The Great Visions of Ellen G. White

The Curtain Lifted

God’s prophets were called “seers” before they were called “prophets” (1 Samuel 9:9), because prophets “see” things that prophetically ungifted persons do not. As Ellen so eloquently put it in another of her books dealing with the great controversy theme: GVEGW 68.2

“In the annals of human history, the growth of nations, the rise and fall of empires, appear as if dependent on the will and prowess of man; the shaping of events seems, to a great degree, to be determined by his power, ambition, or caprice. But in the Word of God the curtain is drawn aside, and we behold, above, behind, and through all the play and counterplay of human interests and power and passions, the agencies of the All-merciful One, silently, patiently working out the counsels of His own will.” ³³ GVEGW 68.3

Nor were the Bible prophets the only ones privileged to look behind the veil. In her introduction to The Great Controversy (and it was her introduction, contrary to some contemporary critics; in a letter to Dr. David Paulson she twice uses the singular personal pronoun in referring to “my introduction” and “my statement”), ³⁴ Ellen claimed possession of supernatural information: GVEGW 68.4

“Through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, the scenes of the long-continued conflict between good and evil have been opened to the writer of these pages. From time to time I have been permitted to behold the working, in different ages, of the great controversy between Christ, the Prince of life, the Author of our salvation, and Satan, the prince of evil, the author of sin, the first transgressor of God’s holy law.... GVEGW 68.5

“As the Spirit of God has opened to my mind the great truths of His Word, and the scenes of the past and the future, I have been bidden to make known to others that which has thus been revealed—to trace the history of the controversy in past ages, and especially so to present it as to shed a light on the fast-approaching struggle of the future.” ³⁵ GVEGW 68.6

After Ellen came out of vision, the funeral finally concluded with the long-delayed interment of the deceased by mourning relatives and friends. Ellen later remembered, “Great solemnity rested upon those who remained“: ³⁶ and as all then went to their homes, the murmur reportedly could be heard in awe-stricken tones, “We have seen strange things today.” ³⁷ GVEGW 69.1

On Monday, March 15, the Tillotsons took the Whites in their carriage the 30 miles from Lovett’s Grove to Fremont (where the hosts are believed to have lived), a good day’s journey in those days by horse-drawn conveyance, even over good roads. There the Whites remained overnight, presumably in the Tillotson home, until their rail departure for Michigan the next day. ³⁸ GVEGW 69.2

When the Whites entered Fremont that Monday evening they did not know that one of the town’s lawyers, 36-year-old Rutherford B. Hayes, would 10 years later be elected governor of the state of Ohio, nor that in 1877 he would become the nineteenth president of the United States. GVEGW 69.3

But they may have heard about Fort Stephenson, the remnants of which were still somewhat in evidence there. On August 1-3, 1813, a decisive battle had been fought at this fort in Fremont (then called Lower Sandusky) that tipped the scales of the War of 1812 in favor of the Americans. GVEGW 69.4

The exploits of 21-year-old George Croghan during the battle were still the talk of the town. With only 160 Americans he had spectacularly routed a vastly superior force of 1,500 Indian and British forces under Tecumseh and Henry Proctor. The army of William Henry Harrison in the West was thereby saved, making possible a later victory at the Thames in Ontario. This effectively ended the war in victory for the American forces. GVEGW 69.5

Having just seen in vision Christ’s ultimate victory (against great odds and after a prolonged siege) over Satan and his natural and supernatural forces, Ellen doubtless would have cherished—even relished—the story of young Croghan’s victory as she retired to her bed that night. GVEGW 69.6