Faith in Unfulfilled Prophecy
By G. G. RUPERT
It is not always easy to have unbounded confidence in prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled. Especially is this true when, having made up our minds as to how it will be fulfilled, all indications point the other way. There are times of real trial of faith to the servant of God, and especially is this true of those who are the students of the prophetic portions of the Bible. We read the prediction, we form conclusions as to how it will come to pass; but when it does come, it may come in a way that we little expect, and before it comes, everything from a human standpoint may indicate just the opposite. Those connected with the early experience of this message preached that according to the Word of God this country would be a persecuting power, not granting the privilege of worshipping God according to the dictates of conscience. They were met with great opposition, but time has proved this position to be true. We have a remarkable case of this kind on record in the Bible, where the fulfilment of prophecy was one of the most unlikely things that could happen. “And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for four-score pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him saying, Help, my lord, O king. And he said, If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barn floor, or out of the wine-press? And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son. And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day. But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door: is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him? And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of the Lord; what should I wait for the Lord any longer? Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord, To-morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the Lord would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.” For the fulfilment of this prediction let the reader turn and read its history. Now this lord said that if the windows of heaven could be opened, this might be, but from no other source. For this unbelief this man lost his life. The city was in siege, provision had been exhausted, escape seemed impossible, and who would have thought of relief coming in the way it did?—No one. So when we can not see how things will come to pass, we must believe just the same, and wait to see the salvation of God. The apostle Paul says that “whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” These experiences will be lived over, more or less, in our day, in the closing events of the world’s history. The student of the Bible will be able to call up other cases besides the ones cited, which have lessons of trust in them for us at such times. Great events in the fulfilment of prophecy will come to pass in our day. There is danger that we, having decided in our own minds how the prophecy will be fulfilled, shall not recognize its fulfilment when it takes place in a different way than we had looked for. This should not be the case. First, let us find out what the Word of God teaches, make it a study, use every precaution, weigh every side as far as we are able, then stand on the word of God whether things look favorable at all times or not. If God has said it will come to pass, it will surely come, but maybe at a time and in a way that we little expect. The apostle Peter says we have a more sure word of prophecy, something more sure than what we see with our natural eye. God has marked out the movements of nations, and all we can do is to take the word of God for it, and wait for its fulfilment. The outlook may at times be directly to the contrary; then is when our faith is tried. The Bible alone is the guide. The Babylonians failed to see this when the city was overthrown by the Medes and Persians. They looked to the walls three hundred and fifty feet high and eighty-seven feet thick, their solid gates of brass, and the twenty years’ provisions inside the gates, and felt secure. But God had predicted by the prophet Daniel that it should be overthrown, and it came just at the time when they least looked for it. God works not as man works, neither is he dependent on the wisdom of man. He suggests to man the thought, and man, as the instrument, carries out the plan. In the movements of nations, God can in a moment, as it were, turn the scale on the other side. Does the Word of God teach a thing? if so, stick to it regardless of everything else. You will be in the majority by and by.