Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1906-03-17
Calr11age
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmage. d. d.


God cares for those who trust in him.
The text is | Kings xvii, II, "rhe bar
rel Of meal shall not waste, neither
shall the cruise of oil fail"
God grant that gaunt, haggard'
parched skinned, death dealing ram
inc may never stalk through the streets
of our fair cities. Dores most vivid
conceptions of Dante's hell ana no
garth's most horrible carlcatures OF
degradation and vice and Nasslll We
reschagln's most realistic scenes OF
the blood soaked battcfelds Of the
Turkish and Russian war cannot com
pare In horror with the terrible sights
that have been witnessed when mad
dening famine gets in its work. Couid
any paintings be more awful than the
simplephotographs we saw of men and
women and children huddled together
In sickenng groups who were slowly
starving to death in the awful Indian
famines Of 1897 and 1900? Could any
war be more fearful than the simple
statement which declares that in the
famous Bengal famine Of 111O out OF
70 100000 of inhabitants 10,OOO,OOO, or
one-third of the whole population, were
| dead within a few mOnthsf
The same kind of fearful famine
that cursed Russia in the year 1S02,
that devastated Ireland in 1879 ana
In 1916 and 1914, the same kind OF a
famine as that which destroyed TWO
thirds of the inhabitants of the cape
Verde islands in 1880, the same KIND
Of n famine which blasted northern
Africa during Joseph's premiership and
IS now Devastating the land Of Japan
was depop lating Palestine. 70 Goa
rive MS rain!" is crying the rich mar
in his palace. 20 God, give US ram!
cries the Door peasant in his hut "GlV'
us rainl Give us rain, or we dle!
were the universal pleadlngs. But NJ
rain came. On account Of King AhaO'
sins God had decreed that no ram Wa'
TO descend upon Palestine Nils ah'
valleys for three long years.
, we leave the hills and the valleys o
the interior. We come down towar'
the Mediterranean shore, to the beau
tiful CITY of Zarephath, situated nea
IN TYRE and Sidon. There we find III
desolatlon appalling. The horses cal
tle and sheep died months ago IN
drouabt has already lasted two Ion
S years. The cattle had no food TO ilV
ON They had to die. The grass an
the wheat had long since disappears
;. nna1pe1nsY and children were q.
inc by the scores and the hundred
Fever and scuryy were every day au,
ing TO the death list. The whoie Gil
was becoming one great charnel nous
Tba folds where once grew the Ia
vest were as hard as baked ana cracI
od clov AS stand in imaglnato
unon the outskirts Of the city hnl
tbase scenes Of desolation ana deal
I see humble woman, weak and 70
terlng. gathering a few sticks 10 OIi i,
fire. Along comes a tall, gaunt' ui
nided man. He looks like a oorh m iea
nr Of men. He accosts the womi
something like this;
They Were Starving.
.cyvor,on I pray thee, hasten al
. bring me drink" She turns 10 uo l
Kidding. Then in matter of fact WI
this stranger says, Bring me. pr,
thoo morsel Of bread in thine haho
He practically says, When you 90 Il
water bring Il little food too l
woman. weak and tottcring from sl'
vation. turns and looks at him
I. engagement. Then she speaks IN u
wise. "NIan. what are you taxi
about? Are you mad? We are stal
inc We are dying. The dead IN
etreets lie unburied! I have starV
ond starved. have cut the daily 81
nlv Of food down and down, until h'
we are at the end. | have but hai
. frI If meal and little oil. am gong
cook this for my son. and then we sn
both lie down and die" with u
Elijah the Tishbite said: woman
rs say and God will take care OF ID
For tbus saith the Lord, The barrel
- meaI shall not waste, neither shall
crusc Of oil fail, until the day the IL
eondeth rain upon the face OF
earth" Such is the simple story OF Il
God saved the poor widow ana her
during the Zarcphath famine beca
she was willing to do what u'
prophet commanded.
ar The Zarephath famine, In the
ne. nlace. teaches that the good and the
md nocent must conjolntly suffer from
ne, OWL results of the deetls of the /
the Sir Walter Scott's business partl
did wrong. The innocent Sir wa
Scott had to suffer. The owner OF
botsford had to shoulder S6OOOOO q
The son-in-law Of Francois GreVy p
Oh 70 he a scoundrel. Innocent Fl
cois Grevy had to resign the pl
DENTAL chair Of France because
son-ln-law. Wilson, was convicted
selling the decorations and the OIL
of tho government for cash. The \
shower fails upon the just ana the
Just. upon the wheat ana the [
alike. The evil deeds of husl
curse not only himself. but his
and his children also. When the
ward Hebrew prince was hung Di
the broken hearted father, went tc
chamber over the gate and wept
as he went thus he said: u my
Absalom. my son, my son, my son
the salon. Would Goa n"u u'.u =,
me. thee. 0 Absalom, my son, my SO
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