The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1900-10-09
DR.. Talmage Tells of Heay-
ems Wealth of Beatitude.
A HOME OF WEALTH AND DELIGHT
Its iHha bifaHis n nd Their Interest in Those
sriii Fighting the Baifie of salvation
Iillien- of Souls Have Gene 10 Augment
It's spleHasrs and to Fill Its MafchIess
Realms Of Everlasting Joy-The Gather
Ing Place Of the Departed.


tercay to a description of the glories OF
the hereafter. basing his speculation on
Biblical statements and the effect OF
congregation OF countless souls about
the throne OF mercy. He took FOR his
text Rev. xii: AND / saw a new
heaven" and said:
''The stereotyped heaven does not make
adequate impression upon US. We need
the old story told in new style in order
to arouse our appreciation. / do not
suppose that We are compelled 10 the Old
phraseology. King James translators did
rot exhaust all the good and graphic
words in the English dictionary. / sup
pose If We should take the idea OF heaven,
and translate II into modern phrase. we
would find that its atmosphere Is a COM
bination of early June and of the Indian
summer in October-a place combining
the advantages of city and country, the
streets standing for the one, and the
twelve manner Of fruits for the other;
place OF musical OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES,
pipers, trumpeters. doxologies; place OF
wonderful architecture-behold the tenn
pies, a place where there may be the
higher forms of animal life-the beasts
which were on earth beaten. lash-whip-
ped, and CALLED and unblanketed, and
worked tc death. turned cut among the
white horses which the Book of Revela-
ton describes as being in heaven; place
of stupendous literature-the books open;
a place of aristocratic and democratic at
tractiveness-the kings standing for the
one, all nations fer the other; all bo-
tanicaI genealogical, pathological, ar
borescent, worshipful beauty and gran
deur.
'But my idea now is 10 speak chiefly of
the improved heaven. People some times
talk of heaven as though it were an cid
city, finished centuries ago, when l nave
to tell you that no city on earth, during
the last fifty years. has had such changes
as heaven. 1t is not the same place as
when Job. and David. and Paul wrote of
it For hundreds and hundreds of years
1t has been going through peaceful revO-
luton, and year by year, and month by
month, and hour by hour, and moment by
moment, il is changing. and changing for
something better A way back there was
only one residence In the universe-the
residence of the Almighty. Heaven had
not yet been started. immensely was the
park all around about this great resi-
denCe; but Gods sympathetic heart after
while overnDwed in other creations, and
there came, AL through this vast country
OF immensely, inhabited villages, whicn
grew and enlarged until they Joined each
other, and became one great central me-
tropolis of the universe, streeted. gated,
tempted, watered, inhabited One angel
went forth with a reed. We are told, and
he measured heaven on one side, and
then went forth and measured heaven on
the other side; and then st. John tried 10
take the census OF that city, and he be-
came so bewildered that he gave il up.
Little Children Everywhere.
THAT brings me to the first thought of
my theme-that heaven IS vastly improved
In numbers. Noting little under this head
about the multitude of adults who have
gone into glory during the last hundred,
or five hundred, or thousand years, re-
member there are sixteen hundred mill
ions OF people in the world. and that the
vast majority Of people die in infancy.
How many children must have gone into
heaven during the last five hundred or
thousand years. If London should add in
one generation four million population,
what vast increased But what a mere
nothing as compared with the five hum
dred million, and the two thousand mill
Ion, the multitude that no man can num-
Der, that have gone into that city! Of
course, all this takes for granted that
every child that dies goes as straight into
heaven as ever the light sped from A
star; and that is one reason WHY heaven
VIII always be fresh and beautiful-the
great multitude of children in il PM
five hundred million children In a coun.rv
hl a hlQcCa1 a,,l
But add TO this, if you will, the great
multitude OF adults who have gone into
glory, and how the census of heaven must
run up! Many years ago a clergyman
stood in New England pulpit, and said
thal ne believed that the vast ma jority of
Inc race would finally be destroyed, and
that not more than one person out of two
thousand persons would be finally saved.
There happened TO be about two thousand
people in the village where he preached.
Next Sabbath two persons were heard
discussing the subject, and wondering
which one Of the two thousand people
in the village would finally reach heaven.
and one thought il would be the minister.
and the other thought it would be the
old deacon. Now, / have not much ad
miration for life-boat which will go out
10 ship sinking with two thousand pas
sengers, and get one off in safety, and let
nineteen hundred and ninety-nine go TO
the bottom. Why, heaven must have been
a village when Abel, the first soul from
earth, entered it, as compared with the
present population of that great cityl
Find Perfect knowledge.
Again, 1 remark that heaven has vast
ly improved in knowledge. Give z man
forty or fifty years TO study one science.
or all sciences, with all the advantages OF
laboratories and ObserVatories and philo-
sophie apparatus, ana he win be a marvel
OF information. Now, into what intelli-
gence must heaven mount, angelhood and
sainthood, not after studying for forty or
fifty years, but for thousands of years
studying God and the soul and immortal
ity and the universal How the intelligence
Of that world must sweep on and on.
with eyesight farther reaching than tele-
scope. with power of calculation mightier
than all human mathematics. with pow
ers Of analysis surprising all chemical
laboratory with speed swifter than
telegraphy: What must heaven learn
with all these advantages. in a month, in
a year. in a century, in a millennium?
Inc G4leEcHCe DclHeeE the ElSA-Sf UNI
versity on earth and the smallest class
in a primary school cannot be a greater
difference than heaven as IL now Is and
heaven as IL once was. Do you not sup
pose that when DIR. James Y. Simpson
went up from the hospitals OF Edinburgh
into heaven he knew more than ever the
science Of health; and that Joseph Henry,
graduating from the Smithsonian Insti-
tuition into heaven, awoke into higher
realms Of philosophy; ana that Sir VIII
lam Hamilton, lifted TO loftier sphere. un-
derstoOd better the construction OF the
human intellect; and that John Milton
took up higher poetry in the actual pres
enc Of things that on earth he had tried
20 describe? When the first saints en-
tered heaven they must have studied only
the A, b. c OF the full literature Of wis
dom with which they are now scqua nted
Again. heaven is vastly improved in is
society. During your memory how many
exquisite spirits have gone into IT, II you