The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-10-03
DIR. TALMAGES SERMON.
SUNDAYS DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED
DIVINE.
saoject: Nations Are Judged-'(Iod Re-
wards and Furnishes Thein ON Earth
Gods Judgments Likened to the Swift
Sweep OF n Razor.

; Saojeot: Nations Are Judged-.God Re
wards and Furnishes Thorn ON Earth
Gods Judgments Likened to til swlf
Sweep OF . Razor.
copyright 19ual
WASHINGTON, D. Cdr. Talmage, in
his journey westward through Europe, has
recently visited scenes of thrilling his
toric events. He sends this sermon, in
which he shows that nations are judged
in this world. and that God rewards them
for their virtues and Furnishes them for
their crimes. The text is Isaiah vii. 20,
"ln the same day shall the Lord shave
with razor that is hired, namely, by
them beyond the river, by the king of
Assyria"
The Bible is the oldest book ever writ
ten. There are no similitudes in Ossian
| or the Iliad or the Odyssey 80 daring Its
! imagery sometimes seems on the verge of
the reckless, but only seems 80. The fact
ia that God would startle and arouse and
propel men and nations. A tame and
limping similitude would fail to accom-
I plsh the object. While there are times
! when He employs in the Bible the gentle
! dew, and the morning cloud, and the dove
and the daybreak in the presentation of
lightning, the earthquake, the spray, the
sword and in my text the razor. This
keen bladed instrument has advanced in
usefulness with the ages. In Bible times
and lands the beard remained uncut save
in the seasons of mourning and. humilia-
tion, but the razor was always sugges-
tive symbol. David said of Doeg, his an
tagonist, "Thy tongue is a sharp razor
working deceitfully is, it pretends
to clear the face, but is really used for
deadly incision.
In this striking text this weapon of the
toilet appears under the following cir
cumstances: yudea needed to have some
of its properties cut off, and God sends
against it three Assyrian kings-frst Sen.
nacherib, then Esarhaddon and afterward
Nebuchadnezzar. These three sharp inva-
sions that cut down the glory of Judea
are compared to 30 many sweeps of the
razor across the face of the land. And
| these devastations were called hired
razor because God took the kings of As.
syria, with whom He had no sympathy, to
do the work, and paid them in palaces
and spoils and annexations.. These kings
were hired to execute the divine behests.
And now the text, which on its first read
charged with momentous import. I'm the
same day shall the Lord shave with a razor
that is hired, namely, by them beyond
the river, by the Ling of Assyria."
Well, if Gods judgments are razors,
we had better be careful how we use
them on other people. In careful sheath
these domestic weapons are put away,
where no one by accident may touch them
and where the hands of children may not
reach them, Such instruments must be
carefully handled or, not handled at all.
But how recklessly some people WELD the
judgment of God! If man meets with
business misfortune. how many there are
ready to cry out: "That is a judgment of
God upon him because he was unscrupu-
lous or arrogant or over-reaching or mis-.
erly. I thought he would get cut down!
What a clean sweep of everything! His
city house and country house gone. His
stables emptied of all the fine bays and
sorrels and grays that used to prance by
his door. All his resources overthrown,
and all that he prided himself on tumbled
into demolition. Good for him!" Stop,
my brother. Don't sling around too freely
the judgments of God, for they are razors.
Some of the most wicked business men
succeed, and they live and die in pros.
perity, and some of the most honest and
conscientious are driven into bankruptcy.
Perhaps the unsuccessful mans manner
was unfortunate and he was not really as
proud as he looked to be. Some of those
who carry their heads erect and look i'm.
perial are humble as child, while many
man in seedy coat and slouch hat and
unblackened shoes is as proud as Lucifer.
You cannot tell by mans look. Per
haps he was not INSCRIPTIONS in business.
for there are two sides to every story, and
everybody that accomplishes anything for
himself or others gets industriously lied
about. Perhaps his business misfortune
was not a punishment, but the fatherly
discipline 20 prepare him for heaven, and
God may love him far more than He loves
you, who can pay dollar for dollar and are
put down in the commercial catalogue as
hAl." Whom the Lord loveth He gives
100000 and lets die onf embroidered pill
lows? No; whom the Lord loveth He
chasteneth. Better keep your hand of
the Lords razors lest they cut and wound
people that do not deserve it. II you
want to shave off some, of the bristling
pride of your own heart, do 80, but be
very careful how you put the sharp edge
on others. How I do dislike the behavior
of those persons who, when people are
unfortunate, say, II told you SO; getting
punished; served him right" If ftthose |
told you eos got their desert they would
long ago have been pitched over the bat
Elements. The mote in their neighbours
eyes, 80 small that it takes microscope
to find it, gives them more trouble than
the beam which obscures their own optics.
With air sometimes supercilious and some
times pharisaical and always. blasphemouss
they take the razor of divine judgment and
sharpen it on the bone of their own hard
! hearts, and then 60. to work on men
sprawled out at full length under disaster,
! cutting mercilessly. They begin by soft
expressions of sympathy and pity, and
half praise and 'lather the victim all over
before they put on the sharp edge.
Let us be careful how we shoot at 9TH
ers, lest we take down the wrong one,
remembering the servant of King William
Rufus who shot at a deer, but the arrow
glanced against tree and killed the king.
Instead of going out with shafts, to pierce
and razors to cut we had better initiate
the friend of Richard Occur de Lion.
Richard. in the war of the CruSedes, was
captured and imprisoned, but none of his
! friends knew where, so his loyal friend
went around the land from stronghold to
stronghold and sang at each window a
snatch of song that Richard Occur de
Lion had taught him in other days. And
! one day coming before a Jail where he
suspected his king might be incarcer-
ated, he sang two lines OF song and imme-
! diately King Richard responded from his
cell with the other two lines, and 30 his
whereabouts were discovered, and sue
| cessful movement was at once made Tor
his liberation. So let us go up and down
! the world with the music of kind words
! and sympathetic hearts, serenading the
unfortunate and trying to get out Of
trouble men who had noble natures, but
by unforeseen circumstances have been
incarcerated, thus liberating kings. More
hymn-book and less razor. -.
Especially ought we to be apologetic
and merciful toward those who while they
have great faults have also great virtues
Some people are barren of virtues; no