Revelation 21:20

The Chrysoprase

The tenth, chrysoprase. Revelation 21:20.

In most lists of gems for the month the sardonyx is the stone for August. You remember we spoke of it away back in January when we were talking of the onyx. I told you then that the sardonyx was the red and white onyx, and as we said nearly all there is to say about the onyx in January, I think we had better choose a stone of our own for August. What do you say to one of those with an odd name the chrysoprase?

That is a stone we rarely hear of, but it is a very pretty stone all the same. It is what is known as semi-precious, that is to say, it is not found in the first list of precious stones. That list, by the way, is a very small one. It includes only five gems the diamond, the emerald, the ruby, the sapphire, and the pearl. And some people want to keep out the pearl!

Chrysoprase sounds strange to our ears, but those of you who are learning Greek will know that it is a word made out of two Greek words chryso and prasos, the first of which means “golden” and the second “leek.” Golden leek! that describes the chrysoprase to perfection for it is a leek-green stone, one variety of which is golden-green and the other pale apple-green. It is rather a brittle stone and apt to splinter, so the lapidaries or gem cutters have to be specially careful in cutting it; but it has one advantage over some other stones, it does not lose or change its color in artificial light.

Towards the middle of the eighteenth century the chrysoprase became very fashionable. The reason for this was that Frederick the Great of Prussia, who conquered Silesia in 1745, took a fancy to the stone, which was found in quantities in Silesia. He had two famous tables made of it, and used it largely for mosaic work. And, of course, because it was the favorite of a king it became a favorite of many people.

There is one story about the chrysoprase which I particularly want to tell you today. It is this. Many, many years ago, so the legend runs, there was a certain good and beautiful Princess of Roumania called the Princess Trina. She was greatly beloved by her subjects, for she loved them and cared for them in endless ways. But, alas! one year a famine arose in the land. The people had to buy bread from other countries, and the prices rose higher and higher, till their money was gone, and they were like to starve. All this time the Princess Trina had been selling her jewels and giving the money to the famishing people, but she too had come to the end of her possessions, or almost the end. She had only one jewel left a little golden lizard with chrysoprase eyes which her mother had given to her on her wedding-day. A wizard, or wise man, had once told the Princess that on no account must she part with it, because it would one day bring her help and untold wealth, and also because whoever wore a chrysoprase would be able in time of great distress to understand the language of animals.

Now the Princess Trina was very unwilling to part with this jewel, but she was still more unwilling to see her people suffer and hear their children crying for food; so she was kneeling one evening by her window weeping and praying and making up her mind to sell her golden lizard with the chrysoprase eyes, when in popped a real live little lizard at the window. It looked up at the Princess, and then it spoke in lizard language, and, to her astonishment, the Princess understood. This is what it said, “Do not despair, O Princess! Help shall arise for thee out of a river. Only seek.”

The Princess felt tremendously cheered, so she dried her eyes, and put on her cloak, and went out to look for the river. She searched one after another of the rivers of Roumania till her feet were weary and her eyes were aching and her heart was nearly in despair nearly but not quite, for whenever she felt specially discouraged she repeated to herself the lizard's message and began to search again. At last she came to the rocky bed of a beautiful stream, the Riul Doamnei, and there she discovered the promised help, for she found in the river-bed a vast treasure of chrysoprase the same as her golden lizard's eyes. She had it mined and sold it, and the money bought bread for her hungry people, and they were fed till the days of famine were ended. And in proof of this story they say that the waters of the Riul Doamnei are leek-green to this day.

Well, that may be only a legend, but there is a great deal of truth in it too. And I want you to remember the story when you think of the chrysoprase, for the message of the chrysoprase seems to me to be the message of the little lizard, “Never despair! Hope, and go on bravely!”

Boys and girls, there is not much need for me to preach to you and tell you to hope. When you are young, to hope is the easiest thing in the world. No! what I ask you to do is to preach hope to me and to every other grown-up person you meet, especially when we look sad or weary or discouraged. There are heaps of despairing persons in the world. They are finding life very dark and dreary because for them there is no hope, and hope is one of the foundation-stones of life, as the chrysoprase was one of the foundation-stones of the New Jerusalem. Now, you young people have so much hope in your hearts that you are simply bubbling over with it; you have enough for your own use and plenty to spare. I want you to give of your plenty to others who need it badly. Just keep looking around, and if you see anybody in want of a little hope give them some of yours on the spot.

I need not tell you exactly how you are to do it. First, because there are about a thousand ways you can do it; second, because I want you to find out these ways yourself; third, because the ways you find out will be better than any way of which I could tell you. Just say to yourself in the morning, “I'm going to be a chrysoprase. Before night I'm going, if I can, to bring a little cheer and hope to somebody.” Say that to yourselves, boys and girls, say it and truly mean it, and I've not the slightest doubt but you'll do it.)(The texts of the sermons in this series are Genesis 2:12; Job 28:19; Proverbs 3:15; Jeremiah 17:1; Ezekiel 1:26; Ezekiel 27:16 (2), Ezekiel 28:13; Matthew 13:45; Revelation 21:19-20 (2).)