WILLIAM MILLER'S APOLOGY AND DEFENSE.
By William Miller
OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE.
VARIOUS difficulties and objections would arise in my mind, from time to time; certain texts would occur to me, which seemed to weigh against my conclusions; and I would not present a view to others, while any difficulty appeared to militate against it. I therefore continued the study of the Bible, to see if I could sustain any of these objections. My object was not merely to remove them, but I wished to see if they were valid. Sometimes when at work, a text would arise like this, "Of that day and hour knoweth no man," &c.; and how then could the Bible reveal the time of the advent? I would then immediately examine the context in which it was found, and I saw at once, that in the same connection we are informed how we may know when it is nigh, even at the doors: consequently that text could not teach that we could know nothing of the time of that event. Other texts which are advanced in support of the doctrine of a temporal millennium, would arise; but on examining their context, I invariably found that they were applicable only to the eternal state, or were so illustrative of the spread of the Gospel here, as to be entirely irrelevant to the position they were adduced to support. Thus all those passages that speak of the will of God being done on earth as in heaven, of the earth being full of the knowledge of the glory of God, &c., could not be applicable to a time when the Man of Sin was prevailing against the saints, or when the righteous and wicked were dwelling together, which is to be the case until the end of the world. Those which speak of the gospel being preached in all the world, teach that as soon as it should be thus preached, the end was to come, so that it could not be delayed 1000 years from that time, nor long enough for the world's conversion after the preaching of the gospel as a witness. The question of the resurrection and judgment, was for a time an obstacle in the way: being instructed that all the dead would be raised at the same time, I supposed it must be so taught in the Bible; but I soon saw it was one of the traditions of the elders. So also with the return of the Jews: that question I saw could only be sustained by denying the positive declarations of the New Testament which assert, "there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek"—that "the promise that he shall be the heir of the world was not to Abraham and his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith"—that "there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female," but that "if ye are Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." I was therefore obliged to discard an objection which asserts that there is a difference between the Jew and Greek—that the children of the flesh are accounted for the seed, &c. In this way I was occupied for five years, from 1818 to 1823, in weighing the various objections which were being presented to my mind. During that time, more objections arose in my mind, than have been advanced by my opponents since; and I know of no objection that has been since advanced which did not then occur to me. But however strong they at first appeared, after examining them in the light of the divine Word, I could only compare them to straws laid down singly as obstacles, on a well beaten road: the car of truth rolled over them, unimpeded in its progress. STILL IMPRESSED WITH THE DUTY OF PRESENTING THE EVIDENCES OF THE ADVENT.
I was then fully settled in the conclusions which seven years previously had begun to bear with such impressive force upon my mind; and the duty of presenting the evidence of the nearness of the advent to others—which I had managed to evade while I could find the shadow of an objection remaining against its truth—again came home to me with great force. I had, previously, only thrown out occasional hints of my views. I then began to speak more clearly my opinions to my neighbors, to ministers and others. To my astonishment, I found very few who listened with any interest. Occasionally one would see the force of the evidence; but the great majority passed it by as an idle tale. I was therefore disappointed in finding any who would declare this doctrine, as I felt it should be, for the comfort of saints and as a warning to sinners. I continued to study the Scriptures, and was more and more convinced that I had a personal duty to perform respecting this matter. When I was about my business, it was continually ringing in my ears, "Go and tell the world of their danger." This text was constantly occurring to me, "When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thy hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul." Eze. xxxiii, 8, 9. I felt that if the wicked could be effectually warned, multitudes of them would repent; and that if they were not warned, their blood might be required at my hand. I did all I could to avoid the conviction that any thing was required of me; and I thought that by freely speaking of it to all, I should perform my duty, and that God would raise up the necessary instrumentality for the accomplishment of the work. I prayed that some minister might see the truth, and devote himself to its promulgation; but still it was impressed upon me, "Go and tell it to the world: their blood will I require at thy hand." The more I presented it in conversation, the more dissatisfied I felt with myself for withholding it from the public. I tried to excuse myself to the Lord for not going out and proclaiming it to the world. I told the Lord that I was not used to public speaking, that I had not the necessary qualifications to gain the attention of an audience, that I was very diffident and feared to go before the world, that they would "not believe me nor hearken to my voice," that I was "slow of speech, and of a slow tongue." But I could get no relief. In this way I struggled on for nine years longer, pursuing the study of the Bible, doing all I could to present the nearness of Christ's coming to those whom circumstances threw in my way, but resisting my impressions of duty, to go out as a public teacher. I was then fifty years old, and it seemed impossible for me to surmount the obstacles which lay in my path, to successfully present it in a public manner. MR. MILLER WRITES A SERIES OF ARTICLES FOR THE PRESS.
Quite a number wished me to write out my views. I accordingly prepared a series of articles over the signature of W. M., and sent them to the Vermont Telegraph, a Baptist paper, then published at Brandon, Vt. The editor refused to publish them unless he could know the name of the writer. I accordingly communicated it to him, supposing that he would not make it public. The articles then appeared in a series of sixteen numbers, the first of which was published in the paper, dated May 15th, 1832. I had supposed in communicating my views to the world in this series of articles, that I should have performed all that was required of me; but I could not escape the impression, "Go and tell it to the world, their blood will I require at thy hand." It some how became known that I was the writer of those articles; I began to be flooded with letters of inquiry respecting my views; and visitors flocked to converse with me on the subject. I became more distressed, lest the blood of souls should be required of me. HE COVENANTS WITH GOD TO GO WHERE THE WAY OPENS.
One Saturday after breakfast, in the Summer of 1833, I sat down at my desk to examine some point; and as I arose to go out to work, it came home to me with more force than ever, "Go and tell it to the world." The impression was so sudden, and came with such force, that I settled down into my chair, saying, I can't go, Lord. "Why not?" seemed to be the response; and then all my excuses came up, my want of ability, &c.; but my distress became so great, I entered into a solemn covenant with God, that if he would open the way, I would go and perform my duty to the world. "What do you mean by opening the way?" seemed to come to me. Why, said I, if I should have an invitation to speak publicly in any place, I will go and tell them what I find in the Bible about the Lord's coming. Instantly all my burden was gone; and I rejoiced that I should not probably be thus called upon; for I had never had such an invitation: my trials were not known, and I had but little expectation of being invited to any field of labor. In about half an hour from this time, before I had left the room, a son of Mr. Guilford, of Dresden, about sixteen miles from my residence, came in and said that his father had sent for me, and wished me to go home with him. Supposing that he wished to see me on some business, I asked him what he wanted? He replied that there was to be no preaching in their church the next day, and his father wished to have me come and talk to the people on the subject or the Lord's coming. I was immediately angry with myself for having made the covenant I had; I rebelled at once against the Lord, and determined not to go. I left the boy without giving him any answer, and retired in great distress to a grove near by. There I struggled with the Lord for about an hour, endeavoring to release myself from the covenant I had made with him; but I could get no relief. It was impressed upon my conscience, "Will you make a covenant with God and break it so soon?" and the exceeding sinfulness of thus doing overwhelmed me. I finally submitted, and promised the Lord that if he would sustain me, I would go, trusting in him to give me grace and ability to perform all he should require of me. I returned to the house,106and found the boy still waiting; he remained till after dinner, and I returned with him to Dresden. MR. MILLER COMMENCES HIS ORAL LECTURES.
The next day, which, as nearly as I can remember, was about the first Sabbath in August, 1833, I delivered my first public lecture on the Second Advent. The house was well filled with an attentive audience. As soon as I commenced speaking, all my diffidence and embarrassment were gone, and I felt impressed only with the greatness of the subject, which, by the providence of God, I was enabled to present. At the close of the services on the Sabbath, I was requested to remain and lecture during the week, with which I complied. They flocked in from the neighboring towns, a revival commenced, and it was said that in thirteen families all but two persons were hopefully converted. On the Monday following, I returned home and found a letter from Elder Fuller, of Poultney, Vt., requesting me to go and lecture there on the same subject. They had not heard of my going to Dresden. I went to Poultney and lectured there with similar effect. From thence I went by invitation to Pawlet and other towns in that vicinity. The churches of Congregationalists, Baptists, and Methodists, were thrown open. In almost every place I visited, my labors resulted in the reclaiming of backsliders, and the conversion of sinners. I was usually invited to fields of labor by the ministers of the several congregations whom I visited, who gave me their countenance; and I have never labored in any place to which I was not previously invited. The most pressing invitations from the ministry, and the leading members of the churches poured in continually, from that time, during the whole period of my public labors, and with more than one half of which I was unable to comply. Churches were thrown open every where, and I lectured to crowded houses, through the western part of Vermont, the northern part of New York, and in Canada East. And powerful reformations were the results of my labors. PUBLISHES HIS VIEWS IN A PAMPHLET FORM.
I received so many urgent calls for information, and to visit places with which I could not comply, that in 1834 I concluded to publish my views in pamphlet form, which I did in a little tract of 64 pages. These I scattered, the most of them gratuitously, sending them in reply to letters of inquiry, and to places which I could not visit. In the same year, unknown to myself, a license to preach was granted me by my Baptist brethren. About the same time I received a recommendation to the public as a lecturer on the prophecies, which was signed by about fifty ministers of my Baptist brethren, and by some twenty or thirty from other denominations. I continued to labor and travel at my own charges until 1838; and many churches thereby greatly added to their numbers. The first clergyman that embraced my views in full, was Elder Fuller, of Poultney, Vt. Many others previous to 1838, expressed themselves favorably, but none of them came out in full, or if they did, they all, with that exception, relapsed and abandoned their advocacy. HE WRITES HIS COURSE OF LECTURES.
In 1836 I wrote my series of sixteen lectures, which were published by Elder Wescott, in Troy, N. Y., the profits of which I gave to him. All the copies I received of that edition, I purchased at his regular prices. The first assistance I received from any source to defray my expenses, were two half dollars which I received in Canada, in 1835. The next assistance I received was the payment of my stage fare to Lansingburg, in 1837. Since then I have never received enough to pay my traveling expenses; so that my labors have been of no pecuniary advantage to me. I should not have alluded to this, were it not for the extravagant stories which have been circulated to my injury. I received an invitation from Randolph, Mass., to visit that place, which I did on the 21st of April, 1837. This was my first visit to that State. I lectured there, and in Stoughton, East Randolph, Lowell, Groton and Lynn. I closed my lectures in Lynn on the 10th of June following, making 800 lectures which I had given since June 9th, 1834. At Lowell May 14th, I became acquainted with Elder T. Cole, who had written me to visit him before I left home. He was among the first ministers in that State who embraced these views, and was the means of introducing me into many of the churches of the Christian connection. Elder Plumer of Haverhill soon after embraced them. At Lowell I also become acquainted with my Bro. J. Litch, who had previously embraced my views, and who has since so aided their extension, by his faithful lectures and writings, and energetic and consistent course. The first church that was ever closed against me was the Congregational church in Westford, Mass., Dec. 17th, of the same year. INVITATION TO VISIT BOSTON.
I visited Exeter, in November, 1839, and on the 12th, I became acquainted with my Bro. J. V. Himes, who with about twenty other ministers of the Christian connection, were present to hear me lecture. He invited me to Boston, which I visited December 8th, of the same year. I then gave my first course of lectures in the Chardon St. Chapel. Soon after this, about the 1st of January, 1840, Mr. B. B. Mussey republished my course of lectures in an edition of 5000, of which he gave me 200 copies. PUBLICATION OF THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES—NOW ADVENT HERALD.
For a long time previous to this, the papers had been filled with abusive stories respecting my labors, and they had refused to publish any thing from me in reply. I had greatly felt the need of some medium of communication to the public. Efforts had been frequently made to commence the publication of a paper which should be devoted to the advocacy of the doctrine, and the communication of information on the fulfillment of prophecy. We had, however, never been able to find a man who was willing to run the risk of his reputation and the pecuniary expense, in such a publication. On my visit to Boston in the Winter of 1840, I mentioned to Bro. Himes my wishes respecting a paper and the difficulties I had experienced in the establishment of one. He promptly offered to commence a paper which should be devoted to this question—if I thought the cause of truth would be thereby advanced. The next week, without a subscriber or any promise of assistance, he issued the first No. of the Signs of the Times on the 20th of March, 1840—a publication which has been continued to the present time. With this commenced an entire new era in the spread of information on the peculiar points of my belief. Mr. Mussey gave up to him the publication of my Lectures, and he published them in connection with other works on the prophecies, which, aided by devoted friends, he scattered broad cast every where to the extent of his means. I cannot here withhold my testimony for the efficiency and integrity of my Bro. Himes. He has stood by me at all times, periled his reputation, and by the position in which he has been placed, has been more instrumental in the spread of these views than any other ten men who have embarked in the cause. His course, both in laboring as a lecturer, and in the manner that he has managed his publications, meets my full approval. THE FRUITS OF MR. MILLER'S LABORS.
From the commencement of that publication, I was overwhelmed with invitations to labor in various places, with which I complied as far as my health and time would allow. I labored extensively in all the New England and Middle States, in Ohio, Michigan, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and in Canada East and West, giving about four thousand lectures in something like five hundred different towns. I should think that about two hundred ministers embraced my views, in all the different parts of the United States and Canada; and that there have been about five hundred public lecturers. In all the sections of country where I labored, not only in the towns I visited, but in those in their vicinity, there were more or less that embraced the doctrine of the Advent; in some places only a very few, and in other places there has been a large number. In nearly a thousand places Advent congregations have been raised up, numbering, as near as I can estimate, some fifty thousand believers. On recalling to my mind the several places of my labors, I can reckon up about six thousand instances of conversion from nature's darkness to God's marvelous light—the result of my personal labors alone; and I should judge the number to be much greater. Of this number I can recall to my mind about 700 who were, previously to their attending my lectures, infidels; and their number may have been twice as great. Great results have also followed from the labors of my brethren, many of whom I would like to mention here, if my limits would permit. In all my labors I never had the desire, or thought to establish any separate interest from that of existing denominations; or to benefit one at the expense of another. I thought to benefit all. Supposing that all Christians would rejoice in the prospect of Christ's coming; and that those who could not see as I did, would not love any the less those who should embrace this doctrine, I did not conceive there would ever be any necessity for separate meetings. My whole object was a desire to convert souls to God, to notify the world of a coming judgment, and to induce my fellow-men to make that preparation of heart which will enable them to meet their God in peace. The great majority of those who were converted under my labors, united with the various existing churches. When individuals came to me to inquire respecting their duty, I always told them to go where they would feel at home; and I never favored any one denomination in my advice to such.