Our Times and Their Meaning PDF

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OUR TIMES
AND THEIR MEANING
By Ewing Galloway, N. Y.
The skyline of New York, the world's tallest city, fitting symbol of the prosperity and swift advancement of our times.
OUR TIMES
AND THEIR MEANING
By CARLYLE B. HAYNES
Southern Publishing Association

Nashville, Tennessee
Atlanta, Georgia Fort Worth, Texas
Copyright, 1929, by
Southern Publishing Association
Nashville, Tennessee
Printed in U. S. A.
Table of Contents
PART ONE
The Unfolding of the Truth
PAGE
THE ADVANCING TRUTH OF GOD OP
9
SPECIAL TRUTHS POR SPECIAL TIMES
PART, TWO
The Return of Our Lord
JESUS Is COMING THE SECOND TIME - - 15
THE COMING WORLD GOVERNMENT - 19
OUR LORD'S OWN PROPHECY OF HIS RETURN - 26
THE PURPOSE OF HIS COMING - 30
THE TIME OF HIS COMING - 35
THE MANNER OF HIS COMING - - 38
THE INCREASE OR KNOWLEDGE - 41
SIGNS IN THE SUN AND THE STARS - - 46
WARS, LAWLESSNESS, AND INCREASING CRIME 51
SIGNS IN AND ON THE EARTH - - 57
THE GOSPEL To ALL NATIONS -. 66
PART THREE
Satan and Sin
THE APOSTASY OP SATAN 73
THE PALL OP MAN - 78
WHY DID GOD PERMIT SIN? - 83
THE LOST DOMINION AND THE GOD OF THIS WORLD 86
Table of Contents
(Continued)
PART FOUR
The Mediatorial and Intercessory Priesthood of Our Lord
PAGE
THE GREAT COUNTERFEIT OF CHRISTIANITY 89

THE TWENTY-THREE HUNDRED DAYS 96
THE CLEANSING OF THE SANCTUARY 106
THE JUDGMENT OF THE CHURCH - 112
THE STANDARD OF THE JUDGMENT - 121
PART FIVE
The Law and the Sabbath
THE RELATION OP THE LAW TO•THE GOSPEL I27
THE TWO LAWS 136
THE MAKING OF THE SABBATH 141
THE NEW-TESTAMENT SABBATH 150
THE CHANGE OF THE SABBATH 161
IS GOD PARTICULAR? - 169
PART SIX
Man's Nature and Destiny
ABSOLUTE AND CONDITIONAL LIFE - - 177
THE NATURE OF MAN - - 182
WHERE ARE THE DEAD? - 193
THE PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED 200
THE WAGES Or SIN - - - - 2I I
•
THE REWARD OP THE RIGHTEOUS - - 215
PART SEVEN
The Unfolding of the Prophecies
PROPHETIC SYMBOLS AND THE FOUR BEASTS 220

THE SEVEN SEALS - 233
Table of Colitents
(Continued)
PAGE
THE GREAT SEAL OF JEHOVAH - 247
THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY 253
THE MYSTIC NUMBER 666 264

THE GREAT THREEFOLD MESSAGE 271
THE SEVEN LAST PLAGUES - 282
PART EIGHT
Coming Events and the closing of the Gospel
THE MILLENNIUM - 291
THE DEPOPULATION OF THE EARTH 296
THE SECOND RESURRECTION - 304
THE FALL OF BABYLON - 310

COMPLETING AN ARRESTED REFORMATION 321
WALKING IN THE LIGHT - 330

THE COMING OF ELIJAH THE PROPHET 336
PART NINE
Connected and Associated Truths
ONE TENTH TO THE LORD 345

THE MINISTRY OF ANGELS 354
CONVERSION 363
BAPTISM 369
HEALTH AND TEMPERANCE 377
CHRISTIANS AND DRESS 386
THE ORDINANCE OF HUMILITY 393
THE GIFT OP PROPHECY - 400
WORLDLY CONFORMITY - 411
Full-Page Illustrations
PAG5
THE SKYLINE OF NEW YORK - - FRONTISPIECE
"THE SON OF MAN SHALL COME IN HIS GLORY" - 17
CROWNED HEADS OF EUROPE - - - - - 24
THE LORD WILL COME TO DESTROY THE WICKED - 33
AN ARTIST'S CONCEPTION OF A CITY OF THE FUTURE 42
"As IT WAS IN THE DAYS Or NOAH" - - - 54
WANTONNESS OF THE RICH AND NEED OF THE POOR 61
BROADCASTING APPARATUS OF WEMC, BERRIEN SPRINGS, MICH. 70
ADAM AND EVE WERE NOT UTTERLY ABANDONED TO SATAN - 81
"THE BROKEN LADDER, " AN EPISODE IN ALEXANDER'S CAMPAIGN - 92
CHRIST'S CRUCIFIXION FULFILLED PROPHECY - 104
THE JUDGMENT WILL DECIDE WHO IS WORTHY OF HEAVEN - I 16
CHRIST REFERRED THE MERCHANTS OF HIS TIME TO THE LAW I25
THIS MAN IS NOT UNDER GRACE BUT UNDER THE LAW - 131
THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS - - 139
PAUL PREACHED TO THE PEOPLE EVERY SABBATH - 158
KING AGAG BEFORE SAMUEL - - - - 172
MAN STRIVES TO CONQUER NATURE - - - - - 184
THE GREAT AND THE SMALL ARE ALIKE IN THE SILENCE OF DEATH 190
LINCOLN MEMORIAL, WASHINGTON, D. C. - - - 197
MEN MAKE FRIGHTFUL EFFORTS TO APPEASE GOD'S WRATH 202
MOSES AT THE BATTLE OF ISRAEL WITH THE AMALEKITES 210
THE TEN DIVISIONS OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE - 228
THE_LISBONEARTHQuAxn - - - 2 44
THE SABBATH SEALS GOD'S PEOPLE TO HIM - 251
DRAFTING THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 254
DURING THE DARK AGES THE CHURCH USED THE SWORD - 266
THE WORLD IS RIPENING TOWARD ITS HARVEST 288
THE MIGHTY ANGEL SENT FROM GOD BINDS SATAN ' - 293
A VOLCANO FORESHADOWS THE EARTH AS A LAKE OF FIRE - 306
MIGHTY CITIES OF PAST AGES - - - - 312
MARVELOUS PROGRESS IN LEARNING PRODUCED BY GOD'S WORD - ' 322
VINDICATION OF GOD'S WORD RISES FROM THE RUINS OF HISTORY 326
IF CHRIST SHOULD COME IN OUR TIMES - - 332
ELIJAH'S WORK ENDED IN HIS TRANSLATION - 339
THE CALM PEACE op MT. FUJI IN JAPAN - - 350
THE RIVER OF HOLIEST ASSOCIATIONS IS THE JORDAN 372
THE WORLD'S GREATEST MEDICAL CENTER - - 382
MARY ANOINTING JESUS' FEET - - - - - 396
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH DICTATING HIS VISION TO BARUCH 404
HUMBLE AND FAITHFUL TOILERS Do GoDIPSERvicE - 414
Boston Photo News
There is a light "that shineth more and more unto the perfect day."
The Advancing Truth of God

T HERE is no such thing as standing still, either in Christian
experience or in Christian knowledge. The child of God
is to " grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 3 : i8. He is to be ever "increas-
ing in the knowledge of God." Col. i : io. Walking in the light
he already has, he will find the light of divine truth ever in-
creasing. "The path of the just is as the shining light, that
shineth more and more unto the perfect day." Prov. 4: i8.
This is true of the church as a whole as well as of the individ-
ual, Christian. From the beginning until now, the people of
God have been walking in one continuous path, " the path of the
just." And upon that path until now one continuous and ever-
increasing light has been shining, the light of the truth of the
Most High God.
Through the ages of the past, the ever accumulating light
of truth has been growing brighter and stronger. Dim and
obscure was the light of former ages apprehended by the Chris-
tian pilgrim in comparison with the revealed truth of God today.
And its full glory is to beeen in the message that will be pro-
(9)
TO OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
claimed to all the world to herald the second coming of our

Lord. In connection with the ushering in of "the perfect day"
is the full glory of its shining brightness to be disclosed.
The Ancient Prophecies Fulfilled
Today is a time aboye all times when fresh unfoldings of
God's great purposes for the human race and the earth may be
expected. Today the ancient prophecies are being fulfilled.
Today "the signs of the times" are being displayed before men's
eyes. This is " the time of the end, " " the last time. " " The
perfect day" of Christ's return and kingdom is near at hand.
All the truth that is to be brought to the attention of men in
these last days is to come forth from the Scriptures. Therefore,
it must have been revealed to those "holy men of old" who
wrote the Bible. They did not, however, though writing under
the inspiration of the Spirit, understand the truth and the
purposes of God as those living today are privileged to under-
stand them.
In their days the light of truth shone but feebly in com-
parison with its present glory. Thus Paul declared, when
referring to the knowledge of the principles of the gospel before
the time of Christ, that it was not made known to men before
as it was then revealed to him. " How that by revelation He
made known unto me the mystery; . . . which in other ages
was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed
unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit." Eph. 3: 3-5.
The church of Christ in the time of the apostles held a
pure faith, and was acquainted with the truth for that time.
It is not to be supposed, however, that it was as fully ac-
quainted with the plans and purposes of God as it is possible
for God's people today to be. Especially is this true with ref-
erence to those truths that were to be given as a warning
against the 'perils and dangers of the last days.
Thus the truth of God is constantly moving onward. It
is not enough that Christians today find themselves in the path
of light, holding truths that have been revealed for centuries.
They must progress as the truth progresses. And if they fail
to do this, the light, which 'never stops, will pass on and leave
them in darkness. "And he that walketh in darkness knoweth
not whither he goeth."
Noah's message of a coming flood was an example of the message for our times.
Special Truths for Special Times

T HE great fundamental truths of the Bible are for all ages
and all people. They apply to men in every conditiOn and
circumstance of life, and in every generation of the world's
history. Such are the general truths of salvation by faith,
the pre-existence of Christ as Creator, His substitutionary
death, His imputed and imparted righteousness. The love of
God, hope in a future life, faith in the atoning righteousness
of Christ, the mercy of the Father, the repentance and obedience
of the believer -- these great truths are for all time.
There are other truths of a special character, given to meet
special conditions, and these are applicable only when these
special conditions prevail.
Such special truths are of vital importance to the generation
to which, and for which, they are revealed. Upon a right relation
to them may depend the salvation of those to whom they are
presented. When the time comes for the presentation of such
special messages of truth, then the great fundamentals of
divine truth and revealed religion are to be preached in the
setting of the special message. To reject the gospel in this
special setting is to reject salvation. To have the light that
has been revealed in the past, and to use that light as an excuse
for rejecting the light and truth for the present, is to reject the
(Ix)
I2 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
Christ who sends it. It is not enough to be walking in the light
of the past. To refuse to walk in present truth and light, be-
cause we already possess the past light, is to be walking in
darkness and knowing not whither we go.
The Message of Noah
The Bible speaks of these special messages of truth under
the name of " the present truth." (2 Peter I : 12.) Noah's
message of the coming flood is an example of these special
truths for special times. Adam knew enough of the truth of
God to-save him, but he was not acquainted with Noah's
message, for it was not a present, but rather a future, truth in
his time. Adam could walk in the light of truth without having
this truth to consider, for it had not then been revealed as a
testing truth. Abraham could walk in the light of truth with-•
out believing in a coming flood, for Noah's message in Abraham's
time was a past, and not a present, truth. But to the generation
that heard Noah's message, it was a present truth; and the
salvation of the people of that generation depended upon their
believing the truth of God in the light of the present truth of
Noah's message.
It was not enough for the people of Noah's time to argue
that before Noah began to preach his message they had evidence
of their acceptance with God. This may have been true; they
may have been accepted of God before they heard the message
for that time; but after hearing it, there was new light shining
upon their path, which they could not reject and still remain
saved.
So it was with the message of John the Baptist. He was
given a present truth for the generation to which he preached.
His message could not have been preached to the generation
before, nor the generation after, for it would not then have been
present truth. It was present truth to the generation that heard
it, and their salvation was involved in their acceptance or
rejection of it.
The great fundamental truths of the religion of Christ may
be preached at any time. They are always true, and therefore
always in season. Present truths, however, cannot always
be preached, for they are not always true, and therefore are
not always in season. To illustrate: The coming of a flood
SPECIAL TRUTHS POR SPECIAL. TIMES 13
of waters could not be
preached now, for it is not
now true.
When John came
preaching the truth of a
coming Saviour, and urging
upon men the necessity of
baptism for the remission
of their sins, he was met
with the argument that the
people had sufficient truth
to save them. Were they
not Abraham's children?
Did they not believe in the
teachings of Moses —in the
law, in the prophets, in the
flood, and all that was re-
vealed in the Old Testa-
ment? Why, then, need
they accept anything new?
The reason they gave for
not accepting Christ was:
The message of John the Baptist could
not have been preached at any other time. "We know that God spake
unto Moses: as for this
fellow, we know not from whence he is."- John 9: 29.
There was some risk in accepting Christ. Time had not
worked out the truthfulness of His claims. They could see that
the past truths were from God; it required faith to accept Christ
and His teachings. Here was the test. Their faith was in the
past, not in God. Hence they refused to accept Christ and the
present truth for that time.
Testing Truths
Present truths are testing truths. To accept them has re-
quired more faith than is possessed by the nominal follower of
God. The majority of those who profess religion are willing
to accept the truths that require no sacrifice of ease or pleasure.
But when a new truth is presented — a truth that to accept
would mean to stand alone — then this is a trial so great that
the vast majority refuse to face it, thus revealing that their
14 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
religion is a mere profession, and cannot stand the strain of a
real test.
In connection with the second coming of Christ, a message
will go forth to the entire world that will be "meat in due
season." (Matt. 24: 44, 45.) This message must contain the
proclamation of His soon coming, and also a preparation to
meet Him in safety and peace. It will be the present truth to
the generation that hears it.
As no message of present truth has ever been permitted by
God to be preached before the time for its preaching was due,
so this message will not be given out of its time. As every
message of present truth heretofore has always included in it
all the truths that had been revealed before it was presented,
so the message of present truth that heralds the coming of
Christ will include in it every truth that has been revealed to
man from the beginning of time.
Time for the Last Message
According to the clear teaching of the Bible, the time is
fully here for the preaching of the message of Christ's coming.
That great event is nearly here, a fact that will be clearly shown
in later chapters of this book. The message of His coming is
now being taken to all the earth. Thousands of men in all
parts of the world are preaching it, and tens and hundreds
of thousands of people in all parts of the earth are hearing
this message. It is God's message for today, the present truth.
The very fa& that it is now being presented to the world is
evidence that the time for its proclamation has come.
Jesus said to His disciples. "I will come again, and receive you unto Myself."
Jesus Is Coming the Second Time

Esus is coming again. He was on earth once, nineteen
J
J centuries ago. He remained here a little more than thirty-
three years. Then He returned to heaven from whence He had
come. There, ever'since, He has been serving as the High Priest
of His people in His work of mediation and intercession. He did
not finish His work of salvation at His first visit. The full re-
demption of the world and the human race is still to be com-
pleted. He is coming to finish it.
During all these years since His first coming, the gospel of
our Lord has been gathering out a people for His name. He
is coming again to receive these subjects of His Kingdom to
Himself. When He was here before, He sowed the seed; when
He comes again, He will reap the harvest.
He did not go away to heaven without giving His word
to come back. He urged His disciples to be prepared for His
second coming. He gave them instruction regarding the time
of His return. He commissioned them to preach the message
of His second coming to all the world. He encouraged them to
look for this great event as the consummation of all their hopes.
(15)
16 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING'
He pointed to heaven, and told them there were many
mansions there in His Father's house. He told them He was
going away. But, He said, "I will come again." John 14: 1-3.
"The Son of man shall come in His glory." Matt. 25: 31.
Predicting that signs would occur when they might know His
coming was near, He said: "Then shall they see the Son of
man coming in a cloud with power and great glory." Luke 21:
25-27.
He spoke many parables, and in nearly all of them He
reiterated the fact and certainty of His return. In them He
told of the man who took his journey into a far country (Matt.
25: 14-30), and after a long time came and had a reckoning
with his servants; of the "certain nobleman" who went into
a far country "to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return"
(Luke 19: 11-27) ; and of the marriage supper of the Bridegroom,
and the wise and the foolish virgins, together with the mid-
night cry, "Behold, He cometh!" Matt. 25. 1-13.
Having completed His earthly ministry, He returned to,
heaven. But His disciples continued, under inspiration of the
Spirit, to give instruction regarding His return. Paul wrote:
"Our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for
the Saviour." Phil. 3: 20. "Unto them that look for Him shall
He appear the second time without sin unto salvation." Heb.
9: 28. "For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come,
and will not tarry." Heb. ro: 37. Let it be noticed that Paul
is so confident of the return of His Lord that he speaks of Him
as "He that shall come," and declares most positively that He
"will come."
"The Day of the Lord Will Come"
Peter speaks of the scoffers of the last days mockingly in-
quiring, "Where is the promise of His coming?" They claim to
be unable to observe any signs of His second coming, yet Peter
assures those to whom He writes that "the day of; the Lord
will come as a thief in the night." 2 Peter 3 : 4, to.
John many times refers to his Lord's second coming in his
writings. "Now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He
shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed
before Him at His coming." r John 2: 28. "Behold, He cometh
with clouds; and every eye shall see Him." Rev. 1 : 7.
"The Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him?'
2 (17)
From the very earliest times of human history, God has
taught the truth of the second coming of His Son. "Enoch,
the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold,
the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute
judgment upon all." Jude 14, 15. David wrote: " When the
Lord shall build up Zion, He shall appear in His gloi=y." Ps.
102 :16. "For He cometh, for He cometh to judge the earth: He
shall judge the earth with righteousness, and the people with
His truth." Ps. 96: 13.
Isaiah refers to Christ's second coming. "And it shall be
said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him,
and He will save us." Isa. 25 : 9. "Behold, your God will come
with vengeance, even God with a recompense; He will come
and save you." Isa. 35 : 4. " For, behold, the Lord will come with
fire, and with His chariots like a whirlwind." Isa. 66: 15.
Revelation from God
Like all other words in the Holy Scriptures, these words
are true. Jesus is coming again. This is not a doctrine invented
by man. It is not a cunningly devised fable. It is one of the
most prominent truths contained in the Bible. It is among
the greatest and grandest things, the most momentous things,
that the Bible speaks about.
As surely as God has revealed it, so surely will it take place.
There is, there can be no uncertainty about it. It is settled in
heaven. It will be fulfilled on earth. The Bible teaches it.
The very nature of the gospel demands it. Christ's work for
human salvation would be incomplete without it. The hearts of
God's people long for it.
Nothing can prevent its occurrence. The unbelief of the
world and the church will not hinder it. Opposition will not
stay its onward progress. Fear of it will not prevent it from
taking place. God's word predicts it. That is enough. Jesus
will come.
The ancient glories of Egypt and of all the great
nations of the past are now but sculptured memories.
The Coming World Government

B ABYLON, with its palaces of pleasure tenanted with
beauty, lies in eternal silence under the shifting sands of
the desert. Tyre and Sidon, once the market places of the
world, now in ruins, are places for the spreading of nets in the
midst of the sea. Old Egypt, its ancient glories now but sculp-
tured memories, is in strangers' hands. The vacant shrines of
Greece have moldered into dust. Rome, that far-flung empire
of old, has been smothered under its luxury and licentiousness.
For thousands of years nations have arisen, lived out their
little day of triumph and glory, and gone into utter silence.
How long is this world-old rise and fall of nations to continue?
Is the sound of war and strife to be perpetual? Is an ultimate
nation, never to be conquered, founded on righteousness,
eternal in its duration, to rule the earth?
How great and important these questions are! And God has
answered them. He has foretold the coming of the ultimate
kingdom.
World's History in Advance
In the days of Babylon, the first universal empire, God gave
its king, the mighty Nebuchadnezzar, a dream that covered
the entire course of this world's history from his time to the
very end of the world. This prophecy is recorded in the second
chapter of Daniel.
(19)
The meaning of this dream was made known to the king by
Daniel, a young Hebrew captive, who was one of the king's
wise men.
"There is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known
to the King Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream,
and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these; as for thee, 0 king,
thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass
hereafter: and He that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall
come to pass." Verses 28, 29.
Attention is directed to the fact that this dream was given
in response to a question in the mind of Nebuchadnezzar, a
question concerning the future: "What should come to pass
hereafter?" Who would be his successor? Would he be able to
keep his great kingdom intact? Would the time ever come when
some other nation would overthrow the great structure that
Nebuchadnezzar had built up? These were the questions that
concerned the ruler of, earth's mightiest empire as he lay on his
bed that night.
As he slept, God gave him a dream that unlocked the
secrets of the future. When he awoke, while he remembered
that he had had a dream that he felt was of vital importance,
he could not recall it. After the failure of the wise men to
enlighten him, Daniel, given special instruction by the Lord,
made known not only what the dream was, but also its inter-
pretation.
"In the Latter Days"
Before considering the dream and its interpretation, it is
important to notice that this dream contains information
regarding "what shall be in the latter days." It is, then, a
prophecy for the present time. Describing the king's dream,
Daniel said:
"Thou, 0 king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image,
whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was
terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver,
his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and
part of clay." Verses 31-33.
And as the king considered this remarkable image inlis
dream, he beheld,
"till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image
upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was
THE COMING WORLD GOVERNMENT 2I
the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the
gold, broken to pieces together, and became like
the chaff of the summer threshing-floors; and the
wind carried them away, that no place was found
for them: and the stone that smote the image
became a great mountain, and filled the whole
earth." Verses 34, 35.
The Interpretation
This was the dream as the king saw
it. Then Daniel gave the interpretation;
"Thou art this head of gold." Verse 38.
Babylon was represented in this image
by the head. Babylon was not to remain
forever. It was to be overthrown. "After
thee shall arise another kingdom inferior
to thee." Verse 39.
This prediction was fulfilled.
later the Medes and the Persians over-
threw Babylon on the night of the great
feast that Belshazzar, the grandson of
Nebuchadnezzar and his successor
as king of Babylon, had made to a
thousand of his lords, and at which
he profaned the vessels from the
temple of the true God, which had
been brought from Jerusalem. On
that night, Daniel, then an old
"Thou, 0 king, sawest, and
man, was called in to interpret the behold a great image."
mysterious handwriting on the wall.
He said: "Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes
and Persians." Dan. 5: 28. Then the record is: "In that night
was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius
the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two
years old." Dan. 5: 3o, 31.
The breast and arms of silver of this great image represented
the government that succeeded Babylon, the Medo-Persian
empire.
Greece and Rome
The course of history was not to Stop with Medo-Persia.
There was to arise " another third kingdom of brass, which was
to bear rule over all the earth." Dan. 2 : 39. This third kingdom
was Greece, under Alexander the Great.
"And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron
breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all
these, shall it break in pieces and bruise." Verse 4o.
The kingdom represented by the legs of iron was the "great
iron monarchy of Rome," which overthrew the Grecian empire.
Rome ruled the world. She worshiped all gods save the true
one. As iron "that subdueth all things," so Rome crushed the
world and trampled it under her feet.
The Division of Rome
But, Rome, too, was to fall.
"And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay, and
part of iron, the kingdom [Rome] shall be divided; but there shall be in it of
the strength, of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with
miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay,
so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken [or weak]."
Verses 41, 42.
According to a parallel prophecy in Daniel 7, Rome was to
be divided into ten divisions. Some of these divisions were to
be strong kingdoms, and some of them were to be weak.
The Ten Kingdoms
These ten kingdoms came into existence in the territory of
the Roman empire between A. D. 351 and 476. They were the
result of the barbarian invasions of those times. The kingdoms
were: The Alemmani (Germany), the Franks (France), the
Burgundian (Switzerland), the Suevi (Portugal), the Anglo-
Saxons (England), the Visigoths (Spain), the Lombards (Italy),
the Vandals, the Ostrogoths, , and the Heruli. These last
three — the Vandals, the Heruli, and the Ostrogoths — have
been utterly destroyed, and do not now exist. Seven are still
here, the nations of Germany, France, England, Portugal,
Spain, Switzerland, and Italy. Some of these kingdoms are
strong and some of them weak.
Now follows a most remarkable prediction:
"And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle
themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another,
even as iron is not mixed with clay." Verse 43.
THE COMING WORLD GOVERNMENT 23
Here is a prediction that attempts would be made to weld these
kingdoms again into one great empire. These have not suc-
ceeded. They never will. "They shall not cleave one to another."
Attempts to Unite European Nations
In the eighth century Charlemagne made an attempt to
bring the kingdoms of Europe under his dominion and unite
them in a great Christian empire. Just as God foretold, he
failed. During the sixteenth century a similar attempt was made
by Charles V. He failed. During the latter part of the seven-
teenth and the first part of the eighteenth centuries, Louis XIV
tried to bring nearly all Europe under his dominion, and Louis
XIV failed.
Perhaps the greatest, and what appeared for a time to be
the most successful, attempt to bring all the divided parts of
the ancient Roman empire under one rule was made during the
first part of the nineteenth century by Napoleon Bonaparte.
But all the wisdom of this brilliant military genius, all his
shrewdness and ingenuity, all his great knowledge of military
tactics, and all the strength of his mighty legions, were not
sufficient to break the power of seven short words of Scripture.
The most recent attempt to gain the mastery of Europe
was that of Wilhelm II of Germany, resulting in the World War
of 1914-18. But the Kaiser's dream of world empire was shat-
tered by the Allied armies and the eternal rock of God's
prophetic word.
Intermarriage, Another Method
The prophecy goes further than this, and indicates that
along with the use of force, other methods would be tried.
It very definitely predicts that one of those methods will be
intermarriage. The words of the prophecy are: "They shall
mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not
cleave one to another." Verse 43.
Permit me to direct attention to the intricate relation-
ships existing between the reigning houses of Europe. The
kings of Denmark and Norway, Christian X and Haakon VII,
are brothers. Nicholas II of Russia was their first cousin.
Constantine X of Greece was their first cousin. George V of
England is their first cousin. The grandfather of all five was
CHARLES V
PRPLY ROMAN EMPIRE
Crowned heads of Europe who attempted to create another world state.
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Txt COMING WORLD GOVIRNMENT 25
Christian 'IX of Denmark, called the "grandfather of Europe."
George V of England is grandson of Queen Victoria. Another
grandson is the former Kaiser, Wilhelm II. Some of her grand-
daughters are Queen Victoria of Spain, Ex-Queen Sophia of
Greece, Queen. Marie of Roumania, Queen Maude of Norway,
the late Czarina Alix of Russia. George of England and Maude
of Norway are brother and sister. The others are all first cousins.
This intermarrying, however, has not fulfilled its design of
bringing these nations into closer and more friendly relation-
ships to each other. They are all just as ready to go to war
with each other as they would be if their rulers were not all
blood relatives.
"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a king-
dom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to
other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms,
and it shall stand forever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was
cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron,
the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made
known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is cer-
tain, and the interpretation thereof sure." Verses 44, 45.
The Everlasting Kingdom of Peace

This is the most important part of this entire line of proph-
ecy. In the days of the modern nations of Europe the God
of heaven is to establish His everlasting kingdom, the kingdom
of Christ. Just as surely as Medo-Persia followed Babylon,
as Greece followed Medo-Persia, as Rome followed Greece,
and as the modern nations of Europe followed the empire of
Rome, just so surely will this present world order be followed
in the very near future by the kingdom of God.
It should be noticed that this kingdom is not to be established
in this world by the world's conversion. The stone that smote
the great image and ground it to p6wder represents the kingdom
of God. After pleading with all flesh, God will punish the in-
habitants of the earth for the rejection of the gospel, bringing
the existing order of the world to destruction.
The Jews killed the prophet Zacharias within the very precincts of the temple.
Our Lord's Own Prophecy of His Return

W HAT is evidently the last public address given by Jesus
to the Jewish nation is recorded in Matthew 23. At the
close of this address Jesus said:
"Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and
scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall
ye scourge in your synagogues,. and persecute them from city to city: that
upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the
blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom
ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these
things shall come upon this generation." Matt. 23: 34-36.
The Jewish people possessed all the light and truth that
God had revealed through all the centuries preceeding their
time; and in rejecting that light, they made themselves equally
guilty with their fathers in the shed blood of the patriarchs
and prophets. The punishment for this accumulated guilt
was, according to these words of Christ, to be visited upon
that generation. •
This is clearly a prediction that the destruction of the
city of Jerusalem and the Jewish nation would come upon
the very generation that heard and rejected the message of the
gospel. This was literally fulfilled.
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OUR LORD'S OWN PROPHgCY Or HIS RRTURN, 27
When Jesus had left the temple after this occasion and was
sitting on the slope of Mount Olivet overlooking the buildings
of the temple, "the disciples came unto Him privately." They'
asked Him two questions. Just previously He had told them
something additional regarding the destruction of the temple,
saying, " Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one
stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down."
The two questions that the disciples asked the Master were
these:
"Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be
the sign of Thy coming and of the end of the world?" Matt. 24:3.
First, they asked for information as to when "these things,"
which He had already said were coming upon that present
generation, were to take place. After that they wanted to
learn what sign they were to accept and recognize as the sign
of Christ's return to this earth and of the end of the world.
Jesus proceeded to answer the first question, giving the
indications of the approaching destruction of the city and
temple. Finally He gave them the sign by which they were
to know when to leave the city to escape its destruction.
When they should see Jerusalem compassed with armies (Luke
2I : 2o), they were to flee into the mountains. They looked for
this sign, and by heeding it when it appeared, all of God's
people made good their escape from the doomed city. Let
it be noticed that the predicted destruction of Jerusalem did
come upon the very generation that heard and rejected the
message of the gospel, in which was contained a warning
concerning this very destruction, and in which, also, was con-
tained salvation for every soul who believed and accepted
the message.
The Great Tribulation
In beginning His reply to the question regarding the signs of
His second coming, Christ spoke first of a period of "great
tribulation."
"Then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning
of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days be
shortened, there should no flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake those days
shall be shortened." Matt. 24: 21, 22.
This sign was fulfilled in that great period of papal per-
secution against God's faithful children, which, according to
the prophecy of Dan. 7:25, was to continue for "a time,
'times, and half a time," symbolic time, or twelve hundred
and sixty years.
This period of martyrdom and persecution began with the
supremacy of the Roman Church in A.D. 538, and continued
just twelve hundred and sixty years, until 1798. In this latter
year the pope was taken prisoner by General Berthier of
France, and sent away into exile, where he died.
The "days" of persecution, then, reached down to 1798.
The Saviour said those days should be shortened; that is, the
persecution itself would be brought to an end before the days
ran out, or before 1798. True to the Master's word, the ef-
fects of the Protestant Reformation began to be felt before 1798
came, and persecution had practically ceased by the third quar-
ter of the eighteenth century, or about 1716.
The Dark Day

Here, then, is a period of about twenty-two years between
1776 and 1798, during which the persecution of Christians had
about been brought to an end. In this period, between these
two dates, Christ now located the next sign of His coming:
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun
be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light." Matt.
24: 29. The Saviour does not say this sign would take place
after the days, but after the "tribulation of those days." Mark,
in recording this same instruction of the Master, makes the
exact time for the occurrence of this sign a little clearer. He
says: "But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall
be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light." Mark 13 :24.
Thus the occurrence of this sign is limited to a period of
about twenty-two years, between 1776 and 1798. In this very
period this prediction was exactly fulfilled. It took place on
May 19, 1780.
The Falling of the Stars
After the sign of the dark day there was to be another.
Christ' speaks of it as follows: "And the stars shall fall from
heaven." Matt. 24: 29.
This sign was fulfilled in the wonderful meteoric shower of
OUR LORD'S OWN PROPHECY Or HIS RETURN 29
the morning of November 13, 1833. On that day the most

wonderful falling of stars that the world has ever witnessed took
place, and fulfilled this verse.
"And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then
shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall
send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather to-
gether His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."
Matt. 24: 3o, 35.
From these words it is clear that in this line of prophecy
the very next event after the falling of the stars in 1833 is the
actual appearance of Jesus in the clouds of heaven. Then the
Lord said: " When ye shall see all these things, know that He is
near, even at the doors." Matt. 24: 33, margin.
Warnings Against False Christs
Before closing this chapter it is important to direct special
attention to the warnings given in this discourse of the Saviour
against false Christs and false prophets.
"Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; be-
lieve it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall
show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall
deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they
shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is
in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of
the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the
Son of man be." Matt. 24: 23-27.
"As the lightning . . . so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
Christ has purchased this old earth and He is coming to redeem it.
The Purpose of His Coming

HE second coming of Christ has a ninefold purpose; name-
ly, to receive His people unto Himself, to raise the blessed
dead, to translate the righteous living, to judge the world, to
reward the righteous, to destroy the wicked, to redeem the
earth, to restore all things, and to reign forever and ever.
Coming for His People
Jesus clearly stated the purpose of His coming when He
prepared His disciples for His departure:
"I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for
you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself ; that where I am, there
ye may be also." John 14: 2, 3.
From the very beginning it has been the purpose of God that
His people should dwell with Him throughout eternity. Christ
returned to heaven from this earth in order to make preparation
for this purpose to be carried out. He is even now preparing
" a place" for His people. He will come again to take them to
Himself, that where He is there they may be also. His people
will be gathered by His angels when He comes, for we read:
"And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other." Matt. 24: 35.
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THE PURPOSE OF HIS COMING 31
At the time when Jesus comes, however, most of His people
will be sleeping in death. Therefore one of the primary purposes
of the coming of Christ is to awake the sleeping saints and give
them an immortal existence.
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in
Christ shall rise first." i Thess. 4: 16.
TO Translate the Living

Some of the people of God at this time will be alive, not
having tasted death. These will be united with those who have
been raised from the dead, and both classes together will be
caught up to be with Jesus.
" Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with c
them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with
the Lord." r Thess. 4: 57.
When this takes place both classes of the righteous will be
changed from their mortal, corruptible state and given a glori-
ous immortality.
"We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in
the twinkling of an 'eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and
the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immor-
tality." i Cor. 15:51-53.
To Judge the World

Another purpose for which Christ will come the second time
will be to judge the world. Paul makes it very clear that the
judgment of both the living and the dead will take place at the
second coming of Christ: "I charge thee therefore before God,
and the -Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the
dead at His appearing and His kingdom." 2 Tim. 4: I.
To Reward the Righteous
It is at the second coming of Christ that the righteous will
be rewarded. Eternal salvation from sin and death will then
be the gift of God's grace to His people.
"So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them
that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto sal-
vation." Heb. 9: 28.
The coming of Christ will assure to His people the 'eternal
kingdom long promised them:
"And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom
under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the
Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions
shall serve and• obey Him." Dan. 7:27.
To Destroy the Wicked

The Lord will come the second time to.destroy the wicked,
those who have rejected His mercy and His truth.
"When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Thess. 1: 7, 8.
John writes of this destruction of the wicked at the coming
of Christ as follows:
"And the nations were angry, and Thy wrath is come, and the time of
the dead, that they should be judged, and that Thou shouldest give reward
unto Thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear Thy
name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy' the
earth." Rev. I i : 18.
To Redeem the Earth
Jesus is coming to redeem this old earth. Christ has pur-
chased the earth. He will bring it back to its original beauty.
And so "we, according to His promise, look for a new heaven
and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." 2 Peter 3 : 13.
" The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein forever."
Ps. 37:29.
To Restore All Things
Another wonderful purpose of God in the second coming of
Christ is the restoration of all things that have been lost through
the introduction of sin into this world. Through Christ all
things will be restored to those who accept the plan of salvation.
This has been foretold by many of the prophets:
"And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto
you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all
things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets
since the world began." Acts 3: 20, 21.
A description of the restored earth, with the redeemed race
upon it, will be found in the last two chapters of the Bible.
It is the second coming of Christ that will prepare the Way for
The Lord will come the second time to destroy thewicked.
3 (33)
the establishment of this new earth, where the people of God

shall dwell throughout eternity.
To Reign Forever
Jesus will come as King of kings and Lord of lords.
"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat
upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge
and make war. . . . And He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name
written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OP LORDS." Rev. tg:
The kingdom over which He will rule will be an everlasting
kingdom.
"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a
kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: . . . it• shall stand forever."
Dan. 2 : 44. "Of His kingdom there shall be no end." Luke 1: 33.
To Give the Kingdom to His People

Of this kingdom the people of God shall be joint heirs with
Christ, and the coming of Christ will assure to His people the
kingdom that has been promised the faithful.
"And the kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom
shall serve and obey Him." Dan. 7: 27.
Surely with all these wonderful and glorious purposes to be
worked out by the coming of Christ, we cannot afford to give
up the precious doctrine of His coming. This is indeed a "blessed
hope." As we contemplate the stupendous events of the near
future,— the events that cluster around the glorious appearing
of Christ,— there comes from our eager hearts the cry of John,
" Even so, come, Lord Jesus."
On the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem Jesus
spoke to His disciples of the signs of His coming.
The Time of His Coming

HERE has been much futile speculation regarding the
time of the second coming of Christ. So many people have
set a time for this event to take place, and the time set has
passed by so many times, that the event itself has been dis-
credited, even in the minds of those who believe the Bible.
The sensational predictions that have been made by
fanatical enthusiasts on this subject have served only to arouse
the scorn of the world. The opinion prevails quite widely that it
is useless to study the subject of the nearness of the coming of
Christ, and when the statement is made that we are now living
in a time when His immediate coming may be expected, it is
usually received with an incredulous and pitying smile. The
prevailing view of this subject seems to be expressed in the state-
ment so often heard, " We can know nothing of the time of
His coming; He may come today, and He may come in a thou-
sand years; we know nothing at all about it."
"The Time of the End"
It is most deplorable that so much fanaticism has surrounded
the preaching of this subject in the past that this great doctrine
has come to be looked upon with reproach. This ought not,
however, to cause those who are seeking for the truth to overlook
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the fact that the Bible has a great deal to say about "the time
of the end," "the last days," and "the days of the Son of man,"
nor the additional fact that the Bible so fully describes the
character of those days just preceding the coming of Christ
that only those who are willingly ignorant will fail to recognize
them.
- On the Mount of Olives the disciples asked, the Saviour,
" What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the
world?" In His reply to this question, the Master described
in detail the great period of persecution during the Dark Ages,
the dark day of May 19, 178o, and the falling of the stars of
Nov. 13, 1833, and then said:
" When ye shall see all these things, know that He is near, even at the
doors." Matt. 24: 33, margin.
It is fully possible for all who are interested in this subject
to know at least when His coming "is even at the doors."
This may be known by the signs that He has given — the great
tribulation, the dark day, and the falling of the stars. When
these things are seen, then we may rest assured that His coming
is " even at the doors." When a person is at the door, he is so
near that one step farther will bring him inside.
In a Certain Generation
To make this, the time of His coming, still more definite,
Christ said:
"Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, until all these
things be fulfilled." Matt. 24:34.
Just as the destruction of Jerusalem was to come upon a
certain generation, so the coming of Christ is here predicted to
take place in a certain generation. It will be remembered that
when Christ said the guilt and punishment for all the righteous
blood shed upon the earth was to be visited upon the Jews,
He used these words:
"Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this genera-
tion." Matt. 23:36.
Thus in both these chapters, the twenty-third and the
twenty-fourth of Matthew, certain things are predicted to take
place in certain generations. The first is certainly a prediction
that the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish nation would
THE TIME OF HIS COMING 37
come upon the very generation that heard and rejected the
message of the gospel. This prediction was literally fulfilled.
The destruction of the city and temple took place in A. D. 7o,
about thirty-nine years after Christ had made the prediction
regarding " this generation."
In This Present Generation
The second use of the words "this generation" has reference
to an entirely different generation from the one that saw the
destruction of Jerusalem. The generation referred to in Matthew
24: 34 is definitely located in the preceding verse as the genera-
tion that "shall see all these things," that is, the tribulation,
the dark day, and the falling of the stars. The generation meant
is the one that shall see these things as signs of the coming of
Christ.
The teaching of this passage clearly is that when the people
of this earth hear a, great message of the coming of Christ,—
a message that will set before them these signs as signs of the
coming of Christ,— the generation hearing that message will
not pass away until the Saviour comes. That message of the
Lord's coming, containing the signs referred to, is even now
being preached in practically all the world. This generation,
the present generation, is the one that is hearing the message
of the coming of Christ. This brings us face to face with the
most solemn truth of all our lives: The present generation is
the one that is destined to see the coming of Christ.
Just as surely as the great period of tribulation of the church
came to pass, just as surely as this period was followed by the
occurrence of the dark day of 178o, just as surely as this in turn
was followed by the falling of the stars in 1833, just so surely
will the coming of Christ take place in the present generation.
"This same Jesus." said the angels. "shall so come in
like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven."
The Manner of His Coming

ONCERNING the manner of Christ's coming the Bible
C declares : " Unto them that look for Him shall He appear the
second time without sin unto salvation." Heb. 9: 28.
Christ, when He comes the second time, will come in an open,
public manner; there will be.nothing secret about it, there will be
nothing hidden from the eyes of men; He will " appear." That is,
He will be seen by the people dwelling on the earth.
"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great
God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." Titus 2: 13.
The second coming of Christ will be an appearing, not at all
a secret, hidden coming at death, as many today preach; nor
that spiritual, invisible coming, unrecognized by the world,
that some expect. Christ will appear. His coming will be literal,
personal, visible. It will be a real coming, not the coming of "a
spirit being," an "invisible Lord," but of the very same Jesus
whO walked with His disciples on the hills of Galilee.
The Bible emphasizes this thought that the Lord will appear
when He comes. There is no need of any misunderstanding here.
"When Christ, who is our life, shall appear." Col. 3: 4.
"When the chief Shepherd shall appear." s Peter 5: 4.
"And now, little childrenf abide in Him; that when He shall appear, we
may have confidence." i John 2: 28.
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TIM MANNER OP HIS COMING 39
"We know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we
shall see Him." i John 3: 2.
"Be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus
Christ." i Peter i : 7.
"Until the appearing of our Lord Jesus ChriSt." i Tim. 6:.14.
"Who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His
kingdom." 2 Tim. 4: x. "And they shall see the Son of man coming in the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory." Matt. 24: 30.
A World-Wide Appearing
This appearing of Christ is a world-wide appearing. He
will be seen and will appear to all the world, not merely to a
certain class that may be expecting Him, not merely to the
church, not merely to the righteous, but to every living soul
on the earth. This is very clearly stated:
"And then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see
the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory." Matt. 24: 3o.
It is " all the tribes of the earth" which shall see Christ when
He comes. This truth that the coming of Christ will be wit-
nessed by the entire world is repeated by John:
"Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they
also which pierced Him." Rev. 1: 7.
The idea, then, that Christ will come secretly, taking one
here and one there, and that this coming will become known
to the rest of mankind only by the absence of those who have
been taken away, is untrue.
A Demonstration of Power and Glory
The coming of Christ will be accompanied by such a
demonstration of power and glory that nothing in all the annals
of history will compare with it. The Lord will not even come in
silence, for we read:
"The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God." 1 Thess. 4: 16.
His coming will be visible:
"As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the
west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." Matt. 24: 27. "They
shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and
great glory." Matt. 24: 3o.
" He shall come in His own glory, and His rather's, and of the holy
angels."
A description of the exact manner of the second coming of
Christ was given by the angels who spoke to the disciples at
the time of Christ's ascension :
"While they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold,
two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, Ye men of
Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is
taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have
seen Him go into heaven." Acts 1: io,
He went away visibly; He will return visibly. He went away
personally; He will return personally — "this same Jesus."
He went away literally; He will return literally. He went away
with clouds, "a cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts
1: 9); "behold, He cometh with clouds" (Rev. 1: 7), "and they
shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven."
(Matt. 24: 30.)
He Will Come with Wrath
When Christ comes the second time, He will come with
wrath to destroy His adversaries. He will not come to reign
as king over a world that has been converted, and that has
laid down its. arms. His wrath will blaze forth against un-
regenerate men, and they will be consumed by the brightness
of His coming and overwhelmed by the glory of His presence.
When wicked men see Him coming, they will call for the rocks
and the mountains to fall on them and hide them from the face
of Him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb. (Rev. 6: 15-17.)
This is the great event which lies in the immediate future, in
this very generation, and this is the manner of its occurrence.
Let the reader yield his life to the Lord that He may hide him in
this time of trouble, and that he may be prepared to meet the
Lord in peace.
Twenty-five centuries ago God spoke to the prophet Daniel by an angel.
The Increase of Knowledge

T HE present generation will witness the second coming of
Christ. The prophecy of our Lord makes this certain. Multi-
plying all about us are additional evidences that this is the
last generation.
Many centuries ago the ancient prophets spoke of the mar-
vels of this present age. Surrounding us on every hand we see
the fulfillment of their predictions.
The age in which we live is different from every other age
of which we have any record. It is an age of invention, of
development of human knowledge and ingenuity, of progress
and advancement, of incredible achievement. Nothing has
ever before been known like it.
Twenty-five centuries ago God spoke through the prophet
Daniel, and said:
"But thou, 0 Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to
the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be in-
creased." Dan. 12: 4.
The book of Daniel was to remain sealed until "the time of
the end." This does not mean that it was to remain sealed to
the end of time. The "time of the end" is not the end of time,
but a short period of time immediately preceding the coming
of Christ.
In this period of time, "the time of the end," the book of
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International Newsreel
An artist's conception of a city of the future.
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Tim INCREASE OF KNowi..,tDG4 43
Daniel was to be unsealed and understood and throw its great
light upon the world.
The Unsealed Book

Previous to the middle of the nineteenth century, little
was comprehended of the meaning of the great lines of prophecy
in the book of Daniel. During the past three-quarters of a
century, scores of students of the Bible have been searching in
the book of Daniel, tracing out the fulfillment of its remarkable
prophecies, finding their fulfillment in the history of the great
nations of the past and the present; and today the book of
Daniel stands unsealed. -
"Knowledge shall be increased," said th6 Lord to Daniel.
This was to be a marked characteristic of "the time of the end."
This time was to be known by the phenomenal increase and
development of human knowledge.
Knowledge of the Scriptures has been increased. There are -
agencies now for teaching the Bible not known and not dreamed
of fifty years ago. The Bible has been translated and printed in
over, eight hundred languages and dialects, and sent into
every part of the globe. A hundred years ago access to the
Bible was confined to a limited number. Now it is everywhere.
It may be'had by the humblestas well as by the wealthiest.
The development of knowledge in every other line of human
endeavor has signally marked the past century. There has been
no parallel in the history of the race to the increase of knowledge
in scientific, financial, moral, intellectual, mechanical, physi-
cal, and religious lines during the past hundred years. Steam-
ships, steam and electric railways, telegraphs, telephones,
photographs,- sewing machines, submarines, linotype and
monotype machines, motion pictures, the "speaking movies,"
aeroplanes, printing presses, wireless telegraphy, wireless
broadcasting, television, the wonders of anTsthesia and
X-rays, have followed each other in rapid succession, until we_
have nearly lost the faculty of being astonished.
This Unique Age
Within the past century the human race seems to have been
shocked out of a lethargy that had deadeped its inventive
faculties for thousands of years before. Century after century
had gone by for thousands of years, and still men were doing
the work of the world in about the same fashion, and with the
same primitive equipment. When they worked, it was with
some crude implement or with their hands. When they trans-
mitted intelligence, it was by word of mouth carried by a mes-
senger on foot or on a domesticated animal. When they trans-
ported their goods, it was by the most primitive methods. And
so thousands of years passed without any improvement that
was perceptible.
Suddenly there came a change. The inventive faculties,
long dormant, were stirred into unheard-of activity. Machinery
was produced that did the work that human hands had been
doing for scores of centuries. A veritable flood of manufactured
articles that saved time, labor, and inconvenience, was poured
out over the world. The printing of books and papers and maga-
zines -in volume beyond human comprehension took place.
The back of the horse gave place to the buggy, the bicycle,
the horse car, the steam train, the electric car, the automobile,
the electric train, the aeroplane. The 'slow messenger gave way
to the mails, the telegraph, the telephone, the wireless telegraph,
the wireless telephone, and now television; until human in-
telligence is transmitted with the speed of light, and the voice
of one man can be heard by tens of millions of people at the
very instant of speaking.
And there is no end. Day by day we are surprised by new
developments of human knowledge. We are living in an age
which is unique, peculiar, marvelous, almost incredible.
What does it mean? Just this : now is "the time of the end."
The "increase of knowledge," so long foretold, is taking place
before our eyes. The divine prediction has been fulfilled. The
time pointed forward to is the time in which we live.
Unprecedented Running To and Fro

The amount of travel that human beings engage in today
is altogether unparalleled in history. Transportation facilities
have been developed rapidly, but not rapidly enough to supply
the demand of those who travel. Automobiles are increasing
in number minute by minute, but not fast enough to supply
the orders already placed. The streets have become too narrow
to accommodate the never-ending and always-increasing traffic.
THE INCREASE OP KNOWLEDGE 45
Airplanes leap into the sky with their passengers and freight;
subwdys rumble beneath the streets carrying their millions.
Great steamships plow the waters of the oceans carrying multi-
tudes.
Divine Accuracy
All of which points with divine accuracy and infallible
precision to this day of ours as the long foretold "time of the
end," " the last time."
God said:
"But thou, 0 Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to
the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be
increased." Dan. 12 : 4.
Today men are running " to and fro" as they have never done
before. Take your stand in any great railway station, or any
great steamship terminus, and watch the hundreds of thousands
coming in, going out, moving here and there, endlessly and
restlessly, night and day, hour after hour, through the weeks
and months and years. The entire population of the globe seems
to be in ceaseless motion, going from one place to another,
crowding every conveyance, and always calling for greater
speed and hurry.
Characteristics of Today
A hundred years ago such a thing as a railroad train was
unheard of and unbelievable. The first practicable steam •
locomotive to run in America was operated on a sixteen-mile
line from Carbondale to Honesdale, Pa., in 1829. Today,
railroads penetrate everywhere. The first steamboat was
operated on the Hudson River in 1807. Today, they traverse
all the seven seas. It was not until the twentieth century
had opened that men were able to fly. Today, regular passenger
and freight routes link great cities by air travel. Three decades
cover the history of the automobile. Today their number and
speed is so great as to make their regulation and control one of
the greatest of civic problems.
All of this has come practically in our day. Never before in
human history has there been anything like it. It is the special
feature of this time; it marks this time as unique. It has a
tremendous meaning. It identifies our day with unfailing cer-
tainty as " the time of the end."
1
ft> II 1.1 I
861 I t
4't
to • t
High noon during the noted dark day of May 19. 1780.
Signs in the Sun and the Stars

C HIEF among the signs of His return to the earth, Jesus
placed the darkening of the sun and the falling of the
stars. When His disciples came to Him on Olivet and
asked, "What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end
of the world?" He replied: "Immediately after the tribulation
of those days shall the sun be darkened." Matt. 24: 29.
This sign of the darkened sun is spoken of in various parts
of the Scriptures of Truth. Looking forward to the events of
the last days, Joel prophesied that " the sun and the moon shall
be dark." Joel 2: i o. Speaking of the coming "day of the
Lord," Isaiah predicted that "the sun shall be darkened in
his going forth." Isa. r3: 9,10. With his eyes on this same "day
of the Lord," Joel again wrote, "The sun and the moon shall be
darkened." Joel 3: 15. Repeating this same prophecy of Joel
on the day of Pentecost, Peter said, "The sun shall be turned
into darkness, . . . before that great and notable day of the
Lord come." Acts 2 : 20. Having been carried down in vision to
the time just before the great day of the wrath of God, John the
Revelator wrote that "the sun became black as sackcloth of
hair." Rev. 6: 12.
To avoid any confusion that might arise regarding the
identity of the particular dark day that was to constitute a
sign of the nearness of the end, Jesus placed its occurrence
(46)
SIGNS IN THE SUN AND THE STARS 47
within a very definite and limited period of years. He said it
would come "immediately after the tribulation of- those days."
(Matt. 24: 29.) The tribulation mentioned refers to the persecu-
tion of the,people of God during the Dark Ages, which ended
about A. D. 1776. "Immediately after" that tribulation, that is,
immediately following 1776, this sign of the darkening of the
sun was to take place.
In recording this same prophecy of Jesus, Mark makes the
identification of this sign still more certain. "In those days,
after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened." Mark 13: 24.
Has the prophecy been fulfilled? Did the predicted dark
day take place?
May 19, 1780
Here is the testimony of a Harvard professor, who witnessed
the dark day:
"The time of this extraordinary darkness was May 19, 1780. It came
on between the hours of ro and it A. 14., and continued until the middle of
the next night, but with different appearance at different places.
"As to the manner of its approach, it seemed to appear first of all in
the southwest. The wind came from that quarter, and the darknessappeared
to come on with the clouds that came in that direction.
"The degree to which the darkness arose was different in different
places. In most parts of the country it was so great that people were unable
to read common print, determine the time of day by their clocks or watches,
dine, or manage their domestic business, without the light of candles.
In some places the darkness was so great that persons could not see to read
common print in the open air for several.hours together; but I believe this
was not generally the case.
"The extent of this darkness was very remarkable. Our intelligence in
this respect is not so particular as I could wish; but from the accounts that
have been received, it seems to have extended all over the New England
States. It was observed as far east as Falmouth [Portland, Maine.] To the
westward we hear of its reaching to the furthest parts of Connecticut and
Albany. To the southward it was observed all along the seacoast, and to the
north as far as our settlements extend. It is probable that it extended much
beyond these limits in some directions. . . .
"With regard to its duration, it continued in this place at least fourteen
hours; but it is probable that this was not exactly the same in different
parts of the country.
"The appearance and effects were such as tended to make the prospect
extremely dull and gloomy. Candles were lighted up in the houses; the birds,
having sung their evening songs, disappeared, and became silent; the fowls
retired to roost; the cocks were crowing all around, as at break of day;
objects could not he distinguished but at a very little distance; and every-
thing bore the appearance and gloom of night." —Samuel Williams, A. M.,
Hollis Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy in the University of Cam-
bridge, Mass., in" Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences,"
to the close of 1783, Vol. I, pp. 234, 235. •
A most profound impression of the nearness of the last
judgment was created on the minds of those who witnessed
the dark day. One writer makes the following observations:
"Men, ordinarily cool, were filled with awe and alarm. Excitable people
believed the end of the world had come; some ran about saying the day of
judgment was at hand; the wicked hurried to their neighbors to confess
wrongs and ask forgiveness; the superstitious dropped on their knees to
pray in the fields, or rushed into meeting houses to call on God to preserve
them."—"History of Weare, New Hampshire," 1735-1888, Wm. Little,
Lowell, Mass., p. 276.
Thus, almost a century and a. half ago, one of the greatest
signs of the Lord's return to this earth was fulfilled, and ful-
filled in the exact manner and at the precise time pointed forward
to by our Lord himself.
Coupled with the darkened sun of May 19, 178o, in the
prophecy of Jesus regarding His second coming, is another
great sign. Jesus said:
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall
from heaven." Matt. 24: 29.
The moon was darkened on the night following the dark day.
"The darkness of the following evening was probably as gross as ever
has been observed since the Almighty fiat gave birth to light. . . . I could
not help conceiving at the time, that if every luminous body in the universe
had been shrouded in impenetrable shades, or struck out of existence, the
darkness could not have been more complete. A sheet of white paper held
within a few inches of the eyes was equally invisible with the blackest
velvet."— Letter of Dr. Samuel Tenney, dated Exeter, N. H., December,
1785; cited in " Collections of Massachusetts Historical Society," Vol.
1, 1792.
The Falling of the Stars
As recorded by Mark, the statement of Jesus about the
third sign is: "The stars of heaven shall fall." Mark 13: 25.
Later, in the Revelation, John writes: "The stars of heaven
fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely
figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind." Rev. 6 : 13.
The sign of the falling stars being mentioned, as it is, in
SIGNS IN TIM SUN AND TIM STARS 49
The remarkable star shower of Nov. 13. 1833, was seen far out at sea.
the prophecy of our Lord after the event of the darkening of the
sun, we should, of course, look for the occurrence of this sign
after the occurrence of the dark day.
Fifty-three years after the dark day, on the morning of
Nov. 13, 1833, there occurred the most striking meteoric shower
of all recorded history. In that event, at that time, we find the
sign given by Jesus himself to indicate the nearness of His
second coming.
In the writings of a Yale professor who witnessed this
magnificent event we find this description of it:
"The morning of November 13, 1833, was rendered memorable by an
exhibition of the phenomenon called shooting stars, which was probably
more extensive and magnificent than any similar one hitherto recorded.
. . . Probably no celestial phenomenon has ever occurred in this country,
since its first settlement, which was viewed with so much admiration and
delight by one class of spectators, or with so much astonishment and fear
by another class. For some time after the occurrence, the 'meteoric phe-
nomenon' was the principal topic of conversation in every circle."— Denison
Olmsted, Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy in Yale College,
in the American Journal of Science and Arts, Vol. XX V (1834), pp. 363, 364.
4
Other countries viewed this celestial phenomenon. Another

writer says: -
"The year 1833 is memorable for the most magnificent display [of
falling meteors) on record. This was on the same night of November [13]
also, and was visible over all the United States, and over a part of Mexico,
and the West India Islands. Together with the smaller shooting stars, which
fell like snowflakes, and produced phosphorescent lines along their course,
there were intermingled large fireballs, which darted forth at intervals,
describing in a few seconds an arc of 3o or 4o degrees. . . .
"At Niagara the exhibition was especially brilliant, and probably
no spectacle so terribly grand and sublime was ever before beheld by man
as that of the firmament descending in fiery torrents over the dark and
roaring cataract."—" The American Cyclopedia," art." Meteors."
"Lift Up Your Heads"

That His believing people might have hope, the Lord gave
these signs. He wanted them to know that He is superintending
the affairs of the universe, and bringing His plans to fruition.
Then, too, these signs were designed to serve as strong in-
centives to; the progress of the message of His second coming,
and were calculated to bring comfort to His waiting and ex-
pectant people. The word of the Lord is:
"When these things begin to come to pdss, then look up, and lift up
your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." Luke 21: 28.
Then let the believing child of God be filled with hope. One
writer has said:
"If a Christian lives under the power of this glorious hope, he will just
as certainly be purified by it as the linen is to whiten out under the sun.
You may say that it is too distant and mysterious an idea to affect us very
strongly. But it is what we contemplate that influences us must power-
fully, not what we see and handle merely. 'As a man thinketh in his
heart, so is he.'"
May our Saviour's believing children be like men who wait
for their Lord when He shall return from heaven. " Every man
that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure."
John 3 : 3.
1 nternationalN ewsreei
The backward nations of Asia and Africa are learn-
ing the art of war in fulfillment of Scripture.
Wars, Lawlessness, and Increasing Crime
T HERE are other signs of the nearness of our Lord's return.

One is the warlike condition of the world, which does not
seem to be modified nothwithstanding all that men can do in
the interest of peace.
In the reply that Jesus made to His disciples- when they
asked, " What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the
end of the world," He said:
"Ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. . . . Nation shall rise
against nation, and kingdom against kingdom." Matt. 24:6, 7.
Fulfilling this ancient prediction, constant alarms of war
fill the public press. There is a nervous expectancy and a
fear manifesting itself among the people and their leaders
that war is inevitable. The international, inter-racial, inter-
religious, and economic animosities that fill our papers promise
never-ending trouble and turmoil, and are in themselves
evidences and signs of the times we are living in. They show
that the end is near.
Overwhelming Troubles Breeding
This warlike condition of the world, breeding the troubles
that will ultimately overwhelm the nations, was long ago fore-
cast by the ancient prophets, and they invariably connect it
with the time of the end of the world. Thus Haggai wrote:
(5 I)
"I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the
strength of the kingdoms of the heathen; and I will overthrow the chariots,
and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come
down, every one by the sword of his brother." Haggai 2: 22.
And Joel wrote:
"Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the
mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: beat your
plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak
say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves and come, all ye heathen, and gather
yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come
down, 0 Lord. Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of
Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put
ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is
full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes
in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of
decision." Joel 3: 9-4.
This prophecy of long ago makes plain that, when " the day
of the Lord is near," war is to be in the making, the mighty men
are to be awakened, equipped, and assembled, and there will
issue a strife such as the world has never before witnessed.
The War Spirit Is Everywhere
In the New Testament as well are similar predictions. The
apostle John was shown the time when the kingdoms of this
world will "become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His
Christ" (Rev. : 15). Of that time he said:
"And the nations were angry, and Thy wrath is come, and the time
of the dead, that they should be judged, and that Thou shouldest give
reward unto Thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that
fear Thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy
the earth." Rev. r i : 18.
In fulfillment of these prophecies the war spirit is every-
where in the world today. Never before, perhaps, were there
so many peace societies. Never before were there so many
efforts put forth by powerful organizations to establish and
maintain permanent peace. In spite of it all, the war spirit will
not down. Restlessness abounds everywhere. All about us
are "wars and rumors of wars," providing one more proof that
this is "the time of the end."
Restlessness and Lawlessness
Today the world is mad with covetousness and on fire
with lust. Fearless and thoughtless men rush on their
downward way, eating, drinking, feasting, rioting, marrying,
and giving in marriage. Tliey anticipate no calamity. The
abodes of pleasure are thronged, the marts of merchandise
crowded.
Is not this careless aspect of the world, this security so deep
and dead, a token of impending wrath? Most certainly did
Christ, when He surveyed the future, perceive and foretell this
very characteristic as a feature of the last days. He said:
"As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son
of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in
marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came,
and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they
did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone
from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day
when the Son of man is revealed." Luke 17: 26-30.
A Type of Today
Careless and secure was the world before the flood. It
despised all warning, invitation, and entreaty. It danced and
rioted on the verge of destruction. And from pleasure's height
to ruin's dark abyss it fell headlong.
This ancient restlessness, lawlessness, violence, and atheism
are paralleled today. The world is fast becoming as it was in
the days of Noah. It is corrupt, licentious, warlike. It is peopled
with mighty men and men of renown, as it was then. All this,
as predicted by. Christ, becomes one of the signs of Christ's
second coming.
The spirit of restlessness and lawlessness and anarchy is
not limited to any one spot on the earth. This impulse to cast
off the restraints that law and order have placed on the lower
passions of men has taken possession of human hearts every-
where. The terrible calamities, destructions, and desolations
that wait upon the footsteps of the demon of lawlessness seem
powerless to deter men from their maddened course. We see
in this an ominous forecast of that fearful period just before us,
when God's Spirit will no longer strive with man, and the door
of mercy will be closed. We are entering the shadows of the
events that will close human history. We face the preparations
for final conflict. We stand upon the verge of that time of
trouble such as never was.
In the past the peoples of the earth have, to a greater or less
(54) "As it was in the days of Noah — so shall it be also in thei days of the Son of man."
extent, feared the Lord. They have not been altogether atheistic.
The denunciations by His messengers have caused them to
tremble. When the streets of Nineveh rang with the cry,-"Yet
forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown," none were so
hardened as to treat that message with contempt. There have
been other times when faith in God was weak, but unbelief was
never more prevalent, impudent. and defiant than it is now.
Widespread Absence of Faith
Today there is a widespread absence of faith in the existence,
the providence, and the government of a personal God. Men's
ears have become dull of hearing, their hearts are waxing gross.
They have passed beyond the feeling of alarm, so intrenched
and fortified are they in unbelief and carelessness. There are
multitudes who are practically atheists. God is not in all their
thoughts. The disproved superstitions that were called science
in a past age have been replaced, not by faith, but by a science
that pride has exalted into the gospel of the faithless; and by
nature, which has become the god of the ungodly.
Certainly it seems as if the world is drifting toward some
dark, dire, devilish deception, a deception naturally awaiting
those who receive not the love of the truth that they might be
saved. Throwing away their only safeguard when they reject
divine truth, they are given up to embrace strong delusions as a
punishment for their unbelief.
Increasing Crime and Corruption
We live in an age of moral corruption. Licentiousness of all
kinds is appallingly prevalent. Our daily papers are filled with
accounts of conjugal infidelity, lessons in which are being
given to millions of young people in the moving picture houses.
Divorce is multiplying at an alarming rate, and this, too,
indicates the great prevalence of licentiousness. Among the
signs given by Christ of the nearness of His second coming is that
one in the words, "Iniquity shall abound." Matt. 24: 12.
Certainly, looking about us today, we are compelled to acknowl-
edge that our generation is characterized by " abounding
iniquity." There is an immense traffic in impure literature and
obscene pictures, which pander to the lower passions and outrage
all decency.
Those who are standing on the social watchtowers discern

an appalling decadence in family life, and an admitted break-
down in the morality of the younger generation. There is a
moral retrogression that permeates all human society today,
creating an atmosphere that is miasmic and fever-laden. One
of the greatest problems confronting family life today is the
license of young people. Fashions in dress are permitted,
pictures in the daily papers and on the covers of magazines are
allowed, which a few years ago would have caused arrest.
While so-called artists and playwrights continue to prate about
art and demand freedom in the name of art, open incentives to
sin are continuing to abound in plays, movies, magazines, and
books. Then wonder is expressed as to why immorality is on
the increase.
Social and individual purity are little known today, and as
little thought of. As a consequence, homes are ruined, parents
are unfaithful to each other, dockets of the divorce courts are
crowded, children are bandied about from one divorce to an-
other, and the world is being filled with corruption.
Crime is on an appalling increase. The murder rate in
America has doubled in twenty-four years. Burglaries, thefts,
murders fill our daily papers. The increase of crime is becoming
so startling that city, state, and federal officials have been un-
able to ignore the situation. Every year in America alone more
people lose their lives at the hands of criminals than were
killed in the bloodiest engagement of the Civil War, the Battle
of Gettysburg. Just as striking are the property losses suffered
through burglary and robbery, millions of dollars being lost in
this way every year in America.
We are confident that these disorders and disturbances in the
various nations of the earth today are precursors of the time
when the Spirit of God shall be entirely withdrawn from the
earth, and all the passions of the flesh shall be unrestrained.
These things are merely the ripples of the gigantic tide of
evil that is swiftly destroying humanity. They are the straws
that show the direction of the hurricane.
InternationalNewsreel
"Earthquakes in divers places." Scenes of devasta-
tion after the Japan earthquake of Sept. 1, 1923.
Signs In and On the Earth

T HE increase of devastating earthquakes, pestilences, and de-
structive storms and hurricanes, which has been so marked
during recent years, is set forth in the Scriptures as one of the
signs of the last days:
"There shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers
places." Matt. 24:7.
Not alone in the New Testament are these upheavals of
nature foretold as evidence of the Lord's near coming, but in the
Old Testament as well there are predictions of these occurrences.
Isaiah was pointed forward in holy vision to the future day when
" the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high,
and the kings of the earth upon the earth." Isa. 24: 21.
Connected with the scenes of that day Isaiah describes the
following:
"The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the
earth is moved exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard,
and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be
heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again." Isa. 24: 19, 20.
Ezekiel wrote of the same time:
"All the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at My
presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places
shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. . . . And I will plead
(57)
58 OUR TIMES AND ThEIR MEANING
against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him . . .
an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone." Eze. 38:
20-22.
These great signs were also prophesied of by Joel :
"I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire,
and pillars of smoke." Joel 2: 30.
Luke reports this prophecy of Christ as follows:
"Great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pesti-
lences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven."
Luke 21: II.
Among the outstanding signs, therefore, that reveal the
nearness of the second coming of Christ will be great natural
disturbances in the earth. Those who are looking for their
Lord's return will see in the growing travail and pain of the old
world, while waiting for its redemption, sure evidences of the
end. Constant reminders of the insecurity and instability of all
earthly things are the "fire, and hail; snow, and vapors; stormy
wind fulfilling. His word" (Ps. 148: 8) that the Psalmist spoke
of. These earthquakes, and pestilences, and destructive storms
have been on the rapid increase in number and violence during
recent years. Time and again some part of the earth has been
moved as if by invisible hands. Great geological convulsions
have taken place. The earth, which ordinarily is looked upon
as the emblem of solidity, trembles under men's feet.
Increasing Earth Convulsions
The New York Tribune lists the most destructive earth-
quakes from the year A. D. 577 to the present time, and showssin
these outstanding convulsions of the earth, only thirty-one
in all being listed, a destruction of human lives totaling 1,328,-
000. This does not include what has come to be considered the
most destructive of all earthquakes, the Japanese upheaval of
September 1, 1923, in which about 300,000 lives were lost.
The list is as follows:
PLACE' YEAR KILLED
Constantinople 577 10,000
Catania 1137 15,000
Syria 1158 20,000
Silicia 1268 6o,000
Naples 1456 40,000
Lisbon 1531 30,000
SIGNS IN AND ON TEM EARTH 59
PLACE YEAR KILLED
Naples 1626 70,000
Vesuvius 1631 18,000
Calabria 1638 ro,000
Sehamaki 1667 8o,000
Sicily 1693 100,000
Yeddo 1703 190,000
Algiers 1716 18,00o
Peking 1731 96,000
Lima and Callao 1746 18,000
Cairo 1754 40,000
Kashue (Persia) 1755 40.E
Lisbon 1755 50,000
Syria 17.59 20,000
Central America 1797 40,000
-Aleppo 1822 20,000
Calabria 1857 to,000
San Jose de Cucuta
(Colombia) 1875 14,000
Krakatoa (Strait of
Sunda) 1883 36,000
Island of Hondo, Japan 1891 ro,000
Sanriku, Japan 1896 27,00o
Martinique and St.
Vincent 1902 40,000
Messina and fifty-four
towns in Italy 1908 164,000
Central Italy 1914 12,000
Central Java 1919 10,000
Persia 1923 20,000
The British Association for the Advancement of Science has
issued statistics on the number of earthquakes taking place in
each century of the Christian era. One of the outstanding
features of this statistical report is the remarkable increase
of these upheavals during recent centuries. The statistics do
not include small and insignificant earthquakes, but only those
which have caused widespread destruction of life and property.
Beginning with fifteen in the first century, there is shown a
gradual increase to 115 in the thirteenth century. From that
time the list is as follows :
Fourteenth century 137
Fifteenth 1 74
Sixteenth 253
Seventeenth " 378
Eighteenth " 640
Nineteenth " 2119
6o OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
Surely the prophecy of our Lord is strikingly indorsed by
these figures.
In addition to earthquakes \ and storms of extraordinary
destructive power, there have been tempests, tornadoes,
hurricanes, cyclones, "the sea and the waves roaring" (Luke 2 I :
25). All these are becoming more and more common and more
and more severe.
Capital and Labor
The condition of deepening belligerency between the worlds
of capital and labor is also noted in the Scriptures of Truth as
a sign of the last days. The Bible prophecy that foretells the
difficulties between capital and labor as a sign of the times is
as follows:
"Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall
come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-
eaten. Your gold and silver is cankered ; and the rust of them shall be a
witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped
treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the laborers who have
reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth : and the
cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of
sabaoth. Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have
nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned and
killed the just; and he doth not resist you." James 5: i-6.
Vast Accumulations of Wealth

According to this prophecy "the last days" are to be es-
pecially marked by an unparalleled heaping together of
wealth and riches. In these "last days" it is foretold that men
will amass wealth as never before in the history of the race.
This wealth is in some part to be gained unjustly and unfairly
by defrauding "the laborers who have reaped down your fields,"
those who are producing the wealth of the world. The toilers
are not to share as they should in the wealth that they produce.
The laborers are to be treated wrongfully. "Ye have condemned
and killed the just." The wealth gathered in this unjust and
unfair way is to be used for "pleasure" and wantonness.
Paul's prophecy in 2 Tim. 3: 1, 2, that "in the last days
perilous times shall come, for men shall be . . . covetous,"
agrees with this.
The outlines of this prophetic picture are being filled in
today. The records of human history do not contain any account
The utter wantonness of the rich in contrast with the abject want of the poor.
(6 I)
of such vast accumulations of wealth as are known today.
There is a mad rush to make money, and to make it quickly.
Much in evidence are the millionaire and the multi-millionaire,
some colossal fortunes reaching the billion mark.
Increase of Poverty
On the other hand, there is a widespread increase in poverty.
It is impossible, of course, to have the wealth of the world
gathered into the hands of a few without producing want,
suffering, and misery among the many. Those who are hoarding
wealth in many cases are indifferent to the sufferings of the poor.
" Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth and been wanton."
Living only for the good time they can obtain, many give no
thought to their responsibilities to their fellow men. Nothing
is quite so rapacious and heartless as greed and covetousness.
As a consequence the laboring men, in order to obtain rights
that are not voluntarily granted them, and also in order to
secure an adequate return for their labor, feel themselves
compelled to organize for their protection. This they do by
creating labor unions, and when these unions clash with com-
binations of capital, strikes, boycotts, and lockouts result.
Labor is organized. Capital is organized. These two are locked
in a titanic struggle for the supremacy. Labor has never been
so powerful as it is today. Capital has never been so gigantic
as it is today. Daily they grow stronger. Surely this is one of
the factors that together with international, inter-racial, and
inter-religious hatred will bring all the world ultimately — and
before long — to Armageddon.
God the Refuge of His People

" The people of the Lord, to whom all these developments
constitute a sign of the times, do not share in all this maneuver-
ing for place in the on-rushing Armageddon.' They take no
part in these combinations and federations. Rather do they
heed the counsel of God to them :
"Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say,
A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid." Isa. 8: 12.
In the place of being afraid of man, or the strength of man,

God says to His people:
SIGNS IN AND ON THE EARTH 63
"Sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself: and let Him be your fear, and
let Him be your dread. " Verse 53.
The people of God have no need to share the fear of the
world at this time, even though they be ground between the
upper and nether millstones of capital and labor. Their refuge
is in God himself, and for such a time as this He gives this word
of counsel and encouragement:
"Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold,
the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and bath long
patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient;
stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." James
5:7,8.
Indeed, the "coming of the Lord draweth nigh." The time
of the deliverance of God's people is nearly here.
Perilous times have come. We are in the midst of them.
Volcanic forces are seething arid surging beneath our feet.
The deep foundations of the world are being convulsed.
Serious as these things are, men of clear-eyed vision and
wide information see in them portents of still more perilous
times to come. These are only mutterings of the coming tempest,
the tremblings of the coming earthquake. Thinking men are
afraid.
This distress of nations, this perplexity and fear, constitute
one more of the signs of the times.. Jesus said:
"There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars;
and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the
waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those
things which are coming on the earth: for the of heaven shall be
shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with
power and great glory. And when these—things begin to come to pass,
then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
Luke 2 X : 25-28.
Fuel for Another World Conflagration

More than in all preceding times there is distress of nations
today. Among all classes and ranks of men everywhere through-
out the world there is distress and uneasiness. In the relations
of nations to one another there is increasing difficulty. Torn by
doubt and unbelief, its old established faith shaken to its founda-
tions, the world, grown old and chill and weary, is distressed
and utterly distraught, war-stricken and disillusioned, groping
for light while wandering blindly in darkness, crying for peace
and leadership, but finding neither. It takes more than treaties
of peace, more than a League of Nations, more than a Dawes
plan, more than a Locarno, to remove hatred from the human
heart.
National Debts
As a result of past wars, the nations are burdened with the
greatest and most distressing national debts they have ever
known. Unemployment has become one of the serious problems
of the world, and is a source of acute distress. The statesmen
of the world are able to provide only temporary relief, and look
with apprehension upon the future. Want and suffering stalk
about among the poor and sow the seeds of restlessness and
revolt.
High prices bring additional perplexity and distress. Every-
where in the world prices on all commodities of life, and es-
pecially upon life's necessities, have mounted until the cost of
living has reached heights never before attained. A gigantic
problem confronts the poor. They know not how to provide
enough food to maintain life. The elements of food that are
essential to life and health are passing beyond the reach of many.
As a consequence, the nourishing foods, one by one, are re-
linquished, and a pitiful effort is made to maintain life and
health on an impoverished diet. Multitudes are under-nourished.
Pestilences and Epidemics
As pestilences and epidemics follow closely in the wake of
hunger and want, so sickness due to under-nourishment is
carrying off great numbers of people. In many places there
is a scarcity of food stuffs, and in other places, where there
is more food, prices are so high as to place a proper supply of
food within the reach of comparatively few. Such conditions
breed distress and perplexity.
Mounting Taxes
These conditions are further aggravated and made more
acute by increasing taxation and the falling value of money.
Taxes have mounted to unprecedented heights. There is a load
of taxation upon the world today such as has never before been
known. And to pay these taxes, and at the same time maintain
SIGNS IN AND ON THD, EARTH 65
life, there is a currency the value of which has greatly diminished.
Money values have depreciated everywhere. Some countries,
of course, have suffered more than others, having the value of
their currency entirely wiped out, but all countries have been
affected — and distressed. There seems very little prospect
that prices will be materially lowered, or that taxation will be
greatly diminished, or that currency values will ever be fully
restored. The world has received a grievous hurt, from which it
is unlikely ever to recover entirely.
As a consequence of these conditions, which make the main-
tenance of life increasingly difficult, there has come out in all
nations among the lower classes a movement that seeks to
change the existing order of things, to discard all governmental
forms, to abolish established customs, and to cast off the re-
straints that civilization has imposed. There is an upheaval in
the lower strata of society that may result in a change of posi-
tion, the lower strata becoming the upper, and the upper be-
coming submerged — or worse. Certainly men, because of the
"distress of nations, with perplexity" when looking forward to
those things which are coming upon the earth, have cause for
fear and uneasiness.
Political Ferment
There is political ferment among and in the nations. There
is a clash of parties, groups, classes, races, and creeds. Govern-
ments are insecure today — all governments. Thrones and
empires have crashed into the dust. Dictatorships are es-
tablished. Socialism, anarchism, communism are the vogue as
never before. Revolt is in the very air. Young and old are
carried away with the desire for a " freedom " that is only
license. This manifests itself in the dress, in the speech, in the
conduct, in all human contact. All the restraints imposed by
law, religion, custom, or even ordinary politeness, are being
cast aside as outworn, and free rein is being given to every
impulse and passion. In the state, in the church, and in the
home, this spirit of independence is manifesting itself, cor-
rupting all the finer things of life, and calling for the storm of
God's wrath to be visited upon an impenitent world.
Thus it is plain that "distress of nations, with perplexity"
is one of the foremost signs of our Lord's near return.
5
"This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached
in all the world for a witness unto all nations."
The Gospel to All Nations
T HE greatest sign of all, the most certain sign of the second

coming of Christ in the immediate future, is the an-
nouncement of His coming to all the world, to warn the in-
habitants of the earth and prepare them for His return. Such
an announcement is a subject of prophecy. Such a message
will constitute the surest sign of the nearness of the return of
our Lord.
In describing to His disciples on the Mount of Olives the
signs of His second coming, Jesus said:
"This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a
witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Matt. 24: 14.
Weymouth translates this passage:
"This Good News of the Kingdom shall be proclaimed throughout the
whole world to set the evidence before all the Gentiles; and then the End
will come. " — "The New Testament in Modern Speech."
The Last Message of the Gospel

Agreeing with this is the prophecy found in the fourteenth
chapter of Revelation. Here is a great, threefold message.
This message is the closing proclamation of the gospel, to be
delivered to the world just before the return of Jesus; for just as
soon as it is given, the prophet sees the Lord's second coming,
and describes it as follows:
(66)
THE: GOSPEL TO ALL NATIONS 67
"I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud sat one like
unto the Son of man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a
sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud
voice to Him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in Thy sickle, and reap: for the
time is come for Thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe." Rev. 14:
14, IS.
This last message of the gospel is to be preached in, and to,
all the earth. The prophet thus speaks of it:
"I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting
gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and
kindred, and tongue, and people." Rev. 4.: 6.
Before the Lord comes the second time, therefore, there will be
an announcement made to all the earth regarding His coming.
Summed up in this announcement there will be the very fullness
of the gospel of Christ. It will be the "everlasting gospel."
At the same time it will be "the gospel of the kingdom." In
fulfillment of this prophecy there has been, during the past
century, such an opening of doors as has never before been
witnessed in the history of the church.
The Way of the Lord Prepared
Preparations for this advancement of the gospel began with
the Protestant Reformation. Later there came the achieve-
ments of the nineteenth century. These developments have
opened doors everywhere for the gospel. Discussing these
developments, and the means by which the gospel is to be
carried everywhere, Arthur T. Pierson writes:
"The fact is, men now live amidst marvels of history that so dazzle by
their frequency and glory that there is no little danger of being but half
awake to the movements of God's providence, and so losing the chance of
the ages. The ancients boasted of their seven wonders of the world, such as
the Colossus at Rhodes, the temple of Diana at Ephesus, the sepulcher of
Mausolus, and the statue of Jupiter Olympus; but as Joseph Cook suggests,
there are at least seven modern wonders that far surpass them. They
deserve to be called wonders, for they are absolutely unique and unprece-
dented, and they all indicate a supernatural hand at the helm of affairs,
guiding the world in its development. They are wonders of the world, for
they are all cosmopolitan, having to do with the whole globe and the race of
man. The seven wonders we refer to are: Exploration, communication,
civilization, assimilation, emancipation, education, and organization;
all world-wide, and all the product of the last fifty years. They belong to
the nineteenth century, and have been the possession of no other.
"The God who governs this world ordained that such stupendous
wonders should all characterize this missionary century. The command of
our Lord rings out through the centuries, 'Go into the world and preach
the gospel to every creature.' Is it of no importance and has it no signifi-
cance, that, at last, we know the whole world—the field ,we are bidden to
sow with the seed of the kingdom? that we have such facilities for reaching
every nation that no peoples are any longer afar off? that civilization is so
widespread that barbarism scarcely anywhere survives? . . . that there
remains no nation of any standing that openly encourages human slavery?
that every grand preparation, of steam, electricity, printing press, postal
union, common schools, etc., has been given to us for world-wide work?
and that, for the first time in history, the race has so learned the value of
organized effort, as that men are throughout the world combining to do
what no one man alone could accomplish?"—" The Modern Mission. Cen-
tury," pp. 43, 44.
Thus the word of God has been printed and disseminated,
translated into hundreds of languages, and made accessible
to hundreds of millions. Tracts, papers, and books teaching
the truths of the gospel have multiplied amazingly and been
distributed far. and wide. Missionaries have pen'etrated into
all the world. Facilities for rapid transportation have come
into being. News and information are flying around the world
at a rate never dreamed of before. Missionary organizations,
by the score have been perfected and established, and are
moved by the determination to lighten all the world with the
glory of the gospel. By these means, a fulfillment of God's
word, the gospel is being "preached in all the world for a witness
unto all nations."
This Gospel of the Kingdom
It is not, however, the gospel in its ordinary setting and in
merely its general phases that was to be preached in all the
world. Jesus himself defines it as "this gospel of the kingdom."
While the spread of the gospel into all the world has, there-
fore, a decided bearing on the fulfillment of this predicted
sign, it does not cover all that is involved. The sign predicted
does not point to the world-wide dissemination of a partial
gospel, or some special phase of the gospel, but to the whole
gospel in a particular setting — a setting governed by the
special time of its presentation, which is the time when the
long-anticipated kingdom is about to appear. The gospel then
becomes "this gospel of the kingdom." It is the good news
about the kingdom, the coming kingdom.
Hence the fulfillment of this prophecy, which constitutes
it a sign of the Lord's return, is the extension into all the
THE GOSPEL TO ALL NATIONS 69
world of the gospel of Christ in the particular setting of the
announcement of Christ's return. It is this proclamation and
warning, "this gospel of the kingdom," that is to be "preached
in all the world for a witness unto all nations," just before the
end.
This is consistent with all the former dealings of God with
the people of this world. Before the destruction of the world
by the flood, He sent Noah to give the message of the coming del-
uge and to point out the way of escape. Before the fall of Sodom
and Gomorrah, He sent His angels to warn the inhabitants and
guide Lot to safety. Before the impending destruction of
Nineveh, He sent Jonah to sound the proclamation of approach-
ing doom. Before Jerusalem fell the first time, Isaiah, Jeremiah,
Ezekiel, and others announced its fate. Before it fell the second
time, Jesus and His disciples foretold its destruction.
A Message of Salvation
Always in connection with these visitations of judgment,
the way of escape was pointed out as well as the impending
destruction announced. Always there were a few who heeded
the message and were saved because of heeding it. Always the
great mass of those who heard it turned away from it, and were
overwhelmed in the ensuing destruction.
So is " this gospel of the kingdom." It is a warning of coming
judgment. At the same time it is the announcement of the
coming of the kingdom. In it is not only information regarding
the "time of the end," but it points the way of salvation from
the destruction that is coming. It is a saving message as well
as a warning message. This great sign is now being displayed
before our eyes. This message of the Lord's second coming is
being taken to all the world.
A Divinely Commissioned People
Consider what is necessarily involved in the fulfillment of
this prophecy. Before such a message can be taken to all the
world, a people commissioned to do this must be raised up.
They must be brought under profound conviction that they are
instruments of God to do this very work. They must set about
the doing of it in a way that God can use to accomplish the
results He has predicted.
The radio evangelist and the broadcasting apparatus of WEMC, at Berrien Springs. Michigan. This station is engaged in heralding to
the world the message of the near coming of Christ. thus bringing into use for God the most modern means of spreading information.
(70)
THE GOSPEL TO Au. NATIONS 71
This involves the bringing into existence of a movement
with a definite body of teaching and belief. Connected with
this movement there must be created agencies and means and
equipment especially fashioned to accomplish the design of God.
This would mean the appointment of a ministry, teaching and
preaching the same truths in the same setting all round the
world, speaking the same things everywhere. This cannot be
done without a special training of such a ministry and its
associated helpers. Training schools giving this education and
preparation will therefore he an essential part of this movement.
Such training schools must be located at widely separated
places, and must conduct their work in many languages, if all
the world is to be reached.
Indispensable to such a movement will be the "silent
preacher," the gospel in type, the printed message. Connected,
therefore, with this movement will appear publishing houses in
many lands, printing "this gospel of the kingdom" in many
tongues, and distributing their publications by evangelistic
colporteurs everywhere.
A World-Wide Mission Movement
Such a movement will send out missionaries, establish
mission stations, conduct mission schools, organize a world-
wide mission movement. This mission movement must be
supported. A great financial, never-ending, and always-enlarg-
ing campaign for missions by which those who are connected
with the movement are enabled to carry out their divine
commission, will be an indispensable factor in this program.
We are to look, then, for a religious movement with churches,
schools, publishing houses, a world-wide organization, backed by
a people convinced that they are divinely commissioned to
carry to all the world the proclamation of the second coming of
Christ.
Does such a movement, such a people, such an organization,
exist? Is the sign being fulfilled?
Profoundly convinced that they are commissioned of God
to do this very work, there is a people who have established
just such a movement, with just such an organization, with a
world-wide mission program, with schools and publishing
houses, with missionaries everywhere, and with a supporting
financial campaign to carry the work forward to completion.
More important than the movement and the people is
the fact that through these means God is warning the world of
the near return of His Son, and sending this message "unto them
that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and
tongue, and people." Rev. 14 : 6.
The Marvel of Missions
Por this message of the Lord's return is being heralded
everywhere. Round all the circle of the earth, over all the seven
seas, missionaries, ministers, colporteurs, and gospel workers
have penetrated, bearing this special message of the coming of
Christ. Within a single generation this movement has come
into existence, and widened out to encompass the world. It is
the marvel of missions. It is the heralding of the coming King.
It is "this gospel of the kingdom." It is the finishing of the
work of human salvation. It is the greatest and most certain
sign of the soon coming of the Saviour.
Let it be noticed that "this gospel of the kingdom" is to be
preached "for a witness unto," not for the conversion of, the
nations. It will not be generally accepted, even by professed
Christians. It will not be popular. No special message of this
character has ever been popular. It will be preached, as Wey-
mouth translates it, "to set the evidence 'before " the world.
It will present all the evidence of the Lord's coming, all the
signs and the fulfillment of the prophecies. But the evidence will
not be generally accepted. It will gather a few here and there of
devoted believers, who will join their efforts to those of like
faith, and press on with the message. And these God will bless
to such an extent that, through His power and grace, they will
be able to warn all the world before "the end" comes.
To be among them, knowing the times in which we live,
knowing the commission of God in view of these times, charged
with a great mission from heaven, clothed with God's own
spirit of power in service, surrendered altogether to do His will,
sharing in the work of finishing the gospel on earth, preparing
to meet the Saviour himself, and "bringing back the King,"—
ah, that is the loftiest privilege ever granted to the children
of men in any age of the world! The rapid progress of that
work is the crowning sign that the coming of the Lord "is near,
even at the doors."
Lucifer was one of the covering cherubs at the throne of God.
The Apostasy of Satan

ATAN was once an angel of light in heaven. This angel was
S created by the Lord and was made one of the most glorious
and beautiful beings among the angelic hosts. He was honored
and beloved as a great leader of multitudes of the angels. God
did not create a devil. He created a beautiful and holy angel.
It is possible, however, for such a creature, as illustrated in the
fall of man, to lapse into a state of sin, to change its nature
even till it becomes essentially sinful. We have the record that
God made man at the first, "upright." (Gen. 1: 27 ; Eccl. 7 : 29.)
In our day, not only man's nature, but " the imagination of the
thoughts of his heart" are "only evil." (Gen. 6 : 5 ; : 2 I ;
Ps. 53 : 1-3.)
The angels also were created in a pure and sinless condition.
They did not, however, all retain this condition. Certain of the
angels "kept not their first estate, but left their own habita-
tion." (Jude 6.) They had all at one time been " the elect angels."
(I Tim. 5 : 21.) Now, however, the Bible divides the angels
into two classes, the " elect " and those "that left their own
habitation." Of these latter Peter says, "God spared not the
angels that sinned." 2 Peter 2 : 4.
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74 OuR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
These passages reveal three important truths: First, the
angels who were originally pure fell into sin. Second, these
fallen angels by this apostasy lost their standing with God.
Third, in addition to this they came under God's heavy dis-
pleasure, for He "delivered them into chains of darkness, to be
reserved unto judgment." (2 Peter 2 :4.)
God did not in any of these cases compel His creatures to
sin. He did not create sinners. He did not create sin. He
created pure and holy beings, and gave them the power of
choice, that their service to Him might be free and loving, and
instead they yielded themselves as servants to sin.
Regarding sin the Lord Jesus said:
"Your father the devil, . . . abode not in the truth." John 8:44.
It is plain, therefore, that Satan was in the truth and in the
abode of truth. Where this abode of truth is, is made plain by
the further words of Christ:
"I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." Luke io: 18.
Lucifer, Son of the Morning

When Satan was an angel in heaven his name was Lucifer.
He is addressed in the following language in the fourteenth
chapter of Isaiah :
"How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, son of the morning! How
art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!" V. 12.
Lucifer was a bright, glorious being. The marginal reading
for Lucifer in Isa. 14:12 is "day star." God himself thus
described Lucifer:
"Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty."
Ezek. 28: 12.
Lucifer was one of the wisest of all creatures in heaven.
Concerning the splendor and glory conferred upon him by
his Creator we have the record:
"Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was
thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx,
and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold."
Ezek. 28: 13.
It seems clear that he was one of the leaders, if not the
leader, of the great angelic choir of heaven, for he was a talented
singer. The record is:
THE APOSTASY Or SATAN 75
"The workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee
in the day thou was created." Ezek. 28: 13.
As an angel of light and glory he was clothed with purity
and holiness.
"Thou was perfect in thy ways from the day that thou was created,
till iniquity was found in thee." Ezek. 28: 15.
The Anointed Cherub
Concerning the exalted station in which he was placed by
his Creator we have this record:
"Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so:
thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down
in the midst of the stones of fire." Ezek. 28: 14.
God is represented in heaven as "sitting upon a throne,
high and lifted up," in the great heavenly temple. (Isa. 6: I.)
He is surrounded by "an innumerable company of angels"
(Heb. i 2 : 22), "ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands
of thousands" (Rev. 5: ). In the earthly sanctuary God
directed Moses to make a miniature representation of this
throne in the heavens, fashioned after the pattern that Moses
had seen. This was called the " ark." It was a hollow chest,
overlaid with gold, and having a cover made of solid gold,
which was called the mercy seat. On either end of the mercy
seat that covered this ark, and wrought of the same piece of
gold, were the figures of two angels, or cherubs. Of this throne
in the heavens the Lord says:
"The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: He sitteth between the
cherubims; let the earth be moved. " Ps. 99: I.
It thus becomes plain that Lucifer in heaven was one of the
most exalted creatures there, and wielded power only less in
degree to that of God and His Son.
His influence was wide, his power great.
The Fall of Lucifer

There came a time when Lucifer forsook his allegiance to
God and became the leader in a great apostasy against God.
This led to division and warfare, and as a result he and his
followers were cast out of heaven. (Rev. 1 2 : 9.)
The Bible contains a number of references bearing on the
cause of this apostasy. Speaking of the qualifications of the
76 OUR lbws AND THEIR MEANING
bishop or elder in the church of Christ, Paul uses the following
language: "Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall
into the condemnation of the devil." r Tim. 3 : 6. Such a remark
would be without point unless it had been a known and accepted
fact that the devil had been condemned for pride.
Lucifer found the high regard and adoration of the angels
who were under him very pleasant and gratifying. There was
One, however, whom they looked up to and adored more than
Satan and his evil angels are cast out by the orderly angel armies of heaven.
they did Lucifer. Indeed, they worshiped the Son of God

Dissatisfaction crept into Lucifer's heart. He began to look
upon the high position of Christ with envy and desire. He
should have banished these thoughts at once. Instead he
cherished them, turning them over in his mind, until he became
convinced that for such a glorious and wise being as himself to
remain in a subordinate position was injustice.
"Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou
hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness." Ezek.
28 : 17. By degrees this dissatisfaction grew upon Lucifer.
He coveted the honor and worship that was rendered to Christ.
He allowed himself to feel that all the attributes that had
been given to him by God pertained solely to himself. He
began to look upon himself as the rival of God in the govern-
ment of the universe. He felt he had been unjustly deprived
of his rights by One who was stronger than himself. He
THE APOSTASY OF SATAN 77
determined to secure those rights at all hazards. "Thou hast
said in thine heart, . . . I will exalt my throne above the stars
of God, . . . I will be like the Most High." Isa. 14: 13, 14.
Having conceived this purpose in his heart, Lucifer did not
come out openly against God at first, but began quietly to
work among the other angels, spreading his dissatisfaction.
Before this he had sought to make God supreme in the
thoughts and affections of those under his leadership. Now
he sought to secure their allegiance and loyalty to himself.
War in Heaven
Finally the open break came.
"There was war in heaven: Michael and His angels fought against the
dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither
was their place found any more in heaven." Rev. 12: 7, 8.
The name "Michael" is one of the names of Christ. This
will be made plain by a reference to Jude 9, where Michael is
called the archangel, in connection with r Thess. 4: 16, where
the "Lord himself" is said to be the archangel, whose voice
will wake the dead; and John 5: 25, where it is said that it is
the voice of Christ that raises the dead.
Thus as a result of his rebellion in heaven against the govern-
ment of God, Satan and the angels who followed him were
cast out of heaven.
"And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil,
and Satan, which decei veth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth,
and his angels were cast out with him." Rev. s2: 9.
Satan knew the purpose of God in creating this world and
bringing the human race into existence, and he determined to
thwart this plan by gaining the adherence of the human race
to his rebellion against the Majesty of heaven.
Eye took of the fruit of the tree and ate it.
The Fall of Man

T HE purpose of God in creating the earth was that it might
be inhabited by a pure and holy race of beings. He
himself declares that "He created it not in vain, He formed it
to be inhabited." Isa. 45: 18. It was in accordance with this
purpose that "God created man in His own image, in the image
of God created He him; male and female created He them."
Gen. I : 27.
The purpose of God for the human race that He thus brought
into existence is comprehended in the statement that He made
to Adam and Eve in the garden of laden:
"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and
multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over
the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living
thing that moveth upon the earth. " Gen. r : 28.
When man was placed upon the earth he was "crowned with
glory and honor," and'made but a "little lower than the angels."
Ps. 8 : 5.
It was the design of God that man should continue to retain
this likeness to Himself, not only in physical form, but also in
character. It was God's purpose for man that he should multiply.
That is, man was to bring into existence a gfeat multitude of
beings such as he was himself, pure and holy, all of them re-
taining their likeness to the Creator. These creatures were
(78)
THE FALL OP MAN 79
never to die, but they were to have access to the tree of life,
which was placed in the midst of the garden of Eden, and of
which they were to "freely eat." As they increased and multi-
plied they were to fill the earth, which constituted the kingdom
of God on earth, and which, as each subject possessed eternal
life, was to remain on the earth forever.
The instruction of God to them was to "subdue" the earth.
As they spread out over the earth they were to look upon the
garden of Eden as an example of what God wanted them to
make the entire earth. It was the design of God that the whole
earth should become a great paradise for the dwelling-place of
the creatures whom He had made.
God gave His human children all that was needed for the
carrying out of His purpose.
"And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is
pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst
of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." Gen. 2: 9.
There was nothing lacking in the garden that would have
been for the welfare of man.
The Tree of Knowledge
To Adam and Eve God then said:
"Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that
thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Gen. 2: 15-17.
The tree of knowledge of good and evil was placed in the
garden as a constant and ever-present reminder of the sover-
eignty and ownership of God. It was to constitute a test of
their own love and obedience to their Creator. The warning
not to eat of this tree was the only restriction placed upon
them as to the use of all that the garden contained. It was
therefore the only possible point of attack on the part of the
devil, whose purpose it was to overthrow them.
Perfect in symmetry, beauty, and stature, the first pair were
the head of creation. All things were placed under their feet.
Every living thing on earth was placed under their dominion.
They enjoyed unrestricted communion with their Creator,
speaking with Him face to face. Their associates and com-
panions were the angels of heaven. It cannot be doubted that
these angels told Adam and Eve of the fall of Satan and his
followers from heaven, and gave them warning to be on their
guard against his wiles.
The Serpent
Knowing that they had been warned against him as the
one who had been cast out of heaven, Satan realized that he
must not reveal himself to them openly. He chose as his in-
strument one of the creatures God had made, hoping that,
if he succeeded, they would be led to charge God with fault.
The serpent at that time was no doubt much more beauti-
ful than it is now, and its dwelling plice was in the trees where it
nourished itself with fruit. Satan chose the serpent through
which to speak to man.
The Temptation
Speaking to Eve, the serpent caused her to doubt the wisdom
of God in witholding the fruit of the tree from them. He assured
her that God knew that if they did eat of the fruit of this tree
they would become as wise and powerful as Himself. Leading
her on, he told her that God merely designed to frighten her by
telling her that she would die if she ate of the fruit. He assured
her there was no truth in such a statement, and that there was
no harm in the fruit, but rather great good.
Eve took of the fruit of the tree, as it was presented to her
by the serpent, and ate it. Influenced by Satan, she imagined
she was becoming as a god. Rejoicing in what she mistakenly
thought was a new and higher state of existence, she immediately
thought of Adam and carried some of the forbidden fruit to him,
urging him to eat, assuring him that the fruit was perfectly
harmless. Adam listened to his wife in dismay, fully recogniz-
ing that she had been overthrown by the very enemy against
whom the angels had warned them. He realized that her sin
would eternally separate her from him, unless he joined her in
eating of the fruit. He resolved that if she were to die he would
share her fate. Taking some of the fruit, he ate of it.
It was not long before the guilty pair in the garden realized
what they had done. A fear of the consequences took possession
of them. When they heard the voice of Jehovah in the garden
they fled to hide themselves. They did not dare to look upon
His face. They saw themselves as they were, and they were
afraid of God.
I nlernational Newsreel
In the promise of the birth of Christ, Adam and Eve were assured that
some way would be opened that they might not be utterly abandoned
to the power of Satan. and in this promise they rested in hope.
6 (St)
God asked Adam, "Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I

commanded that thou shouldest not eat?" Gen. 3: II. Adam
told of the sin they had committed, but in doing so laid the
blame on the woman and on God as well. He said:
"The woman whom Thou gayest to be with me, she gave me of the
tree, and I did eat." Gen. 3: 12.
Eve also joined in a covert reproach against God when
called to account by saying:
"The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat." Gen. 3: 13.
The Promised Redeemer
Because of this sin the sentence of death was passed upon
Adam and Eve. Inasmuch as the whole human race was still
in Adam's loins, the sentence of death pronounced upon him
passed upon all mankind. A curse was pronounced upon the
ground. Man was condemned to live a life of toil. The right
to eat of the tree of life was taken away. The first pair were
driven from the garden. Angels were placed at its entrance to
keep them from entering and partaking again of the tree of
life. They went out from their Eden home in despair.
At the very beginning of their new life, however, a gleam of
hope was given them that kept them from being altogether cast
down. In the curse that God placed upon the serpent for his
deception, God said:
"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between
thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His
heel." Gen. 3: 15.
In these words the exiled pair found a promise of victory
over sin and death, though they saw also there would be con-
stant strife and warfare between themselves and their mighty
foe. They knew, however, that some way would be opened so
they would not be utterly abandoned to the power of the devil,
and in this promise they rested in hope.
This world has become the lesson book of the limitless universe of God.
Why Did God Permit Sin?

I THE, study of the fall of man and the origin of sin, the
most perplexing enigma rises in the question, Why did God
permit sin? Knowing all things from the beginning, God cer-
tainly knew what the results of sin would be, if it was permitted
to obtain a foothold in this earth. Why, then, did He allow it?
We are informed that God loves His children even more than
human parents love their children, and that He constantly
seeks to bring blessings into their lives, and guard them against
harm. Why, then, did He permit this flood tide of evil, misery,
disease, sorrow, and death to sweep over the world where He
had placed the human race?
A Purpose of Love
We may be sure that God had a purpose in this, and that
His purpose was good. The angels knew nothing of the character
of sin when sin originated in the heart of Lucifer. No such
thing as sin existed. They knew nothing of its consequences.
They were under a beneficent government, which they knew to
be good. There was no way through which they could know
that another form of government would not be better, for
there was no other form, and never had been.
It is true that a knowledge of these principles was sufficient
for their eternal happiness. They were free moral agents,
(83)
and could choose to disobey God as well as obey Him. The
question must have passed through their minds as to what the
results of disobedience to God would be. Even before Lucifer
indulged in such thoughts, permitting them to lead him into
outright revolt, there may have been other angels who struggled
with the same impulses. These others, however, suppressed
them and put them away as unworthy, and continued their
unswerving loyalty to God. Lucifer turned these doubting
thoughts over in his mind and cherished them. His desire
for self-exaltation swept him from his mooring and out into
open rebellion against God.
God in His wisdom knew that such a demonstration of
what sin is and what its results would be must be made in the
sight of all the inhabitants of the universe before they would be
able to see and understand that the principles of the kingdom of
God were based upon love and mercy and justice, and that no
better form of government was possible. Until such a demon-
stration was made before the angels, it is clear that there would
always be a tendency upon their part to experiment with sin.
There was but one way for them ever to really know what sin
would lead to. God therefore permitted sin to come, and deter-
mined to use the fearful object lesson for the eternal good of
the universe.
•God allowed Lucifer to carry forward his work of rebellion.
He permitted him fully to develop his plans. The time came,
however, when it would have been folly to have permitted him
to develop his plans in heaven, and thus involve some in all
the worlds in the destruction that must inevitably come upon
sin and sinners. God therefore limited the field of his operations
by confining him and his angels to the earth, to which planet
he was forced to go when cast out of heaven.
The Obedience of Love
If God had taken a positive course and destroyed Satan at
once when it became evident that he would not return to his
allegiance to Him, the rebellion would not have been checked,
but rather strengthened. An element of fear would have entered
into the service of God. After they had witnessed the destruction
of Lucifer, those who had served God from love would have
continued to serve God perhaps for a time, but from the motive
WHY DID GOD PERMIT SIN? 85
of fear. In their minds all the charges that Satan had brought
against God and His government would seem to have been
substantiated. The government of God would have appeared to
some as a despotism. Other angels would have risen to lead
their fellows in throwing off what they would have considered
an intolerable yoke of bondage.
God does not desire the service of fear. He is not a monster
whose anger must be appeased. He delights in voluntary
service — service that is prompted by the love in the hearts of
His creatures for Him. This is the only worship that is acceptable
to Him. In order to win such service and allegiance upon the
part of all the created intelligences of the universe, He allowed
Satan to continue in his course of rebellion, thus affording to
the entire universe a demonstration of his unchangeable love
and righteousness.
Lesson Book of the Universe
And so this world has become the lesson book of the universe.
The rebellion against the government of God was not only
transferred to this planet, but it has been limited to this planet.
All the created beings of heaven and the intelligences of other
planets are permitted to view the conflict between sin and
righteousness, between Christ and Satan, which is taking
place on this planet. When it is finally destroyed, they will
have been profoundly impressed that God is true, just, and
merciful.
The inhabitants of this planet, the human race, were not
abandoned to their great foe. They were warned of the danger
of his attacks in the very beginning. Had they stood firm
against his temptations, they need never have been overcome.
After having yielded to Satan and having become his lawful
captives, they were given the asssurance of the coming of a
great Deliverer who would break the bands of sin for every
soul who accepts Him. No human being is left to cope with
sin in his own strength. Everyone has the assurance of help
from God. No one need be lost. God gives this promise to all:
"Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive de-
livered? But thus saith the Lord, Even the captives of the mighty shall be
taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend
with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children." Isa. 49:
24,25.
Our world was given into the power of Satan, and
he could offer it to Christ in the great temptation.
The Lost Dominion and the

God of This World
I N THE beginning God made Adam the head of creation upon
this planet. He gave him " dominion over the fish of the
sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing
that moveth upon the earth. " Gen. I : 28. He gave him "domin-
ion over the works" of His hands. He put "all things under his
feet." Ps. 8 : 6-8.
Adam then became the head of the race, the governor of the
world. This earth was his kingdom. As the first created being
on this earth, he was to be the representative of God here. He
was also to be the representative of the human race in the
councils of God.
The God of This World
When Adam was overthrown by Satan, more was involved
than the fall of man. The dominion of this earth passed under
the sway of a new ruler. Satan took Adam's place as the governor
of this planet, and the human race passed under his control.
He then became the "god of this world." (2 Cor. 4: 4.) The
dominion of the world was wrested from man, and both the world
and man himself were brought under the control of sin and
unrighteousness. This is demonstrated in the words of Satan
(86)
THE LOST DOMINION AND THE GOD Or THIS WORLD 87
when he showed Christ in the wilderness of temptation "all
the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time," and said:
" All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that
is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it." Luke 4 :5, 6.
Satan here claimed to be a king and a god. From the state-
ments of the Bible, there can be no doubt that the devil is a
prince, or head, over evil angels, over men, and over a world
of spiritual darkness. His kingdom is a great kingdom. He
wields almost unlimited power. His territory includes the entire
earth. His subjects are numbered by hundreds of millions.The
angels who fell with him render him willing and complete serv-
ice. They are always ranging about in his work, unwearied,
unsleeping, vigilant, watchful, and with great power.
The Organized Empire of Evil
From certain expressions in the Bible there seems to be
a well-organized government among the fallen angels. There
can be no doubt that Lucifer is head of this government.
He is spoken of in the Bible as "Beelzebub, the prince of the
devils." (Matt. 12: 24.)
That there is some system of organization among these
fallen beings will be evident from the fact that the agencies of
this monarchy of evil are called " principalities, " or dominions,
"powers, " or authorities, "rulers of the darkness of this world,"
"wicked spirits in heavenly places." (Eph. 6: 12, margin.)
That there is an unholy unity of action and purpose in this
kingdom of darkness is made clear in the statement of Christ
in which He speaks of the unclean spirit's going out of a man and
finding no place of habitation, then taking with him certain
other spirits more foul than himself and re-entering the man.
In this there are clear hints of organization and oneness of
purpose.
The invisible empire of the devil also extends over the
human race. Over the hearts of fallen man his dominion is
full and complete. This control of the human heart is represented
by Christ when He says: " When a strong man armed keepeth
his palace, his goods are in peace. " Luke I I : 21.
This peace is a peace of spiritual death. When this peace
is disturbed, and the captive learns that there is hope of de-
liverance in One who is stronger than the devil, then the prince
of the devils brings all his great "power" (Luke 22: 53),
his "wiles" (Eph. 6: r x)', his " devices " (2 Cor. 2: I), his
"fiery darts" (Eph. 6: i6), and his "depths" (Rev. 2 : 24),
to bear upon his escaping victim to drag him back into captivity.
Thus as in the world of men the stronger ever gain control
and finally reduce the weaker to their rule, so in this spiritual
kingdom the higher order of apostate beings exercise dominion
and headship over the lower. The angelic principalities and
powers, by reason of their greater subtlety and superior wisdom,
have a great advantage over fallen men, and lead them captive
in the chains of sin and corruption.
Satan's Dominion
Satan's control is not only over demons and men, but over
the earth itself. This he gained in his warfare with the one to
whom God had committed it. All things were placed under the
feet of Adam, the whole earth being in subjection to him. Adam,
however, did not retain this exalted position of power and
authority, but fell under the subjection of the devil. With him
his whole dominion passed under the same control. This
world passed into the possession of Satan at the fall of man, and
thus became the home of the great revolt against the govern-
ment of heaven.
Satan is therefore the prince or head of a powerful and
active legion of demons. Their common purpose is to draw
men away from God, their superior powers making them more
than a match for our poor strength. The devil is also the "god
of this world." He has a restricted dominion over our fallen
natures. His dominion stretcheS also over the material world
about us. He is ever presenting this to our natural eyes, clothed
in fascinating beauty and attractiveness, hoping to dim our
faith in the invisible and spiritual world to which God has
bidden us look.
How greatly, therefore, do we need God's power in our lives!
How earnestly we need to pray, to watch, and to be on our
guard as we come in daily contact with these hosts of spiritual
and secret enemies of our souls
International Film Service
A church that is opposed to the gospel of Christ has been set up in the world.
The Great Counterfeit of Christianity

HE prophecies of the Bible foretell the coming of a great
Tmovement or organization antagonistic to the gospel and
work of Christ. At the same time this movement would profess
to be the gospel itself.
This is foretold under a variety of names. It is spoken of as
"anti-Christ" (I John 4: 3), "the man of sin" (2 Thess. 2: 3),
the "falling away" (2 Thess. 2:3), "the son of perdition"
(2 Thess. 2: 3), " the mystery of iniquity" (2 Thess. 2: 7), he
"who opposed' and exalteth himself above all that is called
God, or that is worshiped" (2 Thess. 2 :4), and "mystery, Baby-
lon the Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the
earth" (Rev. 17:5). Under each of these names, however,
the same power is recognized, each prophecy adding additional
details not included in the others.
The Empire of Medo-Persia
In the eighth chapter of Daniel this anti-Christian power is
quite fully described. This chapter opens with a description of
"a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one
(s9)
was higher than the other, and the higher came up last. I saw the ram
pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might
stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand;
but he did according to his will, and became great." Verses 3, 4.
The student of the prophecies is not left to theorize regarding
the identity of the power represented by this symbol. The
angel Gabriel identified it:
"The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media
and Persia." Verse zo.
The ram represented the empire of Medo-Persia. The
The ram with the two horns, representing Medo-Persia.
two horns point to the two elements in the empire, the Medes
and the Persians. The Persians became the stronger element
in the later history of the empire. This fact is represented by the
expression, "the higher came up last." The directions in which
the prophet saw the ram pushing represent the directions of its
conquests. These conquests were extended until there was no
other power that could stand before him.
The Empire of Greece
Then another empire is represented to Daniel:
"And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west
on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat
had a notable horn between his eyes. And he came to the ram that had two
horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the
fury of his power. And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was
moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns:
and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him
down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could
deliver the ram out of his hand. Therefore the be goat waxed very great:
THE GREAT COUNTERPEIT Or CHRISTIANITY 91
and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and from it came up
four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven." Verses 5-8.
This, too, was explained by the angel Gabriel:
"And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is
between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four
stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in
his power." Verses 2I, 22.
The goat was a symbol of the empire of Greece. The great
horn represented Alexander the Great. Its struggles with the
The he goat with a notable horn, representing Greece.
ram represented the war between Greece and Medo-Persia,

by which the latter was completely overthrown. The four
horns represented the four divisions into which the empire of
Greece was divided after the death of Alexander. These four
divisions were the kingdom of the west, ruled by Cassander;
the kingdom of the north, ruled by Lysimachus; the kingdom
of the east, ruled by Seleucus; and the kingdom of the south,
ruled by Ptolemy.
Rome, Pagan and Papal
Still another empire was shown to the prophet:
"And out of one of them [the four horns] came forth a little horn,
which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and
toward the pleasant land. And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven;
and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and
stamped upon them. Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the
host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his
sanctuary was cast down. And an host was given him against the daily
sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the
ground; and it practiced, and prospered." Verses 9-12.
Reproduced by permission of the Century Magazine. Painted by A. Castaigne
"The Broken Ladder." an episode in Alexander's campaign for the conquest of the world.
(92)
THE GREAT COUNTERFEIT OP CHRISTIANITY 93
Of this power, which was to succeed Greece and become
"exceeding great," the angel gave this explanation:
"And in the latter time of their kingdom [that of the four horns],
when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance,
and understanding dark sentences, shall stand tip. And his power shall be
mighty, but not by his own power; and he shall destroy wonderfully, and
shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy
people. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his
hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy
many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be
broken without hand." Verses 23-25.
The power represented by the little horn is Rome, in both
its pagan and papal phases. It entered the territory of the
empire of Greece through Macedonia, thus coming out of one
of the four horns. It entered into the south, or Egypt; into the
east, or Syria; and into the pleasant land, or Palestine. It
understood "dark sentences"; that is, spoke a new language,
unknown to the Jews, the Latin. It would oppose the Prince of
princes, destroy the mighty and the holy people, cast down the
truth to the ground, and cast down Christ's sanctuary. All of
this has been true of Rome, especially papal Rome.
A False Christianity
Rome, however, would not oppose Christ and His truth and
His people openly. It would, under the pretense of being
Christian, oppose Christianity. It would, under the claim of
being the church of Christ, attack and persecute Christ's true
people to the death.
Papal Rome has fulfilled this prophecy in every particular.
During the growth of Catholicism the gospel of Christ nearly
disappeared from among men, and in its place there appeared,
claiming to be the very gospel itself, this false and spurious
system.
When the Christians of the church of Thessalonica were
laboring under the misapprehension that the second coming
of Christ would take place in their day, Paul wrote to them,
and said :
"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come,
except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed,
the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is
called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of
God, showing himself that he is God." 2 Thess. 2: 3, 4.
From a study of this prophecy, it will be clear that its ful-
fillment will involve the appearance on earth of not only an
anti-Christian system, but also a system that would be a
complete counterfeit of the whole work and gospel of Christ.
This system would present itself to the world claiming to be the
true church and to proclaim the true gospel, while at the same
time it would be in every part and detail nothing but a sub-
stitution for, and a counterfeit of, the true church and the
true gospel. While it will be "the man of sin" and "the son
of perdition," it will claim for itself all the worship that is
due to God alone, and will actually usurp the place of God,
so "that he as God" will sit "in the temple of God, showing
himself that he is God."
Clearly this is the same power mentioned in the prophecy
of Daniel as the one who would cast down Christ's sanctuary,
and who would "cast down the truth to the ground; and it
practiced and prospered."
In order for such a system to prosper in the accomplishment
of such a work, it would of necessity be compelled to appear
to men as in all points like that of which it is a counterfeit.
A counterfeit in order to "prosper" must be a good counterfeit.
It will, then, use Christian terms, and have Christian forms
and ceremonies and institutions. It will look like a church,
it will have all of the appurtenances of a church, it will act
like a church, it will claim to be the only church, and it will
present a scheme of salvation to men that will appear very
like the genuine. It will be in every detail an exact counterpart
of that which it claims to be. And yet, under this outward
appearance, its sole work will be to "cast down the truth to
the ground."
The Surpassing Product of Satan's Genius
Speaking of this power, Gabriel the angel said: "And his
power shall be mighty, but not by his own power." Dan. 8: 24.
There is a power in Roman Catholicism that is above the
power of man. There is a wisdom behind it which far surpasses
human wisdom. One is unable to study this system without a
profound conviction that such an organization could not be
produced by man. It has outlived through the centuries every
other human organization. It has witnessed the rise and fall of
THE GREAT COUNTERFEIT OF CHRISTIANITY 95
great empires. Its history was centuries old when nearly every
nation now existing was born. And still it continues with
apparently unabated vigor. The magnificence of its rites and
ceremonies is well calculated to impress the masses. There is an
impressiveness about its worship that grips and holds the
worshiper. It is wonderful in its workings, and it compels
admiration for the perfection of its organization. It is the
surpassing product of Satan's genius and ingenuity.
Turning the Truth into a Lie
In this false system Satan has copied and counterfeited the
gospel. Whatever the gospel has, Catholicism has, only per-
verted. It has its god in him who " sitteth in the temple of
God, showing himself that he is God, " instead of Jehovah,
the true God; its saviour in "the mother of God" instead of the
Son of God; its mediator in Mary instead of our Lord; its founda-
tion in tradition instead of the Bible; its vicegerent of Christ
in the pope instead of the Holy Spirit; its infallibility in Peter's
successor instead of the inspired word; its sanctuary on earth
instead of the true sanctuary in heaven ; its sacrifice in the
mass instead of the sacrifice of Christ offered "once for all " ;
its worship of men and saints instead of worship of the God-
head; its priesthood entirely human instead of the divine
priesthood of Christ; its confession to men instead of to God
alone; its baptism by sprinkling instead of immersion; its
communion with its falsehood of transubstantiation instead of
the real supper of the Lord; its law of the church instead of the
law of God; and its Sabbath, which is the first day, instead
of the true Sabbath, which is the seventh day.
Surely this is Satan's great masterpiece of deception. He
has succeeded in changing the truth of God into a lie and he has
handed down that lie, and by many millions of people this
false and counterfeit system is now accepted as the genuine
gospel and work and church of Christ. For centuries this
system kept the light of the true gospel from shining upon the
world, and it was not until the beginning of the Protestant
Reformation of the sixteenth century that it began to be
seen to be what it really is, Satan's counterfeit of the gospel.
Daniel f ainted and fell prostrate before the angel who was interpreting the vision.
The Twenty-Three Hundred Years

OLLOWING the vision of the ram, which Daniel was told
F represented Medo-Persia; the goat, which he was told
represented Greece; and the little horn, which represented
Rome; he was given a prophecy relating to time.
"Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that
certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the
daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanc-
tuary and the host to be trodden under foot? And he said unto me, Unto
two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed."
Dan. 8: 13, 14.
A Divine Rule of Reckoning
Whenever time is found used in connection with symbolic
prophecy, that time itself is also symbolic. In prophecies of
this kind, a divine rule of reckoning such time is given. This rule
will be found in connection with a symbolic prophecy in the
book of Ezekiel:
"I have appointed thee each day for a year." Ezek. 4: 6, last clause.
Hence every day mentioned in this long time-prophecy is a
symbol of a year, twenty-three hundred days standing for
twenty-three hundred years.
After Daniel heard the statement of the prophecy, he said:
"And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and
(96)
THE TWENTY-THRER HUNDRED YEARS 97
sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appear-
ance of a man. And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai,
which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision."
Dan. 8: 15, 16.
In response to this command the angel Gabriel immediately
began to instruct Daniel in the meaning of the vision. He told
him first the meaning of the ram (verse zo), then of the goat
with its great horn (verse 21), then of the four horns (verse 22),
then of the little horn, or Rome (verses 23-25), and then he
referred to the twenty-three hundred days, but did not explain
them nor make Daniel understand them.
"And the vision of the evening and the morning ]the twenty-three
hundred evenings and mornings; see margin of 14th verse] which was told is
true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days."
Dan. 8: 26.
This chapter closes with an incident that throws some light
on the reason why the angel did not at that time make the full
explanation of the vision, especially of the twenty-three hundred
years, to Daniel. Daniel writes:
"And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up,
and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none
understood it."
The Twenty-Three Hundred Years Not Understood

Daniel certainly understood the meaning of the ram, for
he had been told plainly that it was Medo-Persia. He under-
stood the meaning of the goat and its great horn, for the angel
told him that these things represented Greece and its first
king. He understood the little horn, or Rome, for the angel
had fully explained it. What, then, did he not understand?
Plainly it was the prophecy of the twenty--three hundred years.
Because Daniel had fainted the angel could not make the
meaning of this long period clear to the prophet, and therefore
he did not understand it.
From Daniel's statement that he did not understand,
it is clear that the commission the angel had been given to make
him understand was not yet fulfilled, and we shall certainly
expect the angel to return and accomplish this unfulfilled com-
mission.
In the first four verses of the ninth chapter of Daniel, the
7
prophet is disclosed seeking by study and prayer to pierce the
veil of this mystery. At this very time Jerusalem was in ruins,
the temple of God in ashes. He had been given a prophecy that
in twenty-three hundred days the " sanctuary " would be
cleansed. Naturally he connected this prophecy with the
temple in Jerusalem, which had been destroyed, and he seemed
inclined to believe that he had been given a promise regarding
the time when this temple would again be built, and the services
of God carried on in it. He searched through the writings of
Jeremiah until he found the prophecy that declares that
seventy years would be accomplished in the desolations of
Jerusalem. Still the matter was not clear to him, and he set
himself to pray for light, setting thus a good example for all the
people of God who may be puzzled by the meaning of these
great prophecies. In response to his prayer, the angel Gabriel,
who had been commanded to make him understand the vision,
returned to him to carry out his instructions.
"Consider the Vision"
"And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and
the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the
Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God; yea, whiles I was
speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision
at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time
of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and
said, 0 Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.
At the beginning of thy supplication the commandment came forth, and
I am come to show thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore under-
stand the matter, and consider the vision." Dan. 9:2o-23.
In obedience to the command of the angel, Daniel recalled
the vision, In recollection he saw the ram, which he understood
was Medo-Persia ; the goat, which he understood was Greece;
the great horn between its. eyes, which he understood was its
first king, or Alexander the Great; the four horns, which he
understood to represent the four divisions of Greece after the
death of its first king; and then the little horn, which he under-
stood was a great persecuting power which would attempt to
destroy God's truth, God's people, and God's sanctuary.
This was all clear to him. He understood it. But there was a
part of the vision which he did not understand. Daniel
recalled the twenty-three hundred days, at the end of which
the sanctuary was to be cleansed. And as it came into his
THE TWENTY-THREE HUNDRED YEARS 99
The rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem in troublous times.
mind, Gabriel began at that point to explain it. The angel did
not go over the meaning of the entire vision again. This he had
once explained to Daniel. He began with his explanation at the
exact point where he had left off, with the time, the 2300
days. Of this great period he said:
"Seventy weeks [of this twenty-three-hundred-day period] are deter-
mined [or cut off] upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the
transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation
for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the
vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy." Dan. 9: 24.
This explanation divides the twenty-three-hundred-day

period into two parts, describes what will transpire during the
first part, but does not give us a beginning for it.
The two parts into which the period is thus divided are the
first part of seventy weeks, or 490 days; and the second part,
which would be i8Io days. As these days stand for years, there
are two periods, one of 490 years, the other of 18 r o years, or 2300
years in all.
The next verse of the chapter gives the starting point of the
entire period, and at the same time divides the first period of
490 years into three smaller periods. It reads:
"Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the
commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the
Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street
shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times." Dan. 9: 25.
Here is the starting point of the 2300 years, and the 490
years as well. It begins with some decree, or commandment, to
restore Jerusalem. From the time that decree is given-it will be
just 2300 years to the time when the sanctuary will be cleansed.
Here, also, the first period of 490 years is divided into three
smaller periods: of 7 weeks or 49 years, of 62 weeks or 434
year, and I week or 7 years. The city of Jerusalem would
be rebuilt in the first period of 49 years, the Messiah would come
at the end of the second period of 434 years, and the full end of
the 490 years given to the Jewish people would be reached at the
end of the third period of 7 years. After this there would still
remain the 1810 years of the full period of 2300, and at the end
of this last period, " then shall the sanctuary be cleansed."
Before the end of any of these periods can be determined, the
date when the whole period of 2300 years begins must be ob-
tained. This, in the words of the angel, is at " the going forth of
the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem." The
question now arises, Can the date of this commandment be
ascertained? The fulfillment of the entire prophecy depends
upon this.
The Decree of Artaxerxes
Providentially, not only the date of this command-
ment, but the very commandment itself, has been pre-
served. It will be found in the seventh chapter of the book of
Ezra, and the date given in the margin of the Bible at this
place—a date that has been confirmed and verified by exhaustive
research—is B. c. 457. The decree itself begins in the 12th verse
of the chapter. It confers full authority upon Ezra to do any-
thing that may be found needful for the temple and the city of
Jerusalem.
With this date, B. C. 457, is obtained the starting point of the
2300 years, the 490 years, the 483 years, and the 49 years of the
n-m TWENTY-THREE HUNDRED YEARS IOI
prophecy Forty-nine years from 13. C. 457, Jerusalem was to be

completely rebuilt and restored; 483 years, or " 7 weeks, and
threescore and 2 weeks," from B. c. 457 will reach to the ap-
pearance of "Messiah the Prince" to His people; 490 years from
B. C. 457 will reach to the end of the time given to the Jewish
people; and 2300 years from B. C. 457 will reach to the time of
the cleansing of the sanctuary.
The 483 Years

We begin with the period of 483 years, reaching to the ap-
pearance of Messiah. The words of the angel are:
"Prom the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build
Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three-
score and two weeks." Dan. 9: 25.
This would be in all 69 weeks. In 69 weeks there are 483 days.

Each day represents a year of actual time, or 483 years. The
Messiah will present Himself to the Jews in 483 years after
B• C• 457.
This period, 483 years, would reach from the first day of
B. C. 457 to the last day of A. D. 26. Thus:
First day of Last day of
B• C• 457 483 years A. D. 26
It is plain that, if the decree did not go forth on the first

day of B.c. 457, but some time later, the 483 years will reach over
into the year A. D. 27. The decree did take effect in the autumn
of B. C. 457. The time, therefore, reaches over to the autumn of
A. D. 27 as the ending point of the 483 years. Thus:
Autumn of Autumn of
B• C. 457 483 years A. D. 27
" Messiah the Prince"

The prophecy points directly to the year A. D. 27 as the
year for the appearance of the Messiah to His people. But was
not Christ born before this year? Yes, but notice carefully the
wording of the prophe-
cy, "Unto the Messiah
the Prince." The mean-
ing of the word "Mes-
siah" is the same in the
Hebrew language as
"Christ" is in the
Greek. "Messiah"
means "the anointed
One," and "Christ"
means "the anointed
One." Hence the
prophecy points to the
date of the anointing of
Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus was anointed
at His baptism. This is
the record: -
"Then cometh Jesus
International Newsreel from Galilee to Jordan unto
John, to be baptized of him.
Christ was anointed at His baptism when the Holy
Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove, thus
But John forbade Him say-
fulfilling the time-prophecy of Daniel the prophet.
ing, I have need to be bap-
tized of Thee, and comest Thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him,
Suffer it to be so now: for thus it hecometh us to fulfill all righteousness.
Then he suffered Him. And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straight-
way out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and He
saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him:
and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I
am well pleased." Matt. 3:13-17.
.The date of this anointing is given in the margin of the
Bible at this place as A. D. 27. See also Bliss' "Sacred Chro-
nology," "The New International Encyclopedia," article "Jesus
Christ," and Weisler's "Chronological Synopsis of the Four
Gospels," page 183.
"The Time Is Fulfilled"
Immediately after His baptism Jesus was in the wilderness of
temptation for forty days. And then the record is:
"Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent
ye, and believe the gospel." Mark I : 14, 15.
THE TWENTY-THREE HUNDRED YEARS ioj
From the time of the conversion of the apostle Paul the gospel went to the Gentiles.
At this point the 69 weeks, or 483 years, of the prophecy

of Daniel ended. At this point the Messiah, the anointed One,
was to appear to His people. At this very point the Messiah
did appear, being anointed at His baptism, and then coming
and preaching, "The time is fulfilled." In these words He called
attention to the very prophecy that proved His Messiahship.
The Final Week

There is one more week of the seventy that were given to the
Jewish people. The sixty-nine weeks end in A. D. 27. Adding
the final week to the sixty-nine weeks that ended in A. D. 27, the
year A. D. 34 is reached as the ending point of the seventy weeks.
In the middle of this final week something takes place
that is especially noted in the prophecy:
"And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in
the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease."
Dan. 9:27.
In the "midst" of the final week given to the Jewish people
" the sacrifice and the oblation" were to cease. During the
entire week, from A.D. 27 to 34, the covenant was to be con-
firmed with many, evidently of the Jewish people, for this
period was given especially to them.
The crucifixion of Christ marked the fulfillment
of a notable time-prophecy in the book of Daniel.
( 104)
THE TwENTY-TuREE HUNDRED YEARS 105
The " midst " of the week would be just three and a half
years from the baptism of Christ. What took place then?
At that precise time Christ was crucified, thus causing the
whole system of " sacrifice and oblation " to come to an end.
This sacrificial system was all typical of Christ, the great
sacrifice. And when Christ died on the cross, type met antitype,
and the typical system thus closed. This was shown by the
veil of the temple being rent in twain at the time of the death of
Christ. (Matt. 27 : 51.)
The full period of seventy weeks, or 490 years given to the
Jews as the peculiar people of God, expired in A. D. 34. At this
point the prophecy is fulfilled by the official rejection of the
gospel of Christ by the ruling body of the nation, the Sanhedrin,
in their persecution of the disciples and the martyrdom of
Stephen. From this date onward the apostles turned to the
Gentiles. At this time, too, Paul, the great apostle to the Gen-
tiles, was converted.
"UNTO 2,300 DAYS; THEN SHALL THE SANCTUARY BE CLEANSED,"
2,300 PROPHETIC DAYS EQUAL 2,300 YEARS
'70 WEEKS ARE DETERMINED UPON THY

PEOPLE" 490 YEAR5
BC BC AO 31 AD AD
457 408 27 34 1 844
7 WEEKS 3SCORE E 2(62'WEEKSI I VEi.EK

OR 434'YEARS 1, 810 YEARS
7YF ARS
A chart showing the interpretation of the prophecy of the twenty-three hundred days.
The first division of the 2300 years, that period given to the
Jewish people, which was 490 years long, ended in the year
A. D. 34. To this must be now added the 1810 years of the 2300
that still remain. When this is added to A. D. 34 the date of
A. D. 1844 appears as the grand terminal point of the entire
period of the 23oo-year prophecy. The accuracy of this date
cannot be successfully disputed, for it is based upon the central
facts of the gospel of Christ, His baptism, ministry, and cruci-
fixion.
According to the prophecy, then, the sanctuary will be
cleansed in 1844. With the facts of this chapter clearly before
us, we pass on to the consideration of what the sanctuary is,
and what is meant by its cleansing.
The sanctuagy in the wilderness, with side lifted to show the location of its furniture.
The Cleansing of the Sanctuary

T HE ancient sanctuarywas the dwelling place of God in the
camp of the Israelites. On the occasion when Moses spent
forty days with God on Mount Sinai, he received instructions
to build it. While there communing with God, the Lord said
to him :
"And let them make Me a sanctuary: that I may dwell among them."
Ex. 25:8.
And then the Lord said:
"According to all that I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle,
and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it."
Ex. 25:9.
From this it is plain that Moses not only received instruc-
tion to build the sanctuary, but he was shown in the mountain
a pattern that he was to take as a model. In obedience to this
instruction, Moses had the children of Israel build the sanctuary.
It was built in every detail just as the Lord commanded, and
after the pattern that Moses had seen in the mount.
The Sanctuary
The sanctuary was built in a court that was always erected
in the center of the encampment. The court of the sanctuary
was oblong in shape, and had but one opening, which was
(i06)
THE CLEANSING THg SANCTUARY 107
always toward the east. In this court there were but two
articles of furniture, the brazen altar and the brazen laver.
The altar was just inside the gates of the court, and on it all of
the sacrifices of the people of Israel were made. The laver stood
between the altar and the door to the tabernacle proper. In
this the priests cleansed themselves before entering upon any
of the services of the sanctuary.
The sanctuary itself comprised two rooms, or apartments.
The first apartment was called the Holy Place, and contained
three articles of furniture: the table of showbread, the seven-
branched golden candlestick, and the altar of incense. A veil
embroidered in gold thread with the figures of angels, separated
the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. The Most Holy
Place, or inner apartment of the sanctuary, contained but one
article, and that was the ark of the covenant. This was a
hollow chest, in which were contained the two tables of stone
upon which were written the ten-commandment law. The
cover of the ark was the mercy seat, and was composed of a
solid piece of gold, on each end of which was the figure of an
angel, or cherub. These angels stood with uplifted wings as if
in worship of that which they beheld between them. Between
them there was a bright light, and this was the Shekinah, the
manifest presence of God among His people. The services
that were carried on daily in the building are described in
much detail in the book of Leviticus.
The Vicarious Sacrifice
When any person in the great encampment committed sin,
he broke the law that was in the Most Holy Place, for "sin is
the transgression of the law." I John 3 : 4. " I had not known
sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law
had said, Thou shalt not covet." Rom. 7: 7.
The law that reveals sin, and to transgress which is sin, is
the law that says, "Thou shalt not covet." This is the law of
ten commandments, which was in the Most Holy Place.
When this law was broken, it condemned the sinner to death,
for "the wages of sin is death." Rom. 6: 23. And, "Without
shedding of blood is no remission." Heb. 9: 22.
The law, therefore, demanded blood before the sin could be
remitted. hence the man who had sinned brought to the gate an
to8 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
animal such as had been selected for a sin-offering. The sinner
then confessed his transgression of the law upon the head of the
animal, and, in type, his sin passed from himself to the animal.
It was now the animal that the law condemned; it was the lamb
whose blood it demanded. Then with his own hand the man
drew a sharp knife across the throat of the lamb. The blood,
as it gushed forth, was caught in a basin and taken into the
Holy Place by the priest, and there sprinkled before the veil
that was before the ark containing the law. This was done to
show the law that its demands had been met, and blood had
been shed for the remission of the sin that had been committed.
Thus the man went free and the lamb suffered in his place.
All of this, of course, was typical of the vicarious atonement of
Jesus Christ. It was all designed to impart faith in the coming of
"the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."
Because of the sins of the people, blood was flowing con-
stantly at the gate of the sanctuary. Throughout the year this
service of sacrifice for sin kept the priests constantly busy
offering blood before the broken law. Thus the sins of the entire
encampment accumulated day by day in the sanctuary.
On the day of atonement, the tenth day of the seventh
month of the year, a change was made in the services of the
sanctuary.
The Day of Atonement
On -this day the high priest himself had charge of the service.
A description of this service will be found in the sixteenth
chapter of Leviticus. In the morning of the day of atonement,
two goats were brought before the high priest at the gate of the
sanctuary. Lots were cast upon them, and one was selected as the
Lord's goat. The other became the scapegoat.
The goat that had been selected by lot to be the Lord's was
to die for all the sins of the people that had accumulated in the
sanctuary for the entire year. He was to bear all these sins in
death, and his blood was to make an atonement for them "once
for all." The Lord's goat was killed by the high priest and his
blood taken into the Most Holy Place, before the law itself.
There it was sprinkled for the remission of all the sins that had
been confessed and brought into the sanctuary during the year.
Then, bearing the sins of the people upon his own body, having
THU CLEANSING OP THE SANCTUARY 109
made an atonement for them, the high priest came out of the
Most Holy Place, through the court, and brought these sins to
the scapegoat, which was standing at the gate of the court.
He confessed all these sins upon the head of the scape goat.
"And Aaron shall lay both his
hands upon the head of the live
goat, and confess over him all
the iniquities of the children of
Israel, and all their transgres-
sions in all their sins, putting
them upon the head of the goat,
and shall send him away by the
hand of a fit man into the
wilderness. And the goat shall
bear upon him all their iniqui-
ties unto a land not inhabited:
and he shall let go the goat in
the wilderness." Lev. i6: 21, 22.
In this way the sins of
the people were forever sep-
arated from them. And the
service by which this was
done was called, " The
Cleansing of the Sanctu-
ary." This was done once
every year. This was the
only time that any person
was ever permitted to enter
into the Most Holy Place,
and no other person except
the high priest could enter
even on this occasion.
The blood of the Lords goat was taken by the All these sacrifices, offer-
high priest into the Most Holy Place, where was ings, and services were typi-
the ark of God containing the law.
cal of the work of Christ.
The new covenant has a sanctuary, a priesthood, a sacrifice
for sin, a service for cleansing the sanctuary, and a scapegoat
as well as did the old.
Paul says:
"We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the
throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of
the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." Heb. 8: I, 2.
I TO OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
Paul says again :
"Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service,
and a worldly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle made; the first, where-
in was the candlestick, and the table, and the showbread; which is called
the holy [margin]. And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is
called the Holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and the ark of the
covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that
had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;
and over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercy seat." Heb. 9: 1-5.
Of the services that were conducted in this earthly sanctuary,
Paul says:
"Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always
into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. But into the
second went the high, priest alone once every year, not without blood,
which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people." Heb. 9: 6, 7.
What this all signified is thus stated b; Paul :
"The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the Holiest of all
was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:
which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both
gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as
pertaining to the conscience; which stood only in meats and drinks, and
divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of
reformation. But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come,
by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to
say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by
His own blood He entered in once into the Holy Place, having obtained
eternal redemption for us." Heb. 9: 8-12.
In Heaven .
From these passages it is plain that there is a sanctuary in
the heavens in which our High Priest offers His blood now
for the remission of the sins that are confessed' to Him. Notice
the expressions, "the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched
and not man," "a figure for the time then present," "by a
greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands,"
and "is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the
heavens." They show conclusively that there is a heavenly
sanctuary, the services of which are being carried on by Christ.
It is also plain that when Christ ascended to heaven forty
days after His resurrection He entered upon His priestly work
in the "Holy Place" of the heavenly sanctuary. (Heb. 9: 12.)
Here He has been ministering for us since A.'D. 34. As sins have
been confessed to Him, He has presented His own blood before
THE CLEANSING OF THE SANCTUARY III
the broken law for their remission. And His sacrifice in our
behalf has been accepted, thus enabling Him to forgive men
their trespasses.
The Heavenly Sanctuary Cleansed
Thus the sins of God's people for nineteen centuries have
been accumulating in the heavenly sanctuary above. Finally
the time comes when these sins must be forever blotted out
by the final services of Christ's ministry. The time for the
beginning of that service is very clearly pointed out in the
prophecy: "Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then
shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Dan. 8: 14.
It has been shown that the twenty-three hundred years
ended in 1844. In 1844 there was but one sanctuary, and that
was the heavenly. The earthly sanctuary, which had been
merged into the great temple at Jerusalem, had been destroyed
for nearly eighteen centuries when 1844 arrived. This prophecy,
therefore, has reference to the heavenly sanctuary. It gives the
exact year for the beginning of the closing work of the gospel,
the blotting out of sins once for all.
Began in 1844
In 1844, then, Christ transferred His service in heaven from
the Holy Place to the Most Holy Place of the sanctuary above.
In that year He began the work called in the prophecy "the
cleansing of the sanctuary." Listen again to Paul:
"Almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without
shedding of blood is no remission. It was therefore necessary that the
patterns of things in the heavens [the earthly sanctuary] should be purified
with these [the blood of animals]; but the heavenly things themselves with
better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places
made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us: nor yet that He should offer
Himself often, as the high priest entereth into the Holy Place every year
with the blood of others; for then must He often have suffered since the
foundation of the world; but now once in the end of the world hath He
appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." Heb. g: 22-26.
The cleansing of the earthly sanctuary with the blood of
animals was typical of the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary
with the blood of Christ. The time for the beginning of this work
is fixed in the Scriptures by the prophecy of the eighth chapter
of Daniel. That time is 1844•
Wide World Photos
More august than the greatest courts of earth is the court of heaven.
The Judgment of the Church

T HE prophecy of the twenty-three hundred years demon-
strates that Christ, as our High Priest, is now serving in
the Most Holy Place of the sanctuary in heaven. He is there
engaged in the last, solemn work of the gospel, the work of
cleansing the sanctuary, the work of blotting out, finally and
completely, the sins of His people.
In order finally and completely to blot out these sins, it is
evident that He must first enter into a very close examination
of the characters of His people in order to determine who of
them should have their sins blotted out. This means that in
1844 He began a work of judgment, not of executive judgment,
but of investigative judgment — a work that is clearly necessary
before sin can finally be disposed of.
The Bible clearly teaches that there will be a judgment both
of the righteous and the wicked.
"I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked:
for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work." F,ccl. 3: 17.
The Scriptures teach just as clearly that the time for the
beginning of the judgment has already been appointed.
"Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world
in righteousness, by that Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath
given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead."
Acts 17: 31.
A definite time has been appointed by God for the judg-
012)
THE JUDGMENT OF THE CHURCH II3
ment to begin. This, without question, points clearly to the
prophecy of the 2300 years. It is at the end of this long period
of time that the judgment was appointed to begin. As we have
seen, 1844 is the date at which the 2300 years end. This date,
then, is the time appointed for the beginning of the judgment
of God's people.
Righteous Judged First
God will judge His own people first:
"For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God:
and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the
gospel of God?" i Peter 4: 57.
It is necessary that this judgment of the people of God
should take place before the second coming of Christ, for at that
coming He brings rewards to His people, and raises the sleeping
saints from their graves. Before this can be done, it is obvious
that some investigation must have taken place in order to
determine who among the professed people of God are worthy
to have a resurrection, and just what reward they deserve.
"And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to
give every man according as his work shall be." Rev. 22: 12.
If the reward is based upon what a man's work is, there
must be an investigation into the record that each man has
made before the reward can be properly decided upon. Inas-
much as the reward has already been determined upon by the
time Christ comes, and is actually brought with Christ, this
investigation must take place some time before the second
coming of Christ.
An Investigative Judgment
At the second coming of Christ, all the righteous dead are
raised from their graves.
"P"(4 the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in
Christ shall rise first." i Thess. 4: i6.
The privilege of having a part in the first resurrection is a
great reward in itself. "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in
the first resurrection." Rev. 2o: 6. Before Christ comes it
must be decided who is worthy to have a part in this resurrec-
tion. In order to make such a decision, the entire record of
8
I 14 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
each child of God must be examined in order to decide who are

worthy or not of having part in the first resurrection.
"But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world
and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in mar-
riage." Luke 20: 35.
There is -to be an "accounting" regarding the worthiness
of the people of God before the resurrection; that is, before the
second coming of Christ, which is the time of the resurrection
of the righteous. This "accounting" is the work of the in-
vestigative judgment, which began in 1844.
During the time of the judgment, beginning in 1844,
both the righteous and the wicked dead are still in their graves.
On the books of heaven is the record of each life, and it is by
that record that their characters and their deeds will be judged.
"And the books were opened: and another book was opened, which
is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were
written in the books, according to their works." Rev. zo: 12.
Upon the pages of the book of life the names of the candi-
dates for eternal life are written :
"And I entreat thee also, true yoke-fellow, help those women which
labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellow
laborers, whose names are in the book of life." Phil. 4 : 3•
An Accurate and Impartial Record

Every act that has ever been committed is recorded on the
pages of this book. In this judgment these things will pass
in review before God.
"For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret
thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12: 14.
"But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak,
they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy
words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."
Matt. 12 : 36, 37.
Certainly if these verses show anything they reveal that an
accurate and impartial record is kept of the life of every man.
The hidden things will be brought to light, and they will be
open to ithe,eye of the Judge of the whole earth. Every deceitful
thing, every act of injustice, revery evil deed, everything dis-
honest in the life, will come before God. On the record also
there are unselfish, loving deeds/ all lofty thoughts,
THE JUDGMENT OT THE CHURCH 1 15
worthy efforts. And above all there

will be recorded whether the evil
things have been confessed and for-
given, whether the sinful life has
been surrendered to Christ, and
His grace accepted to cover it.
Let it not be considered strange
that there should be kept a record
of men's lives in heaven. One of
the books of heaven which is
especially mentioned in the Bible
is " a book of remembrance."
"Then they that feared the Lord
spake often one to another: and the
Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a hook
of remembrance was written before Him
for them that feared the Lord, and that
thought upon His name." Mal. 3: 16.
A View of the Judgment

Daniel was given a view in
sacred vision of the time when, in
1844, the books of heaven were
opened before the great Judge,
and the investigative judgment
commenced.
"The judgment was set, and the
books were opened." "I beheld till the thrones were cast
down [or placed], and the Ancient of
days did sit, whose garment was as white as snow, and the hair of His
head like pure wool: His throne was like the fiery flame, and His vi-heels as
burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him:
thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten
thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened."
Dan. 7 : 9, JO.
God himself presides over the judgment. He is assisted by

His angels, of whom there are ten thousand times ten thousand
and thousands of thousands. The Son of man, Christ Jesus,
appears before the judgment seat of God to plead in behalf
of His people. He is their Advocate, and He offers His blood
to cover the sins of all who have sincerely repented and con-
fessed their sins to Him.
In this judgment every case is decided for eternity. The
Eugene J. Hall
Into the church come many kinds of people. but the judgment, like the time when the
(116) fisherman sorts out his catch, will decide who is worthy of entering the eternal kingdom.
THE JUDGMENT OP THE CHURCH I17
judgment will begin with those who are dead. "And the nations
were angry, and Thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead,
that they should be judged." Rev. II: 18.
These passages give a very clear view of what took place
when the judgment began in 1844. When the book of life was
opened at that time the name of Abel, the first man who ever
died, appeared. The record of his life was carefully examined,
every act and word and thought being investigated. It was
noted, too, whether his sins had all been confessed and forgiven.
When this had all been gone over, a decision was made re-
garding the nature of the reward to be brought to Abel when
Christ should return to this earth.
Thus through the years since 1844 this work has been going
on, and before it closes the cases of the hundreds of millions
of God's people, all who have ever had their names written on
the pages of the book of life, will be eternally settled and
decided. In settling the cases recorded in the book of life, two
decisions are possible. Either the name of the person will be
blotted out of the book of life, or his sins will be blotted out*
Names May Be Blotted Out

That the names of those who are candidates for eternal
life may be blotted out of the book of life is clearly taught:
"He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment;
and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his
name before My Father, and before His angels." Rev. 3: 5.
Those who will have their names blotted out are those
who continue in sin.
"And the Lord said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against Me,
him will I blot out of My book." Ex. 32: 33•
The time must come in this judgment when the case of the
last person who is dead will be decided. When that has been
decided, there will appear the name of a person who is still
alive on the earth. Thus the judgment will pass from the dead
to the living. No man knows when his own name may come
up in review before God in the judgment work above. When
the page is turned that contains your name, what will be the
record written there? If Felix trembled before Paul when he
thought of " judgment to come," ought not we who live in
'18 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
the very time of the judgment feel upon our hearts constantly
the fearful responsibility of this hour?
By the investigative judgment the subjects of the coming
kingdom of Christ are to be determined. When this is ac-
complished, and every case has been decided for life or death,
Christ will lay aside His priestly garments, and this decree will
go forth from the court of heaven:
"He that is unjust, let him be 'unjust still: and he which is filthy, let
him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still:
and he that is holy, let him be holy still." Rev. 22 : 11.
The Antitypical Scapegoat
With this decree the destiny of every human soul is fixed
for eternity. As Christ comes from His work of ministry in the
heavenly sanctuary, the plagues of God's wrath begin to fall
(see chapter on "The Seven Last Plagues"), and Christ pre-
pares to lay upon the antitypical scapegoat the sins that have
been cleansed from the heavenly sanctuary. This is Satan, who,
having caused the people-of God to commit these sins, is now
punished for these sins by being led away "unto a land not
inhabited" (Lev. 16: 22), where he suffers isolation during the
thousand years of the millennium. The land "not inhabited"
is the desolate earth. (See chapter on "The Millennium. ")
Christ Receives His Kingdom
At the close of the judgment, when the subjects of His
kingdom have been determined, Christ receives His kingdom
from the Father.
"And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that
all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him." Dan. 7 : 14.
Then Christ will come to receive His subjects of His king-
dom and take them to Himself, to live and reign with Him for
the thousand years of the millennium.
heaven to the other." Matt. 24: 31.
Those who have been accounted worthy in the judgment to
attain unto the resurrection from the dead will then be raised.
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in
Christ shall rise first." 1 Thess. 4: 16.
THE JUDGMENT Or THE CHURCH II§
Then all, both dead and living saints, will be changed into
the likeness of Christ, and given immortal bodies.
"Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all
be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump:
for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and
we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall
have put on incorruption and this mortal shall have put on immortality,
then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed
up in victory." t Cor. 15: 51-54.
Having been changed, the righteous will be caught up to
meet the Lord in the air.
"Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever
be with the Lord." t Thess. 4: 17.
At that time they will all be taken with Christ to heaven,
to be given those mansions which Christ has gone to prepare.
"In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I
am, there ye may be also." John 14: 2, 3.
Righteous Judge the World
During the thousand years while the righteous are in heaven
they will enter into the work of judgment themselves. This will
be the judgment of the wicked; not the actual executing of
punishment upon the wicked, but the investigation into their
records to determine what their punishment will be. The wicked,
too, are to be judged according to their works. This work the
righteous will do during the millennium.
"I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed
against them; until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the
saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the
kingdom." Dan. 7: 21, 22.
They will continue this work for one thousand years, or
during the millennium.
"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given
unto them: . . . and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."
Rev. 20:4.
At this time not only the cases of the wicked will come up in
review before the righteous, but also the cases of the fallen
angels who followed Satan in his rebellion against God.
"Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? And if the
world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest
matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? How much more things
that pertain to this life?" I Cor. 6: 2, 3.
When this work of judgment is completed, at the end of the
thousand years, the wicked dead are called forth to receive
their doom. The work of executing the judgment is given into
the hands of Christ.
"And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should
smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He
treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God."
Rev. 19: 15.
Most Solemn of All Times
The time in which we live is the most solemn of all times of
which we have any record. The work of the gospel is being
closed up. The cases of all are being decided for eternity.
Christ is about to come the second time with rewards. Let us be
careful how we live.
The story is told of a certain martyr who was called before a
Roman council to answer the charges that were lodged there
against him for heresy. The first questions he answered care-
lessly, but during a moment of silence he detected the scratching
of a pen behind a curtain. At once he realized that his answers
were being written down to be used against him at his trial.
Very carefully, after that, did he choose his words, and he
answered his questions as for his life.
Reader, behind the curtain that separates this world from
the invisible world, there is a pen that writes down in God's book
of remembrance all our acts, our words, and our thoughts.
Oh, let this thought ever flash in upon our worldliness, our
pleasure, and our sin. For all these things God will bring us
into judgment. Let us think of these things; and as we value
eternal life and wish to avoid the doom of the ungodly, so let
us "fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole
duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment,
with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be
evil."
W ide World Photos
Jesus told His disciples that He had not come to
destroy the law, but to fulfill it, magnify it. keep it.
The Standard of the Judgment

ORE important than any other question connected with
the judgment, is this: By what standard of righteousness
will God judge His people? Are human lives to be weighed and
measured by some fixed standard, or is each soul to decide for
himself what is right or wrong? It is evident that God will not
judge His people in heaven by some rule that has been unknown
on earth. This would be unjust, and God is a God of justice.
God's Law the Standard
What, then, is the great standard of the judgment? It is
the law of ten commandments, the law of God.
This was the standard of righteousness in the typical service
of the earthly sanctuary, and in the typical day of atonement
when that sanctuary was cleansed. It is the standard now in the
antitypical service of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, in the
antitypical day of atonement while the sanctuary above is
being cleansed.
"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point,
he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also,
Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art
become a transgressor of the law. So speak ye, and so do, as they that
shall be judged by the law of liberty." James 2: Io-r 2.
(r21)
"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Pear God, and keep
His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall
bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good
or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12: 13, 14.
These verses show that the law will be the standard of
judgment. The first verse not only declares that men are to be
- judged by the law, but makes it very clear that the law that will
be the standard of the judgment is the law that declares, "Thou
shalt not commit adultery," and "Thou shalt not kill." This
is the law of ten commandments.
Certainly if the ten-commandment law is to be the judge of
men in the great judgment in heaven, now taking place, it is
well that some study be given to it. We must not enter into
the judgment ignorant of the very standard by which our lives
will be measured and weighed. What does this law require?
Is Above Inspiration
The law of ten commandments is the only part of the Bible
that is above inspiration. God did not commit it to a man to
write. God himself came down to earth, and spoke it in the
hearing of multitudes of people, and then inscribed it with His
own finger on two tables of stone. This reveals the high im-
portance that God attached to the principles that this law
contains.
A code of laws partakes very largely of the character of
its author, and in the estimation of men is held to be of lesser
or greater importance according to the standing of its author.
There are several systems of law in this world that stand out
above others. There is the Napoleonic code, the code of Jus-
tinian, that great document the British Magna Charta and there
is the American Declaration of Independence. But looming far
above all that have been, or can be, mentioned, is the great
code of law that God spoke with His Own voice amid the
thunders of Sinai. This law, spoken in the hearing of men more
than thirty centuries ago, and preserved through all the changes
of passing ages, has worked its way among the nations of the
earth, and influenced humanity as no other law has ever done.
It is not easy to produce a complete and perfect law. The
work of the very wisest lawgivers, from Lycurgus, Draco, Solon,
and Numa, down to Justinian and Napoleon, exhibit many
THE STANDARD O1 THE JUDGMENT 123
defects. But in the ten commandments we have a code of law

that forbids all sin and inculcates all virtue, and a law, too,
that has outlived the laws of all ancient emperors and con-
querors, has entered into the jurisprudence of the world, and
exercises even today a greater influence on the morals and
manners of mankind than any other law that was ever made.
The authority of all other ancient codes has died away.
But rolling down through thrice one thousand years there comes
a voice reaching over the wreck of ruined temples and fallen
images and idols that have been cast to the moles and bats,
and sounding forth not only throughout the civilized world
but even to those nations that still sit in darkness and the
shadow of death, and that voice still proclaims with an author-
ity that has never lessened, " I am the Lord thy God. . . .
Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."
That word is heard and obeyed. Held in everlasting re-
membrance are the words of God that were spoken from the
sacred mount in the hearing of Israel. That law has been
published to all lands, printed in more tongues than any other
law that has ever existed. And today, wherever one may find
righteousness and truth, purity, intellect, intelligence, science,
art, invention, discovery, education, order, morality, and good
government, he will find that this law has preceded these
things as a schoolmaster to bring men to Christ, that men may
learn of Him the way of life and peace.
God Spoke and Wrote the Law

Let the testimony of the Scriptures be noticed with regard
to the Author of this law:
"And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard
the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And
He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform,
even ten commandments; and Ile wrote them upon two tables of stone."
Dent. 4: 12, 13.
"And the Lord said unto Moses, Come up to Me into the mount,
and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and command-
ments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them." Ex. 24: 12.
This law, being given by a perfect God, is itself perfect.
"The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul." Ps. 19: 7.
The claim is made today that this law was given only for a
limited time, that it was intended to be superseded by the
gospel at the time of the death of Christ. This claim is utterly
denied by the teaching of the Bible. This law is eternal and
unchangeable. All of its commandments were to continue in
force throughout all ages.
"The works of His hands are verity and judgment: all His command-
To Israel God spoke the law in awful majesty from the fire-crowned height of Sinai.
ments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth
and uprightness." Ps. It : 7, 8.
This is the teaching of the New Testament as well as of the
Old, for we find Christ himself teaching that He did not come
to abolish or change the law, but to fulfill, or do, it.
"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am
not come to destroy, but to fulfill. Por verily I say unto you, Till heaven
and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law,
till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least
commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the
kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same
shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5: 17-19.
The law is the summing up of the righteousness and the
Rau
Christ taught the merchants of His time to have just balances and just
weights, and referred them to the teachings of the law and the prophets.
(125)
truth of God. It is the foundation of all truth and righteousness.

So say the Scriptures:
"Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Thy law is the
truth." Ps. 119: 142.
"My tongue shall speak of Thy word: for all Thy commandments
are righteousness." Ps. 119: 172.
Faith in Christ Establishes It

Faith in Christ does not make this law void to the believer,
but rather establishes it.
"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we
establish the law." Rom. 3 : 31.
Those who profess to serve God, to be His faithful children,
and who refuse to keep His commandments, are utterly mis-
taken as to what true worship is. God says of them :
"He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is
a liar, and the truth is not in him. " 1 John 2 : 4.
Those who find the preaching of the law so distasteful that
they refuse to hear it, even their prayers are said to be an
abomination to the Lord :
"He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer -
shall be abomination." Prov. 28:9.
The Love of God

In the law is summed up the love of God, as well as His
truth and His righteousness: -
"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and
His commandments are not grievous." 1 John 5 : 3.
This law, then, being the standard by which God will judge
human beings, it becomes our duty, especially at this time in
view of the judgment above, to closely examine our lives in the
light streaming from the law. Are we obeying it? Do we keep
the ten commandments? Do we keep every one of them?
The law that was received by man on Sinai and the gospel that was proclaimed by
Christ from Cavalry are inseparably connected, for the decalogue is based upon love.
The Relation of the Law to the Gospel

HERE is not a clear understanding among Christian
Tpeople of the relation of the law to the gospel. This
confusion of mind has been taken advantage of by the enemy
of truth to sow the seeds of many errors.
Inasmuch as it is the law of God that is the standard of the
investigative judgment now in progress in heaven,— the
judgment that will determine the subjects of the coming
kingdom of Christ,— and inasmuch as this law is to be applied
to the record of every human life, it seems clear that there
can be no subject of greater importance for Christian people
to understand than the subject of the law of God, and their re-
lation to it.
There is a dispute in the religious world about the per-
petuity of God's law. There are those who teach that the
gospel has superseded the law and taken its place. The present
dispensation, it is taught, is one of grace in which all Christians
are free from the law, having nothing to do with it.
The Bible alone should settle this question. We go to its
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teachings with confidence that God will establish the truth of
this subject.
Spoken by God
The law of God is that part of the divine revelation which
was spoken by the Lord himself to men in the thunders of Sinai:
"And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard
the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice."
Deut. 4: 12.
It was written with God's own finger on two tables of stone.
"And He gave unto Moses, when He had made an end of communing
with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone,
written with the finger of God." Ex. 31: 18.
This law is " right, " "true," and "good."
"Thou camest down also upon Mount Sinai, and spakest with them
from heaven, and gayest them right judgments, and true laws, good
statutes and commandments." Neh. 9: 13.
It is also " perfect. "
"The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul." Ps. 19: 7.
Christ did not come either to abolish or destroy this law:
not come to destroy, but to fulfill. " Matt. 5 : 17.
The Law Is Eternal
The law will endure while heaven and earth stand.
"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one
tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Matt. 5: 18.
It is established, not made void, by faith in Christ.
"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea,
we establish the law." Rom. 3: 31.
It is " spiritual," and "holy, and just, and good."
"Por we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under
sin. Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just,
and good." Rom. 7: 14, 12.
It contains the whole duty of man.
"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Pear God and keep
His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." &el. 12: 13.
The Law Made Honorable
Jesus came not to do away with it, nor nullify it, but to
make it honorable.
THE RELATION OP THE LAW TO THE GOSPEL 129
"The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness' sake; He will magnify
the law and make it honorable. " Isa. 42: 21.
It must be kept as a condition of eternal life.
"Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have
right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
Rev. 22: 14.
It is the law by which the world is to be judged.
"So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of
liberty." James 2:12.
What Is the Gospel?
The gospel is defined as follows:
"Tor I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of
God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also
to the Greek. " Rom. t: 16.
The gospel, then, is that power which God has sent into the
world to save men. Why do men need to be saved? What is
the trouble with the human race that it needs salvation? What
is this salvation from?
"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call His name JESUS:
for He shall save His people from their sins." Matt. t: 21.
The salvation provided by the gospel is salvation from sin.
It is evident, therefore, that the gospel was made necessary
solely because of sin. Sin came and the human race was lost.
Therefore the gospel was introduced that men might be saved
from sin and destruction.
What Is Sin?
It is always well, in the study of any subject, to get defini-
tions of the things we are studying. There must be some
standard of right and wrong. God does not leave this matter
to be settled by each individual. What, then, is sin?
"Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the
transgression of the law." t John 3: 4.
There is no vagueness here. "Sin is the transgression of the
law." This is God's definition of sin.
Now put these things together. The gospel is the power of
God to save men. It saves men from sin. Sin is the transgres-
sion of the law. Law, then, existed first, for there could have
been no sin had there been no law to transgress. Transgression
9
brought sin into the world. Sin made the gospel necessary.
It is plain from this that the gospel was introduced to save
men from transgressing the law. To use the gospel, therefore,
as an excuse for transgressing the law is a total perversion of
its real purpose.
Does Away with the Gospel
If the law is abolished, then there is no need at all for the
gospel. For if the law is abolished, it follows that sin, too, is
abolished. It is impossible to sin without the law, for "sin is the
transgression of the law." "For where no law is, there is no
transgression." Rom. 4: 15. "Sin is not imputed when there is
no law." Rom. 5: 13.
Something else follows naturally from this. The gospel is
for the purpose of taking away sin. But if the law were abolished,
sin would have already been taken away. The gospel, therefore,
would not be needed, for the very purpose of the gospel would
have been secured by abolishing the law, as this also abolishes
sin. Hence the gospel, too, is abolished by this teaching of the
abolition of the law.
Abolishes Altogether too Much
It becomes evident at once that this dangerous teaching
of the abolition of the law of God destroys itself. It abolishes
altogether too much. It does away not only with the law, but
also with sin, with the gospel, with the church, with the ministry,
and with the great sacrifice of Christ on Calvary, for that
sacrifice was offered to take away sin.
The Scriptures teach that "all have sinned, and come
short of the glory of God." Rom. 3: 23. Inasmuch, therefore,
as all have sinned, it is plain that every human being needs the
gospel, which is the power of God to save from sin.
Law Cannot Save
This power cannot be gotten from the law itself. There is
no salvati9n in the law for men. The charge is sometimes
made against those who uphold the law that they teach that
men are saved by keeping the law. This charge is not true.
They certainly do not believe that men are saved by breaking
the law, but neither do they believe that one can be saved by
keeping the law. They keep the law themselves not at all to be
Kadel Herbert, N. Y.
This man is not under grace but under the law, which he has violated.
(131)
saved, but because they are saved. Between these two there is a
vast difference.
It is impossible to get salvation out of the law. Salvation
cannot be secured by doing what the law commands, for "by the
deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight."
Rom. 3: zo. And, again: "And the commandment, which was
ordained to life, I found to be unto death." Rom. 7: io.
There is death for every sinner, not salvation, in the law of
God. This is so because he is a sinner. He has broken the
law. This is sin, and "the wages of sin is death." Rom. 6 : 23.
Therefore the law condemns the sinner to die. It cannot
save him. Even if he could then turn and keep every command-
ment of it perfectly, this would not remove the condemnation
for his sin. The law would still condemn him to death. So
it is plain that there is no salvation in the law for sinners. And
all have sinned. It follows that there is no salvation in the
law for any human being.
Not Under the Law, but Grace
When men come to the gospel for salvation from sin, and
are saved by it, and their transgressions of the law forgiven,
then the condemnation of the law, the condemnation to death,
passes away. Then it becomes true that "sin shall not have
dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under
grace." Rom. 6: 14.
By accepting Christ and the gospel Christians have passed
out from under the condemnation of the law, and are free men
and women in Christ Jesus. This does not mean, as many seem
to think, that they are free to break the law. The man who
breaks the law is not under grace, but under the law. It is the
man who is under grace who keeps the law, and he remains under
grace only so long as he keeps the law. When he breaks the
law he is no longer under grace, but goes back under the law.
This can be clearly shown by a simple illustration.
A man commits murder. The officer of the law marches
him off to the police station. He is now under the law. But why?
Because he has broken it. Why does not the officer take you
into the police station? Solely because you are keeping the law.
Why is it you are free from the law and the murderer is under it?
Because he has broken it and you have not. It is clear, then,
THE RELATION OF' THE LAW To THE GOSPEL 133
that those who have broken the law are under the law, and
those who are free from the law are those who are keeping the
law.
What Being Under the Law Means
The murderer is tried, convicted, and sentenced to life
imprisonment. After serving ten years of his sentence the
governor of the state pardons him. He is now free from
the law. He is no longer under the law, but under grace — the
grace of the governor who pardoned him.
Does this mean, however, that the pardoned murderer, who
is now free from the law, has a license to transgress the law?
Can he now go out and kill another man because he is no longer
under the law but under grace?
Under Grace as Long as Law Is Kept
It will be plain to all that he will remain under grace only so
long as he keeps the law. If he should again transgress the
law, if he should kill another man, then he would be under the
law again, and would necessarily suffer the infliction of another
sentence.
Just so is the case of the Christian. The pardoning of our
sin does not afford us a license to commit additional sin. It
frees us from the condemnation of the law and puts us under
grace; but we remain under grace only so long as we keep the
law.
This truth of the Christian's relation to the law after
forgiveness of his sins is made plain in the passage that declares:
"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid:
yea, we establish the law." Rom. 3: 31. Faith in Christ, then,
so far from making the law void, is the very thing that estab-
lishes it.
Law a Great Sin Detector
The purpose of the law is not to save men, but to point out
their sin, and thus to reveal to them their need of a Saviour
from sin. The law is a great detector of sin. And let there be no
mistake about what law it is which points out sin. It is the ten-
commandment law.
"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had
not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law
had said, Thou shalt not covet." Rom. 7: 7.
The law that reveals sin is clearly seen in .this passage to be
the law that declares, "Thou shalt not covet." This is the law
of the ten commandments. Paul says he would not have known
sin but by the law. He again says :
"By the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3: 20.
It is plain, therefore, that the purpose of the law of God is not
to give salvation, but to make men realize their need of salva-
tion by pointing out sin to them and convicting them of sin.
And hence the law is very necessary to the gospel, and is, as
Paul declares, "holy, and just, and good." Rom. 7: 12.
Gospel Takes Sin Away
The purpose of the gospel is to take away that which the
law points out.
"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the
flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,
condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be
fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:3,4.
Christ, then, and the gospel were manifested to take away
sin. But men would never have known what sin is had the
law not pointed it out. Therefore these two, the law and the ,
gospel, must go together, and ought never to be separated.
The need of a Saviour is revealed by the law, and the Saviour
himself is provided by the gospel.
Our Schoolmaster
In this way "the law was our schoolmaster to bring us to
Christ," for it reveals the need of Christ.
"Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if
there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness
should have been by the law. But the Scripture bath concluded all under
sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that
believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto
the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our
schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster."
Gal. 3: 21-25.
If the law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, and it is
now abolished, how, then, are others to be brought to Christ if
the very thing that brings men to Christ has been abolished?
No, the law and the gospel must go together, and can never be
separated. Both are needed.
THE RELATION OF THE LAW TO THE GOSPEL 135
The relation of the law to the gospel is shown by James in a
remarkably clear illustration :
"But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your
own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like
unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself,
and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein,
he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be
blessed in his deed." James 1:22-25.
Here the law is likened to a looking-glass. When a man
comes home from work he looks into the looking-glass to see
the condition of his face. The
looking-glass reveals to him that
his face is soiled. It points out
to the man his need of cleansing,
and points him to the soap and
water that will take away his
uncleanness.
The Law a Mirror
That is like the law of God,
which points out sin. The soap
and water represent the gospel,
which takes sin away.
The man who looks into the
looking-glass would not think of
taking the glass down from its
hook and rubbing it over his
face to cleanse his face. Still
less would the man be so foolish
The law is like a mirror: it shows us our as to think to cleanse his face
uncleanness. but does not remove it.
by abolishing or breaking the
looking-glass. Neither can a sinner get rid of his sins by the law,
or by abolishing the law. No, a man should go to the soap and
water and cleanse his face when the glass reveals it is soiled,
just as the sinner is to go to Christ and wash his sins away
in His blood when they are revealed by the law.
LAW
TYPES
AND
SHADOWS
9•
One law is eternal, the other was nailed to the cross.
The Two Laws

T HE doctrine of the abolition of the law of ten command-
ments has been shown to be in direct opposition to both the
spirit and the letter of the whole gospel of Christ. In this
connection it is urged that there are passages of Scripture that
very plainly teach that some law has been abolished by Christ.
And this is true. Moreover, the claim is made that there is but
one system of law revealed in the Bible, and therefore those
verses which speak of a law being done away must have re-
ference to the ten commandments.
Two Laws in the Bible
This claim is a grave mistake. It arises from a failure to
discern the difference between the moral and ceremonial laws
of God. This failure to comprehend the difference between
these two systems of law leads to the attempt to blend them by
making the verses of the Bible that speak of the abolition of the
ceremonial law refer to the moral law of ten commandments.
The verses that are used to show that the law has been
abolished are the following:
"Having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of command-
ments contained in ordinances; for to make in Himself of twain one new
man, so making peace." Eph. 2: 15.
"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us,
(136)
THE Two LAWS 137
which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His
cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of
them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you
in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon,
or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come: but the body
is of Christ." Col. 2: 14-17.
"One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every
day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind." Rom. i4: 5.
"For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change
also of the law." Heb. 7: 12.
Christ Changed a Law
There are many religious teachers who deny that there are
two systems of law revealed in the Bible. This is a mistake
that a little study will correct.
"Moreover Thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar: and in the
night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should
go. Thou earnest down also upon Mount Sinai, and spakest with them from
heaven, and gayest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and
commandments: and madest known unto them Thy holy Sabbath, and
commandest them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses Thy
servant." Neh. 9: 21-14.
In this passage it is declared that the Lord himself came
"down also upon Mount Sinai" and gave them "true laws,"
and that He also commanded them "precepts, statutes, and
laws, by the hand of Moses." Here, then, are the two systems of
law — one that God did not inspire a man either to speak or
write, but that He both spoke and wrote Himself, and the
other that was given by inspiration to Moses, and that
Moses spoke and wrote.
This distinction between the two systems of law is made
still clearer in the following passage:
"Neither will I make the feet of Israel move any more out of the land
which I gave their fathers; only if they will observe to do according to all
that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that My servant
Moses commanded them." 2 Kings 21: 8.
There can be no question that two laws are spoken of in
this verse, for the distinction between them is made broad and
clear. One, God says, is that which " I have commanded them,"
and the other is that which " My servant Moses commanded
them." If this distinction were always kept in mind by the
student of the Bible, the confusion that exists on the subject
of the two laws could not prevail.
The Two Systems of Law
MORAL LAW CEREMONIAL LAW
Deals only with moral duties. Is wholly ceremonial.
Exodus 20. Heb. 9: 1o.
Is contained in the ten com- Related to rites and ceremo-
mandments, spoken by the • nies, spoken by Mises.
Lord himself. Deut. 4 : 12.
Engraved by God upon stone. Written by Moses in a book.
Deut. 4: 13. Deut. 31:24.
Placed in the ark. Deut. io: 5. Placed in the side of the ark.
Deut. 3 I : 26.
"Right," "true," and "good," "Not good." Ezek. 20: 25.
Neh. 9 : 13.
Commands "which if a man A law whereby a man should
do, he shall even live in "not live." Ezek. 20: 25.
them." Ezek. 20: II.
" Perfect." Ps. 19: 7. "Made nothing perfect."
Heb. 7 : 19.
Christ did not come to de- Christ abolished. Eph. 2: 15.
stroy. Matt. 5: 17.
Will endure while heaven and Has been taken out of the way
earth stand. Matt. 5 : 18. by Christ. Col. 2 : 14.
Whosoever should break one "No such commandment"
of the least precepts should that Christians should keep
be condemned. Matt. 5 :19. the law. Acts 15 : 24.
" Law of liberty." Jas. 2 :12. " Yoke of bondage." Gal. 5 : I.
Paul took "delight in." Rom. A yoke that was unbearable.
7: 22. Acts 15: 1o.
Established by faith in Christ. Abolished by the cross of
Rom. 3: 31. Christ. Eph. 2 : 15.
"Spiritual." Rom. 7: 14. "Carnal." Heb. 7: 16.
"Holy, and just, and good." "That was against us, which
Rom. 7 : 12. was contrary to us." Col. 2:
14.
Contains "the whole duty of "Stood only in meats and
man." Eccl. 12: 13. drinks, and divers washings,
and carnal ordinances."
Heb. 9: IO. •
The shadow of the cross extends back through the sanctuary and past Sinai to
Eden, and in Old Testament times pointed forward to Christ and His sacrifice.
030
MORAL LAW CEREMONIAL LAW
Written in the hearts of the Became a wall of partition be-
Gentiles. Rom. 2: 14. tween the Jews and the
Gentiles. Eph. 2: 14, 15.
" The royal law." Jas. 2: 8. "The law of Moses."Acts 15 :5.
Jesus came to magnify and Jesus disannulled. Heb. 7 : 18.
make honorable. Isa.42 :21.
The law by which the world Will judge no man. Col. 2 : 16.
will be judged. Jas. 2: 12.
Moral and Ceremonial Laws
Thus it is clearly seen that the Bible teaches two systems of
law, one of which is to endure forever; while the other was
temporary, and was meant to continue only until the sacrificial
system, which it regulated and governed, should be done away
by the great sacrifice on Calvary. Christ's death did not abolish
the ten-commandment law, but it did abolish the ceremonial
law, which governed the sacrificial system.
The sacrificial system was established as "a shadow of things
to come," and it pointed forward to Christ and His sacrifice.
It was made necessary because of sin,' and was brought into
existence to provide a typical remedy for sin. And it was
governed by a law, the law of the priesthood, and this law was
changed when the priesthood was changed.
The ten-commandment law was not abolished by Christ.
It was the sacrificial law, the law of the priesthood, the cere-
monial law, that the death of Christ brought to an end. There-
fore the ten commandments still exist, are still in force, and
every Christian is under obligation to God to observe every one
of them faithfully by the power of the commandment-keeping
life of the Saviour, which is given freely to all who will accept it.
Eugene J. Hall
A Sabbath of rest is one of God's greatest gifts to mankind.
The Making of the Sabbath

N THE Christian world there are two days that claim the
Ithose
distinction of being the Sabbath. The great majority of
who accept the Bible as their rule of faith observe as the
Sabbath the first day of the week. There are many thousands
of Christian people, however, who observe the seventh day, and
believe it to be the only true Sabbath.
Who Made the Sabbath?
The vast majority of Christians who hold different views
among themselves regarding many other things seem to be
agreed on this one thing, that the observance of a Sabbath is
an essential part of the worship of God.
It was Jesus Christ who made the Sabbath. There are many
who think that Christ had everything to do with redemption
and nothing to do with creation. This is a serious mistake.
Christ is Creator as well as Redeemer. Christ, the Author of the
Christian religion, is also the Author of the Sabbath. This
truth is clearly taught in the New Testament:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were
made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. . . .
He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew
Him not. . . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we
(40
beheld His glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father,) full of
grace and truth." John r: 1-3, ro, 54.
Attention is directed to the truth taught here that " the
Word" by whom "all things were made," and without whom
"was not anything made that was made," was afterwards
"made flesh and dwelt among us," and "was in the world,
and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not."
This Word was Christ, the Son of God, later revealed as Jesus
of Nazareth. He made all things. He made the world in six
days. Therefore it was Christ who rested on the seventh day.
Christ made the Sabbath.
Christ the Creator
This truth is taught again in the following passage:
"Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be par-
takers of the inheritance of the saints in light; who hath delivered us from
the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His
dear Son: in whom we have redemption thrdugh His blood, even the for-
giveness of sins: who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of
every creature: for by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and
that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or domin-
ions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him:
and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist." Col. r : 12-17.
. And again we read:
"God who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past
unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by
His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made
the worlds." Heb. : 1, 2.
And speaking of His Son, God says:
"Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth;
and the heavens are the works of Thine hands." Heb. 1 : so.
Inasmuch, therefore, as Jesus is both the Author of the
Christian religion and the Author of the seventh-day Sabbath,
it is clear that, unless He later made another Sabbath to take the
place of the seventh day, the seventh day is still the Christian
Sabbath.
When Was the Sabbath Made?
It has been taught that the Sabbath originated at Mount
Sinai at the time when the Israelites left Egypt, twenty-five
hundred years after the creation of the world. At this time the
ten commandments were given to Moses, engraved on two
TIII; MAKING OP THE; SABBATH 143
tables of stone, and among them was the Sabbath command-
ment. It is claimed that this was the beginning of the Sabbath
institution.
This claim is not true. The Sabbath was made twenty-five
hundred years before the law was given on Sinai. It was made
at the time of creation. We have the testimony of Moses
himself, inspired by God, for this fact.
"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of
them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which he had made;
and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He
had rested from all His work which God created and made." Gen. 2: 1-5.
This same truth is taught by the Sabbath commandment
itself, as it was engraved on stone twenty-five hundred years
later.
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou
labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord
thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy
daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy
stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and
earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; where-
fore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Ex. zo: 8-1r.
At the Creation of the World
It is worthy of notice that the very commandment, the
giving of which is said to be the beginning of the Sabbath,
makes plain in itself the fact that the Sabbath was not then a
new institution, but that it had been given when "the Lord
made heaven and earth." The giving of this commandment at
Sinai did not inaugurate a new institution; it bids all to "re-
member" an institution already established.
How Was the Sabbath Made?
The steps taken in the creation of the Sabbath are of the
greatest interest. From the three verses already quoted from
the second chapter of Genesis it will be seen that there are
four steps in the making of the Sabbath; namely, labor, rest,
blessing, and sanctification.
The labor was creative labor. From the labor of creation
on the six days the Creator rested on the seventh day, thus
finishing His work. It must not be supposed that the Creator
rested because of weariness, for " the everlasting God, the Lord,
OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is

weary." Isa. 4o: 28.
Christ needed no rest, and yet we have the record that "on
the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed." Ex. 31: 17.
Christ rested because He was laying the foundation of a divine
institution, and He was refreshed because He took Profound
pleasure in conferring upon men such a beneficial institution as
the Sabbath is to all who observe it.
A Divine Example of Sabbath-Keeping
Then, too, He rested as an example of the manner in which
He designed His creatures should observe the Sabbath. The
purpose of the rest was not to regain lost strength and vigor,
but to lay the foundation of a perpetual institution. Thus we
are told that "God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it:
because that in it He had rested"; and that "He rested the
seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and
hallowed it." Gen. 2 : 3; Ex. 20: II.
Sabbath the Last Day of the Week
To be a rest day, the Sabbath must, in the very nature of
things, fall on the last day of the week. Rest presupposes labor. -
The labor must take place before the rest. There being seven
days in the week, the Sabbath must, in the very nature of the
case, be the last day, the seventh, as rest must come after labor.
Having made the world in six days, and rested from that
work on the seventh day, the Creator then placed His blessing
on the day upon which He had rested. It thus became His
blessed rest day. It is obvious that if, in the future, another
day was to become the Sabbath, the blessing that was now
placed on the seventh day must be removed from it, and placed
on the day that was to take its place. But how can this be done?
How long does God's blessing remain on that upon which He
places it? Let the Bible answer:
"Now therefore let it please Thee to bless the house of Thy servant,
that it may be before thee forever: for Thou blessest, 0 Lord, and it shall
be blessed forever." z Chron. 17: 27.
Blessing on the Sabbath Cannot Be Removed
God's blessing will remain on the seventh day forever.
Nor can this blessing ever be reversed or transferred to another
day, for
THE MAKING OP THE SABBATH 145
"God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man that He
should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and
shall He not make it good? Behold, I have received commandment to
bless: and He bath blessed; and I cannot reverse it." Num. 23: 19, 20.
The blessing of the seventh day can never be taken from it.
That day will remain a blessed and holy day as long as time
lasts, and throughout all eternity.
The fourth step in making the Sabbath was to sanctify it,
or make it holy. What this means may be seen by reading the
following passage:
"And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of
the midst of a bush: and he looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire,
and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside
and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the Lord
saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the
bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And He said,
Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place
whereon thou steamiest is holy ground." Ex. 3: 2-5.
The ground where Moses stood was holy because God's
presence was there. God's presence is what makes anything
holy. It is what makes a place holy, the temple, the sanctuary,
Mount Sinai. God's presence is in the seventh day. Therefore
the seventh day is holy. God is in that day as He is in no other
day. Therefore in a peculiar sense it is His day, "My holy day,"
" the Lord's day," " the Sabbath of the Lord thy God."
Of What Was the Sabbath Made?
Of what is the Sabbath made? This question the Bible
answers.
"And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and
He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He
had rested from all His work which God created and made." Gen. 2: 2, 3.
God ended His work on " the seventh day." He rested on
"the seventh day." He blessed "the seventh day." He sanc-
tified " the seventh day." God made a Sabbath out of a day,
and the day He used was the seventh day
Not the Institution, but the Day
Nothing is said in the Bible of a Sabbath institution, apart
from the day. Some would have the commandment read:
"Remember the Sabbath institution to keep it holy. Six days
10
shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but one day in seven
shalt thou rest, for one-seventh part of time is the Sabbath
institution; in it thou shalt not do any work." But God plainly
placed His blessing and sanctification upon the day. God did
not-say, "Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy"; but He did
say, "Remember
the Sabbath day
to keep it [the day]
holy." It is the
day that is to be
kept holy, because
it was the day that
was blessed; it was
the day upon
which God rested;
and it was the day
that God appoint-
ed to be kept.
The Sabbath
institution, is not
a movable institu-
tion that was
placed on one day,
and that can be
changed and
transferred to
some other day, as
International Newsreel many seem to
Christ was buried on Friday and
rested in the tomb on the Sabbath.
think. It is the
day itself that is
the Sabbath. "The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord
thy God; in it [the day] thou shalt not do any work."
The Blessing and Sanctification Belong to the Day
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it [the day] holy. Six days shalt
thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the
Lord thy God: in it [the seventh day] thou shalt not do any work. . . . For
in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is,
and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day,
and hallowed it [the seventh day]." Ex. 20: 8-II.
God rested on the seventh day. The rest, the blessing, the
THE MAKING OV THE SABBATH 147
sanctification, arid the holiness pertain solely to the seventh
day. When, therefore, some other day is used as a Sabbath,
every element that constitutes the Sabbath is left out and lost.
When another day is taken in the place of the day upon which
God rested, then we have a day upon which God did not rest,
which He did not bless, and a day which is not holy, never
having been made holy. God rested on the Sabbath day.
That fact can never be changed. We cannot place that rest on
any other day, and therefore the blessing and the sanctification
that came as a consequence of the rest can never be transferred
to another day.
Emphasis Is Placed on the Day
To illustrate: The writer was born on the twenty-fourth
day of May. Nothing can ever change the fact that May 24
is his birthday. He might decide to celebrate June 24 as his
birthday, or might even claim that June 24 was his birthday;
but celebrating June 24 or claiming June 24 as his birthday
would not make it so. May 24 would still remain his birthday
simply because of the fact that he was born on May 24.
So with the Sabbath. God rested on the seventh day.
That is a truth, a fact. It cannot be changed. I cannot change
it. Congress cannot change it. The pope cannot change it.
And it follows, and must forever remain true, that the seventh
day, and the seventh day alone, is the Sabbath, the rest
day, of the Lord.
Was the Sabbath Difficult to Make?
There are many people who believe they can make a sabbath
for themselves. They claim that merely selecting one day and
resting on it makes that day a sabbath. It is said that a person
can begin work on any day, on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednes-
day, work six days, and then rest one, and the one on which he
rests thus becomes his sabbath. Those who thus reason
lose sight of the fact that it is God's rest, and not theirs, that
forever fixes the day of the Sabbath.
There are others who claim that the custom and will of the
majority is the deciding factor in this matter; and still others
who claim that the law of the land should settle the matter.
Christ made the true Sabbath by creating a world in six days,
resting from this creative labor on the seventh day, blessing
the seventh day, and making it holy. The first requisite, then,
in the making of a Sabbath is the power to create. No man,
no body of men, no congress of men, and no denomination
of men, possess creative power. Only the Creator can make
a Sabbath. And He has already made the Sabbath. He does
not ask nor expect men to make another. He does ask men to
keep holy the one He has made.
For Whom Was the Sabbath Made?
Very often the claim is made that the Sabbath was made for
the Jews. It has been shown that the Sabbath was made at
creation, which was more than two thousand years before there
was a Jew.
"And He said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man
for the Sabbath." Mark 2: 27.
The Sabbath was made not merely for the Jews, but for all
mankind. It was given to the father of the race, Adam. There-
fore all mankind is under obligation to observe it.
If all mankind had observed the Sabbath from the beginning,
it would ha;e been extremely difficult, if not wholly impossible,
for idolatry ever to be established on the earth. The keeping
of the Sabbath takes one's mind back to the work of creation,
of which it is a memorial, and no person could have worshiped
an idol when every week his attention was being directed to the
true God, the Creator.
For How Long Was the Sabbath Made?
The claim is always advanced, whenever the Sabbath ques-
tion is discussed, that the Sabbath was designed by the Lord to
continue only until Christ should come and introduce the gospel.
God designed that His people should observe the Sabbath
not only until Christ should come the first time, but until the
very end of time. Even throughout eternity His people will
keep the Sabbath, for we are told :
"Por as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall
remain before Me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain.
And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from
one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith
the Lord." Isa. 66: 22, 23.
Inasmuch, therefore, as the Sabbath is to be kept by those
who are saved in the kingdom of God and who live on the new
THE MAKING OP THE SABBATH 149
earth, would it not be well for all who desire a home in that
land to begin its observance here?
Sabbath Begins and Closes at Sunset
The Sabbath of the Bible, the seventh-day Sabbath, begins
at sunset and ends at sunset. "The evening and the morning
were the first day." Gen. I : 5. The evening, or dark part of the
day, comes first, and then the light part. The day begins at
sunset, the preceding day then closing. God gave command that
Israel begin and end special days at sunset.
"From even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath." Lev. 23: 32.
That the "even" begins at sunset will be evident from the
following verse:
"But at the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place His
name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of
the sun. Deut. 16: 6.
"At even, when the sun did set, they brought unto Him all that were
diseased, and them that were possessed with devils." Mark 1 : 32.
An illustration of this will be found in the following account:
"In those days I saw in Judah some treading wine presses on the Sab-
bath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and
figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the
Sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold
victuals. . . . And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began
to be dark before the Sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and
charged that they should not be opened till after the Sabbath." Neh.
13: 15-19.
Sunset marks the beginning and the end of the Sabbath.

He appeared unto two of them as they walked into the country.
The New Testament Sabbath

T IS clear to all students of the Bible that the Old Testament
ISabbath.
teaches the observance of the seventh day of the week as the
The claim is made, however, that the New Testament
introduces another day, the first day of the week, as the
Christian Sabbath.
Undoubtedly, the best method of arriving at the truth or
falsity of this claim will be to study every passage in the New
Testament that refers to the first day of the week. By doing
this we shall surely learn whether the first day of the week has
taken the place of the seventh day as the Sabbath..
Facts Concerning the Resurrection
The first reference to the first day of the week in the New
Testament is in the book of Matthew:
"In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the firstday of
the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher."
Matt. 28: i.
This verse is the introduction to the account of the resur-
rection of Christ, and contains the historical record that He
was raised on " the first day of the week. " It was not the purpose
of the writer of this passage to impart any special information
regarding the Sabbath, or about a change of the Sabbath, but
to give the facts of the resurrection. This great event took
(iso)
THE NEW TESTAMENT SABBATH 151
place on " the first day oof the week." While the first day
is here mentioned, it is given no sacred name or title. It is not
called " the new Christian Sabbath, " or " the new Sabbath, "
or " the Lord's day. " It is called merely " the first day of the
week. " It is plainly regarded by Matthew as one of the working
days of the week, the first of them. There is clearly no evidence
here for Sunday observance.
The Sabbath Is the Day before the First Day
The first day of the week is mentioned the second time in the
New Testament in the book of Mark:
"And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Madgalene, and Mary the
mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might
come and anoint Him. And very early in the morning the first day of the
week, they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun." Mark 16: I, 2.
It will be at once observed that this passage is the same
historical record of the resurrection by another writer. Mark
does not give this day any sacred or holy name; he is entirely
silent with regard to any sacredness belonging to the day;
he mentions it only because he could not write the account of the
resurrection without mentioning it.
So far from the first day of the week's being the Sabbath of
the New Testament, this verse makes it plain that it is not the
Sabbath. Mark mentions two days in this passage, and gives
their relation to each other. One is "the Sabbath " ; the other is
" the first day of the week. " One day is given a sacred title;
the other is not. One day is a holy, sacred day; the other is
merely one of the ordinary working days, the first. When the
first day of the week arrives, the Sabbath is then past.
If one prefers New Testament teaching regarding the Sab-
bath question to Old Testament teaching (though they both
teach the same thing), here it is: The New Testament clearly
teaches that the Sabbath is the day just before the first day of
the week, and that when the first day comes the Sabbath is
past. The New Testament Sabbath is the same as the Old
Testament Sabbath, the day before the first day of the week,
or the seventh day.
Mark speaks again of the first day:
"Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, He ap-
peared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven devils."
Mark 16: 9.
This verse mentions the first day in connection with the
name of the person who first saw Christ after He was raised.
The verse does not give the day any honor at all, speaking of it
again as an ordinary day.
Seventh Day the Sabbath
The first day of the week is mentioned the fourth time in the
book of Luke:
"This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And he
took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulcher that was
hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. And that day was the
preparation, and the Sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came
with Him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulcher, and how
His body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments;
and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Now upon
the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the
sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others
with them." Luke 23: 52-24: I.
This passage stands out at once as the same record of the
resurrection by still another writer, Luke. Again the day of
the resurrection is given no sacred name or title. Not the
slightest hint is given that this day is to be regarded as being
different from the other week days, or to receive any special
honor.
This passage of Scripture is important because it refers to
three days, and reveals their relation to each other. Of the
day of the crucifixion it is said, "And that day was the prepa-
ration, and the Sabbath drew on." This was the sixth day,
now called Friday. The next day is spoken of as " the
Sabbath day according to the commandment." This was
the seventh day. The following day is called "the first day of
the week."
The words of this passage forever settle the question of the
Sabbath of the New Testament. It stands out like the sun at
noonday that "the Sabbath day according to the command-
ment," and according to the New Testament, is the day be-
tween the sixth day and the first day of the week, and that
day is the seventh day, known as Saturday.
First Day not Given a Sacred Name
The first day is mentioned the fifth time in the book of John:
"The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was
yet dark, unto the sepulcher, and seeth the stone taken away from the
sepulcher. " John zo: I.
Here again, by still another writer, is the same historical
record of the resurrection. There is no Sunday sacredness here.
The first day is mentioned the sixth time in the same
chapter:
"Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when
the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews,
came Jesus and stood in the midst, and said unto them, Peace be unto you."
John 20: 59.
Here is the record of a meeting of the disciples on the first
day of the week. This passage has been made the basis of the
claim that the disciples were assembled for the purpose of
inaugurating the observance of the new Christian Sabbath
by celebrating in a religious service the resurrection of their
Lord. The verse itself reveals how untrue such a claim is.
The disciples were not assembled in a religious service. They
were not assembled to celebrate the Lord's resurrection. They
were not assembled to inaugurate a new Christian Sabbath.
The verse declares they were assembled "for fear of the
Jews." Their Master had been taken away and crucified.
The disciples " all forsook Him, and fled." Mark 14: 5o. When
they fled, they all, by various routes, got themselves home.
When they were there, they locked the doors. They feared the
Jews would find them, and deal with them as they had dealt
with Christ. They were all assembled in this particular room
merely because they all lived there. (Acts 1:13.)
Not Celebrating the Resurrection
They were not assembled to celebrate the Lord's resur-
rection, because they did not believe He was raised. The
record is that Mary Magdalene "went and told them that had
been with Him, as they mourned and wept. And they, when
they had heard that He was alive, and had been seen of her,
believed not." Mark 16: Io, 11. Again: "He appeared in another
form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the
country. And they went and told it unto the residue: neither
believed they them." Mark 16: 12, 13.
Not even when they saw the Lord would they believe in
His resurrection:
InternationalNewsreel
He showed them the nail prints in His hands and His feet.
"Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace
be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that
they had seen a spirit. And He said unto them, Why are ye- troubled?
And why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet,
that it is I myself : handle Me, and see; for a spirit bath not flesh and bones,
as ye see Me have. And when He had thus spoken, He showed them His
hands and His feet." Luke 24:36-4o.
It was at this very time that He "upbraided them with
their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed
not them which had seen Him after He was risen." Mark 16: 14.
It can, therefore, scarcely be true that on this occasion
they were celebrating His resurrection when they did not
believe He was raised.
Only One Religious Meeting on Sunday
Neither were they assembled to inaugurate the first day of
the week as the new Christian Sabbath, for if they had been
John would have said so.
The first day is mentioned the seventh time in the book of Acts :
"And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread,
and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days.
And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to
break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow;
and continued his speech until midnight. And there were many lights in
the upper chamber, where they were gathered together." Acts 20: 6-8.
There is no doubt that this passage contains the account of a
religious meeting on the first day of the week. In this it is
unique, for it is the only passage in the Bible that contains such
an account. Because of this it is worthy of close study.
It was a special meeting, a farewell meeting. Paul and his
companions had stopped at Troas on their way to Jerusalem.
(Acts zo: 16.) They had been in Troas for seven days (verse 6),
and now the last meeting of their stay was called. While Paul
was conducting it, his companions, having already made their
farewells, were on their way by boat to Assos, Paul intending
to go by land to Assos at the close of this meeting. (Acts 20: 13,
14.)
The meeting was held at night. "There were many lights
in the upper chamber." Paul was "ready to depart on the
morrow." He " continued his speech until midnight." Clearly
the meeting was at night.
A Saturday-Night Meeting
According to Bible reckoning of time, there is but one
night to the first day of the week. That is Saturday night.
The Bible days begin and end at sunset. Our present reckoning
of days makes them begin and end at midnight. The Bible
first day of the week begins when the sun sets on Saturday
evening, and it ends when the sun sets on Sunday evening.
It is plain that this meeting at Troas, being held on the dark
part of the first day of the week, was held on what is now known
as Saturday night. This meeting was a first-day meeting, but
not a Sunday meeting. Our Sunday is not exactly identical
with the Bible first day. Sunday is from Saturday night at
midnight until Sunday night at midnight. The Bible first day
is from Saturday night at sundown to Sunday night at sundown.
Hence this verse affords no comfort to those who cite it as
proof that the apostles kept Sunday. This meeting, while it
extended over into Sunday morning, was properly a Saturday-
night meeting, called after the Sabbath had been observed and
had passed. It was called especially in order that Paul might
deliver his farewell message.
No Public Offering on First Day
The first day is mentioned the eighth time in First Co-
rinthians:
"Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to
the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let
every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there
be no gatherings when I come.' And when I come, whomsoever ye shall
approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto
Jerusalem. And if it be meet that I go also, they shall go with me." i Cor.
16:
The claim has been made regarding this passage that the
early Christian churches were accustomed to hold their services
on the first day of the week, and take up an offering. The
passage itself says no such thing. Instead of holding a meeting
every one was to "lay by him in store." Their gift was not to
be put into a public offering but laid up "in store" at home.
When Paul came, this that was laid up at home was to be
gathered and sent to Jerusalem for the relief of the "saints"
there, who were suffering want. This was a special relief fund,
not a regular weekly offering.
This special relief fund was made up on the first day of the
week. It was on the first day that the believers returned to
their weekly employment after having observed the Sabbath.
They had an opportunity on the first day to cast up their
accounts and learn how the Lord had prospered them the week
before. Of the findings they were to "lay by" themselves at
home the amount they decided to give, and keep it "in store"
until Paul came to Corinth. There is no evidence here for
Sunday sacredness, and no evidence that the early Christian
churches held weekly meetings on the first day of the week.
First Day Mentioned Eight Times.
Our task of studying every passage in the New Testament
that mentions the first day of the week is completed. There are
no other texts than these. In these eight passages there is
no command to keep it; there is no record of its being kept;
there is no record of its being appointed as a sabbath; there
is no record of any blessing being conferred upon it; there is
THE NEw TESTAMENT SABBATH 157
no record of its being made holy; there is no record of any
sacredness being attached to it; there is no promise of blessing
for its observance; there is no threat of punishment for its
non-observance; it is never once called the Sabbath nor given
any sacred title; there is no record that the apostles kept it
or commanded it to be kept. The observance of Sunday is a
practice for which there is not a shadow of a single degree of
Bible authority.
Apostles Observed the Sabbath
The apostles were accustomed to preach on the seventh-
day Sabbath to congregations of Jews and also of Gentiles.
One such occasion is the following:
"But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia,
and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and sat down. And after
the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent
unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of ex-
hortation for the people, say on. Then Paul stood up, and beckoning
with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience."
Acts 13: 14-16.
It is claimed that the only reason that Paul held these
synagogue meetings on the Sabbath was the opportunity thus
afforded him to reach the Jews with the gospel, but that this
must not be considered an observance of the Sabbath.
This is a mistake. Paul preached to Gentiles as well as to
Jews upon the Sabbath day. On this very occasion the record is:
"When the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles be-
sought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath."
Acts 13:42.
Here was an exceptional opportunity for Paul to explain to
these Gentiles the change of dispensation and the change of the
Sabbath. How easy it would have been for him, and what an
excellent opening this was, to inform these Gentiles that while
he found it necessary to meet with Jews on their Sabbath,
yet as Christ had abolished the old Sabbath and instituted a
new Sabbath to take its place, it was now the duty of Gentiles
to observe that new Sabbath, which was the first day of the
week; and that he would preach to them the next day instead
of waiting for the next Sabbath. Why did Paul not tell these
Gentiles this? Solely and altogether because it was not true.
"And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to
hear the word of God. " Acts 13 : 44.
(158) Paul preached to the people every Sabbath.
Another account of Sabbath observance by Paul and his
company follows:
"Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samo-
thracia, and the next day to Neapolis; and from thence to Philippi, which
is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony: and we were
in that city abiding certain days. And on the Sabbath we went out of the
city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down,
and spake unto the women which resorted thither." Acts i6: t1-13.
Still another account of apostolic Sabbath observance is
given.
"Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Appollonia
they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: and Paul,
as his manlier was, went in unto them, and three Sabbaths days reasoned
with them out of the Scriptures, opening and alleging, that Christ must
needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus,
whom I preach unto you, is Christ." Acts 17: 1-3.
It begins to seem clear that instead of observing the
first day of the week the apostles were very consistent and
faithful observers of the seventh day, the Sabbath of the Lord.
Preached Every Sabbath
Nor are these passages the only ones that record the observ-
ance of the Sabbath by the apostles. In Corinth Paul
"reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews
and the Greeks. And when Silas and Timotheus were come from Mace-
donia. Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus
was Christ. . . . And he continued there a year and six months, teaching
the word of God among them." Acts i8: 4, 5, II.
It is impossible to say how many Sabbaths he conducted
services in the synagogue at Corinth, as during this year and a
half he left the synagogue and opened services in a private house
near the synagogue. It is plain, however, that we have here
a record of faithful Sabbath observance.
Thus the New Testament reveals that it was the custom of
both Christ and His apostles to observe the seventh day as the
Sabbath, while it contains not one single record that anyone
ever observed Sunday.
It is thought by some that Rev. I : ro affords some evidence
for Sunday observance.
"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great
voice, as of a trumpet." Rev. I. 50.
It is claimed that the expression "the Lord's day" refers to
rho OtTR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
Sunday. But the verse says nothing as to which day of the
week is meant by "the Lord's day." It is therefore necessary
to go to other parts of the Bible to learn what day the Lord
claims as His own. "The Son of man is Lord also of the Sab-
bath." Mark 2: 28. If Christ is Lord of the Sabbath, then the
. Sabbath is "the Lord's day."
"If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure
on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord,
honorable; and shalt honor Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding
thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight
thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the
earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of
the Lord hath spoken it." Isa. 58: 13, 14.
God calls the Sabbath "My holy day." Therefore, the
Sabbath, which is the seventh day, is clearly "the Lord's day."
All doubt concerning this is cleared away by the Sabbath
commandment itself :
"Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor,
and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God:
in it thou shalt not do any work." Ex. 20: 8-1 r.
Sunday of Later Origin than the Bible
In giving His disciples instruction regarding the destruction
of Jerusalem, which took place about forty years after the
crucifixion of Christ, the Lord said :
"But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the
Sabbath day." Matt. 24: 20.
So far, then, from the Sabbath being abolished by Christ,
the Lord goes to the extent of instructing His disciples to pray
that they may be able to observe it at least forty years after His
resurrection, even in the troublous times of the downfall of the
Jewish nation.
It will be seen that there is much evidence in the New
Testament for the observance of the seventh day, and no
evidence at all for the observance of the first day. The in-
troduction of Sunday observance into the church is of later
origin than the times of the apostles, and authority for it cannot
be found in the Bible.
A great council of the church of Rome.
The Change of the Sabbath
F ROM the days of childhood all have been familiar with the
fact that there is in the Bible a divine command to
observe the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath. We also
know that the great majority of those who believe in the Bible
are keeping an entirely different day from the one mentioned
in the commandment. This puzzling situation has been ex-
plained by many with the claim that the change of the Sab-
bath was made by Christ, the old Sabbath passing away at
the crucifixion, and the new Sabbath being established by that
event.
This claim has been shown in the preceding chapter to be
without foundation. It now becomes necessary to explain
how this change did come about.
A Remarkable Prophecy
Long before the change was made the Lord foretold in a
remarkable prophecy the fact that the change would be made.
This prophecy will be found in the seventh chapter of Daniel.
Here Daniel sees in a vision four great beasts coming up out of
the sea. These beasts are explained (verse 17) to be symbols of
four great kingdoms that would rule the earth. The first was a
lion and represented Babylon. The second was a bear and
11
represented •Medo-Persia, which succeeded Babylon. The
third was a leopard, and represented Greece, which overthrew
Medo-Persia. The fourth was an extraordinary, ten-horned
monster, and repi-esented Rome, which followed Greece. The
ten horns on this beast are explained (verse 24) as meaning
ten kingdoms into which Rome was to be divided. Among
these ten horns another horn arose and in coming up destroyed
three of the first horns, and took their place. The ten kingdoms
represented by the ten horns were the kingdoms of the Alemanni,
the Franks, the Burgundians, the Suevi, the Anglo-Saxons, the
Visigoths, the Lombards, the Ostrogoths, the Heruli, and the
Vandals. The three that were destroyed by the little horn that
rose later were the Vandals, the Heruli, and the Ostrogoths.
The seven that remain are now known as Germany, France,
Switzerland, Portugal, England, Spain, and Italy.
The Roman Church to Change the Sabbath
The little horn that destroyed the three is the symbol of the
Papacy, the Roman Church. Of this power the prophecy states:
"He shall speak great words against the Most High, and shall wear
out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws:
and they shall be given into his hands until a time and times and the divid-
ing of time." Dan. 7: 25.
Here is a prediction that the Papacy, the Roman Church,
will change, or rather attempt to change, the law of God; and
change it with special reference to time. The only time mentioned
in the ten-commandment law of God is the seventh day. Here
is, therefore, a direct prophecy of the attempted change of the
Sabbath. God's charge against the Roman Church is fully
supported by the testimony of many reliable witnesses, such as
encyclopedias, histories, and theological works. A small part of
this testimony will now be placed before the reader.
Sunday not in the New Testament
Dr. Lyman Abbott, one of the best known ministers in the
United States, said in an editorial in the Christian Union under
date of June 26, 189o:
"The current notion that Christ and His apostles authoritatively
substituted the first day of the week for the seventh, is absolutely without
any authority in the New Testament."
Section o,- of part 2, of the "Augsburg Confession of
THE CHANGE OF THE SABBATH 163
Faith," a Lutheran document, as quoted in Cox's "Sabbath

Manual," is as follows:
"The observance of the Lord's Day (Sunday) is founded not on any
command of God, but on the authority of the church."
Bishop Seymour of the Protestant Episcopal Church is
quoted in the book, "Why We Keep Sunday," on this question
as follows:
"We have made the change from the seventh day to the first day, from
Saturday to Sunday, on the authority of the one holy, catholic, apostolic
church of Christ."
The First Sunday Law
The old "Chambers' Encyclopedia," in its article, "Sab-
bath," says:
"By none of the fathers before the fourth century is it [the first day of
the week] indentified with the Sabbath; nor is the duty of observing it
grounded by them either on
the fourth commandment or
on the precept or example of
Christ or His apostles.
"Unquestionably the first
law, either ecclesiastical or
civil, by which the Sabbatical
observance of that day is
known to have been ordained,
is the edict of Constantine,
A. D. 32 r, of which the follow-
ing is a translation:
"'Let all judges, inhabit-
ants of the cities, and artifi-
cers, rest on the venerable
day of the sun. But in the
country husbandmen may
freely and lawfully apply to
The official seal of Constantine the Great. the business of agriculture;
since it often happens that
the sowing of corn and the planting of vines cannot be so advantageously
performed on any other day.'
"But it was not until the year 538 that abstinence from agricultural
labor was recommended, rather than enjoined, by an ecclesiastical authority
(the third Council of Orleans), and this expressly that the people might
have more leisure to go to church and say their prayers."
In the article "Sunday," the "Encyclopedia Britannica"
says:
"It was Constantine who first made a law for the proper observance
of Sunday; and who, according to Eusebius, appointed that it should be
regularly celebrated throughout the Roman empire."
Only a Human Ordinance
In Rose's Translation of Augustus Neander's " History of the
Christian Religion and Church," on page 186, is this statement:
"The festival of Sunday was always only a human ordinance, and it
was far from the intentions of the apostles to establish a divine command
in this respect, far from them, and from the early apostolic church to
transfer the law of the Sabbath to Sunday."
Article 28 of the "Augsburg Confession" reads:
"They [the Catholics] allege the Sabbath changed into Sunday, the
Lord's Day, contrary to the decalogue, as it appears; neither is there any
example more boasted of than the changing of the Sabbath day. Great,
say they, is the power and authority of the church since it dispensed with
one of the ten commandments."
William Prynne, 'in his book, "Dissertations on the Lord's
Day," page 163, says:
"The seventh-day Sabbath was . . . solemnized by Christ, the
apostles, and primitive Christians, till the Laodicean Council did, in
a manner, quite abolish the observation of it. . . . The Council of Laodicea
[A. D. 364] . . . first settled the observation of Lord's Day."
These quotations are all from Protestant sources. It will be
interesting to see if the Roman Church will confess that the
change in the observance of the Sabbath is its work. It not only
does confess this, but boasts of it, as the following extracts, all
froth Catholic sources, will show.
Catholic Testimony
The 29th Canon of the Catholic Council of Laodicea (A. D.
364-365), which was later confirmed by the General Council
of Chalcedon (A. D. 451), reads:
"Christians must not Judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must
work on that day, rather honoring the Lord's Day, resting then as Chris-
tians. But if any shall be found to be Jud aizing, let them be anathema
from Christ."
In the "Catechism of the Christian Religion," by Rev.
Stephen Keenan, on page 206, are the following questions and
answers :
"Ques.— What does God ordain by this commandment?
"Ans.— He ordains that we sanctify in a special manner this day
on which He rested from all labor of creation.
THE CHANGE OE THE SABBATH 165
" Ques.— What is this day of rest?
"Ans.— The seventh clay of the week, or Saturday.
"Ques.— Is it, then, Saturday we should sanctify, in order to obey the
ordinance of God?
"Ans.— During the old law, Saturday was the clay sanctified; but the
church . . . has substituted Sunday for Saturday; so now we sanctify
the first, and not the seventh day. "
"The Doctrinal Catechism," page 174, says:
"Ques.— Have you any other way of proving that the church has
power to institute the festivals of precept?
"Ans.— Had she not such power, she could not have done that in
which all modern religionists agree with her, . . . she could not have
substituted the observance of the Sunday, the first day of the week, for
the observance of the Sabbath, the seventh day, a change for which there
is no Scripture authority."
Protestants Contradict Themselves!

The "Abridgment of Christian Doctrine," page 58, contains
this:
" Ques.— How prove you that the church has power to command
feasts and holy days?
"Ans.— By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which
Protestants allow of, and therefore they fondly contradict themselves
by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded
by the same church.
"Ques.— How prove you that?
"Ans.— Because by keeping Sunday they acknowledge the church's
power to ordain feasts, and to command them under sin."
In a book, " Plain Talk About the Protestantism of Today,"
on page 213, is this statement:
"It is worth while to remember that this observance of the Sabbath,
in which, after all, the, only Protestant worship consists, not only has no
foundation in the Bible, but is in flagrant contradiction to its letter, which
commands rest on the Sabbath, which is Saturday. It was the Catholic
Church, which, by the authority of Jesus Christ, has transferred this rest
to Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of our Lord. Thus the
observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite
of themselves, to the authority of the church."
"Who Changed It?"

On pages 86 and 87 of "A New Catechism of Christian
Faith and Practice," by the Rt. Rev. James Beleford, D. D.
(Ave Maria Press, Notre Dame, Ind., 1909), are these questions
and answers:
"Ques.— What is the third [fourth] commandment?
"Ans.— Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day.
"Ques.— What day was the Sabbath?
"Ans.— The seventh day, our Saturday:
"Ques.— Do you keep the Sabbath?
"Ans.— No, we keep the Lord's Day.
"Ques.— Which is that?
"Ans.— The first day, Sunday.
" Ques.—Who changed it?
."Ans.— The Catholic Church."
On page 211 of "The Catholic Christian Instructed" is this
statement :
"Ques.— Has the church power to make any alterations in the com-
mandments of God?
"Ans.—. . . instead of the seventh day, and other festivals appointed
by the old law, the church has prescribed the Sundays and holy days to
be set apart for ,God's worship; and these we are now obliged to keep in
consequence of God's commandment, instead of the ancient Sabbath."
Following Tradition
On page 15, of Volume 4, of " Clifton Tracts," in an article on
"A Question for All Bible Christians," this question is thus
dealt with:
"We Catholics, then, have precisely the same authority for keeping
Sunday holy, instead of Saturday, as we have for every other article of
our creed; namely, the authority of 'the church of the living God, the
pillar and ground of the truth'; whereas, you who are Protestants have
really no authority for it whatever; for there is no authority for it in the
Bible, and you will not allow that there can be authority for it anywhere
else. Both you and we do, in fact, follow tradition in this matter; but we
follow it, believing it to be part of God's word, and the church to be its
divinely appointed guardian and interpreter; you follow it, denouncing it all
the time as a fallible and treacherous guide, which often makes the com-
mandment of God of none effect."
Cardinal Gibbons, in his book, "Faith of Our Fathers,"
edition of 1892, on page 111, says:
"You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will
not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scrip-
tures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never
sanctify."
"An Ecclesiastical Law"
On pages 23o-232 of The Ecclesiastical Review, February,
1914, Vol. 5o, No. 2, is an article by Father Walter Drum, S. J.,
of Woodstock College, Maryland, on the subject of "Recent
Bible Study, " in which he says :
THE CHANGE OP THE SABBATH 167
"The observance of Sunday thus comes to be an ecclesiastical law

entirely distinct from the divine law of Sabbath observance. The prescrip-
tions of Gen. 2 : 2, 3, in regard to the Sabbath have-nothing whatever to do
with the law of the church about Sunday, the Lord's Day. Catholics should
observe the law of the church, not by the Old Testament observances of
the Sabbath, nor by the dictates of Protestants or Jews, but by the prescrip-
tion of the church herself. The author of the Sunday law is the only one
who has a right to interpret that law; and that author is the Catholic
Church."
Again he says:
"They [the Protestants] deem it their duty to keep the Sunday holy.
Why? — Because the Catholic Church tells them to do so. They have no
other reason. "— Page 236.
The Offspring of the Catholic Church
And in the Catholic Mirror, Cardinal Gibbons's official
organ, under date of Sept. 23, 1893, is this striking statement:
"The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence
of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from
Saturday to Sunday. . . . The Christian Sabbath is, therefore, to this
day, the acknowledged offspring of the Catholic Church as spouse of the
Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the Protestant world."
And to close this remarkable confession we quote from a
lecture by Father T. Enright, of Des Moines, Iowa, at the time
President of the Redemptorist Fathers' College. The lecture
was delivered in 1893 and the priest said:
"There is but one church on the face of the earth which has the power,
or claims power, to make laws binding on the conscience, binding before
God, binding under pain of hell fire. For instance, the institution of Sunday.
What right has any other church to keep this day? You answer by virtue
of the third commandment, which says, 'Remember that thou keep holy
the Sabbath day.' But Sunday is not the Sabbath. Any school boy knows
that Sunday is the first day of the week. I have repeatedly offered one
thousand dollars to anyone who will prove by the Bible alone that Sunday
is the day we are bound to keep, and no one has called for the money.
It was the Holy Catholic Church that changed the day of rest from Satur-
day, the seventh day, to Sunday, the first day of the week. Which church
does the whole civilized world obey? The Bible says: 'Remember that
thou keep holy the Sabbath day,' but the Catholic Church says, 'No, keep
the first day of the week,' and all the world bows down in reverent obedience
to the mandates of the Catholic Church."
Has Laid Impious Hands on the Sabbath

God deliberately charges the Roman Church with tamper-
ing with the divine law in changing the observance of the
Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. The voice of history de-
liberately testifies to the truth of the charge. The Roman
Church deliberately boasts of the truth of the charge. Thus
the Roman Church stands before the world convicted of laying
hands upon the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, the
Sabbath of the Lord, and tearing it from its place in the very
heart. of the law of God, and putting in its place a spurious
and counterfeit Sabbath, which is no sabbath at all, as it rests
solely, on the traditions of that church and not in any sense
upon the word of God.
The Roman Church, however, is more consistent in the
observance of Sunday than are the Protestant churches. The
Roman Church does not base its teachings on the Bible alone,
but on the Bible and tradition, holding that tradition is the
safer guide of the two. The Protestant belief is that the Bible
and the Bible alone is the foundation of truth. The Sunday
institution can be found in tradition. It cannot be found in the
Bible.
Protestants Have Left the Bible
It is evident, therefore, that the Protestant churches, in
observing Sunday, have left the true ground and basis of
Protestantism, the Bible, and are following the Roman Church
in accepting doctrines and practices that are not founded upon
the Bible. On this point Catholics can truthfully accuse
Protestant Sunday-keepers of inconsistency.
The duty, then, of every true Protestant is to cast away the
unscriptural practice and doctrine of Sunday observance and
to follow the Bible, to follow Jesus, to follow the apostles in the
observance of the true Sabbath, the seventh day of the week.
An untimely death came to the disobedient prophet of old.
Is God Particular?
I N EVERY discussion of the Sabbath question the argument
is always raised that it is not so important to observe the
exact letter of God's requirements as it is to observe the spirit.
With an appearance of great finality the words are quoted,
"The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life."
There are those who believe, or say they believe, that it is
rendering full obedience to God to disregard the letter of His
commandments while observing the spirit of them. They
utterly fail to recognize that it is impossible both to obey and
disobey God at the same time. They fail, too, to observe that
it is impossible for any person to keep the spirit of God's
commandments while breaking the letter. The letter and the
spirit go together and cannot be separated.
An Illustration
As an illustration of this take any of the ten commandments,
and think of breaking it in letter and keeping it in
spirit. No one can break the commandment, "Thou shalt not
commit adultery," in the letter, actually committing this sin,
and keep that commandment in spirit. No one can actually
steal from his neighbor, and yet keep the eighth commandment
in spirit. No one can actually take the name of the Lord in
vain and not take it in vain in spirit. And no one can actually
(169)
break the fourth commandment, the Sabbath commandment,
in letter and keep it in spirit.
It is charged that to take the position that God will hold
His people accountable for keeping the seventh day when it is
extremely inconvenient for many of them to do so is an exhibi-
tion of narrow-mindedness. Many feel that the question is
such a small one that God will not notice whether they keep
the exact day He commanded, which is the seventh day, or
the one that they find it no cross or effort to keep, the first day.
A Question of Authority
This question of -the Sabbath is not merely a question be-
tween two days, the seventh or the first day. God commands
the observance of the seventh day,„as the Sabbath, but the laws
of men demand the observance of the first day. It therefore
becomes a question of authority, as to whom we shall obey,
and thus much more than a question of days. This question of
authority is one of vital importance.
To fully answer our question, Is God particular? careful
examination must be made of God's dealing with His people in
the past.
In the book of First Samuel is recorded a commission
given to King Saul to "go and smite Amalek, and utterly
destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both
man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and
ass." The record declares that Saul went against Amalek with
'his armies, as God had commanded, but that "he took Agag
the king of the Amalekites alive," and "'spared Agag, and
the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings,
and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly
destroy them." I Sam. 15: 5-9.
He had carried out God's command in a general way, but
had failed to do so in one particular, which did not seem to be
important. When Samuel, the prophet through whom God had
given him the commission that he had not obeyed perfectly,
came to him, Saul said:
"Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment
of the Lord." Verse 13.
Samuel did not think• so, and said to Saul:
IS GOD PARTICULAR? 171
"What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and this
lowing of the oxen which I hear? " Verse 14.
Saul, still under the delusion that he had obeyed God, said:
"They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared
the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God;
and the rest we have utterly destroyed." Verse 15.
A Familiar Argument
Saul's argument sounds very familiar. It is that he had
obeyed the spirit of the command he had received, though he had
violated it just a little in the letter. But, he urges, we did it for
a good purpose. We are going to use these sheep and oxen
to sacrifice unto God. That is, in effect, we have disobeyed
God in order to serve Him. Strange infatuation, indeed, that
men can convince themselves that disobedience is just as
acceptable to God as obedience! Yet there are many today
who are following just such a fearful delusion.
A Kingdom Lost Because of Disobedience
Then Samuel told Saul what the Lord had said to him the
night before:
"When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the
head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel?
And the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the
sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.
Wherefore, then, didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly
upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the Lord?" Verses 17-19.
Saul was still unable to see that he had disobeyed, or at
least was unwilling to admit it, for he said:
"Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have gone the way
which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek,
and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the
sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly de-
stroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal." Verses zo, 21.
Samuel, in reply, gave utterance to a principle that should be
well pondered.
"And Samuel said, Hath not the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings
and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better
than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the
sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because
thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from
being king." Verses 22, 23.
King Agag before Samuel. in the instance of Saurs disobedience of the Lord's command.
(172)
Thus Saul lost a kingdom because he believed, as many
believe today, that God is not particular. Samuel showed him
that the truest, and the only acceptable worship, is obedience.
God's commands are given in the exact manner in which He
wishes them to be obeyed.
Saul at last was convinced that he had not obeyed God.
He offered a very common excuse. He said:
"I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord,
and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice."
Verse 24.
In the excuse Saul offered, the real point at issue is revealed.
It was a question of authority; whether he should obey God or
the people. He chose to obey the people, but he could not do
this without deliberately disobeying God. He tried, however,
to cover up the fact that he was obeying the people and dis-
obeying God, by maintaining the fiction that he had done what
the Lord commanded ; that he was obeying the spirit even though
he was disobeying the letter. This excuse was not accepted then;
it is not accepted now.
Today the same argument is often heard. If I should keep
the Sabbath, what would my people say, what would the neigh-
bors say, what would my pastor say, or my husband, wife,
children, parents, etc.? Therefore, "I have transgressed the
commandment of the Lord, . . . because I feared the people,
and obeyed their voices." It is doubtful if such an argument
convinces even those who offer it.
The Prophet Who Disobeyed
In the first Book of Kings is recorded the experience of a
prophet who was not careful to obey the exact words of God's
command. He had been sent to rebuke King Jereboam for his
idolatry. After he had fearlessly delivered his message at the
peril of his life, he hastened away, because God had forbidden
him to eat or drink in that place. But when a false prophet
invited him back with a lying message purporting to come from
God, he did not test it by the plain command that God had
already given, but turned back to be entertained. God showed
His displeasure by sending a lion to destroy him.
In Num. 4 : 15 there is a command that the holy things of the
tabernacle shall not be touched, and the warning is plainly
174 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING •
given that touching them will result in death. On one occasion,
however, the ark of God was being carried from the house of
Abinadab, that was in Gibeah, to Jerusalem. It was placed on a
new cart, and the two sons of Abinadab, Uzzah and Ahio,
drove the cart.
Coming to a rough place in the road, the oxen stumbled,
evidently imperiling the ark, which shook and appeared as if
it might topple off the cart into the road. Uzzah, who was
walking by the side of the cart, quickly put forth his hand to
steady the ark and save it from falling. He took hold of the ark.
He failed to discern that God was well able to take care of
His own. In touching the ark he disobeyed God, for God had
said it should never be touched, and that he who touched it
should die. Under such extraordinary circumstances as thek
would God visit the penalty of death upon the offender? Would
not disobedience under some circumstances be accepted for
obedience? "And the anger of the Lord was kindled against
Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he
died by the ark of God." 2 Sam. 6: 7. Thus a servant of God
lost his life by failing to heed the exact letter of the command of
God.
Offering Strange Fire
In Lev. 16: 12 God instructed the priests that when they
offered incense they should fill their censers "full of burning
coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord." This instruction
did not seem to be of great importance to two priests, Nadab
and Abihu, the sons of Aaron. They
"took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense
thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He commanded
them not." Lev. so: T.
Presumably Nadab and Abihu reasoned as some people
reason today. They could see no difference between fires.
Fire was fire. Why should they use the fire that God had com-
manded when other fire would do just as well?
So people reason with regard to the Sabbath. All days are
alike. One is as good as another. It is true that God has said
the seventh day is the Sabbath, but the first will do just as well.
It is so inconvenient to keep the seventh, and everybody is
keeping the first, and so, as it does not make any difference,
we will just do the easiest way.
Was there any difference between the two fires? Probably
not so far as the fire itself was concerned. The thing that made
the difference was the command of God. That God meant what
He said, and held all men accountable for obeying it, the two
priests who held God's command so lightly soon discovered,
for we read:
"And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they
died before the Lord." Lev. 10: 2.
The Plea of Moses
There is reason, then, in the admonition of Moses to the
children of Israel just before they entered into the promised
land, and just as Moses was about to be removed from them by
death. He pleaded with them to remember the exact words of
God's commandments, and heed them.
"Now therefore hearken, 0 Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judg-
ments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and
possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall
not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish
ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I
command you. . . . Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom
and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these
statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding
people. . . . Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest
thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart
from thine heart all the days of thy life: but teach them to thy sons, and
thy sons' sons." Deut. 4: 1-9.
These Things Are Our Example
This admonition comes to Christian people with striking
force today in the words of Paul when he urges us to consider
the dealings of God with His ancient people as warnings,
especially to those who live in the days of the end:
"Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they
are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come."
rCor.Jo:ii.
God declares the seventh day to be the Sabbath. There
is no command in the Bible for the observance of Sunday.
Christ never observed Sunday. The apostles never once kept
Sunday. The Bible contains no prophecy that Sunday would
ever take the place of the Sabbath, and no record that it ever
has. Neither God, Christ, angels, nor the inspired men who wrote
the Bible ever uttered one word in favor of Sunday as a holy day.
On the other hand, God has placed His blessing on the
seventh day, and sanctified it. He commanded it to be kept
holy in the only commandment in the Bible for a weekly day of
rest. He has placed in the Bible great and precious truths to
those who will observe the seventh day. Everything can be
produced in favor of the seventh day, nothing in favor of the
first — no sanctity, no commandment, no penalty, no blessing.
What Will You Do?
Shall we obey God in this matter of Sabbath-keeping, and
observe the day He has commanded us to observe; or shall we
disobey Him, and observe a day that He has never once com-
manded us to keep? Which will you choose to do?
Remember, in this connection, that according to James
2: 8-12, it is this very law containing the Sabbath command-
ment that will be the standard of the judgment when your
case comes up. in review before God. When we finally stand
before the judgment bar of God, and the law is applied to our
lives, what shall we say if we have deliberately rejected His
Sabbath? Shall we look up into the face of God and tell Him that
we had been under the impression that it did not make any
difference whether we did as He told us to do or not? Shall we
tell Him that, while the Sabbath question had been made very
plain to us, yet we thought He would be just as well pleased if
we kept Sunday, the day He never commanded, as He would
if we kept the true Sabbath, which He had commanded? Shall
we add that it was much more convenient to keep Sunday, as
all our neighbors were doing it, and it meant a greater cross
than we could think of bearing to observe the true Sabbath?
Shall we say this to God? If you do, what do you think will be
the result? Will God consider that you have obeyed Him or
disobeyed Him?
As God pronounces upon the disobedient the just sentence
of death for their violation of His righteous law, there will
come to their minds His loving plea in a time long ago :
"0 that thou hadst hearkened to My commandments! Then had thy
peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea."
Isa. 48: 18.
May the reader heed this plea now, before it is too late.
Eugene J. Hall
"All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field."
Absolute and Conditional Life

A MID the maze of theories upon the question of the nature
and destiny of man, there are three views accepted by
Christians that stand out above all others. In fact, it is not
too much to say that all who accept the Bible as true can be
divided into classes holding to one or the other of these three
theories.
The first of these three views is probably held by a larger
class of those who profess the religion of Christ than the other
two. In this sense alone may it be called the orthodox view.
It is this: that all men possess immortality, regardless of
whether they are good or bad, possess it inherently, by nature;
therefore when death comes their souls will be perpetuated
in endless existence, the souls of the good in a condition of
joy and bliss, the souls of the bad in a condition of misery and
torment.
The second view is similar to the first in its premise that all
men possess immortality. It differs in this: It teaches that the
bad will, at some time more or less distant and in some way
not fully understood, be restored to the divine favor, and will
12 (i77)
share with the good a perpetual existence in a condition of
joy and bliss. This view has come to be known as "universal-
ism." Those, however, who accept it in a more or less modified
form are vastly more numerous than the members of the
Universalist organization.
Conditional Immortality
The third view is held by those who deny the premise of the
first two classes, the natural immortality of the soul. Denying
that immortality is the natural inheritance of all men from
Adam, they hold that it is a free gift from God, but only to
those who accept it through faith in Jesus Christ. Therefore
only those who receive Jesus Christ will ever possess im-
mortality. Further, those who do not get it from this source do
not have it at all and never will have it. Not possessing im-
mortality, they will ultimately perish forever. This view teaches
that the good alone will live forever. It may properly be called
the doctrine of conditional immortality.
One who has never studied the Bible could come to but one
conclusion as to what it taught on the subject of human im-
mortality from the instruction imparted to him by orthodox
Christian teachers.
From the constant use of such terms as "immortal soul,"
"deathless soul," "never-dying soul," "deathless spirit,"
"eternal torment," "eternal suffering in conscious misery,"
"unending torment," "everlasting woe," and all the kindred
words that he hears in constant use in Christian pulpits, and
finds constantly before him in nearly all Christian literature
and hymnology, he would be led to believe that the Book upon
which these teachings are supposed to be based is filled with
similar expressions.
What would be his amazement then to find that the word
"immortal" is used but once in all the Bible and applied then,
not to man or the soul of man, but to God!
God Is Immortal
The sole occurrence of the word "immortal" in the Bible is
in I Tim. 1: 17 :
"Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God,
be honor and glory for ever and ever."
The words "soul" and spirit" occur in the Bible approxi-
ABSOLUTE AND CONDITIONAL LIVE 179
mately nine hundred and fifteen times. Never once is the term
"immortal" connected with either one of them. The writers of
the Bible had nine hundred and fifteen opportunities to inform
us that the soul is immortal. They never did so.
The teaching of the verse just quoted will be accepted by all.
No one will question the immortality of God. He is " eternal,
immortal, invisible, the only wise God." These are the at-
tributes of God. Man is never called immortal in the Bible.
Indeed, the exact opposite is constantly affirmed of manthrough-
out the Scriptures.
Essential Being Belongs to Jehovah
Instead of the Bible being "full of the teaching of the im-
mortality of the soul," as adherents of that doctrine confidently
assert, God has thought it of greater importance to set forth
His own immortality. Wherever in the universe life is mani-
fested, of whatever kind, He is the fountain of it. " In Him
we live, and move, and have our being."Acts 17: 28. Absolute
and essential existence, and therefore absolute and essential
immortality, is the attribute of God, and of God alone.
It is this, indeed, that He claims as His name — "I AM"
— the self-existing one, " the first and the last," " the beginning
and the ending," " which is, and which was, and which is to
come, the Almighty." He is uncreated, self-existent, eternal,
immortal. His existence had no beginning. Neither will it
have any ending.
The most exalted angel is a creature. We are all creatures
from the highest to the lowest. Our existence had a definite
beginning. It will have, or it may have, a definite ending at any
time when He who gave it sees fit to take it away. The power to
take life away is implied in the power to give life. God has never
made any independent, self-existing beings. God is immortal.
We are not.
Man Is Transitory
Is weak and puny man also able to say, " I, too, live forever" ?
The immortality and eternity of God is affirmed in every part of
the Bible. The immortality of man is not mentioned nor even
hinted at. Is the immortality of man so much more obvious
than that of God that there is no need of mentioning it, while
God's immortality must be constantly affirmed? Or is not this
constant assertion of the immortality of God, and the absence
of all similar assertion of the immortality of man in the Bible,
for the specific purpose of showing a contrast between God and
man in respect to immortality? God has immortality in Him-
self. Man has none in himself, and his only hope of living
forever is dependent, therefore, or conditional, upon union
with God through Christ our Saviour, who has promised eternal
life to all who believe on Him.
One of the chief objects of the Bible, indeed, seems to be
to reveal to men that their life is brief, vapory, shadowy,
transitory. It does this in the very plainest terms. Not only
does the Bible not call
man immortal, or ever-
living, or eternal, but it
emphatically declares
him to be the opposite.
He is said to be "mor-
tal" in Job 4: 17; Rom.
6:z2; Rom. 8:11; I Cor.
15 : 53, 54; and 2 Cor.
4: II. In James 4: 14,
International Newsreel his life is said to be
Famine sufferers in Russia. The " even a vapor, that
life of man is at best transitory.
appeareth for a little
time, and then vanisheth away." His life is said to be a "wind"
in Job 7: 7, and Ps. 78:39 says that "they were but flesh; a
wind that passeth away, and cometh not again." In Job such
expressions as the following frequently occur:
"How oft is the candle of the wicked put out." "They are as stubble
before the wind, and as chaff that the storm carrieth away." "The wicked
is reserved to the day of destruction." "By the blast of God they perish,
and by the breath of His nostrils are they consumed."
"The Wicked Shall Perish"
The Psalms are full of similar expressions:
"The wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the
fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away."
"As wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of
God." "His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very
day his thoughts perish."
The same teaching is in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. And
ABSOLUTE AND CONDITIONAL LIFE 181
in the writings of the prophets occur such expressions as these:
"The soul that sinneth, it shall die"; "the destruction of the trans-
gressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the
Lord shall be consumed."
Finally there are the words of Malachi at the very close
of the Old Testament:
"Behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud,
yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh
shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither
root nor branch."
In the New Testament there is the same teaching that the
life of man is transitory and perishable:
"Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galileans,
because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent,
ye shall all likewise perish." Luke i3: 2, 3. "For God so loved the world,
that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life. " John 3: i6. "For as many as
have sinned without law shall also perish without law." Rom. 2 : 12. " If
Christ be not raised, . . . then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ
are perished." i Cor. : 17. "Whose end is destruction." Phil. 3: 19.
" Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction." 2 Thess. 1: 9.
The Human Race Is Mortal
Other passages, many of them, might be quoted, but surely
these are sufficient to show that the whole human race is mortal,
and that unless they find a new life which they do not possess
in themselves, they will all perish. Every variety and form of
expression is used in these passages to put the truth beyond all
possibility of question. The Bible says the wicked are to die,
to perish, to pass away, to fade away, to wither, to be destroyed,
consumed, utterly consumed root and branch, devoured, cut
down, ground to powder, plucked up by the roots, broken to
shivers, dashed in pieces, crushed, cut in sunder, put away like
dross, cast away, to vanish away like smoke, like a dream, to
perish like the brutes, to be ashes, to be as nothing, to be as
though they had not been, to be no more, etc. If these expres-
sions are not sufficient to prove the uniform teaching of the
Bible that God alone is immortal and that man is mortal,
then words cannot be put together in the English language
that will prove it.
By Ewing Galloway, N. 17.
Even as the trees, man's life is mortal.
The Nature of Man

T HE Scriptures never state that man possesses in himself,
inherently, the attribute of immortality. On the contrary,
the uniform teaching of the Bible is that man is mortal. It is
not denied, however, that he is capable of immortality. The
Bible clearly teaches that under certain conditions the gift of
immortality may be conferred upon men.
Every passage of the Scriptures that contains the term
" immortality " will be discussed in this chapter. Who has
immortality, who does not have it, how those who do not have
it may obtain it, upon what conditions it is given, and at what
time it will be conferred if the conditions for obtaining it are met,
will in this way be discovered. The whole relation of humanity
to this attribute should be clearly established by such a study.
God Alone Has Immortality
The first text containing this word reads :
"I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and
before Christ Jesus, . . . that thou keep this commandment without spot,
unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: which in His
times He shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of
kings, and the Lord of lords; who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light
that no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see."
i Tim. 6: 13-16.
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THE NATURE or MAN 183
The whole question as to whether mankind possesses im-
mortality is here settled at once. There is no vagueness, no
indefiniteness, about this plain, bold statement of fact that God
" only hath immortality," nor is there anything left to the
imagination of those who may believe the opposite. God alone
in all the universe has immortality.
This passage establishes more than the truth that God has
immortality. It also reveals who does not have it. If God
"only hath immortality," it follows that mankind does not have
it; for if men possessed it, this passage would not be true. If
the theory of the natural immortality of all men is true, then
the statement that God alone has immortality could never be
truthfully made. Being made, and made by God himself, it
is settled forever that the theory of the natural immortality
of man is not true.
Is it then impossible for men ever to obtain this most precious
gift? God has given to men many great and precious promises.
Has He said anything upon which we can base a hope of having
immortality conferred upon us at any time? Has He in some
way made it possible to impart this attribute, which is peculiar
to Himself alone, to others? Surely this is a question of vital
importance.
Relation of Mankind to Immortality
The relation that men should sustain to this attribute of
immortality is set forth by Paul:
"But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thy-
self wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judg-
ment of God; who will render to every man according to his deeds: to them
who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honor and im-
mortality, eternal life." Rom. 2 : 5-7.
That is, God will render eternal life to those who are seeking
for immortality. The very fact that men are seeking for immor-
tality is conclusive evidence that they do not possess it. This
verse also declares that only those who seek for immortality by
patient continuance in well-doing will secure this attribute.
Those who "are contentious, and do not obey the truth"
(verse 8), whatever else they may receive, cannot expect to
receive immortality. This is given to those alone who patiently
continue in "well-doing." This verse certainly teaches that im-
mortality is conditional, conditioned upon the possession of a
Herbert Photos, Inc.
Man strives to conquer nature, but his mortality is ever present;
only a slight misstep and consciousness becomes extinct.
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THE NATURE OF MAN 185
certain character, a certain experience, an experience in " well-
doing," an experience and a character that arc the result only
of the life of Christ in the soul. Those who do not have this
character or experience have no promise of ever receiving
immortality.
The Source of Immortality
Where is immortality to be found if men seek it? From what
source may it be obtained?
"But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus
Christ, who bath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality
to light through the gospel." 2 Tim. r : io.
Through Adam death passed upon all men. Through Christ
it has been abolished. If Christ had never come to this world to
die for sinners they would have died in their own sins. All
had sinned, and the wages of sin is death. They were all under
condemnation, all under the sentence of death. The human
race would have perished if it had not been for the voluntary
sacrifice of Christ. But "God so loved the world, that He
gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3: 16. The
sentence of death, the wages of sin, was abolished by Christ.
Those who believe in Him will not have this sentence executed
upon them.
Belief in Christ not only abolishes the penalty for sin, it also
secures to the believer the inestimable boon of immortality.
This has been brought to light " through the gospel." Immor-
tality, therefore, is in Christ and His gospel. It is possible for
men to obtain it, but only " through the gospel. " It follows from
this that those who do not accept the gospel do not have, and
never can have, immortality. The only way to secure this
precious gift is "through the gospel." If men reject the gospel,
whatever else they may get, they do not get immortality.
The possibility of obtaining immortality is not here denied.
Just as confidently as those who accept the theory we are oppos-
ing, the inherent immortality of all men, so do we hope for im-
mortality; and more earnestly than they, do we advocate the
doctrine of immortality. It is upon the basis of our hope that we
differ. They claim it as an inheritance from Adam; we, as a
gift through Jesus Christ.
The term "immortality" is used the fourth and fifth times
in the following passage: .
be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for
the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we
shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this
mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put
on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall
be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in
victory." i Cor. IS : 51-54--
The time of putting on immortality will not be at death, but
at the resurrection from the dead, at "the last trump." It is
" this mortal" which‘ at that time will put on immortality.
Therefore, even if the gospel of Christ is accepted, immortality
will' not actually be bestowed until the time when the " dead
shall be raised incorruptible." Until that time men will be
"mortal. " But at that time "we shall be changed from " mor-
tal" to "immortality," and from "corruptible" to "incor-
.ruption."
The term " immortality " is used in no other place in the
Bible aside from these five verses which have been cited. While
the words " soul" and " spirit" occur hundreds of times in the
Scriptures, the word " immortality " is never coupled with either
of them. In the only verses where the attribute of immortality
is mentioned, the Scriptures never affirm the natural immor-
tality of all men. They never affirm that the soul is immortal,
that the spirit is immortal. They never teach that immortality
is the birthright of all men.
On the contrary the Scriptures teach: first, that God alone
possesses immortality; second, that men are, or should be,
seekers for it; third, that if seeking for it, they can find it
through the gospel in Christ; and fourth, that if they obtain it
"through the gospel," it will not then be conferred upon them
until "the last trump," or at the time of the resurrection from
the dead.
The Creation of Man
Whether the consciousness of man will continue after death
depends entirely upon what effect death may have upon those
things which produce consciousness. If death destroys those
things which result in consciousness, then consciousness itself is
Tug NATURE OT MAN 187
destroyed by death. If death has no effect upon them and they
continue their activities regardless of death, then consciousness
continues in death.
What, then, produces consciousness? Is it the result of the
organization of man's physical structure, which death dissolves?
Or is it the result of the working of forces outside of himself,
upon which death has no effect?
Spirit Returns to God
There is a passage of Scripture that is used more, perhaps,
than all others to prove that the soul is immortal and the dead
are conscious. This is the passage :
"Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall
return unto God who gave it. " Eccl. 12: 7.
It is assumed that this spirit which returns to God is con-
scious, and that, therefore, consciousness in death is proved by
this text. This is altogether assumption.
This verse proves more than that the spirits of the righteous
go at once to heaven at death, which is the doctrine it is com-
monly used to prove. It proves also that the spirits of all go to
heaven regardless of their spiritual condition. It thus can be
made the basis for the teaching of universal salvation. The
whole chapter in which it occurs is speaking not of the righteous
alone, but of all mankind, without any reference at all to their
personal relation to God.
The chapter opens with the familiar exhortation to "re-
member now thy Creator in the days of thy youth." It proceeds
to give reasons why this should be done by graphically describ-
ing the dissolution of the body preceding death and at death.
All are admonished to remember their Creator before "the evil
days come" and " the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say,
I have no pleasure in them." It is then, at the dissolution pro-
duced by death, that it is said, " the dust shall return to the
earth as it was : and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it."
This is speaking of all men, not of the good alone. The spirits of
all men go to God at death.
This passage points back to the time when man was made.
Man at death returns to the same condition he was in before he
was made alive, or before he was created. At death the dust shall
return to the earth "as it was." The spirit shall return to God
188 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING .
"who gave it." Thus we are referred back to the time of creation
in order that we may learn what the condition of man in death
will be, for it will then be the same "as it was."
Regarding the creation of man we have this statement:
"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed
into his‘nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. " Gen. 2: 7.
The material the Creator used in forming man was the
"dust of the ground." He breathed into that lifeless form "the
breath of life." As a result, the man "became a living soul."
It is not so complicated a matter as we may have been led to
believe, but a very simple procedure; that is, for God.
The Bible declares that God created man in His own image
and after His own likeness. There is no thought here that man
was equal to his Maker in the attributes of His infinite nature —
assuredly not in God's chief attribute, that of independent
existence. In the very nature of things this is impossible. Man
was not made omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, nor self-
existing. There was conferred upon him the dignity of exercis-
ing a free will, the power of intelligent action, the authority to
exercise dominion in that earthly sphere in which he was placed,
and the faculty of knowing, loving, and obeying his Creator.
Just as he was dependent on God for his original endowments,
so was he also dependent on God for a continuance of his life
and all that he possessed.
The Verse Analyzed
An analysis of the passage containing the inspired account of
the creation of man will reveal a number of very significant
things.
Let the verse be read again. Notice that the materials
chosen by God of which to make man were not in any way
superior to the materials of which He had previously made other
earthly creatures and things. These also were made "of the
dust." (Eccl. 3:19,2o.)
It appears from this passage also that the first man was
fully created and completed, so far as his physical form was
concerned, before he began to live. "God formed man of the
dust of the ground." -
After he was completely formed, there lacked nothing of
making him a living man, or "living soul," but "the breath of
T1In NATURF; or MAN 189
life." When this was breathed into him by his Maker, the man
" became a living soul."
This "breath of life" is that which man breathes in common
with all other living things. (Eccl. 3: 19.) It is represented as
having been given to the beasts as well as to man, and therefore
the beasts are also said to be "living souls." (Gen. I : 3o, margin ;
Rev. 16: 3; Gen. 7 : 22.) In Dr. Lange's Commentary, under
Cor. 15: 45, these remarks are made:
"The expression 'living soul,' as used in Genesis, is often taken to indi-
cate an order of being superior to the brute, and is the text of many an
argument to prove the immortality of the soul. The incorrectness of this
assumption will be readily seen by referring to Gen. I: zo, 21, 24, and else-
where, in which passages the words translated 'living soul' are applied also
to the entire lower creation. They are used indifferently of man and beast
to express animal life in general; and it is in this very light the apostle
uses them as the very course of his argument shows. Adam is spoken of
as a living soul, not to prove his immortality, but rather his mortality."
There is no record in this verse that God thrust a living soul
into this lifeless body. Nor is it said that He created a living
soul within the body as something apart from it. It is said only
that as a result of the breathing into his nostrils of the breath of
life, the man, the whole man, became a living soul. The sense
in which this term " soul" has come to be used, as a spiritual
essence that can live apart from the body, is not known or
taught in the Bible.
Witnessing the Creation
In imagination let us now take our stand back in the garden
of Eden and witness the creation of this first man. God speaks,
and of "the dust of the ground" a form is made and lies before
Him. It is the form of a man. It is perfect in its symmetry and
complete in all its parts. All its organs are there. But it is
lifeless. Its brain is ready to think, but it is not acting. Its
heart is ready to beat, but it is not beating. Its blood is ready to
flow, but it is not flowing. There is no intelligence, no thought,
no knowledge, no wisdom, no memory, no consciousness. This
is so because there is no life. In a short time this lifeless body
will become " a living soul." Now it is a lifeless soul.
No one contends that there was any consciousness in this
body as it lay there without life. It is not believed by any that
consciousness was produced from "the dust of the ground."
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Though pomp may surround the biers of the rich, the noble, and the mighty, the great and the small are alike in the silence of death.
(190) •
THE NATUR OF' MAN 19 1
Into the nostrils of this lifeless form the Creator breathes the
vital "breath of life." Immediately the man is a living soul.
The brain leaps into instant action. The heart begins to beat.
The blood flows through the veins. There is intelligence, power
of thought, knowledge, consciousness. And these things all
exist because the body now has life.
The Origin of Consciousness
Consciousness has been produced. How did it come? It
did not reside in the body, " the dust of the ground." Was it
present, then, in the "breath of life"? No, for then it would
have been present before the breath of life ever came into the
body, and that would teach the pre-existence of the soul as well
as its immortality. Surely no one will maintain that conscious-
ness exists in the breath that we breathe, for then our con-
sciousness would be in our "nostrils" into which God breathed
the " breath of life."
If the consciousness was not in "the dust of the ground,"
the body, nor in the " breath of life," where, then, did the
consciousness come from?
It is at once obvious to all that the consciousness was
produced as a result of the union of the "breath of life" with
"the dust of the ground," or body. There was no consciousness
either in the body or in the breath before these two were united;
but when the breath of life was breathed into the body, that
union created a consciousness.
Consciousness, therefore, depends solely and altogether
upon the union of the breath with the body. When that union
does not exist, whatever may remain, it is certain that con-
sciousness does not remain.
Death Results in Unconsciousness
Now let this process be reversed. The man approaches the
time described in the last chapter of Ecclesiastes, when this
"breath of life" is to be withdrawn, and the elements of his
body are to be dissolved into dust. His last breath leaves the
body; his heart ceases to beat; the brain ceases to act; his blood
stops flowing; his power of thought is gone; there is no intel-
ligence, no knowledge.
What, now, has become of his consciousness? It, too, is gone.
All the processes of sensitive, conscious life are at an end. The
organism itself immediately begins to fall into ruin, and the
body to dissolve into the dust from which it came. "Then shall
the dust return to the earth as it was."
As the consciousness depends upon the breath being united
with the body, it follows that when this vital union is broken up
and the breath is separated from the body, the consciousness
is destroyed. Therefore there is, there can be, no conscious-
ness in death.
The " spirit " that returns to God, therefore, is but the
breath that God "gave." The constitueat elements of the man
are broken up, the dust returning whence it came, the breath
also returning to Him "who gave it."
There is no consciousness in this "spirit," or "breath of
life," which returns to God. The consciousness was destroyed
when the breath separated from the body. This verse, therefore,
does not teach human consciousness in death.
Scriptural Teaching
What has been said here is not at all merely a personal
theory. It is the plain teaching of the Bible.
"Thou sendest forth Thy spirit [Hebrew, ruach — breath], they are
created." " Thou takest away their breath [the same word, mach], they die,
and return to their dust." Ps. ro4: 3o, 29.
"His breath [ruach] goeth forth, he returned' to his earth; in that very
day his thoughts perish." Ps. 146:4. That is, his consciousness is gone.
"For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one
thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have
all one breath [ruach]; so that [in this respect] a man hath no pre-eminence
above a beast." Eccl. 3: 19.
How clear it is that our dependence for life is in God alone!
Our dependence must be placed in Him, not only for the
"life everlasting," but momentarily, that the breath we now
breathe may be placed back in our bodies. The whole tendency
of the teaching that man has life in himself, the natural im-
mortality of the soul, is to lead men away from the great
Source of life, and cause them to place their dependence in
themselves; while the tendency of the teaching of the Bible is
to cause men to place their trust in Him "in whose hand is the
life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind."
is:eysione View Co.
Mount of the Holy Cross. Rocky Mountains. Death is a sleep.
Where Are the Dead?
T HERE is no need why the condition of those who are dead

should be a mystery. The Bible speaks clearly regarding
death and the state of those who have passed into its embrace.
It reveals that death is not a modification of life, not a continua-
tion of life in changed conditions, not a release into a fuller life,
not life in misery, not life in happiness. Death is not life at all. To
die is not to live. To die is to stop living.
Death does not mean to go to heaven, hell, purgatory,
or anywhere. Death means an end of life. The soul does not
live. The spirit does not live. There is no intelligence, no
consciousness, no memory. All that composed the man is gone.
Nothing that is here said is to be construed as meaning that
there will be no future life. There will be a future life. This
future life, however, is not a continuation of the life that now is.
It is entirely a new life, another life. And it begins, not at the
time of death, but at the time of the resurrection from the dead.
God alone is immortal. Man is mortal and finite. Not-
withstanding all the Scripture teaching brought forth in support
of this position, however, some persist in placing a figurative,
mystical sense on the plain terms of the Bible that deal with
this subject, and thus change the meaning of these terms
until they teach exactly the opposite of what they say. In this
13 (193)
way death, in the minds of multitudes of people, has come to
mean life.
Bible Answers the Question of the Ages
Thus while the doctrine of the natural immortality of the
soul originated with him who was a liar "from the beginning,"
when Satan told our first parents, "Ye shall not surely die,"
in the very face of the most positive declarations of Jehovah to
the contrary, it is still being maintained and perpetuated by the
scholarship of the church and the literature and philosophy of
the world, which are giving another and a contrary meaning to
the words of the Bible.
Blinded by this first satanic delusion, theologians still gravely
assure us that the human soul is immortal and can never die;
that it is indestructible and can therefore never be destroyed;
that its destiny is to live forever and therefore it will always
exist. They assure us that all passages of the Bible that seem to
teach that it will die, that it will be destroyed, that it will not
live forever, cannot possibly mean any such thing.
No, the time is fully here when this stupendous delusion,
"Ye shall not surely die," should be confronted with the straight
testimony of the "Oracles of God," and driven from the Chris-
tian church. It is also high time that the believers in the Word
should cease trifling with its plainest utterances and should
manifest a willingness to acknowledge Him "who only hath im-
mortality," as the source of immortality to dying humanity.
So taking our stand again on the immutable rock of God's
word, we turn away from all,the wisdom of men and inquire of
Him whose "word is truth" concerning the condition of man in
death.
"Man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and
where is he?" Job 14: 1o.
This is the question of the ages, and its answer is fully given
in the Bible.
It has already been shown that consciousness depends on
the union of the breath of life with the body, and therefore when
these two are separated at death, unconsciousness must result.
From this it follows that in death man is unconscious. Indeed
we have the explicit testimony of the Scriptures to this truth in
the statement that follows:
WHERE ARE THE DEAD? 195
"Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there
is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very
day his thoughts perish." Ps. 146: 3, 4.
There is no intelligence, no consciousness in death. The
ability to think has then come to an end.
Notwithstanding the fact that we have been told that when
we die we will spend our time in praising the Lord, the Scripture
says:
"In death there is no remembrance of Thee: in the grave who shall
give Thee thanks? " Ps. 6: 5.
And,
"The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence."
Ps. 115 : 17.
That death is a condition of absolute cessation of conscious-
ness is taught by the "wise man " :
"The living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything,
neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither
have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the
sun." Bed. 9: 5, 6.
This surely is sufficient to settle this whole question for every
soul who is willing to take the plain words of the Bible rather
than the theories of men. No words could have been chosen by
the inspired writer to make the truth of man's unconsciousness
in death any plainer than those which are here used.
False Claims of Spiritualism
How impossible it would be for any of God's people ever to
be deluded by the lying claims of Spiritualism if these plain
statements of truth were believed! How impossible for any to
be deceived by so-called spirits of the dead if the great truth of
man's unconsciousness in death, as plainly stated in this passage,
were confidently accepted !
Nothing is known by the dead of the passing of the years
or of the condition and circumstances of loved ones on this
earth.
"His [the dead man's] sons come to honor, and he knoweth it not;
and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them." Job 14: 21.
In the Bible death is given a name that stands for uncon-
sciousness. It is called a "sleep."
"Consider and hear me, 0 Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I
sleep the sleep of death." Ps. x3: 3.
Christ agrees with David that death is a sleep in the follow-
ing passage:
"These things said He: and after that He saith unto them, Our friend
Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said
His disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spoke of
his death; but they thought that He had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead." John II: 1r-14.
Paul agrees with both David and Christ that death is a sleep.
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning
them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no
hope." I Thess. 4: 13.
Daniel agrees with David, Christ, and Paul that death is a
sleep. He speaks of the dead as follows:
"And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake?
some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt."
Dan. 12:2. ,
At death, then, one lies down to sleep ; at the resurrection he is
awakened. Between death and the resurrection there is an un-
conscious sleep.
David, the man after God's own heart, instead of being at
the present moment in heaven, as the theory of the immor-
tality of the soul would teach, is in his grave sleeping. This is
clearly stated by Paul in a sermon at Antioch in Pisidia as re-
corded by Luke in the Acts:
"For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of
God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers [in the grave], and saw
corruption." Acts 13: 36.
The Dead in Their Graves

Peter declares implicitly that David has not gone to heaven.
In his sermon on the day of Pentecost, he said:
"For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself,
The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou on My right hand." Acts 2:34.
And he also declares where David now is:
"Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch
David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto
this day." Verse 29.
Again in the book of Job this question of death is discussed,
Lincoln Memorial. Washington, D. C. An imposing monument to the dead Emancipator.
(197)
and the conclusions there set forth are worthy of our study.
Job declares:
"There is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again,
and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. Though the root thereof
wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground; yet through
the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant."
He contrasts man with the tree:
"But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost,
and where is he?"
He answers his own question by saying:
"As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up;
so man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall
not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep."
Until the day of the resurrection, the day when theheavens
shall depart as a scroll (Rev. 6: 14), those who are dead will
continue in unconscious sleep. Job then exclaims:
"0 that Thou wouldst hide me in the grave, that thou wouldst keep
me secret, until Thy wrath be past, that Thou wouldst appoint me a set
time, and remember me!"
Notice the expressiqns here, "hide me in the grave," "keep
me secret." They are descriptive of death.
Having answered this question Job now propounds another:
"If a man die,,shall he live again?"
Again he makes answer:
"All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come.
Thou shalt call, and I will answer Thee: Thou wilt have a desire to the
work of Thine hands. " Job 14: 7-15.
Attention is directed to the expression, "All the days of my
appointed time will I wait." In what place he would wait we
are told in another verse :
"If I wait, the grave is mine house: I have made my bed in the dark-
. ness." Job. 17: 13.
Awakened at the Resurrection
This change for which Job waits in the grave is that spoken
of by Paul:
be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for
the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we
shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and
this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have
WHERE ARE THE DEAD? 199
put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then
shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up
in victory." 1 Cor. 15 : 51-54.
The change for which Job still waits is that from "corrup-
tion" to "incorruption." While he waits for this change "the
grave" is his house. This change will not be accomplished at
death, as many are teaching, but "at the last trump," when
" the dead shall be raised incorruptible."
This same blessed awakening from the tomb is spoken of by
Paul:
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them
which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope."
Then Paul shows that they are not in heaven, but in their
, graves awaiting the resurrection:
"For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are
alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede,
Revised Version] them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the
trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive
and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the
Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." 1 Thess. 4: 13-17.
The Resurrection the Hope of the Church
This was the time to which Paul was looking for his own
reward, and not to death. He declares :
"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which
the Lord the righteous judge, shall give me [not at death, but] at that
day [ the day of judgment ]: and not to me only, but unto all them also
that love His appearing."
Death is an enemy of the human race, not a friend. "The
last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." Let us fix our eyes
and center our hopes on that great hope of the church, the
resurrection from the dead, as the fulfillment of all our joys,
and the entrance into that "life everlasting" that the gospel
holds out to every repentant sinner.
Rejection of the unfit. Driving undesirables from a community by means of a fire hose.
The Punishment of the Wicked

T HE belief in the natural immortality of the soul, which
has been shown to have no Scriptural authority, has
led to the acceptance of many hurtful errors.
Accepting as an established truth the devil's first falsehood
that all men are immortal, and reasoning from this as a premise
that the souls of all who have died are now conscious either in a
condition of bliss or torment, many have concluded that it may
be possible to establish some system of communication between
the souls of those who have died and the living. Coming into
contact with the phenomena of Spiritualism, the professed
communication of the spirits of the dead- with the living, they
have been swept away from their moorings into this terrible,
last-day delusion of the father of lies. Spiritualism is one of the
fruits of the doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul.
The belief of our Catholic friends in purgatory rests upon this
same foundation, the conscious state of the dead. If the falsehood
of Satan were not believed in the place of the truth of the Bible,
no one would-ever accept the teaching of purgatory, and there-
fore could never be deceived into paying money in order that
the souls of his loved ones might be prayed out of purgatory.
The errors of Universalism and Restorationism may also be
charged to this false doctrine of the immortality of the soul.
(200)
THE PUNISHMENT OP THE WICKED 201
They have come into existence because of reaction against the

terrible belief in eternal torment, which is .a necessary result of
believing in natural immortality.
Fosters Infidelity
This doctrine has greatly hindered the progress of the
gospel by fostering infidelity and skepticism. Such a doctrine as
eternal misery and torment drives men away from the gospel
instead of winning them to it.
It follows as a necessary corollary to the doctrine of
natural immortality that sin, having once gained a foothold
in this earth, can never be expelled or exterminated, and those
who refuse to accept the gospel of Christ, but continue in sin,
being immortal, must ever continue in sin and misery and
torment, God himself being unable to blot them out because of
their immortality.
Thus has been born the baneful error of everlasting torment,
the teaching that the fires of the last day, which are intended
to purge this earth of sin and sinners forever, will rather per-
petuate sin and sinners forever. Having once been started to
feed upon immortal souls and finding them indestructible,
these fires must rage on forever, not to devour and consume,
but only to torment, the miserable victims upon whom they are
ceaselessly preying. Therefore so long as the righteous live in
heaven, this theory teaches that the wicked will be tormented
in hell. Throughout all the future ages, holiness and sin, happi-
ness and misery, praises and curses, and life and death will
run parallel with each other.
But when intelligent, thinking men stop to consider all that
is involved in the fact of suffering that is absolutely, endless;
what it must mean for creatures just like themselves to writhe
and toss in billows of flame without dying forever and ever or
without the least possible hope of relief; that countless millions
have already sunk into this place of torment and are being
followed by great multitudes every day; and when they take
in the thought that this means not only the vast host of sinners
whom they have not known, but their own children and loved
ones and friends who go out of this life without giving any
indication of having accepted the gospel; they are so appalled
at the necessary conclusions that their creed and their logic
i nternalional Newsreel
"A certain fearful looking for of judgment" causes men to make
f rightful efforts to appease God's wrath, as does this Persian who
loads his flesh with daggers. But Christ is our only Advocate.
(202)
THE PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED 203
force upon them, that their faith cannot endure the terrific
strain put upon it, but gives way to infidelity, or at least to
Universalism or Restorationism.
To many, religion is merely a fire escape. They have been
scared into accepting it by hearing descriptions of a place that
burns eternally, and into which they are told they will be cast
at death if they do not get religion and join the church. A
terrible lake of fire is painted in which the lost will suffer the
most excruciating tortures, which will be eternal in their dura-
tion, where imps of Satan will torment them in every way known
to the ingenuity of devils.
There is no such place except in worn-out systems of
theology. The place itself does not exist.
By this statement it is not intended to convey the idea that
there will be no punishment for sin, or that all men will be
saved. What is meant is that the perfervid descriptions of a
place of torment that are a part of popular theology were born
only in imaginations influenced by a false belief, and have no
place in fact or in the teachings of the Bible.
Retribution Is Still Future
There is no place of torment now, nor_will there be until the
end of the world. Men do not go to hell when they die. Dead
men who have been wicked during their lives are not in hell
now, but in their graves, at rest, perfectly unconscious.
If the doctrine that teaches that at death a wicked man will
go to a place of torment is true, there would be no need of a
resurrection from the dead in order that men might receive
their reward or their punishment. Why need they be raised
from the dead to receive a punishment that they are already
receiving in death?
If this doctrine of punishment in hell at death is true, there
would be no need of a future judgment, which the Bible teaches
will take place at the second coming of Christ. If men are
already receiving all their torment in hell, what need would
there be of judging them? Shall they be brought forth from hell
to see if a mistake has been made in their cases, and whether
they, after all, should have been sent to heaven instead of hell?
The great Biblical doctrines of the resurrection and the
future judgment must be given up if this anti-Scriptural doctrine
of rewards and punishment at death is retained. They cannot
both be believed at the same time.
Jesus and His Love
For nineteen centuries the story of Jesus and His love and
His sufferings for men has been told with tears. Multitudes have
heard it and wept. Hardened hearts have been broken by it,
and souls have grown sick of sin because of its love and pathos.
Can it be possible that the same God whose love was so great for
men that He sent His only-begotten Son into the world to save
them, has, during these same nineteen hundred years, compelled
innumerable hosts of immortal souls to remain in the most
awful torment that could be suggested by His wisdom or
inflicted by His power?
No, the Bible does not teach that there is a place of torment
in which the wicked are suffering now. The Bible does teach a
future state of rewards and punishments beyond this world,
on the, other side of death. This punishment takes place, not
while men aredead, but after they are raised from the dead.
Its torment will not be eternal, but will continue only long
enough to inflict upon men that just punishment which is their
due according to the deeds committed in this life.
Nothing in addition to the plain teaching of-the Scriptures is
needed to show the truth of this. Turning to this, our sole
teacher, we will permit it to speak for itself.
Solomon saw clearly the need of a future judgment when he
said :
"I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked:
for there is a time there for every purpose and every work." Eccl. 3: 17.
Beyond all doubt, therefore, the Scriptures teach a future
judgment.
This judgment is not at death nor in death. This will be
evident from that fact that God holds men responsible, not
only for the commission of their deeds, but also for the con-
sequences resulting from their deeds. Jeremiah declares that
God's eyes "are open upon all the ways of the sons of men:
to give every man according to his ways, and according to the
fruit of his doings." Jer. 32: 19.
It is obvious that while the ways of a man may be manifest
at his death the "fruit of his doings" 'will not be manifest
THE PUNISHMENT OP THE WICKED 205
until the very end of time. The streams of poison that had
their sources in infidel pens may continue to flow through all
time. The Christian fortitude of the martyrs, and the faithful
self-sacrificing zeal and earnestness of true Christians, may be
a fountain of perpetual blessing to the world until the close of
probation. The final reward or punishment must be delayed
until the ultimate results of every good and evil action can be
Eugene J. Hall
Paul preaching of judgment to come.
surveyed at a glance and the fruit of a man's doings rightly

estimated. It is beyond the domain of death that the Scrip-
tures fix the judgment.
"It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment."
Heb. 9: 27.
Judgment Reserved
Job fixes the future judgment after death, not in death.
Seeing that such a judgment was required by the inequalities
of life, he said:
"One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet. His
breasts are full of milk, and his bones are moistened with marrow. And
another dieth in the bitterness of his soul, and never eateth with pleasure.
2.06 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
They shall lie down alike in the dust, and the worms shall cover them.
Behold, I know your thoughts, and the devices which ye wrongfully imagine
against me. For ye say, Where is the house of the prince? and where are the
dwelling places of the wicked? have ye not asked them that go by the way?
and do ye not know their tokens, that the wicked is reserved to the day of
destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath." Job 21:23-3o.
This same truth that the wicked are not now being punished
in hell, but are being reserved in their graves to the day of
judgment, is taught by Peter:
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to
hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto
judgment; and spared not the old world, but saved Noah, the eighth person,
a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the
ungodly; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes con-
demned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those
that after should live ungodly; . . . the Lord knoweth how to deliver the
godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judg-
ment to be punished." 2 Pet. 2 : 4-9.
Peter's argument is clear. God, in times past, has wrought
great deliverances and great judgments. Therefore He is a
judge of man. These past acts of God are but types of future
deliverances and punishments. God will deliver the " godly "
and "reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment."
One of the most ancient prophecies recorded in the Bible
fixes the judgment at the coming of Christ:
"And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying,
Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute
judgment upon all, and to convince'all that are ungodly among them of all
their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their
hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him." Jude 14, 15.
Jesus clearly fixed the time of future judgment when He
said:
"For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose
his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? For the
Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then
He shall reward every man according to his works." Matt. 16: 26, 27.
Every man is to be rewarded "when the Son of man shall
come in the glory of His Father." All are comprehended in that
expression "every man," both righteous and wicked, living and
dead. The future state of rewards and punishments will begin
at the second appearing of the Lord.
Trig PUNISHMENT Or THE WICKED 207
On another occasion Jesus repeated His statement about
the time of the judgment:
"He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath one that
judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in
the last day." John 12 : 48.
Every person, wicked or good, those who receive the word
of God, and those who reject it, will be called to meet God.
The judgment that is pronounced on the rejectors of the word
is'not in this life, nor in death. It will be "in the last day."
A passage that proves conclusively that there is no punish-
ment for the wicked while they are dead is found in Luke 13 : 25-
30:
"When once the Master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the
door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying,
Lord, Lord, open unto us; and He shall answer and say unto you, I know ye
not whence ye are: then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in
Thy presence, and Thou hast taught in our streets. But He shall say, I
tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from Me, all ye workers of
iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see
Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of
God, and you yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from the east,
and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit
down in the kingdom of God. And, behold, there are last which shall be
first, and there are first which shall be last."
Here are persons who have been dead for ages, in whose
streets. Jesus taught, who ate and drank in His presence. They
are lost, but they have known nothing about it, and do not
discover it until the day of judgment. So far from having been
punished at death, or during death, they do not even know
their doom when they enter into the judgment. How, then,
could they have been in hell for nineteen hundred years and
then when judged never know they were lost? This passage of
Scripture would be utterly impossible if the dead were being
punished now.
It will not be long before " the Master of the house is risen
up, and hath shut to the door." At that time not only those
who heard Jesus preach, but we also who have had the privilege
of reading and hearing His word, will find our destinies decided.
Every soul must appear before that judgment seat. There
will be no place to hide. You cannot bribe God. Acquittal
cannot be bought for money. Our sins cannot be concealed by
any special and skillful pleader. Exceptions to the verdict can-

not be taken. No appeal to a higher court can be made, for
there is none. Our doom cannot be prevented by an injunction.
The judge will not be blinded by excuses. A lie c - annot avail.
Perjury will not stand.
Are'you ready for that day? Has Christ covered your sins
with His own life? Are you safe? Have you been obedient to the
commandments of God? Have you repented of all your sins?
There is time now, but there will be no time then. Now, while
mercy still lingers — while the door is still open, and the Master
of the house has not yet risen up to shut it — make your peace
with God, that it may be well with you in that day.
The Valley of Gehenna. near Jerusalem. type of the place of destruction for the wicked.
The Wages of Sin

UR blood curdles when we hear the tales of savage cruelty
O which come to us from war-swept countries. What must we
think then of that terrible, untrue,.and horrible interpretation
of the Bible which represents the God of mercy, who sent
Jesus into the world to die for sinners, as a Being who is even
now preserving myriads of souls in the flames of an eternal hell
of fire and brimstone, while He refuses to see their agonies or
hear their cries, and cares nothing but to see that their tortures
are continued to all eternity?
Such a theory is utterly untrue. There is no place where the
souls of the unrighteous go at death in which they will be tor-
mented. This is merely a fiction adopted from heathenism.
It has no foundation at all in the teachings of the Bible.
By this is not meant, however, that there never will be any
punishment for sin. No one can read the Bible without being
impressed with its teachings that there will be a future retribu-
tion for sin and iniquity. That punishment is not at death,
however. It is to take place in the future, and will be temporary
in its duration, each person being punished according to his
works which he has done while in this life.
We have already seen that man goes neither to heaven nor
• 14 (209)
Rau
(210) Like a judge of the fate of men. Moses makes a great decision at the battle of Israel with the Amalekites.
THE., WAGES OP SIN 2 II
hell at death, but into the grave, there to await the day of
resurrection. In harmony with this are the words of Peter:
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to
reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." 2 Peter 2: 9.
Notice these expressions—"reserve," "the day of judgment,"
"to be punished." Instead of being punished now the " un-
just ': are "reserved, " that is, kept until "the day of judgment, "
at which time they will be "punished." Hence the punishment
of the wicked will not take place until the day of judgment.
The instrument that will be used by God to punish the
wicked will be fire. This fire is employed not for the pur-
pose of torture, but for the purpose of destruction. The fire
will completely destroy the wicked from the earth. They will
never recover from this destruction. This fire will not per-
petuate their lives, but will bring them to an end.
That the Lord will destroy the wicked by fire will be seen by
reading Matt. 13 : 40-42:
"As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall
it be in the end of the world. The Son of man shall send forth His angels,
and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them
which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be
wailing and gnashing of teeth."
Another verse bearing .on the same point will be found in
Matt. 25:41:
"Then shall He say unto them on. the left hand, Depart from Me,
ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."
From these verses it is plain that the punishment for sin will
be by fire. This fire will take place, not at death, but " in the end
of this world." Human beings were never intended to be cast
into this fire, for it was prepared for the devil and his angels.
Therefore those of this earth who are cast into this fire will
suffer this fate only because they choose to ally themselves
with the devil. The blood of Christ will so cleanse men from
sin that the fires that destroy Satan will not fasten themselves
upon the human beings for whom Christ died. But those who
willfully cling to their sins must share the punishment of the
one in whose rebellion against God they have joined.
Punished on this Earth
This punishment and this fire will be on this earth. God has
no special place of punishment that He will keep in perpetual
2I2 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
operation to torture the wicked. They will be punished where
they sinned, on the earth. Two verses from Scripture will be
sufficient to show this.
"And they [the wicked] went up on the breadth of the earth, and
campassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came
down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." Rev. 20: 9.
"Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more
the wicked and the sinners." Prov. i 1: 31.
At the End of the Millennium
This time when this final destruction of the wicked will
take place is at the end of the thousand years, or the millennium.
The' millennium will begin with the second coming of Christ.
At this time all the righteous, both living and raised, will be
caught up to meet Christ in the air, and will be taken to heaven
with Him, there to live with Christ during the thousand-years.
(1 Thess. 4: 15-17; Rev. 20:4.) All the wicked who are alive
at that time will be put to death by the brightness of the glory
of Christ. (2 Thess. 2: 8-1o.) They will remain unburied on the
face of the earth. (Jer. 25 : 31-33.) At the end of the thousand
years of the millennium all the wicked dead will be raised to
life again. (Rev. zo: 5.) It is at that time that they will endeavor
to capture the holy city, the New Jerusalem. Fire will come
down from heaven and devour them. (Rev. zo: 5-9.)
The effect of this fire upon the wicked will be seen from
Mal. 4: 1:
"For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the
proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that
cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them
neither root nor branch. "
When a thing is burned up, there is nothing left of it but
ashes; and so of the wicked it is said:
"And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under_
the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of
hosts:" Mal. 4:3.
The wicked are not perpetuated in this fire in which they
meet their fate, but entirely consumed. This does not have
reference to the body alone, as is insisted by some who earnestly
ding to their favorite doctrine of eternal torment. In Ezek. 18: 4,
20, we read:
"The sou/ that sinneth, it shall die.",
THE WAGES OF SIN 213
It is for this reason — the complete destruction of the
sinner — that the Bible uses such terms as "eternal," "ever-
lasting," and "forever and ever," in connection with the fate of
the wicked. What these expressions are designed to show is
that the overthrow of the wicked is a complete overthrow.
There will be no recovery from their fate. It is eternal. Their
torment is not eternal, but their destruction is eternal. In all
God's universe there will be left no sin nor one who commits sin.
He "will make an utter end of the place thereof." Nahum 1: 8.
God protests against those who " imagine " that He will allow
His creation to be marred forever with the effects of rebellion :
"What do ye imagine against the Lord? He will make an utter end:
affiction shall not rise up the second time." Nahum r: 9.
Everlasting Punishment
Bearing out this thought of a complete destruction of the
wicked, the Bible declares:
"Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence
of the Lord, and from the glory of His power." 2 Thess. t: 9. "And these
shall go away into everlasting punishment." Matt. 25: 46.
The " destruction" of the wicked will be "everlasting";
the "punishment" of the wicked will be "everlasting." There
will never be any recovery froM it. There is nothing in either
verse concerning eternal torment. It is not the torment that is
said to be " everlasting," it is the "destruction" and the "punish-
ment." Nor does it say " everlasting punishing," but " ever-
lasting punishment." There is no dispute at all concerning the
length of the punishment of the wicked. - The only question
is as to what the punishment consists of. If the punishment of
sin is torment, there is no question but what the torment will be
eternal. If, however, the punishment for sin is death, then the
death is " everlasting."And no one will dispute the fact that the
Bible teaches that "the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6: 23),
and not eternal life in misery.
Everlasting Fire
It will be urged by some, however, that the Bible not only
speaks of "everlasting destruction," and "everlasting punish-
ment," but also of "everlasting fire." (Matt. 25 : 41.) And
it will be asked why, if the torment is not continued, there
should be need of everlasting fire.
Let the reader turn to the seventh verse of Jude, and there
note that Sodom and Gomorrah suffered "the vengeance of
eternal fire." Inasmuch as Sodom and Gomorrah are not now
burning, notwithstanding the fact that they were destroyed by
eternal fire, it is evident that eternal fire is not necessarily fire
that perpetuates what it burns, and that never ceases to barn.
From 2 Peter 2 : 6, it is evident that eternal fire completely con-
sumes that which it attacks. The language is:
"And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned
them with an overthrow, making them ensamples unto those that after
should live ungodly."
That it takes but a very short time for eternal fire to bring
that which it attacks to ashes will be plain from Lam. 4: 6,
where it is said that Sodom was "overthrown as in a moment."
From these verses it will be seen that the effect of ever-
lasting fire is not to perpetuate the existence of that upon
which it feeds, but to consume it, to bring it to ashes, and it may
accomplish this "as in a moment."
Again it will be urged that Mark, in speaking of the fire that
will punish the wicked, says that it " never shall be quenched."
(Mark 9 : 43-46.) But a fire that shall never be quenched is
not a fire that will never go out. It is a fire that cannot be put
out. Jerusalem was burned with a fire that could not be quenched.
(Jer.. 17: 19-27; 2 Chron. 36: 19-21.) It is not burning yet.
By this unquenchable fire the city was brought to destruction
and ashes, just as the fires of the last day will bring the wicked
to destruction and ashes. The fire that is to destroy the
wicked must of necessity be unquenchable, for if it were not, the
wicked would put it out.
Some beauty spots of earth are foretastes of the earth made new.
The Reward of the Righteous

T HERE are numerous promises of a glorious inheritance
for the saints of the Lord on the other side of death.
What that inheritance is and where it is the Scriptures make
plain. David writes that "the heaven, even the heavens, are
the Lord's: but the earth hath He given to the children of
men." Ps. 115: x6. Isaiah declares that God formed the earth
" not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited." Isa. 45 : 18.
It is inconceivable' that God created the earth to be in-
habited under its present conditions or by its present inhabitants.
His purpose involved its being inhabited by a race of pure,
holy, and righteous beings. He planned for just such a race
when He placed our first parents here in the garden of Eden.
This plan has been delayed awhile by the entrance of sin,
but God will yet have His way.
Earth to Be Restored
This earth was given..to the human race at the time of its
creation. Mankind lost the possession of the earth by sin.
It will be restored to the people of God through the gospel of
Christ.
This first specific promise of a future inheritance recorded in
the Bible is that given to Abraham:
(215)
"Lift up now thine eyes and look from the place where thou art
northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for 'all the land
which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever." Gen. r3:
14, 15.
This promise was repeated to Isaac, the son of Abraham,
in Gen. 26: 1-4, and to Jacob, the son of Isaac, in Gen. 28:12-15.
The Earth Promised to Abraham
All that is included in this promise in respect to territory is
not apparent on the surface. But Paul says concerning it :
"For the promise, that he should be heir of the world, was not
to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the
righteousness of faith." Rom. 4: 13. It is evident from this
that God made to Abraham and his descendants a promise
that they should inherit the whole earth forever.
This promise has not been fulfilled. Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob passed away. It is not yet carried out, though it was
made thousands of years ago by One whose word never fails.
Paul, in speaking of the men to whom the promises were made,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and their descendants, declares
in Heb. : 13, that "these all died in faith, not having re-
ceived the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were
persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that
they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."
The-Resurrection a Part of the Promise
Inasmuch, therefore, as God promised the earth to these
ancient worthies, and they died without having had the promise
fulfilled to them, and as God's promises do not fail, it is evident
that there must be involved in that promise the resurrection
from the dead.
To this thought agree the words of Ezekiel :
"Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, 0 My people, I will open your
graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves; and bring you into the
land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened
your graves, 0 My people, and brought you up out of your graves, and
shall put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your
own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and per-
formed it, saith the Lord." Bzek. 37: 12-14.
God will bring His people into their own land. This He will
do by bringing them up from their graves. At that time it will
THE REWARD OP THE RIGHTEOUS 217
be seen by all that not only has He spoken it, but He has also
performed it.
All Christians should be intensely interested in the promise
to Abraham, for Paul, in Gal. 3: 7, declares that "they which
are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." In Gal.
3: 29, he says: " If ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed,
and heirs according to the promise."
The only promise, then, that Christians have of a future
inheritance is this ancient promise made to Abraham. The
promise of God, then, to all Christians is not that they shall
inherit or spend eternity in heaven, but that through Christ
they become joint heirs with Him and with Abraham in the
earth in its regenerated condition.
Additional Promises
To this agree the promises found in Isa. 65: 17:
"For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former
shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."
And in 2 Peter 3: 13:
"Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and
a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
And in Rev. 21: I :
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth."
And in Ps. 37: I I:
"But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in
the abundance of peace."
At that time also will be fulfilled the promise of Micah 4: 8:
"And thou, 0 tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter of
Zion [the church], unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion [the
earth as it came from the hand of God]; the kingdom shall come to the
daughter of Jerusalem."
From the fearful ordeal of fire through which the earth will
pass when the wicked and all sin are burned out of it, it will
emerge fully cleansed from every stain of sin. The Holy City
will then become the capital of the regenerated earth, and the
whole earth will become again like the garden of Eden. As
" the wilderness and the solitary place shall blossom as the rose,"
the earth becomes what it was first intended to be, the eternal
home of the people of God.
The righteous will go forth from the Holy City, and "they
shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant
vineyards, and eat the fruit of them." Isa. 65: 21. The whole
earth will be populated with the redeemed of the Lord. There
will be no fear of fire or earthquake. All will be peace and con-
tentment, and unspeakable happiness will fill every heart.
Every Sabbath day the people of the new earth will gather at
Jerusalem to engage in worship of the King of kings. (Isa. 66:
22, 23.) Here in the city of God the redeemed will partake of
the fruit of the tree of life.
"And there shall be no more curse." Rev. 22:3. Sin has been
destroyed and will never return. Thank God for the promise of the
word that when the Lord destroys sin "He will make an utter
end: affliction shall not rise up the second time." Nahum : 9.
In that glorious land
"My people shall dwell in a peaceful habitation, and in sure dwellings,
and in quiet resting places." Isa. 32: 18. "Instead of the thorn shall come
up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree."
Isa. 55: 13. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there
shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be
any more pain: for the former things are paRsPd away." Rev. 21:4.
"And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein
shall be forgiven their iniquity." Isa. 33: 24.
Loved Ones Reunited

The New Jerusalem shall be " a crown of glory in the hand
of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God."
Isa. 62:3.
"The nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it:
and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it." Rev.
21:24.
"And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither
light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign
forever and ever." Rev. 22:5.
In the new earth "shall I know even as also I am known."
Cor. 13 : 12. Friends and loved ones, long separated by death,
will there be reunited. They shall know each other there just
as they have known each other here.
All the faculties of the human mind will be developed there,
and the capacity for knowledge will be constantly increased.
There will be no enterprise into which one can enter that will
be too great to be carried forward to completion. There will be no
THE REWARD OR THE RIGHTEOUS 219
Eugene J. Hall
The raising of Lazarus. In the glad morning of the resur-
rection the dead will be restored to their loved ones.
ambition that cannot be realized. There will be no end to the

acquirement of knowledge. Our companions will be the angels of
God and the unfallen intelligences of the other worlds.
The Life Everlasting
As the ages of eternity unfold, there will never be any fear
that the years to come will bring an end to the happiness of the
redeemed. When myriads of ages have rolled by, still on beyond
stretches eternity.
The eternal kingdom will soon be here. The day of the Lord
" hasteth greatly." The message of the coming of Christ is even
now in the earth, and is being proclaimed far and wide. Come,
then, to Christ, who rescues the perishing, who saves the lost.
Cast away the sins that offend Him, and take Him for your
Redeemer and Friend. He has given His life that you may have
a part in this glorious new earth. Delay no longer. May you
hear Him say to you, " Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit
the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."
write four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea."
Prophetic Symbols and the Four Beasts
T HE prophetic parts of Scripture are sources of real per-

plexity to many students of the Bible because of the
strangeness of the symbols that are used. Fearful beasts, hoofs,
horns, and teeth, together with periods of symbolic time, form
but a confused jumble to many sincere readers of the word of
God.
The ancient prophets were given visions in which they saw
future history unfolded. Symbols and types and figures were
used to represent the great actors and the great events of the
future. These symbols were sometimes plain of themselves, but
usually required some explanation. Sometimes this explanation
was given by means of the prophet's overhearing a soliloquy
or conversation among the inhabitants of the heavenly world;
sometimes it was communicated by an angel directly to the
prophet himself.
During recent years the educational world has discovered
that one of the very best methods of imparting information
and giving instruction is that of teaching by object lessons.
This method has now been adopted very widely in the public
(220
PROPHETIC SYMBOLS AND THE POUR BEASTS 221
school system of the United States and other countries. Thou-
sands of years ago God knew the value and benefits of this
method, and used it largely in the writing of the Bible, especially
in its prophetic parts.
It is this method that is employed in the prophecy that
follows :
"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and
visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum
of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and,
behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four
great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first
was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were
plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet
as a man, and a man's heart was given to it." Dan. 7: 1-4:
It is just such parts of the Scripture as this that bring
discouragement to many a Bible student's heart. As they read
they say to themselves, "What a strange dream; what can it
possibly mean?" They decide that the Bible is one of the most
peculiar and most difficult books in the world. Many, coming
face to face with such a prophecy for the first time, and not
finding an explanation at once, give up trying to understand
its meaning. When they read through the Bible again they
avoid going over these prophecies, which are so rich in instruc-
tion and wisdom for the people of God today. Undoubtedly
the two most neglected books in the Bible are those of Daniel
and the Revelation, the books that are filled with prophetic
symbols of beasts, horns, wings, many-headed monsters, and
their strange doings.
These Symbols Are Cartoons
When the same person picks up the daily paper and sees
similar things portrayed there in the form of cartoons, he has
no difficulty in understanding the meaning. All are accustomed
to just such representations in the daily press as are found in
the prophetic parts of the Bible. So accustomed to them, in-
deed, that they grasp their meaning in a mere glance. Such car-
toons never give the trouble that the. cartoons of the Bible do.
For these symbols of prophecy are cartoons—cartoons by the
Master Artist. If all who study the Bible could get that
thought clearly into their minds, it would make plain many
things that have been considered unaccountable in these
prophecies. Then the prophetic parts of the Scripture would

be found to be rich and fruitful fields of study in which all
would take the keenest delight in wandering.
A cartoon 'in the paper today in which a lion is portrayed
in a certain relation to an eagle would be understood at once by
all who saw it. They would understand the lion to represent
Great Britain and the eagle to represent the United States.
A bear in this cartoon would be understood to represent Russia;
a great yellow dragon would be recognized as a symbol of China;
and so on through a long list of symbols. Very few would have
any difficulty in grasping the meaning of this symbolism.
Its use is wide spread throughout the world today.
This method conveys in an instant what other methods
would take a much longer time to convey, which is evidently
the reason why the Lord employed it in the prophecies. By it He
could impart to men a great amount of truth in a very small
compass.
In the seventh chapter of Daniel, God has told the whole
history of the world, from the time of Daniel to the end of the
world, in eight verses. In these verses God has covered the
history of the four great empires of the world, history that
human historians take whole libraries to tell, and He has told
it so well in these pictures that He has left out no important
thing.
History in Advance
And it must be remembered, this is history in advance. In
these prophecies, God describes the course of these empires
before some of them existed. Surely, if this is done correctly,
all must confess that only the One who knows the end from the
beginning could possibly have caused these prophecies to be
written. Jehovah, the God of heaven, to whose glance all the
future is as open as the past, caused these things to pass before
the mind of Daniel in holy vision, and they were written for
our learning, who, in this age of the world, are to see their
complete fulfillment.
What is hidden and mysterious in one part of the Bible is
sure to be explained in another part. Let us notice the meaning
of the symbols used in the given passage and see also how
completely the Bible is its own best commentator.
PROPHETIC SYMBOLS AND THE VOHR BEASTS 223
In the passage the chief symbols are the winds, the sea,
and the beasts. Wind, in symbolic prophecy, represents war,
strife, commotion, bloodshed. This is made plain by the follow-
ing verse:
"Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation
to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the
earth. And the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the
earth even unto the other end of the earth. " Jer. 25: 32, 33•
Here bloodshed and death are said to be caused by a "great
whirlwind," or a great war, for the thirty-first verse of the
chapter says that those who are thus slain are given " to the
sword." That wind represents war is again evident from the
fact that in this chapter four great kingdoms arise as a result of
winds beating upon the sea; and those who have read history
know that it is as a consequence of war that most of the nations
of the earth have arisen. Wind, then, in prophecy is a syinbol
of war.
The sea, or water, is a symbol of the peoples, nations, and
multitudes of the earth.
"And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, . . . are
peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." Rev. 17: 15.
The four great beasts that Daniel saw in the vision represent
four great nations, or kingdoms, which were to come into
existence in the world. It is thus stated by the angel who ex-
plained the vision to the prophet :
"These great beasts, which are four, are four kings [or kingdoms, see
verse 23], which shall arise out of the earth." Dan. 7: 17.
Thus it is plain that this prophecy, which is given in
figurative language, can be literally stated as follows:
I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, as a result of great wars
among the people and nations of the earth, four great kingdoms arose,
different one from another.
The Four Great Beasts
The first of these kingdoms is represented by the symbol of a
lion. By a study of other passages that mention this same
symbol its meaning can be made plain.
"The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gen-
tiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate;
and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant." Jer. 4: 7.
"The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings."
Here the lion is called " the destroyer of the Gentiles." The
land of the kingdom of Judah was to be made desolate by this
destroyer, its cities laid waste, and their inhabitants removed.
Speaking again of this same power, Jeremiah wrote:
"Por thus saith the Lord; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall
spread his wings over Moab." Jer. 48:40.
This lion, then, which is to destroy the cities of Judah, is to
fly as an eagle. Obviously this is the very lion that Daniel saw
in his vision. Jeremiah, speaking again of this lion which flies as
an eagle, reveals the meaning of the symbol by naming the lion:
"Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings
over Bozrah: . . . Concerning Kedar, and concerning the kingdoms of
Hazor, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon shall smite, etc." Jer.
49: 22, 28.
Babylon, the Lion
The lion is a symbol of Babylon, especially under Nebu-
chadnezzar. This is the power that made desolate the land of
Judah, laid waste its cities, including Jerusalem, and took the
Jews into captivity. In fact Daniel was one of these captives
at the very time he was given this prophecy. The eagle's
wings represent the rapidity with which Babylon conquered its
enemies. It spread its wings over them all until all the kingdoms
of the ancient world were brought under.subjection to Babylon.
In the vision Daniel saw a change come over the lion.
PROPHRTIC SYMBOLS AND TIM FOUR BEASTS 225
Its wings were plucked. The time came in its history when it no
longer flew over the nations in conquest. It was lifted up from
the earth, made to stand on its feet as a man, and a man's
heart was given to it. It became decadent under Belshazzar,
its lion-heartedness disappeared under the luxury and vice of
his reign, and it was given the timid, fearful heart of a man.
These things presaged its overthrow.
Medo-Persia, the Bear
"And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up
itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth
of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh." Dan. 7: 5.
Babylon fell, and it was succeeded by its conqueror, the
empire of the Medes and the Persians. The bear represents
this kingdom. The two elements of this kingdom, the Medes
and the Persians, are represented by the bear raising itself
up on one side, showing that one element was higher than the
other. This was true, the Persian element predominating.
Greece, the Leopard
"After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the
back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion
was given to it." Verse 6.
Medo-Persia was overthrown in three great battles with
Alexander the great, the battles of Granicus in 334 B. c., of
"A second, like to a bear. . . . and it had three ribs in the mouth of it."
15
Another, like a leopard, which had four wings and four heads.
Issus in 333 B. C., and of Arbela in 331 D. C. The leopard rep-

resents Greece; the wings on its back represent the unparalleled
rapidity with which Greece made its conquests under Alexander,
who marched his armies 5,100 miles in eight years, and brought
all the kingdoms of the ancient world under his sway.
Not long after his conquest of the great empire of Medo-
Persia, Alexander died at Babylon in a drunken debauch,
in 323 B. c. His kingdom maintained its unity but a short time
after his death, and by 301 13. C., it was divided between the
four leading generals of his army: Cassander,. Lysimachus,
Seleuchus and Ptolemy. These divisions are represented by the
four heads of the leopard beast. Cassander ruled over the
kingdom of the west, comprising Greece and Macedon; Lysima-
chus over the kingdom of the north, comprising Thrace and
some provinces in Asia Minor; Seleuchus over the kingdom of the
east, comprising Syria and the provinces to the east of Palestine;
and Ptolemy over the kingdom of the south, comprising Egypt,
Arabia, Palestine, Libya, etc.
Rome, the Terrible Beast

"After tills I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast,
dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth:
it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it:
and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten
horns." Verse 7.
The divisions of Greece, noted above, were overthrown

by Rome, the final overthrow of the Greeks taking place in
168 B. C., at the battle of Pydna. Rome is represented by the
terrible, tenThorned beast, and fitly represented, for Rome was
dreadful, terrible, and exceedingly strong.
•
The Ten Kingdoms

The ten horns out of this beast are said by the angel in
verse 24 to represent ten kingdoms that were to come out of
Rome. This was fulfilled in the establishment in the territory
of Western Rome between the years 351 and 476 A. D., of the
kingdoms of the Allemanni, the Pranks, the Seuvi, the Burgun-
dians, the Vandals, the Anglo-Saxons, the Visigoths, the
Ostrogoths, the Heruli, and the Lombards.
"I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them
another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked
up by the roots; and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man,
and a mouth speaking great things." Verse 8.
An eleventh kingdom arose in the territory of Rome, causing
the fall of three of the first kingdoms. By the angel this is
explained as follows:
"And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise:
and another shall arise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first,
and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak great words against
The fourth beast had great The little horn became great and
iron teeth and ten horns. had eyes and mouth like a man.
The ten divisions of the Roman empire.
(228)
the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think
to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a
time and times and the dividing of time. But the judgment shall sit, and
they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the
end." Verses 24-26.
This prophecy of the little horn points directly to the
Papacy, or Roman Church. Every specification of the prophecy
is fully met in the Papacy. The Papacy arose in the territory
of Rome. It was "diverse from the first" ten kingdoms, in
that it was a religious power claiming dominion over both
temporal and spiritual affairs. It was a union of the church
and state, with the church supreme.
Subdued Three Kingdoms
It did subdue three of the first kingdoms. Its ambitious
designs being opposed by the Heruli, the Vandals, and the
Ostrogoths, it became necessary to destroy these three if it
were to become supreme. It "plucked up" the Heruli in
A. D. 493, the Vandals in A. D. 534, and gave a deathblow to the
independence of the Ostrogoths in A. D. 538. Its agent in these
wars was the armies of the Roman Empire under Belisarius,
which were sent by the Emperor Justinian to break the power
of the Ostrogoths in behalf of the Papacy. The Ostrogoths
were driven from Rome in A. D. 538, which thus becomes the
date for the beginning of that period of time mentioned in the
twenty-fifth verse, during which the Papacy was to have power
over the people and the laws of the Most High.
Great Words against God
The Papacy has spoken "great words against the Most
High." Throughout all its long history, under the pretense of
being for God, it has been against Him, against His people,
His truth, and His church.
The Papacy has "worn out the saints of the Most High."
Between fifty and one hundred millions of the people of God
have suffered for their faith during the supremacy of this power:
They were put to death in every way known to the ingenuity of
men, being thrown into caldrons of burning oil, torn with hot
pinch'ers, splinters of pine wood driven under the finger and toe
nails and then set on fire to burn into their flesh, pulled asunder
by the rack, and burned at the stake.
The Papacy has attempted "to change times and laws."
This points directly to its attempted change of the Sabbath.
The testimony to prove this, and the confession of the Roman
Church, have been presented at length in a former chapter, and
need not be repeated here. • Before leaving this statement,
however, it will be well to notice the exact wording. The state-
ment is that this power, the Papacy, shall "think to change
times and laws." It will make the attempt to do so, "think"
to do so, but the change will not actually be made. The Sabbath
has not really been changed. The seventh day is just as much
the Sabbath now as it ever was. What has been changed is
the observance of the people, who have turned away from the
Sabbath of Jehovah to the sabbath of the Papacy.
Supreme for 1260 Years
The period during which the Papacy would have power to
work its will with the saints, the times, and the law of God is
next pointed out in the prophecy. "They shall be given into his
hand until a time and times and the dividing of time." In
other prophecies regarding the Papacy this period of time is
mentioned :
"A time, and times, and half a time." Rev. 12: 14.
"Power was given unto him to continue forty and two months."
Rev. 13:5.
"A thousand two hundred and threescore days." Rev. 12:6.
A "time" in prophecy is the same as a year (Dan. II : 13,
margin, and the Revised Version). "Time and times and the
dividing of time," would be three years and a half. Three
years and a half would be forty-two months, the same period
mentioned in Rev. 13 : 5. In prophetic reckoning the old,
ecclesiastical reckoning of the Jews must be used. This con-
tained 36o days to each year, or twelve months of 3o days each.
Party-two months of 3o days each would be 126o days, and
three and one-half years of 36o days each would be 1260 days.
As each day of prophetic time represents a year (Ezek. 4: 6),
this long period, the end of which was to mark the limit of the
time of the supremacy of the Papacy over the saints, the times,
and the laws of God, would therefore be 126o years. The be-
ginning of this time is marked by the year 538. A. D. At that
time the Ostrogoths in Rome were given their deathblow.
PROPHETIC SYMBOLS AlID THE }OUR BEASTS 23
Adding 126o years to this date we are brought to 1798 as the

terminal point of papal supremacy, and the end of the 126o
years.
The End of the 1260 Years
In 1798, the end of the time of papal supremacy, a Prench
army under Berthier entered Rome, proclaimed a Roman
Republic, took the pope prisoner and exiled him into Prance,
where he died the following year. A new pope was not elected
until 1800. Prom 1798 to the present time the Papacy has not
possessed that power that it had before that date. The prophecy
has been exactly fulfilled.
pRoPHETIC DAYS ( 1 260 Li-I-ERA

/oe 0 . ?A
E
„#:+5 SHE X86
000°
500 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1800 1700 1800
A chart showing the period of papal supremacy.
It would be natural to expect that if the Papacy was to have

power over the "laws" of God until 1798, after that time the
law of God, and especially the Sabbath commandment, against
which the Papacy has chiefly worked, would again be set
before the world in its true light. This is true. There is a
special message being presented to the world at this time, a
prominent feature of which is obedience to God in the matter
of Sabbath reform.
The Eternal Kingdom
Before long the dominion of the Papacy will be completely
taken away.
"But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion,
to consume and to destroy it unto the end. " Dan. 7: 26.
The dominion of the earth will be given to the people of God,
and the everlasting kingdom of Christ will be established.
"And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom
shall serve and obey Him." Dan. 7: 27.
Thus the prophecy ends with the assurance that Christ's
kingdom is near at hand. It points forward to that time when
God's people, so long without a kingdom of their own, will at
last enter into the kingdom prepared for them and be free from
all oppressive powers, holding it in everlasting possession.
Let the reader turn his eyes to' that same period, and through the
grace of Christ, have his life brought into obedience to and
harmony with the law of God, that he "may have right to the
tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
(Rev. 22: 14.)
The conquering rider in the first seal symbolized apostolic victories.
The Seven Seals

THE student of prophecy the most interesting of all the
books of the Bible is the book of the Revelation. It
contains prophecies regarding the last days of surpassing glory
and power. Notwithstanding this, perhaps it is the least studied
of all the books of the Bible. In the, very days when its wonder-
ful predictions are receiving their fulfillment it is given but
little attention.
Undoubtedly this is due to the idea that prevails that it is a
hiddenund mysterious book; a book of enigmas that cannot be
solved; of mysteries unfathomable; of visions the hidden mean-
ings of which cannot be unlocked. There are many who think
it was never designed to be studied or understood.
This idea is utterly swept away by the opening sentences of
the book.
"The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him, to show
unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and
signified it by His angel unto His servant John: who bare record of the
word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that
he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this
prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time
is at hand." Rev. 1: 1-3. ,
Instead of being a mystery, this book is a " Revelation" ;
(233)
234 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANINO
indeed, it is "the Revelation of Jesus Christ." Its whole design
is to reveal " unto His servants things which must shortly come
to pass." It is not intended to conceal these things. A
blessing is pronounced on the study of this book that is placed on
the study of no other book of the Bible. It is a blessed thing to
study any book of the Bible, there is a blessing in all Bible
study, but there is a special blessing in studying the book of the
Revelation. May that blessing be experienced by the reader
as he reads and studies this book. Above all let the reader
notice that there is a special blessing upon those who "keep
those things which are written therein. "
The book of Revelation contains a number of prophecies,
such as the seven churches, the seven seals, the seven trumpets,
the seven last plagues, and the prophecy regarding the United
States.
The prophecy of the seven churches is the history of the
church of Christ foretold for the entire Christian era. This era
from the first coming to the second coming of Christ, is divided
into seven periods of time, and the condition and history of
the church in each one of these periods is foretold, under the
name of one of the seven churches of Asia.
The prophecy of the seven trumpets is a prophecy of war,
of political events, the chief political events during the Christian
era, especially connected with the break-up of the Roman
empire, both East and West. Again the Christian era is divided
into seven periods of time in this prophecy as in the seven
churches.
The prophecy of the seven seals deals with the religious
history of the world from the beginning of the Christian era to
the end of the world, and, with the other prophecies, divides
this era into seven periods of time.
The First and Second Seals
"And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it
were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow;
and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to
conquer." Rev. 6: 1, 2.
This is a symbol of the triumphs of the Christian church
during the first century of the Christian era, during the days of
'11HE SEVEN SEALS 235
the apostles of Christ. The color of the horse represents the
purity of the church in that period. It was pure, both in life and
doctrine. What it believed was the truth, and this truth was
manifested in the outward lives of those who believed.
With the truth of the gospel in its purity, and with pure
lives, the first Christians went forth "conquering, and to con-
quer." They advanced against the very strongholds of the
pagan religions of their time, and because of the purity of their
faith and life they achieved
remarkable victories, such great
victories indeed that it could be
said of them that they preached
the gospel to the entire world.
(Col. i:5, 23.)
When the church returns to
that purity of faith and life
that was manifested in the days
of the apostles, the same vic-
tories for the truth of God will
be seen at this time. The mes-
sage of God for today will be
taken to all the world in one
generation.
The time covered by the first
seal is from the time of Christ
to about the year roo. A. D. Feuds and ambitions dyed the horse in the
"And when He had opened the second seal red with the blood of brethren.
second seal, I heard the second beast
say, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red: and
power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and
that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great
sword. " Rev. 6: 3, 4-
After the days of the apostles divisions crept into the
church. The things that Paul had foretold began to come
to pass. Paul had said to the elders of the church at Ephesus:
"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter
in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men
arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them." Acts
20: 29, 30.
He spoke also of the falling away in his Second Epistle to the

Thessalonians, and declared that even in his time " the mystery
of iniquity doth already work." (2 Thess. 2: 7.)
Shortly after the death of the last of the apostles these
things began to be rapidly fulfilled. Men arose speaking per-
verse things. False doctrines began to be taught. The truth of
God was perverted, changed into a lie. By these false doctrines
the faith of Christians was corrupted, and a corresponding
change came into their lives. Satan instilled unholy ambitions
into the minds of the leaders of the church. They began to
seek for positions of power and influence. The glory of the
pure principles of the gospel became dimmed. Falsehood
took the place of truth. False shepherds assumed command of
the church, and the light, of the gospel was well-nigh obscured.
The Development of the Apostasy
When the churches in the large cities of the empire were
first organized by the apostles, the officers had been selected by
the members of the church, and entered upon their duties as
servants of the church. They were not to lord it over God's
heritage, they were not to dictate the faith and conduct of the
people, and they were not to be rulers of the people.
These officers were few in number. The chief officer of the
church was called an "elder" or "bishop." These titles are
used in the Bible interchangeably to designate the same officer,
the leader of a local congregation. (Titus I : 5-7.) It was the
duty of the elder, or bishop, to look after the spiritual affairs
of the church, and feed the flock of God with spiritual food.
The business and temporal affairs of the church were cared
for by officers called deacons, who were also elected by the
church. These could be as, numerous as the size of the church
might require.
Such churches as this were organized in many of the large
cities of the Roman empire where the apostles preached, such as
Ephesus, Corinth, Philippi, Thessalonica, Rome, Jerusalem,
and Antioch, and many others cities had such organizations.
After the apostles went on to preach in other places these
churches took up the work of preaching the gospel in their
own localities. Their work was prospered and their member-
ship greatly increased.
As the gospel spread out into the suburbs of a city and
THE SEVEN SEALS 237
into the surrounding country, it became necessary to build

smaller churches in various sections surrounding the mother
church, from which they had grown. A little company would
thus be organized into a small church, and as it was zealous in
missionary work it soon grew larger and stronger. So the gospel
grew and spread abroad, and believers multiplied iii great
numbers. Small churches grew up around the larger ones,
and these in turn became surrounded with other churches,
and the gospel was beginning to lighten the world with its glory.
Began with the Leaders
The apostasy which later developed into the Papacy began
with the leaders of the church, just as Paul had predicted.
There were many occasions when it became necessary to hold
great union meetings, or conferences, to counsel together
concerning the work of the church. The natural place to hold
these meetings was the mother church at the heart of the great
city. When all the representatives of the various companies
and churches had gathered together, and the conference was
about to open, it was the courteous thing for the elders of the
smaller churches to request the elder, or bishop, of the mother
church, to preside over the meeting.
It was not long before this privilege of presiding over and
directing the affairs of the churches in a province, which had
heretofore been granted as a courtesy, was demanded as a
right — a right pertaining to the office of bishop of the large
church. Satan, who had himself fallen through self-exaltation,
now caused the fall of the leaders of the church through the
same sin. Seeking their own glory instead of the glory of Christ,
the bishops of the larger churches began to claim that it was
their right, by virtue of their office, to exercise a controlling
influence over the affairs of the churches in their territory;
to select their officers and ministers for them; and to be rec-
ognized as the ranking officer of the church in that territory.
When a larger gathering of the churches was held and all the
churches in one of the great provinces of the Roman empire
came together in conference at such a gathering, this meeting
would naturally be held in the capital city of that province,
and the bishop of the church in that capital city would be asked
to preside. He soon began to demand this as a right pertaining
to his office, and to claim that his authority extended even over
the bishops of the larger churches, who were in their turn ex•
tending their authority over the bishops, or elders, of the smaller
churches.
Thus the system of episcopacy grew. Bishops exalted them-
selves above the elders; archbishops above the bishops; and
finally the bishop of Rome began to claim that as he was the
head of the church that had been established by the two great
apostles, Peter and Paul, and that was at the capital of the
empire, therefore his authority extended over all other churches
in the world.
It is the beginning of this great apostasy from the truth of
the gospel that is covered in the second seal. The perversions
that came into the church during this time and the ambitions
that were characteristic of the leaders, caused strife, dissension,
turmoil, and even bloodshed in the church. Factions arose
behind each ambitious bishop, and fought out his claims. Thus
the horse seen under the seal is red, and a great sword is given
to its rider.
The time of this seal is from mo A. D. to about 323 A. D., at
the professed conversion of Constantine, the emperor of Rome.
The Third Seal
"And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say,
Come and see. And I
beheld, and lo a black
horse; and he that sat
on him had a pair of
balances in his hand.
And I heard a voice in
the midst of the four
beasts say, A measure
of wheat for a penny,
and three measures of
barley for a penny; and
see thou hurt not the
oil and the wine." Rev.
6:5,6.
A black horse!
Just the opposite of
the first horse!
During the period
covered by the The color of darkness typified the degradation of the church
THE SEVEN SEALS 239
third seal there was a complete perversion of the truth of the

gospel. This is God's photograph of Roman Catholicism. It is
just the opposite of the gospel. The church was completely
corrupted.
It was during the period succeeding the professed conversion
of Constantine that the claims of the Bishop of Rome to
universal authority were finally recognized. He demanded the
right to appoint the archbishops and the bishops, and to
exalt certain of these archbishops and bishops to be cardinals
to compose a great council for his extensive kingdom. Gradually
these demands were granted, though not without much strife
and bloodshed. Thus grew the Roman Catholic Church until
all its power had been gathered into the hands of its leaders
whose sole purpose was to achieve supreme power for themselves.
Perversion in Doctrine
Then, having secured all the power of the church to them-
selves, they reached out for the power of the state in order to
enforce their will upon all the people of the earth. They suc-
ceeded far beyond their own expectations. Growing thus
gradually through the centuries, the time came when Catholi-
cism became supreme over the bodies, minds, and souls of men.
While all this perversion of the simplicity of the gospel in the
matter of organization was taking place, there was also a fearful
perversion going on in doctrine. Superstition was taking the
place of faith. The customs of the heathen were being trans-
formed into ceremonies of the church. An elaborate ritualism
was taking the place of the simplicity of the gospel. The people
were being drawn away from Christ and His truth.
Pilgrimages were made to Jerusalem and other places in
Palestine. The dust of the streets in these cities was swept up,
carried to Rome and other places in Europe, and sold at immense
prices. Supposed bones of the apostles began to make their
appearance, and were worshiped as relics. Pieces of the manger
in which Christ was laid at His birth were discovered, at least
so it was claimed, and were sold in Rome and adored. Pieces
of the alleged cross, enough to make many crosses, were found
and sold at prices that tax our credulity. The supposed nails
that pierced the hands and feet of Christ were found and sold
by the hundred. Two skulls of St. Peter were found and

worshiped at special shrines.
Good men after their death were made into saints, and
prayers were said to them. As these saints soon became so
numerous that it was difficult to pray to them all in one day, a
string of beads was supplied. As the beads were counted,
prayers to the dead were offered, each bead standing for a
prayer to a saint.
The first day of the week, the great festival day of the sun-
worshipers, was exalted to take the place of the Sabbath of
Jehovah, the seventh day. Magnificent temples began to be
built, and in them not the worship of God, but the worship .of a
little wafer god, was carried forward. This wafer was said to be
the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ. It was sacrificed by
the priest in the bloodless sacrifice of the mass, a purely idola-
trous service. Images of the saints began to make their appear-
ance. These were worshiped just as the heathen worship their
idols. The Bishop of Rome was exalted to be Supreme Pontiff,
until he took the place of God on earth. The priests claimed the
power to forgive sins. A decree was passed making it wrong
for priests to marry, resulting in great immorality and scandal.
A place of departed spirits was found and called Purgatory.
It was discovered that the souls of the departed might be
gotten out of this place of punishment by the payment of
money to the priest for saying masses. •
The Revelator says he heard a voice saying, "A measure of
wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny."
A spirit of commercialism came into the church. The good
things of the church were sold. Everything had its price. When
a child was born, the priest must be paid. When the child was
sprinkled, the priest was paid. When the child went to cate-
chism, the priest was paid. When the child was confirmed,
the priest was paid. When the child went to confession, the
priest was paid. When the child grew up and was married, the
priest was paid. When his children were born, the priest was
paid. When he died and extreme unction was given the dying,
the priest was paid. Even after death the priest was paid to
get him out of Purgatory. So from living or dead, money flowed
into the hands of the priest.
THE SEVEN SEALS 241
In addition to this the offices of the church were sold.
A priest could be made a bishop if he paid the price. A bishop
could buy the office of archbishop, an archbishop the office of
cardinal, and even the office of pope was bought. Everything
had its price.
Thus the sunlight of the gospel of Christ was blotted out by
the thick pall of the blackness of unmixed heathenism. It is not
to be wondered at that the horse of the third seal was black.
All this came about so gradually that only a few saw its real
character. The vast multitude was deceived into believing
that this was still the true church.
The time covered by this seal is from Al. D. 323 to A. D. 538,
at the establishment of papal supremacy.
The Fourth and Fifth Seals
"And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the
fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold a pale horse:
and his name that sat
on him was Death, and
Hell [or the grave] fol-
lowed with him. And
power was given unto
them over the fourth
part of the earth, to
kill with sword, and
with hunger, and with
death, and with the
beasts of the earth."
Rev. 6: 7, 8.
The color pale
does not' indicate
that the church is
now returning to its
Death of the spirituality of the church and of
first condition, or the martyrs gave this horse its ghastly hue.
color, of white.
This color is that sickly, deathly, blighted color of a sickly and
dying plant. It is worse than death.
Under this seal the people of God were persecuted and put to
death. When the Papacy became fully established, it began to
persecute those who had remained faithful to the truth of the
gospel. They were driven out from among men to find a home
in the rocks and caves of the mountains. They were hunted
16
like wild beasts and were put to death wherever they were
found. For more than a thousand years the apostate church
did its utmost to blot out true Christianity from the earth.
Tens of millions of the people of God through these long,
weary ages suffered martyrdom for their faith. Their blood
flowed like water.
But still the blood of the saints was the seed of the church.
As they died, others were won by their constancy and took their
places, and carried forward the torch of truth. In the mountain
regions of Europe a remnant was preserved by the people of
God. They kept the light of truth burning brightly through the
awful years, and handed on to posterity that liberty of con- .
science for which they had contended, and which is the great
boon of Christianity to the world today.
This seal covers the time known as the Dark Ages, the times
of great tribulation for the church of .Christ. It was the very
height and glory of the Papacy, but it was the darkest period of
this earth's history. The time of this seal is from A.D. 538 to the
beginning of the sixteenth century, the opening of the Protes-
tant Reformation.
"And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the
souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony
which they held: and they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, 0
Lord, holy and true, dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on them
that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of
them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little
season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be
killed as they were, should be fulfilled. " Rev. 6: 9-11.
This seal covers the time of the Protestant Reformation. It
must not be understood that John saw the disembodied spirits
of the dead. What John saw was that the death of the martyrs
under the preceding seal demanded retribution. Just as
Abel's blood is said to have cried from the ground, so the death
of the martyrs demanded vengeance. They were seen under the
altar, that is under the place where they were sacrificed, the
earth, in their graves. Their deaths were not to go unpunished.
"White Robes Were Given unto Every One of Them"
Under the Protestant Reformation their characters were
cleared. When they were put to death they were considered
yymp than the vilest criminals, unfit to live, as the very worst
THE SEVEN SEALS 243
people of the earth. But when the light of the Reformation
began to blaze across the sky, and the world began to be lightened
with its glory, it began to be seen that the martyrs were not at
all what they had been charged, but were, on the contrary,'
the true, loyal people of God. Old truths, long hidden under
papal error, were rediscovered by the reformers. The blessed
Bible, which the Romish church had done its utmost to destroy
and keep unknown, was printed in the language of the people,
and it shed its glorious light wherever it was read. Thousands
and tens of thousands shook off the intolerable yoke of Rome,
gave up its degrading idolatry, and became Protestants.
The night of error was passing away, and the day of truth
and liberty was about to break over the world. In the light of
this new day the martyrs were seen in their true light. Thus
"white robes were given unto every one of them."
The fifth seal covers the time from the beginning of the
sixteenth century to about the middle of the eighteenth
century, the time of the Protestant Reformation.
The Sixth Seal
"And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a
great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the
moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as
a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every
mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the
earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the
mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in
the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and ,said to the mountains
and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the
throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of His wrath is
come; and who shall be able to stand?" Rev. 6: 12-17.
The event that opens the sixth seal is a great earthquake.
Undoubtedly this was the great earthquake of Lisbon, which
took place on Nov. I, 1755. In Sear's " Wonders of the World, "
pages 50, 58, and 381, this earthquake is declared to have
extended over at least 4,000,000 square miles, and destroyed
considerably over ioo,000 lives. No greater earthquake had
taken place in the history of the world.
"And the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the
1310011 became as blood." This is the second sign under the sixth
The Lisbon earthquake marks the beginning of the period covered by the sixth seal.
(244)
THE SEVEN SEALS 245
seal. It was fulfilled on May 19, 178o, in the remarkable dark
day of that date.
" And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth. " This is the
third sign of the sixth seal. It was fulfilled in the great meteoric
shower of Nov. 13, 1833. These signs have been commented
on in detail in another chapter of this book, and will not be
dealt with further here.
"And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled to-
gether." This event is in the future. It will not take place until
the breaking up of the earth in connection with the coming of
Christ.
The sixth seal closes with the lost of the earth realizing and
acknowledging that the great day of the wrath of God has come.
It brings us to the coming of Christ, but does not include that
coming.
The present generation is living between the thirteenth and
fourteenth verses of the sixth chapter of Revelation. The great
earthquake of Lisbon is past; the dark day of 1780 is past;
the falling of the stars in 1833 is past. The next event in this
line of prophecy is the departing of the heaven as a scroll.
The end of all things is at hand. Are we ready for that day,
and prepared to meet the Lord in peace, or will we stand among
that throng who call for the rocks and mountains to fall on them
and hide them from the face of Him whom they have rejected?
The Seventh Seal
"And when He had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in
heaven about the space of half an hour." Rev. 8:x.
The close of the sixth seal is the close of the sixth chapter of
Revelation. The seventh seal is not opened until the first verse
of the eighth chapter. Thus between the close of the sixth seal
and the opening of the seventh seal the entire seventh chapter
of Revelation comes in. This chapter contains a prophecy of
certain additional events which are to take place in connection
with the sixth seal, and before the seventh seal is opened.
Under the seventh seal there is "silence in heaven about the
space of half an hour." As this is prophetic time, in which a day
represents a year, and as half an hour is a forty-eighth part of a
day, the actual time represented here would be a forty-eighth
part of a 36o-day year, or seven and a half days.
Silence in heaven for seven and a half days! What is the

fulfillment of this? Consider this: About the only way silence
could be secured in heaven would be to empty heaven of its
inhabitants. Is there ever a time when the angels of heaven
leave there? Yes, just this occurs when Christ comes the second
time.
"When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels
with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory." Matt. 25: 31.
Hence at the second coming of Christ there will be silence in
heaven, for the angels will come with Him. They will come
with Christ to gather together His people (Matthew 24:31),
and then they all return to heaven together to spend the
thousand years of the millennium. Evidently from the time
that Christ leaves heaven with His angels to come the second
time to the earth, to the time when He returns with His people,
a period of seven and a half days elapses.
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No law is valid without its seal.
The Great Seal of Jehovah

A DDITIONAL events are to happen in connection with the
sixth seal. This seal closes with the sixth chapter of Reve-
lation and the seventh seal is opened at the beginning of the
eighth chapter. Thus the seventh chapter comes in between the
sixth and seventh seals, and this is so, obviously, because it
contains a prediction of other events to occur in connection with
the' events of the sixth seal, and before the second coming of
Christ, which takes place under the seventh seal. Wirt these
additional events are will now be discussed.
"And after these things Isaw four angels standing on the four corners
of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not
blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And Isaw another angel
ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried
with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the
earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the
trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads."
Rev. 7: 5 -3.
The symbol of the winds in prophecy represents wars, strife,
and Commotion. (Jer. 25: 32.) Here the wars of the earth are
represented as held in check until the earth is lightened with the
glory of some great message, which was to arise from the east,
or as the sun arises, weak at first, but ultimately the most
prominent thing in the heavens. This work is of such vast im-
(247)
portance in the estimation of God that everything that might
take the attention of the world from it was to be held in check
until it should accomplish a great part of its work, and even
then all the wars and commotions of the world were not to stop
its progress.
The Sealing Work
This work is described as that of sealing "the servants of our
God in their foreheads" with "the seal of the living God."
This was to be accomplished just as the sun arises, which is the
significance of the expression, "from the east." That is, this
work was to commence in weakness, move onward with ever
accumulating force, and close in strength and power, just as the
sun arises in the morning, weak and without much power, and
sweeps on with ever increasing power to the zenith.
The time when this most important work is to be done
is before the opening of the seventh seal, or before the second
coming of Christ, and after the falling of the stars in 1833. In
other words, this prophecy foretells the appearance of a great -
message of truth, a great movement that will seal the servants
of God with His seal in the very days of the present generation
between 1833 and the end of the world.
It is obvious that before this sealing work can be understood
the expression, "the seal of the living God," must be discussed.
This seal is to be placed in the foreheads of "the servants of
our God." Now what is the seal of God? And what is it to
be sealed with that seal?
In speaking of the rite of circumcision in Gen. 17: II the
word "token" is used. In speaking of the same rite again in
Rom. 4: 11 it is referred to both as a " sign " and a "seal."
Thus it is plain that these words, "token," "sign," "seal," are
used in the Bible interchangeably. The seal of God is not some
literal mark that is put in the foreheads of the people of God
today, but rather some observance having special reference to
God, which will serve as a mark of distinction between the
people of God and those who are not in truth His servants,
though they may think they are serving Him. It is a mark that
will distinguish between the true and the false servants of God.
Today a seal is usually found in connection with legal docu-
ments, especially in connection with some law that demands
THE GREAT SEAL OP JEHOVAH 249
obedience. A law must contain a seal. We therefore search for

the seal of God in connection with the law of God.
Isaiah wrote :
"Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will
wait upon the Lord, that hideth His face from the house of Jacob, and I
will look for Him." Isa. 8: i6, 17.
The law of God has a seal. This seal has been removed from
the law of God, and thus removed from the attention, the mind,
of God's people. This verse calls for the seal to be restored to the
law and its claims revived in the minds of the servants of God.
This is to be done at the time when God's people are looking for
the coming of Christ. The accomplishment of this work is
called in the verse the sealing of the law among His disciples,
or putting the seal back into the law, from which it had been
taken.
A legal seal contains three things, three parts. First, it has
the name of the one making the law; second, it contains his
authority for making such a law, expressed in his official title;
and third, it has a description of the territory over which such a
law is to prevail, the extent of the dominion of the lawmaker.
To illustrate: GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT OF
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Here is the name,
the title of authority, and the extent of the dominion. The seal of
God must contain these distinguishing features in order to con-
stitute a genuine seal. As it is found in connection with His law it
must be that part of the law which contains His descriptive title
showing who He is, His official position or right to rule, and the
extent of His dominion.
The Sabbath Commandment
The only part of the law of God that does this is the fourth
commandment, the Sabbath commandment. -No other com-
mandment of the ten can be the seal, for no other commandment
points out who the true God is. The fourth commandment does.
The first three commandments contain the name of God but
do not tell who is meant, as "there be gods many, and lords
many." r Cor. 8 : 5. The last five commandments do not contain
even the name of God. The fifth speaks of the Lord, but does
not say who the Lord is.
Going to the Sabbath commandment, we are not left longer
256 OUR TIMES AND ifiltIR MEA1•fMNG
in doubt as to who the true God is. "For in six days the Lord
made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is." At
once it is dear that these are the commandments of the Creator
himself. Thus with the fourth commandment in its rightful
place, this remarkable document, the Decalogue, the only
document among men that God ever wrote with His own
finger, has a signature; it has a signature that renders it in-
telligible and authentic; it has a seal. Without the fourth com-
mandment, it lacks all these things.
The Sabbath commandment, therefore, contains the seal of
the living God. The name is "The Lord." His title of authority
is that He made heaven and earth; that is, He is "Creator."
The extent of His dominion is "heaven and earth, the sea, and
all that in them is." Here are all the parts of a true seal. The
Sabbath is the seal of God.
And this the Bible substantiates:
"Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and
you throughout your generations: that ye may know that I am the Lord
that doth sanctify you. " Ex. 31: 13.
"Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me
and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them."
Ezek. 20: 12.
"And hallow My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and
you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God." Ezek. 20:20.
A Distinguishing Mark
Thus the Sabbath of the fourth commandment is taken by
the Lord as a sign betwe&I Him and His people of all ages: the
people, by observing that commandment, signifying that they
are worshipers of the true God; and God, by the same com-
mandment, making Himself known as their rightful ruler, inas-
much as He is their Creator.
The seal of God is found. It is the Sabbath of the fourth
commandment. The prophecy, then, of the sealing of the serv-
ants of God in their foreheads with the seal of the living God
foretells the coming, in this present generation, of a world-wide
message of reform with reference to the Sabbath of the Lord.
The distinguishing feature of this message will be the seal of
God, which we have found to be the Sabbath.
Is it true that the observance of the Sabbath puts on the
one observing it a mark or sign of distinction? The best answer
Rau
The Sabbath seals Goers people to Him who is their Rest:
that can be obtained to that question is for the reader himself
to try it. Let the reader keep the seventh-day Sabbath in his
community and he will discover immediately that such a practice
sets him apart both from professed Christians and the people
of the world. It is a striking comment on the Christianity of
the day that a person can arouse the bitterest opposition in a
professedly Christian community by simply beginning the
observance of all the commandments of God. Let a person once
begin the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath and that
person is from that time a marked and peculiar person. Most
assuredly the Sabbath is a mark that distinguishes between
those who obey God and those who merely profess to obey Him.
The Message of Sabbath Reform
The most striking feature of this prophecy is that it is
actually being fulfilled at the present time. There is a message of
reform on the Sabbath question being preached in all the world
today. It began in weakness, as the rising sun, but is rapidly
becoming the most prominent and most important thing in the
world. Thousands of people are troubled regarding it, and are
discussing it earnestly. Thousands are being convinced of its
truth and are bringing their lives into harmony with it. And
now that it has come to the reader, do not, I beseech you, turn
away from it, for its purpose is that of preparing you to meet
the Lord in peace.
In this wonderful message there is salvation from the de-
struction that is soon to come upon all the world, and in it also
is an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God. "Blessed are
they that do His commandments, that they may have right to
the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the
city." Rev. 22: 14. Those who accept the last message of God
to the earth, the sealing message, the message of obedience to
the commandments of God, and through the grace of Christ
have their lives brought into harmony with His will as expressed
in these commandments, will enter into the city of God.
Herbert Photos, Inc,
Earnest men struggled for the glorious principles of our liberty.
The United States in Prophecy
T HE fact that the government of the United States finds a

place in the prophecies of the word of God comes as a sur-
prise to many. But as God has mentioned such empires as
Babylon, Greece, and Rome, as ,well as the nations of modern
Europe, there is really no reason why the United States should
not be mentioned, and very much reason why it should be.
This nation has risen to a greater eminence among the na-
tions than any other. It is now wielding more influence in the
affairs of the human race than any other. God's hand has been
most strikingly manifested in its history and growth. It would
be a source of surprise if God had not mentioned such a govern-
ment in the prophecies of His word.
The struggle for liberty in the world has been a long and
varied one. Through the centuries of the Christian era, thou-
sands of noble men and women have laid their lives on the altar
of this sacred cause. Through their fortitude and their courage,
and because they gave the last full measure of devotion in their
struggle for freedom, liberty has at last triumphed gloriously.
The hopes and aspirations of the human heart for freedom were
met more fully in the establishment of the government of the
United States than they ever had been before since mankind
has been on the earth.
(253)
Paul Thompson
The Declaration of Independence was drafted by a group of noble statesmen.
(254)
The establishment of the government of the United States
was an advance over all systems of government of which his-
tory affords any record. The principles of liberty found their
fairest fruitage here in those great constitutional provisions
which formed the fundamental law of the land—freedom of
conscience, freedom of worship, freedom of speech, and freedom
of the press. This fair land, as a consequence, became a
haven of refuge for the oppressed of the world.
Source of Sovereignty in the People
The Declaration of Independence, that great document
which gave birth to the nation, occupies the same relation to
the state as the Bible does to the church. It sets forth two great,
new principles as the basis of governmental existence, principles
which are right and true in every respect. Sumner sets them
forth in this way:
"The words that 'governments derive their just power from the
consent of the governed' are sacred words, full of life-giving energy. Not
simply national independence was here proclaimed, but also the primal
rights of mankind. Then and there appeared the angel of human liberation,
speaking and acting at once with heaven-born strength, breaking bolts,
unloosing bonds, and opening prison doors; always ranging on its mighty
errand, wherever there are any, no matter of what country or race, who
struggle for rights denied; . . . especially visiting all who are down-
trodden, whispering that there is none so poor as to be without rights which
every man is bound to respect; none so degraded as to be beneath its
beneficent reach; none so lofty as to be above its restraining power; While
before it despotism and oligarchy fall on their faces, like the image of
Dagon, and the people everywhere begin to govern themselves.
"The Declaration of Independence is the twofold promise; first, that all
are equal in rights; and secondly, that just government stands only on the
consent of the governed, being the two great political commandments
on which hang all laws and political constitutions. Keep these truly and
you will keep all. Write them in your statutes; write them in your hearts.
This is the great and only final settlement of all existing questions. To
this sublime consecration of the republic let us aspire."
In addition to this principle that the power of the state is
deriired from the people governed by the state, there is another
principle set forth in the Declaration that' it is important for
us to consider. Anciently, and in some modern instances as
well, the principle upon which nations were governed was that
"might makes right." No matter how tyrannical or despotic or
criminal the thing was that the nation did, if it ligd sufficient
arbitrary power and physical force to do it, the possession of
this power always proved the rightfulness of the thing done.
Right Superior to All Earthly Power
It was also held by some in olden times, and is by some today
as well, that if the majority of the people approved of a thing,
it must be right. " Vox Populi Vox Dei" —" The voice of the
people is the voice of God."
The Declaration of Independence discards and repudiates
both these theories. Its last paragraph declares that the United
Colonies as free and independent states "have full power to
levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish com-
merce, and to do all other acts and things which independent
states may of right do."
Here a new doctrine is set forth. Before this, sovereignty had
been held to be unlimited and illimitable. - Now right is set forth
as superior to all earthly pOwer. Sumner, in his "Works," com-
ments on this :
"But the great Declaration, not. content with announcing certain
rights as unalienable, and therefore beyond the control of any government,
still further restrains the sovereignty, which it asserts by simply declaring
that the United States have 'full power to do all acts and things which
independent States may of right do.' Here is a well defined limitation upon
the popular sovereignty. . . . Mark, now, the difference: All existing
governments at that time, even the local governments of the colonies, stood
on power without limitation. Here was a new government, which, taking
its place among the nations, announced that it stood only on right, and
claimed no sovereignty inconsistent with right."
John Quincy Adams, a president of the United States,

speaking on this principle in a Fourth of July oration at New-
buryport, Mass., in 1837, said:
"The Declaration acknowledged the rule of right paramount to all
power of independent states itself, and virtually disclaimed any power to
do wrong. This was a novelty in the moral philosophy of nations, and it is
the essential point of difference between the system of government an-
nounced in the Declaration of Independence and those systems which
had until then prevailed among men. . . . It was an experiment upon the
heart of man. All the legislators of the human race until that day had laid
the foundations of all government among men in power; and hence it was
that in the maxims of theory, as well as in the practice of nations, sover-
eignty was held to be unlimited and illimitable. The Declaration of
Independence proclaimed another law, . . . a law of right, binding upon
nations as well as upon individuals, upon sovereigns as well as upon subjects,
. . . In assuming the attributes of
sovereign power, the colonists ap-
pealed to the Supreme Judge of the
world for the rectitude of their inten-
tions, and neither claimed nor con-
ferred authority to do anything but
right."
Certainly "the Supreme
Judge of the world" led in the
establishment of such a system
of government. The hand of
Providence has been signally
displayed in the development of
these principles in the United.
States. Here is carried out more
fully than anywhere else in the
world the great Bible principles
of separation of church and
state, and freedom of conscience
and religion. Here it is su-
premely true that " the powers
that be are ordained of God."
Rom. 13 : I, 2. And here, above
all, " Let every soul be subject
to the higher powers."
Satan the Enemy of Liberty
It is to be expected, as in the
case of all past history, that the The
Paul Thompson
archenemy of liberty would dim her
great antagonist of the principles light and uncrown her head.
of soul freedom, the devil, will
do his utmost to overthrow these principles as they are exempli-
fied in. America, raising up his own agencies for this purpose.
Every Christian, as well as every citizen of the United States,
should be on his guard against such attempts and do all in his
power to defeat them. The principles of freedom for which the
United States stands are worthy of the utmost loyalty on the part
of all its citizens, and they should be defended even to the
sacrifice of life itself. •
It should be a source of gratitude that God has pointed out
in the prophecies of the Bible just what the character of these
17
attempts will be that will be aimed at the liberties of the citi-
zens of America. Knowing in advance what to look for, we
shall be better able to guard against them. The prophecy
indicates that great religious combinations will seek the power
of the government to enact their will into law.
The Gospel Church
The prophecy dealing with the United States begins as
follows :
"And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with
the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve
stars: and she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be
delivered." Rev. I2: 1, 2.
In the prophecies of the Bible a woman represents a church.
Thus in Jer. 6: 2 God says, " I have likened the daughter of
Zion to a comely and delicate woman." Hence a woman such
as we have in this prophecy represents a pure church, the
church of Christ. The sun with which she is clothed is a symbol
of the light and glory of the gospel. The moon under her feet
represents the Mosaic dispensation of types and shadows. The
crown of twelve stars represents the twelve apostles of Christ.
The church is seen by the prophet at the time she is expect-
ing the birth of a man child. This child was Christ. It is true
only of Him (verse 5) that He was caught up to God and to
His throne. It is true only of Him that He will rule all nations
with a rod of iron. (Ps. 2 : 7-9; Eph. 1: 20, 2I ; Heb. 8: z ;'Rev.
3:21)
Pagan Rome
The second symbol of this prophecy is immediately described :
"And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red
dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to
the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be
delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought
forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her
child was caught up unto God, and to His throne. " Rev. I2: 3-5•
This dragon represents pagan Rome, who, through Herod,
attempted to destroy Christ as soon as He was born, by causing
all young children in Bethlehem to be put to the sword. Back of
Rome stood Satan. Primarily, therefore, the dragon is a symbol
of Satan. But as Satan manifests his malice and hatred of
Christ and the peo'ple of God through human organizations,
here the dragon is used as a symbol of pagan Rome.
When the dragon found that the Head of the church had
escaped his malice by being "caught up unto God," he turned
his attention to the church and persecuted it. Verses 13-17
deal with the time of the church's persecution, the time when
she was driven into the wilderness by Rome. The flood that the
dragon cast out of his mouth to sweep away the church, was
a flood of persecution. The time of the supremacy of Rome over
the nations is the same as that spoken of in Daniel 7 : 25,
"a time, and times, and half a time." This represents 126o
years. (See page 230, chapter, "Prophetic Symbols."). This
time began in A. D. 538 and continued to 1798, at which latter
date Rome lost its supremacy.
By the earth helping the woman, opening its mouth and
swallowing up the flood of persecution, is meant the help
which was given the church by the Protestant Reformation.
A number of European countries accepted the principles of the
Reformation, espoused the cause of truth, and thus were
able to shield the church from the wrath of Rome.
The Remnant Church
In the last verse of the chapter the prophet is shown the
special wrath of the dragon against the remnant church of
Christ, the last end of the Christian church.
"And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war
with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God,
and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." Rev. x2: 17.
This remnant church is described here as having two special
characteristics. It keeps the commandments of God and has
the testimony pf Jesus. The testimony of Jesus is explained in
Rev. 19: Io as being "the spirit of prophecy."
This last church of the gospel, therefore, will be a command-
ment-keeping church. And in addition to having all the other
gifts of the Spirit, it will also possess the gift of prophecy.
Clearly this last church will be the church that keeps the
Sabbath of the fourth commandment, as well as all the other
commandments, for a church that keeps only nine of the ,ten
commandments could never properly be called a commandment-
keeping church.
The third symbol in this line of prophecy is thus described :
"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the
sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and
upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like
unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the
mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great
authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his
deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they
worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to
make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great
things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty
and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to
blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome
them : and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not
written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the
world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity
shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with
the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints." Rey. :
The Leopard Beast

This leopard beast represents the same power as did the
dragon. It represents Rome. This is shown by the fact that it
also has the seven heads and the ten horns of the dragon. It is
Rome, but with a change. Pagan Rome has given place to
papal Rome.
The dragon gave his seat, his capital city, the city of Rome,
to papal Rome, when Constantine removed the, seat of the
empire from Rome to Constantinople in A. D. 330. This left
the pope as the chief figure in the ancient city. The dragon
gave him his power and great authority when the armies of
Justinian, the emperor of Rome, in A. D. 538, destroyed the
Ostrogoths and established the pope head of all the churches.
The 1260 Years
As has been shown in a previous chapter, it is from the date
538 that the supremacy of the Papacy should be dated. As
"power was given unto him to continue forty and two months,"
and as each Jewish ecclesiastical month contained thirty days,
we have here just 126o days. As each day represents a year
(Ezek. 4: 6), this period of 126o years would bring the end of
papal supremacy just 126o years after 538. This points to the
year 1798 as the ending of the supremacy of the Papacy. In
that year, 1798, the pope was taken prisoner by Berthier, a
French general; a decree of religious liberty was proclaimed in
Rome; a Roman republic inaugurated; and the pope was exiled
into France, where, shortly after, he died.
These circumstances constituted the "deadly wound" seen
by the prophet. These are the circumstances referred to in
the expression, "He that leadeth into captivity shall go into
captivity." Rome, which for so many centuries had led tens of
thousands of the people of God into captivity, and killed them
with the sword, was in 1798 given a stroke with the sword
itself and led into captivity. Let it be noticed, however, that
the deadly wound made in 1798 is to be healed.
The United States
At the time when John saw the papal beast being struck
with the sword and going into captivity, or in 1798, he

America has prospered under the benign influence of civil and religious liberty.
turned and saw another beast coming. This is the fourth symbol
of this prophecy.
"And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had
two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon." Rev.
All of :the features and specifications of this symbol make it
necessary to apply it to the United States.
The time when this symbol appeared was in 1798. John saw
it coming as he saw the Papacy going. He did not say, "I
saw another beast that had come," or " I saw that another beast
would come," but "I saw another beast coming." It was coming
in 1798, at the time when the Papacy was going into captivity.
Therefore the government which this symbol represents must
be arising about the year 1798.
John saw this symbol coming up "out of the earth." The
preceding beast, the leopard, came "up out of the sea." (Rev.
13: I.) So also did the beasts of Daniel 7. Water, in symbolic
prophecy, represents "people, and multitudes, and nations,
and tongues." (Rev. 17: 15.) Hence "the earth," out of which
this two-horned symbol came up, would represent just the
opposite of the sea, or a place where there had been no mul-
titudes or nations, a land where there had been no great or-
ganized systems of government. Hence the two-horned symbol
represents a government that arises in new territory, ter-
ritory never before occupied by great systems of government.
In the New World
The symbols of the seventh and eight chapters of Daniel,
and of the dragon and leopard beast, have covered practically
all of the countries of Europe. Therefore, this new symbol,
as it is said to be " another beast, " not any part of the nations
of the Old World, must arise in the New World, the Western
Hemisphere.
Upon the heads of the dragon of the twelfth chapter, and on
the horns of the leopard beast of the thirteenth chapter, there
were crowns. This reveals that these governments were of the
monarchical form. They were kingdoms. On the head of this
two-horned symbol there is no crown, neither are there crowns
on his horns. From this it is plain that the nation represents a
government that is not a monarchy, but a republic, a govern-
ment of the people.
Again, this symbol has two horns like a lamb. The lamb is
the symbol of Christ. These two horns, then, represent two
principles of civil govermnent that are Christlike in character.
These two principles of civil government are without question
those referred to by Christ in Matt. 2 2 : 2I, the principles of
civil and religious liberty, or an entire separation of the church
and state.
Boston Photo News

Our beautiful land has been the home of the
Christlike principles of civil and religious liberty.
Spiritual pride rears mammoth cathedrals and wields a baneful influence.
The Mystic Number 666

UMMING up the specifications of the prophecy of the
S twelfth and thirteenth chapters of Revelation that have
already been discussed,' it is clear that the prophecy foretells
the rise of a new government in the affairs of men, a government
that would be making its appearance about 1798, arising in
new territory in the Western Hemisphere, corning up as a
republic, and that it would have in its fundamental law the two
great principles of civil and religous liberty.
It is evident that there is no other nation in the world
that has fulfilled this prophecy but the United States of America.
This government was coming up in 1798. It was coming up
in new territory in the Western Hemisphere. It was coming up
as a republic. It had in its fundamental law the two principles
of civil and religious liberty. These specifications have been
met in no other country. But the United States fulfills them all.
The remainder of the prophecy is as follows:
"And he [the two-horned symbol] exerciseth all the power of the first
beast [papal Rome] before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell
therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he
doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the
earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by
the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the
beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an
(264)
image to the beast, which had the wound by the sword, and did live. And
he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the
beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the
image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and
great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or
in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the
mark, or the name of the beast'or the number of his name. Here is wisdom.
Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the
number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six."
Rev. 13:12-18.
The Image of the Beast
Here is a prediction that the enemies of liberty in America
will make attempts to violate 'the great fundamental principles
of liberty. They,, are described as seeking to set up what is
called "an image of the beast." We now inquire what this is.
The "beast" referred to is the papal beast. An image of
the beast would be something like the beast, for an image is a
likeness.
What, then, is the Papacy, an image of which will be estab-
lished in the United States? The Papacy is a union of church
and state with the church dominant. There are those who will
seek to establish something like that, another union of church
and state, in the United States.
Of course, in order to accomplish this it will be necessary
for the government to turn its back upoli the principles upon
which it was founded. This, then, is a prophecy that the
principles of civil and religious liberty, which constitute the
foundation and glory of the'American government, are ultimate-
ly to be repudiated and renounced. The beast that at first was
lamblike, will ultimately speak with the voice of a dragon.
The Mark of the Beast
The same enemies of liberty will attempt to enforce upon all
what is termed "the mark of the beast."
What is this mark? It is something that belongs to the beast,
the mark of 'he beast. It must, then, be some institution of the
beast by which the one receiving it is marked as a worshiper
of the beast.
The beast is a symbol of the Papacy. Therefore "the mark
of the beast" must be some act or observance by which the
authority of the Papacy is recognized.
Soule
During the Dark Ages the church used the sword as its main instrument for evangelization.
(266)
In a previous chapter of this book, the one on "The Great
Counterfeit of Christianity," attention was directed to the
fact that in the counterfeit system of religion called the Papacy,
Satan had attempted to substitute for each truth of the ,gospel
a spurious and false teaching. For the true law of God a false and
counterfeit law had been substituted. Some of its command-
ments are the same as God's law. Some have been changed by
the Papacy. The chief point changed in the law of God is
the Sabbath, from the seventh day of the week to the first.
Before the world, then, there are two laws, one the true
law of God; the other the law as it has been changed by the
Papacy. It is evident that by the relation that Christians
sustain to these two laws they are marked as servants of one
power or the other, according as they show themselves obedient
to the law of God or obedient to the law of the anti-Christ;
obedient to the true gospel or to its counterfeit.
If they keep the law of God as it was originally given by
God himself, they will observe the Sabbath of the fourth com-
mandment, the seventh day. If they serve the counterfeit
system, which has tampered with the law of God, they will
observe the first day of the week, the counterfeit sabbath.
The true Sabbath is the seal, or mark, of God; the counterfeit
sabbath is the mark of the Papacy, "the mark of the beast."
The change that the Papacy has made in the law of God,
the substitution of the counterfeit sabbath for the true Sabbath,
constitutes "the mark of the beast." There are religious or-
ganizations and combinations of churches in the United States
today that are seeking to have its observance enforced upon
all the people.
Before Our Eyes
If the reader will turn back in this book to the chapter on
"The Change of the Sabbath," he will find there, in the admis-
sions of the Papacy itself, the acknowledgment that the Papacy
has changed the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the
week, and that it recognizes in the observance of Sunday
deference to itself. It claims that the act of changing the Sabbath
is truly a mark of its great power.
From this prophecy it is clear that the great final attempt
of Satan to destroy the truth of God from the earth is to be
made on the same issue that has always been the center of his
attacks, the law of God and the Sabbath of Jehovah.
In order for this prophecy to be fulfilled, some degree of
church federation must be effected between the various Prot-
estant bodies of this country. Only in this .way could an
".image of the beast" be formed. When such federation is
fully developed, it will devote much of its time and attention.
to efforts seeking to obtain the power of the state to enforce
religious principles. It will endeavor to obtain Sunday legisla-
tion and Sunday law enforcement.
Before our very eyes just such a movement as is here foretold
is taking place. Even now there is a federation of more than
thirty of the Protestant churches in the United States, known as
the "Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America."
This great organization is making itself very active in seek-
ing the passage of Sunday laws. It is being assisted in this
un-American work by the organization known as "The Lord's
Day Alliance," as well as by other religio-political bodies.
Thus the image of the beast has been formed, and is begin-
ning to speak and cause the enforcement of the mark of the
beast, the counterfeit sabbath, the Sunday institution.
And so the denominations that have refused to follow in-
the path of light and truth, are becoming identified again with
Rome, and following in the footsteps of Rome in persecuting
God's people and opposing God's truth. Satan has again suc-
ceeded in corrupting the church. As the churches have been
unwilling to give up all of Rome's errors, Satan has succeeded'
in drawing them on to the backward path to Rome.
Satan's Final Attempt to Overthrow the Church

This is the last attempt of Satan to overthrow the church.
The remnant church, which, in opposition to the whole counter-
feit system of substitutes, both in the Roman and in the Prot-
estant churches, is proclaiming the whole truth of the gospel,
the true Sabbath along with the other truths that have been
perverted during the ages of the past, will be the special object of
Satan's hatred and active warfare. He will attempt to get rid
of the people of God, and thus attempt to destroy the truth of
God which they preach.
In order to accomplish this, Satan causes his followers in
the churches that have combined to enforce their false doctrines
to go to the length of passing a decree of death upon all those
who will not consent to accept the counterfeit system in place of
the true, and the counterfeit sabbath, the mark of the beast,
in the place of the true Sabbath, the seal of God.
These are the things which the prophecy leads us to expect.
This Sabbath question, big with importance as it already is,
will become of even greater importance, and will be pressed with
ever-increasing urgency upon the attention of the people of the
world. It will become the great test of loyalty, to God, to the
truth, to the Bible.
It is a question that must be decided by every individual.
And that decision will array the individual on one side or the
other in the last great conflict between Christ and Satan.
Allegiance to Christ or to Satan will be manifested by the de-
cision to keep Christ's Sabbath, the seventh day, or the false
sabbath, the first day. The first is the seal of God; the second
is the mark of the beast.
The Number of the Beast
The thirteenth chapter of Revelation closes with this com-
mand :
"Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number
of the beast: for it is the number of a man: and his number is Six hundred
threescore and six." Rev. 13: 18.
In order that the student of prophecy may verify the ac-
curacy of his interpretations, the beast is identified. Count his
number, is'the divine admonition. It is the number of a man, a
certain man, a man most certainly connected with the beast.
At once the mind goes to that man who stands at the head of the
papal system, the pope. The number of the beast is his number.
The head of the Roman Church "is crowned with a triple
crown as king of heaven and of earth and of the lower regions."
—Ferraris' " Prompta Bibliotheca," article "Papa." He claims to
be the divinely appointed representative on earth of Jehovah,
claiming the title, "The Vicar of God." This was stated by
Gratian in his decrees as follows:
"Beatus Petrus in terris Vicarius Filii Dei videtur isse constitutus."—
Decretum Gratian Prima Pars, distinction XCVI.
Translated, this means that Peter, and the pope of Rome
as his successor, .is the " Vicarius Filii Dei," that is, " the vice-
gerent of the Son of God."
There are those who declare that they have seen these
words, in precious stones, upon the tiara of the pope, especially
that of Pope Gregory XVI. The claim that this title is accepted
and used by the popes, and that it has been inscribed on the
papal tiara, is admitted by Our Sunday Visitor, a Catholic
paper of Huntington, Ind., in its issue of April
18, 1915, and not only admitted, but the use of V = 5
I =-. 1
this title by the popes is defended.
C ---- 100
Now let the reader, with this title, VICARI- A = 0
US FILII DEI, before him, "count the num- R = 0
ber of the beast." Add together (bearing in I = 1
mind that the letter U was formerly the same V = 5
as V in Latin, the latter always being used in- S = 0
stead of the former, which custom is still large-
ly followed) all the Roman numerals in this F = 0
title, as explained in the accompanying table. I — 1
God does not leave His commandment-keep- L = 50
I = = 1
ing people to be overwhelmed by the wrath of
I = 1
the dragon, nor does He leave the world uh-
warned regarding the truth of this great issue. D = 500
At the time when the effort is being made to E 0
destroy both the truth and the people of God, I = 1
the full message of the gospel will be carried Total = 666
to all the world by God's people, and the way
will be prepared for the second coming of Christ to finish the
work of salvation. This final message of the gospel will con-
stitute a warning against the beast and his image and the re-
ception of his mark.
New Guinea savages are among those in far-away places to whom the gospel is going.
The Great Threefold Message

B EFORE the first coming of Christ, John the Baptist delivered
to the Jewish nation the message of His coming. This
message was based on the prophecies of the Bible, and was
designed to "make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
(Luke r : 17.)
Before the second coming of Christ another message will be
delivered to all the world warning the people of the coming of
Christ. This also will be based upon the prophecies of the
Bible, and its acceptance will make ready a people prepared for
the Lord.
In our discussion of the prophecy regarding the United
States in the preceding chapter we have seen that there are
two powers that attempt to secure great power in governmental
affairs. These are called the "beast" and "the image of the
beast." The beast is a symbol of the Papacy, and the image of
the beast is a symbol of apostate Protestantism, a combination
of Protestant churches seeking for the power of the government
for the purpose of enforcing certain religious customs and
institutions, such as the Sunday institution. This is so clearly
the very essence of Catholicism that it is called "the image of the
beast," that is, it is an exact likeness of Catholicism.
This "image of the beast," when fully formed, will attempt
(271)
to enforce what is called "the mark of the beast." This is the
Sunday institution enforced by law. The seventh day is still the
Sabbath enjoined upon all by the fourth commandment. The
observance of the first day of the week has no foundation in the
Scriptures. It has been brought in as a Christian institution
and purposely put in the place of the Sabbath by that power
which in the prophecy is spoken of as "the beast." It has been
placed in the ten-commandment la* as a badge and token of
that church's power to legislate for the people of God. It
therefore inevitably becomes "the mark of the beast."
The Divine Message for Today
In order that the world may not remain in ignorance of the
real significance of these movements and conditions, God sends
into the world a message of truth which deals with these things.
This message exactly fits the conditions foretold by the proph-
ecy, and is sent by God to meet this very situation. This
message is a threefold message. It will be found in the fourteenth
chapter of Revelation.
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any
man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead,
or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which
is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and he shall
be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and
in the presence of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up
forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the
beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here
is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of
God, and the faith of Jesus. . . . And I looked, and behold a white cloud,
and upon the cloud one sat like imto the Son of man, having on His head a
golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle." Rev. i4: 9-14.
There are five things in this message that are worthy of
special mention. They are : It warns against the beast, his image,
and the reception of his mark; it leads to obedience to the
commandments of God; it teaches the faith of Jesus; its ac-
ceptance, and the resulting 'persecution, develop patience;
and it is the last message to be given the world before the
second coming of Christ. This last truth may be seen from the
fact that as soon as this message is given Jesus is seen coming
in the clouds of heaven to reap the harvest of the earth, as in
the fourteenth verse.
THE', GREAT THREEFOLD MESSAGE 273
God's final work in the earth will be done with

the power, glory, and swiftness of angelic beings.
This message, then, fits the present situation. It is a message

given for this particular time and to meet the special conditions
that now prevail on earth. It not only warns against the wor-
ship of the beast and his image, but it tells how to avoid that
worship. It not only tells men what they shall not do, but it
tells them what to do. It not only calls men to fight against
the beast and his image, but it tells them how to get the vic-
tory. It does this in the expression, " the faith of Jesus.
18
This final message of the gospel of Christ will so fully prepare

those who receive it to meet God that they are said to be
"without fault before the throne of God." (Rev. 14:5.) It
is therefore evident that this threefold message will contain all
the truth of God. It is "through the truth" (John r7: 17) that
the people of God are sanctified, and if those who accept the
threefold message become without fault before the throne of
God, it will be because they have the full and complete truth of
the gospel.
"This gospel of the kingdom," the message of the coming
kingdom, will also "be preached in all the world for a witness
unto all nations," not for their conversion, but "for a witness,"
"and then shall the end come." Matt. 24: 14. That is, a people
will be raised up, as was John the Baptist, who will take the
message of the coming Saviour, and the fullness of the truth of
the gospel, to all the world before the second coming of Christ.
When they have completed this task, " then shall the end come. "
The Last Church
This last church, which will be the full fruitage of the
Reformation, will have revealed to it all of the truths which
Satan has so successfully hidden under his great counterfeit
system during the centuries of the Dark Ages. It will, therefore,
preach not only the message that the Lord is soon to come, but
it will also possess and teach the truth concerning the true God,
the true Saviour, the true sanctuary, the true priesthood, the
true law, and the true Sabbath, and those other truths which
have been perverted.
The people, therefore, who deliver the final message of the
gospel to the world will believe in God the Father as the great
King of the universe. They will believe in His infinite love for
all His creatures, and in His great plan for the salvation of
sinners.
They will believe in and preach Christ as the only Saviour
from sin. They will present Him to the world as the great
sin-bearer for the human race, and will show that whereas
He was in the image of God, He emptied Himself and was made
in the form of man, and then humbled Himself to die on the
cross, being both human and divine.
They will exalt Christ as the only Mediator between God
and man; teaching that all blessings which have ever come from
the hand of God to the human race have come through Him,
and that through His mediation the whole creation was brought
into existence. (John : 1-3, 14; Col. I : 13-17; Heb. I : I, 2.)
.They will believe and preach Christ as the only true Advocate
with the rither, offering His blood constantly in our behalf,
our Intercessor, who presents for us the merits of His own
sacrifice for sin.
The Revelation of God to Men
They will proclaim that the Bible is the only true, full,
and complete revelation of the will of God to mankind, that it is
the inspired and authoritative word of the living God.
They will believe and teach that the Holy Spirit is the only
true vicegerent of the Son of God on earth, and will accept no
other.
They will believe and teach the true gift of prophecy given
to the church of Christ (Eph. 4: 8-14) ; that it is the authoritative
and infallible voice of God to His people, because it comes
through the true succession (Rev. 1 : I) ; and that this gift will be
restored to God's remnant people (Rev. 12: 17; Rev. 19: 1o) to
lead them in giving the last message of the gospel to the world.
They will hold the truth regarding the sanctuary question —
the heavenly sanctuary, in which the Lord Jesus is our High
Priest, which was to be cleansed at the end of the long pro-
phetiC period of twenty-three hundred years, or in 1844. (Dan.
8: 14.)
They will believe and teach the truth regarding the true
sacrifice once offered on Calvary for the sins of the human race,
and they will show that this one sacrifice for sins was sufficient
for the salvation of the human race without the idolatrous
sacrifice of the mass.
They will rejoice in the truth concerning the true priesthood
of Christ, who was made a priest forever after the order of
Melchizedek, the priest who stands at the head of the new
creation, who by offering Himself, interceding through His own
blood in the heavenly sanctuary, is able to save unto the utter-
most all who will come unto God by Him.
They will believe and teach the truth concerning the
necessity of confessing our sins to the High Priest above, and
not to any earthly priest.
They will believe and also teach the truth concerning the
fullness of the forgiveness of the sins that are confessed to
this High Priest, and the completeness of His cleansing of the
sinner from all unrighteousness.
They will practice the truth concerning true baptism, that
it is a burial and a resurrection, that it typifies the complete
death of the "old man" of sin, "the body of sin," and its burial,
and then a resurrection to "walk in newness of life."
They will believe and teach the truth concerning the true
communion, the Lord's supper.
The True Law and Sabbath
law of God, which existed in the very beginning, was given
in thunder tones on Mount Sinai, and which is the perpetual
standard of righteousness, the very foundation of the govern-
ment of God.
Sabbath, which was made by the Creator in Eden, and given to
the human race as a perpetual memorial of the exercise of the
creative power of God. They will discard the false and counter-
feit sabbath, as they will also all the counterfeits of the false
system, and observe only the true Sabbath of Jehovah, the
seventh day. This they will present as the sign between Jehovah
and His people. (Ezek. 20: 12, 20.)
They will teach the truth also of the nature of man, the
state of the 'dead, the reward of the righteous, and the fate of
the wicked, all of which have been perverted in the false system.
Instead of preaching a purgatory or a conscious state of ex-
istence in death, they will teach the, truth of the Bible that the
dead are unconscious (Ps. 146:3, 4), that "they know not
anything" (Bccl. g: 5, 6), that man is mortal (t Tim. 6: 13-16;
Cor. 1 5 : 51-54) , and that the time of rewards and punishments
will take place, not at death, or in death, but at the resur-
rection from the dead.
Thus this people whom God chooses to deliver His final
message of truth will believe and teach the genuine form of
every truth that has been counterfeited in the Papacy, Satan's
THE CHEAT THREEFOLD MESSAGE 277
counterfeit of Christianity. The message that they will
present to the world will obviously be the exact opposite of the
Papacy in every part and detail, and therefore, when it is
preached it will constitute a great warning against " the beast
and his image," and against the reception of his mark.
Inasmuch as this last church of Christ is the exact opposite
of the system that Satan has designed shall take the place of the
gospel, it is not to be wondered at that "the dragon" makes
special war against this remnant, which "keep the command-
ments of God," and deliver the last message of God to the
world. (Rev. I 2 : I 7.)
That this movement which stirs the wrath of the dragon is
the same as that which gives the warning message against
the beast and his image, as recorded in Rev. 14: 12, is evident
from the fact that they are described in almost identical terms.
Read both Rev. 12: 17 and Rev. 14: 12. Those who give God's
final message will be commandment-keepers, and therefore
will observe the seventh-day Sabbath.
This last message of the gospel, containing the full truth of
God, will not be preached in a corner to just a few people, but
will be taken to all the earth, "preached in all the world as a
witness unto all nations." When it has.een taken to all the earth
Jesus will come the second time, and the great controversy
between Christ and Satan will come to an eternal end.
The Remnant Church
It will be a matter of profound interest to the reader to learn
that just such a people as is described in this chapter as the
remnant church has been raised up, and that they are now
engaged in the very work called for in the prophecy, that of
taking the final and complete message of truth to all the world.
It will also be of interest to know just how far they have pro-
gressed in the work of preaching the last message of the gospel
to all nations. We shall be able to gather some idea of how
near the coming of Christ is by the extent of the preaching of
this final message, for when it is preached in all the world the
end is to come. If it has been taken to nearly all the world at
this time, the end must be very near.
About the year 1845, in the New England states there came
into existence a movement that developed into the organiza-
tion that is now being used of God to give His last message to the
world, the message of warning against the beast and his image.
A few people at that time, in studying the question of the
sanctuary, came to the conclusion that it was necessary to
obey the commandments of God, the Sabbath commandment
with the others. They began the observance of the Sabbath at
once. At the same time they became profoundly impressed-
with the thought that God had, commissioned them to bear the
message of the second coming of Christ to the world. To this
small people God restored the gift of prophecy; and this gift
ever since has been a great blessing to them.
Being inspired with an earnest missionary zeal at the very
beginning, they began to teach the truths that God had revealed
to them. It was not long before some of their neighbors began
•the observance of the Sabbath. These told others of these
truths, and these still others, until churches began to multiply,
and conferences were organized. Their message spread to the
western states, and other churches and conferences came into
existence. Finally missionaries were sent to California, and in a
few years there were hundreds Of believers on the western
coast. Today there is not a state in the United States where
they are not carrying forward their work of presenting 'the
final message of the gospel. Their work has grown at a remark-
able rate, their numbers having approximately doubled every
ten years since their origin. In 1850 they numbered approxi-
mately 15oo; in 1860, 3,000; in 1870, 6,000; in 1880, 12,000; in
1890, 25,000; in 1900, 5o,000; in 1910, more than ioo,000; and
in 1920, approximately 200,000.
Into All the World
In 1874 they sent out their first foreign missionary, believing
that God desired them to carry the message to the ends of the
earth. Since this first missionary was sent out more than
fifty years ago, they have practically covered the earth with
their missionary operations. They have organized conferences
and churches throughout Europe with more than 8o,000
members. They have sent out hundreds of missionaries into
heathen lands. They are working in China, India, Japan,
Korea, Burma, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, the Philip-
pines, the East Indies, the Pacific Islands, Persia, Turkey,
TH4 GREAT THREEVOLD MESSAGE 27
One of the more than 1500 schools and colleges where

the young are taught to prepare for Christ's coming.
Russia, Siberia, all of the nations of Europe, in Africa, and in

South America. Their missionaries go out with the firm convic-
tion that they are bearing the last message of God to a dying
world. They are all working with but one purpose, to take to
all the earth in a single generation the last, and complete,
message of the gospel of Christ, and they believe with all their
hearts, that when this work has been completed, the end of
all things will come.
The gospel of health is preached through many sanitariums and treatment rooms
280 - OUR TimEs AND THEIR MEANING
From 55 printing establishments literature in 133

languages goes to warn the world of Christ's coming.
During the growth of their work they have established for

the training of their young people and children more than
sevenscore colleges, academies, and intermediate schools, and
nearly fifteen hundred church, or primary, schools. In these
educational institutions they are training• about 65,000 children
and young people in the principles of the third angel's message,
and many of them are being given a special training for service
in the proclamation of that message.
They have also established more than fifty publishing houses
and branches in all parts of the world. These plants are con-
stantly employed in turning out millions of pages of tracts,
pamphlets, papers, magazines and books, and this literature is
being distributed to the people of the earth by hundreds of
evangelistic colporteurs, all of it containing the message that
they feel impelled to give to the world.
They have also established scores of sanitariums and treat-
ment rooms for the treatment of the sick, both in soul and
body. These health centers are scattered over all the earth.
After studying this movement and its message for ,years,
with the time of its arising, the fact that it followed the churches
of the Reformation, and has gone beyond them into advanced
light, observing that it is in ‘ery truth • delivering to the world
the message of the coming of Christ, that it meets all the specifi-
cations of various prophecies regarding the last movement of
the gospel, that it teaches the observance of the ten command-
ments in fulfillment of these same prophecies, that it teaches

Sabbath-keeping, that it is the very opposite of the Papacy in
every part and detail, that it is preaching the warning message
against the beast and his image, and that all of the fundamental
truths of the gospel of Christ are contained in its message, the
writer has no hesitation in confessing his profound conviction
that this movement is in very deed and truth what it purports
to be, the final work of the goSpel among men.
Persecuting the Remnant
Having swept all the world into one deception or another,
and turned the truth of God into a lie, and succeeded in getting
men to believe that lie, Satan's last attempt against the church
of Christ will be made with the intention of destroying from
among men this remnant church of Christ, carrying, as it does,
the banner of truth to the world. He will bend all the energies
of his master mind to the work of bringing these servants of
God to destruction,
, and with them the truth that they bear to
the world. He knows that he has but a short time in which to
work. The controversy between himself and God that began in
heaven is fast closing up, and he realizes that what he does he
must do quickly. He is determined to destroy the truth of God
from the earth, and also the people of God. Therefore, "the
dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war
with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of
God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. " Rev. 12 : 17.
Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.
Indescribable distress and death will be the portion of the finally impenitent.
The Seven Last Plagues
T HE great, threefold message of Revelation 14 is brought to

a close in precisely the same way as that in which every
other similar message of present truth has ended, by the
punishment of those who reject it.
The rejection of the message of Noah brought about the
destruction of those who refused to obey. The refusal to heed
the warning that the angels brought to Sodom and Gomorrah
brought about the utter overthrow of those cities. Jerusalem
was destroyed by the Babylonians because the people of God
would not believe the message of the prophets. Jerusalem was
destroyed again by the Romans because the Jews rejected the
messages of Christ and His apostles. These messages of warning
and instruction have carried both salvation and destruction
with them; salvation for those who accepted them, but destruc-
tion for those who rejected them.
So it is with the last great message of the gospel, the message
of the second coming of Christ and the keeping of the command-
ments of God. There is salvation in it for all who believe, but
there is utter destruction in it for those who reject. This is
plainly announced in the very terms of the message itself :
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any
man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead,
or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is
(282)
THE SEVEN LAST PLAGUES 283
poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and he shall
be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels,
and in the presence of the Lamb." Rev. 14:9, Jo.
The Wrath of God

Here it is said that those who reject the truth of the threefold
message will be compelled to " drink of the wine of the wrath
of God." What this wrath is, is explained in another verse:
"And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven
angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of
God."
Prom this it is clear that the punishment that will be visited
on those who refuse to heed the message will be the seven last
plagues, in which God's wrath will be poured out on a rebellious
world.
At the same time, however, John sees those who have obeyed
the message, and is permitted to behold their triumph and their
reward. He says:
"And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that
had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his
mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having
. the
harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and
the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are Thy works, Lord
God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints. Who shall
not fear Thee, 0 Lord, and glorify Thy name? for Thou only art holy: for all
nations shall come and worship before Thee; for Thy judgments are made
manifest." Rev. 15: 2-4.
The Close of Probation
During the time in which the seven last plagues are poured
out no man can be saved. Probation will close before the
plagues begin to fall, and the door of mercy will be closed. The
beginning of the plagues is the 'end of the day of salvation, and
the beginning of the day of the Lord. This is the day of which
Amos speaks:
"The day of the Lord is darkness, and not light, . . . even very dark,
and no brightness in it." Amos 5 : 18-2o.
Zephaniah declares:
"That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of
wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds
and thick darkness, . . . and I will bring distresses upon men, that they
shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord:
and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung."
Zeph. 1:15-18.
It is this day of which Peter writes, "The day of the Lord
will come as a thief in the night." Probation will close when men
least expect it. When the investigative judgment in heaven is
completed, and every case has been decided for eternity, then
the Judge will lay aside His priestly garments and clothe
Himself with the garments of justice and punishment. It is at
this time, at the close of the judgment, at the close of the day of
salvation, at the beginning of the day of the Lord, when mercy
no longer pleads, that the Spirit of God is finally removed from
the earth, and this decree goes forth from heaven:.
"He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let
him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and
he that is holy, letlim be holy still." Rev. 22: I I.
When this decree has gone forth the plagues begin 'to fall on
men. That there is no salvation during the time of the plagues is
evident from the following passage:
"And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from
Worse than famine for bread will be the hopeless
famine for God's word when it is too late to heed it.
His power: and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues
of the seven angels were fulfilled." Rev. 15: 8.
These seven last plagues are literal, not figurative. The very
words of the Bible will be carried out in the punishment which
is to come upon the world for rejecting God's last offer of mercy.
In many respects they are similar .to the plagues that were
poured upon Egypt when God delivered His ancient people
from bondage and brought them out to take them into the
promised land. In one respect they are not like these ancient
plagues. There will be no mercy shown to any when the last
plagues are falling. This is the meaning of the expression, "the
wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture. " There
will be no mixture of mercy in the seven last plagues, and in this
they will be unlike every divine visitation of wrath ever before
manifested against mankind. They will utterly consume the
race from the earth.
The First Plague

"And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and
there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark
of the beast, and upon them which worshiped his image." Rev. 16: 2.
This is very similar to that plague of boils and blains that
broke out on the Egyptians when God delivered the Israelites
from Egypt. (Ex. 9: 8-to.) It will be a running, ulcerous sore,
and it will be upon those who have rejected the truth of the
great, threefold message of warning against false worship.
Those who persist in this false worship, and refuse to worship
"Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the foun-
tains of waters," will be marked by this fearful, festering sore.
This is the first plague. When it breaks out upon men, we will
know that the day of the Lord has commenced.
When we know that the day of the Lord has begun we may
then know something about the nearness of the second coming
of Christ. The Bible seems to teach that it will take about one
year for the plagues to be poured out, and Christ will come at
the end of that year. "Therefore shall her plagues come in one .
day, death, and mourning, and famine." Rev. 18 8. "I have
appointed thee each day for a year." Ezek. 4: 6. Hence when
the plague of the terrible sore breaks out upon men, we may
know that it will be about a year to the, second coming of
Christ.
The Second and Third Plagues
"And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became
as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. And the
third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of water:
and they became blood." Rev. i6: 3, 4.
This, too, is similar to that plague of Egypt when the water
was turned into blood. Certainly it is a fearful visitation of
divine wrath. The fever of the festering sores pouring into
their blood, creating an intense longing for water, and nothing
to drink but blood! Such fearful plagues cannot last long, or
else the whole race would perish at once. And the next plague
adds an accumulation of misery and distress.
The Fourth Plague
"And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power
was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with
great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over
these plagues: and they repented not to give Him glory." Rev. x6: 8, 9.
In addition to the fever of the sores, and with no way to
quench their thirst, the men who have rejected the mercy of
God in His great closing message are subjected to the scorching
heat of the sun until they blaspheme the God of heaven.
Certainly the way of the transgressor is hard!
The Fifth Plague
"And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast;
and his kingdom is full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for
pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their
sores; and repented not of their deeds." Rev. i6: zo, i is
This, too, is similar to the plague of darkness which was
brought upon Egypt. There is no reason to believe this to be
anything else but literal darkness, which will spread over the
kingdom of the beast, the system of false worship that has
attempted to blot the truth of God from the earth. Certainly
a fit end for a system that has drawn a cloud of spiritual dark-
ness over all the earth, and darkened the minds and souls of
men everywhere.
It should be noticed in connection with this plague that the
sores of the first plague still continue under the fifth, and men
are represented as gnawing their tongues for pain, while they
blaspheme the God of heaven.
The Sixth Plague.
'And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates;
and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east
Might be prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of
the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and,out of the
mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working
miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole
world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
. . . And he [they] gathered them together into a place called in the
Hebrew tongue Armageddon. " Rev. 16: 12-16.
The use of water, as a symbol in prophecy, represents
" peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." Rev.
17 : 15. Hence "the great river Euphrates" would represent
the people, or the nation, that occupies and controls the terri-
tory watered by the Euphrates, and at present that nation is
Turkey. The plague is a literal plague upon Turkey, which, as a
nation is "dried up," or destroyed, and this acts as a signal to
call the armies of the world to "the battle of the great day of
God Almighty," which is to be fought at Armageddon. The
agency that influences the kings "of the whole world" to come
up to Armageddon at the signal of the fall of Turkey is spoken
of as " the spirits of devils." This without doubt has reference to
Spiritualism.
According to this prophecy, Turkey will come to its end
under the sixth plague. This will prepare the "way of the
kings of the East," that is, those nations lying east of Palestine;
namely, China, Persia, India, and Japan, the great heathen
nations of the world. As these eastern nations move westward
under the influence of the spirits of devils, the western nations,
under a similar influence, will be impelled to move eastward to
meet them. They meet, and " are gathered together," in the
"place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. " This is in the
northern part of Palestine. There the destiny of the world is
settled in "the battle of the great day of God Almighty."
The spirits of devils that drive the world on to its ruin at
Armageddon come out of the mouth of the dragon, of the beast,
and of the false prophet, indicating that religious issues will be
involved at Armageddon as well as political. The dragon
Underwood &' Underwood, N. Y.
Like this patriarchal grain field. the world is
ripening toward its harvest by angelic reapers.
(288)
represents paganism, the beast Romanism, the false prophet
apostate Protestantism. The world will be' divided into three
general groups, all of which will be found to be fighting against
God. The spirits of devils take possession of these three systems
of religion before they can influence the kings of the earth to go
up to Armageddon. But when these three systems have defi-
nitely rejected God's final message, and have thus refused to be
led by the spirit of God, then they are entirely given up to be
controlled by devilish spirits masquerading under the guise of
good angels, under the name of Spiritualism, and under this
influence they are led on to their utter ruin.
While "the battle of that great day .of God Almighty"
is being fought out at Armageddon, the seventh angel pours out
his vial.
The Seventh Plague
"And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there
came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne saying,
It is done. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings: and there
was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so
mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into
three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in
remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierce-
ness of His wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not
found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone
about the weight of a talent; and men blasphemed God because of the
plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great." Rev. 16:
17-21.
The seventh plague closes the history of the earth. It takes
place in the midst of the struggle of Armageddon. While the
nations of the world are struggling, God himself enters the
fray to fight with His army. The thunder and lightning of
His wrath begins to play over the heads of the contending
armies. A mighty earthquake, which has never been equalled
in force and destructiveness in the history of the world, shakes
the earth with fury. The cities of the nations are brought to
ruins by the earthquake and the hail that falls, every stone
the weight of a talent, something over fifty pounds. The
islands flee away, and the mountains disappear. This plague
brings to an end the history of the human race on this planet.
The three parts into which "great Babylon" is divided, are the
same three parts already spoken of, paganism, Romanism,
and apostate Protestantism.
19
Just as the Israelites in Egypt were protected by. the power
of God from the plagues that were brought upon their task-
masters, so God's obedient children will be protected from the
plagues that are to come. The ninety-first Psalm seems to
have been written especially with the seven last plagues in mind.
Note its wonderful promises in this connection :
"I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in
Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and
under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth
by day: nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruc-
tion that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten
thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine
eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast
made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation;
there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy
ways." Ps. 9r: 2-II.
And so the people of God will be protected in the day of
His anger. May the reader be among them. But to be among
them it is necessary now to heed the admonition:
"Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought His
judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid
in the day of the Lord's anger." Zeph. 2 : 3.
COMING EvENT,s, AND THE CLOS1
OF THE 4AsPEL
Like the Woolworth Building above New York fog.
the peaks of prophecy show above earth's darkness.
The Millennium
T HE second coming of Christ is the event that ushers in the

millennium. The millennium is not, as many suppose, a
thousand years of glory and peace on earth. It is not an age of
progress. It does not result from the conversion of the whole
world; nor will the world be converted during that period.
Neither Christ nor His people will be on earth during the thousand
years. That period does not offer a second probation to any.
On the contrary, it will be an age of darkness and gloom.
It will be a period when _death reigns over all the earth. The
day of salvation will then have ended; the day of the Lord will
have begun. Of this day of the Lord, or the millennium, we read:
"Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord. To what end is it for
you? The day of the Lord is darkness, and not light. As if a man did
flee from a lion and a bear met him: or went into the house, and leaned
his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. Shall not the day of the Lord
be darkness, and not light? Even dark, and no brightness in it?" Amos
5: 18-20.
"Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy moun-
tain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord
eometh, for it is nigh at hand; a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of
(291)
clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a
great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be
any more after it, even to the years of many generations." Joel 2 : I, 2.
The Binding of Satan
During the thousand-year period — the millennium — Satan
will be bound in some place called " the bottomless pit." Here
it is impossible for him to carry on his work of deception.
Here he receives a partial punishment for his career of evil.
"I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottom-
less pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that
old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon
him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years
should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I
saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them:
and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and
for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his
image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their
hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the
rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.
This is the first resurrection." Rev. zo: 1-5.
The fact that Satan is bound during the millennium has led
many to conclude that this period will be a very happy, glorious
time of peace among the nations; that all the nations will be
converted to the gospel; and as a result disband their armies,
dismantle their navies, and learn war no more. This theory has
been taught so long that it has come to be widely believed.
It has absolutely no foundation in the Scriptures.
The World Will Not Be Converted
The Bible nowhere teaches that the whole world will be
converted. In the parable of the wheat and tares, recorded in
Matthew 13 : 24-30, 36-43, it is made very plain that both the
righteous and the wicked are to "grow together" until the
"harvest, " which is explained to be " the end of the world. "
At the end of the world, instead of the wicked all being converted,
they are to be cast into a furnace of fire, where there will be
" wailing and gnashing of teeth."
Instead of the world's growing better and better, as the
exponents of the world-conversion theory teach, we are plainly
told in the Bible that "evil men and seducers shall wax worse
and worse, deceiving and being deceived. " 2 Tim. 3: 13:
The mighty angel sent from God binds the adversary of earth and heaven.
(293)
In describing the days immediately preceding His second
coming, Jesus declared:
"As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the
Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were
given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the
flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of
Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they
builded ; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and
brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the
day when the Son of man is revealed." Luke 17: 26-30.
A picture of the days just before the second coming of Christ,
then, may be had by a study of the character of the times just
before the flood, and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Concerning these conditions, we read:
"God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that
every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
Gen. 6:5.
The Order of Millennial Events
The order of events opening and closing the millennium is
plainly set forth in the teachings of the Bible. It is to begin
with the second coming of Christ. At this time there will be
four classes of people on the earth; namely, the righteous dead,
the righteous living, the wicked dead, and the wicked living.
The Bible makes plain what becomes of each class.
At the coming of Christ all the righteous dead will be
raised from their graves, and will be taken to heaven with the
righteous living, who are to be translated.
"The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be
with the Lord." z Thess. 4:• 16, 17.
The righteous dead, then, together with the righteous living,
will be caught up to meet the Lord on the cloud.
They will not remain in the air, as some teach, but will
go with the Lord to heaven.
"In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I
am, there ye may be also." John 14: 2, 3.
THE MILLENNIUM 295
In heaven they remain during the thousand years of the
millennium :
"They lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." Rev. 20: 4.
It is plain from this that the righteous are not on earth,
but in heaven, during the thousand years that comprise the
millennium.
The wicked dead are not raised at the second coming of
Christ. They are left unmolested in their tombs. Their sleep
is not broken at this time, for it is the plain and unmistakable
teaching of Revelation that —
"The rest of the dead [the wicked] lived not again until the thousand
years were finished." Rev. 20: 5.
The Two Resurrections

There are two resurrections — a resurrection of the right-
eous at the second coming of Christ, and a resurrection of the
wicked one thousand years later, at the close of the millennium.
Thus the millennium opens with a resurrection and closes with a
resurrection.
The living wicked will be destroyed at the second coming of
' Christ, and will remain dead until the second resurrection,
at the close of the millennium. It is to the wicked living at the
coming of Christ that the apostle refers when in 2 Thess.
: 7- ro, he writes:
"You who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be
revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking venge-
ance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our
Lord Jesus Christ; who shall be with everlasting destruction from
the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power; when He shall
come to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that be-
lieve (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day."
From this plain teaching of the Bible we see clearly what
becomes of the four classes on the earth at the second coming
of Christ. The righteous dead will be raised, the righteous
living will be translated, and together these two classes will be
taken to heaven to live and reign with Christ for a thousand
years; the wicked dead are left in their tombs, the wicked living
are all brought to death, and together these ;two classes will
remain in the prison house of death until the close of the mil-
lennium.
Publvshers Photo Service
The whole earth will be more desolate than are its present deserts.
The Depopulation of the Earth

D URING the millennium the world will be in a completely
ruined, wrecked, and depopulated condition. It is Arma-
geddon that will begin the slaughter that is to be as wide as
the world. Armageddon is not only the self-destruction of a
race in rebellion against God, but it is the forerunner of the final
overthrow that shall befall all the wicked forces of the earth, a
ruin from which there shall be no recovery, no return.
There could not, in the very nature of things, be any other
issue than this to the great controversy between God and a
race in revolt. True, the race might lay down its arms, and
cease to fight against God, and thus bring an end to the rebellion;
but so long as the race persists in its warfare, it can look forward
to no other end than complete destruction.
For the controversy is one between right and wrong, between
good and evil, and there can be no other issue to it, so far as men
are concerned, except voluntarily giving up the wrong or perish-
ing with it. In a warfare between a just and almighty Creator
and His frail and rebellious creatures, between a righteous and
omnipotent Ruler and His puny and revolted subjects, there
can be but one end. Rebellious men must go down in death,
while God triumphs. Wrong must be defeated by right.
(296)
THE DEPOPULATION OP THE EARTH 297
On the part of Jehovah, the controversy is a just and right-
eous one. And being such, it admits of no compromise of the
eternal principles of righteousness to the willfulness of fallen
and misguided man. Nor can God be indifferent to man's
sin, nor neglect it, nor overlook it. This would be but to per-
petuate wrong. No, the cause of the controversy must be
rooted up, the thing that caused the separation between God and
man must be destroyed. Sin must be annihilated. Before the
controversy can ever end, its cause must be eliminated. There
can be no other adjustment.
And, therefore, so far as man is concerned, there can be but
two ways for the controversy between himself and God to end.
Sin is to be destroyed. Man can give it up and return to God,
or he can be destroyed with it. Either he must yield to his
Creator, and return meekly, penitently, and obediently to his
allegiance to God; or, refusing to do this and continuing
persistently to set aside the divine authority, rejecting the
mercy that has been offered, and despising the grace that has
been extended to draw him back, he must finally fall beneath
the stroke of that justice which he has outraged, and be de-'
stroyed by the execution of those laws which he has trans-
gressed. Either he must bow or be broken, yield or be
overthrown; for God cannot deny Himself.
It is at the time of Armageddon, as we have seen, that—
"Evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind
shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. And the slain of the Lord
shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of
the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they
shall be dung upon the ground." Jer. 25: 32, 33.
"There Was No Man"

It was just after this great vision of the wrath of God at
Armageddon and the second coming of Christ, that the prophet
had a view of the earth.
"I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the
heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they
trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no
man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and lo, the fruit-
ful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at
the presence of the Lord, and by His fierce anger." Jer. 4:23-26.
American Press Ass'n

"No man's land" will be world wide and a millennium long.
A description of the earth during the millennium will be

found also in Isaiah:
"Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste,
and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
. The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the
Lord hath spoken this word." Isa. 24: 1, 3.
The Death Warrant of a Godless Race
The utter depopulation and ruin of the earth — such is the
terrible destiny that overhangs this world. Not since the waters
of the flood overwhelmed the human race has such a terrible
and widespread destruction been known to man. In history
there has been no fulfillment of this prediction. The war that
humanity has been waging against Jehovah has not yet reached
its final issue. But the end is hurrying on apace. The wrath of
God, like a pall of blackness, overhangs the impenitent world.
It is the death warrant of a godless and impious race. Nothing
but slaughter as wide as the world can fill in the terrible picture.
And when the time has come for God to pronounce judgment,
"Behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with His chariots like a
whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of
fire. For by fire and His sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the
slain of the Lord shall be many." Isa. 66: x5, i6. •
The Furious Tornado of God's Wrath
This great tempest of the wrath of God will break suddenly
upon a surprised and unready world. Those who have rejected
THE DEPOPULATION OP' THE EARTH 299
God's final offer of mercy, His closing message of the gospel,
will be solacing their hearts with the belief that universal and
lasting peace has at last been brought about between the nations
of the world. Claims will be put forth that man has at last
solved the long problems of the ages and created a perfect form
of international government. And then,
"When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction
cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall
not escape." r Thess. 5 : 3.
Like a furious tornado will the storm of the wrath of an
offended God burst upon those who have despised His mercy.
"In the latter days" it shall do its work, falling "grievously
upon the head of the wicked." (Jer. 23: 19, 2o.) The earth will
be strewn from end to end with the bodies of the slain of the
Lord, as "dung upon the ground." (Jer. 25: 31-33.) The great
and mighty, the nobles and princes, are called upon to howl and
mourn over their impending ruin:
"Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye
principal of the flock: for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions
are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel. And the shepherds
shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape." Jer.
25: 34, 35.
This is the final doom of the rebellious race:
"Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies: Thy right hand shall find
out those that hate Thee. Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time
of Thine anger: the Lord shall swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire
shall devour them. Their fruit shalt Thou destroy from the earth, and their
seed from among the children of men." Ps. 21: 8-10.
While the heathen are raging and the people imagining a
vain thing, while rulers plot, and kings devise impotent de-
vices, then—
"He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them
in derision. Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in
His sore displeasure. . . . Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;
Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." Ps. 2: 4, 5, 9.
In this manner the long controversy between God and man
will close. There is no other prospect than this for the sin-
cursed and impenitent race that persists in sin.
The race that obstinately continues its rebellion, and thus
makes itself the enemy of God, cannot hope for life. For when
Christ shall come to decide the controversy, then "a fire goeth
before Him, and burneth up His enemies round about." Ps.
97:3.
"The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of
His wrath. He shall judge among the heathen, He shall fill the places
with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries."
Ps. 11o:5, 6.
Struck with Divine Justice
Similar to this is the instruction given to Ezekiel. After he
beheld the terrible wrath of God poured out upon the nations
that then existed, his eye pierced the future to the events of
"the latter years." There, in connection with the consumma-
tion of the great controversy between a rebellious race and its
Creator, he saw the countless foes of God marshalling them-
selves to battle against Jehovah like the gathering of a great
tempest. But he also saw them meet with the fearful fury and
vengeance of a despised God, who rains upon them "hailstones,
fire, and brimstone," while at the same time He summons all
the fowls of heaven and the beasts of the earth to come and
gorge themselves upon the flesh of His enemies, the great and
mighty of the earth, who have been struck with divine justice.
(Ezek. 38: 3-9, 17-22.)
In the vision of Daniel the kingdoms of the earth are repre-
sented by a great image grand and imposing, the materials of
which degenerate in character until from the head of gold we
descend, through silver, brass, and iron, to the feet made of a
mixture of iron and clay. And then, with a suddenness that
takes the world unawares, a great stone thrown by unseen
hands with terrible velocity, strikes the colossal image on its
feet, and crushes it all to powder, a powder that is driven and
scattered by the whirlwinds of God's wrath until not a vestige
of it remains, while the stone that overthrows the kingdoms of
the world becomes a great mountain that fills all the earth.
The Resistless Might of an Offended God
Here is foreshadowed the fact that earth's kingdoms would
degenerate, and the character of the race become so sinful that
the resistless might of an offended God will at last smite them,
resulting in their utter extermination, while their destruction
will be followed by a better order of things in the kingdom of
God, represented by the stone cut out of the mountain without
THE DEPOPULATION OP THE EARTH 301
hands. This stone is to crush every opposing power, and fill

the entire earth with its eternal and beneficent influence.
Passing on to the prophecy of Joel, we find him predicting the
same events, and the utter overthrow of the enemies of God. All
nations are summoned to the conflict. The men of war are bidden
to come up. Their plowshares are to be beaten into swords,
and their pruning hooks into spears. Both weak and strong are
summoned to the valley of Jehoshaphat, to which place Jehovah
himself is to bring down His mighty ones, and sit to judge the
nations round about. Then the command goes forth:
"Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for
the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great." Joel 3: 13.
Multitudes are there in that valley of decision. The skies

overhead are clouded with a pall of blackness. The voice of
God thunders out of Zion, the heavens and the earth are shaken
as by an earthquake's power, and God's judgments fall with a
fury that exterminates all His puny foes.
The Fire of His Jealousy

Similar allusions will be found in Amos, Obadiah, and
Micah. Zephaniah foretells the time when God shall "rise up to
the prey" (Zeph 3: 8), when the nations are gathered and the
kingdoms assembled. At that time he declares that God will
pour out upon them His indignation, even all His fierce anger,
and the fire of His jealousy will devour the whole earth.
The prophet Haggai delivers this message from God:
"1 will shake the heavens and the earth; and I will overthrow the throne
of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the heathen;
and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the
horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his
brother." Haggai 2: 21, 22.
According to Paul, who comments on this passage, this

shaking will be more severe than that on Mt. Sinai when the
law was given, for that voice shook only the earth, whereas it
will now shake both earth and heaven,+ removing everything
that can be removed, while the things that cannot be shaken,
and the kingdom that cannot be moved, will abide and become
the eternal heritage of God's people.
Thus the testimony of inspired men on the point of the
destiny of the human race is characterized by unity and
harmony. It leads but to one conclusion. The controversy
between a revolted race and the Creator will be dosed by
judgments unparalleled and indescribable in severity.
The Bottomless Pit of Satan's Captivity
Prom the description that the prophets have given of the
condition of the earth during the millennium, we see that it
will be a waste, desolate wilderness. There will be no man here.
The righteous will be in heaven. The wicked will all be dead.
The cities of the earth will be broken down at the preknce of
the Lord. All the works of man will be destroyed. Darkness
will cover the earth. The bodies of the dead will be from one
end of the earth to the other end. There will be no one to lament
them or bury them.
It is the earth in this condition that is called the "bottomless
pit," into which Satan is cast and bound. The term "bottom-
less pit" is used in Rev. 9: I, 2, and is there applied to the
Arabian desert, from which issued the hordes of Saracens and
Turks that are described in that chapter. The term means
any place of darkness, desolation, and death. And when the
earth, during the millennium, returns-to its original condition
of chaos, "without form and void," it becomes "the bottomless
pit" of Satan's captivity.
Binding of Satan
Here, in this desolate earth, with its cities broken down and
its whole expanse become a great wilderness, without any of
the human race left, Satan will be compelled to stay for one
thousand years. He is bound by a great chain. This chain is not
a chain of iron or steel, or tungsten, or brass, but a chain of
circumstances. He is unable to do anything. He cannot de-
ceive the righteous, for they are in heaven, out of his reach.
He cannot deceive the wicked, for they are all dead. There is
nothing he can do. By the very circumstances of his position
he is bound, and he must of necessity remain bound until some
change is brought about either in the condition of the righteous
or in that of the wicked.
While this is not Satan's final punishment, it is a just pre-
limivary to it. It is sin that causes the wreck of the world.
THE DEPOPITLATION OF THE EARTH • 303
It is sin that causes the cities of the earth to be broken down.
It is sin that slays the wicked. It is sin that makes the earth a
desolate wilderness. All this is the work of Satan. This is the
result of the rebellion he started in heaven and continued upon
earth.
And now, during the millennium, he is made to understand
what it all means, what its results have been. This ruined world
is his handiwork. For a thousand years he is compelled to view
the results of his work. He is compelled to live in the conditions
that he himself has brought about. His work of deception has
been made impossible. The righteous have at last escaped his
grasp, and are enjoying the delights of heaven at the court of
the King of the universe. The wicked are before him, but they
are cold in death.
The dead in sea and land will be raised,to stand before God.
The Second Resurrection
N IT was the destruction of the wicked and the translation

of the righteous at the second coming of Christ that bound
Satan, so the great chain with which he is bound will be broken
by the resurrection of the wicked at the close of the thousand
years.
The millennium begins with a resurrection and ends with a
resurrection. The righteous dead are raised at its beginning,
and accompany Christ to heaven. The wicked dead are raised
at its close.
"The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were
finished." Rev. 20: 5.
It is plain from this passage that the wicked dead are not
raised until the close of the millennium; for if the rest of the
dead Hy& not again until the thousand years are finished, then
when the thousand years are finished, the rest of the dead (the
wicked) will live again.
Breaking Satan's Bondage
This, then, the resurrection of the wicked, breaks the chain of
circumstances with which Satan has been bound during the
thousand years, and makes it possible for him again to enter
upon the work of deception. The emptying of the earth of all
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THE SECOND RESURRECTION 305
human inhabitants constituted his binding, and now the resur-
rection of the wicked brings about his release.
The vast hosts of evil angels have been gathered about
Satan, and now this great company is joined by the innumerable
throng of the wicked.
"The earth shall cast out the dead, . . . The earth also shall disclose
her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." Isa. 26: 19, 21.
Bishop Lowth renders these words:
"The earth shall cast forth as an abortion, the deceased tyrants."
These are the ones spoken of in Isa. 14 : 9
"It stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth.',
And this is rendered by Bishop Lowth:
"He rouseth for thee the mighty dead, all the great chiefs of the earth.',
Here are included the giants who lived on the earth before.
the flood, and who perished with the flood. During the ages
that are past the earth hid her dead. Blood defiled the land,
and the pollution of the dead carcasses made it unclean from
end to end. Now an end has come to all this. The earth dis-
closes its blood, and no longer covers its slain.
The earth casts out the mighty dead. Every sinner comes
forth. The accumulated generations that were in the world
"which then was," and was overthrown with water at the time
of the flood, generations that are now submerged in the bed of
the oceans, and all the generations that have gone into their
graves since the world was overflowed with water, come forth
together to receive their final and eternal punishment. Many of
those who come forth in the second resurrection are skilled in
warfare, and they are just as eager as ever to destroy their
opponents.
It is at this time that the holy city, the New Jerusalem,
comes down from heaven and rests upon the earth.
"I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God
out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard
a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God
himself shall be with them, and be their God." Rev. 21:2, 3.
That beautiful city, lightened with the glory of God, destined
to be the capital of the new earth, settles down upon the place
20
Wide World Photos
More terrific than active volcano will be the earth as a lake of fire.
(306) ,
prepared for it, in the sight of the wicked. And in the city are the
redeemed of the Lord who have been living and reigning with
Him during the millennium.
End of the Conflict Between God and Man

The warfare of man against God, which was broken off at the
second coming of Christ, when all His enemies perished, will be
resumed when the wicked are raised from the dead at the end of
the millennium. Their thousand-year sleep in death has not
changed their natures in the slightest degree. They went down to
their graves in rebellion against God. Their first impulse on
awakening from the sleep of death is to continue in the same
evil course.
The warfare of the rebellious race begins again just where it
has broken off. But now it may be seen in its true light. It is
not now confused by a medley of motives, international, in-
terracial, interreligious. It appears now in its true colors. It is
a rebellion against God. It is sinners against their Maker.
It is a revolt of the puny creatures of the earth against the
Majesty of heaven. It is Satan against Christ, sin against
righteousness, evil against goodness.
Satan Plans Capture

As Satan sees himself joined by the great host of the wicked,
and beholds before him the New Jerusalem, containing the
righteous and the holy angels with their loved Commander,
the Son of God, he determines that he will not yet abandon his
struggle for the supremacy of the world. He points out to his
angels and the mighty men of the earth that the city appears
to be unprotected, and would doubtless be unable to resist
attack. He leads them to believe that after all they may be
able, with the assistance of the mighty hosts of the wicked, to
surround the city and overthrow the government of God, and
take possession of the New Jerusalem.
As Satan lays before them this great project, they agree to
it, and plans are made to carry it out. The wicked are marshaled
in companies and organized for labor and warfare. Armies are .
formed and drilled. Weapons of warfare are prepared for the
great struggle that is to decide the long controversy between
Christ and Satan for the control of the universe. Companies,
battalions, regiments, and corps are formed and drilled by great
leaders in war.
The hosts of evil are all marshaled at last under one banner,
that of the prince of demons. This is to be the battle that
closes the warfare that began in heaven before the days of
Adam and Eve, and has been the cause of all warfare since.
The long controversy between Christ and Satan is about to be
decided.
Satan leads the hosts of the wicked against the city, and they
surround it on every side. They are led to hope for success,
but instead they meet their eternal destiny in oblivion. What
happens then we read :
"When the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of
his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four
quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle:
the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the
breadth of the earth, and compassed the city of the saints about, and the
beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured
them." Rev. 20: 7, 9.
The Tempest of God's Wrath

As the great host of the wicked surround the holy city,
God goes forth from His place to punish His adversaries. Their
wickedness has been great, and the tempest of God's wrath
spends its fury upon the godless and the vile. The scepter of
oppression is broken and the throne of iniquity is cast down.
The empires of the earth have their power broken, and are
given to the devouring flame. The fire of God falls from heaven,
and the vast multitude of evil men and fallen angels are over-
whelmed in its flames. Death is swallowed up in full and endless
victory. The last enemy of God is destroyed by a power that
is stronger than itself.
The fire that falls upon the wicked does not perpetuate them,
but devours them. This is the second death, from which there
will never be any resurrection.
Fate of God's Adversary
The fire will have the same effect upon Satan and his angels
that it has upon the wicked. They also will be brought to noth-
ing, and be as though they had never been. This is very plain
from the words that God spoke to Satan:
"I will destroy thee, 0 covering cherub, from the midst of the stones
of fire . . . . I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings,
that they may behold thee . . . . I will bring forth a fire from the midst
of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth
in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among
the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never
shalt thou be any more." Ezek. 28: 16-19.
The destiny of Satan is also referred to in the book of
Malachi:
"Behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud,
yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh
shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither
root nor branch." Mal. 4:1.
Thus the great conflict. of the ages between Christ and
Satan, between good and evil, will find its issue in the utter
destruction of Satan and his angels and all who ally themselves
with him. The fires of the last day will consume them, and
leave them neither root nor branch. Satan is the root, and the
wicked are the branches. The universe is to be cleansed from
every stain of sin.
The splendors of the old Babylonian cities have given way to ruins and hovels.
The Fall of Babylon

'E H closing message of the gospel to the world is threefold.
It commenced with the proclamation of the first angel
(Rev. 14:6, 7) that "the hour of His judgment is come."
Without in the least detracting from the force of this announce-
ment of the judgment, the second angel (Rev. 14: 8) added his
voice to the message and declared that "Babylon is fallen, is
fallen." The third angel (Rev. 14: 9- II) brought the message
to completion by adding to it the warning against the false
worship of the beast and his image and the reception of his
mark. Thus the message, in threefold force, goes forward to the
end with ever-accumulating power.
In a preceding chapter the truth of the investigative judg-
ment, which began in 1844, and which is now going on in heaven,
has been presented. We have also discussed the worship of the
beast and his image, and the message of the third angel against
this beast. It now remains for us to consider the message of the
second angel regarding the fall of Babylon.
"And there followed. another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen,
that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath
of her fornication." Rev. 14:8.
The time when this message is to be given is easily deter-
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THn VALI. OF BABYLag 32I
mined. It is to sound forth after the beginning of the investi-
gative judgment, which is announced by the first angel. The
angel bearing the message regarding Babylon is seen immedi-
ately after the judgment angel gives his message. In addition
to this it was to be given, as we have seen, in connection with
the warning against the beast and his image. And just as soon
By Ewing Galloway, N, Y.
Babylon's glories were marvelous, but they have all perished.
as it is completed Christ will come. (Rev. 14: 14.) Hence the

message of the fall of Babylon is a present-day message.
What is Babylon, and what is its fall? Babylon is the name
of the great harlot that John saw sitting on a scarlet colored
beast
"And upon her head was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON
THE GREAT, THE MOTHER Or HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS
OP THE EARTH." Rev. Iv 5.
John declares that he saw this woman "drunken with the
blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of
Jesus." Verse 6. Babylon, then, primarily, is that power which •
has brought the people of God to death and martyrdom.
Central News Photo Service
Remains of ancient cities of the Tigris-Ephrates valley seen from the air.
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THB FALL Or BABYLON 313
The relation between Christ and His people is likened in
many places in the Bible to the marriage relation, this being
the closest and most holy human relationship.
"I am jealous over you with godly jealousy; for I have espoused
you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."
2 Cor. It: 2.
When a Christian or a Christian church becomes unfaithful
to Christ, and unites with the world, this is represented in the
Bible in the same light as breaking the marriage vow. It is
spoken of as spiritual adultery:
"Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of
the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the
world is the enemy of God." James 4: 4.
What Babylon Is
A woman in prophecy is the symbol of a church — a fallen
woman of a fallen and apostate church, and a pure woman of
the true church of Christ. The woman of Rev. 12: 1, because of
her purity, represents the Christian church.
Here, in Babylon the Great, is a symbol of a woman of a
far different character, a fallen, impure, lewd woman, committing
fornication with the kings of the earth. In this way is rep-
resented her unfaithfulness to Christ and her union with the
world. So far does she go in uniting with the world that she
turns upon those who remain loyal to Christ and persecutes
them, until she becomes drunken with the blood of the saints,
and the martyrs of Jesus.
"Mystery, Babylon the Great," then, is the name given to
the apostasy that developed in the early church and that
grew into the Papacy, the Roman Church. It is called "Mystery"
because its true character is hidden under a fair exterior. It
is not at all what it pretends to be. It pretends to be
and masquerades as a church. It looks like a church, and
acts like a church, and has all the appurtenances of a church.
It claims to be the only true church. But this is not its true
character. Underneath this outward covering of falsehood it is
Satan's great device for ruining souls. While claiming to teach
and defend the truth, its sole work is to destroy that truth.
It leads men to destruction while professing to save them.
Inwardly it is one thing, and outwardly it is another. Hence
its name, " Mystery."
It is called "Babylon" because of the cOnfusion it has pro-
duced. The word "Babylon" had its origin at the tower of
Babel. Babel means, primarily, "the gate of God," or the
gate to heaven. This is what men attempted to construct by
their own efforts in building the tower of Babel, which was to
reach to heaven. It was man's effort to reach heaven by him-
self without divine help. Babel means man's self-made way
to heaven.
The outcome of man's attempt to,erect a way of his own to
heaven was the confusion of tongues, the babylon of tongues.
Babylon thus came to mean confusion. It began in a man-made
effort to reach heaven; it ended in utter confusion and defeat.
Thus Babylon is man's method of self-salvation. It pretends
to be the gate to heaven, but it really is confusion. It is climbing
up another way and not coming through the Door of the sheep-
fold. And he that climbs up another way the Master called
" a thief and a robber."
While Babylon is, first of all, the Roman system, Babylon
hasher daughters, and theyfollow in the footsteps of the mother.
She is "the mother of harlots." That is, the daughters are like
the mother; they, too, have been unfaithful to Christ, and have
united with the world.
A Moral Fall
If Rome is the mother, who, then, are the daughters? This
brings us to aconsideration of the nature of the fall of this system.
What is meant by Babylon's fall, which is the subject of the
message of the second angel?
This fall cannot be the destruction of the apostate system,
for at a later time than when the message of the fall is first
given there is another message that goes forth, calling the
people of God out of her. (Rev. 18: 1-5.) The destruction of
this system is not recorded until the eighteenth chapter of
Revelation opens.
In this connection it may be well to point out that by this
verse in Rev. 18 : 4, the call to "come out of her, My people,"
further identifies Babylon, for it shows clearly that Babylon is
where God's people have been, and where many of them still
remain.
The message of the fall of Babylon must have reference to
THE VALI, OP BABYLON - 315
a moral fall, not its destruction. But, it will be asked, has not the
church of Rome been fallen for ages? Yes, it has, but the
message that Babylon as a whole has fallen cannot truthfully be
given until the entire system is fallen, not only the mother but
the daughters as well. This cannot take place until the churches
that came out of Rome, the Protestant churches, repudiate the
very foundation principles of Protestantism, and begin to
return to the mother from which they separated.
The Daughters of Babylon
Have they at the present time done this? Reluctantly, but
positively, the answer must be, Yes. There is overwhelming
evidence that this is the only true answer.
The teaching of the Roman Church is that tradition, as
well as the Bible, is the foundation of faith and truth. It teaches
that of the two, tradition, is the safest guide. It also holds that
the church, the Roman Church, is the ordained instrumentality
of God to decide how much of tradition is valuable, as well as
to decide for its people what the Bible means. It puts tradition
on a par with the Bible, and even exalts it to a higher and more
authoritative place than the Bible.
It was because the Reformers refused to accept the authority
of the Roman Church to interpret the Bible, and because they
discarded tradition as of no value in establishing the truth
of Christian doctrine, that that mighty movement was launched
which gave birth to the great Protestant bodies. They demanded
a plain "Thus saith the Lord" for every principle they accepted,
and put the Bible in its rightful place. This was right, for the
Bible is the origin and source of truth, and no dependence at
all can be placed in tradition.
Protestantism Repudiating Protestant Principles
But it has come to pass today that the Protestant churches
are returning in their practice to that platform which they left
four hundred years ago. Doctrines and ceremonies have been
adopted and are today being practiced that have no basis at all
in the Scriptures. When this is pointed out to the leaders of
these churches, instead of discarding these anti-Scriptural
doctrines and practices, they attempt to defend them. The only
defense they can produce for them is an appeal to tradition,
an authority which never can be accepted by Bible Chris-
tians.
Among the doctrines accepted by the Protestant bodies
today that are traditional, but not Scriptural, are eternal
torment for the unsaved, infant baptism, sprinkling for baptism,
and Sunday sacredness. These doctrines are not Biblical, and
they are not true.
In no part of the Holy Scriptures can the doctrine of eternal
torment be found. The Bible does teach that sinners will be
punished, and punished severely, but its teaching is that "the
wages of sin is death, " not eternal life in torment. Sinners will
finally be blotted out of existence, and both sin and sinners will
be no more.
The Bible does not teach infant baptism, though many
Protestant churches, claiming to base their teaching and
practice on the Bible alone, have adopted it. An infant is not
a proper candidate for baptism, simply because it cannot meet
the requirement of the Bible which would fit it for this rite.
The Bible itself sets forth the prerequisites for baptism. They
are that the candidate must be taught the gospel, must re-
pent of his sins, and confess them. An infant cannot be taught
the gospel, cannot believe the gospel, cannot repent, and can-
not confess. Hence an infant is not a proper candidate for
baptism. Those churches that practice infant baptism have
thus departed from the true foundations of Protestantism,
the Bible and the Bible alone.
The Bible teaches that the only true baptism is by immersion.
Sprinkling for baptism can be proved by tradition, but it
cannot be proved by the Bible, and should therefore at once
be discarded by all Bible Christians.
Appeal to Tradition for Sunday Observance
The appeal to tradition is depended on more completely by
Protestant churches for the observance of Sunday as the
Sabbath than for anything else. There is no command for
Sunday keeping in the Bible. There is no promise of blessing for
observing it. There is no warning of judgment for breaking it.
Christ did not keep it. The disciples did not keep it. The early
church did not keep it. Tlfere is absolutely no authority what-
soever in the Bible for the observance of Sunday.
THS PALL Or BABYLON 317
The Bible is not only silent about Sunday keeping, but it
positively and emphatically and repeatedly enjoins upon all
Christians the observance of the seventh day. Hence the
churches today that are keeping Sunday, and defending its
observance, are not only keeping an institution regarding which
the Bible is silent, but they are keeping it in direct opposition
to the entire teaching of the Bible, which commands the
observance of a day that most Christians have not once kept
throughout their entire lifetime, the seventh day of the week.
On the Backward Path to Rome
This is the anomalous situation in which the Protestant
churches find themselves today as a consequence of appealing
to tradition rather than to the Bible for their faith and practice.
What every such church ought to do is to discard tradition and
return to the Bible, and to follow Jesus, to follow the apostles,
and to follow the early church iri observing the Bible Sabbath,
the seventh day.
Protestantism took its stand in the sixteenth century on the
Bible and the Bible alone as the foundation for all that it taught.
It was this principle which caused the separation from Rome.
Today Protestantism is repudiating this whole platform, and is
turning again to tradition to justify itself in the practice and
teaching of certain doctrines- and observances that certainly
cannot be found in the Bible.
The churches that have thus departed from the Bible and
are today following tradition, the Lord calls "Babylon." They
are obedient daughters to a fallen mother. And with their
departure from the Bible and its teachings, "Babylon is fallen,
is fallen. "
Vital Christian Experience on the Wane
It can be expected that when the churches depart from the
purity of the faith, and discard the Bible, there will also be
witnessed a departure of real, vital Christian experience. Just
this is being witnessed today. The only encouraging feature
in the present situation is that the sincere, humble followers of
God are beginning to discern the true state of the case, and
protest against it. It was such discernment, without doubt,
which prompted the editor of the Western Christian Advocate,
of Cincinnati, Ohio, in his issue of July Da, 1893, to write the

following editorial:
"To the Church of the Methodists, Write:
"The trouble with us today is that the rescue of imperiled souls is
our last and least consideration. Many of our congregations are conducted
on the basis of social clubs. They are made centers of social influence.
Membership is sought in order to advance one's prospects in society, busi-
ness, or politics. Preachers are called to know how to
"'Smooth down the rugged text to ears polite,
And snugly keep damnation out of sight!'
"The Sunday services are made the occasion of displaying the ele-
gances of apparel in the latest fashions. Even the little ones are tricked
out as though they were the acolytes of pride. If the 'Rules' be read, it
is to comply with the letter of the law whose spirit has long since fled.
The class-books are filled with names of unconverted men and women.
Official members may be found in the box, dress-circle, and parquet of
opera and theater. Communicants take in the races, and give and attend
card parties and dances. The distinction between inside and outside is so
obscure that men smile when asked to unite with the church, and sometimes
tell us that they find the best
men outside.
" When we go to the masses,
it is too of ten with such ostenta-
tious condescension that self-
respect drives them from us.
"And yet we have so spread
out, under the inflation of the
rich and ungodly, that they are
a necessity to us. The enforce-
ment of the unmistakable letter
of the Discipline for a single
year would cut our membership
in half, bankrupt our missionary
society, close our fashionable
churches, paralyze our connec-
tional interests, and leave our
pastors and bishops unpaid and
in distress. But the fact remains
that one of two things must
happen — the Discipline must
purge the church, or God's Holy
Spirit will seek other organized
agencies. The ax is laid at the
root of the tree. The call is to
repentance. God's work must be
Keystone View Co.
done. If we are in the way, He
This age rears skyscraper churches
will remove us." --- modern towers of Babel.
THE FALL Or BABYLON 3 r9
Another illustration of the direction in which the churches
of today are heading, is revealed in the following quotation
from the Philadelphia Record, appearing in an interview with
the pastor of the "church that has the largest membership"
in a certain city of Pennsylvania. This pastor is reported as
saying that he "would just as soon hear the click of billiard
balls in the church as the reading of the Bible. "
And here is the report of " An Illustrated Sermon," appearing
in the Daily Standard of Eureka, Calif.
"An altar and pulpit adorned with a billiard cue and ball, a deck of
cards, a bowling ball, a gun, a football, a fishing pole, a baseball and bat,
a dice box and a croquet mallet, was the unusual sight presented at the
church to the largest crowd that has gathered in a Eureka
church for many months. . . .
"The reverend gentleman took the position that there was absolutely
no harm in billiard playing, and illustrated his remarks with cue and ball,
caroming from the bouquet holder to the altar Bible and making masse
shots without tearing the altar cloth. He shuffled and cut a deck of cards
with expert hand, and vowed that whist was most intellectual, and that all
card games were beneficial."
This pastor, the report continues, also defended the use of
dice, and gave his endorsement to dancing and theater-going.
Naturally he had a large crowd.
A very prominent New York minister has placed himself on
record as follows : " Every up-to-date municipal church should
contain a theater and dance-hall. "
Proclaimed with a Loud Voice
Just before the close of the threefold message, the proclama-
tion of the fall of Babylon is to go to the world with extraordi-
nary power, and those of the people of God who then still remain
in the fallen churches are to be called upon to reach a definite
decision to obey the truth. Upon this decision will depend their
salvation or destruction, for if they still hesitate to follow God
in accepting His last great message of truth they will go down in
the destruction of Babylon.
The great, threefold message will close in a demonstration of
power that will bring it to the attention of the entire earth,
for the earth is to be lightened with its glory. It is at that time
that the announcement of the fall of Babylon will be given
with unusual force.
"And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven,
having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he
cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is
fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul
spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have
drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth
have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are
waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another
voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not
partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins
reached unto heaven, and God bath remembered her iniquities." Rev.
18: 1-5. .
Return to the Primitive Truth
This is a message that should be heeded by all of the people
of God at the present time. The churches of the Reformation
are departing from the true foundation of Protestantism — the
Bible and the Bible alone — and are engaging in all manner of
forbidden pleasures, turning the . very house of God into a
commercial institution, buying and selling in the temple, and
making God's house a den of thieves. It is full time that those
who would serve God should "come out of her," and take their
stand on the Bible.
This is the work that will be accomplished by the threefold
message of Revelation 14. It will set forth a platform of purely
Bible truth, and call for those who are honest-hearted in all
churches to take their stand on that platform. It will thus be
the perpetuation of the Protestant Reformation. It will be more
than that. It will constitute a return to the primitive faith of the
apostolic church. It will be a restoration of all lost and per-
verted truths, which, during the Dark Ages, were changed into
a lie. It will be the antithesis of papal teaching and of apostate
Protestantism, and therefore will constitute a powerful message
of warning against the beast, and his image, and the reception of
his mark. It will be the keeping "of the commandments of
God and the faith of Jesus."
The Reformation began at Luther's bold stand on the side of advancing truth.
Completing an Arrested Reformation

HE most appalling crisis of its entire history now confronts
the Christian church. The faith of the people in the
Bible, as the inspired and authoritative word of God, is being
destroyed, not by attacks from outside the church, but by those
who occupy the positions of foremost trust in its pulpits.
The poisonous influence of such errors as Modernism, as
higher criticism, Spiritualism, evolution, and the unwillingness
of the ministry of the various churches to accept the plain
teachings of the Bible in the place of their sectarian theology,
is leading the people of God away. from the great fundamental
teachings of the Scriptures, and causing them to place their
trust in purely man-made theology.
The drift in the Christian world is away from the simple
truths of God's word. This is due to the fact that there has
arisen in the church in recent years many false theories, all of
them of purely human devising. The tendency of these theories
is to lead men to place their confidence and trust for salvation in
men, in human efforts, in man-made systems, instead of in
God and in the plan of salvation that He has ordained for the
salvation of mankind. These principles and theories are taking
the place in the minds of the people of the pure gospel of
Christ.
21 (32 I)
The entrance of Cod's word into the Dark Ages produced marvelous progress in all departments of learning.
(322)
These false teachings are sweeping away the faith of the

people in the Bible as the word of God. And this attack upon
the fundamental truth of Christianity is not, as in the past,
from outside the church. The time was when the church was
compelled to defend itself from outside antagonists. Infidels,
atheists, and agnostics have always found their delight in
pointing out what they considered the errors of the Bible, and
in laughing at what they termed the credulity of the people
of God in believing the Bible. But they were avowed enemies
of the cross of Christ, and it was never a very difficult matter
to meet and defeat their attacks.
A New Apostasy
Today the situation has changed. Now these enemies of the
truth are inside the church, intrenched in the positions of
greatest power and influence in the pulpits, the theological
seminaries, the great Christian publishing houses. From these
points of vantage they are leading a new attack against the
word of God and its inspired teachings.
This is in reality a new apostasy. Sapping the very founda-
tions of its power, poisoning all the springs of its life, these'
forces are wrecking the church, while at the same time professing
to be its friends. Like its divine Master, the church today is
being " wounded in the house of its friends. "
And hence the call today is for a new sounding forth of the
ancient truths, a return to the primitive faith of the Bible.
The great need of the hour is not only for a Christian faith,•
but also a Christian experience, that will be founded on the
Bible and the Bible alone. .
During the Dark Ages the truth of the gospel was eclipsed
by the darkness and error of false doctrines that were brought
into the church from heathenism. Superstition and ignorance
reigned supreme in the hearts of men, and crowded out the
knowledge of most of the glorious truths of the Bible.
Martin Luther was the most prominent among those who
were called of God to lead the world out of the darkness of the
medieval and false system of religion into a purer faith.
He was devoted, ardent, zealous. He knew no fear but the fear
of God, and acknowledged no foundation for religious faith but
the Holy Scriptures. He was pre-eminently the man for 'his
time. Through this man and his faithful co-workers God accom-
plished a great work for the reformation of the church and the
enlightenment of the world.
A Progressive Revelation
But God did not reveal all His truth to Luther. He designed
that the work of the Reformation should be a progressive work,
and that men should hold their minds open in their search of the
Scriptures, and be always ready to accept such new light as in
His providence He should send them. But when Luther died,
those who had been associated with him did not go on to learn
the whole truth of God. His followers gathered together what
he had believed and out of it they made a creed. They settled
themselves down upon that creed as if they had advanced as
far as it was possible to advance in the knowledge of truth.
God had other truths to reveal to the world, and by the act
of making a creed and forming a denomination based upon
Luther's belief, they had made it impossible for God to send
more truth to the world through them. When a body of people
declare that they believe only certain principles, and can
accept nothing more than is contained in their creed, then if
God has more truths to reveal to the world than are contained
in their creed, they thus shut themselves away from this new
light by refusing to go beyond what their creed already con-
tains.
So God called other men to advance the work of the Refor-
mation. He called Knox and Calvin, and through them he
did a great work for the advancement of the principles of the
gospel. ,That work should have continued to grow by its
adherents constantly studying the Bible, and thus coming to
the knowledge of more and more truth, and preaching it to
the world. Instead of doing this the same mistake was made
as before. Another denomination was formed and constructed
a creed out of the teachings of Knox and Calvin. It settled down
on that creed as if that was an end of all truth. There it still
remains.
God caused still other men to advance the cause of His
truth. He purposed to reveal to the world the truth in all its
fullness and sought for men through whom this could be done.
Reformers arose in England. But while they renounced some
of the errors of Rome, they retained many of her forms. Thus
while the authority and creed of the Roman Church were re-
jected, yet not a few of her customs and ceremonies became
incorporated into the worship of the Church of England.
"A Misery Much to Be Lamented"
God gave the Pilgrim fathers more light and truth, and also
the Puritans. They earnestly desired to return to the simplicity_
and purity of the apostolic church, but they were persecuted and
driven out of England, and came to America. That some among
them plainly discerned the right attitude that all men should
assume toward the truth is evident from the statements con-
tained in the farewell address of one of their pastors, John
Robinson, delivered on the shore of Holland when the Pilgrims
were about to depart for America. John Robinson said:
"Brethren, we are now erelong to part asunder, and the Lord knoweth
whether I shall ever live to see your faces more; but whether the Lord
hath appointed that or not, I charge you before God and His blessed angels
to follow me no further than I have followed Christ. If God should reveal
anything to you by any other instrument of His, be as ready to receive it
as you ever were to receive any truth by my ministry; for I am very con-
fident that the Lord hath more truth and light yet to break forth out of His
Holy Word.
"For my part I cannot sufficiently bewail the condition of the reformed
churches, who are come to a period in religion, and will go no further than
the instruments of their reformation. The Lutherans cannot be drawn
to go any further than what Luther saw, and the Calvinists, you see, stick
fast where they were left by that great man of God, who yet saw not all
things. This is a misery much to be lamented; for though they were burn-
ing and shining lights in their time, yet they penetrated not into the whole
counsel of God, but were they now living, would be as willing to embrace
further light as that which they first received.
"Remember your church covenant, in which you have agreed to walk
in all the ways of the Lord, made known and to be made known unto you.
Remember your promise and your covenant with God and with one an-
other, to receive whatever light and truth shall be made known to you
from His written word. But, withal, take heed, I beseech you, what you"
receive as truth. Examine it, consider it, compare it with other Scriptures of
truth before you receive it; for it is not possible that the Christian world
should come so lately out of thick anti-Christian darkness, and that per-
fection of knowledge should break forth at once."
This certainly was most excellent counsel and should have
been carefully heeded and obeyed. But no sooner had the
Pilgrims and Puritans established themselves in the new world
They dig to find traces of evolution, but vindication of God's word rises out of the ruins of history.
(326)
COMPLtTING AN ARIZSTZD REVORMATION 327
than they violated all the principles of Christianity and Prot-
estantism by establishing a theocracy, and going, into the
business of persecuting /dissenters themselves. They would not
adirance themselves, and neither would they permit anyone
else to.
Advancement of Truth Retarded
The Wesleys were called of GOd and did a mighty work for
the gospel. New light was still coming to the world in this
gradual way, but there was so much truth that God desired to
reveal to men that when creeds were made of that which they
already knew, and men thus rejected everything not contained
in these creeds, the revelation of the fullness of God's truth was
delayed longer than it should have been. Wesley's followers
made the same mistake as those who had preceded them,
selecting a few of the many truths that God had for the world,
and building upon these few a great denominational structure,
thus making it necessary for God to go outside of that organiza-
tion to find other leaders who would receive advanced light and
truth and take it to the world.
One of the most solemn and yet most glorious truths revealed
in the Bible is that of the second coming of Christ to this earth,
to complete the great work of redemption. This truth is the
very keynote of the sacred Scriptures, for it is the consummation
of all the hopes of the Christian Church.
The time was drawing near when this great truth should be
preached to the world. It was the purpose of God to reveal
this great doctrine to, and have it preached by, those whom he
had called to be leaders in the work of reformation. But by
their course they had shut themselves away from this new truth.
Therefore, when the time came to have the message of His
coming preached in all the world He found it necessary again to
go outside of the established churches, and raise up another
movement that-would take to the ends of the earth the proclama-
tion of Christ's second coming.
Restoration of All Truth
Connected with the message of His coming, God designed
that all the truths that had been falsified and hidden during
the Dark Ages should again be made clear to the human family,
so that at His coming the fullness of the truth might be revealed
to the world. Many of the Protestant bodies, in severing them-
selves from Rome, had brought along with them some of the
errors of Rome.
Among these errors was the keeping of the first day of the
week in place of the true Sabbath of God, which is the seventh
day. The observance of the Sabbath had been changed by the
Church of Rome, 'and many Protestants had accepted it with
other things that they had not studied. In the last message
that God designed to send to the human family, the confusion
concerning this question was to be cleared up; and the true
Sabbath of God restored to its rightful place in the gospel
and in the hearts of God's people.
Hence in addition to the truth of the second coming of
Christ, God's final message will also contain the truth on the
Sabbath question. When this is preached to the people of the
earth, they are under just as great, if not greater, obligation to
, accept it and bring their lives into harmony with it as they have
ever been with regard to any other truth brought to the world
by the Protestant Reformation.
A Message of Reform
Among other things that have been brought out of the
Church of Rome into some of the Protestant churches are the
teachings concerning eternal torment, infant baptism, sprinkling
for baptism, the observance of Easter and Christmas, and other
errors that have no foundation in the teachings of the Bible.
In this last message that is to go to all the earth, all of these
errors are discarded, and now we should receive from God the
truth in its fullness.
Hence it can be seen that the message of the second coming
of Christ, and the keeping of the commandments of God, is
not only the final message of the gospel, but it is also the com-
pletion of the Reformation of the sixteenth century, which has
heretofore been retarded by the formation of denominational
creeds.
Another thing of vital importance for all Christians is that
they should guard themselves against being bound by any
creed, however perfect it may be. There is still more light to
break forth from the Bible, and when God reveals it to us we
should be in that attitude of mind which will make it possible
to accept it. Christians should have no other creed but the
blessed Bible itself. Faith should be built on that, and if it
is discovered that we are believing anything that cannot be
substantiated by the teachings of the Bible, that belief should
at once be discarded. The Bible and the Bible alone is the
religion of Christians.
In this time when men of great learning and high position
in the churches are endeavoring to prove that the Bible is not
true, let the man of faith fortify himself with the protection
there is in the truth of the Bible. Study the Bible earnestly,
search it thoroughly, and let its blessed principles become in-
corporated into the life. No one will ever be able to shake the
faith of the one who is living the truth.
We revere the memories of the Reformers and celebrate their fame by beau-
tiful monuments such as this. but do we share their devotion to new light?
Night falls upon the tardy traveler.
Walking in the Light
T HERE is no higher duty for every rational being than to

learn from the Scriptures what is truth. Every thought that
presents itself to the mind should be carefully weighed, and
Scripture should be compared with Scripture. In this way,
with the aid of God's Spirit, we should form our opinions for
ourselves, as it must ever be remembered that we are to answer
for ourselves before God.
As the word of God is thus studied, a knowledge of the truth
will be imparted. Searching the Scriptures will lead, step by
step, into all truth. As the light of truth comes it should be
followed. Only so will more truth be given. As men walk in
the light they have, more light will be given.. They cannot
expect to be guided by God's Spirit unless they follow all the
way. There can never come a time in Christian experience
when it is proper to draw back as the way of truth and
righteousness is pointed out through the word of God by His
Spirit. The light will become useless if men refuse to walk in it.
God will send more and more light to His people until the
end of time. Breaking forth from the Bible constantly will
come new truths — truths that are not contained in the creeds
of the churches. So it has always been. Luther was called by
God to accept new light, and he did so, and the result was the
(330)
WALKING IN THE LIGHT 331
great Reformation of the sixteenth century. So Calvin and

Knox and Wesley found a new light, and they walked in it.
A Message Containing Advanced Truth
And now in this day God has sent a message to all the world
to warn it of the nearness of the second coming of Christ. In
that message is contained new light, and all who hear the mes-
sage are called upon to accept it.
In this message is new light on the Sabbath question, on
the nature of man, the state of the dead, the reward of the right-
eous, the fate of the wicked, the millennium, and the second
coming of Christ. A great conflict between truth and error
is just before us, the closing struggle of the age-long controversy
between sin and righteousness. Only those who have fortified
their minds with the great truths of the_Bible will stand through
the trying times ahead of us. To every soul will come the
searching test, Shall I obey God rather than man? Even now
that decisive hour is at hand. Where do you stand? Are your
feet planted on the great rock of the word of God? Are you
prepared to be unyielding in defense of the commandments of
God and the faith of Jesus?
To follow the plain teachings of the Bible today is considered
by many, even by some religious teachers, to be unsafe. It is
not enough for them to hear and follow the voice of the Saviour;
they must also subscribe to some narrow creed.
Darkness May Replace Light
The pure religion of Christ is being brought to ruin by cold
formality. It is true we are informed that the present age is
one of great liberality in religious matters, and that religious
people are taking on great breadth of mind. Notwithstanding
this, it is also true that there are tens of thousands of people
who allow their preachers to do their thinking for them. The
result is that there are thousands who can give no reason for the
things that they believe other than they were so taught by their
pastor. The beaten track is well traveled, there being many
who are reluctant to step aside from it and make an independent
investigation of the truth. This leads many to follow in the
steps of learned men. Hesitating to investigate truth for them-
selves, thousands are being fastened in error's chains.
Augene J. Hall
If Christ should come in our time, would He be any better received than when He came before?
(332)
Truth has come into the world, and into the hearts of men,
but men love darkness rather than light. Many are following
the way of error, and they love to have it so. If the very
disciples of Christ were to return today, and come teaching
in our cities, as cold, proverty-stricken, and hungry as they
once were when they taught on the hills of Galilee, and should
visit some of the magnificent churches that are called by the
names of these very disciples, where the worshipers sit clothed
in their purple and fine linen, and the modern Pharisee makes
himself prominent by his cold, "God, I thank thee that I am
not as other men, " they would not be permitted to present their
message of truth until they had been first questioned as to
denominational affiliation, and submitted to an examination
in which they would be required to give their assent to doctrines
and creeds of which they had never before heard.
"Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light,
lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not
whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may
be the children of light." John 12: 35, 36.
There are many who hear the truth of God's final message.
Some accept it, others reject it. The result of rejection will
mean that darkness will take the place of the light, " and he
that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth."
The wise man said:
"The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and
more unto the perfect day." Prov. 4: i8.
It is our duty as light comes to walk in it. That is the
obligation especially of every person who has become ac-
quainted with the truth of God's final message.
Jesus said:
"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and
men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." John
3: 19.
This is just as true today as it was when Jesus spoke it.
Just as in Christ's day there was brought to the people the
message of the truth of His first kingdom, so today there is the
truth of the message of His second coming. Today it is true that
"light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather
than light. " It is not necessary to commit some gross sin to be
lost. A refusal to follow Christ, to walk in the light, will surely
result in the utter loss of the soul. Let it not be true of anyone
who reads these words that they loved darkness rather than
light. On the contrary, when you see and hear, and are con-
victed, of the truth of God's great final message, accept it with
a glad heart, and bring your life into conformity with it.
Light in the Bible
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Ps.
119: 195.
"The entrance of Thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding
unto the simple." Ps. 119: 13o.
Thus anything that is based upon the teachings of the Bible
is light, and must be accepted by the people of God if they are
to walk in the light.
Light in the Law
"For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs
of instruction are the way of life." Prov. 6: 23.
Thus anything based upon the law of God, and the word
of God, as this message is that you have been reading, should
be followed and received into the heart. Not to accept this
message would be to reject light and truth, and no Christian
can afford to do that.
Light in the Prophecies
"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well
that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day
dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts." 2 Peter 1: 19.
Here prophecy is called a light. As prophecy, then, is
fulfilled, and its meaning unfolds, it is obvious that there will
be laid upon men constantly the obligation of following and
accepting such new truth as it shall bring.
Inasmuch as prophecy, according to Dan. 12:4, is to be
understood in "the time of the end," then it is plain that in
this time of the end pointed to by Daniel the attention of men
will be directed to new light, new truth. The prophecies are
unfolding and being fulfilled, and we see their meaning. This
lays upon us the obligation of walking in the light they contain.
The prophecies of Revelation are being fulfilled today.
God has thus spoken of them:
"Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this
prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein." Rev. 1: 3.
From this it is plain that as the prophecies of Revelation
were to unfold there would be a continual revelation of new
duties, which must be obeyed by God's people.
Fullness of Light in Threefold Message
In the Book of Revelation is the prophecy regarding the great,
threefold message that will close the work of the gospel. This
message contains a revelation of new duties. It is based on
God's word, God's law, and the prophecies of the Bible. It
is going to all the world in this generation, and when it is ,corn-
,pleted the end of all earthly things will come.
In this message there is salvation for those who accept it,
and in it also is an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God.
"Blessed are they that do His commandements, that they may
have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates
into the city." Rev. 22: 14. Those who accept this last mes-
sage, lay hold upon "the faith of Jesus," and keep His command-
ments, will enter into the city of God. Our duty is to investi-
gate the truth for this time, and when we learn that it is truth,
accept it, and obey it.
John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah.
The Coming of Elijah the Prophet

N EVERY time of crisis in the work of God among men, the
Lord has sent to the earth a message of truth that would
fit the very conditions because of which it was sent. These
special messages have contained the truths of the gospel that
have been revealed up to that time, and in addition to this,
they have proclaimed certain truths that were due at the time
they were given, and that pointed out the duty of the people
at that particular time..
At the time of the destruction of this earth by a flood God
sent a message in which there was salvation from the impending
destruction for every soul who believed it and acted upon it.
At the time of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah God sent
a message to those cities with salvation for every person who
believed and obeyed it. Thus these messages of present truth
have always had in them salvation for those who obeyed them.
Before the destruction of this earth in the fires of the last
day, before the second coming of Christ, which will usher in
that destruction, God will send a message of the coming end
and His coming kingdom in which will be the salvation of the
people of this earth. The message is to be preached -to all
the earth. It will be the last message of the gospel ever to be
given to this world. When it is completed Christ will come.
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THE COMING OP ELIJAH THE PROPHET 337
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world
for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Matt. 24: 14.
The Sabbath Truth Restored
In "this gospel of the kingdom" will be contained not only
the announcement of the coming of Christ, but also the very
fullness of the gospel. Every truth which has been perverted
and changed during past ages will in this message be restored.
Among the truths that have been lost sight of in the past, and
that will be proclaimed again in God's last message, will be the
precious truth of the Sabbath. This great truth has been
changed into a lie by a fallen church, and that lie has been
handed down to us. God's final message of the gospel will
point out the perversion of the Sabbath truth, and will call the
people of God back to their allegiance and loyalty to God's
commandments, and to the Sabbath.
The fact that such a message as this would be given in the
last days has been clearly pointed out in the Bible. The last
prophecy of the Old Testament says:
"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the
great and dreadful day of the Lord : and he shall turn the heart of the fathers
to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and
smite the earth with a curse." Mal. 4: 5, 6.
This prophecy of the coming of Elijah has been the source of
considerable perplexity to Bible students. It is generally
believed among students of the Bible that the present days
are those which immediately precede the second coming of
Christ. Therefore this prophecy of the second coming of Elijah
should even now be in process of fulfilment.
This prophecy has been further complicated by certain men
having arisen in the church claiming that it was fulfilled in
themselves. They have been successful in getting many people
to believe their claims and have led them into all manner of
fanaticism. Thus the prophecy itself has come to be discredited.
A Divine Commentary
A study of this prediction will make it clear that it does
not foretell the personal reappearance of Elijah. Rather should
we look for a movement, a message, that will be the counter-
part of the work of Elijah when he was on earth. This is made
22
plain by the divine comments made on this passage by our
Lord himself in the New Testament.
Speaking of the work and message of John the Baptist,
Jesus said :
"And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come." Matt•
ir:14.
Elias and Elijah are the same,- Elias being merely the Greek
form of the Hebrew word Elijah. Christ, in the passage, plainly
declares that the work of John the Baptist fulfilled the prophecy
of the coming of Elijah, at least partially.
This thought is repeated by the Saviour in Matthew, when
He said:
"Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto
you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done
unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suf-
fer of them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of
John the Baptist." Matt. 17: 11-13.
John the Baptist fulfilled, at least in part, the prophecy
concerning Elijah. John was not Elijah in person, for when
John was asked by a deputation of priests from Jerusalem who
he was, he said:
'And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites
from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied
not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What
then? Art thou Elias? And he said, I am not. Art thou that prophet?'
And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we
may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the
way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." John : 19-23.
John and Elijah
Here is apparently a serious discrepancy between the words
of Christ and the words of John. Christ said John was Elijah;
John said he was not. This apparent contradiction, however,
has been cleared up by the record contained in the book of
Luke concerning the birth of John.
"The angetsaid unto him, Pear not, Zacharias; for thy prayer is heard;
and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name
John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at
his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink
neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost,
even from his mother's womb. And many of the children of Israel shall
he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before Him [the Messiah]
International Newsreel •
As Elijah's work ended in his translation, so the gospel work that fulfills the Elijah
prophecies today will end in the translation of the faithful at Christ's coining.
(339)
in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the chil-
dren, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people
prepared for the Lord." Luke i : 13-17.
The prophecy of the coming of Elijah does not involve the
coming or appearance of some certain person, but rather the
appearance among men of a great movement or message that
would combine the chief features of the work of Elijah and the
work of John. The result of the preaching of that message will
be to "make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
John was not Elijah in person, but his work and message
fulfilled the prophecy of the coming of Elijah. Therefore Christ
was right when He spoke of John as Elijah, and John was right
when he said he was not Elijah in person. John's message was
given" in the spirit and power of Elijah," and fulfilled, in part,
the prophecy.
The Message of Elijah to Appear Now
It was, however, only a partial fulfillment, for the prophecy
declares that Elijah will come "before the great and the terrible
day of the Lord." John's work was accomplished before the
first coming of Christ. It is the second coming of Christ that
is pointed to in the expression, "the great and the terrible day
of the Lord."
This is the day spoken of by Peter:
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the
which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements
shall melt with fervent heat, the earth-also and the works that are therein
shall be burned up. "\ 2 Peter 3: 10.
The day of the Lord is also spoken of by Joel:
"The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, be-
fore the great and the terrible day of the Lord come." Joel 2:31.
The Message of John and Elijah Combined
The time spoken of in the prophecy of the coming of Elijah,
"the great and the terrible day of the Lord," refers to the
second coming of Christ and not the first coming. John's work
and message was but a partial fulfillment of this prophecy.
It will be completely fulfilled in the days before the second
coming of Christ, or in the very days in which we now live.
What, then, will constitute a fulfillment of this prophecy
today? A movement that will be like that of John the Baptist
THE COMING Or ELIJAH THE PROPHET 341
before the first advent of Christ, and also like that of Elijah.
This movement will go forth to the world with the "spirit and
power of Elijah." It will ".make ready a people prepared for
the Lord."
The chief characteristic of John's message was the proclama-
tion of the coming of the Lord. This doctrine, then, will be '
a prominent feature of the message that will fulfill the prophecy
of the coming of Elijah today. It will herald to the world
the message of the second coming of Christ. It will be sent to
the world "in the spirit and power of Elijah."
It will also possess something else. It will have not only
the chief features of John's message but also the chief features
of Elijah's message.
The eighteenth chapter of I Kings records Elijah returning
to the kingdom of Israel after an absence of three years, during
which time there had been no rain. This drought had been
caused by the sins of Ahab, the king, and of the people, and it
had been foretold by Elijah to Ahab.
Elijah returned and met Ahab. The first greeting he re-
ceived from Ahab was the following:
"And it came to pass when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him,
Art thou he that troubleth Israel?"
And Elijah replied:
" I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that
ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed
Baalim." i Kings i8: 17, IS.
The Commandments of God

The message of Elijah was a message of keeping the com-
mandments of the Lord. The people of God had forsaken His
law; they were violating the ten commandments. As a result
of this transgression, the judgments of God were in the land.
Elijah's message was one that called them back to the law.
Hence it is plain that the two chief characteristics of the
message today that will fulfill the prophecy of the coming of
Elijah will be the proclamation of the second coming of
Christ and the keeping of the commandments of God. The
chief features of the work of John and Elijah will be combined.
When such a message appears to men it will be the final message
of the gospel of Christ.
In the fourteenth chapter of The Revelation there is a

prophecy of just such a message. It is recorded in verses 8 to
I. At the close of that message Jesus is seen coming in the
clouds of heaven to reap the harvest of the earth, as will be
seen in the fourteenth verse. Therefore this message must be the
last message of the gospel, for it is closed up by the coming
of the Lord. That it also contains the message of the keeping
of the commandments of God will be seen from verse 12, where
the people who accept and preach the message are thus described :
"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the com-
mandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."
God's Message for Today

From these passages we recognize the message of God for
today. It will be a message that will proclaim that Christ is
soon coming, and, as a preparation to meet Christ at His coming,
it will urge upon all the necessity of faith in Christ and the
observance of all the commandments of God. It will therefore
teach the obligation to obsei-ve the Sabbath commandment.
Those who preach it will be Sabbath-keepers. When the reader
comes into contact with such a movement or message as is here
described, he may know that he is seeing the fulfillment of the
prophecy of the coming of Elijah. He may also know that he is
hearing the final message of the gospel of Christ. May the reader
when he hears this message, not oppose it, but bring his life
into harmony with it, for like every other special message of
the gospel, the salvation of all who hear it will be found in
obeying it.
Elijah's Message Is Here
The most striking feature of both these prophecies is that they
are being literally fulfilled before the eyes of men today. There
actually is a message going to all the world today in fulfillment
of these very prophecies. That message contains the truths
of the second coming of Christ and the keeping of the command-
ments of God. God's people have forsaken the command-
ments of God in the acceptance of the false and counterfeit
Sunday institution, and therefore God is sending to them and to
the world today a message to bring them back to their allegiance
to the commandments, calling for a reform -on the question of
THE COMING OP tI,IJAH THE PROPHET 34.1
the Sabbath, revealing that the seventh day is the Sabbath and
that it should be kept by His people.
This message of the coming of Christ and the keeping of the
commandments of God is going to all the world today "in the
spirit and power of Elijah." Thousands of men and women are
connected with this great, world-wide movement. In every
state in this country and in every country in this hemisphere
these workers are preaching this message of Elijah. It has
leaped across the ocean and is being preached in Europe.
It is gaining thousands of adherents wherever it goes. It is
being preached in China, India, Japan, Korea, Burma, and
even in Siberia. Scores of faithful workers are preaching it in
Australia and Africa. When it has been given to the world,
when "this gospel of the kingdom" shall have been preached
"in all the world as a witness unto all nations, then shall the
end come." Christ will then return, and those who have pre-
pared themselves to meet Him by accepting Christ and His
final message will be taken to be with Him throughout eternity.
Striking Parallels
It should not be overlooked that when Elijah faithfully
delivered the message of the keeping of the commandments of
God, he was bitterly persecuted. (I Kings 19: 1-3.) So also
will the people of God today be persecuted — those who
deliver the message of the commandments of God.
Ultimately, faithful Elijah was translated to heaven without
seeing death. So also will those be who proclaim God's message
for this time, who live until the coming of Christ.
In every respect and detail there is an exact agreement
between the prophecy of the coming of the message of Elijah
and the actual message that is being proclaimed in all the world
today. The message of Elijah has come and is being presented
to men. It is gathering out a people to meet the Lord, and
though many may turn away from it with scorn, yet others
will receive it and teach it and live it, and thus be prepared to
meet the Lord in peace when He comes.
One last thought in connection with the parallels between
Elijah's message and the message today is worthy of notice.
When Elijah taught the people that they should keep the
commandments of God, he was called a " troubler of Israel."
So it will be today. When the message of the second coming of

Christ and the keeping of the commandments of God is pro-
claimed in any community, it may be expected that those who
preach it will be called troublers of Israel. They will be charged
with upsetting the established order of things and disturbing
the churches. Let Elijah's reply to this charge be remembered.
He declared that he had not troubled Israel. He pointed out
that the real troublers of Israel were those who werebreakingthe
commandments of God, and not those who were keeping them.
So it is today. The message of the commandments, of the true
Sabbath, is not what troubles the church. The real trouble is
that many of the professed people of God have forsaken the
commandments, and they resent it when it is shown that they
are really commandment-breakers and not commandment-
keepers.
leas wept over the proud, stubborn city that considered

its enemy when He was its Saviour and only hope.
God's ancient people paid Him the tenth of their stock and produce.
One Tenth to the Lord

NE of the greatest problems confronting the churches
O today is that of financial support. A large number of
Christian people have come to the place where they no longer
indorse or sanction the questionable commercial methods
that some churches have adopted for the purpose of securing
means to carry forward their work. Church fairs, festivals,
shows, banquets, suppers, and sales are meeting with the
opposition of those who love the pure religion of Christ, and
who are distressed when they see it shamed by such question-
able practices.
When Christ first came to His temple nineteen centuries
ago, almost His first act was to cleanse it of the money-changers.
"My house shall be called the house of prayer," He said, "but
ye have made it a den of thieves." Matt. 21: 13. The same
spirit of money-changing, commercialism, buying and selling,
accompanied by cheating and unfairness, in the interests of
religion is seen today again in the church, so that if Christ
should come today as He came nineteen hundred years
ago He would again find it necessary to cleanse the sanctuary
of the money-changers.
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It has come to the pass where, at the church fairs and sales,
it is felt to be justifiable to put a double price on the articles
for sale. Fifty cents is asked for what at a regular merchant's
would be priced at twenty-five cents, and the excuse for the
price is that is sold to help the church. Thus the doctrine seems
to be accepted that the end justified the means.
In other churches the seats are sold at such rates as to be
beyond the reach of the poor, and in these richly upholstered
pews the rich man sits in his splendor and worships the Man
of sorrows who had not where to lay His head. The Babe for
whom no place was found, who was cradled in a manger, is
now adored beneath Gothic towers costing tens of thousands of
dollars.
Covetousness, a Last-Day Sin
Covetousness, a dissatisfied, grasping desire for the things
of this world, is peculiarly the sin of this age. "This know also,
that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall
be lovers of their own selves, covetous." 2 Tim. 3: I, 2. This
spirit of covetousness enters into many a church, with the
result that the preacher is not adequately supported. When this
is the case, in many churches it is the custom to get up a donation
party and visit the home of the preacher, who is thus made to
feel that his services are so poor and his work of such little
account that he cannot be properly supported, but must
depend upon the uncertain and inadequate charity of his
members for his living.
Sometimes actual penuriousness is united with pride in a
congregation, and then it is the custom to build a church for
$5o,000, pay $ro,000 of it, borrow $25,000, and then make
the builders and lenders wait interminable years for their
money, while the sisters get up fair after fair, and supper after
supper, to help pay the cost.
Moral Power Is Lost
The members of the congregation not manifesting any
willingness to give for the fear of God and the love of His truth,
the fair is opened, the roulette wheel started, the trinkets dis-
played, the crochet work and India-rubber dolls exhibited, and
they are pressed upon the people with the sweet and winning
smiles ,of the sisters of the church and the young ladies of the
TENTH TO THE LORD 347
congregation, who do all in their power to drive a flourishing
trade. Thus the money is raised.
But moral power is lost. No person can really love a religion
that must descend to such methods to maintain its existence.
If cheating, lying, stealing, and immorality must be employed
in order to perpetuate the religion of the present day, then the
sooner such a religion perishes the better.
Not only are commercial methods an abomination to the
Lord, but they are also utterly unnecessary for the support of
the religion of Christ. God has outlined a great plan of church
finance in the Bible, a plan that, if adopted by His people, will
adequately support the work of the church and make entirely
unnecessary the practices now in use.
The Tithing Plan
This plan is called the tithing system. It was first revealed
to God's ancient people, the Israelites, and it received the
indorsement of Christ and His apostles in the New Testament.
This plan is explained in the following passage :
"And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the
fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy unto the Lord. And if a man will
at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof.
And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever
passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." Lev. 27:
30-32.
Notice the expression, " the tenth shall be holy unto the
Lord." One tenth of what the Lord gives to us belongs to Him.
So completely is it His that it partakes of His own character;
it is "holy." It never was ours. It is His. It is "holy unto
the Lord." For us to use it would be to use something that does
not belong to us, to take what belongs to God, to use a holy
thing, to profane what is sacred. This ought not to be done,
and it cannot be done without the loss of a most valuable
blessing.
One tenth of all our possessions belongs to God. We may
never have known this, but this does not in any degree change
the fact that one tenth of what God has given us belongs to
God. There is nothing from which we receive benefit, to which
this truth does not apply, " whether of the seed of the land, or of
the fruit of the trees," or of "the tithe of the herd, or of the flock,"
one tenth of all our possessions is the Lord's, and should im-
mediately be given to Him.
This matter of the payment of tithes brings the same test
to each individual as that on which Adam failed. God, gave
Adam everything in the world, withholding but one thing, the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This tree, He said, is
Mine; you are not to touch it, or take of its fruit. Everything
else I have given to you. Enjoy these many other things, but
let this tree alone. It is not yours, but Mine.
The tree was to have served as an everlasting reminder that
all Adam had came from God. It was to keep ever fresh in his
mind that he was merely the steward of God. He was to acknowl-
edge and recognize the great truth of the ownership of God
by refraining from touching the tree.
So today God blesses His children by giving them power to
make a living, to get wealth. All that we have comes from God.
We should acknowledge this truth, and recognize God's owner-
ship of all, by rendering to Him that which He has reserved
as His own. The tithe stands in the same relation to us as the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil did to Adam. We ought
not to touch it. If we do, we commit the same sin Adam did,
and we can expect nothing but the same curse to rest upon us.
Let us not, then, repeat the sin of Adam, but gladly acknowl-
edge the goodness of God in giving us life and all things to
sustain life, by the faithful payment of one tenth of our income,
of our property, and of all that God has given us, to Him.
For the Support of the Ministry

The tithe anciently was used for the support of those who
ministered about "holy things."
"And the Lord spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in
their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part
and thy inheritance among the children of Israel. And, behold, I have
given the children of Levi all the tenth in"Israel for an inheritance, for their
service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congre-
gation. Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the taber-
nacle of- the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die. But the Levites
shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they
shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a statute forever throughout your
generations, that among the children of ,Israel they have no inheritance."
Num. i8: 20-24.
ONE TENTH TO THE LORD , 349
There was one tribe of the twelve tribes of Israel that was
not to engage in secular or commercial affairs, but their entire
time was to be given to religion and religious services. This
tribe was supported by the tithes of the entire nation. They
were themselves under obligation to unite in this practice, and
to pay tithe of the tithes they received. (Num. i8: 26, 27.)
The New Testament plainly states that this ancient practice
of tithe-paying has been ordained by the Lord for the support
of the gospel- ministry in its work of preaching the gospel.
First Paul directs attention to the tithing plan by saying:
" Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the
things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with
the altar?" i Cor. 9: 53.
New Testament Indorsement

This is a direct reference to the tithing plan. Paul was
writing about the support of the ministry, and now he calls
attention to the method by which the priesthood received its
support. " Do you not know, " he asks, " how the priests are
supported; how they get their living `of the things of the
temple,' of the things that are brought in as tithe from the
people of Israel?" Having pointed directly to this method of
tithing, Paul then said:
"Even so [in the same way] hath the Lord ordained that they which
preach the gospel shall live of the gospel." i Cor. 9: 14.
Here, then, is an inspired statement that the tithing system
has been brought over into the gospel era, and ordained of
God as the financial system for the support of His church.
"Even so"; that is, just as the priests were supported by the
tithes of Israel, "even so," just like that, by the payment of
tithes, "hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the
gospel should live of the gospel. "
Notice, too, in this passage, what the tithe is to be used for.
It is not for building churches, for benevolent work, for charity,
for Sabbath-school offerings, or for anything of this character;
it is solely and alone for the support of them "which preach
the gospel," and for the support of their work in preaching
the gospel. The work of extending the gospel is tote supported
by tithes.
Jesus himself indorsed the tithing system when He said:
The calm peace of Mt. Fuji in Javan. gazing down on village and lake.
(350) typifies the peace of those who obey the commandments of the Lord.
"Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of
mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of
the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and
not to leave the-other undone." Matt. 23: 23.
The Pharisees were putting the emphasis in their practice of
religion on the lesser rather than the greater things. Christ
condemned them for this. He pointed out how scrupulously
they tithed even the little garden truck, but meanwhile dis-
regarded the matters of chief importance, such as judgment,
mercy, and faith. These latter should have been first with
them, but tithing was also to be observed, "not to leave the
other undone." This constitutes an indorsement on the part
of the Saviour of the tithing system.
God Desires to Bless His People
It is not because God needs money or that the church and the
gospel will fail for lack of money that God has established the
tithing system. He wants men to practice tithing because of a
great principle, and because He desires to bless them. If God's
ownership of all things, and our stewardship of the things that
He places in our possession is recognized by the adoption of the
tithing plan, this blessing will become ours.
The value of this blessing should be borne in mind when
one is considering his obligation to pay tithes. A man who
receives a salary of $30.00 a week, owes $3.00 to the Lord;
only $27.00 of his salary belongs to himself. But this man is
likely to argue that he cannot pay tithe on his salary because he
can scarcely get along on the full $30.00, that he needs every
cent of this amount to meet his expenses, and that to pay a
tithe of $3.00 weekly would have the same effect as to reduce
his salary to $27.00 a week.
This argument reckons without the blessing of the Lord.
From personal experience, the writer can assure everyone who
reads these words, and his testimony will be supported by that
of thousands of tithe-payers, that it is easier to get along on
nine tenths of our income with the Lord's blessing on it, than
it is on ten tenths without that blessing. The blessing of God
amounts to something. The sum of $27.0o a week will go farther
in supplying all a man's needs when God's blessing is on it,
than $3o.00 a week will with God's curse upon it.
-35,2 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
That God's blessing is.on the man who honors God by paying
a faithful tithe is evident from this wonderful promise:
"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may .be meat
in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I
will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that
there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer
for your sakes, and he shall not destory the fruits of your ground;
neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the
Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a
delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts." Mal. 3: r0-12.
Here the Lord invites a test on this matter. He pledges His
word that to those who are faithful in the payment of tithes He
will pour out such a blessing, opening the very windows of
heaven upon them, that there will not be room enough to re-
ceive it. He promises, moreover, to care for their crops, to
keep the devourer from destroying them, to prevent the vine
from casting its fruit before the time, to prosper all the works
of their hands.
Surely with such a blessing promised as this we cannot
doubt that God will enable the nine tenths of our income that are
left after we have paid our tithe to do just as much, and even
more, than the ten tenths ever did when we did not pay tithe.
A Curse Upon Refusal to Tithe
It is to those who are not faithful in rendering to the Lord
His own that God addresses this admonition:
"Now therefore .thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways.
Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough;
ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none
warm; and he that earneth wages, earneth wages to put it into a bag
with holes. " Haggai r: 5, 6.
He urges them, to consider why this condition prevails,
why they can never obtain greater prosperity, and he informs
them it is because they were not rendering to God what they
should, but were all taken up with their own affairs, and were
letting His work be neglected. He said:
"Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought
it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine
house that is waste, and ye run every man to his own house. Therefore the
heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.
Arid I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and
upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that
which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon
all the labor of your hands." Haggai r : 9-11.
There is a curse from God upon man's money and property
and upon all his efforts when he does not honor God by paying
tithes in recognition of the ownership of God. The Bible
definitely states the existence of such a curse.
"Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein
have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse:
for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation." Mal. 3: 8, 9.
Not to pay tithes is taking what does not belong to us, and
hence is robbery. It is robbing. God. This results in a curse
falling on the guilty party. Thus while a man may think he
is bettering himself financially to retain all he makes and
withold from God that part of his income that belongs to God,
yet as a matter of fact he is worse off financially with God's
curse on his money than if he had but nine tenths of it upon
which God's blessing was placed.
Offerings in Addition to Tithe
The verse quoted from Malachi reveals also that offerings
are expected by the Lord from His people in addition to the
tithe. The tithe is not all that we should bring to God. When we -
pay tithe we are not really giving God anything, for this was
never ours. To keep it would be robbery, taking what is not ours,
but another's. It could not rightfully be called a gift. It is merely
the acknowledgment that all we have comes from God, and we
render the tenth 'to Him because it is that part which He has
retained as His own. To do otherwise would be, in effect, assum-
ing the responsibility for all our future existence and support,
and ruling God out of our lives. To render it to God is, in
effect, saying that without God we cannot live nor prosper,
and putting all our future into His hands.
In addition to letting God have what already belongs to
Him, God expects us to express our gratitude to Him by making
offerings out of the remaining nine tenths. The tithe is for one
specific purpose, for the support of the gospel ministry and its
work. When we make Sabbath-school offerings, give to charity,
to foreign missions, to home missions, to the building of churches,
this is not to be taken out of the tithe but is to be in addition
to the tithe. " Tithes and offerings."
23
Angels have ever been the protectors and comforters of God's children.
The Ministry of Angels
A NGELS are real beings who are messengers of God, as-

sociated with the Father in the great work of salvation.
'They are sent forth to do service for His children who are
struggling with sin in this world. The teaching of the Bible
regarding the ministration of these heavenly beings is of the
greatest comfort and encouragement. By our side constantly
stands an unseen helper to help us over the hard places, and
assist us through the difficult and trying experiences of life.
There are many who have come to believe that angels are
the disembodied spirits of dead people. This is a grievous error.
Angels are not the spirits of men and women who once lived on
this earth, but a higher order of created intelligence entirely.
Angels not the Spirits of the Dead

Before any human being had ever died angels were in
existence, therefore they cannot be the spirits of the dead.
"So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of
Eden Cherubims, and a naming sword which turned every way, to keep
the way of the tree of life." Gen. 3: 24.
This record shows that at the very beginning of the history of

sin in the world, but before death had entered, angels existed.
(354)
THE MINISTRY OP ANGELS 355
Before any man had ever died they were placed at the gate of
the garden of Eden to keep the way of the tree of life.
"Where wast thou when I laid the foundation of the earth? Declare,
if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou
knowest? Or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the
foundations thereof fastened? Or who hath laid the cornerstone thereof;
when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for
joy?" Job 38:4-7.
In this passage we are informed that at the time when the
"foundations of the earth" were laid, then "all the sons of
God" and "the morning stars" sang together; that is, there
was a great chorus of praise that ascended from the heavenly
host when the cornerstone of the earth was laid. Hence it is
plain that angels were in existence before the human race was
created,' and therefore cannot be the spirits of human beings
who have died. •
The fact that the angels constitute a higher order of being
than the human race is evident from the words of David:
"What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man,
that Thou visitest him? Vor Thou hast made him a little lower than the
angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor." Ps. 8: 4, 5.
Thus even when man was upright, before sin had entered his
heart, when he was clothed with the glory and honor of God
in the beginning, even then he was " a little lower than the
angels."
The Work of the Angels
The work of the angels is to assist in the salvation of human
beings, to comfort and protect and care for the people of God.
"But to which of the angels said He at any time, Sit on My right hand,
until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering
spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?"
Heb. 1: 13, 14.
In this connection there is the comforting promise of the
Psalms :
"Por He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all
thy ways." Ps. 91: Ir.
So interested are these heavenly beings in the welfare and
salvation of the members of the human race that they are
represented as uniting in a great anthem of praise whenever
any of the children of men turn away from sin to righteousness.
356 ' OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
"Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels
of God over one sinner that repenteth." Luke 15: so.
A Guardian Angel for Each Child of God

There are statements in the Bible that seem to strongly imply
that each child of God has an attending, or guardian angel.
Such a statement is the following: "Take heed that ye despise
not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven
their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in
heaven." Matt. 18: 1o.
This same truth seems to be taught in the account of Peter's
imprisonment and deliverance, as recorded in Acts. When
Peter found himself delivered from the prison in Jerusalem by
the angel from heaven, he said:
"Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent His angel, and hath
delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the
people of the Jews. And when he had considered the thing, he came to the
house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many
were gathered' together praying. And as Peter knocked at the door of
the gate, a damsel came to hearken named Rhoda. And when she knew
Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how
Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But
she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel."
Acts 12: 11-15.
It is plain from this passage that the apostles were instructed
in the truth of the ministration of angels, and that they believed
that each one of them had an attending angel, so that while
they were not ready to believe that it could be Peter who stood
at the gate knocking, they were convinced that it was the
attending angel that they believed was constantly with Peter.
This truth concerning guardian angels should not be lost
from Christian belief. It is a source of very real comfort and
strength to know that in all the difficulties, disappointments,
hardships, and trials of life, by our side there stands a visitor
from heaven to give strength to bear trials, and grace to resist
temptations. This heavenly messenger is in direct communica-
tion with heaven, and can bring all needful help at all times.
So great is the love of God towards His faithful children that
He has His agent constantly at our side.
Regarding the number of the angelic host, the Bible speaks
in such a way as to convey the idea of a vast number:
THE MINISTRY Or ANGELS 357
"A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him: thousand
thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousands stood
before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened." Dan. 7: Jo.
"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the
throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten
thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands." Rev. 5: i 1.
Ten thousand times ten thousand is one hundred million,
but that this does not adequately state the full number of the
angels is evident from the additional expression, "thousands
of thousands." Paul, writing to the Hebrews, speaks of the
angels as "an innumerable company of angels." Heb. 12: 22.
The great company of the angels is known as God's host.
This is the significance of the expression that occurs so often in
the Bible, "the Lord of hosts."
"And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when
Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host." Gen. 32: I, 2.
"I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven stand-
ing by Him on His right hand and on His left." s Kings 22: 19.
It was a "multitude of the heavenly host" that appeared
to the shepherds on the fields of Judea at the time of the birth
of Christ and announced to them the glorious tidings of the
birth of the Child.
"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace, good will toward men." Luke 2: 13, 14.
The Chariots of God

It was also a company of this heavenly host that, with the
appearance of a chariot and horses of fire, translated the
prophet Elijah without seeing death.
"And it came to pass, as they still went on and talked, that, behold,
there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them
asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. " 2 Kings 2: i s.
"The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels:
the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place." Ps. 68: 17.
Angels Have Appeared

There have been times when angels have appeared in bodily
form to men.
"And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him:
and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed
himself toward the ground, and said, My Lord, if now I have found favor
The shepherds of Bethlehem were granted sight of the
glorious beings that invisibly accompany each child of God.
in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant: let a little
water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves
under the tree: and I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts;
after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And
they said, So do, as thou hast said. And Abraham hastened into the tent
unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal,
knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. And Abraham ran unto the
THE MiNistRy OP ANG7~'1.8 359
the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man;
and he hosted to dress it. And he took butter, and milk, and the calf
which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under
the tree, and they did eat." Gen. 18 i 2-8.
Certainly angels are real beings when they can be seen by
men. They have hands and feet and bodies, and on this occasion
they partook of food. One of these three was the Lord himself,
who, while he stayed and talked with Abraham (Gen. 18: 16.-
33), sent the other two to Sodom to save Lot from the destruc-
tion that was about to be brought upon that city (Gen. 19: 1-25).
Angels are Real Beings
Angels are real beings, not only when they manifest them-
selves to men, but in their normal condition. They partake of
food in heaven. Thus we have the record:
"Though He had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the
doors of heaven, and had rained down manna upon them to eat, and- had
given them of the corn of heaven. Man did eat angels' food: he sent them
meat to the full." Ps. 78: 23-25.
Hence it appears that the manna which fell in the wilderness
for the Israelites for forty years was "the corn of heaven,"
the food which the angels eat.
It is still possible for men and women today to see and
entertain angels. There would be no propriety or reason in. the

following verse if this were not still a possibility:
"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have enter-
tained angels unawares." Heb. 13: 2.
The Guardianship of Angels
The protection that God gives to His people through the
guardianship of heavenly angels is beautifully set forth,in the
account of the trials of Job:
"And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered My servant
Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright
man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the
Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast Thou not made an
hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side?
Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in
the land." Job 1: 8-1o.
Notice here the expression, "Hast Thou not made an hedge
about him?" The hedge that God has made about all His
360 ' OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANING
people, to protect them from being overcome and destroyed
by the enemy of our souls, is the guardianship of heavenly
angels. This is plainly taught by David: "The angel of the
Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth
them." Ps. 34: 7.
A most striking illustration of the protection and deliverance
afforded by this angelic hedge is given us in the following account.
Elisha, the prophet of God, was in danger. The army of the
king of Syria had been sent against him to Dothan, and had
entirely surrounded the city.
"Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and
they came by night, and compassed the city about. And when the servant
of the man of God was risen early and gone forth, behold, an host compassed
the city, both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him,
Alas, my master! how shall we do? And he answered, Fear not: for they
that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed,
and said, Lord, I pray Thee, open his eyes, that-he may see. And the Lord
opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain
was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha." 2 Kings
6: 14-17.
The angels of God are very strong and powerful. They "excel
in strength."
"Bless the Lord, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do His
commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word." Ps. io3: 20.
An example of the strength of the angels is given in the
writings of Isaiah, where we read:
"Then the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the camp of the
Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose
early in the morning, behold, they [these] were all dead corpses." Isa.
37: 36.
Here one angel put to death in one night 185,000 men.
Surely the child of God need have no fear so long as he is under
the guardianship of these heavenly helpers. How carefully every
Christian should walk before God that these angels may never
be grieved away !
All the Angels to Come with Jesus
When Jesus comes the second time all His angels will come
with Him. What a demonstration of power and glory that will
be !
"When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels
with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory." Matt. 25: 31.
THE MINISTRY OF' ANGELS 361
The purpose for which the angels accompany Christ when He
comes the second time is to gather together His people from all
parts of the earth to take them with Christ.
heaven to the other." Matt. 24:31.
Thus from the beginning of the world to the end God guards
His people by the ministration of angels. In all ages they have
been sent on missions of mercy to the children of God. To
Abraham they came with promises of future blessings; to Lot
in wicked Sodom they came with help and rescue; to Elijah
they came with food when he was about to perish from
hunger and weariness in the desert; to Elisha they came
with horses and chariots of fire, and with complete deliverance
from his foes when he was shut in by his enemies; to Daniel
they came with safety and salvation in the den of lions; to Peter
they came with release when he was shut up in Herod's prison;
to Paul and his companions they came with rescue from the
storm at sea; and they sent Peter with a message of salvation to
Cornelius, whose mind they had previously opened to receive
the good tidings.
Have Faith in God !
How comforting it is to the people of God, surrounded as
they are by the forces of evil, exposed to the deceptive power
and unsleeping malice of the prince of darkness, taking their
long journey through the enemy's country, to have this blessed
assurance of the untiring and unceasing guardianship of holy
angels! These promises of grace and protection make more
certain the reality of the mighty agencies of evil that we must
meet—agencies devilish, innumerable, determined, malignant,
of whose power and malice we cannot safely be ignorant, or
unheeding.
But with such strong and superior allies by our side we need
not fear, if all our dependence is placed in God. We need not
hesitate to do His commandments, to follow Him in whatsoever
ways He may lead, to bear any trial or test, when we know that
help from God is always at hand. Did God rescue Lot from the
fiery doom of Sodom ? Be assured that He will rescue you
from similar peril. Did God send protection to Elisha when
362 OUR TIMRS AND THEIR MEANING
hemmed in by foes? Let your confidence be strong that the
same protection will be yours when in similar need. Did God
feed Elijah when he would otherwise have perished from hunger?
So, if you do God's commandments, is He pledged to supply all
your need in Christ Jesus. Did God send songs in the night and
ultimate deliverance to the prisoners in the Philippian jail?
So, too, shall we sing the praises of God and find deliverance
and salvation when our enemies seek to work their will with us.
No matter what the future may hold for the faithful servant
of God, he need not fear. In every time of need the angels of
God will minister to us, and "if God be for us, who can be
against us?"
Rau
Angels strive to protect us from the temptations of Satan as they
sought to turn Balsam from his presumptuous disobedience.
Ran
"In the last day of the feast," Jesus cried. "If any
man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.
conversion
ONVERSION is the experience of the sinner when, be-
C lieving the facts of the atonement of Christ, he, by faith,
accepts the salvation provided by the sacrifice of Christ. It
is as a result of this acceptance that a sinner is made a Christian;
that a lost man is saved; that a guilty man is pardoned ;"that
,the sentence of death is removed; that a fallen man is raised up;
and that a sinful man becomes just in the sight of God. This is,
indeed, a miracle of the grace of Jesus Christ.
The human race as a whole is lost. Human beings as in-
dividuals are lost. Humanity is fallen. The reason for this is
sin.
The moral fall and impotency caused by sin is not merely
theoretical. It is an actual fact. Human beings are born sinners,
born lost, doomed to perish, born under the sentence of death.
It is a source of perplexity to many to understand why all
must die because one sinned. It is difficult for them to see the
justice of visiting the punishment of death upon all because of
Adam's sin.
Why, they inquire, should I be punished for an act com-
mitted thousands of years before I was born? Why should I be
doomed to die because Adam disobeyed God?
The Bible declares that the death• of Adam was the
death of all.
(363)
"By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death
passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. " Rom. 5 : 12.
"By one man's offense death reigned." Rom. 5: 17.
"By the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemna-
tion. " Rom. 5 : 18.
The death, then, of the race was the result of Adam's fall.
This is clearly stated :
"As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." i Cor.
15 : 22.
Consider the expression, "in Adam." The race died "in
Adam." When Adam sinned, the human race was "in Adam."
In his loins then were all who have ever lived or ever will live
on this planet. His fall was the fall of the race that was " in
Adam." The sentence of death pronounced upon him fell
also upon the race, for the race was " in Adam. " His guilt be-
came their guilt. His punishment was their punishment.
The change of nature that he experienced they also experienced.
When Adam became a sinner, the race "in Adam" became sinful.
As they were born they could be born only in sin, with a fallen
nature, under the sentence of death, doomed to perish.
If the sentence of death passed upon Adam had been
executed upon him the day he sinned, what would have become
of the race that was then "in Adam " ? There would have been
no race. It would have perished "in Adam." So "in Adam all
die. " '
That is the picture of the ruined race, a race doomed to
death, a race of sinners. No man has any righteousness of his
own, for every man has a nature out of which righteousness
cannot grow or develop. He cannot make himself into anything
but a sinner. He has a fallen, a depraved, a corrupt nature,
out of which his own individual sins grow. He cannot restrain
them nor check them, because he cannot change his heart,
his nature. He cannot make himself good. He cannot place
himself back under God's favor. He cannot obey God's law.
Sin drags him down and makes him its bond-slave. He may
know what is right, but has no power to do it. He may be
filled with remorse for his sins, but cannot remove them. He
is guilty, condemned, impure, unclean.
And he is lost. He experiences the wrath of God against
CONVERSION 365
' himself. The sentence of death is pronounced upon him.

He feels guilty. He looks forward only to punishment. In
himself there is, there can be, no hope.
Glad Tidings
In this state of condemnation and despair ne hears a message
of glad tidings. He learns that God has arranged to transfer
his guilt to Another, to place his sins on a Substitute, to lay his
sins upon a Saviour, and thus forgive his sins, remove his guilt,
and restore him to favor.
God does all this by the simple process of sending His Son to
take the sinner's place, suffer the sinner's punishment, die in
the sinner's stead, and then to impart to the sinner an entirely
new nature, even the nature of the Lord himself. God is moved
to do this entirely by love, which manifests itself in mercy
and grace. Entirely without merit of his own, altogether un-
worthy and undeserving, the sinner becomes the recipient of
the salvation of God wrought out for him in the sacrifice of God's
own Son.
In order to save the sinner, God removes his sin and places
it on Jesus. All sin is placed there. The sins of all are placed
there.
"The Lord bath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isa. 53:6.
Every sin that ever was committed, from the very first
sin in the garden of Eden to the most recent transgression, was
laid upon Christ. All the sins that will be committed to the
very last were laid upon Him. Sin as it is in the heart, in its
impurity, in its essential nature, uncommitted, but latent, was
imparted to Him; and sin as it is when committed, as it breaks
forth in action—all the sins of the world—was imputed to Him.
Both sin as a condition and sins as actual transgression were
all laid upon Him.
And with our sins upon Him, He died. He died for our sins.
He received our punishment. He took our guilt.
And His death is our release, our justification, our redemp-
tion, our salvation. For "He hath borne our griefs, and carried
our sorrows," "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
bruised for our iniquites." His soul has been made " an offering
for sin." Isa. 53: 4- Jo. The gospel is the good news "that He.
by the grace of God should taste death for every man." Heb.
2: 9. The penalty for every sin has been paid. Sin has met its
punishment. There is no man for whom Christ has not died.
There is no man who need die for his own sins. There is no sin
unatoned for. He tasted "death for every man."
"In Christ"
My sins and your sins are gone. He died for them. The
guilt has been removed. The record has been cancelled. The
law has been satisfied. There is now no condemnation. We
stand justified before God. Salvation is a finished work.
Nothing can be added to it. There remains nothing more to be
done to complete it. God has fully, freely, abundantly, out of
His unspeakable grace, provided salvation for every member of
the human race. That salvation is "in Christ, " as condemnation
is "in Adam."
Finished work as it is, its never-finished working is applied
to human souls, and they experience the glorious effects of it,
as they by personal faith appropriate to themselves the Lord
Jesus Christ, and enter into personal fellowship with Him.
To be saved, to be a Christian, to be converted, is not merely
to give a mental assent to a statement of belief, to accept a
set of doctrines, or to'join a church. Christians do believe the
facts of Christianity, but it is not the belief of these facts that
constitutes them Christians. There is a difference between be-
lieving facts and trusting a person.
Christianity Is Christ
Those who ate saved, are saved because they trust a Saviour.
They have not merely accepted the truth, or accepted Christian-
ity; they have accepted Him. They not only believe the facts
of the Bible; they believe in Him. They not only learn His
commandments; they learn of Him. They not only follow the
teachings of His Word; they follow Him. They not only hold
to the faith; they abide in Him. They look not to themselves,
to their own efforts, to their own obedience, for acceptance
with God; they rely on Him.
In accepting Him, they accept what He has done for them.
They accept His death as their death. He tasted death for every
man. Therefore, He tasted death for them. It was because of
CONVERSION 367
To Nicodemus Jesus set forth the great law of entrance
into His kingdom, through the gateway of the new birth.
their sins that He died. Therefore His death is counted as

their death. They count it as such.
Crucified with Christ
They reckon "that if one died for all, then were all dead."
2 Cor. 5 : 14. Hence in His death they see their own. It was their
sins that nailed Him to the cross. It was their punishment He
took. They take their place with Him on the cross. They die
with Him.
"I am crucified with Christ." Gal. 2 : 20.
And thus the penalty of sin is met — and removed. As the
race was "in Adam" when he sinned, so it was "in Christ"
as the last Adam when He died for sin. The individual who
reckons on that, who counts that true for himself, will find it
to be true in his own experience.
Living with Christ
Christ not only died for sin; He was raised again.
"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of
the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Gal. 2:20.
"Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe we shall also live with Him.
. . . Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but
alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. 6: 8-ii.
That is conversion; just relying on Christ; counting Him
faithful; trusting Him. As we reckon ourselves to have died with
Him, and to be now "in Him," He makes it so. As we accept
His gracious promise, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgiVe us our sins, and to cleanse us from all un-
righteousness" (1 John I : 9), and confessing our sins, He forgives,
and cleanses. As we believe, He removes sin, takes away con-
demnation, imputes His own righteousness, and makes us just
before God. As we surrender to Him, He changes our nature,
restores God's image in the soul, regenerates the whole being,
and implants a new nature. Old things pass away; behold,
all things become new. There is a new creation, a new man. The
sinnerhas become a saint. The fallen man has been born
again. The natural man is dead. The spiritual man is cre-
ated. The life of God is in his soul. He is converted.
OROC
Burmese believers enter the church through baptism.
Baptism
B APTISM is the door of entrance into the Christian church.

Four general modes of baptism are practiced today by
various churches. They are sprinkling, pouring, immersion,
and immersion three times, or triune immersion.
Baptism is an essential part of the great gospel commission.
This commission cannot be carried out without the baptism
of converts to the Christian faith.
"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with
you alway, even unto the end of the world." Matt. 28: 19, 20.
Four Prerequisites
Four things are necessary in the experience of the converts
to Christianity before they become proper candidates for bap-
tism. Matthew's statement of the gospel commission sets
forth the first of these prerequisites: "Go ye therefore, and teach
all nations, baptizing them." Teaching comes before baptism.
No person is a fit subject for baptism, until that person has been
taught the truth of the gospel.
In Mark's statement of the gospel commission another pre-
requisite is set forth;
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"And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the
gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved;
but he that believeth not shall be damned." Mark i6: 15, 16.
Not only must the convert be taught the gospel, but he
must believe it, before he should be baptized. It is not enough
for the person to know the truth, he must also believe the
truth.
A third thing necessary before baptism was set forth by Peter
when he was asked by sincere inquirers at the close of his day of
Pentecost sermon, " What shall we do?"
"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of tins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Acts 2 : 38.
Repentance, then, is necessary before an individual is a
proper candidate for baptism. Repentance will be followed by
confession. These four things precede baptism: The convert
must be taught the gospel, must believe, must repent of his sins,
and must confess these sins. If these are done, and when they
are done, then baptism should follow.
Infant Baptism Not Scriptural
These Scriptural considerations forever settle the question
of infant baptism. An infant cannot be taught the gospel,
cannot believe the gospel, cannot repent of its sins, and cannot
confess its sins. An infant is not, therefore, and can never be,
a proper candidate for baptism. As a matter of fact infant
baptism is not taught in the Bible. It is of later origin than
Bible times. It was brought into the church through the
apostasy, and is one of the great counterfeits of the apostate
system that should be discarded by all churches today that
follow the Bible and the Bible alone.
Immersion the True Mode
• The only proper mode of baptism is made very clear in
the Bible. This, too, has been counterfeited and perverted,
and a substitute put in its place by the false and spurious system,
and today this counterfeit baptism has been accepted as the
genuine by many honest but deceived people. The time has come
when the true baptism is to be restored to its proper place in
the preaching of the final message of the gospel.
BAPTISM 371
"Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region
round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their
sins." Matt. 3: 5, 6.
Let this expression be closely studied and examined. They
"were baptized in Jordan." It was "in" Jordan they were bap-
tized, not near Jordan, nor by Jordan, nor with the water of
Jordan, but "in" the river itself. They would not have needed to
go into the river for any other purpose than immersion. To
sprinkle with the water of the river, or to pour some of the
water of the river on their heads, would not have been at all
to baptize them "in Jordan." The source of the water used is
not the important thing, but the form or way in which it is
used. Baptized "in Jordan" can mean but one thing, and
that is immersion.
"Much Water" Needed •
The argument is sometimes advanced that there are certain
seasons of the year when the Jordan dwindles to a small stream,
not having sufficient water to immerse in, and from this it is
argued that if John baptized only in Jordan then he must have
sprinkled or poured, because there would be times when he
could not immerse. But that there were times when there was
not sufficient water in the Jordan for the purposes of proper
baptism, and that John needed a large quantity of water for
his baptism, is evident from a statement appearing in the book
of John:
"And John also was baptizing in £non near to Salim, because there
was much water there." John 3: 23.
From this it is plain that a little trickling brook, which would
afford abundant water for purposes of sprinkling or pouring,
'was not sufficient for baptism. For this "much water" is
required according to the Bible. This, surely, points to im-
mersion as the proper, mode of baptism.
"And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the
water; and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him and He saw the Spirit of
God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him." Matt. 3: 16.
This points also to immersion as the mode of Christ's bap-
tism. He went "up out of the water." Hence it is plain that
he must have been down in the water. That is made still
plainer by another passage:
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The river of holiest associations is the Jordan. in which our Lord was immersed.
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BAvrism 373
"And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water:
and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be
baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou may-
est. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down
both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him."
Acts 8:36-38.
This baptism, like that of Christ, took place " in" the water,
not with water, not by sprinkling water, but "in" water.
"They went down both into the water, both Philip and the
eunuch." This would have been unnecessary for purposes
of sprinkling, but absolutely required by immersion. The only
form of baptism taught in the Bible is immersion.
An Outward Testimony to an Inward Experience
But the true mode of baptism does not rest merely on these
clear statements of the form that was anciently employed, but
upon the spiritual significance of the rite itself. Baptism is
the outward testimony to an inward experience. What that
inward experience is of which the rite is an outward expression,
will largely determine what form the outward expression or
testimony should take in order to fully express the inward
experience. This inward experience is not expressed at all by
sprinkling or pouring, and hence they cannot be the right forms
of baptism.
What is this inward experience? Paul fully describes and
explains it when he speaks of it as a burial:
"Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ
were baptized into His death? Therefore we are buried with Him by bap-
tism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the
glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For
if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be
also in the likeness of His resurrection: knowing this, that our old man is
crucified with Him, that. the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth
we should not serve sin." Rom. 6: 3-6.
The inward experience, of which baptism is an outward
testimony to the world, is a death, a burial, and a resurrection.
No man is a Christian until this inward experience has be-
come his. The human race was lost because of sin: The wages
of sin is death. Hence every human being passed under sen-
tence of death. Without shedding of blood there is no remission
for sin, The law, to transgress which is sin, put us all under the
death penalty and demanded the shedding of the blood of the
sinner before the sins of the world could be remitted.
Christ came and offered His life as a ransom for the race.
The sins of the world were placed on Him. The sentence of
death that was against us was carried out upon Him. For
the remission of these sins of ours, "in due time Christ died
for the ungodly."
Inasmuch as He was dying for our sins, taking our place,
as our Substitute, then His death was in reality our death.
"If one died for all, then were all dead." 2 Cor. 5 : 14.
Hence when we accept the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf,
we really accept His death as our own, and in this way His
death becomes our death, and we die to sin. When He hung on
the cross His life was taken away by my sin; He was dying in my
place; I was hanging there with Him. His death is my death.
For this reason Paul says:
"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the
Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Gal. 2 : 20.
A Burial and a Resurrection

He died for me. When I accept Him as fny Saviour I die,
too. He was buried. I must be buried, too. "Our old man is
crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed."
Now, this old man of sin, being dead, should be buried out of
sight.
But this does not complete the experience of conversion.
There must be a resurrection. Not of that which was buried,
but of the new man, which shall no longer serve sin.
"And that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth
live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them, and rose again."
2 Cor. 5: 15.
"Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like
as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so
we should also walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted to-
gether in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His
resurrection." Rom. 6:4, 5.
Christ died. When I accept Him, I die, too. Christ was
buried. I am buried, too. Christ was raised. I am raised with
Him. This is conversion. And more; this is baptism.
Baptism is meant to commemorate the death, burial, and
BAP'T'ISM 375
resurrection of Christ. When this rite is administered we are
testifying to the world that we accept His sacrifice in our
behalf. In order to show this we, by our baptism, say to the
world that we have died with Him, are buried with Him, and
are raised to new life with Him.
Nothing in all the world will witness this to the world but
a burial and a resurrection. Sprinkling or pouring will not do
it. Triune immersion is unnecessary, as He did not die three
times, was not buried three times, and was not raised three
times. When it is considered that baptism is a memorial of the
burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it is plain that only a
burial and a resurrection will ever adequately commemorate
this. And immersion is a burial and a resurrection.
A Complete Likeness
Consider a baptism scene and see that it is a burial and a
resurrection. The minister takes the convert out into the river.
He is laid away in the watery grave. His eyes close. His breath
stops. He is hidden in the grave. A perfect representation of
a burial! A perfect representation of being "planted together
in the likeness of His death. " Rom. 6: 5.
And then there is a perfect representation of a resurrection.
The convert comes forth from the grave. His eyes open. His
breath comes again into his body. He goes to the shore and
mingles with his friends. A perfect "likeness of His resurrec-
tion " !
Thus true baptism, immersion, is a perfect representation
to the fullest degree of the very experience of conversion, a
death, a burial, and a resurrection. Only by immersion can these
things be fully expressed to the world. Every other form falls
short of doing this. Immersion only is baptism.
Signifies Acceptance of Christ's Sacrifice
While baptism signifies the death and resurrection of Christ,
yet it signifies more than a mere recognition of the fact that
He was crucified and raised from the dead nineteen hundred years
ago. It signifies our acceptance of this sacrifice. It is a symbol
of the complete hiding of the life in Christ. In order to make
His life, which is proof against all the power of the adversary
of our souls, ours,' we must acknowledge that our life is lost, and
that there is nothing in us that we can give towards its redemp-
tion.
Being fully assured that this present life is ours, we must
surrender it into the hands of Christ. He will then give us His
own divine life in exchange. What we are to do is to give up,
to yield to the Lord, fully, sincerely, without reserve, desiring
that His ways shall become our ways, and accepting by faith
the fact that He gives His life to us as He has promised.
When we do this, then we should be baptized, buried,
immersed, signifying that we have put off the old life with its
sins, that the old nature is dead, crucified with Christ, and we
have taken the new Christ-life to be ours, to walk in newness of
life with Him. This is true baptism.
Around the whole world the "gospel of the kingdom"
wins converts who are baptized as their Lord was.
Eugene .1. Hall
To become skilled in cookery is worthy women's most earnest endeavor.
Health and Temperance

T O BE healthy is a part of good religion. The laws of health
are the laws of God. They should be observed by Christians
as faithfully as are the laws of God written in the Bible. Chris-
tians should become acquainted with these laws and make their
observance a part of daily life. One who serves God has no
right to be always suffering from transgression of the laws of
right living. This is to bring reproach upon God, and is not
glorifying Him.
God is just as much concerned for the health of His people
as He is for their spiritual welfare and growth. John's good
wish for his correspondent, "Beloved, I wish above all things
that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul
prospereth " (3 John 2), is God's wish for every child of His.
Christians should, therefore, grow in physical strength and
health as well as in spiritual life. It is their duty to acquaint
themselves with the great principles of healthful living that
they may glorify, God in their bodies as well as in their spirits.
Healthy Bodies as well as Souls
The religion of Jesus Christ affects every part of a man's
being, body, soul, mind, spirit, intellect, and will.
"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the
glory of God." r Cor. io: 31.
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Religion, at least the religion of Christ, is to have a definite
effect upon the bodies of Christians. God wants healthy bodies
as well as healthy souls.
"And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your
whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ." I Thess. 5: 23.
And again:
"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost
which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye
are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your
spirit, which are God's." s Cor. 6: 19, 20.
It is impossible to follow out the instruction given in these
passages when we knowingly take into our bodies either food
or drink that is harmful. Not only is it not glorifying God to
eat or drink things that are detrimental to our health, but
the man who persists in defiling the temple of God, which is the
body, will be destroyed and not saved.
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of
God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall
God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." s Cor.
3: 16, 57.
This being true, it is well to consider in what way the body
that has been given us of God may be defiled.
Things That Defile

It is quite possible for the people of God to defile their
bodies by the things they eat as well as by the things they drink.
The body may be defiled by the peppers, spices, mustards,
vinegars, and other strong substances that today are so common-
ly used in cooking. These things contain no food elements
whatever, neither do they add to the delicate flavor of the
fruits, grains, and vegetables with which they are used. Rather
do they destroy the natural sensitiveness of the taste, so that
it becomes unable to detect the choice flavors that nature gives.
They do the system a positive injury by inflaming the delicate
blood vessels of the throat and stomach, by whipping up the
often already overtaxed nerves to increased exhaustion, and
by heating up the blood through the entire system, thus making
it more difficult to control the temper and all the natural
pa ssions.
Jesus unmistakably showed His displeasure against those who defiled the temple of God.
In addition to this the habitual use of spices, condiments,

and similar elements, creates an appetite that can only be sat-
isfied by strong drink. In this way many mothers, who are
strong advocates of temperance, may by improper cooking and
preparation of food in the home, be preparing their own sons
to fill drunkards' graves. Many a boy has become a drunkard
because of the appetite created by wrong habits of preparing
food. There is no more important art than that of the proper

preparation of food.
The Tobacco Habit Defiling
The tobacco habit in any form whatever is-an evil thing,
and no Christian should ever practice it. Tobacco contains
a deadly poison, nicotine, and cannot be taken into the human
system without defiling it. The tobacco user especially should
study the striking words of Paul, "If any man defile the temple
of God, him shall God destroy." The use of tobacco is defiling
to the body, for it has a most detrimental action on the heart
and lungs and makes a man's whole person unclean; defiling
to the soul, for it deadens the spiritual perceptions and makes
a man less able to apprehend the great truths of religion.
This is one of the appetites that must be crucified if full vigor
of Christian manhood and womanhood is reached..
Tea and Coffee Defiling
The use of tea and coffee also is detrimental to health.
Both contain drugs that act harmfully upon the nervous system,
and that stimulate to such an extent that their use becomes a
regular drug habit, which many find it next to impossible to
break. Coffee contains a drug called caffeine, which is dangerous;
and tea contains both theine and tannin, which are even more
dangerous. Christians who know the evil effects of these
stimulants upon their bodies should discard them just as fully
and as quickly as they would the use of strong drink.
Become Master of Your Body

The principle that should be adopted as the basis of all
heathful living is that set forth by Paul in his First Epistle to
the Corinthians:
"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth
the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for
the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a cor-
ruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore run, not as uncer-
tainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: but I keep under my
body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have
preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." i Cor. 9:24-27.
The Christian race is a strenuous one, but all who run in
it may receive the prize. To do this involves the necessity upon
the part of every participant in this race of keeping the body
under control and not permitting certain cherished habits of
eating or drinking to master him. On the contrary, these habits
should be mastered, and the body brought into subjection.
Through the grace of Christ this victory may be obtained.
The Christian life is one of victory and triumph over even the
appetites of the flesh. Notice how clearly this is set forth by
Paul, according to the reading of the "New Testament in
Modern Speech" :
"This then is what I mean. Let your lives be guided by the Spirit,
and then you will certainly not indulge the cravings of your lower natures.
For the cravings of the lower nature are opposed to those of the Spirit,
and the cravings of the Spirit are opposed to those of the lower nature;
because these are antagonistic to each other, so that you cannot do every-
thing to which you are inclined. . . . Now those who belong to Christ Jesus
have crucified their lower nature with its passions and appetites." Gal. 5:
16, 17, 24.
By wrong habits of eating and drinking the cravings of the
lower nature become very strong, until in many instances they
completely master the body. Christian experience will not
permit the indulgence of these cravings, for they "are opposed
to those of the Spirit." The child of God must gain the victory
over his perverted passions and appetites, and full provision
has been made for doing this by the grace of Christ. Christ can
give power to win the final victory. Do not give up until it is
won. Be master of your life, and of your body. Do not permit
tobacco,.or tea, or coffee, or the appetite for anything else that
is harmful, to master you.
A Perfect Diet
God has been good enough to state clearly in the Bible just
the things that should be used for food, which will sustain life,
and which He knows are the very best things to maintain good
health. At the very creation of the race He gave to man a
perfect and complete diet, containing every element necessary
for the most abundant life, and the most vigorous health.
The record is:
"And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed,
which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the
fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat." Gen I: 29.
According to this the perfect diet consists of fruits, grains,
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nuts, vegetables, and green things, and does not include flesh
foods. Inasmuch as God made the human body, and is thus
acquainted with all its needs, and inasmuch as it was God,
the Creator, who gave man this diet, we must conclude that
fruits, grains, nuts, and vegetables constitute a perfect and
complete and all-sufficient diet for mankind. Man would be
much better off healthwise today if he would return to this
original diet.
This is the teaching of human experience as well as the teach-
ing of the Bible. Those nations and peoples which subsist upon
a vegetable diet, including fruits, grains, and nuts, are the
hardiest people on earth. Their endurance of hardships, and their
physical stamina and strength far exceed those of the meat-
eating races.
The Eating of Flesh
After sin was introduced into the world, and the flood had
swept away all vegetation, God gave man permission to eat
flesh. (Gen. 9: 1-3.) This permission was limited, however, to
the use of clean animals. God saw that the flesh of certain
animals, fowls, and fish was unfit for human consumption, and
that if it was used it would produce all manner of disorders and
diseases in the race. He therefore prohibited the use of certain
flesh foods, and stated clearly what were permitted to be eaten.
The instruction that God gave regarding what flesh foods were
permitted and what were prohibited is contained in the eleventh
chapter of Leviticus and the fourteenth chapter of Deuter-
onomy. These chapters should be carefully studied by every
child of God, and the instruction they contain adopted and
carried out.
Here, everything that has life in the waters and has no fins
or scales is forbidden to be used as food. This includes lobsters,
crabs, oysters, eels, etc., and every fish that does not have fins
or scales. This prohibition has not been reversed, and could not
be unless these things had changed their nature from unclean
to clean. It was placed on these things because God knew
their nature, that it was unclean, and that it was unfit for food.
We do well to follow the counsel of God in this matter.
Clean animals permitted to be used for food are classified
by the expression, " Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is cloven-
footed, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts." These were
permitted to be used for food. But even here some that chew
the cud and that part the hoof were not to. be eaten. Here
is the prohibition:
"Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of
them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but
divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the coney, because
he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof ; he is unclean unto you. . . .
And the swine, through he divide the hoof, and be cloven footed, yet he
cheweth not the cud; he is unclean unto you. Of their flesh shall ye not
eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch; they are unclean :to you." Lev.
The prohibition against the use of the hare family would in-
clude the rabbit and the squirrel, which belong to this family.
The prohibition against the use of the swine would include all
pork and pork products, ham, bacon, lard, etc. In these things
disease lurks. God has forbidden their use.
Tuberculosis and cancer can many times be traced to the
use of pork„to the eating of swine's flesh. It is better to heed
the instruction of God than to yield to the craving to indulge
in these forbidden things.
Swine's Flesh Prohibited
The use of swine's flesh by His people seems to be especially
offensive to God, as He causes this to be mentioned several
times in the Scriptures. Thus in speaking of a people who
profess great holiness, He mentions as one particular thing
He has against them the fact that they use swine's flesh.
"A people that provoketh Me to anger continually to My face; that
sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick; which
remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine's
flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels; which day, Stand
by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a
smoke in My nose, a fire that burneth all the day." Isa. 65: 3-5.
In fact, the Lord goes so far as to declare that those who eat
swine's flesh in the time of His second coming will be destroyed.
"For,/ behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with His chariots like
a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of
fire. For by fire and by His sword will the Lord plead with all flesh:
and the slain of the Lord shall be many. They that sanctify themselves,
and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating
swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed to-
gether, saith the Lord." Isa. 66: 15-17.
There are those who are of the opinion that the vision that
Peter saw removes these prohibitions against the use of unclean
animals for food. This opinion is based upon a totally erroneous
interpretation of that vision. The vision is recorded in Acts
1o: 9-16. Peter saw a great sheet let down from heaven in which
were all manner of four-footed beasts, and wild beasts, and creep-
ing things, and he heard the command to kill and eat. There
is no record that he did eat.
Peter did not at first understand the meaning of this vision.
"Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had
seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had
made inquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate." Acts zo: 17.
After Peter had been led by the Spirit to the house of Corne-
lius he then discerned the true meaning of the vision, and saw
it had no reference whatever to diet. He said:
"Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to
keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God bath showed
me that I should not call any man common or unclean." Acts zo: 28.
This is what God revealed to Peter as the meaning of the
vision, 'that he should call no man, not beast, unclean. Would
it not be better for men to learn the same lesson that Peter
learned from the vision, and not attempt to read something
into it that is not there at all? No, the animals which have been
prohibited to be eaten for food are just as unclean today as
they ever were. As a matter of fact, they are more unclean
than before.
There is a constant increase in the prevalence of disease,
not only among men, but animals as well. There is no way of
knowing whether the flesh foods purchased at a butcher shop
are diseased or not. Those who eat the flesh of any animal today
are taking fearful risks with their health. It is for this reason
that it would be much better to abstain from flesh foods of all
kinds, and endeavor in the matter of diet to return to that
original standard that God first gave to mankind, using only
fruits, grains, nuts, and vegetables for food. As this effort is
made, God will add His blessing and give health.
True temperance is total abstinence from all that is harmful,
whether food or drink, and only a moderate use of that which
is good.
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The Creator loves beauty, harmony, and modesty, for His creation reveals these qualities.
Christians and Dress
T HE religion of Christ is broad. It covers more than mere

religious duties. It includes temporal, social, and practical
duties as well. It sweeps the whole field for God, and leaves
no room for self or sin. God's claim covers the entire being,
body, soul, and spirit.
This becomes the more true the nearer we come to the end
of the world, and the second coming of Christ. Every passing
day not only brings nearer the time when Christ shall be
revealed from heaven, but it ought at the same time bring
Christians nearer to God. Bible religion is a practical thing.
It affects, or should affect, very decidedly the personal habits,
eating, drinking, dressing, etc. It is possible to make a pro-
fession of Christianity, and then utterly deny that profession
by the way we appear among men.
The foundation principle of the life of Christ was humility.
He who was in the form of God was made in the form of man.
He who was in the likeness of God was made in the likeness of
man. He who was equal with God thought it not a thing to be
grasped for to keep His likeness to God, but emptied Himself,
and was made in the form of a servant. He who was Lord and
Master became a servant to minister to those who were lost
in sin.
(386)
CHRISTIANS AND DRRSS 387
We cannot represent Christ aright unless there is revealed
in our lives this same great principle of humility There can
be no such thing as pride of position, of name, of power, of
talents, or of dress. These things must decrease, and He must
increase in the life of every true follower of His.
Bible Principles of Good Taste

The closer we come to Jesus Christ the less will we desire
to manifest pride to the world in outward appearance. There
are some who profess to be followers of the Christ who under-
stand so little the principles of His religion that they become
walking exhibitions of Vanity Fair in their dress. They seem to
think that display is the mission of the Christian, and most of
their time and thought are occupied by the attempt to beautify
themselves for the admiration of men. They are not like Paul,
who " determined not to know anything among you, save
Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. " Instead of exalting Christ
in their life, in their dress, and in their deportment, their sole
thought is how to exalt themselves, and attract attention to
themselves.
In doing this they go to such lengths that they violate the
plain teachings of the Bible regarding the dress and deportment
of the children of God. God has been pleased to give much
instruction on this matter of Christian dress, and it should
be carefully studied and adopted by those who desire to have
their lives harmonize with the Bible.
The Bible forbids the Christian to dress lavishly and extrava-
gantly, to use jewelry of gold and precious stones, and other
trinkets for the purpose of adornment, to wear rings or brace-
lets or earrings, or in any way so to ornament the person as
to violate the principles of humility, meekness, and above all,
modesty.
Speaking to the women of the church by inspiration, Peter
wrote:
"While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
Whose adorning, let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair,
and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel : but let it be the hidden
man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of
a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." I Peter
3: 2-4.
388 OUR TIMES AND THEIR MEANINGS
Here the use of gold for purposes of adornment, the use of
jewelry, is forbidden. Gold is not forbidden in itself, but used
merely to ornament the person it is forbidden. This principle
would include the use of any material that is put into use
merely to decorate the person and to attract attention to one's
self. Jewelry used merely to ornament the body cannot be
used 1: this instruction is heeded.
" Plaiting the hair." Not that the hair should not be plaited,
or arranged in any other way that is convenient, but that the
hair should not be considered as merely an object to create
admiration and attract attention, and should not be allowed
to become a source of pride, and should not be dressed in such
a way as to foster the natural human pride of the heart.
"Putting on of apparel." Such apparel as ministers to pride
should not be used; there should be no extravagent display of
dress, no lvishness of apparel exhibited for the same purpose
as that for which jewelry is worn. The whole warning of this
passage is against adornment and display. These things should
have no place in the Christian experience of either men or
women.
Modesty Enjoined
Paul, writing to Timothy, gave this instruction:
"I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands,
without wrath and doubting. In like manner also, that women adorn them-
selves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with
broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; but (which becometh women
professing godliness) with good works." i Tim. 2: 8-1o.
Here Paul sounds the same warning against jewelry, and
costly array and adornment, that already has been found in the
writings of Peter. But he adds something more, something
which is most timely in view of the prevailing fashions of the
present day. He enjoins modesty of apparel.
This is counsel that is much needed. There are fashions in
dress today that were deliberately intended to create passion
and lust, and that are meant to appeal to all the lower passions
of mankind. Honor, reputation, health, and even life itself,
are being sacrificed today by women, who, because they will
not be "out of style," adopt fashions in dress that originate in
houses of ill-fame. The exposure of the person in the prevailing
fashions of female dress has come to the place where it is posi-
• CHRISTIANS 'AND DREss 389
Rau The holy family were ever an example of modest apparel.
tively indecent, and leads to all manner of immorality. Every

possible effort, even to the extent of outraging every sense of
decency and modesty, is made to accentuate and suggest
the sexual. It is not surprising that there is an appalling in-
crease in criminal immorality.
O women of the church of Christ, take heed to the counsel
of God, and "adorn yourselves in modest apparel" ! Let your
influence be on the side of righteousness and morality, and assist
by your practice the attempt to stem this fearful tide of im-
moral fashions that is sweeping the young people of our times
away from the religion of Christ out into a great overwhelming
sea of unrestrained lust and passion. Become an example of
. good works, both in dress and deportment, to those who need
your help. Abstain from adorning yourselves either with gold,
or jewelry, or costly array, "but (which becometh women pro-
fessing godliness) with good works. " •
O mother of the growing girl, guard your child with care
and good counsel, helping her to stand upon the teachings of
the word of God and resist the influences that would draw her
toward the preyailing worldliness of the day. Teach her the
truth of the Bible, lead her to Christ. Let her perceive in you the
beauties of His character. Let her behold exemplified in your
life the Christlike principle of humility and meekness. Teach
her the fearful danger of following worldly customs and fashions.
Point out to her the pitfalls in the way, and safeguard her by
leading her to build her character after the similitude of the
Divine.
The Israelites Stripped off Their Ornaments
Before the Lord brought the children of Israel into the
promised land, He made them strip themselves of all their
ornaments.
• "And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and
no man did put on him his ornaments. For the Lord had said unto Moses,
Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up
into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put
off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. And
the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the Mount
Horeb." Ex. 33:4-6.
In the same way, before God brings spiritual Israel into
the promised land of the new earth, He will have them discard
all the customs and fashions of the world, stripping themselves
of their ornaments, and being adorned solely by the graces of
the Christian character.
The wearing of jewelry and other trinkets and ornaments
for adornment has always been an abomination in the eyes of
CHRISTIANS AND DRESS 391
the Lord. Notice the following scathing denunciation and threat
of punishment upon the "haughty daughters of Zion":
Moreover the Lord saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty,
and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing
as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet: therefore the Lord will
smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the
Lord will discover their secret parts. In that day the Lord will take away
the bravery of , their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls
[networks, margin], and their round tires like the moon, the chains, and the
bracelets, and the mufflers [spangled ornaments, margin], the bonnets,
and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the
earrings, the rings, and nose jewels, the changeable suits of apparel, and the
mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping pins, the glasses, and the fine
linen, and the hoods, and the veils. And it shall come to pass, that instead
of sweet smell [perfumery] there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a
rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a
girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty. Thy men shall fall by
the sword, and thy mighty in the war. And her gates shall lament and
mourn; and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground." Isa. 3: 16-26.
Separate from the World
God's people today, as in all past time, must be a people
separate from the world. They cannot follow God and the world
at the same time.
"What fellowship hath righteousness with 'unrighteousness? And
what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath
Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the
temple of the living God. . . . Wherefore come out from among them,
and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and
I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons
and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." 2 Cor. 6: 14-18.
Here, then, is the definite testimony of the word of God
regarding the manner in which Christians should dress. Here
is the forceful appeal for all who would follow Christ to come
out and be separate from the world and its practices and customs.
What shall we do with this testimony? Shall we accept it
as Christian people and conform our lives to it, or shall we
utterly disregard it? .While there are some who may not see
the wrong and the harm in wearing these forbidden things,
such as rings, bracelets, earrings, jewelry, costly array, immodest
apparel, can you not give them up for the sake of the One who
died for you? Is not your love for Him greater than your
love for these worldly trinkets? Heed, I pray you, the counsel
that God has given in this matter, and let your life and your
conduct in every way conform to His word.
Above all, guard yourself against becoming a stumbling
block to others. Be an example in these things. Remember
that while offenses are bound to come, "woe unto him by
whom the offense cometh."
God's touching appeal to us all is:
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye
present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is
your reasonable service." Rom. I2:
God wants our bodies to be consecrated flesh and blood, the
body with all its members, faculties, and functions. This would
include eyes, ears, tongue, feet, and hands. When these are fully
consecrated to God, three things will naturally follow: first,
we will not abuse our bodies; second, we will not defile our
bodies; third, we will not adorn our bodies in a way forbidden
by the Bible and by sanctified common sense. Simplicity and
plainness, humility and meekness and lowliness of heart will
characterize the life of the sincere Christians.
The Majesty of heaven stooped to become man's
servant and wash the feet of Peter and of Judas.
The Ordinance of Humility

F OLLOWING the days of the apostles, an apostasy developed
in the church, which finally grew into that system known as
Romanism, in which every truth of the gospel was so perverted
as to be changed into a lie. For every principle of truth that
the gospel contained, a counterfeit was substituted in this
false system. In this way the light of the gospel came to be
dimmed by the darkness of heathen superstitution and error.
This system of counterfeits was then substituted for the genuine
gospel and came to be accepted by millions of people as the
genuine instead of the false.
In this apostasy not only was every doctrine of truth
perverted and changed, but new ordinances and ceremonies
were adopted and substituted for those contained in the gospel.
Baptism was changed in to sprinkling, the Lord's Supper was
changed into a purely idolatrous service in which the priest
created his own Creator. Another ordinance, the ordinance of
humility, which was established by Christ himself, and was
meant to be celebrated to the very end of the world, has been
entirely eliminated and is not today celebrated in the great
majority of churches. Those who celebrate it constitute the
exception rather than the rule.
(393)
This is that ordinance recorded in the thirteenth chapter

of John. It was instituted at the time of the last visit of Christ
to Jerusalem, just before His crucifixion, and is one of the most
precious ordinances, and one of the most helpful spiritually,
that the church possesses.
While Christ and His disciples were on this last journey
to Jerusalem, there had arisen a strife among the disciples as
to who should be the greatest in the kingdom that they be-
lieved He was about to establish. They were looking forward
to the glory that they thought was about to become theirs in
the exalted positions that they hoped to obtain when this king-
dom was set up. Jesus was looking forward to the great sacri-
fice of His life.
James and John ,secured the co-operation of their mother
in their endeavor to get ahead of the other disciples and obtain
the highest offices of the expected kingdom for themselves.
They persuaded their mother to go to Christ and request of
Him that they be appointed to the two highest offices of power
and trust in the new kingdom, " the one on Thy right hand,
and the other on Thy left, in Thy kingdom. "
"And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation
against the two brethren." Matt. zo: 2o-24. "And there was also a strife
among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. " Luke 22 : 24.
Self-Seeking
It is evident that these men, moved by such principles of
worldly ambition and desire for power, were not fitted to
engage in the great work that was about to be laid upon them.
Christ was about to leave all the interests of His church, and
especially the great work of preaching the gospel, in the hands
of men whose hearts were moved by motives and impulses from
beneath, self-seeking, self-exaltation, and pride.
The great heart of Christ was pained that these men had
not better learned the principles of the gospel, and He sought
for some method by which He might purify these proud and
selfish hearts, and make them see themselves as they really
appeared. In the short time left Him to be with them He
sought for something by which He might accomplish the great
work of cleansing the hearts of these men upon whom the great
burdens of the church were about to rest. In the upper room
THE ORDINANCE. or HUMILITY 395
in Jerusalem, He found the opportunity for which He was
seeking.
In eastern countries it was the custom for the host to greet
his guest, when a visit was made, by providing a servant, with
water, towel, and a basin, who would meet the guest at the door,
remove his sandals from his feet, and plunge them in the cool,
refreshing water, in which the servant bathed them. In this
way the master of the house manifested his hospitality.
When Christ and His disciples came into the upper room
at Jerusalem, after their journey along- the dusty road from
Jericho, on which the strife mentioned above had taken place,
all the arrangements had evidently been made for a servant
to wash the feet of Jesus and His companions. The water was
there, and the basin, and the towels. But for some reason the
servant was not present. All that was necessary for the per-
formance of this hospitable custom was in readiness, but
there was no one to do it.
Pride and Self-Exaltation
In the absence of the servant, it was clearly the place of one
of the disciples to take this lowly place, and perform this hum-
ble service, at least for his Master. But these men had just
been striving among themselves as to who should be the
greatest in the kingdom. As they looked about and saw the
situation, knowing that each should volunteer to take the serv-
ant's place, pride took possession of them and they decided
they could not thus lower themselves to such an extent in the
eyes of their companions. If they should thus voluntarily be
put in the place of a servant, losing their dignity in this manner,
they would then have no foundation for their argument that they
should have the highest places in the kingdom.
And hi the presence of Peter, John would not lower himself
to take a servant's place; nor would any of the others. Thus,
while each in his own heart knew that it was his duty to offer
to take the place of the servant who was absent, his pride
and self-exaltation, and desire for place and power, prevented
him from doing so.
The same principle that ruled in the heart of Lucifer when
he sought the highest place of power in the universe was now
ruling in the hearts of the followers of Christ. It grieved the
Eugene J. Hall
' Mary's anointing of Jesus' feet is the most noble act of humble service on record.
(396)
THE ORDINANCE OF HUMILITY 397
great heart of Christ, in whom just the opposite principle
ruled, the principle of humility, of self-abnegation, of service
and ministry for others.
Looking about upon them in sorrow, the Master " riseth from
supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel, and girded
Himself." Without doubt the eye of every man there was on
Him to see what He was about to do. (John 13: I-17.)
"After that He poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the
disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded."
As He did so, it does not take a seer to be able to perceive
that their thoughts of pride, self-exaltation, and self-seeking
began to give way before the influence of that wonderful
condescension of the Lord; their hard hearts were melted by
this demonstration 'of the love of Christ for their souls; they
began to see the ugliness of the obstinacy and stubbornness of
their own hearts in a clear light; and by this one gracious act
of humility was effected a complete transformation in theSe
men.
"Then cometh He to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto Him, Lord,
dost Thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do
thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto
Him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee
not, thou hast no part with Me. Simon Peter saith unto Him, Lord, not
my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith unto him, He
that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit:
and ye are clean, but not all. For He knew who should betray Him; there-
fore said He, Ye are not all clean."
A Hidden Significance
"What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know
hereafter." Prom these words it is evident that there is a hidden
significance in this ordinance. It means far more than mere
physical cleansing. The physical cleansing is merely a type of
a far higher cleansing, that of the soul. "Thou shalt know
hereafter." The disciples were not able to appreciate all that
was done for them by this service. The full significance of the
transformation that was there made by this act of humility
would appear to them later.
" He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet,
but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all." From
this it becomes still more apparent that physical cleanliness is
not the end of this service. These men were clean, but in travel-
ing along the dusty roads their feet had become travel-stained.
Just so, while their hearts had been cleansed by the blood of
Christ, their contact with the world had brought defilement
again, and they needed to be constantly washed in His blood and
purified. This ordinance was to bring this lesson home to them.
To once plunge into the fountain opened for sin and unclean-
ness is not enough. This must be a constant work in the life
of the believer in Christ, and it is this lesson that is to be taught,
and ever kept in mind, by the celebration of this great ordinance
of humility.
Constant Application of the Christ Life
When conversion takes place, the heart is cleansed from sin,
the old nature is crucified, dies, is buried, and we come forth
to walk in newness of life. To show all this experience to the
world, we are baptized into Jesus Christ. But just as the man
who comes direct from his bath, and takes his journey along
the road, finds his feet becoming stained from the dust of the
road, and needs them washed because of these travel stains,
so the Christian, after his baptism makes mistakes, and his
heart again becomes stained by contact with the world, and he
needs a new application of the blood of Christ to his heart.
Shall he be baptized again?
No, repeated baptisms are not necessary for the defilement
that may come into the life after once being baptized. But a
recognition on the part of the sinner of his constant need of the
purifying blood of Christ is necessary, and this need is recog-
nized, and the blood of Christ for purification is applied, in the
celebration of this ordinance of humility, or feet-washing.
Instituted a Christian Ordinance
When Christ washed the disciples' feet in the upper room
in Jerusalem, He instituted a Christian ordinance, which all
Christians are expected to celebrate by actual participation
until the end of the world. This is made most plain in the follow-
ing words:
"So after He had washed their feet, and had taken His garments, and
was set down again, He said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you?
Ye call Me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your
Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's
THE ORDINANCE OF' HUMILITY 399
feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done unto
you."
This language has no meaning at all unless it means that
He was there instituting a Christian ordinance. "Ye ought also
to wash one another's feet." "I have given you an example,
that ye should do as I have done to you." , There is no stronger
language in the Bible for the celebration of any other ceremony
of the Christian faith than this.
Notice how forcefully the Modern Speech New Testament
makes this passage read:
"If I then, your Master and Rabbi, have washed your feet, it is also
your duty to wash one another's feet. For I have set you an example in
order that ye may do what I have done to you. In most solemn truth I
tell you that a servant is not superior to his master, nor is a messenger
superior to him who sent him. If you know all this, blessed are you if you
act accordingly." John 13: 54-57.
Restored in Final Message
Because of the pride and self-exaltation that came into
the church after the days of the apostles, this blessed ordinance
of humility was discarded and cast out. But in the last message
of the gospel, which is to go to all the world just before the second
coming of Christ, this ordinance of humility is restored.
As in the case of every other part of the gospel, so this
ordinance is to be celebrated " decently and in order." When
the time for its celebration arrives, the men should retire to
a place of their own and celebrate the ordinance among them-
selves, leaving the women of the church to celebrate it among
themselves. Its celebration has been found to be a time of great
spiritual uplift, the righting of wrongs, and putting away
of sin. It is an ordinance of the greatest value to the church
of Christ.
Let not the one who comes to the knowledge of this truth
for the first time draw back from participating in the celebration
of this ordinance. To do this would in effect be saying, " I am
greater than my Lord." Empty the heart of pride, and practice
every truth that God sends. Remember that " if ye know these
things, happy are ye if do them"; or, as another translation
has it, "If ye know all this, blessed are you if you act accord-
ingly."
An artist tries to portray the work and character of the ancient Hebrew prophets.
The Gift of Prophecy

MONG the gifts that the Spirit of God placed in the
A church at the beginning of the gospel era, was that of
prophecy. The view that is held by some Christians that
prophecy came to a close with the Old Testament is erroneous.
The gift of prophecy is mentioned in the enumeration of the
gifts of the Spirit, which were given for the purpose of carry-
ing forward and finishing the work of the gospel.
"Wherefore he saith, When He ascended up on high, He led captivity
captive, and gave gifti unto men. . . . And He gave some, apostles; and
some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers."
Eph. 4: 8, tr.
Attention is directed to the time when it is said these gifts
were given. " When He ascended on high." Christ placed
these gifts in His church when He left it. They were for the
purpose of carrying on the work that He had begun. This is
plainly stated, for the passage quoted goes on to declare the
purpose of the gifts:
"For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and
of the knowledge'of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure
of the stature of the, fullness of Christ." Eph. 4: 12, 13.
The five gifts of the Spirit mentioned in this passage as
being placed in the church at the beginning of the gospel dispen-
sation are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.
(400)
THE GIFT OP PROPHECY 4.01
Pour of these gifts are believed in and accepted by every

Christian church. All churches have their apostles, th'ose who
engage in a pioneer work, breaking up the fallow ground.
The Methodist Church had the Wesleys ; the Baptist had
Roger Williams; the Presbyterian had Knox and Calvin;
the Lutheran had Luther; the Christian had. Campbell; and
they all today have 'their missionaries. They believe in the
gift of apostleship. They have their evangelists, their pastors,
and their teachers. There is no question about any of these
gifts. But where are their prophets?
Prophets in Apostolic Church

This gift of prophecy was certainly manifested in the apostolic
church, and from the passage quoted above from Ephesians,
it is plain that it was intended to be manifested to the end.
That it was manifested in the apostolic church there is abundant
proof.
"Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets
and teachers." Acts 13: 1.
"And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch."
Acts II: 27.
"And Judas and Silas, being prophets also themselves, exhorted the
brethren with many words, and confirmed them. " Acts 15: 32.
"And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy."
Acts 21 : 9.
"And as we tarried there many days. there came down from Judea a
certain prophet, named Agabus. " Acts 2 : Io.
These passages show that the gift of prophecy did not come
to an end with the Old Testament. Its exercise was manifested
in the New Testament. Paul was a prophet, exercising this
gift in a striking way. John was certainly a prophet, for he never
could have written the Book of Revelation without this gift.
This gift was among the gifts of the Spirit in the days of the
apostles. It was given to be in the church throughout all its
long history.
The gift of prophecy is among the most important gifts
of the Spirit, the second in order of importance.
"And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily
prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then ‘gifts of healings,
helps, governments, diversities of tongues." I Cor. 12: 28.
* In this passage the gifts are set in the order of their import-
26
an ce. The first in importance is that of apostleship. The second
that of prophecy. The third that of teaching. Apostleship,
prophecy, and teaching are more important than the performing
of miracles, the healing of the sick, or speaking with tongues.
Greater than all the gifts, with the exception of apostleship,
is the gift of prophecy.
For the Benefit of the Church
This gift is especially for the benefit of the church.
"Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to
them that believe not: but prophesying serveth not for them that believe
not, but for them that believe." i Cor. 14:22.
Among the benefits that the gifts of prophecy has brought
to the church are the following: It has led in great reformatory
movements; it has foretold the future and thrown much light
on the past; and, above all, it was through the gift of prophecy
that we have the Bible, for "holy men of God spake as they
were moved by the Holy Ghost."
It would be a mistake to think that the gift of prophecy
is only for the purpose of foretelling the future. It deals with
all time, past, present, and future.
"Write the things which thou hast seen [the past], and the things
which are [the present], and the things which shall be hereafter [the
future]." Rev. i:19.
Infallible Voice of God
Those messages that come from God through the gift of
prophecy are authoritative and infallible. This must not be
understood as being applied to the prophet in person, that he
or she is infallible. This is not what is meant. Prophets are
fallible human beings. The Bible records the mistakes they have
made. It is not the instrument that God uses that is infallible,
but the message that God sends through the instrument.
These messages come from God, and therefore are authoritative
and infallible.
The infallibility of the pope is a counterfeit of the gift of
prophecy. This doctrine of papal infallibility is based upon
another doctrine, that of the apostolic succession from Peter. It
is claimed that because the present occupant of Peter's chair
is the direct successor in apostolic succession from Peter.
THE GIFT OP PROPHECY 403
he therefore is infallible when he speaks ex cathedra on faith
and morals.
The True Succession
There is a true succession by which truth comes from God,
and it is only when it comes through this true succession that it
is infallible. The infallibility of the pope is merely a counterfeit
of this true infallibility. The true succession by which truth
comes infallibly from God to man is that set forth in the
following passage:
"The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him, to show
unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent
and signified it by His angel unto His servant John: who bare record of the
word of God." Rev. I : 1, 2.
Here is the true succession: Truth originates with God,
who gives it to Jesus Christ, who gives it to "His angel" to
take to those who have the gift of prophecy, in this case re-
presented by John, who, in turn, passes it on to the churches.
God, Christ, " His angel, " the gift of prophecy, the people of
God —this is how truth comes infallibly from God to man.
And when it comes in this way it is the authoritative and
infallible voice of God to His church.
Notice that the last step on the divine side in sending
truth from God to men, is " His angel"; and the first step on the
human side in receiving the truth is the gift of prophecy.
This angel is the angel Gabriel, who seems to have special
charge of the gift of prophecy on the divine side. When God
gave Daniel a vision, Daniel, who did not understand it all,
heard the voice of the Lord, saying, "Gabriel, make this man to
understand the vision." Dan. 8: 16. It is Gabriel, who, in
Rev. 19: to, says: "I am thy fellow servant, and of thy
brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for
the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. " It is of Gabriel
that Jesus said, "I Jesus sent Mine angel to testify unto you
these things in the churches." Rev. 22: 16. It was Gabriel
who said to Daniel: "There is none that holdeth with me in
these things, but Michael your prince." Dan. to: 21. Through
Gabriel, therefore, come the messages of truth that are brought
to the churches through the gift of prophecy.
The messages that come through the gift of prophecy,
whether spoken or written, are called "testimonies." Notice
The prophet Jeremiah dictating his vision to Baruch.
(404)
THE GIFT OP PROPHECY 405
the expression again in, Rev. 22: 16: "I Jesus have sent Mine
angel to testify unto you these things in the churches." That
which is testified is "testimony." The angel Gabriel testifies
the truth to the one having the gift of prophecy, and the prophet
testifies the same truth to the churches. Therefore that which
the prophet receives through his gift is "testimonies for the
church."
It is in this way that the word "testimonies" was under-
stood by the Israelites, and used in the Scriptures: " Testimony "
is that which the prophet spoke or wrote by revelation from
God. The Hebrew word translated " testimony" is " Eduth, "
which means the messages that came through the gift of
prophecy.
Value of the Testimonies
The benefit of reading and studying these testimonies is
fully set forth in various parts of the Bible. Por illustration,
notice how often this word is used in just one chapter of the
Bible. Ps. 119: 2, 14, 22, 24, 31, 36, 46, 59, 79, 88, 95, 99, III,
119, 129, 138, 144, 146, 152, 167, 168.
The instruction that is given the prophet through the angel
Gabriel for the benefit of the church is imparted through the
medium of visions and dreams.
"If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make Myself known
unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream." Num„ 1(2 : 6.
"In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men,
in slumberings upon the bed; then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth
their instruction." Job. 33: 15, 16.
Some today question the reliability of visions and dreams
as a method of understanding the will of God, but it must be
remembered that this is the method used by God to impart
instruction to His ancient prophets. It is the method by which
God gave the instruction contained in those two greatest
prophetic books, Daniel and the Revelation. No one ever thinks
of questioning the reliability of the instruction given in these
books.
Satan, of course, counterfeits this gift as well as every other
truth, and there are false dreams and visions. God has, however,
as we shall see, given instruction by which the false can be
told from the true.
There is much testimony in the Bible regarding the value

and benefit of the gift of prophecy.
"And by a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a
prophet was he preserved." Hos. 12: 13.
"Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe His
prophets, so shall ye prosper. " 2 Chron. 20: 20.
" Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the
law, happy is he." Prov. 29: i8.
In the Bible the possession of the gift of prophecy is always
connected with obedience to the law of God, so that the law
and the prophets are united. Thus, when Jeremiah lamented for
the fall of Jerusalem, he cried:
"Her gates are sunk into the ground; He hath destroyed and broken her
bars: her kings and her princes are among the Gentiles: the law is no more:
her prophets also find no vision from the Lord." Lam. 2: 9.
Notice that in this passage the law and the possession of the
gift of prophecy is very clearly connected.
This same connection appears in the writings of Ezekiel:
"Mischief shall come upon mischief, and rumor shall be upon rumor;
then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from
the priest, and counsel from the ancients." Ezek. 7: 26.
When the elders of the children of Israel came to inquire of
the prophet, in the hope of receiving the benefit of instruction
through the gift of prophecy, the Lord spoke to them through
the prophet, and said :
"Are ye come to enquire of me? As I live, saith the Lord God, I will
not be enquired of by you." Ezek. 20: 3.
He then informs them of the reason why He will not speak
to them, and give them instruction, through the gift of prophecy.
And among these reasons He stated the following:
"And I gave them My statutes, and showed them My judgments,
which if a man do, he shall even live in them. Moreover also I gave them My
Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that
I am the Lord that sanctify them. But the house of Israel rebelled against
Me in the wilderness: they walked not in My statutes, and they despised
My judgments, . . . and My Sabbaths they greatly polluted." Ezek.
20: 11-13.
It is plain from this that among the reasons why God would
no longer give them instruction through the gift of prophecy
was their violation of His law, and He especially mentions the
polluting of His Sabbaths.
THE OIPT Or PROPHECY 467
The importance of this reason is emphasized by its being
repeated:
"But I said unto their children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the
statutes of your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile your-
selves with their idols: I am the Lord your God; walk in My statutes,
and keep My judgments, and do them; and hallow My Sabbaths; and they
shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the
Lord your God. Notwithstanding the children rebelled against Me: they
walked not in My statutes, neither kept My judgments to do them; . . .
they polluted My Sabbaths." Ezek. 20: 18-21.
The connection between obedience to the law, and especially
the keeping of the Sabbath, and the possession of the gift of
prophecy is made very plain in this passage.
This connection is seen again in the passage already quoted
from Proverbs:
"Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the
law, happy is he." Prov. 29: i8.
It is also seen in the writings of Isaiah:
"To the law and to the testimony [the gift of prophecy]: if they speak
not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Isa. 8:20.
The New Testament writings also reveal this same con-
nection between the law and the gift of prophecy. Very often in
the New Testament occur the words, "The law and the proph-
ets."
not come to destroy, but to fulfill." Matt. 5: 17.
Why Gift Was Removed

These passages throw great light upon the reason why the
gift of prophecy has not been manifested in the churches since
the time of Christ. Obedience to the law of God and possession
of the gift of prophecy are so connected that when the church
deliberately forsakes the law of God the gift of prophecy is
removed.
The church in the days of the apostles kept all of the ten
commandments, the Sabbath with the rest. The apostolic
church had the gift of prophecy, as has been shown. After the
days of the apostles an apostasy from the faith set in, God's
commandments were discarded, the fourth commandment was
torn from its place in the heart of the law, and a false and
counterfeit sabbath was substituted in place of the true Sabbath,
which is the seventh day of the week. Sunday took the place of
Sabbath. And the gift of prophecy was removed from the church.
The Gift to Be Restored
This being true, it would be reasonable to expect that when,
in the last days, a church should arise keeping all of God's
commandments, restoring the Sabbath to its rightful place in
the heart of God's law, God would restore to that church the
gift of prophecy.
God has plainly foretold in one of the prophecies of the
Bible that to His commandment-keeping people in the last
days He would restore the gift of prophecy. Attention is now
invited to that prediction:
"And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war
with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and
have the testimony of Jesus Christ." Rev. 12 : 17.
The "dragon" is the devil; being "wroth" means to be
angry; the "woman" is a symbol of the church of Christ;
the "remnant of her seed" means the last end of the church,
the church in the time of Christ's second coming. This verse
directs attention to, and foretells, the last great conflict between
the devil and the people of God. That last church is pointed
out as having two chief characteristics — it will keep the com-
mandments of God, and it will also have the testimony of
Jesus Christ.
What this testimony of Jesus Christ is will be made plain
by another verse:
"And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou
do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the
testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy." Rev. 19: 1o.
Restored to the Remnant Church

According, then, to this prediction, that the last church of
Christ on earth will have these two characteristics, keeping
the commandments of God and possessing the gift of prophecy,
those who desire to find that last, true church should look for
a body of people observing all of God's commandments, and
being led by instruction received through the gift of prophecy.
If they keep the commandments of God they will be Sabbath-
keepers, for no church keeping only nine of the ten command-
THE GIFT Or PROPHECY 409
ments could ever properly be called a commandment-keeping
church. Only a church keeping all of the commandments, the
fourth with the rest, could properly be called a command-
ment-keeping church. Any church breaking one commandment
of the ten, instead of being a commandment-keeping church,
must be a commandment-breaking church.
This last church, which keeps all of God's commandments,
will also possess the gift of prophecy.
In the Bible God warns His people against false prophets
in the last days. This does not mean that all who claim the
gift of prophecy are to be rejected, for we are also told to
" despise not prophesyings." The warning is only against
"false" prophets. •
Tests to Be Applied
If false prophets only are to be rejected, the Bible must give
instruction whereby God's people may know how to distinguish
between the false and the true manifestation of the gift of
prophecy.
One test of the true gift of prophecy is found in the book of
Numbers :
"And he took up his parable, and said, Balsam the son of Beor hath
said, and the man whose eyes are open bath said: he hath said, which heard the
words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but
having his eyes open." Num. 24: 3, 4.
Here is the description of a prophet in vision. While in
vision, hearing the words of God, he had his eyes open. This is
one test of the gift of prophecy.
Other tests will be found in the writings of Daniel:
"And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw
not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide
themselves. Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there
remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into cor-
ruption and I retained no strength." Dan. io: 7, 8.
Hence a second test of the true gift of prophecy is that those
in true vision at first have no strength of their own. But they
do not remain in this condition. Later they are given a super-
natural strength.
A third test is that the true prophet in vision has no breath:
"And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched myi
lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto them that stood
before me, 0 my Lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and
I have retained no strength. For how can the servant of this my Lord talk
with this my Lord? for as for me, straightway there remaineth no strength
in me, neither is there breath left in me." Dan. so: 16, 57.
The first thing in vision, then, is for the eyes to be open.
Then all natural human strength is taken away, and there is no
breath. Then supernatural strength replaces the natural strength
that was taken away.
"Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of a
man, and he strengthened me, and said, 0 man greatly beloved, fear not:
peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken
unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my Lord speak; for thou past
strengthened me." Dan. so: 18, to.
These four tests of the gift of prophecy, open eyes, natural
strength gone, no breath, then supernatural strength, God
will not permit to be counterfeited in a false prophet. One of
them it is utterly impossible to counterfeit, the absence of
breath. Let the one who claims to have the gift of prophecy
demonstrate it while in vision by ceasing to breathe.
The prophecy that God will restore to His remnant people
the gift of prophecy, has been fulfilled. He has sent His message
into the world to lead a people out of darkness into light, and
just as He led the Israelites out of Egypt into the promised
land through the gift of prophecy, so today He is leading His
remnant people out of Babylon, and will bring them into the
land of promise, which is the new earth. And He is doing this
again through the gift of prophecy.
Eugene J. Hall
The Christian home where simplicity and the
fear of God reign is a little heaven on earth.
Worldly Conformity
T HERE are many who hear God's final message of mercy
and truth who are not willing to make the sacrifices in-
volved in its acceptance, even though they fully believe it.
They realize that obedience to God's commandments means
separation from worldly pleasures and amusements, and they
are not ready to give up these pleasures. They desire to be
accepted of God, but at the same time they desire to retain the
friendship of the world. The great, threefold message of
Revelation fourteen requires a choice to be made between
God and the world, and this is why many hesitate so long in
accepting it.
Christianity is a radical thing. It requires the fullest alle-
giance and loyalty. There can be no divided loyalty to Christ.
If the friendship of God is desired and obtained, the friendship
of the world must be sacrificed. It is either the one or the other.
No man can, at the same time, ride two horses that are going
in opposite directions. Neither can anyone serve God and the
world at the same time.
Those who turn to God must turn away from the world.
This does not mean that they must be exclusive and keep
themselves away from association with mankind. They are
to associate with worldlings, but always with the desire and the
(410
purpose of helping those worldlings to become Christians, and
not at all to engage with worldlings in the practices and pleasures
of the world.
So far has the professed church of Christ today departed
from the Master that it is difficult to distinguish the difference
between the worldling and the church member. Both go to
dances, theaters, and moving picture shows; both play cards.
The pleasures and amusements of the one have become the
pleasures and amusements of the other. They seep to be travel-
ing the same road. It is well for all to consider seriously where
that road leads.
Joyousness of True Christianity
Christianity is not a religion of negation and gloom. It is a
religion of positive joy and the most supreme happiness. In it
are "pleasures forevermore." Those who give up worldly
pleasures will ultimately find pleasures in serving Christ much
superior to anything that they have experienced in the world.
They will take the keenest delight in things that they once
thought uninteresting and dreary, and they will come to loathe
those things in which they once took the greatest pleasure.
To put on Christ is to obtain something more than right
views and correct beliefs. Christianity is something more than
mere correctness of intellect, justness of conception, and
exactness of judgment. Christianity must be infused into the
life as well as govern the understanding; it must regulate the
will as well as direct the creed. It must not only cast the opinions
into a new frame, but the heart into a new mold. It is a trans-
forming as well as an intellectual principle. It changes the
tastes, gives activity to the inclinations, and, together with a
new heart, it produces a new life.
This new life causes men to hate the things they once loved,
and love the things they once hated. If this transformation
of life, this changed heart, is obtained, the giving up of the
things of the world will not then be such a great and heavy
cross. This, then, is the chief thing. In all your getting do
not fail to get this. Without this true conversion, , all the
rest is worthless.
No one who professes Christianity can engage in all the
world's customs and pleasures, and at the same time maintain
WORLDLY CONFORMITY 413
the sweetness of uninterrupted communion with Christ. Christ
will not go with you to the dance, to the theater, to the show,
or to the card party; and if you go without Him you thereby
make your choice between Him and those things. " Know ye not
that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever
therefore will be the friend of the world is the enemy of God."
James 4: 4.
Here the line is drawn clearly. It is either Christ or the world.
It cannot be both. The friendship of the world is enmity with
God. Whoever, then, chooses the friendship of the world,
chooses more; he chooses to be the enemy of God.
Good counsel it is that John gives:
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any
man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in
the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of
life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away,
and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever."
John 2: 15-17.
In harmony with this, Paul adds this good word:
"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind that ye may prove what is that good, and accept-
able, and perfect will of God." Rom. 12: 2.
This verse sets forth clearly the great truth that we can be
saved from conformity to this world, or any desire for such
conformity, by a complete transformation of character and
heart. That transformation is the one great purpose and work of
the gospel of Christ. It should be earnestly sought for by every
follower of Christ who is having difficulty in breaking with the
world.
No Man Can Serve Two Masters
"Do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I should not be
the servant of Christ." Gal. 1: 1o.
To please the world, to please men, is not the goal, and should
not be the ambition of the Christian. If he faithfully follows
Christ, there will be some things that he will do that will not
please men at all. The practice of Christianity cuts right across
the impulses of the unregenerate heart and nature. They can-
not be made to harmonize. The servant of. Christ, therefore,
must be ready to receive the ill-will of men, and the condemna-
tion, criticism, and persecution of the world.
Pubttshers' Photo Service
God's service is often done by the humble and the faithful toilers.
(414)
WORLDLY CONFORMITY 455
"No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and
love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other."
Matt. 6: 24.
This principle is exemplified in the lives of those who
profess Christianity, and claim to find it not incompatible with
worldliness. It must be evident to all who observe them that
while they may believe they are serving two masters whole-
heartedly, in reality they are deceived, and their whole-hearted'
service is only for one master, their real master, the world.
External Profession without Inward Life
They like to think of themselves as Christians, for a certain
kind of Christianity has become popular. At the same time they
continue the same worldly practices in which they engaged
before they professed Christianity. In reality they are no more
Christians than they were before. The mere profession makes no
real change. There has been no real change. The life is just the
same. Genuine religion demands not merely an external
profession of our allegiance to God, but an inward life devoted
to His service. To really follow Christ is to be transformed into
the image of God, to become likeminded with Christ.
"My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not." Prov. io.
"My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from
their path." Prov. z: 15.
By the pure life of a Christian, a sinner will be reproved.
"And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but
rather reprove them." Eph. 5: II.
We can expect nothing else than that those who travel the
downward path will speak evil of those who travel the upward
way.
"For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will
of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine,
revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries: wherein they think it
strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil
of you." I Peter 4: 3, 4.
World Will Persecute True Christians
If the world stops with speaking evil only, the Christian
may consider himself fortunate. He must expect more than evil
speaking. The more consistently the Christian lives the life of
Christ, the farther away from the world he will get. He must
expect outright persecution from the world. "Yea, and all

that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution."
2 Tim. 3 : 12.
"If the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before it hated you.
If •ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not
of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world
hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not
greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute
you; if they have kept My sayings, they will keep yours also. But all these
things will they do unto you for My name's sake, because they know not
Him that sent Me." John 15: 18-21.
Let not the follower of Christ become disheartened, or draw
back from following Him, because it means sacrifice and
hardship. Remember the prayer of Christ, which was offered
for you :
"I have given them Thy word; and the world bath hated them,
because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray
not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou should-
est keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of
the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth. As Thou
hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also might be sanctified
through the truth." John 17: 14-19.
The Exceeding Great Reward
Let the Christian believer also remember the promises
made to the overcomer of the exceeding great reward in the
coming kingdom of God. There is no sacrifice that can be made
on earth that is comparable for a moment to the glory that
shall be ours.
And so, dear follower of Christ, let the world and its follies
and pleasures go. Forsake the sins that grieve the Father's
heart of love; discard the practices and customs of the world
that are opposed to the teachings of Christ; turn your back
squarely on the pleasures and amusements of the world that
would only draw you away from the Lord, and serve Christ
alone. You will find in Him the highest pleasure and joy that
life is capable of experiencing.
186399M-r_129.

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I-10g I

Southern Publishing Association

THE GREAT COUNTERFEIT OF CHRISTIANITY 89

PROPHETIC SYMBOLS AND THE FOUR BEASTS 220

THE GREAT SEAL OF JEHOVAH - 247

THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY 253

THE MYSTIC NUMBER 666 264

THE SEVEN LAST PLAGUES - 282

THE MILLENNIUM - 291

THE DEPOPULATION OF THE EARTH 296

THE SECOND RESURRECTION - 304

THE FALL OF BABYLON - 310

WALKING IN THE LIGHT - 330

ONE TENTH TO THE LORD 345

The Advancing Truth of God

claimed to all the world to herald the second coming of our

Special Truths for Special Times

Jesus Is Coming the Second Time

The Coming World Government

Crowned heads of Europe who attempted to create another world state.

The Everlasting Kingdom of Peace

Our Lord's Own Prophecy of His Return

The Dark Day

the morning of November 13, 1833. On that day the most

The Purpose of His Coming

TO Translate the Living

To Judge the World

To Destroy the Wicked

the establishment of this new earth, where the people of God

To Give the Kingdom to His People

The Time of His Coming

The Manner of His Coming

The Increase of Knowledge

The Unsealed Book

Unprecedented Running To and Fro

Signs in the Sun and the Stars

Other countries viewed this celestial phenomenon. Another

"Lift Up Your Heads"

Wars, Lawlessness, and Increasing Crime

T HERE are other signs of the nearness of our Lord's return.

Those who are standing on the social watchtowers discern

Signs In and On the Earth

Vast Accumulations of Wealth

God the Refuge of His People

In the place of being afraid of man, or the strength of man,

Fuel for Another World Conflagration

The Gospel to All Nations

T HE greatest sign of all, the most certain sign of the second

The Last Message of the Gospel

The Apostasy of Satan

Lucifer, Son of the Morning

The Fall of Lucifer

they did Lucifer. Indeed, they worshiped the Son of God

The Fall of Man

God asked Adam, "Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I

Why Did God Permit Sin?

The Lost Dominion and the

The Great Counterfeit of Christianity

The ram with the two horns, representing Medo-Persia.