Advent Review, and Sabbath Herald, vol. 18
August 13, 1861
RH VOL. XVIII. - BATTLE CREEK, MICH., THIRD-DAY, - NO. 11
James White
ADVENT REVIEW,
AND SABBATH HERALD
[Graphic of the Ark of the Covenant with the inscription beneath,]
“And there was Seen in His Temple
the Ark of His Testament.”
“Here is the Patience of the Saints; Here are they that keep the Commandments of God and the Faith of Jesus.”
VOL. XVIII. - BATTLE CREEK, MICH., THIRD-DAY, AUGUST 13, 1861. - NO. 11.
The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald
is published WEEKLY, BY
The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association
TERMS.-Two Dollars a year, in advance. One Dollar to the poor and to those who subscribe one year on trial. Free to those unable to pay half price. Address ELDER JAMES WHITE, Battle Creek, Michigan. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.1
Psalm 91
HE that within the secret place
Where God Most High stores up his grace,
Hath chosen his abode,
Shall lodge, where fears shall ne’er invade -
Beneath the everlasting shade
Of God - Almighty God.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.2
Of the Eternal I will say -
He is my refuge, and my stay,
My strong combatted tower;
My Lord, in whose protecting arm,
I will confide, amid alarm,
When gloomy dangers lower.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.3
By guile shalt thou not be decoyed.
For he will help thee to avoid
The subtle fowler’s snare;
His favor shall preserve thy life,
When noisome maladies are rife,
And plagues infest the air.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.4
With love, paternal, o’er thy head
His feathers will he kindly spread,
To foster thee in youth;
Beneath his wings shalt thou repose,
Thy shield and fortress from thy foes,
His everlasting truth.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.5
To thee the dangers of the night
Shall bring no terror, nor the flight
Of deadly shafts by day;
Nor pestilence, that darkling walks,
Nor fell destruction, when it stalks
Abroad at noon to slay.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.6
A thousand at thy side shall die,
On thy right hand ten thousand lie;
But thee it shall not reach;
Only thine eyes shall surely see
What retribution their’s shall be
Whom nought can wisdom teach.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.7
Because the Lord, my safe retreat,
Even God Most High, with heart discreet,
Thy dwelling thou hast made;
No evil shall on thee alight
No pestilence thy person smite
Or thine abode invade.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.8
He will appoint an angel guard,
From danger all thy paths to ward;
Thou shalt not walk alone;
Their hands shall bear thee up with care,
In case thou injure unaware
Thy foot against a stone.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.9
Since he has set on Me his love,
For him deliverance from above,
I surely will provide;
Him will I raise to highest fame,
Because he has to know My name,
His heart and mind applied.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.10
Mine aid shall he invoke in prayer,
I will attend, and him My care
Shall, ‘mid distress and woe,
Deliver, and to honor raise;
To him will I give length of days,
And my salvation show.
[Jewish Chronicle.
ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.11
The Atonement BY ALBERT BARNES
We present another extract this week from Barnes on the Atonement, in which the relation of the atonement to the law is more particularly discussed. Let that heinous and God-dishonoring doctrine so much vaunted by the opponents of the Sabbath, that Christ by his death abolished that law which made his death necessary, wither beneath the scathing which it receives from the following argument. Nothing is clearer than that by the atonement the estimate which the Law-giver puts upon his law should be expressed, and the majesty of the law be kept unimpaired. - U. SMITH. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.12
THE OBJECTS TO BE SECURED BY AN ATONEMENT
IT is now a very material inquiry, What objects are contemplated by an atonement? What is to be secured by it? What is the purpose for which it is to be introduced into an administration of government? ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.13
It is clear, from the foregoing remarks, and from the nature of the case, that an atonement must relate to one or all of the following things: to the law itself, that its authority may be maintained; to the penalty of the law, that the object contemplated by the penalty may be secured; to the offenders in whose behalf it is made, or who are to receive the avails of it, that it may make their reformation and future good conduct certain; to the community, that it may have nothing to apprehend if the guilty are pardoned; and to the character of the lawgiver, that that character may stand fair before the world, and be such as to inspire confidence, if the just penalty of the law is remitted. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.14
These objects would manifestly comprise all that could be effected, or that it would be desirable to effect, in administering the law; and I propose now to show why such objects must be contemplated by an atonement, or why it is proper to demand that they shall be secured if an atonement is made. In other words, it is necessary to show that if it is proposed to release the guilty on the ground of an atonement, justice may demand, and the interests of a community will require, that these objects shall be secured. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.15
I. The first point relates to the law itself, that its authority may be maintained. “Law,” says Blackstone, “in its most comprehensive sense, signifies a rule of action, and is applied indiscriminately to all kinds of actions, whether animate or inanimate, rational or irrational. This, then, is the general signification of law, a rule of action dictated by some superior being.” “Municipal law is a rule of civil conduct prescribed by the supreme power in a state, commanding what is right, and prohibiting what is wrong.”1 ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.16
The following are the usual definitions of law: ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.17
“Lex est ratio summa, quae jubet quae sunt utilia et necessaria, et contraria prohibet.” - LORD COKE,i,17. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.18
“Law is a rule which an intelligent being setteth down for the framing of actions by.” - HOOKER, Eccl. Pol. B. 1. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.19
From these well-known definitions and descriptions of law in general, we may make the following remarks in regard to its nature and value as bearing on the subject before us, and as showing why it is necessary to have regard to it in an atonement. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.20
(1.) Law, in reference to moral actions, expresses the sense of the law-giver as to what is right, and as to the value of right. It is the measure of his estimate of what should be done, and of the limits by which rights are bounded. The promulgation of the law indeed determines nothing on the question why the thing that is commanded is right, or why the thing which is prohibited is wrong. So far as the promulgation of law is concerned, that may either be (a) because the law-giver wills it or (b) because it is right or wrong in the nature of things; or (c) because one course of conduct will promote happiness and the other will lead to misery. Which of these is the proper foundation of the distinction between right and wrong, and therefore the reason why the law is ordained, is a question which has never been so determined as to command the assent of all men; but the difference of opinion on these points does not affect the position just laid down, that the law expresses the sense of the law-giver as to right and wrong, and that the law is the measure of his estimate of what is just. We are always sure when we have a law in any case, that we have in that the estimate of the law-giver of what is right; we are not certain, and we need not be certain - for that would not affect the main point -whether this estimate is founded on his own will in the case, his will being essentially, and from the nature in the case, a just estimate of what is right; or on the nature of things; or on the foreseen effects of conduct as bearing on the happiness of an individual or on society. We may be certain, however, that in every case of just law there is some reason why the law in that case is what it is; and in reference to the laws of God we are led ultimately to confide in his infinite wisdom and benevolence in founding his laws on true reason, though we may not be able ourselves to perceive what the reason is. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.21
(2.) The value of law, which by the nature of the act of atonement is regarded as so important, is seen everywhere. All things are placed under law. As God made the worlds, and as he has peopled them, and as he has multiplied living forms and physical agencies, nothing is made lawless. There is not, as the universe came from his hand, and as his administration is extended over it, one thing in the mineral, the vegetable, the animal, or the moral kingdom that is placed beyond the control of law or that is not regulated by law. There is not one that is the production of chance, or that is subject to the play of chance; there is not one that in its creation, its position, its developments, or its relations, can be resolved into mere contingency. All sciences are founded on the belief that the universe is controlled by laws, and serve only to develop their nature and illustrate their universality and value. There is not a crystal that is not formed in accordance with law; not a vegetable that grows not in accordance with law; not a star in the heavens that is not moved in accordance with fixed and certain laws; not an animal upon the earth, not a fish in the waters, not a bird in the air, that is not subject in its origin, formation, and mode of living to definite laws; not a man or an angel that is not made subject to law. The study of these laws, in reference to the material world, constitutes all that there is in natural philosophy; in the animal world, all that there is in natural history; in the affinities and repellencies of particles of matter, all that there is in chemistry; in the movements of the heavenly bodies, all that there is in astronomy; in the developments of life, all that there is in physiology; in the soul of man, all that there is in psychology; in the operations of mind, all that there is in moral philosophy; in the study of the divine nature and the unfolding of the divine plans, all that there is in theology. If there were not laws applicable to everything, there could be no science, no calculations in regard to the future, no basis of confidence in any human effort, no encouragement to plough a field, to construct a vessel, to navigate the ocean, to attempt to restore health when impaired, or to save the soul. All that we see, all that we do, all that we hope for, is based on the existence of law, and is all an illustration of the value of law. The purpose of an atonement, therefore, clearly, cannot be to set aside law; but it is to be presumed that if an atonement is made it will so far accord with the established course of events as to illustrate its importance and value. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 81.22
(3.) All these laws are kept within their proper bounds, and each class of laws is appealed to and relied on in the department to which it appertains, and is never resorted to to accomplish the purpose of law in another department. God does not govern the stars by the ten commandments; nor does he control the diamond, the oak, or the lion by the laws by which he controls men and angels. Science has arranged, with a good degree of accuracy, all the works of nature into certain great departments or kingdoms, - the material, the vegetable, the animal, and the intellectual or moral kingdoms, - each subject to its own laws according to the nature of the objects to be controlled; and, in the actual administration of the universe, these lines are never crossed. The laws of the vegetable kingdom are never made, nor could they be made, to control the action of gravitation, electricity, or the mechanical forces; the laws of instinct are never made to control the formation of the cells in the development of plants, nor could they be; the moral law, the law that governs angels and men, could never be applied to control either the material, the vegetable, or the animal kingdoms. However one may be made tributary to another, the operation of the one never invades the appropriate department of the other. These departments are never crossed, never interfered with. They constitute distinct sciences, and, except in miracles, their absolute dominion always exists in the departments to which they respectively belong. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.1
An atonement must respect this arrangement, and cannot be designed or allowed to disturb this order. Whether anything like an atonement, or a compensation, could occur in respect to the infraction of a physical law, might be a more curious than profitable subject of speculation; but an atonement, in the proper sense of the term, can have respect only to moral law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.2
(4.) Moral law has respect to a higher order of agencies than any connected with mere matter. It supposes the existence of understanding and of will. The objects contemplated by a moral law can be secured neither by the laws which pertain to the material, the vegetable, or the animal kingdoms; for men and angels cannot be controlled by mere physical power or by instincts. The department is higher than either of those; and all the arrangements in that department differ essentially from those which pertain to the other departments of the divine administration. Contemplating the subjects of God’s moral kingdom as endowed with intelligence, will, and freedom, the things which are essential in that mode of government are two: (a) a rule of conduct prescribed by the supreme authority; and (b) appropriate sanctions, designed to secure obedience and to deter from disobedience. The force which is applied in the material world - as, for example, in the planetary worlds - to secure the observance of law, can never be applied here; for it would destroy the very notion of moral agency. In the control of the planets there are, indeed, rules or laws to secure their regular motion, but the observance of those laws is secured by mere power. Beyond that power there is nothing in the case; and when we contemplate all that beautiful harmony, and all the arrangements for self-adjustment, and all the securities for the permanency and good order of the system, we see nothing in the arrangement but wisdom, nothing in the execution but power. There is nothing of the nature of a sanction or a penalty designed to secure a return to order if a law has been violated; nothing that can operate as a motive to secure such a return or to deter from a future violation of law. The irregularities which would occur if a law should be violated would be indeed an expression of the Creator’s sense of the value of law, not, of course, to the material worlds where the law had been departed from, but to moral beings who might observe those irregularities, and they might thus be among the means of illustrating the value of law; but in no sense could they operate to deter from a future violation of law or as a means of securing a return to regularity and order. Laws in a moral government are, however, and must be, appointed for these ends. They express the Creator’s sense of the nature and value of right, and they are accompanied with sanctions which are ordained for the purpose of restraining, controlling, and recovering the subjects of those laws. These moral laws are designed in their sphere, as physical laws are in theirs, to control those who are principally the subjects of moral law in all worlds, and as applied to moral agents must have essentially the same nature and be accompanied with the same sanctions. As the worlds which compose our solar system, and the more remote and magnificent worlds of which even our solar system is a part, are all governed by the same simple laws of gravitation, so it is reasonable to presume that the most lofty spirits before the throne of God, and the inhabitants of far-distant worlds, are controlled by the same moral laws which are designed to bind and control men, and that thus the universe is one. The law of gravitation which regulates the fall of a pebble is sufficient to control all the material worlds; the law which requires love to God, and which is sufficient to control the mind of a child, may be all that is necessary to bring into subjection and preserve in their place the loftiest intellects that the Creator has made. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.3
(5.) An atonement must be based on the supposition that there is evil in the violation of law which it is desirable to repair; and, to obtain any correct view of the nature and the design of an atonement, it is necessary to have some just apprehension of the evils of violated law. Unhappily, our earth has furnished most painful illustrations of these evils, and, were there no other world in which this could be seen, a sufficiently full demonstration of it might be found in our own. The history of our race has been little more than an illustration of the effects of violating laws; for all the woes and calamities of earth have arisen from that cause. It is certain that, under the government of a just and holy God, if there were no violation of law there would be no suffering; and it is clear, therefore, that, so far as our world is concerned, all the suffering which has come upon the race has been but a measure of the evils of violated law. Whether this is the only measure of those evils, or whether there may be higher proofs of the evil of a violation of law in other worlds, is a distinct question, not needful now to be considered. All that is necessary now to observe is, that it cannot be doubted, from the history of man, that there are evils in the violation of the laws of God. The sufferings endured in our world can be traced indubitably in numberless instances directly to this cause. No small portion of the bodily pain that exists on the earth can be directly traced to it; a great part of the mental suffering among men has indubitably the same origin; the evils that result from intemperance, and the crimes and horrors of war, rapine, piracy, and slavery, grow out of this; the sufferings which come upon the guilty as the avowed punishment of crime have the same source; the wretchedness that follows the excesses of youth is to be traced to the same cause. Even with our limited vision we can see that the observance of the laws of God would have prevented a great portion of the calamities that have come upon men; and from analogy it is not improper to infer, even where we cannot closely follow out the connection, that all the woes of earth have been caused by the infraction of those laws. From anything that appears, if all those woes could be traced up to their real source, it would be found that - remotely it might be, but in fact, - all the sorrows of earth have had such an origin. If so, then in the history of our own world we have a sufficiently affecting illustration of the evils of violated law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.4
Now, it is certain that an atonement must have a bearing on law in all these respects: in asserting its true nature, in illustrating its value, in checking and arresting the evils of its violation. In other words, it must either tend to maintain law or to repair it, either to show its importance or to prevent the consequences of its infraction. It must meet in the divine administration what has been found, as seen in the previous chapter, to be a defect in all human governments: it must secure the maintenance of law while pardon is extended to the guilty; it must exert such an influence that they who are pardoned in virtue of the atonement shall become in their future lives obedient to the law. If it can secure these things, then, so far as the law is concerned, the guilty may be released from the infliction of its penalty and be restored to the favor and friendship of the law-giver. For, on this supposition, all that the law aims at will have been accomplished, and no evil will result from discharging from punishment those who have been guilty of its violation. Whether an atonement can do this, is another question, to be considered hereafter. All that is now affirmed is, that it must do this, and that if this is done, then, so far as the claims of the law are concerned, an offender may be forgiven. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.5
In no human government, as we have seen, has it been found possible to secure this. If a law has been violated, the only way devised of maintaining its honor is by inflicting the penalty; and when that is done, as has been remarked, justice often drives its decisions over some of the finest feelings of our nature; so far as it is not done, or so far as that penalty is remitted by pardon, the strong arm of the law is relaxed, and a proclamation is made that the law may be violated with impunity. The act of pardon, as has been shown, is, for the time, and to the extent to which it operates, a setting aside of the authority of the law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.6
II. The second point to be secured by an atonement relates to the penalty of the law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.7
(1.) Penalty is “the suffering in person or property which is annexed by law or judicial decision to the commission of a crime, offense, or trespass, as a punishment.” - Webster. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.8
Punishment or penalty is evil inflicted by a law-giver, or under his direction, to show his sense of the value of the law, or of the evil of violating the law. It is the measure of his sense of that value; it is an expression of his conviction of the evil which must necessarily follow from an infraction of the law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.9
It may be well to dwell for a moment on this definition; for, in order to a correct understanding of the doctrine of the atonement, it is absolutely necessary to obtain a just view of the nature and design of the penalty of the law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.10
And, first, according to this definition, it is evil; that is, it is pain, sorrow, suffering, privation, something that shall be felt to be an evil, something to be dreaded. This may pertain to person or property; it may be confinement in a prison, or it may be a fine; it may be scourging, branding, torture, or the pillory; it may be banishment, or it may be death. The essential idea is, that it shall be something that is felt to be an evil; some form of suffering or privation that is an object of dread or apprehension, and something that may be employed, therefore, to deter from the commission of crime. The very design of it is to inflict pain; and consequently, when a fine is so light or so disproportionate to a man’s property that he does not feel it, or when a person is made so comfortable in a prison that it will be no object of dread, or when the sentiments of a community are such that he who is condemned to punishment is regarded as a martyr, it ceases to be punishment, and the end of the appointment is defeated. Much as it may grate on our sensibilities, and harsh as punishment in any form seems to many persons to be, and much as we shrink from its infliction, yet the very end of punishment is to inflict pain, suffering, disgrace, and when that, by any arrangement of society, ceases to be the effect of punishment, its whole purpose is defeated, and the penalty of the law becomes a nullity. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 82.11
Next, it is an evil inflicted. It is the result of an appointment; it is brought upon a man by design. It does not come as a matter of casualty; it is not the result of natural laws. It is not because the person who suffers is one of a crowd; it is not that he is affected by some general or universal law; it is not that he suffers in common with others, as when an earthquake rocks a city to its foundation, or the pestilence cuts down the aged and the young, or war spreads its desolations among the peaceable habitations of men: it is inflicted of design, and inflicted purposely on the person that suffers. The blow is directed at him, and him alone. The arrow is not shot into a crowd: it is aimed at him; and when he falls he falls by the intention of him who has directed it. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.1
Nothing is more important in estimating the nature and design of punishment than to remember that it is aimed at the offender, and that, in its very nature, it is separated essentially from a mere providential dispensation, a random blow or shot, a casualty. The suffering, indeed, may be the same; but in one case it occurs under a general law by which the guilty and the innocent are swept away together, in the other it occurs under a special and particular law which aims at the individual, and at him alone. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.2
Further, it is evil inflicted by the law-giver, or under his direction. It must be the result of his appointment, or it cannot be regarded as punishment. The falling of a tree on a man cannot be regarded as punishment unless it can be proved that this came upon him as the result of the appointment of a law-giver, and as designed as an expression of his sense of the evil of the course of life which the man was pursuing, - that is, under the general law that men who do certain things may expect that trees will fall on them. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.3
Once more, it is evil inflicted by a law-giver, or under his direction, to show his sense of the value of law, or of the evil of the violation of law. That may be expressed in the words of a statute; but it is more impressively exhibited in the sufferings which he appoints as the effect of the violation of the law. The evil thus inflicted becomes the measure of his sense of the value of the law; and if the amount of evil which attends the infraction of law is ascertained, we have an infallible mode of estimating his sense of the evil. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.4
In this definition I have purposely left out an idea which is commonly supposed to be connected with the notion of penalty or punishment, - that it is designed to reform the offender. I shall have occasion to show that mere punishment, however it may check an offender, has no tendency to reform him, and that of itself it never produces that result; and, if this is so, then the reformation of an offender is no part of the proper design of the punishment. That looks at the violation of law as an evil, and is designed to express that fact and that alone. The legislator regards the law as valuable, and its violation as an evil; and he expresses that fact in the appointment and infliction of the penalty consequent on its violation. A man is hanged, not for purposes of reformation, and not to deter others from the commission of the same crime, but as a public expression of the sense which the law-giver entertains of the guilt of the act of murder. Whatever incidental effects, either in reference to the individual who suffers the penalty of the law, or to others, may follow from the infliction of the penalty, the one prime, main thought in the case is that murder is an evil, and the execution of the guilty man expresses the sense entertained by the law-giver of the nature of the evil. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.5
(2.) All law has a penalty. We may conceive, indeed, that a law could be made, or a rule of conduct prescribed, where there was no penalty appointed to express the sense entertained by the law-giver of the evil of the violation of the law. But such a case, in fact, has never occurred. “It is but lost labor,” says Blackstone, (Com. 1,57) “to say, ‘do this, or avoid that,’ unless we also declare, ‘this shall be the consequence of your non-compliance.’ We must, therefore, observe that the main strength and force of a law consists in the penalty annexed to it.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.6
A law without a penalty would be counsel or advice, but it would cease to convey the notion of law. It might affect us by its being the result of the wisdom of him who appointed it; by leading us to follow it from our confidence in his experience, integrity, sagacity, or ability, but it would not make the impression on us which is always produced by law.... . Even the ten commandments would cease to have the effect of law on us if there were no implied penalty or sanction to express the sense of the law-giver as to their value and as to the evil of violating them. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.7
The Teachings of Paul and James on the Subject of Justification
THE communication of a highly valued correspondent in our last paper, in reference to an article which appeared in the Church Monthly, furnishes us an opportunity of saying a word on the apparent doctrinal difference between Paul and James, on the subject of justification. It is supposed by many, that the difference is so complete and radical, as not to admit of reconciliation. By following, however, an obvious rule of interpretation, which requires us to place ourselves, as far as possible, in the circumstances of the writer, and to consider the object he has in view; and especially by carefully attending to the train of argument, the apparent inconsistency vanishes; and then it appears, that so far from contradicting each other, Paul actually teaches the doctrine of James, and James, the doctrine of Paul. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.8
There is a quaint phrase which often occurs in the writings of the older theologians, which was intended to reconcile the apparent differences between the two apostles, fides sola justificat, sed non quae est sola. The two apostles are treating of different kinds of faith. Paul says, “a man is justified by faith, without deeds of the law.” James says that “by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.” The object of Paul was, to expose the mistake of those who went about to establish a righteousness of their own, and expected justification by obedience to law. He shows that such obedience cannot justify; and therefore a man is justified only by that faith which receives Christ just as he is offered in the gospel, and depends upon his righteousness alone for salvation. This faith of which he speaks is a living faith; a faith which works by love, and which instead of giving or admitting any license to neglect good works, manifests its genuineness by a practical obedience to all the requirements of the gospel. In excluding works therefore from having anything to do with a sinner’s justification, and ascribing all to faith as the instrument, all his writings, as they abound in illustration of the connexion between faith and obedience, most manifestly show that the faith of which he is speaking, is one which is accompanied by every Christian grace, and is productive of good works. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.9
James seems to be combating a practical error of his time, into which some had fallen, who perverted the doctrine of Paul, and while professing to have faith, had not works. Such a faith, the apostle declares cannot justify, because it is a dead faith; it is such a faith as devils have, for he says; “they also believe and tremble.” Such a kind of faith, therefore, could be of no avail, because the faith by which a man is justified, must be manifested and made perfect by works. In what respect then do they differ? In no respect whatever. James is speaking of a faith, which, being without fruits, cannot justify. Paul, of a faith, which, being fruitful in all good works, does justify. The latter does not affirm that a dead faith can justify; nor does the former deny that a faith which exhibits its genuineness in the fruits which it brings forth, does justify. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.10
Who among all the sacred writers is more urgent than Paul, in explaining the connexion between a living faith and a holy life; and enforcing the necessity of that obedience, which is the necessary fruit of faith in Christ? When therefore he says, “I will that thou affirm constantly, that they who have believed in God, might be careful to maintain good works;” and again, “though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing,” he does in reality teach precisely the same doctrine which James taught. - Western Episcopalian. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.11
Getting on too Fast
A PIOUS old slave had a wicked master. This master had much confidence, however, in the slave’s piety. He believed he was a christian. Sometimes the master would be serious and thoughtful about religion. One day he came to the old slave, with the New Testament in his hand, and asked if he could explain a passage to him. The slave was willing to try, and asked what it was. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.12
“It is here in Romans,” said the master. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.13
“Have you done all it tells you to do in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John?” inquired the slave seriously, fixing his eyes upon his master’s. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.14
“No, I hav’n’t,” said he. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.15
“Then you’re getting on too fast, - too fast, master. Go back to the beginning of the book. Do all it tells you, till you get to Romans, and you will understand it easy enough then; for the good Book says, “If any man will do my will, he will know the doctrine.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.16
If any of our readers ever heard anybody arguing about a hard text in Romans, or somewhere else, and worrying to know what it means, just tell them this story about “getting on too fast.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.17
A THOUGHT FOR THE RICH. The following paragraph, from an English paper, may possibly have some application to the rich christians of this country: ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.18
“What an awful thing it is to die rich! Imagine the Master auditing the account of a servant who has left behind him a million! If that poor wretch who had but one talent was cast into outer darkness because he laid it up, instead of using it in his Master’s service, what will be the doom of those who, with their half-millions and millions (while giving, it may be, a few thousand’s for decency’s sake) have year after year hoarded up countless treasures which they could never use? Think of the poor saints pinched with cold and hunger! Think of the Redeemer’s cause languishing for the want of that filthy lucre which they hold with close-fisted selfishness! Yet listen to their talk! ‘I am but a steward.’ ‘I am not my own.’ ‘Every believer in Jesus is my brother or sister.’ What a mockery! Will not this be the Master’s language to many a professor: ‘Out of thine own mouth will I condemn thee?’ The above remarks are equally applicable to many persons who do not possess such gigantic fortunes.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 83.19
THE REVIEW AND HERALD
“Sanctify them through thy TRUTH; thy word is truth.”
BATTLE CREEK, MICH. THIRD-DAY, AUG. 13, 1861.
JAMES WHITE, EDITOR
MAGNIFYING THE LAW
IT has been said by some that Christ magnified the law, made it honorable and took it out of the way, nailing it to the cross. But this is a strange way to make the law honorable. It was never esteemed an honor to be nailed to a cross. But the main object of law-magnifiers at the present day, seems to be to get the law entirely out of the way, or, at least, to evade the obligation to obey the fourth precept of the law. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.1
It is claimed then that Christ enlarged the law in several precepts, where he shows the spirituality of the commandments, as in his sermon on the mount. Then it is inferred that the Sabbath commandment was so enlarged that every day has equal claims to be considered sanctified, holy time, hence all days are alike, and what is proper to be done on any one day, is proper to be done on every day. This lays all days on a level, and as it is a necessity to labor for a livelihood, it is proper to perform that labor on any and every day of the seven. This view admits all the ten commandments binding, but finds a way to shirk the obligation of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment and evade all its force, under the pretext that the Sabbath is magnified under the gospel. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.2
The first part of the command says, “Six days shalt thou labor.” Is this magnified so that we are not to do our work on any day? Or should we understand it as if it read, Seven days shalt thou labor and do all thy work? I confess I do not understand the science of theological optics, or comprehend the powers of those glasses that magnify one object so that we cannot see another. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.3
But did Christ make the law any larger than it was before by magnifying it? He certainly did honor and extol the law, and taught its perpetuity and immutability. He might have made it greater in the eyes of men, by enlightening their minds so that they might see that it is spiritual, reaching to the thoughts and intents of the heart. But the law is just as large now as it ever was, and no larger. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.4
David says “Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” Psalm 119:18. Again he says, “Thy commandment is exceeding broad.” Verse 96. It was just as broad then as it is now, since Christ has magnified it. In the sight of God, he that hated his brother then was a murderer, as well as now, and he that looked on a woman with impure desire had already committed adultery in his heart. Christ came not to destroy the law, neither did he add to it in the least. He taught just what it required, and this was what it always had required. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.5
Again, the psalmist says, “The law of the Lord is perfect.” Psalm 19:7. Can a perfect law be magnified so as to become more perfect? If so, we may yet get an edition most perfect of all. It was perfect in David’s time, and it was simply perfect in the time of the apostle James. Says James, “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.” Margin, doing. To read this text through modern magnifying-glasses, it would read something like this: But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty till he gets it magnified so that he need not do the work which it most evidently requires, this man shall be blessed in his disobedience. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.6
I would call the attention of our friends of the law-magnifying school to a celebrated eye-salve advertised in Revelation 3:18, and recommended to the use of the Laodicean church. Its use will enable them to see the subject clearer with the naked eye than they now see it with the aid of their most powerful magnifying glasses. Dear friends, will you try it? ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.7
R. F. COTTRELL.
We know the richest man on earth cannot heal all; but every man may select a patch of the moral desert, and cultivate that patch, and try to make it brighter, if not to blossom as the rose. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.8
LAPORTE CITY TENT MEETING
SINCE our last report we have preached five times, with encouraging results. The straight testimony is generally received. Several of the old tobacco mongers have resolved to use the weed no more. On first-day we had another solemn baptismal scene. The whole number baptized since we began our testimony here is forty-four. Above sixty have decided to keep the Bible Sabbath, but as yet only forty-seven have their names recorded in church fellowship. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.9
We go next to Waterloo, Blackhawk Co., Iowa, where we wish to be addressed for the present. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.10
The fast-day was one of unusual solemnity to us, and we felt that it was acceptable as a day of returning to God. “Be zealous and repent” must signify a thorough reformation. We hope the remnant will raise the standard high and never lower it again. Brethren, pray for us. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.11
M. E. CORNELL.
B. F. SNOOK.
MEETINGS IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN
DEAR BRO. WHITE: After closing our meetings in and around Greenville (referred to in Review of July 23) we spent a few days in Orange, Ionia Co., some thirty-five miles south of Greenville. Three young sisters who have embraced the whole truth since our meeting in Orange last May, two of them daughters of Bro. and sister Howe, nineteen and seventeen years of age, were buried with Christ by baptism, after which the church celebrated the solemn ordinance of the Lord’s supper. How gratifying and encouraging it is to those who are laboring for the salvation of their fellow-men to see the blooming youth turn away from the vain allurements of this wicked and perverse generation, and lean on the arm of the blessed Saviour, and plead with God for eternal life. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.12
July 22, took the cars for Berlin and Wright. Here, I think, I spent a week very profitably with the church holding meetings in their neighborhood. They had been getting into some trial in relation to church order, which is now better understood, and happily settled. Meetings on the Sabbath were interesting and free, with the blessing of the Lord. On first-day morning we rode seven miles for a suitable place for baptizing. Notwithstanding the rain-storm, quite a number were at the waterside where three were baptized. This makes twenty-four that we have baptized since our meeting commenced at Greenville. My prayer is, Lord, bless and strengthen thy struggling, waiting people, and give them to feel the power of the last solemn message. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.13
I returned to Monterey July 30, desiring to spend the day set apart for humiliation, fasting and prayer, with the tried ones to be gathered here on the morrow. O Lord, grant nourishment and strength to thy people now, and give additional aid to the four angels to restrain the wrathful spirit of war and bloodshed, until the 144000 saints shall be sealed. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.14
JOSEPH BATES.
Monterey, Aug. 2, 1861.
AS HE HATH DECLARED TO HIS SERVANTS THE PROPHETS
“BUT in the days of the voice of the seventh angel when he shall begin to sound the mystery of God should be finished as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” A mighty angel so speaks, as is recorded in Revelation 10:7. There is an importance connected with the finishing of any of the works of God. Such an act marks a solemn and important era. Our Saviour, when expiring upon the cross, cried, It is finished [John 19:30]; and when the great work of mercy for fallen man is completed, it will be announced by a voice from the throne of God, proclaiming in tones which roll like thunder through all the earth, the solemn sentence, It is done! Revelation 16:17. It is therefore no uncalled-for solicitude which prompts us to inquire what bearing such events have upon our eternal hopes and interests, and, when we read of the finishing of the mystery of God, to ask what that mystery is, in what its finishing consists, and where it has been declared to, and consequently by, God’s servants the prophets. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.15
An intelligent investigation of these questions involves an examination of the preceding portions of the chapter. What is said from the first of chap 10, to verse 15 of chap 11, seems to be parenthetical. It is thrown into the prophecy of the sounding of the seven trumpets, coming between the sixth and seventh of that series. That which is particularly connected with the sounding of the sixth trumpet is recorded in chap 9. The prophet has other events to introduce before the opening of another trumpet, and takes occasion to do it in the scripture which intervenes to the 15th verse of chap 11. Among these is the prophecy of chap 10. John opens it by saying, “And I beheld another mighty angel come down from heaven ...and he had in his hand a little book open; and he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the earth.” Verses 1, 2. To establish the chronology of the mission of this angel, will be the first point in order; and in doing this his identity with the first angel of chap 14, will be made to appear. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.16
“He had in his hand a little book open.” It can only be inferred from this language that this book was at some time closed up; and in striking harmony with this, we read of a book in Daniel which was closed up and sealed to a certain time. “But thou, O 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.” Daniel 12:4. Since this book was closed up only till the time of the end, it follows that at that time the book would be opened; and as its closing was mentioned in prophecy it would be but reasonable to expect that in the predictions of events to take place at the time of the end the opening of this book would be mentioned. There is no book spoken of as closed up and sealed except the book of Daniel’s prophecy; and there is no account of the opening of that book unless it be here in the tenth of Revelation. We see furthermore that the contents of these books are the same. The book which Daniel had directions to close up and seal had reference to time: “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?” And when the angel comes down with the little book open, on which he bases his proclamation, he gives a message in relation to time: “Time shall be no longer.” Nothing more could be required to establish the identity of these two books and to show that the little book which the angel had in his hand open, was the book of the prophecy of Daniel. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.17
An important point is now determined toward settling the chronology of this angel; for we have seen that the prophecy, more particularly the prophetic periods, of Daniel, were not to be opened till the time of the end; and if this is the book which the angel has in his hand open, it follows that he proclaims his message, this side of the time when the book should be opened, or somewhere this side of the commencement of the time of the end. All that now remains on this point is to ascertain when the time of the end commenced; and the book of Daniel, itself, furnishes data from which this can be done. In Daniel 11, from verse 30, the papal power is brought to view. In verse 35, we read, “And some of them of understanding shall fall to try them, and to purge and make them white, even to the time of the end.” Here is brought to view the period of the supremacy of the little horn, during which time the saints, times and laws should be given into his hand, and fall through his persecutions. This is declared to reach to the time of the end. It ended A. D. 1798, where the 1260 years of papal rule expired. There the time of the end commenced, and the book was opened. And since that time many have run to and fro, and knowledge on these points has marvelously increased. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.18
The chronology of this angel is further ascertained from the fact that he is identical with the first angel of Revelation 14. The points of identity between them are easily seen. 1. They both have a special message to proclaim. 2. They both utter their proclamation with a loud voice. 3. They use similar language, both referring to the great Creator, as the maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and the things that are therein. 4. They both proclaim time: one swearing that time shall be no more, and the other proclaiming that the hour of God’s judgment has come. But the message of Revelation 14:6, is located this side of the commencement of the time of the end. It is a proclamation of the hour of God’s judgment come, and hence must have its application to the last generation. Paul did not preach the hour of judgment come: Luther and his co-adjutors [sic] did not preach it. Paul reasoned of a judgment to come, indefinitely future; and Luther placed it at least 300 years off in his day. Moreover Paul has warned us against any such preaching as the hour of God’s judgment has come, until a certain time. In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, he says, “Now we beseech you brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 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,” etc. Here Paul introduces to our view the man of sin, the little horn, the papacy, and covers with a caution the whole period of his supremacy, which, as already noticed, was 1260 years, ending in 1798. In 1798 therefore the restriction from proclaiming the day of Christ at hand, ceased; in 1798, the time of the end commenced, and the seal was taken from the little book. Since that period therefore the angel goes forth proclaiming the hour of God’s judgment come, and since that time, too, the angel takes his stand on sea and land, and swears that time shall be no more. Of their identity there can now be no question; and all the arguments which go to locate the one, are equally effective for the other. We need not enter into any argument here that the present generation has witnessed the fulfillment of these two prophecies. In the Advent preaching, more especially from 1840 to 1844, they met a full and circumstantial accomplishment. The position of this angel, having one foot upon the sea, and another on the land, denotes the rapid spread of his proclamation by sea and by land. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 84.19
He swears that time shall be no more. What is the meaning of this? Is it that with his message literal time ends, and eternity commences? One of three things it must mean; as there are but three kinds of time to which it can refer: These are literal time, as compared with eternity, probationary time, and prophetic time. The first it cannot mean; for the next verse speaks of the days of the voice of the seventh angel; and chap 11:15-19, gives some of the events to take place under his sounding, which transpire in the present state. And it cannot mean probationary time; for that does not cease till Christ closes his work as priest, which is not till the seventh angel has commenced to sound. Revelation 11:19. It must therefore mean prophetic time. Prophetic time shall be no more; not that time should never be used in a prophetic sense; for the “days of the voice of the seventh angel,” spoken of immediately after, doubtless mean the years of the seventh angel; but no prophetic period should extend beyond his message: they should all close there. Arguments on the prophetic periods show that the longest ones do not extend beyond the autumn of 1844. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.1
But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel. This seventh trump is not the last trump [1 Corinthians 15:52] which wakes the sleeping dead; but is the seventh of the series of the seven trumpets, and, like the others of the series, occupies days [years] in sounding. In the days when he shall begin to sound the mystery of God shall be finished. Not in the day when he shall begin to sound, not in the very commencement of his sounding; but in the first years of his sounding the mystery of God shall be finished. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.2
From the events to take place under its sounding the commencement of the seventh trumpet may be located with sufficient definiteness at the close of the prophetic periods in 1844. Not many years from that date, then, the mystery of God is to be finished. The great event, whatever it is, is right upon us. Some closing and decisive work with whatever of importance and solemnity it bears in its train, is near at hand. Let us then, assured that it is something in which we are all concerned, more earnestly inquire what the mystery of God is, and what bearing its finishing has upon the question of our future destiny. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.3
What is the mystery of God? Happily that book which has been given as a lamp to our feet, does not leave us in darkness here. A few direct testimonies will suffice: Ephesians 1:9. “Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself; that in the dispensation of the fullness of times, he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and on earth, even in him.” Here God’s purpose to gather together all into Christ is called the mystery of his will. This is accomplished through the gospel. Ephesians 6:19. “And for me [Paul asks that prayers may be made] that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel.” Here the gospel is declared plainly to be a mystery. It is called in Colossians 4:3, the mystery of Christ. Ephesians 3:3, 6. “How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery (as I wrote afore in few words);” etc., “that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel.” Paul here declares that the mystery was made known to him by revelation, as he had before written. Now where has Paul recorded that anything was given him by revelation? and what was it? Turn to Galatians 1:11, 12, and you will find the answer. Paul there says, “But I certify you brethren that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man, for I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Here Paul tells us plainly what he received through revelation: it was the gospel. In Ephesians 3:3, he calls it the mystery, made known to him by revelation, as he had written before. The Epistle to the Galatians is said to have been written in A. D. 58, and that to the Ephesians in A. D. 64. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.4
In view of these testimonies, few will be disposed to deny that the mystery of God is the gospel. It is the same, then, as if the angel had declared, In the days of the voice of the seventh angel when he shall begin to sound, the gospel shall be finished. But what is the finishing of the gospel? Let us first inquire for what it was given? It was given to take out from the nations a people for God’s name. Acts 15:14. Its finishing will of course be the close of this work. It will be finished when the number of God’s people are made up, mercy ceases to be offered, and probation closes. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.5
The subject is now before us in all its magnitude. Such is the momentous work to be accomplished in the early days of the voice of the seventh angel, who has already been sounding seventeen years. God is not slack; his word is not uncertain; are we ready for the issue? ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.6
Another feature of the text remains to be noticed. The angel supports his assertion by the authority of the prophets: “as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” A brief glance at their testimony is therefore here in point. Enoch is perhaps the oldest prophet of whom we have account who has spoken upon this point. He declared, according to Jude, that “the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints.” It is proper to remark here that all such prophecies as this, have a direct bearing upon this subject, since the finishing of the mystery of God, the close of probation, the visitations of judgment upon the last generation, and the coming of the Lord, are intimately and inseparably connected. So that he who prophesies of the coming of the Lord, necessarily involves in his prediction, the finishing of the mystery of God, which must necessarily closely precede that event. Isaiah is full on this point. We might transcribe the 24th chapter entire: a few verses will serve as specimens: “Behold the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.” This testimony, it will be observed, has reference not to any particular portion of the earth, but to the whole earth, and well describes the condition in which it will be left after the second advent. Again, verses 19, 20. “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 cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall and not rise again.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.7
Again, in chap 66:13-16, we have an account of God’s dealings with both his enemies and his people at that time, “As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb; and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. 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.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.8
Jeremiah bears similar testimony: “Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. [This is the voice of God mentioned in Revelation 16:7; Hebrews 12:26; Joel 3:16, and Isaiah 66:16, and is one of the very closing events of this world’s history]. A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the Lord. 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 earth. And the slain of 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.” Jeremiah 25:30-33. And then the shepherds are called upon to howl and wallow themselves in ashes, and lament for the destruction that shall come upon them and their flocks, when deceiver and deceived shall perish together. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.9
But something was shown to Ezekiel, relating to the same time, and he has declared it in these words: “Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations. And mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. The morning is come unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the land: the time is come, the day of trouble is near, and not the sounding again of the mountains. Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee. Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded. Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness: none of them shall remain, nor of their multitude, nor of any of theirs: neither shall there be wailing for them. The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof. They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord.” Ezekiel 7:3, 4, 7, 8, 10-12, 19. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.10
The prophecy of Daniel dwells largely on this subject. Chapters 2, and from 7-12 are occupied with it exclusively. Prominent among his sublime and thrilling declarations, may be noted the following: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, 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.” Chap 2:44. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.11
“I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels 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. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.” Chap 7:9-11. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.12
“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.” Verse 27. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.13
“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that is found written in the book. 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. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever.” Chap 12:1-3. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 85.14
Hosea speaks of a glorious event to take place in connection with the finishing of the mystery of God. It is this: “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.” Chap 13:14. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.1
Something was shown to Joel on the subject. He says: “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.” Chap 2:1. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.2
“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.” Chap 3:14-16. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.3
Habakkuk says: “And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” Chap 2:2, 3. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.4
Zephaniah, too, bears witness that the mystery of God is to be finished, and that terrible scenes shall transpire in connection therewith. His testimony runs thus: “The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. 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. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.” Chap 1:14, 15, 18. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.5
And Malachi is not silent on the same great theme. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.6
“Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another; and the Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him; 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.” Malachi 3:16, 17, 4:1. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.7
Thus has God declared by his prophets the finishing up of the controversy of Zion. Thus has been proclaimed the day of vengeance which the Lord declares is in his heart, when the year of his redeemed comes. Isaiah 63:4. Thus have they forewarned us of the approach of that great day which bears at once the double freight of vengeance and mercy - vengeance and destruction to his foes, but mercy and salvation to all his people. Thus have they declared that the mystery of God should be finished; and as they have declared, so it will be; for in the good and appointed time of Him who is not slack concerning his promises nor forgetful of his threatenings, all that the prophets have spoken shall be fulfilled. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.8
U. SMITH.
THE DAY OF THE LORD
“THE great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly.” Zephaniah 1:14. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.9
The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly - the day in which every transgression shall receive a just recompense of reward - the day to which the unjust are to be reserved to be punished - the day that will pass as the chaff before the fierce anger of the Lord. I propose to introduce a few passages of scripture where the day of the Lord is brought to view, in order to show its character, and to bring it before our minds, and then endeavor to show that it is near at hand and hasteth greatly. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.10
“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.” Zephaniah 1:15. It is to be a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation. “And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bond-man 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.” Revelation 6:15-17. “Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord saith thus: Wailing shall be in all streets, and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! And they shall call the husbandmen to mourning, and such as are skillful of lamentation to wailing.” Amos 5:16. “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.” Malachi 4:1. It is also to be a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness. Joel says, “Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand: a day of darkness and a day of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains.” Joel 2:2. “Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness and not light? even very dark and no brightness in it.” Amos 5:20. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.11
The heavens and the earth will probably shadow forth God’s vengeance - dark and ominous clouds will flit athwart the sky, causing it to be dark and gloomy - the sun and moon will be darkened and the stars withdraw their shining - the wicked will tremble - their knees smite together through fear, and all faces will gather blackness. And in the midst of this universal gloom, this ominous silence, suddenly the Lord will utter his voice. Yes, the Lord is to utter his voice again. He spoke once upon Mt. Sinai. “Whose voice then shook the earth, but now he hath promised saying, yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.” Hebrews 12:26. “Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.” Isaiah 13:13. “And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army; for his camp is very great; for he is strong that executeth his word; for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible and who can abide it?” Joel 2:11. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.12
But when will he come? When will the day of the Lord dawn upon our world? We think that the scriptures we have quoted have their application in our day and age of the world. We believe that the day of the Lord is near, and hasteth greatly. We will now introduce a few scriptures as a reason for the hope that is within us. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.13
In Luke chap 21, we read of certain signs which are to precede that day, the last of which is “distress of nations with perplexity, and men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth.” This prophecy is now meeting its fulfillment - distress of nations abounds, not only distress, but distress with perplexity - the rulers know not what to do - how to alleviate the difficulty - the people are alarmed - they too are perplexed - with what avidity do they seek after the latest news - how eagerly do they devour the daily papers to learn whether there is any prospect of a speedy adjustment of our difficulties - their hearts fail them for fear and for looking after the things which are coming on the earth. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.14
I received a letter from a friend a short time since, who was lately, if not now, a member in one of the prominent churches of the day. With reference to the signs of the times and the present war he writes, “I believe fully half the advent doctrine, now; corruption, deceit, fraud, in general, every vice stalks broadcast through the churches unrebuked by ministers or laymen. What’s to be the end? God only knows. Nothing but war, war, war, in every man’s mouth!” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.15
Does not this sound like the language of perplexity? I make this extract for the purpose of showing the feeling that pervades the minds of men. And again we find recorded in Jeremiah 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.” Jeremiah 25:32-34. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.16
Is not that prophecy meeting its fulfillment now? Let us look at home at our once happy and prosperous nation, now being deluged with blood, and let it answer. Has not evil come upon this nation? And if we may credit the reports from the scenes of carnage, the people are fast losing that respect and natural affection which would prompt them to spare a wounded foe, or bury a slain enemy; for according to reports numbers of the wounded were run through with the bayonet, or had their throats cut, and their dead bodies left unburied upon the ground, paving the way for greater atrocities and for more inhuman and unfeeling actions. If these reports are correct, or if not, the time will soon come when it will meet its fulfillment, for when brother can imbrue his hand in his brother’s blood, there is nothing too inhuman for him to do. Then if these reports are correct it is not only in part, a fulfillment of this prophecy, but one of the signs of the last days given by Paul in his second letter to Timothy, third chapter commencing at the first verse: “This know also that in the last days perilous times shall come, for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemous, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers,” etc. The order of the day among the nations is war! war! The proclamation in Joel 3:9-11, is being proclaimed. “Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up. Beat your ploughshares into swords, and your pruning-hooks into spears: let the weak say I am strong; assemble yourselves, and come all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about.” And again in Jeremiah 46:9, 10, “Come up ye horses, and rage ye chariots, and let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Lybians that handle the shield, and the Lydians that handle and bend the bow; for this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of vengeance that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.17
Let us look at home at our once peaceable nation and see if we can not behold the fulfillment of this prophecy. Has there not been such a preparation of war and a waking up of mighty men in our own country within the last few months, as has had no precedent in the past? Congress has authorized the President to call out an army of 500,000 men, and voted $500,000,000 to carry on the war. And it has been estimated that there has already been not far from $200,000,000, expended, and scarcely a commencement made. This when compared with former wars is almost incredible. The Crimean war it is said cost only $84,000,000. The late Italian war cost but $47,000,000, and the late war in India cost $38,000,000. If we are correct in our estimates the present war has already cost more than those three wars combined, and the “Ten Years War,” known in history as the French Revolution, cost only $230,000,000, being only about $30,000,000 more than has been expended by our government in a few months. Does not this look like preparing for war and waking up the mighty men, when a peaceable nation like ours prepares for war upon such a stupendous scale? It is not in our own nation only that this prophecy is meeting with its fulfillment. All the other nations have been and are still preparing for war more extensively than was ever before known in the history of the world. And were it not that the winds are being held until the servants of God are sealed, the battle of the great day of God Almighty would take place immediately. But soon the servants of God will be sealed, and then our great High Priest will leave the heavenly Sanctuary, probation will have ended, the fiat will then go forth, “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. And behold I come quickly, and my reward is with me to give every man according as his work shall be.” Revelation 22:11, 12. There will then no longer be any mediator between God and man. The winds (powers of earth) will then be let loose - there will then no longer be a restraining power to hold them in check - then the great battle of Armageddon will be fought, in which blood will flow to the horses’ bridles - then the wrath of God will be poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation. Sinners may scoff and say, Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation; but remember that the Lord is not slack concerning his promises. “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. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat: nevertheless, we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless.” 2 Peter 3:10-14. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 86.18
Although the great day of the Lord is near and hasteth greatly, probation still lingers. Christ still pleads in the heavenly sanctuary. He is still an advocate before the Father, still willing to make intercession for us. It is yet true that “now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation;” but that day will soon, very soon, close. Christ will soon lay down the censer and take up the crown; soon lay off his priestly robes and be clothed in his kingly garments; soon “appear without sin unto salvation to those who look for him,” but “revealed in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.1
And in view of these things, and in order that you may escape the perils of the last days which are thickening around us, will you not make the Lord your refuge, even the Most High your habitation? If you will, you have the promise: “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 destruction 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. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.” Psalm 91:3-12. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.2
E. S. WALKER.
OBITUARY
Justin Day, the subject of this notice, fell asleep in Jesus, July 22, 1861, at his residence in Chateaugay, Franklin Co., N. Y., aged 71 years and 12 days. His disease was dropsy and numb-palsy, from which he suffered much. A few days before his death, Bro. Day repeated these words, “I know that my Redeemer liveth,” etc. Job 19:25, 26. “There,” said he, “I should like to have my funeral sermon preached from that text;” and so it was, by the writer to a large and attentive congregation. The Presbyterian friends kindly offering their house in the village, the funeral was held there. Bro. Taylor, of Rouses’ Point, assisted in the services. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.3
H. G. BUCK.
Grass River, St. Law. Co., N. Y.
The gospel brings forth all the fullness of God and sets it in opposition to our emptiness; it invites us to partake and be happy; only believe, all things are yours. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.4
LETTERS
“Then they that feared the Lord, spake often one to another.”
From Bro. Crous
BRO. WHITE: I wish to say to the readers of the Review that I am striving to keep all the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, hoping with you to be an overcomer when our Saviour shall appear in the clouds of heaven to call forth his sleeping saints, and to redeem those who are ready and waiting for his return. It cheers us much to read the testimonies of our brethren and sisters of like faith. All the preaching we have is the paper. It is truly a welcome visitor. My companion and myself are all the Seventh-day Adventists there are in this place. We have to bear a great share of persecution, but the Lord has promised to be with us in six troubles, and in the seventh not to forsake us. The professors of religion here say our example tends to demoralize. They say we ought to go with the majority of christians, so there would be union in the churches. One minister said it was sophism to say that christians do not go to heaven when they die, and sinners to torment. To prove his position he quoted 1 Thessalonians 3:13, and Jude 14, then asked the question, If the saints do not go to heaven when they die how can they come with Christ? He quoted Revelation 20:13 to prove the wicked go to hell at death, then asked the same question. We think the facts contained in 1 Thessalonians 3:13, if carefully examined, would destroy his position, from the fact that when Jesus comes on the white cloud, there will be some living saints on the earth which could not come with him. Will some of the messengers of truth please notice the above texts in the Review for our instruction. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.5
Yours striving to overcome, so when the Life-giver comes we may be ready. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.6
WM. F. CROUS.
Appleton, Ohio.
NOTE. - The word rendered saints in the texts referred to means simply the holy ones, and we think refers to the angels. A similar expression occurs in Deuteronomy 33:2, where it must refer to the angels. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.7
From Bro. Wales
DEAR BRO. WHITE: I wish to improve a few moments in saying through the Review to my dear brethren whom I so much love, that I am still striving to overcome through the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony. Yes, dear brethren, the truth of the third angel’s message looks more and more precious to me. I often feel as if I wanted my whole soul, body and spirit, engaged in the work. I thank God that he ever showed me his will concerning me, and I believe that he has; and by the grace of my Master I mean to do it. O, that I may be kept very humble. May the Lord help me to seek meekness, seek righteousness, so that it may be that I shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s fierce anger. I often ask myself the question, Are we, as God’s people, ready for that day of the Lord which hasteth greatly? I fear we are not. I was glad to hear the exhortation concerning fasting and prayer. I feel for one that there is much need of it. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.8
Dear brethren, God will surely spue us out of his mouth if we do not arouse ourselves and be more engaged in this great work. Saith the Lord to the Laodicean church, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot. I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich and increased in goods, and have need of nothing, and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear, and anoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou mayest see.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.9
Now, dear brethren, shall we, while God’s dear servants are beseeching and entreating us to take earnest heed to the counsel of the faithful and true Witness, be careless, and cold, and indifferent? O, no. We cannot be. By God’s help we will take warning and arm ourselves for the conflict which is before us. Let us pray earnestly that the Lord may help us, the remnant church, to get the white raiment, the eye-salve, the gold tried in the fire, that we may be like a city set on a hill which cannot be hid. My prayer to God is to spare the remnant church. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.10
Dear brethren, let us be ready for every good work at all times, and in all positions. I was much pleased when I read Bro. Sawyer’s letter. I felt to thank God that there are a few in Israel that are willing to trust God a little further than they can see. O, how slow we are to trust our heavenly Father. God’s saints who are farmers sometimes forget that with the least breath of his mouth he can blight the crops which they are trying to raise, or perhaps cause the prices of produce to suddenly fall before they had made sales. Also we mechanics sometimes forget that God can stop our success in making sales for our articles of manufacture, or suffer some of our customers to fail, perhaps, in making us payments punctually, or cause us to lose some employment which we expected, etc., and all this misfortune perhaps through unfaithfulness and want of trust in God. Perhaps in many cases a lack of bringing all the tithes into the storehouse of God. 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 destroy the fruits of your ground, neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.11
Yes, brethren, let us, as Paul says, be not slothful in business, but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. Let us not be too fearful of not having enough for this or enough for that; but let us trust in God, be ready to every good word and work, be faithful soldiers for Christ, fight the good fight, keep the faith, make sure of eternal life, and go home and eat of the tree of life. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.12
O, bless the Lord for the privilege of working in his glorious cause! O, blessed prospect, glorious hope of the children of God. O, I want to provide myself bags which wax not old, and lay up a treasure in heaven that faileth not. May the Lord bless his people and bring them up to mount Zion, and bring me up with them. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.13
Your brother striving for eternal life.
F. T. WALES.
Melbourne, C. E.
From Sister Dayton
DEAR BRO. WHITE: It is now a little more than four months since I embraced the Advent doctrine and commenced to keep the holy Sabbath of the Lord. At that time I began to take the Review, and as my heart has been gladdened from week to week by its precious truths, and the cheering letters from the dear saints scattered abroad, I have often felt an earnest desire to throw in my testimony with theirs on the Lord’s side, and thus bear a humble part among those who speak often one to another. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.14
When Brn. Cornell and Lawrence came to this place six months ago, I was wasting my inheritance like the prodigal, and spending my time in the follies and pleasures of the world, and though the solemn truths of the third angel’s message seemed very plain to me, my stubborn heart refused to yield until the lectures were nearly closed, when I resolved to seek my Father’s house, and truly felt to say, Make me but as one of thy hired servants. My heart is filled with thankfulness to God for his loving-kindness and tender mercies toward me in permitting me to hear those saving truths, and I praise his holy name that I had a heart to obey them. I feel that the cause of present truth is near and dear to me, and I rejoice for the witness that I have passed from death unto life, inasmuch as I truly love God’s people. Their joy makes me rejoice, and when they mourn I am grieved. I am striving to overcome sin, and it is my chief desire that I may be enabled by God’s assisting grace to lay aside every weight, and put on the whole armor of God, and with patience endure to the end. I long to be filled with the Spirit that was in Christ, that I may be prepared for that glorious day when he will come to gather his ransomed ones home, for I want a share with the dear remnant in singing the songs of Zion. The way grows narrow, and new difficulties rise as I journey onward, but I feel to give up all for Christ, and willingly endure the frowns and scorn of the world, having a hope that maketh not ashamed. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.15
There are but a few here who keep the holy Sabbath, but there are enough to claim God’s blessed promises to those who serve him in Spirit and in truth. We were much cheered and strengthened by a visit from Bro. Bates, and have organized a Sabbath-school and Bible-class, which prove very interesting and profitable. We have a prayer-meeting on the Sabbath, also on Wednesday-evening, and feel united in adopting Systematic Benevolence. We realize that to win the crown we must bear the cross. We are trying to arise and press forward in the work, and feel the deep responsibility that rests upon those who are striving to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. We hope to have the prayers of God’s people, and, suffering with them here to rejoice with them hereafter, knowing he is faithful who has promised. Yours in hope of eternal life, JULIA A. DAYTON. Chesaning, Mich. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 87.16
From Sr. Brackett
DEAR BRO. WHITE: I have felt for some time that it might be duty for me to throw in my feeble testimony with the dear remnant; feeling however my inability, and seeing so many that are so capable withholding, I feel fearful that I may be out of my place, but knowing this is an individual work in which we are engaged, I venture to write to let you know that I am daily trying to overcome, that I may at last get the gold tried in the fire that I may be rich, the white raiment that I may be clothed, and the eye-salve that I may see my duty day by day. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.1
We as a church feel the need of greater consecration and a closer walk with God. We meet together every Sabbath, and feel that to meet is not in vain. We had a very solemn and heart-searching meeting last Sabbath on fast-day. We truly felt that it was good to humble ourselves by fasting and turning to the Lord. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.2
I feel that I could not do without the Review. I love the cheering words of comfort and encouragement that visit us from week to week. I see a brother Harmon calls for the paper; for this I do rejoice to see the honest in heart coming out and acknowledging the truth as it is written. I believe he speaks the feelings of many that have not yet ventured to throw away the traditions and commandments of men. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.3
I united with the Presbyterian church when I was eighteen. I walked with them for nineteen years. My mind then became much exercised on the subject of baptism. I united with the Baptist church in Marshall. I was a member there thirteen years, and felt well satisfied until Bro. Frisbie came to lecture in a district adjoining us, four years ago last Spring. I went to hear with my mind much prejudiced; but when I saw the Bible held up and made so plain, my prejudice soon gave way, and I was led to see the beauty of God’s work, and from that time forward have been made to rejoice in the precious truth, walking in all the Lord’s commandments and striving for the faith of Jesus. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.4
I do feel to rejoice that I ever heard this glorious truth; and oh, shall I be found worthy to have an humble place with the children of God? ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.5
Your unworthy sister,
MARY BRACKETT.
Convis, Mich.
Extracts from Letters
Sister S. A. Snyder writes from Dallas, Pa.: “I love the Review for the precepts and the truths it contains. It has been like a sweet messenger to me in opening my mind to the truths of the Bible. It is so cheering to hear from brethren and sisters scattered abroad over the land whom we have never seen. I feel that we are made nigh by the blood of Christ. I have never heard a sermon on the Sabbath, and don’t know that I ever shall. I am the only one in this entire vicinity that keeps it, yet I hail it with delight, and I regard it, as the prophet says, a delight and honorable. My trust is in him who hath said, I will not suffer thee to be tempted above what you are able to bear, but will in the midst of temptation make a way for escape. If any of the messengers should come this way, don’t forget us, for we would appreciate it highly to see the face of one before the coming of the Son of man. I think it cannot be long before the earth will be fully ripe and ready for harvest. May I be prepared and rest with you all in that kingdom which God has prepared for them that love him.” ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.6
THE REVIEW AND HERALD
BATTLE CREEK, MICH., THIRD-DAY, AUG. 13, 1861
APPOINTMENTS Appointment for Canada
WE are very much pleased with the appointment of Bro. White in regard to a general conference in Northern Vermont or Canada. We would inform the brethren that the conference will be held in North Sutton, Canada East. We would have written sooner if we had not been obliged to consult a committee who had previously been appointed to decide when and where a yearly conference should be held. We extend an invitation to the brethren in Vermont, Canada, and Northern New York, and to as many more as can attend. Come, brethren and sisters, let us go to this conference prepared to work for the Lord, and to take such steps as will conduce to the happiness and prosperity of Zion, and glorify the great Head of the church. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.7
By order and in behalf of the church,
A. C. BOURDEAU.
D. T. BOURDEAU.
P.S. We will meet Bro. and sister White with a team at St. Albans depot, Vt., Tuesday, the 20th inst. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.8
D. T. B.
PROVIDENCE permitting, Bro. and sister White will hold meetings in Northern New York, 17 & 18; Northern Vermont or Canada, 24 and 25. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.9
Appointment for Northern New York
THE meeting for Northern New York, August 17 and 18, appointed by Bro. White, will be held at Buck’s Bridge. A general attendance of the brethren and sisters is requested. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.10
H. HILLIARD.
PROVIDENCE permitting, we will hold meetings in La Porte, Ind., August 17 and 18, North Liberty, 24 and 25, as the brethren may appoint. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.11
JOSEPH BATES.
Allegan, Aug. 8, 1861.
Business Department
Business Notes
J. H. Waggoner: History of Sabbath is not yet ready. Will send you a copy as soon as it is out. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.12
Receipts
Annexed to each receipt in the following list, is the Volume and Number of the REVIEW AND HERALD to which the money receipted pays. If money for the paper is not in due time acknowledged, immediate notice of the omission should then be given. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.13
FOR REVIEW AND HERALD
D. B. Webber 1,00,xix,1. D. Stiles 1,41,xix,1. M. B. Ferree 2,00,xviii,1. C. W. Stanley (for O. J. Steele) 1,00,xix,8. L. B. Kneeland (for C. E. Kneeland) 0,50,xix,7. G. C. Russ 3,00,xix,1. W. Merry 2,00,xx,1. Sarah A. Snyder 3,00,xix,1. D. D. Howard 1,00,xix,1. Sarah J. Dodds 1,00,xvii,1. Mary Bracket (for Austin Harmon) 1,00,xx,4. A. Coventry 1,00,xix,1. A. Leeper 1,00,xviii,16. Wm. Lea 1,50,xix,2. J. Kimble 2,00,xx,1. J. Pambla 1,00,xix,12. Peter Pambla 1,00,xix,8. W. F. Cole 1,00,xvi,1. Geo. Adams 0,95,xviii,14. Dr. Parish 0,50,xviii,14. J. M. Daigneau 1,00,xx,1. A. H. Clymer 2,00,xx,1. J. M. Foster 2,00,xx,1. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.14
For Shares in Publishing Association
Abigail Rogers $10. R. Godsmark $20. J. Sisley $10. Jos. Clarke $10. Charlotte A. Alley $10. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.15
Cash Received on Account
H. W. Gordon (E. W. S.) $10. Maria Kellogg (E. W. S.) $0,50. Jos. Bates $3,55. B. N. Auten (E. W. S.) $10. J. H. Waggoner $0,50. Nathan Fuller $10,55. I. Sanborn $5. A. Coventry $0,51. S. Rumery $15. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.16
Books Sent by Mail
R. T. Payne 80c. Dr. H. S. Lay 10c. M. B. Ferree 25c. L. B. Kneeland 20c. Chas. Andrews 50c. J. Kimble 10c. J. Whitenack 10c. Geo. Adair 80c. A. H. Clymer $1,77. N. Fuller 45c. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.17
Books Sent by Express
B. F. Snook, Waterloo, Black Hawk Co., Iowa, $63,39. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.18
For Missionary Purposes
A friend, $5,50. M. B. Ferree $1,75. Ch. in Convis, Mich. (S. B.) $9. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.19
PUBLICATIONS
| The New Hymn Book, containing 464 pages, and 122 pieces of music, | 80 cts. |
| History of the Sabbath, Part I. Bible History, | 15 ” |
| ” ” ” Part II. Since the Apostles, | 15 ” |
| Sabbath Tracts, Nos. 1-4. This work presents a condensed view of the entire Sabbath question | 15 ” |
| The Three Angels of Revelation 14:6-12, particularly the Third Angel’s Message, and the Two-horned Beast, | 15 ” |
| Hope of the Gospel, or immortality the gift of God, | 15 ” |
| Which? Mortal or Immortal? or an inquiry into the present constitution and future condition of man, | 15 ” |
| Modern Spiritualism; its Nature and Tendency. | |
| This book should be in the hands of every family, as a warning against Spiritualism, | 15 ” |
| The Kingdom of God. A refutation of the doctrine called Age-to-Come, | 15 ” |
| Pauline Theology, or the Christian Doctrine of Future Punishment, as taught in the epistles of Paul, | 15 ” |
| Prophecy of Daniel. The Four Universal Kingdoms, The Sanctuary and Twenty-three Hundred Days, | 10 ” |
| The Saints’ Inheritance. The Immortal Kingdom located on the New Earth, | 10 ” |
| Signs of the Times, showing that the Second Coming of Christ is at the Door, | 10 ” |
| Law of God. The testimony of both Testaments, showing its origin and perpetuity, | 10 ” |
| Vindication of the true Sabbath, by J. W. Morton, late Missionary to Hayti, | 10 ” |
| Review of Springer on the Sabbath, Law of God and first day of the week, | 10 ” |
| Facts for the Times. Extracts from the writings of eminent authors Ancient and Modern, | 10 ” |
| Miscellany. Seven tracts in one book on the Second Advent and the Sabbath, | 10 ” |
| The Seven Trumpets. The Sounding of the Seven Trumpets of Revelation 8 and 9, | 10 ” |
| Christian Baptism. Its Nature, Subjects and Design, | 10 ” |
| Assistant. The Bible Student’s Assistant, or a compend of Scripture references, | 5 ” |
| The Fate of the Transgressor, or a Short Argument on the First and Second Deaths, | 5 ” |
| Nature and Obligation of the Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment - Apostasy and Perils of the Last Days, | 5 ” |
| Truth Found. A Short Argument for the Sabbath with an appendix, “The Sabbath not a Type,“ | 5 ” |
| An Appeal for the restoration of the Bible Sabbath in an Address to the Baptists, | 5 ” |
| Review of Crozier on the Institution, Design and Abolition of the Seventh-day Sabbath, | 5 ” |
| Review of Fillio. A reply to a series of discourses delivered by him in Battle Creek on the Sabbath question, | 5 ” |
| Brown’s Experience in relation to Entire Consecration and the Second Advent, | 5 ” |
| Report of General Conference held in Battle Creek, June 1859, Address on Systematic Benevolence, etc., | 5 ” |
| Sabbath Poem. A Word for the Sabbath, or False Theories Exposed, | 5 ” |
| Illustrated Review. A Double Number of the REVIEW AND HERALD illustrated, | 5 ” |
| Spiritual Gifts Vol. 1, or the Great Controversy between Christ and his angels, and Satan and his angels, | 50 ” |
| Spiritual Gifts Vol. 2. Experience, Views and Incidents in connection with the Third Message, | 50 ” |
| Scripture Doctrine of future Punishment. An Argument by H. H. Dobney, Baptist Minister of England, | 75 ” |
| Debt and Grace as related to the Doctrine of Future Punishment, by C. F. Hudson, | 100 ” |
| Voice of the Church on the Coming and Kingdom of the Redeemer. A History of the doctrine, | 100 ” |
PENNY TRACTS. Who Changed the Sabbath? - Unity of the Church - Spiritual Gifts - Judson’s Letter on Dress - Law of God, by Dobney (2 cts.) - Law of God by Wesley - Appeal to men of reason on Immortality - Much in Little - Truth - Death and Burial - Preach the Word. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.20
These small Tracts can be sent, post-paid, in packages of not less than twenty-five. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.21
Home Here and Home in Heaven, with other poems. This work embraces all those sweet and Scriptural poems written by Annie R. Smith, from the time she embraced the third message till she fell asleep in Jesus. Price 25 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.22
The Chart. A Pictorial Illustration of the Visions of Daniel and John 20 by 25 inches. Price 15 cents. On rollers, post-paid, 75 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.23
German. Das Wesen des Sabbaths und unsere Verpflichtung auf ihn nach dem Vierten Gebote. A Tract of 80 pp., a Translation of Nature and Obligation of the Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment. Price 10 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.24
Holland. De Natuur en Verbinding van den Sabbath volgens het Vierde Gebodt. Translated from the same as the German. Price 10 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.25
French. Le Sabbat de la Bible. A Tract on the Sabbath of 32 pp. Price 5 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.26
La Grande Statue de Daniel II, et les Quatre Betes Symboliques, et quelques remarques sur la Seconde Venue de Christ, et sur le Cinquieme Royaume Universel. A Tract of 32 pp. on the Prophecies. Price 5 cents. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.27
These publications will be sent by mail, post-paid, at their respective prices. When ordered by the quantity, not less than $5,00 worth, one-third will be deducted from these prices on Pamphlets and Tracts, and one-fourth on bound Books. In this case, postage added, if sent by mail. Orders, to insure attention, must be accompanied with the cash, unless special arrangements be made. Address Elder JAMES WHITE, Battle Creek, Michigan. ARSH August 13, 1861, page 88.28