St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1905-04-08
the land, and behold, tho face Of til.

weeks dragged YEARLY ON, and they
waited, but no sign or word CAME
from God. Nearly two months thus
passed, and only the firm faith OF
Noah, and his unwavering obedience
to God, kept the impatient, rebellious
spirit of Ham from stirring ur
trouble.
AS the days dragged on, the deter
mination to leave the ark with OF
without his fathers consent took pos.
session of Ham. For the last few
days he had been secretly preparing
to go, and had told his wife his plans
and won her reluctant consent to &C
with him. The morrow was the time
he set for action. He was astir early, fol
he planned to get away before the
others were up.
AS he crept by his fathers room he
heard voices, and paused to listen. II
was strange voice speaking, and he
heard the words:
Go forth of the ark, thou and thy
wife and thy sons. and thy sons wives
with thee"
He waited to hear no more, but
fastened to find his wife and tell her
what he had heard.
! ut must have been God speaking tc
your father" said Mrs. Ham. LET
us wait and see what your father will
say to-day"
Thus it came to pass that Ham wak
saved from his wicked folly, and his
father and the rest of the family never
! knew what he had planned to do
Presently he heard his fathers voice
calling, and when he and his wife
reached the place where Noah was
standing they found the others there
before them listening to the glad mes.
sage.
1.-THE Lord hath spoken, children
Noah triumphantly and joyfully said,
"and has bid us go forth this day, with
all that are In the ark. Let us pro.
coed at once"
The creatures in the ark were no
less eager to be free from their narrow
quarters than were Noah and his fam.
lily, and the work of Decentralization
was speedily accomplished. But ere
they moved down the mountain side
into the valley below, Noah took Of
the stones LING about and builded an
altar unto the Lord. He then took of every
clean beast and of every clean fowl,
and offered burnt offerings on the al
tar. Thus at the very beginning OF
the new life on the earth was there
the confession of mans sinfulness be.
fore God, and the need of cleansing
through the shedding of blood.
And the Lord smelled sweet sa-
vor: and the Lord said in His
heart: 81 will not again curse the
ground any more for mans sake;
though the Imagination of mans
heart is evil from his youth; neither
will again smite any more everything
living, as I have done. While the
earth remaineth. seedtime and har-
vest, and cold and heat, and summer
and winter, and day and night, shall
not cease"
While Noah stood thus ministering
at the altar, and the Others were
bowed in silent worship about him,
there came cloud and overshadowed
them, and voice spoke out of the
cloud, and Ham instantly recognized
it as the same which he had heard
speaking with his father early that
morning. And God said, as He
blessed them:
"Be fruitful, and multiply, and re-
plenish the earth Long and earn
estly God communed with them, and
spake of the laws which should govern
the new life on the earth.
The voice ceased, but the cloud still
overshadowed them, and as they gazed
upon it a rainbow of the most dazzling
brightness spanned its white folds.
"How beautiful" they all ex-
claimed, as they Toasted their wonder
ing eyes ON the splendor Of the scene.
I'm the long years Of my life" said
Noah, II have seen many rainbows,
but none which could compare with
this one. God has some message for
our hearts in this glorious display"
While they stood beholding and
talking together, the voice of God
again came out Of the cloud, saying:
"And l, behold, establish My COW
enant with you, and with your seed
after you. And this is the token of
the covenant which make between
Me and you, and every living creature
that is with you. for perpetual genera
tons: I do set My bow in the cloud,
and it shall be for token of q COW
enant between Me and the earth. And
it shall come to pass, when I bring
q cloud over the earth, that the bow
shall be seen in the cloud: and will
remember My covenant, which is be-
tween Me and you, and every living
creature Of all nesh; and the waters
shall no more become . food to de-
stroy all flesh. And the bow shall
be in the cloud; and will look upon
1t, that l may remember the everlast-
ing covenant between God and every
living creature OF al flesh that IL upon
the earth"
The voice ceased, and the cloud van
ished from their sight. Noah and his |
sons and their wives and every living |
creature with them then moved down
the mountain side to the valley be-
low, where they took up life anew
upon the earth which God had re-
stored to man. but the memory and
the record of that day has continued |
to the present time, and the testimony |
and the token Of Gods covenant still |
brings cheer and hope to the hearts Of |
men as they see the bow IN the |
heavens and know that God rules His |
world and cares for His children.