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CHAPTER SEVEN GEORGE WASHINGTON “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people,” Proverbs 14:34. On one of the campaigns of the French and Indian War, Washington fought in the Battle of Monongahela. On July 9, 1755, at the end of two hours of battle, more than half of the British and American troops (714 of the 1,300) had been shot down. Only thirty of the French and Indians had been shot. Washington’s commanding officer, General Edward Braddock, was killed. There were 86 British and American officers involved in that battle, and at the end, George Washington was the only officer who had not been shot off his horse.43 (43David Barton, America’s Godly Heritage, p. 2.) When they arrived back at the fort, Washington wrote a letter to John Augustine Washington, as follows: “Dear Jack: As I have heard since my arrival at this place, a circumstantial account of my death and dying speech, I take this early opportunity of contradicting both, and of assuring you that I now exist and appear in the land of the living by the miraculous care of Providence, that protected me beyond all human expectation. I had four bullets through my coat, and two horses shot under me and yet escaped unhurt...”44 (44Verna M. Hall, The Christian History of the American Revolution George Washington, Foundation for American Christian Education, San Francisco, CA., p. 172.) Fifteen years after this battle, Washington and his life-long friend, Dr. Craik, were exploring the same wilderness territory in the Western Reserve. Near the junction of the Kanawha and Ohio rivers, a band of Indians came to them with an interpreter. The leader of the band was an old Indian chief who wanted to talk to Washington. A council fire was kindled and this is what the chief said: “I am a chief and ruler over my tribes. My influence extends to the waters of the great lakes and to the far Blue Mountains. I have traveled a long and weary path that I might see the young warrior of the great battle. It was on the day when the white man’s blood mixed with the streams of our forest that I first beheld this chief. I called to my young men and said, ‘Mark yon tall and daring warrior? He is not of red-coat tribe; he hath an Indian’s wisdom, and his warriors fight as we do; himself alone is exposed. Quick, let your aim be certain, and he dies.’ Our rifles were leveled, rifles which, but for him, knew not how to miss… ‘Twas all in vain. A power mightier far than we shielded him from harm. He cannot die in battle. I am old and soon shall be gathered to the great council fire of my fathers in the land of shades, but ere I go, there is something that bids me speak in the voice of prophecy: Listen! The Great Spirit protects that man and guides his destinies; he will become the chief of nations, and a people yet unborn will hail him as the founder of a mighty empire.”45 (45John Pollock, George Whitefield and the Great Awakening, Garden City, Doubleday and Co., N.Y., 1972, pp. 41, 42.) Whether or not God spoke through this Indian we cannot be sure, but it is true that Washington became the chief founder of a mighty empire and that he was not killed or even wounded in his many battles. An interesting story along this line is found just following the battle of Cowpens. Colonel Tarleton had found that his army had fallen into a trap and he was riding hard to escape when he saw that George Washington and his troops were hot in pursuit. Washington was out, by himself, ahead of his troops when Tarleton and two of his aids turned on him. Just as one of the aids was about to strike Washington, with his saber, one of Washington’s troops arrived and disabled the aid’s arm. The other aid moved in, but before he was able to strike, Washington’s little bugler boy, who was too small to handle a sword, shot the man with his pistol. Now Tarleton, himself, made a thrust at Washington with his sword. Washington skillfully parried the blow and in the process brought his blade down across Taerleton’s hand. Sometime later, Tarleton made a comment that Washington was an uneducated fellow that could hardly write his name. A lady quickly replied, “You ought to know better, for you can testify that he knows how to make his mark.”46 (46Albert F. Blaisdell & Francis K. Ball, Hero Stories From American History, Ginn and Company, Boston, MA, 1903, p. 120.) Study Guide Chapter Seven 1. What does the word “exalt” mean? 2. What exalts nations? 3. What is the cause of disgrace for nations? 4. Match the following verses as well as you can to the following facts. (Psalms 33:16; Psalms 33:18; Psalms 33:20;1 Samuel 2:30; Matthew 19:26; Psalms 33:2) · Over half of Washington’s soldiers were killed at the Battle of Monongahela, but Washington was spared. · The Indian chief told his sharp shooters to shoot the officers first, but Washington was spared. · All but one of the 86 officers was shot off their horses, but Washington was spared. · Washington had two horses shot out from under him, but he was spared. · Washington had four bullets through his coat, but he was spared. · The chief told his warriors to shoot directly at Washington, but he was spared.
5.
5.
Name three ways that God
providently protected Washington 6. Have you ever been in a situation where your life was in peril? 7. Have you been in a situation where you felt God intervened in saving your life?
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America's Providential Heritage Home Page  God's Providence Through The Bible God's Intervention In Medieval Times
Clark And The Wabash Indian Counsel
God's Intervention In The Life Of The Author
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