"Man's Nature and Destiny."
By Editor
THERE are no subjects that are of more absorbing interest to the human race than those indicated in the above heading. It is natural and proper for man to inquire into the origin of things. Only by so doing can he properly appreciate the power and wisdom of the Creator. It is for this purpose that God has given him a mind that is capable of conducting profound research and grasping great truths. It is just as natural and proper for him to seek to know for what God has created all things. But when this investigation has to do with man himself, it becomes far more than a matter of mere curiosity; for since man has been endowed with so high an order of intellect, that he can choose his own course, and is responsible for his acts, it is a matter of vital importance that he should know for what purpose God created him, how he must act in order to attain that end, and what will be his fate should he deviate from the proper course. These questions can be answered only in the light of divine revelation. The Bible affords the only solution of the mysteries concerning the origin and destiny of the human race; and conjecture, speculation, or philosophy should not enter into the investigation. The book whose name heads this article is an attempt to give a comprehensive view of the subject, from a Bible standpoint alone. In this effort the author has met with better success than any other one of whom we have any knowledge. Elder Uriah Smith, editor of the Review and Herald has made the Bible his chief study for two score years, and his long experience as a teacher, both by voice and pen, gives him great facility in stating points of doctrine so that they may be comprehended by the dullest minds. This book has already met with a large sale, the present being the third edition. The following partial schedule of the thirty-seven chapters of the book will give an idea of its comprehensiveness:— Primary Questions—Immortal and Immortality—Image of God—Breath of Life—The Living Soul—What Is Soul?—What Is Spirit?—The Spirit Returns to God—The Formation of the Spirit—"Who Knoweth?"—Spirits of Just Men Made Perfect—Spirits in Prison—Departure and Return of the Soul—Can the Soul Be Killed?—The Souls under the Altar—Gathered to His People—Samuel and the Woman of Endor—The Transfiguration—The Rich Man and Lazarus—"With Me in Paradise"—Absent from the Body—In the Body and Out—Departing and Being with Christ—The Resurrection—The Judgment—The Life Everlasting—The Wages of Sin—Everlasting Punishment—The Undying Worm and Quenchless Fire—Tormented Forever and Ever—End of Them That Obey Not the Gospel—God's Dealings with His Creatures—The Claims of Philosophy—Historical View—Influence of the Doctrine. The book has a copious index, by which the reader may readily find the comment on any text bearing on the nature and destiny of man. Bound in cloth, 443 pp., price, $1.50. Address Review and Herald, Battle Creek, Mich., or SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal.