St. Tammany farmer., 1903-05-02

Aa ~ ing the prowess
7&Re~ OF the great gen
z.nEmANSI eral who has led
| X 1SI~s it to victory,
EIX( IT, sound forth from
|IiM 4 the 46th Psalm,
, which was writ
ten supposedly in commemoratlon OF
the great deliverance of Jerusalem
from ihe mighty Assyrian army. 1t
was during the reign of the godly
King Hezel1iah that these remarkable
events transpired. They are full OF
thrilling interest. Following the vlg-
orous religious and political reforms
with which Hezekiah inaugurated his
reign, he boldly threw off the yoke
of the Assyrian king and refused lon
ger to pay him tribute. Later the
northern tribes of Israel were taken
captive and their country laid waste
by the Assyrians, and this exposed
Judah to fresh attack. Many of her
strongholds were taken and the vast
Assyrian army under Sennacherlb
came and encamped against Jerusa-
lem. The city was ordered to sur
render in the most insulting and
blasphemous language. The God OF
Judah was defied as being unable to
save them from the iron hand of the
great conqueror. In the hour OF
peril and desperate need Hezeklak
lays the matter before the Lord and
obtains word through the Prophet
Isaiah that the Lord has heard his
PRAYER and will deliver the city out
of the hands of the enemy. "And it
came to pass that night that the
angel of the Lord went out and smote
in the camp of the Assyrians an
hundred four score and five thou
sand: and when they arose early in
the morning behold, they were all
dead corpses."
GO MUCH for the historical facts
~ which probably furnished some
devout Jewish poet with his inspira-
ton for the Psalm. In the eleven
| short verses of this paean of praise the
| words of our text are repeated twice,
echoing the thought in the opening
verse, and furnishing the key to the
| whole. The sound of the words
comes with the reassuring calm of
the "Peace, be still" which hushed
| the raging sea of Galilee to rest. 1t
is confident boast which swells and
throbs all through the Psalm and re-
veals the glory which comes from the
linking of the Divine power with hui
man weakness, bringing victory in
the face OF mighty foe. What must
these words have meant to those
helpless Jews shut up in their
city and unable of themselves to
strike a single effective blow at
the enemy which threatened, their
| homes and their loved ones? To-day
| the Assyrians are seen to be drawing
| the lines closer about the city and
preparing to make the final assault
upon the city's walls. Darkness
closes in upon the city and the en-
camped enemy. What the morrow
may bring forth fills the people with
anxious dread. But Hezekiah and
Isaiah have placed the matters at is
sue in the hands of a mighty ally,
and, while the besieged city waits,
Gods angel goes forth and smites the
Assyrian army with the scourge of
death. The morning light as it breaks
over that troubled and anxious city
reveals to the wondering eyes of the
people heaps of dead instead of an
onrushing and conquering army, and
| in the distance the remnant of Sen
nacherib's army can be seen retreat
ing, leaving behind its lifeless war
riors. 1t is no idle boast which echoes
throughout the city. They can say
in truth: "The Lord of Hosts is with
us; the God of Jacob is our refuge"
q TWAS great thing for King Heze-
- kiah to be able to claim the Lord
as his ally. It is the greatest boast
which any soul can make. Japan a
few years ago was proud to claim as
her ally the British nation with her
powerful fleets. Cuba more recently
was made strong and confident in the
knowledge that the United States
stood behind her in sympathy and
was ready to help strike the blow for
liberty. Nations and individuals are
always glad to claim the protection
and help of stronger power. The
small boy, even, learns the lesson
! early and warns the threatening
bully with what his big brother will
do if he touches him. The business
house likes strong backing. The new
business or enterprise depends upon
the substantial character of its di-
rectors to give it standing in the
financial world All this shows how
the weaker must of necessity look to
the stronger. It is the principle on
which society is constructed. It is
the unwritten law on which nations
rest. But human weakness which
can summon only human power to
it's aid is circumscribed and insuffi'
cient. But the nation or the indi.
yidual who can in truth make the
boast that "the Lord of Hosts is with
u.s." reaches beyond human fmita-
tions and clasps the hand OF God in
invincible union.
Napoleon's boast that God was with
the heaviest artillery sounds well, and
has echoed and reechoed on the lips of
men in self-assuring confidence ever
since. but we dare to claim it is not
true. We would like to recast it and
| sav: "God, with the artillery. makes
it the strongest" The imputation that
God is always looking for the biggest
army and the heaviest guns, SO as tc
be on the winning side. is worse than
blasphemy. God is always with the
r;oht- and whether it has the heaviest