Second Advent Review, and Sabbath Herald, vol. 1
May 19, 1851
RH VOL. I.-PARIS, ME.-NO. 11
JOSEPH BATES, S. W. RHODES, J. N. ANDREWS, and JAMES WHITE
“HERE IS THE PATIENCE OF THE SAINTS; HERE ARE THEY THAT KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD AND THE FAITH OF JESUS.”
VOL. I.-PARIS, ME. MAY 19, 1851.-NO. 11.
PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY. TERMS-Gratis. It is expected that all the friends of the cause will aid in its publication, as the Lord hath prospered them. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.1
All communications, orders, and remittances, for the Review and Herald, should be addressed to JAMES WHITE, PARIS, ME. (Post paid.)
THOUGHTS ON REVELATION XIII AND XIV
What position do we now occupy? No question of greater importance can now engage our attention. As a people who are waiting for the coming of their Lord, and noting with the deepest interest the events which precede the coming of the Just One to reign in glory, we ought ever to be able from the testimony of the word of God, to answer the solemn enquiry, “What of the night?” The great land-marks which stand along our pathway are here distinctly noticed, and thus we have given to us by the God of Heaven, an accurate chart of the great pathway which leads onward to the kingdom of God. That the great outlines of prophecy cover all time, from the commencement of the first great empire down to the destruction of the fourth, at the time when the Ancient of days shall sit in judgment, is a fact well understood. That we may learn from the fulfillment of these prophecies the relative position which we occupy, is also conceded; nay further, that the prophetic periods have expired, or that they are on the point of expiration, and that the signs which were to mark the end of all things at hand, have nearly all appeared, is also believed and taught. But there is another class of prophecies in which we are still more deeply interested; we mean those prophecies which describe the Advent movement itself. For though we may close our eyes to the fact, the word of God gives us a clear prophetic view of this subject, and exhibits in an unmistakable light the position of the classes which are connected with the movement. The word of God is the lamp by which our pathway is lighted; hence we may learn from that word where we now stand, and what we ought now to do; thus we may be able to give a reason of the hope that is within us with meekness and fear. As present duty is ever inseparably connected with present truth, we cannot engage aright in the work of God without a knowledge of this. The pathway on which we travel is marked at every step by the fulfillment of prophecy. As prophecy is fulfilled, the light of truth moves onward down this pathway toward the kingdom of God. If we would continue in the light of the truth, we must advance with the light lest we be enshrouded with darkness. The Advent movement itself is clearly described in Revelation 14. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.2
THE FIRST ANGEL. “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”* ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.3
“That such an enunciation has been made to the world that the hour of his judgment is come this generation cannot deny. It has indeed gone to the four winds of heaven.” The proclamation of the hour of God’s judgment, here called “the everlasting gospel,” synchronizes with “this gospel of the kingdom,” of which Jesus speaks. The preaching of Paul at Athens was enforced by the declaration that God hath “appointed a day in the which he will judge the world:” but this is a specific message announcing that “the hour of his judgment is come.”-The world and church have been tested by this great truth, and nearly all have rejected the counsel of God against themselves. It has tested the present generation as the great truths of the first advent tested the people of that time. John 12:31. It was based on unanswerable evidence, viz. historic prophecy, prophetic time, and the signs of the times, and gave to the world the warning needed, that the day of God might not overtake them as a snare. The announcement contained time.-“The hour of his judgment is come.” That the great prophetic period of 2300 days was given correctly, is now demonstrated with great clearness. See Advent Herald, Vol. VI. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.4
That the first message was not to last till the coming of Jesus Christ, is evident from the fact that the time, which was its great burden or point, has ended. It is further evident from the fact that two angels intervene between the first angel and the position of the Son of Man on the white cloud. Nor can this point be met by saying that the three messages are given at the same time. For they are represented as following each other, and order is clearly given to them. There would be quite as much propriety in believing that the seven angels of Revelation 8, sounded their trumpets at the same time, as there would be to believe that the messages of the three angels, which follow in succession, are all to be given at once. The same propriety in making the first of the seven angels last till the coming of Jesus, or the first of the four beasts last till the judgment, and the remaining ones of each series fulfilled afterward, as to teach that the message of the first angel lasts till the coming of Jesus Christ, and that the remaining messages of the angels are given after that event. Because in each of the cases named, the history of the world is given, whilst men are in a state of probation.-Hence to teach that the first angel must continue his flight till the coming of Jesus, and that the second and third are to give their messages afterward, or to believe that the first angel does not commence his flight till the coming of Jesus, and that the three then give their messages together, are follies of which we ought not to be guilty. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.5
That literal angels are concerned in this work we do not deny; for they are ministering spirits, and doubtless co-operate in the great work of salvation, but we fully believe that the three messages will be understood, and responded to by the people of God. That angels will work independent of human agency we cannot believe, for it is contrary to the order of God that they should become visible, and preach the gospel to the nations. But that they should act in unison with men is reasonable, and accords with the past dealings of God with man. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.6
THE SECOND ANGEL. “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.”* ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.7
This angel follows or comes after the judgment hour cry. That such a message has been given, all are aware who have in any manner heeded the mighty work of God through the land. That a false fulfillment should occur at the right time for the real one to take place, is not only a thing in itself impossible, but it is a real libel on the character of God, as it makes a speedy end to faith or trust in him on the part of his people. For how can it ever be known that God is in a work, if those which come in the order of prophetic fulfillment, and accomplish the predicted work are to be discarded and we left to look elsewhere for the real event? ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.8
That a work worthy of being noted as the fulfillment of prophecy, could ever be accomplished by calling the people of God out of Rome, no one can seriously pretend. Further than this, if the fall of Babylon be the burning of Rome, how in the name of reason and of Scripture, can the people of God be called out of her that they receive not of her plagues when she has already been destroyed by fire which is the consummation of her plagues? Revelation 18:8. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.9
We regard Babylon as the professed church united with the kingdoms of the world. In other words, “Babylon is the apostate churches.”-We cannot restrict the term to the Papal church, for it evidently includes all those religious bodies which have become corrupt like the “mother of harlots.” The proclamation of the coming kingdom was made to her by the first angel, and the message having been rejected no farther work could ever be done for her. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.10
The people of God are then called out, for they may no longer remain in her communion. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18; Isaiah 52:11; 1 Timothy 6:3-5; Revelation 18:4. The fall of this great city leaves her the habitation of devils, and the hold of foul spirits, etc. This is a moral fall, and denotes the rejection of the professed church. She has rejected the only truth by which she could have been healed of her maladies. Hence the people of God are commanded to flee out of her, that they partake not of her sins, and receive not of her plagues. It is evident that the fall of Babylon precedes her destruction, for the people of God are called out of her after her fall, and while her destruction is yet pending. Revelation 18. Her fall then denotes her rejection, and precedes her destruction by the plagues and by fire. Her merchants are the great men of the earth; and in the enumerated articles of Babylonish traffic, Protestants are, if possible, more extensively engaged than Papists. Notice all the gaudy trappings of this world, and in addition to this, “slaves and souls of men.” How unlike what God designed that his people should be, has this great city become! The Church of Christ was to be the light of the world, a city set on a hill which could not be hid. Matthew 5:14-16. But instead of this, his professed people have united with the kingdoms of this world, and joined affinity with them. They are now planted on the decrees of kings, and the laws of the nations of earth, instead of that word which God gave to be the only foundation of his Church. Thus has the wisdom of man taken the place of the power of God. The unlawful connection of the people of God with the wicked world [James 4:4] has resulted in their rejection at last; for how can the God of truth and holiness any longer recognize as his people, those who in addition to all these things, have rejected the tidings of the speedy coming of their rightful Lord? That they have actually fallen, let the facts in the case bear witness. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 81.11
This cry of Babylon’s fall, must be made in order that the people of God may understand and make their escape. Has this cry been heard? Has the predicted work been accomplished? We answer unhesitatingly, yes. It has been responded to by the most humble, and devoted, the very persons that Christ promised should know of a doctrine, whether it was of God or not. John 7:17. This message of the second angel in connection with the Midnight Cry, moved forward with the power of the God of heaven, and accomplished his purpose in causing it to be given. We may deny the message of the second angel and go back and attempt to give the first message again, but it would be a more scriptural course to heed the voice of the third. There is but one course by which we can avoid the message of the third angel, and that is to reject the second and pronounce it the work of man. Those who are prepared to do this, can do it. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.1
THE THIRD ANGEL. “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.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.2
The order as given in this chapter need not be mistaken,-nay it is not possible to mistake it, without doing violence to the language of inspiration. The warning voice of the third angel is not heard until the first and second angels have flown through the midst of heaven. Says a recent writer: ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.3
“But the fourteenth chapter [of Rev.] presents an astounding cry, yet to be made, as a warning to mankind in that hour of strong temptation. Revelation 14:9-11. A denunciation of wrath so dreadful, cannot be found in the book of God, beside this. Does it not imply a strong temptation, to require so terrific an admonition?”-Facts on Romanism, p. 112. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.4
The difference between this message and the preceding ones cannot fail to be noticed. The first two were indeed solemn and pointed declarations, but this message is one of most fearful import. It is indeed a solemn and awful threatening of the judgments of God, unequaled elsewhere in the Bible. The first and second angels are in the past, and the message of the third is now before us. With its voice of warning sounding in our ears, how can we slumber on, and dream of peace and safety? It is not merely because that men are inclined to worship the beast and his image and to receive his mark, that they are so solemnly warned against it, for we have in the thirteenth chapter of Revelation an account of the real danger. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.5
THE BEAST, WHAT IS IT? This question may be answered by referring to Revelation 13:1-10. When Daniel, in his vision of the seventh chapter, was shown the various empires which should successively bear rule over the earth, they were represented under the symbols of beasts arising from the sea. Three of these having passed away, it is proper that the fourth of the series only, should be shown to John. The beast with ten horns, described by Daniel, is also seen by the Revelator to ascend out of the sea. In him are blended the marks of all the preceding beasts,-the body of the Leopard, the feet of the Bear, the mouth of the Lion. Daniel 7:4, 5, 6. This beast is evidently the Papal form of the fourth beast, for it receives its seat and dominion from the dragon, Rome Pagan. The seat is Rome, which was given to him at the same time that his power was given. This dreadful beast was to possess this power and dominion over the saints for a period of 1260 years; but, altho’ his dominion over them is thus limited, he is to make war on the saints until the coming of the Ancient of days. Daniel 7:19-22. At the close of this period, he received a deadly wound which has been healed, and all the world now wonder after the beast. And we may safely affirm that the beast, after his recovery from the deadly wound, is to continue till the battle of the great day of God Almighty, when he is to be taken and cast into the lake of fire. Revelation 19:19, 20; Daniel 7:7-11. Hence we conclude that there is no other beast which is to take the place of the fourth beast, for the empire of this beast in its divided state, as represented by the ten horns, is to continue till the God of heaven shall set up his everlasting kingdom. Daniel 7; 2:44. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.6
THE TWO-HORNED BEAST. 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. Revelation 13:11. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.7
We have already seen that the fourth beast of Daniel, which is the same as the beast whose “deadly wound was healed,” of whom John speaks, does not give his seat to another beast; hence the location of the two-horned beast is not in the ten kingdoms of the fourth beast. We cannot take the horns of the fourth beast and constitute another beast, or the horns of another. It is another beast beside the ten-horned beast. It is not the first beast healed of his deadly wound, for the work of the two-horned beast, is in the sight of that beast. The first beast was to possess the power and dominion for a period of 1260 years only, at the end of which period its dominion was taken away. Daniel 7:25, 26; Revelation 13:5. But if the two-horned beast is but another form of the Papal power, then is the Papacy again to bear sway with all its former authority. Revelation 13:12. It would indeed be a surprising change if the ten horns were to be plucked up, and in their stead two other horns should arise. Yet such is a necessary conclusion if the two-horned beast is but another form of the first beast. Hence we conclude that the two-horned beast is another and distinct power. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.8
It is however, from the time of its rise, a power cotemporary with the beast whose deadly wound was healed. It acts in the sight of the first beast in performing its wonders. This point we will notice again. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.9
The manner of its rise is not to be overlooked. The four beasts of Daniel, of which series John’s first beast constituted the fourth, are all seen to arise out of the sea in consequence of the striving of the winds. Daniel 7:2, 3; Revelation 13:1. They arose by overturning the powers that preceded them, by means of general war. Winds denoting war or strife among men, and waters or sea denoting people, nations, etc.-Revelation 7:1-3; 17:15. But this power seems to arise in a peaceful, or lamb-like manner from the earth. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.10
When was this power to arise? Not prior to the first beast, certainly. Not at the same time, for then there would be no propriety in designating either as the first beast. It is said that it shall exercise all the power of the first beast before him. Then we may look for it to come on the stage of action about the close of the first beast’s dominion, at the end of the 1260 years. Again, it is to cause the world to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed, which shows that its period of action is this side 1798. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.11
“The two-horned beast is represented as a power existing and performing his part, after the death and revival of the first beast. If asked for my opinion as to what will constitute that beast with two-horns, or the false prophet, I must frankly confess I do not know. I think it is a power yet to be developed or made manifest as an accomplice of the Papacy in subjecting the world. It will be a power which will perform miracles, and deceive the world with them. See Revelation 19:20.”-Litch’s Restitution pp. 131,133. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.12
One fact of interest may be noticed here. The course of empire beginning with the first great empire near the garden of Eden, has been ever tending westward. Thus the seat of the Babylonian and Persian empires was in Asia. The seat of the Grecian and Roman empires was in Europe. The Roman empire, in its divided state as represented by the ten horns, occupies all the remaining territory west to the Atlantic ocean. Hence we still look westward for the rise of the power described in this prophecy. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 82.13
This power is evidently the last one with which the people of God are connected, for the message of the third angel which immediately precedes the view of Jesus on the white cloud, pertains almost entirely to the action of the two-horned beast. Compare Revelation 14:9-11; 13:11-18. And it is a fact which ought not to be overlooked, that those powers with which the people of God are connected, are the only ones noted in prophecy. It is also plain that the march of civilization and of Christianity, like the course of the natural sun, has ever been westward. And it is evident that the territory of this last power is to be the field of the angels’ messages, the land where the crowning truths of the gospel, ere it finishes its course, are to be brought out. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.1
The rise of each of the great powers has been gradual. For a series of years they were preparing for the stations which they afterward assumed, but they begin to figure in prophecy, from the time when they are prepared to act their part in the great drama. We come now to trace the rise of an empire which has come up in the sight of the first beast; a power still further on toward the setting sun, with the history of which the great circuit of empire will be accomplished, for the boundary of the vast Pacific has been reached. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.2
A short time before the Reformation, in the days of Martin Luther, a new continent was discovered. The rise of the reformers brought out a large class who were determined to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience. They desired a greater measure of civil and religious freedom; hence they with many others fled to the wilds of America and laid the foundation of a new empire. They did not establish their power by overturning another power, but they planted themselves in an uncultivated waste and laid the foundation of a new government. The preceding powers had arisen through the strife of the winds on the great sea,-but this power arises out of the earth. That is, the first powers arose through the action of wars in overturning and subverting other nations, to be in turn overthrown and subverted by their successors, but this power appears to arise from the earth in a peaceful manner. It comes up in the sight of the first beast like the settlement and growth of a new country. “The Dublin Nation” thus notices the progress and the power of this republic: ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.3
“In the east there is arising a colossal centaur called the Russian Empire. With a civilized head and front, it has the sinews of a hugh barbaric body. There one man’s brain moves 70,000,000. There all the traditions of the people are of aggression and conquest in the west. There but two ranks are distinguishable,-serfs and soldiers. There the map of the future includes Constantinople and Vienna as outposts of St. Petersburg. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.4
“In the west an opposing and still more wonderful American empire is E M E R- G I N G. We Islanders have no conception of the extraordinary events which, amid the silence of the earth, are daily adding to the power and pride of this gigantic nation. Within three years territories more extensive than these three kingdoms, France and Italy put together, have been quietly, and in almost “matter of course” fashion annexed to the Union. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.5
“In seventy years, seventeen new sovereignties, the smallest of them larger than Great Britain, have peaceably united themselves to the federation. No standing army was raised, no national debt sunk, no great exertion was made, but there they are. And the last mail brings news of the organization of three more great States about to be joined to the thirty. Minnesota in the northwest; Deseret in the southwest, and California on the shores of the Pacific. These three states will cover an area equal to one half the European continent. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.6
“Nor is this a mere addition on the map.-It is not piling barren Pelion upon uncultivated Ossa. It is an actual conquest of new strength and resources. Already has Minnesota its capital,-St. Paul-which has its journals, churches, schools, parties, interests and speculations. The Mormon founders of Deseret are doing what the Puritans did in Massachusetts two centuries ago,-taking care to possess themselves of the best lands and waters in their new state. Instead of becoming a lawless horde of adventurers the settlers in California are founding cities, electing delegates, magistrates, sheriffs, and Congressmen, as methodically and as intently as if they trod the beaten paths of life on the Atlantic shore of the continent. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.7
“And with this increase of territory, there is a commensurate increase of industry in the older States.-The census of 1850 about to be taken in the United States, will show a growth of numbers, territory, and industry entirely unexampled in human history. Let the “gray powers of the old world look to it-let the statesmen of France, Germany, and Russia, read the census carefully though it should startle them. Let despotism count every man of these millions as a mortal enemy, and every acre of that vast commonwealth as an inheritance of mankind mortgaged to the cause of freedom.-America is as grand a field for human enterprise as when the ships of Columbus first neared the shores of Guanihana.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.8
The progress of our own country since its first settlement, has indeed been wonderful. We trace its rise from the time of its settlement by those who fled from the oppression of the fourth empire, onward till it assumes its station among the great powers of earth, a little previous to the end of the 1260 years. Its territory has trebled since that period, by the addition of the vast territories of Louisiana, Florida, Texas, New Mexico and California, and the extension of an undisputed title to Oregon. Thus extending its dominion to the vast Pacific. This power was seen arising from the earth, as though it had not time to develope itself in full, before the end. Mark its onward progress and tell, if it be possible, what would be its destiny, if the coming of the Just One should not check its astonishing career! ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.9
The youth, as well as the apparent mildness of this power, seems to be indicated by its lamb-like horns. What do these horns mean? This symbol is not used elsewhere in the prophetic Scriptures. Nor do we, as in the case of other powers, find that these symbols are explained in the connection. But we may learn from those symbols which are explained some facts which will throw light on this. The horns of the ram, Daniel 8, denoted the kings of Media and Persia. The great horn between the eyes of the goat denoted the first king. The ten horns of fourth beast, denoted the ten kingdoms into which the fourth empire was divided. Daniel 8:23-25; Revelation 17:12. The little horn which came up after them denoted the Papal church which was afterward clothed with civil power. And it is evident that the horns of these beasts, symbolize the entire power of the beasts. From these facts we learn that the horns of the preceding beast, denoted civil and religious powers. Hence we regard the horns of this latter beast as symbols of civil and religious power. But they are not horns with crowns like the preceding horns, but they are horns like those of a lamb. In appearance, if we may judge from the symbols used, this beast represents the mildest power that ever arose. For in the prophetic history of the governments which have preceded it, no one of them has been represented by symbols like this. We understand these horns to denote the civil and religious power of this nation-its Republican civil power, and its Protestant ecclesiastical power. If it be objected that “Republican civil power is its form of government, and that it ought to represent the beast, rather than a horn of the beast,” we answer that the civil power of the Macedonian kingdom, was represented by the great horn of the goat. And that when that civil power was broken the beast still remained, and in the place of that one civil government, four arose in its stead. And we may add further that when the dominion of the different beasts of Daniel 7, was taken away, their lives were prolonged for a season and time. That is the nation still lived, though the dominion of the nation was destroyed. Hence we understand that the beasts denote the nations which constitute the different kingdoms, and the horns of the beasts denote the civil government or governments of these nations. If it be objected that Protestantism cannot constitute one of these horns, we answer that Papacy was reckoned as a horn, before it had plucked up three of the first horns,”-before it had civil power conferred on it. If it be objected that Papacy and Protestantism must constitute these horns on account of their professedly religious (“lamblike”) character, we answer that Papacy is represented by a horn unlike that of a lamb, Daniel 7:8-20. And moreover, the Papacy figures as the little horn of the fourth beast, and cannot without doing violence to language, be made to act as the horn of another beast. The seat of Papacy is not in America but in Europe, and definitely in Rome. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.10
No civil power could ever compare with Republicanism in its lamblike character. The grand principle recognized by this form of power, is thus expressed: “All men are born free and equal, and endowed with certain inalienable rights, as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Hence, all have a right to participate in making the laws, and in designating who shall execute them. Was there ever a development of civil power so lamb-like before? And what, in religious matters, can be compared with Protestantism? Its leading sentiment is the distinct recognition of the right of private judgment in matters of conscience. “The Bible is the only religion of Protestants.” Was there ever in the religious world any thing to equal this in its lamb-like professions? Such we consider the meaning of the “two horns like a lamb.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.11
“And he spake like a dragon.” With all these lamb-like appearances the real spirit by which he is actuated is that of the dragon,-the Devil. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” Matthew 12:34. What he is to speak we may notice hereafter, Verse 14. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 83.12
“And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, [or in his sight as Whiting translates,] and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed.” Here is conclusive proof that the two-horned beast is distinct from the ten-horned beast, and cotemporary with it, from the time that its deadly wound was healed, about the commencement of the present century. This exercise of power is the very scene of trouble and danger before us, respecting which the third angel gives us warning. “If any man worship the beast,” etc. The anguish of that period may be learned from reading the history of the first beast. Verses 5-7; Daniel 7:23-26. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.1
“He doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.” That we are living in an age of wonders is a well known fact: indeed, the language is oftentimes repeated, “There is nothing too wonderful to happen.” “The increase of knowledge” in every department of the arts and sciences, has indeed been without precedent in the world’s past history. We see the chariots with the speed of lightning coursing their way through the land, and with similar speed are men enabled to traverse the mighty deep. Nahum 2. “The fire of God” (the lightning, Job 1:16; Exodus 9:16) is literally brought down from heaven. Such is the wonderful power man has obtained over the elements. And the lightning thus brought down from heaven is sent as a messenger from one end of the land to the other. They “send the lightnings, and they go and say here we are!” Job 38:35. And all these wonders bid fair to be eclipsed by others still more astonishing. But it is another class of wonders which we regard as the complete fulfillment of this prophecy. The world may indeed be deceived by these things, and caused to believe that “better days are coming,” and that the earth is being prepared for the residence of man, and that men are becoming more virtuous and enlightened, but there are other wonders in course of development, which are indeed miracles by which the world is deceived. It may not be necessary to notice the wonders of Psychology, Biology, etc., in which all the wonders of past ages seem to be revived; but we notice those astonishing developments from the land of spirits, which are causing the world to wonder. It would seem that communications with the spirits of the departed dead are now freely held, and men are brought into immediate connection with the spirit world. Such communications, though rare in past ages, have become of every day occurrence. We are told of pious people who are now holding converse with the spirits of the evangelists Mark and Luke, etc. The spirits commune with the greatest freedom, not with the pious alone, but with all classes do they hold free communication. And Protestants are the chief actors in all this. It is evident that these things are but the beginning of the miracles with which the world is to be deceived. For the coming of Christ is “after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and LYING WONDERS.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9. That all this is the work of the Devil is evident from the fact that God has forbidden necromancy in his word. Deuteronomy 18:11; Isaiah 8:19. Hence it is certain that the spirits of good men do not come to commune with those who break the divine command. And we may go further than this, and say that even the spirits of bad men are not there. For if they are conscious, the sixteenth chapter of Luke shows that they are not permitted to return to earth; and if indeed “the dead know not any thing,” [Ecclesiastes 9:5,] then it is certain that their spirits are not sent into the world to instruct men. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.2
No form of government ever arose in any past age in which these remarkable elements of deception were combined. It is of itself a wonder, a system of government which has not its like elsewhere. What is needed throughout the world to relieve its inhabitants of their oppressions, but that Republicanism should remodel all their civil governments? The leaven of its principles has deeply diffused itself throughout the nations of earth. In proof of this, witness the revolution of 1848, which shook nearly all the thrones of Europe. And what is so well calculated to develop, and to maintain religious freedom, as Protestantism. With the diffusion of these free principles may we not expect a scene of prosperity and triumph to the church; a period of emancipation to the poor enslaved nations of earth? The ushering in of the period when the nations shall learn war no more, and a universal spiritual kingdom shall be set up, and fill the whole earth. Micah 4:1-5. And these wonders which we have briefly noticed, seem to promise a better revelation than the Scriptures of truth afford us.-We look forward indeed to the time when the Lamb, who is King of kings and Lord of lords shall reign in person over the whole earth. But with the mass this view has given place to the more congenial idea of the spiritual reign, and of temporal prosperity and triumph. These things hold out to men the prospect of peace and safety, [1 Thessalonians 5,] notwithstanding the voice of the first angel has been heard proclaiming that the hour of God’s judgment had come, and showing that no better state of things could ever exist till the curse should be removed from the earth; and still another messenger has flown through the midst of heaven proclaiming that the professed churches, who are now listening with such interest to these wonders, had become the hold of foul spirits, and a cage of unclean and hateful birds. But the great mass having rejected these truths, are left to the deception which is already beginning to come on the nations of earth. They dream that the earth with all its progress, and with all its improvements, is far too lovely and excellent for God to destroy. Peace and safety is the delusive dream in which men indulge whilst the wrath of God hangs over them. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.3
We regard this two-horned beast, then, as the symbol of a civil and religious power, differing in many respects from those which have preceded it. It is in appearance the mildest form of power which ever existed, but it is after having deceived the world with its wonders, to exhibit all the tyranny of the first beast. Are the pretensions of this power well founded? Let us examine. If “all men are born free and equal, how do we then hold three millions of slaves in bondage? Why is it that the Negro race are reduced to the rank of chattels personal, and bought and sold like brute beasts? If the right of private judgment be allowed, why then are men expelled from these religious bodies for no greater crime than that of attempting to obey God in some thing wherein the word of God may not be in accordance with their creed? Read Charles Beecher on “The Bible a sufficient Creed.” Why are men for no other crime than that of looking for the coming of Jesus Christ, expelled from the churches of those who profess to love his appearing. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.4
To these and many other questions of a similar character, we can only answer that the lamb is such only in pretensions. He is dragon in character. His ostensible appearance is that of the lamb; the power by which he speaks is that of the dragon. The true kingdom of the Lamb,-the King of kings,-is not set up on the earth, until the wicked are destroyed out of it. Then the Jubilee will end the bondage of the saints. God speed the right. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.5
A further view of the two-horned beast may be obtained by comparing his history with that of the false prophet. The two-horned beast is represented as working miracles in the sight of the first beast. The same is affirmed respecting the false prophet. Revelation 19:20. The nations of the earth are deceived by these miracles, and caused to worship the image of the first beast, and to receive his mark. The same work is ascribed to the false prophet. Still further, we may say that the Bible gives us the origin of the two-horned beast, but does not, under that name, give us its final destiny. The origin of the false prophet is not given under that name, but his destiny is clearly revealed. Revelation 19:20; 20:10. Inasmuch as their work is identical, and they act on the stage at the same time, we cannot doubt their identity. This is another clear proof that the two-horned beast is from the time of its rise a power cotemporary with the first beast, and not the first beast in another form. What power has ever arisen in the past history of the world which could answer the description of this lamb-dragon, or false prophet? If Satan has been permitted to make use of Paganism as an instrument of deception, and also of Papacy, which is Christianity in a corrupt form, why may he not be permitted to make use of Protestantism also, when it becomes corrupt, as, if possible, a more efficient instrument of deception than either of the former? Mohammedanism is introduced in this prophecy under the symbol of locusts, but its power departed with the second woe. Revelation 9. But the two-horned beast, or false prophet, acts as an accomplice of Papacy in Satan’s great work of final deception, and unites in the great conflict with the King of Kings. Revelation 19. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.6
The work of deception is followed by the dragon voice of this beast. He says to them that dwell on the earth that they should “Make an image to the beast which had the wound by the sword and did live.” We have noticed in a previous verse that he was to enforce the worship of the beast which has lost its civil power. And now we have something further. An image to the beast that received the deadly wound must be made. That beast was, in truth, a church clothed with civil power and authority by which it put to death the saints of God. Revelation 13:5-8; Daniel 7:23-26. An image to the beast then must be another church clothed with civil power and authority to put the saints of God to death. This can be nothing else but the corrupt and fallen Protestant church. If it be asked from whence the beast receives this power, we can only answer, that by permission of God, the dragon, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, is without doubt the very being who communicates this power to the beast. The kingdoms of this world are claimed by him, and the right to give them to whom he will. Luke 4:5, 6. Should it be objected that the world is too much enlightened to submit to such deception, or to unite in such a work of persecution, we answer that the word of God gives us this prophecy in clear language; and it is with reference to this scene of danger that the third angel utters his solemn warning. Look at the Jewish church, and mark how soon after it had rejected the Messiah at his first coming, they put him to a cruel death, and slew also many of his apostles and saints. They said indeed (Matthew 23) that had they lived in the days of their fathers, they would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. But when their “hour and the power of darkness” come upon them, how completely did it show them under the power of Satan! Luke 22:53; John 7:30. The rejection of the truth of God, leaves men the captives of Satan, and the subjects of his deception. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12. The greater the light which men reject, the greater the power of deception and of darkness which will come upon them. The Advent message has been given in our own land, and by the mass rejected, and no greater, and indeed no other light can ever be given to those who have turned away from that. The third angel gives us warning of the danger which is now before us. The warning precedes the danger that we by seasonable admonition may make our escape. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 84.7
The warning of danger is a warning which refers directly to the scene of trouble described in Revelation 13:11-18. This warning shows that that trouble is yet to come. Its fearful character may be learned from the thrilling and dreadful import of the angel’s message. The Bible nowhere else depicts such dreadful wrath. On one side stands the decree of the beast who is to exercise all the power of the first beast before him, that all who will not worship the image and receive his mark shall be put to death; on the other hand stands the solemn warning of the third angel. Here then is the strait before us. We can worship the beast and his image, and as the penalty, drink the wine of the wrath of God, or we can refuse, and peril our lives that we may obey God. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.1
This message will draw a line between the worshippers of God and the worshippers of the beast and his image, for on either hand it reveals a dreadful penalty and leaves no chance for half way work. Those who disregard this warning will be found with the worshippers of the beast and his image, and will drink of the wine of the wrath of God. Those who heed this warning will obey God at the risk of their lives. The one class is designated by the mark of the beast, the other class is seen in the patience of the saints keeping the commandments of God. That the law of God should thus be made a great testing truth to draw a line between the subjects of the fourth and fifth kingdoms, is an idea not unworthy of the God of the Bible. That the commandments of God are the great subject of controversy between the dragon and the remnant of the seed of the woman, is plain from Revelation 12:17. The issue of this struggle cannot be a matter of doubt, for as in all past ages those who have had the ark of God, and have kept his commandments have triumphed, even so will it be now. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.2
Another religious power enforces the claims of the first beast, and his image, and causeth the world to receive his mark. What is this mark of the beast? It is the mark of that beast to whom the image was made,-the first beast. Revelation 19:20; 16:2. But it is enforced by the two-horned beast. Hence, we understand it as an institution of Papacy, enforced by Protestantism. The beast and his image unite in this thing, denoting the union of the great systems of false Christianity, in opposition to the saints, who are engaged in keeping the commandments of God. Have we such an institution, really the child of Papacy, which the civil power supports, and to which the religious world pays homage? We have. It is found in a weekly sabbath which the “Man of Sin” has placed in the stead of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. Mark this. The Pope in his arrogance, was to exalt himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, and to “THINK TO CHANGE TIMES AND LAWS.” 2 Thessalonians 2; Daniel 7:25. It is not said that he should be able to change them; but he should think to do it; or as the Catholic version reads, “he shall think himself ABLE to change times and laws.” They are not the times and laws of men which he thinks to change, for these he might be able to change as other powers have done; but it is an act of arrogance in which he does not succeed. The times and laws of God are doubtless intended. The Pope in the exercise of his blasphemous assumptions, has attempted to change the fourth commandment, which guards the institution left by God as the memorial of himself. The ordinance of baptism commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, [Colossians 2:12; Romans 6:3-5,] but as this ordinance has been changed to sprinkling, something else must be introduced to commemorate that event; hence the Sabbath was gradually changed to the resurrection day. This act of changing the Sabbath, was performed by the power that should exalt itself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped. Another day is kept for another reason. The institution of the Sabbath commemorates God’s rest from his work of creation: [Genesis 2:2, 3,] this institution was designed for man,-the whole human family. The ordinances of the Lord’s supper and of baptism, commemorate the death and resurrection of our Lord, [1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Romans 6,] and were intended only for his church. Thus creation and redemption are both commemorated by their appropriate memorials.-But the presumptuous arrogance of man has changed these memorials throughout. The Sabbath and baptism, as observed by the mass, no longer commemorate the events for which they were designed. “The mystery of iniquity” had in the days of Paul, already begun to work. At first it appeared in a harmless form, but it gradually developed the man of sin. To notice one particular, the observance of the first day. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.3
“The first intimation we have of this, in any writer of acknowledged integrity, is from Justin Martyr, about A. D. 140. He is cited as saying “that the Christians in the city and in the country assembled on the day called Sunday; and after certain religious devotions, all returned home to their labors;” and assigns as reasons for this, that God made the world on the first day; and, because Christ first showed himself to his disciples on that day, after his resurrection. These were the best, and probably all the reasons that could then be offered for this practice. He also speaks of Sunday only as a festival, on which they performed labor, when not engaged in devotions; and not as a substitute for the Sabbath.”—History of the Sabbath, p.11. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.4
Dr. Chambers says, “By Constantine’s laws, made in 321, it was decreed that for the future the Sunday should be kept for a day of rest in all cities and towns; but he allowed the country people to follow their work. In 538, the Council of Orleans prohibited this country labor.”-Encyclop.Art.Sunday. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.5
“To give the more solemnity to the first day of the week, Sylvester, who was Bishop of Rome while Constantine was Emperor, changed the name of Sunday, giving it the more imposing title of Lord’s Day.”—Hist.Sabbath, p. 21. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.6
Thus we see that the change was effected the very year that the man of sin began his reign. The observance of Sunday was not however introduced into England until the thirteenth century, and it was not then effected without the aid of a new revelation. [Hist.Sab.p.27.] The first law for its observance in England, was enacted in 1470. Yet does the whole Protestant world wonder after the beast. And nearly all of them in their creeds recognize this counterfeit Sabbath as a divine institution. But those who understandingly turn away from the commandments of God, and in their stead obey the institution of the beast, not only recognize him as equal with God, as an object of worship, but as being above God; for they acknowledge him as able to change the laws of God.-We regard this counterfeit Sabbath as THE MARK of that power which should “think to change times and laws.” The force of this may be seen when the dragon makes war on “the remnant who keep the commandments of God;” or when the two-horned beast shall cause the world to worship the image of the first beast and to receive his mark. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.7
Says Dr. Durbin: “I infer therefore that the civil magistrate may not be called upon to enforce the observance of the Sabbath, as required in the spiritual kingdom of Christ; but when Christianity becomes the moral and spiritual life of the State, the State is bound, through her magistrates to prevent the open violation of the holy Sabbath, as a measure of self-preservation. She cannot without injuring her own vitality, and incurring the Divine displeasure, be recreant to her duty in this matter.”-Christian Advocate and Journal. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.8
“This mark is very conspicuous in the forehead or hand, and signifies, not a literal mark, but a prominent profession that all may see and know.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.9
Hear the testimony of a Roman Catholic: “The first precept in the Bible is that of sanctifying the seventh day: God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it. Genesis 2:3. This precept was enforced by God in the Ten Commandments: Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy. The S E V E N T H D A Y is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. Exodus 20. On the other hand, Christ declares that he did not come to destroy the law, but to fulfil it. Matthew 5:17. He himself observed the Sabbath: and as his custom was, he went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath day. Luke 4:16. His disciples likewise observed it after his death: they rested on the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Luke 23:56. Yet with all this weight of Scripture authority for keeping the Sabbath or seventh day holy, Protestants, of every denomination, make this a profane day, and transferred the obligation of it to the first day of the week, the Sunday. Now what authority have they for doing this? None at all, but the unwritten Word or tradition of the Catholic church, which declares that the apostles made the change in honor of Christ’s resurrection, and the descent of the Holy Ghost on that day of the week.”-Milner’s End of Controversy, page 89. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.10
The Protestant church may, if taken as a whole, be considered as a unit; but how near its different sects number six hundred three score and six, may be a matter of interest to determine. The different organizations are all upheld by the laws of the land. That they are oppressive when possessed of civil power, let the case of the Puritans, themselves fugitives from oppression, bear testimony. Witness their persecution of the Quakers, even unto death. Witness also the martyrdom of Michael Servetus under the sanction of John Calvin. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 85.11
The fearful penalty threatened by the third angel, deserves particular notice. The wine of the wrath of God, and torment with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. The torment with fire and brimstone, comes doubtless, when the enemies of the Lord are cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, as described in Revelation 20; 21. But the wine of God’s wrath, is filled up in the seven last plagues. They are poured out after the temple of God is opened in heaven, which event transpires under the sounding of the seventh angel. Revelation 15:5; 11:19. And it is to be further noticed that the first plague comes on the very class threatened by the third angel. Revelation 16:2; 14:9, 10. Hence we understand that the seven last plagues which fill up the wine of the wrath of God, threatened by the third angel, are future and as real as the plagues poured out on Egypt. See the account in Exodus. See also Revelation 16. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.1
“Here is the patience of the saints.” That is, in this period commencing with their disappointment, they are in a day of affliction, a scene of trial and darkness, keeping the word of Christ’s patience [Revelation 3:10,] and waiting for redemption at the coming of the Son of man. They are seen keeping the commandments of God, and in the possession of the faith or testimony of Jesus. The commandments of God in distinction from the testimony of Jesus, mean the ten commandments. Matthew 19:17-19; 5:17-19; Romans 7:7-14; Luke 23:56; Matthew 15:3, 4; Ephesians 6:2. We shall indeed need the faith of Jesus that we may stand in that awful hour when the last plagues shall be poured out on the earth. Blessed in truth, are they who die in the Lord. They rest from their labors and their works do follow them. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.2
PARIS, ME. May, 1851.
J. N. ANDREWS.
THE REVIEW AND HERALD
“Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth.”
PARIS, MAY 19, 1851.
THE SABBATH
As the Sabbath was made for man, and as the whole human race have needed all its blessings ever since it was instituted in Paradise, it is reasonable to conclude that God designed that it should be as strictly observed in one dispensation as in another. We do not see any good reasons why the Jews should keep it any more strictly than Christians. We design to show that there is perfect harmony in all the testimony of both Testaments relative to the observance of the Holy Sabbath. We are aware that every means has been, and will be tried to make it appear that we should not observe the Sabbath. Some assert that we cannot keep the letter of the Sabbath law. It is common for one class of our opponents to refer to certain restrictions laid upon the Jews in the wilderness, which are no part of the great Sabbath commandment, and which we will notice hereafter, to prove that we do not, and cannot observe the Sabbath. And then some even go so far as to try to make it appear that Christ and his apostles departed from the letter of the Sabbath law.-Their reasonings from false premises are well calculated to deceive, confuse the mind, and lead precious souls from the truth of the Bible on this subject. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.3
The fourth commandment of the Decalogue is the great Sabbath law. It is the standard to which the testimony relative to the Sabbath, in both Testaments, should be brought and carefully compared. With the right view of this commandment, a harmony may be seen throughout the divine testimony on this subject. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.4
“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 man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates.” Exodus 20:8-10.* ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.5
The great God appointed six days for man to labor, and do the work necessary to obtain a livelihood. This labor is called “thy work.” But on the seventh day he designed that man should rest from this world’s toil and care, and engage in the service of his Creator. The Sabbath law does not require us to become stationary and inactive on the seventh day. When we speak of the Sabbath law, we refer only to the fourth commandment which God spake with an audible voice, and engraved in the tables of the covenant. The words, “let no man go out of his place on the seventh day,” Exodus 16:29, were spoken in reference to the children of Israel not going out into the field to gather manna on that day, as they did the six preceding days. Afterward the Jews did go out of their places on the Sabbath, not to do servile labor, but to worship God. On the Sabbath they had “an holy convocation,” a religious assembly. Leviticus 23:3; Acts 15:21. And farther, the priests were required by God to offer on the Sabbath, even more offerings than on the other six days. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.6
“And on the Sabbath-day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth-deals of flour for a meat-offering, mingled with oil, and the drink-offering thereof. This is the burnt-offering of every Sabbath, BESIDE the continual burnt-offering, and his drink-offering.” Numbers 28:9, 10.* ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.7
The law that came by Moses, which he wrote in the book of the covenant, did not require the priests to violate that law uttered by the voice of Jehovah, and engraven in the tables of the covenant. Therefore the labor of the priests in presenting offerings before the Lord on the Sabbath, was not the labor prohibited by the fourth commandment, called “thy work.” Again, male children born on the Sabbath were, according to the law of Moses, circumcised the following Sabbath, “the eighth day.” See Leviticus 12:1-3; Luke 1:59. No reasonable person, with any knowledge of the Bible, will say that this was a violation of the Sabbath law. This view of the subject shows clearly the true import of the words “labor” and “thy work” in the fourth commandment. Six days are allotted to us to attend to that work necessary to this life; but the seventh is the Rest-day, in which we are required to rest from our own labor, and engage in the service of God. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.8
It is said that the law of the Sabbath forbids kindling fires on the seventh day. To this we reply, that the great Sabbath law, the fourth commandment, says nothing concerning kindling fires. The children of Israel in the wilderness were not only forbidden to go out into the field to gather manna on the Sabbath, but, also, to pick up sticks to kindle a fire to cook it, and to wash their clothes on that day. “Bake that ye will bake to-day, [sixth day,] and seethe that ye will seethe.” Exodus 16:23.-They were a strong healthy people, free from disease, and were in a mild climate. It is said of them, [Exodus 15:26,] “I am the Lord that healeth thee.” Also, [Psalm 105:37,] “And there was not one feeble person among their tribes.” Their clothes were miraculously preserved, and their food was given them from heaven. As they were instructed to cook their manna on the sixth day, and therefore had no use for fires on the seventh, to kindle fires on the Sabbath for that purpose, would have been a plain violation of the fourth commandment. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.9
We are differently situated. Our constitutions and climate require the heat of fire on the Sabbath a portion of the year.-We kindle a fire on the seventh day as an act of mercy and necessity, the same as we would water an ox or a horse, or lift a sheep from a pit. Such acts, the “Lord of the Sabbath” pronounced “lawful.” But it is evidently wrong, and a violation of the Sabbath, to neglect to make those necessary preparations for the rest of the Holy Sabbath, which can be consistently made on the sixth day. The Sabbath law forbids our doing on the seventh day that which can be done on the sixth, and also what is not really an act of mercy and necessity. But merciful acts, such as relieving the distress of man or beast, which cannot be done on the sixth day, are “lawful,” on the seventh. A reasonable and Scriptural view of the Sabbath law does not require us to suffer cold or hunger; for the law is “holy,” “just,” and “good.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.10
But among the many positions of our opponents, which are perfectly destructive of each other, perhaps no one is more at variance with the Bible, and more wicked in the sight of heaven, than that which charges the Son of God with Sabbath-breaking. He says, “I have kept my Father’s commandments.”-But this view contradicts Jesus, and charges him with violating the fourth. It also contradicts the testimony of the beloved disciple. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.11
“Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.” 1 John 3:4-5.* ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.12
This testimony proves that if Jesus did depart from the letter of the Sabbath law, then he was a sinner, for “sin is the transgression of the law.” But as “in him is no sin,” it follows that he did not transgress the law, as he declares; “I have kept my Father’s commandments.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 86.13
It is said that Jesus departed from the letter of the law in healing the sick on the Sabbath, and that he taught by example, as well as precept, that it was “relaxed.” One thing is certain, he either kept the Sabbath law, or he broke it. If it is said that he observed it, then it is worse than idle to talk of his departing from its letter, and relaxing it. But if it is said that he did not observe it, but transgressed the Sabbath law, then Jesus is charged with being a sinner; for “sin is the transgression of the law.” Christ was made under the law, [Galatians 4:4,] and observed even the law of Moses up to the day of his crucifixion. He urged its observance upon his disciples. “The scribes and the Pharisees,” said he, “sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do.” Matthew 23:2, 3. As Moses’ law extended to the cross, this injunction was to be obeyed till that time. Those who teach that the Sabbath is merely a Jewish institution, and that it was abolished at the cross, should know that, in that case, it continued in full force until the crucifixion; for Christ and his apostles were to observe the law of Moses, until the hand-writing of ordinances was nailed to the cross. Again, those who hold that the Sabbath law was abolished at the cross, virtually admit that it was in force up to that point of time. But if Jesus had the power and the right to relax it, and if he exercised that power in doing it away, and taught that it was done away, by healing the sick on the Sabbath, then it is unwise to talk of its being abolished afterward, at the cross. For a law that is not in force cannot be abolished. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.1
The wicked Pharisees charged the disciples with Sabbath-breaking, when they plucked the ears of corn, and ate to satisfy hunger, as they, with their Master, were on their way to the synagogue. But did Jesus teach that they had a right to break the Sabbath? Far from it. He referred them to what David did when he was hungry, also to the work of the priests, on the Sabbath, who were “blameless;” and then declared his disciples “guiltless.” David and the priests were “blameless” on no other ground than this; what they did was no violation of the law. The disciples were “guiltless” on the same ground. The Bible nowhere forbids eating on the Sabbath when hungry. When Jesus was asked, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath-days,” he replied:- ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.2
“What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the Sabbath-day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is LAWFUL to do well on the Sabbath-days.” Matthew 12:11, 12.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.3
The word lawful signifies “agreeable to law; conformable to law.” [Webster.] When used by our Saviour in Matthew 12, and Luke 14, it signifies conformable to the Sabbath law. Jesus did not give them a new Sabbath law, neither did he intimate that the fourth commandment was “relaxed.” But he exposed the hypocrisy of those who falsely charged him with Sabbath-breaking, and declared that well-doing, that is, healing the sick, relieving dumb beasts in distress, or eating when hungry, was “lawful.” The blind Pharisees, who rejected the first Advent to their own damnation, declared that those merciful acts which Christ performed on the Sabbath were “not lawful.” Christ, on the other hand, pronounced such well-doing “L A W F U L.” Those who teach that Jesus departed from the letter of the Sabbath law are on the side of the Pharisees, and their sin is worse, inasmuch as their blasphemous charge is against greater light. Christians should be on the side of Christ. Amen. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.4
It is said that the “impotent man,” to whom Christ said, “Rise, take up thy bed and walk,” broke the Sabbath. This is but a repetition of the false charge made by the Jews, who were ever watching for a chance to accuse Christ. We reject their testimony, and choose to believe Christ. The healed impotent man walking with his bed was not for any selfish end, but for the glory of God. Such acts are not prohibited by the fourth commandment. Two of the prophets speak against bearing burdens on the Sabbath; but when their testimony is examined it will be seen that they refer to burdens of merchandise, such as “sheaves,” “wine, grapes and figs.” See Jeremiah 17:19-25; Nehemiah 13:15. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.5
Finally, it is said that the penalty for violating the Sabbath is done away, therefore the Sabbath law does not exist. To this we reply, that temporal death never was the full and final penalty for Sabbath-breaking. The fourth commandment says nothing concerning it. Under the “ministration of condemnation” and “death,” [2 Corinthians 3.] by the services of Moses’ law, the transgressor of the law of God was put to death. Why? Because, under that “faulty” ministration there was no atonement for such sinners. But under the “ministration of the Spirit,” while Jesus is our sacrifice and priest, MERCY, the excellency and glory of the “ministration of the Spirit,” pleads for the transgressor of the law of God, that he may be spared, and turn and live. This is why the stoning system was done away, with the other laws of Moses, at the cross. But if temporal death was the full penalty for violating the law of God, then he who broke the Sabbath, murdered, or committed adultery, only had to be stoned to death to fully satisfy the law. And in the judgment such sins cannot appear against him, for the law was fully satisfied when he suffered temporal death. But the penalty for transgressing God’s holy law was, and still is, Eternal Death. “Sin is the transgression of the law,” and “the wages [penalty] of sin is death.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.6
IS THE BIBLE SUFFICIENT AS A RULE OF FAITH AND PRACTICE?
THE RULE OF PROTESTANTS: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect, THOROUGHLY FURNISHED UNTO ALL GOOD WORKS.” 2 Timothy 3:16, 17. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.7
THE PAPISTS’ RULE: “All Scripture, etc. Every part of divine Scripture is certainly profitable for all these ends. But if we would have the whole rule of Christian faith and practice, we must not be content with those Scriptures which Timothy knew from his infancy, that is with the Old Testament alone; nor yet with the New Testament, without taking along with it the traditions of the apostles, and the interpretation of the church, to which the apostles delivered both the book, and the true meaning of it.” Note of the Doway (Catholic) Bible on 2 Timothy 3:16, 17. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.8
We submit the foregoing rules to the consideration of those who love the word of God. Perhaps the most important difference between Protestants and Papists, arises in the choice of these rules. On this grand question Protestants and Papists have ever joined issue. Those who have received God’s word as the rule of their lives, have claimed that by that word ALONE, they might be made perfect, and be thoroughly furnished unto all good works. Those who have attempted to sustain human institutions, have added to this perfect rule, the traditions of the Church. The question now arises, Which of these rules shall we adopt? If the former, then we are bound to reject human institutions which claim support from us as religious duties; if the latter, then we are bound to become Papists; for the tradition of the church, establishes Mass, the worship of the Virgin, the adoration of saints, the first-day Sabbath, Purgatory, Indulgences, etc. This is not a question of trifling importance. The Bible is a sufficient rule, or it is not. If it is a sufficient rule, who may presume to add to it, “the tradition of the Elders?” If it is not a sufficient rule, who shall amend it? ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.9
These thoughts are suggested by an article in the “Advent Herald” of April 19th, from the pen of “D. T. T.,” in which the writer attempts to show by the aid of tradition, that the first day of the week is the “Lord’s day,” and that it ought to be religiously observed in the place of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. That in this position he occupies the ground of the Papists as expressed in the second rule, will not be denied. Had he attempted to enforce the first-day Sabbath by divine authority, we would not lay this to his charge. There are, however, many very obvious reasons why some other rule beside the Bible, should be resorted to by those who would sustain the first-day Sabbath. Every student of the Bible is aware that no mention is made in the word of God, of a change of the Sabbath. No text can be found which teaches us that the first day is sanctified time, nor can a single sentence be found requiring us to keep it holy. Hence the necessity of adding tradition to the word of God. The apostle Paul, to whom appeal is made in the “Herald,” testified that he had “kept back nothing that was profitable,” but we ask where in any of his teachings did he show that the observance of the first day had taken the place of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment? If it be answered that he showed the duty of observing the first-day Sabbath, by uniting with the disciples on one occasion, to break bread on that day, we answer, that he pursued his journey on the same day in which he broke bread. Acts 20:7-12. If it be objected further that respect was early paid to the first day, and that we are under obligation to follow the example of antiquity, we answer that, when “the tradition of the Elders” makes “void the commandment of God,” it is a heaven-daring sin to render obedience to the commandments of men in the place of the holy Law of God. Matthew 15:1-9; Mark 7:1-13. But we deny that antiquity is on the side of those who observe the first day. We appeal not to uninspired and fallible men like ourselves, we go back beyond them, and appeal to the oracles of God, to those who wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The man who will show from their writings, another Sabbath beside that which is styled the Sabbath of the Lord, will do that which has never yet been done. Until, however, this is done, we shall be constrained to deny the divine origin of the first-day Sabbath, and consider it a counterfeit, occupying the place of the Sabbath of the Lord. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 87.10
Hear the apostle Paul with reference to the Romish apostasy, iiThess.ii.-Was that apostasy to be consummated at once? Was the “Man of Sin” to arise at once in his full strength and commence his blasphemous work? Far from it. He testifies that the mystery of iniquity had already begun to work, and that in the predicted time the “Man of Sin” would be revealed. Hence we may trace the apostasy back even to the days of the apostles, where it began imperceptibly to develope itself. How then may the truths of the Gospel be distinguished from the errors of men? We answer, make the word of God your only rule, receive what is written therein, and reject all beside. That the Protestant world now cherish an institution without foundation in Scripture, which was established by the gradual development of the great apostasy, can only be accounted for by the fact that Protestants have adopted the rule of the Romanists in the place of their own; viz. the BIBLE AND TRADITION, in the place of the BIBLE ALONE. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.1
That the institution of the first-day Sabbath was not of divine origin, but a tradition of the Elders by which the fourth commandment is made void, the historical quotations given in the “Herald” abundantly prove. That the change of the holy Sabbath was gradually brought about, and not consummated till the commencement of the 1260 years of Antichrists’ reign, is also a matter of fact. The Council of Orleans A. D. 538 accomplished this work. The word of God shows that the dragon is yet to make war on the remnant of the Church who keep the commandments of God; and that the two-horned beast is yet to require on pain of death that we worship the image of the first beast, and receive his mark.-Hence it is evident that the claims of the beast are to be enforced on those who keep the commandments of God. Revelation 12:17; 13:15, 16. Those who acknowledge the authority of the beast, will then receive his mark,-his counterfeit Sabbath of the beast: for it is the act of bringing this to a test which will constitute it emphatically THE MARK OF THE BEAST, or mark of that power that should “think to change time and laws.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.2
“As to me,” says Martin Luther, “I do not cease my cry of ‘The Gospel! the Gospel!-Christ! Christ!’ and my enemies are as ready with their answer-’Custom! Custom!-Ordinances! Ordinances!-Fathers! Fathers!’ ‘That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God,’ says St. Paul.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.3
We are not however at a loss to show from the Bible, what day God has set apart for himself, and called his holy day. “God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it.” Genesis 2:3. “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Exodus 20:10. “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on MY HOLY DAY,” etc. Isaiah 58:13. “The Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:28. “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Revelation 1:10. The seventh day is the only day which God has claimed as his,-the only one which he has required us to keep holy. Those who dare to make void the commandments of God that they may keep the tradition of the Elders, do it at their own peril. To such we commend the following from the Book of God; “Add thou not unto his words lest he reprove thee and thou be found a liar.” Proverbs 30:6. “If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the Book of Life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” Revelation 22:18, 19. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.4
J. N. A.
PARIS, ME. May 8, 1851.
LETTERS
[From Bro. Holt.] ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.5
DEAR BRO. WHITE:-Our Conference in this place of last Sabbath and first day, was one of interest. The importance of a full and entire consecration to God, and his cause was deeply felt. The HOLINESS of the LAW of GOD, I think was realized by the brethren more than ever before. The Holy Spirit distilled upon us like the dew, and melted the heart into tenderness before God. It was a heart searching time. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.6
The Lord is truly reviving his people, and preparing them for the great and last conflict with the powers of darkness, sent out by the dragon host. How important that the remnant have on every piece of the armor. The shield of faith is very much needed at this time to quench the fiery darts of the enemy.-The faith that staggers not in the darkest moments; and believes without doubt in the heart, when outward appearance is all against us. True faith never looks at the things that are seen. Faith is the confidence of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.7
By faith the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea. If Moses had looked at the outward appearance, he would have said, we cannot go this way, the waters will prevent. But he did not stagger at the sight of the waters. He said to the people “stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.” Caleb and Joshua looked not at the things that were seen when they said, we are fully able to go up and possess the land. The multitude or those nations, with their strong fortifications and high walls, and the tall sons of Anack, did not discourage them. But those that looked on the things that were seen, were discouraged, and God was displeased with them, and they died in the wilderness. By faith David slew Goliath. The appearance of that great and mighty warrior, with all his armor and threats, did not daunt him in the least. Thus it was with Daniel, the sight of the lions had no effect on him; his faith remained the same. The three Hebrews, while in the furnace, looked not on the violence of the flaming fire; but were strong in faith, giving glory to God. By faith the sick were healed, the blind saw, the lamb spake, the deaf heard, the lame walked, and the dead were raised. May the Lord enable us to walk by faith, and not by sight. Amen. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.8
I shall leave in about two hours for Ohio.
Your brother in hope -
GEO. W. HOLT.
Bro. R. Phelps writes from Alden, (III.) April 21, 1851:-“We embrace this opportunity to inform you of what the Lord has been doing for us in this place of late. The Lord sent Bro. H. S. Case here with the third angel’s message, which a few of us received with willing hearts. Some of the seed sown fell into good ground, and brings forth fruit. Bro. Case delivered a few lectures, and baptized three of us.-And left a Chart with me. I have been trying to give the warning ever since, and the Lord has worked. Yesterday I led seven of the dear children of God down into the water and buried them in baptism. There are more inquiring for truth. To God be all the praise. Amen. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.9
Bro. Peter Gibson of London, (C. W.) writes-“If any of my Brethren of the Philadelphia Church are going to the West this summer, I wish them to give me a call. The “Review and Herald” is a great comfort to me, as I am alone in this part of the world.” ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.10
CONFERENCES
Providence permitting there will be a Conference of the brethren at Camden, Oneida Co. N. Y., to commence Friday, June the 20th, at 9 o’clock, A. M., at the house of Bro. Chandler B. Preston. Brethren from all parts of the State are invited to attend. Camden is situated 18 miles north of Rome. Cars leave Rome every morning and evening for Camden. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.11
By request of the brethren. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.12
GEO. W. HOLT.
There will be a General Conference at West Milton, (N. Y.) half a mile west of Milton Centre, on the road from Saratoga to Johnstown, and four and a half miles northwest of Ballston Spa, to commence Friday, June 27, at 2 o’clock, P. M., and hold over the Sabbath and First-Day. Brn. Holt, Rhodes, White, and others are invited to attend. There will be conveyance at the Depot on Friday for those who may come in the cars. Brn. far and near are invited to attend. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.13
In behalf of the Brn. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.14
HORACE CUSHMAN.
We expect to attend the Conferences at Camden and West Milton.-The publication of the Review and Herald will be suspended for a few weeks in our absence. Remittances, and orders for publications should be sent in before the tenth of June. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.15
W.
NEW WORK.-“The Seventh-day Sabbath.-This pamphlet of about 48 pages, when completed, will contain our articles in the “Review and Herald,” on the Sabbath question. It is designed principally for the travelling Brn. to distribute to those who have not read on the subject. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.16
We have 1000 extra copies of this No. Those who wish them should send in their orders immediately. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.17
LETTERS RECEIVED SINCE MAY 5.-Horace Cushman 2; A. E. Randall; F. Wheeler; Otis Nichols, 2; S. Howland; S. W. Rhodes; L. Horr. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.18
RECEIPTS.- Frances Strong, Albert Belden, $5 each; Ira Abbey, C. B. Preston, $3 each; A. Huntley, C. M. Cobourn, B. C. Bancroft, $1 each; W. Farnsworth, S. Bunnel, 50 cts. each; Peter Gibson $4, (one for Bro. Thompson, and two for a Chart, which will be sent as soon as convenient.) R. Moran and Bro. Gould, $1. ARSH May 19, 1851, page 88.19