The times., 1897-11-15
The SHELLS In The BIBLE
DR.. Talmage Draws an Interesting
Lesson From Them.
The Saviour's Life and Death an
Everlasting Pearl of Heavenly
Gladness.

DR.. I. De Witt Talmage yesterday nom
ing delivered the second OF his series OF
sermons on "'Goa Everywhere" The sub
Ject OF the sermon was '.Conchology OF tho
Bible, or God Among the Shells, as found
in the text, Exodus, xxx34: And the Lord
said Gntf Moses, take unto thee sweet
spices, stacte andpnycha.'
you may not have noticed the shells Of
the Bliae," he said, although in this early
part of the second book God calls you to
consider and employ them as he called
Moses 20 onsider and employ them. The
onycf.a OF my text is "a shell found On
the banks O. the Red Sea, and Moses and
his army must have crushed many of them
under foot as they crossed the bisectel
waters, cnycha on the beach and onycha
in the unfolded bed oil the deep.
u shalt speak of this shell as a beautiful
and practical revelation Of God, and as true
as the first chapter of Genesis and the last
cha otter of Revelations or everything be-
tween. Not only is THIS shell, the onycira,
found in the Red Sea but in the waters
of India. 1t not only delectates the eye
with iiSconvuiutions of heauty, white aud
iustrcus and seriated but biesses tie
nostcils With pungent aroma / spoke TO
You last Sabbath OF God in the great: now
] speak OF God iii the small, God IN the in
finite, ana God in the infinitesinial
1T is a secret that you may keep for
NE, that I'm all the realms OF the natural
world tGere is nothing TO me 81 fascinating,
so completely absorbing, so full Of divine
sugCesuYeness as a shell What? Moe
entertaining thar n bird, which can sing
when she'll cannot sing? Well, there
you haYe made great mistake. Pick
up tile onA cha from the banks Of the Red
Sea, or pick I'D bivalve from the beach
OF the Atlanuc Ocean, and listen, AID
YOU hear whole choir of marine voices
bass, alto. S0prano-in an unknown tongue
but seeming to chant, as | put them to
my ear The sea is His and Fl { Inade it,
''As tie shell is only the house and tie
wardrobe OF Insignificant animals OF tie
deep why all the wonder aud beauty 81
construction? Gods care FOR them is the
Only reason. Andi God provide 81 nttLt
iIcentiy FOL them, viii He not see hat yo,l
have wardrobe ana shelter? Wardrobe ana
shelter Tor a peliwnkle; shall there not Go
wardrobe snd sheterror a nan. Would God
give a coat OF man Tor the defense uf q
the storm? Does lie build stone house for
a CreatGre that lasts season and leave
without nome a SOM that taxes mold ON
centuries and aeons?
But while YOU get this pointed lesson Of
provideutial care from the shriled crea
turesof th4 deep, notice in their construction
that God helps them TO help themselves.
This housa or stone ia which they live IS
not dropped Ui thvnr and is not built
around them. The material for it exudes
from their own bodies, and is adorn,d
WITH cOlored fluid from t he pores If their
own neck.
But what thrills ne with suggestive
ness Is the material out Of which al
pearls are made. Tbey are fashioned from
the wound OF the shellfish. The exddatiou
from that wound IS fixed and hardened
and enlarged INTO a pearl. The ruptured
vessels OF the wster animal fashioned the
gem that now sdorns finger or earring
or swprdldlt or kings crown. So, out
Of the wounds \ earth VIII come the
PEARLS of heaven. Out of the wound Of
conviction tie pearl OF pardon Out OF
the wound OF .bercay yement tile pearl II
solacc out of the wound Of loss the
pearl OF gam. out Of the deep wound
of the grave the pearl of resurrection
JOY. oat OF the wounds Of a Sariour's
death, the rich, the radiant, the ever
lasting pearl Of heavenly gladness And
twelve gates We're twelve pearls. Take
the consolation, al We who lave been
hurt-whetlsar hurtin body, or hurt inmlnd
or hntt in soul. Get your troubles sancti-
fled. If you suffer with Christ on earth
You viii r"igB with Him in glory. The
tears of earth are the crystals OF heaven
'Every several gate was Of one pearl. -