Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1900-06-30
BEST OF ALL BOOKS.
DR.. TALMAGE uPHOLDS THE BIBLES
DIVINE ORIGIN.


Its Emanation From God.
WASHINGTON, June 24.-In. the great
conflict now raging in Europe, as In
this country, between Christianity and
agnosticlsm DR.. Talmage lias taken
decided stand and in this sermon
declares his unwayering belief In the
divine origin OF the Scriptures; text,
Matthew vii, 16, "Do men gather
grapes OF thorns"
Not In this country. Not In any coun-
try. Thorns stick. thorns lacerate, but
all the thOrns put together never yield
ed one cluster OF Catawba or Isabella
grapes. Christ, who was the master
of apt and potent Illustration, Is thus
setting forth what you and 4 well
know-that you cannot get that which
Is pleasant and healthful aud good
from that which is bad. IL you find
round, large, beautiful cluster Of
grapes, you know that it was produced
by good grapevine and not from
tangle Of Canada thistle. Now, II L
cal show you that this Holy Bible
yields good fruit, healthful fruit, grand
fruit, splendid fruit. you will come to
the conclusion it is good Bible, and
all the arguments of the skeptic against
II. when he tries to show 1t Is bad
book, will go overheard.
"Do men gather grapes OF thornsF
Can a bad book yield good results!
Skeptics with great yehemence declare
that the Bible Is a cruel book. They
read the story OF the determination or
the Canaanites and Of all the ancient
wars and of the history Of David and
Joshua, and they come to the coneiu-
sion that the Bible Is in favor Of lacera'
ton and manslaughter and massacre.
Now, a bad book will produce a bad
result. a cruel book will produce cruel
result.
You have friends who have been In
the habit Of reading the Bible a great
many years. Have you noticed tend
ency to cruelty on their pGrtf Have
you ever heard any Of them come out
and practically say. Il have been read
ing the story about the determination
of the CanaanitpS and ! am selzed
upon with disposition 10 cut aud
slash and maui aud pinch and murder
and knock to pieces everything can
lay my hands onr Have your friends
in proportion as they become diligent
Bible students and disciples OF the
Christ of the Bible. shown tendency
toward massacre and murder and man.
slaughter? Has that been your OBJ
servatlonf
Effects of Bible Reading.
What has been the effect upon your
children of this cruel book? Or, II you
do not allow the book to be read, th,
your household. what has been the soc
feet upon the children Of other housl, I
holds where the Word Of God Is hoE'9
ored? Have they as a result OF rear
ing this cruel book gone forth with n
cruel spirit to pull the wings off flies
and to plnion grasshoppers and to rob
birds nests? \ cruel book ought to
make cruel people; II they diligently
read II and get absorbed with its prln-
ciDles, that cause must produce that
effect At what time did you notice
that the teachings of this Holy Bible
created cruelty in the heart and the
life Of George Peabody. Of Miss DIX,
of Florence Nightingale, of John How
ard, of John Frederick Oberlin, Of Alb
bot Laurence? Have you noticed In
reading the biography OF these people
that In proportion as they became
friends Of the Bible they became ene-
mics to humanity? Have you not, on
the contrary, noticed that all the insti-
tutions Of mercy were established, or,
being established, were chiefly support
ed by the friends of this book? There
Is the hospital In wartime. There are
20 Christian women. They are bind
ing up wounds, they are offering cor
dials, they are kneeling down by the
dying, praying for their departing spir-
its. Where does the cruelty crop out?
They have been reading the Bible all
their lives. They read 1t every morn
Ing; they read it every night; they car
ry It under their arm when they 60
into the hospital.
Again, lnfidels 60 on and most ve-
hemently charge that this Bible Is an
impure book. You all know that an
Impure book produces impure results.
No amount Of money could hire you to
allow your child to read an unclean
book. Now. If this Bible be an impure
book, where are the victims? Your fa-
ther read it--dd it make him bad
man? Your mother read it-did 1t
make her bad wOmaDf Your sister
10 years In heaven died In the faith OF
this gospel-did 1t despoil her nature!
Some say there are 200,0O0,O0O copies
of the Bible In existence; some say
there are 4O0.000,000 copies OF the Bi-
BILE. 1t Is impossible to get the aecu-
rate statistic. But suppose there are
oO0,O0O,O00 copies Of the Bible abroad,
this one book read more than any 20
books that the world ever printed. this
book abroad for ages, for centuries
where are the victims? Show me 1000;
show me 500 victims Of an Impure
book; show me 100 despoiled Of the Bi-
BILE; show me 80; show me 10; show
me 2; show me !! Two hundred MIL
lion copies of an impure bcok, and not
one victim of the lmpurity. On the
contrary, you know very well that 1t IL
where the Bible has the most power
that the family institution Is most re-
spected.
Four Great Doctrines.
Again. ngncStics 20 on still further,
and they say the Bible is a mass OF
contradictions and they put prophet
against prophet. evangelist against
evangelist apostle against apostle, and
they say II this be true bow. then. can
that be true. Mr.. Miii, who was
friend Of the Bible. said he had discoV-
cred 10000 different readings Of the
Scriptures and yet not one important
difference. not one important difference
- an1u tho dinaPQn0n that