Manuscript Releases, vol. 3 [Nos. 162-209]

MR No. 176—Europe's Glory—The Alps

(From E. G. White diary, written December 15, 1885, on return trip from Italy to Switzerland.)

I was so very weary I lay down on the seat and slept for two hours, and in doing this lost some interesting part of the scenery, but we made as much as possible of the rest of the journey. 3MR 214.1

It was grand and magnificent. There were lakes and gorges and canyons and towering rocks, some of remarkable appearance. The mountain peaks, rising above mountain peaks. Some adorned with trees, some cultivated to the very top. The trail to them went zigzag, and how they could build their houses, and make their gardens and live up so high was a mystery to us. Chapels were built on the mountain heights, and villages were nestled in the mountain gorges. 3MR 214.2

These mountains of rocks towering up so high, of every shape and of immense magnitude, led us, as we looked upon them, to have deep and solemn thoughts of God. These are His works, evidences of the greatness of His power. He has set fast the mountains, girding them with His power, and the arm of God alone can move them out of their place. Rising before us in their grandeur they point us heavenward to God's majesty, saying “He changeth not.” With Him there is no variableness nor shadow of turning. His law was spoken from Mt. Sinai amid thunder and flame and smoke, concealing His awful majesty and glory. He spoke His holy law with a voice like a trumpet. The lightnings flashed, the thunders rolled, shaking the grand old mountain from the top to its very base. We are filled with awe. We love to gaze upon the grandeur of God's works, and are never weary. Here is a range of mountains extending the whole length of a continent piled up one above another like a massive irregular wall reaching even above the clouds. That God who keeps the mountain in position has given us promises that are more immutable than these grand old mountains. God's word will stand forever from generation to generation. 3MR 214.3

If man complies with the conditions, then God will fulfill His part, though the foundations of the earth should be broken up and the heavens should pass away. God's Word, God's will in His law, remains unchangeable, eternal. The God of the mountains is our defense, our strong tower. We will find in Him help and strength ever to do His will. We see the perpetual hills and the glory that is flooded upon them from the heavens, and we want to pray and adore the living God who created all these wonders. We see hills, mountains, and valleys bathed in the noontide sun, reflecting its glories in the lakes—and we want to pray and worship the Lord God of hosts. We want faith. We want praise in our hearts that God ever lives. His words of promise are as unchangeable as His mountains. 3MR 215.1

God's word, the blessed guide, given to man declares concerning these great and grand rocky mountains that have stood the storm and tempest, the torrent and the roar of the winds, “The mountains shall depart, and the hills shall be removed, but His kindness shall not depart, neither shall the covenant of peace be removed from the heart that trusts in Him with perfect faith.” The range of the mountains which cover so much space with barren rocks and eternal snows is a storehouse of fertility to the plains. The precious things of the valley are nourished from these everlasting mountains. The Alps of Europe are its glory. The treasures of the hills send their blessings to millions. We see numerous cataracts rushing from the tops of the mountains into the valleys beneath. 3MR 215.2

These mountains to me are significant. Subterranean fires although concealed in them are burning. When the wicked shall have filled their cup of iniquity then the Lord will rise out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth. He will show the greatness of His power. The supreme Governor of the universe will reveal to men who have made void His law that His authority will be maintained. Not all the waters of the ocean shall fail, nor the fires which the Lord shall kindle. The earthquake makes the earth tremble, the rocks heave from the place, the hills and solid ground shake beneath the tread of Omnipotence, yet once more He will shake, not the earth only but also the heavens. There is a sea of fire beneath our feet. There is a furnace of fire in these old rocky mountains. The mountain belching forth its fires tells us the mighty furnace is kindled, waiting for God's word to wrap the earth in flames. Shall we not fear and tremble before Him?—Manuscript 29, 1885, 15-17. (Entries from E. G. White diary—“First Visit to Italy,” November 26 to December 15, 1885.) 3MR 216.1

When our Creator formed the world to be a habitation for man, its arrangements were prepared by the God of wisdom to help the mental as well as the physical wants of man. The great Architect has formed and fashioned the scenes of nature that they may have an important bearing upon man's intellectual and moral character. These are to be God's school to educate the mind and morals. Here the mind may have a vast field for study in the display of the majestic works of the Infinite One. 3MR 216.2

The rocks are among the precious things of earth, containing treasures of wisdom and knowledge. In the rocks and mountains are registered the fact that God did destroy the wicked from off the earth by a flood, and the broken surface of the earth reveals, in the gigantic rocks and towering mountains, that the Lord's power has done this because of the wickedness of man in the transgression of His law. The ever-varying scenery that meets the eye is the work of the God of wisdom, that in His stupendous works men may discern that there is a living God whose power is unlimited. The marvelous works of majesty are to refine the soul and to soften the roughness of man's nature, to help him in character building.—Manuscript 73, 1886, 2, 3. (Miscellaneous descriptive items. Biographical fragment, 1886. No other date.) 3MR 217.1

Released August, 1965.