The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-11-02
THE HOUSE OF DAVID
SAVED FROM EXTINCTION BY JEHO-
SHEB4'S HEROIC DEED
Rev. DIR. TaImage Draws a Useful Les
SON From III Rescu of Joash From
the Murderous Athaliah-The Saw
Ing of Souls.

In this discourse On a neglected in
cident of the Bible DIR. Talmage draws
some comforting lessons and showsl
that all around US are royal natures
that we may help deliver. The text
is II Kings xi, 2, 8: "Jehosheba, the
daughter Of King Joram, sister OF Aha
Ziah, ook Joash, the son of Ahaziah,
and stole him from among the kings
sons which were slain, and they hid
him, even him and his nurse, in the
bedchamber from Athaliah, SO that he
was not slain. And he was with her
hid in the house of the Lord six years."
Grandmothers are more lenient with
their children's children than they were
with their own. AT 40 a Of age If
discipline be necessary chastisment is
used, but at 20 the grandmother, look
ing upon the misbehavior Of the grand
child, is apologize and disposed to
substitute confectionery for whip.
There is nothing more beautiful than
childhood. Grandmother takes out her
pocket handkerchief and wipes her
spectacles and put them on and looks
down into the face of her m~ichievous
and rebelliouS descendant and SayS:
II don't think he meant to do it. Let
him off this time. I'll be responsible
for his behavior in the future." My
mother, with the second generation
around her, a boisterous crew, said
one day: Il suppose they ought to be
disciplined, but / can't do it. Grand
mothers are not nit to bring UP grand
children" But here in my text we
have a grandmother of a different type.
/ have been at Jerusalem, where thel
occurrence OF the text took place, and
the whole scene came wildly beforel
me while i was going over the site of
the ancient temple and climbing the
towers of the kings palace. Here in
the text it is old Athaliah, the royal
murdereSS. She u to have been
honorable. Her father was a king. !
Her husband was a king. Her SON
was a king. M yet we find her plot
ting for the determination of the entirel
royal family, including her own grand
children. The executioners' knives arel
S~harpened. The palace is red with the
blood of princes and princeSSeS. on
all sides are ShriekS and hands thrownl
up and struggle and death groan No
mercy! Kill, kill! But while the ivory
floors of the palace run with carnage
n the whole land is under the Shad-
ow of a great horror a fleet footed wo-
man., a clergyman'S wife, JehoshebaI
by name, stealthily approaches the i'm
perial nurSey, SeiZeS upon the grand-I
child that had somehow as yet escaped
massacre, wraps it up tenderly but in
haste, SnuggleS it against her, flies
down the palace stairs, her heart in her
throat lest she be discovered in this
compassionate abduction. Get her out
of the way as quickly as you can, for
she carries a precious burden, even a
young king. With this youthful prize
h presses into the room of the an
cient temple, the church of olden time,
nnWr9nS the UOTnO king and nItC him
down, sound asleep as he is and un-
conscious of the peril that has been
threatened, n there for six years he
is Secreted in nat church apartment.
Meanwhile old Athaliah smacks her
lips with satisfaction and thinks that
all the royal family are dead. sui
the six years expire, and it is time for
young Joash to come forth and take
the throne and to push back into dis.
grace and death old Athaliah.
THE GROWING OF JOASH.
The arrangements are all made for
political revolution. The military
come and take possession of the tenn
pie, swear loyalty to the boy Joash n
stand around for his defense. See the
sharpened swords and the FURNISHED
shieldsI Everything is ready. Now
Joash, half a~ffrighted at the armed
tramp of his defenders, scared at the
yociferatiOn of his admirers,i is brought
forth in full regalia- The scroll of au-
thority is put in his hands, the coro-
net of government is put on his brow,
and the people clapped and waved and
huZzaed and trumpeted. What is
that?" said Athaliah. What is that
DUN over in he temple?" And she
flies to see, and on her way they meet
her and say: Why, haven't you
heard? You thought you had slain all
the royal family, but Joash has come
to light" Then the royal murderess,
frantic with rage, grabbed her mantle
and tore it to tatterS and cried until
she foamed at the mouth: You have
no right to crown my grandson. You
have no right to take the government
from my SholderS. Treason, treaSOn!"
While she stood there crying that
the military started for her arrest, and
she took a short cut through a back
door of the temple and ran through the
royal stables, but the ~battleaxes of the
military fell on her in the barnyard,
and for many a day when the horses
were being unloosened from the char
lot after drawing out young Joash the
fiery steeds would snort and rear pass
ing the place as they smell the place
of the carnage
The first thought I hand you from
this subject is that the determination
of righteousness is an impossibility.
When a woman is good, she is apt to
be very good, and when she is a she
is apt to be very bad, and this Athaliah
was one of the latter sort. She would
exterminate the last scion of the house
of David, through whom Jesus was
to come. There was plenty of work
for embalmers and undertakers. She
would clear the land of all God fearing
and God loving people. She would put
an end to everything that COULD in my
wise interfere with her imperial GRIM
inality. She folds her hands and says:
1.-THE work is done. 1t is completely
done" Is it? In the swaddling clothes
of that church apartment are wrapped
the cause of God n the of
good government. That is the scion
of the house of David. 1t is Joash, the
God w%orshiping reformer. 1t is Joash,
the friend of God. 1t is Joash, the
demoraliZer of BaalitiSh idolatry.
Rock him tenderly, nurse him gently.
Athaliah, you may kill all the other
children, but you cannot kill him.
Eternal defenses are thrown all around
him, and this clergyman's wife, Jeho-
sheba. will snatch him up from the