The Third Angel’s Message.
By J.
Having shown the manner of the impending restoration of the Papacy, and the inevitable result of it, namely, the renewal of the war upon the saints, and so the enforced worship of the beast; having shown the progress, and the assured prospect of success of the Religious Amendment movement to form a union of Church and State in the United States, and so to create an image to the beast, and to enforce here the worship of the beast and his image, even to the last extreme of civil pains; it now becomes necessary to inquire what is involved in this, and what it means to the people who are now living, and who will have an active part in the work, either for or against it. This is clearly revealed. In Rev. 14:9–12 are these words: “And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints; here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” This is the most dreadful warning that is found in the Bible. It is not alone that the worshipers of the beast and his image shall receive the punishment which is the common lot of all the wicked of all ages, but besides this they “shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation.” That is, they shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God in this life, and then receive in the lake of fire the punishment which befalls all the wicked of all times. This it is that is pronounced by the word of God upon whosoever shall “worship the beast and his image;” while on the other hand, the powers represented by the beast and his image pronounce that whoever will not worship the beast and his image “should be killed.” The contest then will be no light one. It is either to yield to the power of man and suffer the wrath of God, or to brave the wrath of man even to the utmost, and by the power of God to obtain the victory over the beast and his image, and enjoy the everlasting salvation of God. All who do resist the wrath of these powers of earth will obtain the victory, and this salvation; for saith the prophet: “I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire; and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” Rev. 15:2. But it may be asked, Can we be sure that this contest is yet in the future? We are well assured that we can. We shall give some reasons. The warning says that “If any man shall worship the beast and his image, . . . the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God.” Rev. 14:9. Now Rev. 15:1 says, “I saw . . . seven angels having the seven last plagues: for in them is filled up the wrath of God.” Notice the direct connection: In the seven last plagues is filled up the wrath of God; and whoever worships the beast and his image, shall drink of the wrath of God. Therefore, it is evident that they who worship the beast and his image are to suffer the seven last plagues. Note further, they are the seven last plagues. These plagues are the last that the world will ever see, at least in this life. This of itself shows that all this is yet future. But there is more. Under the sixth plague the world is to be gathered “to the battle of the536great day of God.” Rev. 16:12–14. And when the seventh is poured out, there comes “a great voice out of the temple of Heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. . . . And there was a great earthquake such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake and so great. . . . And the cities of the nations fell. . . . And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.” Rev. 16:17–20. No one can possibly say but that these things are in the future. But we have positive proof that they are yet future. This removing of the mountains and islands is referred to in Rev. 6:14–17 in these words: “And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every 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?” With this agrees the word of Isaiah: “They shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.” Isa. 2:19–21. Most assuredly these things are yet future. But these things are only the terrors of the last of the seven plagues; the seven last plagues are the wine of the wrath of God; and whoever worships the beast and his image, suffers the seven last plagues,—the first one as well as the last one; for when the first angel of the seven poured out his vial, “there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshiped his image.” Rev. 16:2. This then shows it to be certain that the worship of the beast and his image is yet future, and, consequently, that the contest over that question is yet future. There is another line of argument that shows the same thing. By reference to Rev. 14:6–12 it will be seen that there are mentioned the messages of three angels in succession. The first one of the three says among other things, to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, “Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Following this one, there was another angel saying, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” Then “the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image,” etc. And then following this third angel’s message, with only the intervention of a verse pronouncing a blessing upon the dead who die in the Lord from this time onward, we read: “And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap; for the time has come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.” Now this same Jesus, who comes thus upon the white cloud with the sharp sickle in his hand to reap the harvest of the earth, he himself said, “The harvest is the end of the world.” Matt. 13:39. Therefore it is plain that this third angel’s message is the last work of God that precedes the coming of Christ on the cloud of his glory, and the end of the world. But this message warns against the worship of the beast and his image, under penalty of the wine of the wrath of God, which is the seven last plagues. But the seven last plagues end, as we have shown, with the end of the world. This then shows that the enforcement of the worship of the beast and his image under the final penalty of death, will be the last oppression of the people of God that shall ever be seen. And this corresponds exactly with what we showed as the result of the restoration of the Papacy: He “made war with the saints, and prevailed against them, until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.” As this oppression, this war with the saints, continues till the saints possess the kingdom, and as the saints possess the kingdom only at the coming of the Lord, this view not only answers to those scriptures which show that the third angel’s message reaches to the end of the world, but it answers perfectly to those scriptures which show the end of the beast and his image. Dan. 7:11 says: “I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.” Paul says of the same power, the “mystery of iniquity,” “that Wicked,” “whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.” 2 Thess. 2:8. And both Daniel and Paul are explained by Rev. 19:11–20: “And I saw Heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood; and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies which were in Heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords. . . . And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet [the image to the beast, Rev. 13:12–14] that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.” This shows that the beast and his image will be the last powers that will be on this earth, and that they will be living powers when Christ and the end of the world come. But the life of the image to the beast is given him that he “should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.” Rev. 13:15. He likewise “causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.” Verse 12. And the beast on his own part is restored to power to make war on the saints till they possess the kingdom. All these facts fix the matter to an absolute certainty that the worship of the beast and his image, and the contest over the worship is yet future; and that that contest when it begins will continue till the end of the world, and will be decided only by the coming of the Lord in his glory, when the beast and his image will be given to the burning flame, and when those who shall have kept the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, will, by the power of Christ, get the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, and will stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.