete triumph. 1t is no 60
y thing to take temple thus armed VI
ave seen a house where, during Revolu- -
nary times, man and his wife kept
* whole regiment hour after hour be-
Use they were inside the house and the tn
aulting soldiers were outside the house. al
here Abimelech and his army come ire
they surround this temple, and they acc
turo it without the loss Of a single man go
the part Of Abimelech, although / sup. all
G some OF the old Israelitish heroes told oal
imeleeh You are only going up there It I
% cut to pieces - Yet Won are willing she