Name: The Great Second Advent Movement
Author: John N. Loughborough

The Great Second Advent Movement

John N. Loughborough

Southern Publishing Association · Nashville, Tenn.; Fort Worth, Texas · 1905

PREFACE

THERE are already many useful books in the hands of the people, and my apology for adding another to the list, is that in these pages I state many things concerning Adventists, and especially Seventh-day Adventists, which have not heretofore been brought in this form before the people. Besides this, many who espoused the cause in later years, and who have not witnessed the things mentioned, have earnestly requested a narration of these facts and experiences from those earlier in the work. Having been familiar with the advent movement in 1843 and 1844, and having, since Jan. 2, 1849, proclaimed the doctrine, first as an Adventist, and since 1852 as a Seventh-day Adventist, I esteem it a pleasure to “speak the things I have seen and heard.”

I have presented a statement concerning the advent movement, which from 1831 to 1844 spread to every civilized nation of the world.

Since 1845 there have been other bodies of Adventists which have proclaimed, and still are proclaiming, the near advent of Christ. Instead of tracing all of those bodies, it has been my purpose to give, at some length, the rise and progress of the Seventh-day Adventists, calling especial attention to those agencies which, in the providence of God, have aided in developing, from poverty and small beginnings, a people of whom, although they number only about one hundred thousand, some of their opponents have said, “From the energy and zeal with which they work one would judge that there were two million of them.”

Even those who are only slightly conversant with Seventh-day Adventist history know that since 1845 Mrs. E. G. White has been prominently connected with the movement, both as a speaker and writer. They also know that connected with her work there have been peculiar exercises, or gifts. It has been my privilege to be

present and witness the operation of this gift about fifty times. In these pages I have called attention to some twenty-six definite predictions made by Mrs. White which have been most accurately fulfilled.

In addition to my own observations, I have also presented the testimony of other eye-witnesses respecting their experiences. Such facts should have more weight with the candid reader than random statements made by those who have never been present on such occasions.

I commit the work to the readers, hoping that, with the blessing of God, the perusal of these pages may be a means of promoting the cause of Christ in many hearts, and trusting that all, as they read, will bear in mind the words of Paul to the Thessalonians, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” J. N. Loughborough. Mountain View, California, May 1, 1905.

THE

GREAT SECOND ADVENT MOVEMENT

ITS RISE AND PROGRESS

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTORY

WHEN we speak of the second advent of Christ, we are touching a theme which in reality has been the hope of God’s people since the expulsion of our first parents from the garden of Eden. In the words to the serpent, that the seed of the woman should bruise his head, was an assurance that finally a restorer would come, who should defeat the usurpations of Satan, and accomplish God’s purpose in the earth. The supposition is that Adam and Eve thought this work would very soon be performed, and that an immediate descendant from them would be the victor. Yet in God’s plan the promise of the Saviour from the apparent ruin embraced all that has since been developed in the carrying out of his “own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.”

Had Adam and Eve been given at once a view of the misery and woe which would fill the world during the long ages intervening between its ruin and its restoration, their grief would have been unbearable. The God of heaven, in his tender mercy and compassion, hid this view from them, leaving them to cherish the fond hope of soon being delivered into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Entertaining the

thought that redemption was near would naturally incite them to greater earnestness in preparation to meet the event.

In like manner has it been with the people of God in all the generations since the days of Adam. They were certain that a great and important event was sometime in the future to occur—that Christ would finally come and establish his kingdom. They too, like Adam and Eve, believed the event was near at hand, and, like them, were unconscious of what would transpire between their own time and the event; otherwise, they might have become discouraged in pressing toward the mark of the prize.

This thought can be illustrated by the use of events that have occurred in the way of great discoveries. The men who originated them, although not aware of it, were actually fulfilling God’s purpose; yet were they animated with ideas that did not prove to be in all respects in harmony with their own theories which moved them to action.

Far-reaching Effects of Columbus’s Discoveries

Montgomery, in his “American History,” edition of 1902, pages 8, 9, speaking of the theory that moved Columbus to start out on his voyage, and the carrying out of his plan of reaching the East Indies by sailing west, says:—

Columbus thought that he could improve on the King of Portugal’s project. He felt certain that there was a shorter and better way of reaching the Indies than the track Diaz had marked out. The plan of the Genoese sailor [Columbus] was as daring as it was original. Instead of sailing east, or south and east, he proposed to sail directly west. He had, as he believed, three good and solid reasons for such an undertaking: First, in common with the best geographies of his day, Columbus was convinced that the earth was not flat, as most men supposed, but a globe. Secondly, he supposed this globe to be much smaller than it is, and the greater part to be land instead of water. Thirdly, as he knew nothing, and surmised nothing,

of the existence of the continent of America or of the Pacific Ocean, he imagined that the coast of Asia or the Indies was directly opposite Spain and the western coast of Europe. The entire distance across to Cipango, or Japan, he estimated would probably not exceed about four thousand miles.

“His plan was this: He would start from Europe; head his ship westward toward Japan, and follow the curve of the globe until it brought him to what he sought. To his mind it seemed as sure and simple as for a fly to walk around an apple.”

“If successful in the expedition, he would have this immense advantage: He would enter the Indies directly by the front door, instead of reaching them in a roundabout way, and by a sort of side-entrance, as the Portuguese must.”

“We see that this man, who understood practical mathematics, geography, and navigation as well as any one of his day, was right on the first point,—the shape of the earth,—but utterly wrong on the other two.

A Fortunate Mistake

“Yet, singularly enough, his errors were in one respect a help to him. The mistake that he made in regard to the distance was a most fortunate one. Had Columbus correctly reckoned the size of the globe, and the true length of such a voyage, he probably would not have sailed, since he would have seen at once that the proposed Portuguese route was both far shorter and cheaper. Again, could he have imagined or in any way foreseen that the American continent lay right across his path, that, in itself, might not then have induced him to start on a voyage of discovery, for his object was not to find a new country, but a new way to an old one.”

The Great Hope of the Ages

So the people of God, coming down through the ages, have had the hope of Christ’s coming before them “as an

anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast.” Though often mid sorrows and afflictions they in anguish cry out, “How long, O Lord, before deliverance will come?” yet have they pressed forward, and like Paul have said and still say, “What is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?”

Paul Sustained by the Hope

A few illustrations of the sustaining power of this hope, in this connection, must suffice. When Paul was arraigned before Felix, and permitted to speak for himself, he said, “After the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets; and have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.”

In his able plea when brought before Agrippa, Paul said, “Now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers; unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope’s sake, King Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews. Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?” When at last he was in Rome to appear before Cæsar, he said to the Jews, “For the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain.”

Paul spoke freely of that hope in his letter to Titus: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world, looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”

Peter Rejoicing in the Hope

Peter speaks of the same hope as follows: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according

to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”

God’s Purpose in Creation

The Scriptures reveal the purpose of God in creating the world; and from the word of prophecy we also learn his plan concerning the future: “Thus saith the Lord that created the heavens, God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited.” When he had formed it, he gave it to man. The psalmist says, “The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s; but the earth hath he given to the children of men.” But when he gave it to man, man was upright, as expressed by the wise man, “This only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.”

We read of the Lord’s dealing with the race, that “when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel,” that is, according to the number of the true Israel that shall at last be gathered on the earth as subjects of his future kingdom. It is expressed by Paul in these words: “God . . . hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us; for in him we live, and

move, and have our being.” When this original purpose respecting the earth is carried out, “thy people also shall be all righteous.” Again it is said of them in that state, “The inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.” That will be the time when “the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”

Christ’s Second Coming not a Fable

It is stated in the second epistle of Peter that “we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye-witnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts.”

In this scripture the apostle refers to the transfiguration on the mount as a proof of the second coming of Christ. Previous to this scene our Saviour had said to his apostles, “There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom” — as recorded by Luke, “There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God.”

This promise was literally fulfilled in the transfiguration itself. In this “vision” on the mount they saw Jesus glorified, as he will appear when he comes in his kingdom. They saw Elias (Elijah), who was taken to heaven without tasting death, representing those who will be translated — changed from mortal to immortal — “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,” when the Lord comes. There was also Moses,

one who had died, representing those who will be raised from the dead to meet the Lord. So in this “vision” they had a view of Christ coming in his kingdom, as he had promised them.

Prophecy a More Sure Word

Though the apostles had seen this glorious sight on the mount of transfiguration, and had heard the voice of God’s approval, the apostle Peter affirms: “We have a more sure word of prophecy.” By this statement he is not discounting what they saw and heard on that memorable occasion. They then heard the voice of God once, but in the great lines of prophecy, extending down to Christ’s second coming, we have the voice of God oft repeated. In fact, every definite prophetic prediction fulfilled or recorded in history is the voice of God to us. It must be in this sense that the word of prophecy is “more sure.” The Revised Version translates it, “made sure.” The prophecy is made sure by each and every specification fulfilled. Each and every event predicted, when fulfilled, is an assurance that the remaining events predicted will surely come to pass.

The Nature of Prophecy

The following testimonials from eminent Bible students on the nature of prophecy are forcible:—

Thomas Newton makes the assertion that “prophecy is history anticipated and contracted; history is prophecy accomplished and dilated. Lying oracles have been in the world; but all the wit and malice of men and devils cannot produce any such prophecies as are recorded in the Scriptures.”

Sir Isaac Newton testifies that “the giving ear to the prophets is a fundamental character of the true church.”

*Dr. A. Keith says that “prophecy is equivalent to any miracle, and is of itself miraculous. . . . The voice of Omnipotence alone could call the dead from the tomb,—the voice of Omniscience alone could tell all that lay hid in dark futurity,

which to man is as impenetrable as the mansions of the dead,—and both are alike the voice of God.”*

Matthew Henry said that “in God’s time, which is the best time, and in God’s way, which is the best way, prophecy shall certainly be fulfilled. Every word of Christ is very pure, and therefore very sure.”

The Object of Prophecy

We may learn from the words of Christ to his apostles one object of the Lord in giving prophecy. Speaking prophetically of the things that would take place in the career of Judas, he said, “I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.”

The Lord says also by the prophet Isaiah, “I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”

Again, “I have declared the former things from the beginning, and they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them; I did them suddenly, and they came to pass. . . . I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I showed it thee; lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them. Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when thou heardest them not, lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew them.”

From this language the force of prophetic fulfilments as a proof of the divine origin of prophecy is seen, as well as its being a demonstration of the power of the Lord above all the gods of the heathen. It is also observed from these words that prophecy occupies a very important place in the Scriptures

of truth. These facts being true, it is surprisingly strange that so many people give little or no attention to the study of the prophetic portions of the Sacred Scriptures.

Prophecy not Sealed

The uninformed say they are unlearned, and therefore cannot understand the prophecies. On the other hand, many of the educated, and some of them among the ministry, say: “The prophecies are sealed, and cannot be understood. We all know that the book of Revelation is a sealed book.”

In the Revelation, the beloved John was given a special command not to seal the book. Also in this book a blessing is pronounced upon those that “hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein.” How could the things contained in a sealed book be kept if they were not, and could not be, understood? The Lord said by Moses, “The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

That the Lord designed the prophecies of Daniel to be understood is evident from his words to his disciples respecting them. We read: “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place (whoso readeth, let him understand),” that virtually says, Understand Daniel the prophet.

The Lord exposes the fallacy of the claim that prophecy cannot be understood, in these words: “The vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot, for it is sealed: and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous

work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” Had the people to whom the prophet here refers followed the sure word of prophecy, they need not have drifted away from God’s law, and substituted for his precepts the commandments of men.

Prophecy not of Private Interpretation

It is not that prophecy has some deep, hidden, mysterious meaning that so many fail to understand it. The apostle Peter has said of it, “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” It is plainly implied from this language that what is essential to an understanding of prophecy is the reception of that spirit which spake through the prophets. Of that spirit, promised to all who seek it, it is written, “He will guide you into all truth.”

Prophecy Fulfilled

In the study of prophecy there are certain facts that should ever be kept in mind: God, who is infallible, is the author of prophecy, and when the time comes for the fulfilment of a prediction, the very event predicted will occur. Again, as the Lord, who has power to foresee just what men will do, specifies a time when a thing will transpire, when that time comes, a true fulfilment of the prophecy is met. In other words, a false fulfilment of prophecy in the specified time for the true, is an impossibility. In harmony with this axiom, we may say, when the Lord’s time comes for his message of truth to be given to the world, the message makes its appearance every time.

At one time, when the writer had given a discourse on the fulfilment of prophecy, an infidel who was present came

forward and said, “I must congratulate you interpreters of prophecy as being very fortunate. In your study of history, you seem so readily to find that which exactly fits the prophecy.” “Yes,” was our reply, “it fits because it was made to fit. If you should go to a glove store to buy a pair of gloves, would you not expect to find those that would fit your hand?” He replied, “Of course I would, because they were made to fit.” “So,” said the writer, “that God who knew just what men would do, made the predictions concerning them, and when those men come upon the stage of action, and do the very things he predicted, the true historian makes a record of their actions, which, compared with the prediction, are an exact fit.”

Prophecy a Light in the Darkness

The apostle Peter says we should give heed to prophecy as unto a light shining in a dark place. Without the lamp of prophecy the future would be total darkness. The purpose of light is to dispel darkness — when traveling in a dark place, to show the pathway, and to show the pathway clearly, that the traveler may be enabled, step by step, to see and choose the way. “Thy word,” the psalmist says, “is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” The wise man says, “The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” Thus it is seen, as we pass down the stream of time, that the word of God, especially in its prophetic fulfilments, will open more and yet more, making it clearer and still clearer to the Bible student that he is surely in the pathway leading to everlasting light and eternal day.

Three Prominent Events from Eden to the End

In considering the pathway of the Lord’s people from Eden down to the end, in the light of the Scriptures, there are three events that stand out in special prominence. The first is the first advent of Christ, the incarnation, the coming of Emmanuel, God manifest in the flesh; the second, the great

Reformation after the Dark Ages — the 1260 years of oppression, in which the word of the Lord was almost wholly kept from the common people — a coming of the church out of her wilderness state, and the placing of the Scriptures where all might read and know his will; the third, the second coming of our Lord to bring in the times of restitution of all things spoken of by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began; this, to close up “the conflict of ages,” the conflict between sin and righteousness, to bring in the age of glory, toward which all the ages have been tending.

Prophecy Gives Way-Marks to the End

In giving heed to the sure word of prophecy as unto a light that is to guide our steps, discovering to us the correct path through the darkness, it cannot be otherwise than that we shall find the pathway clearly marked out in the prophetic word all the way down the stream of time to the second advent of Christ. This being the case, those who follow closely the light of prophecy will not only recognize the signs and tokens that the great day is near, but will also recognize the work of the Lord as it steadily moves on in messages of truth which are to prepare a people to meet him in peace at his coming.

While the Scriptures declare that the day of the Lord will come upon the masses as “a thief in the night,” it also says of those standing in the counsel of the Lord, “Ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day.”

Remember the Lord’s Leadings

In calling to remembrance the Lord’s leadings in the advent movement, it is well to note that it has ever been the design of God that his people should remember the manifestations of his providence and power in their behalf. In giving the reasons for the backsliding of Israel from God, the psalmist says, “They forgot God their Saviour, which had

done great things in Egypt; wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red Sea.” If it was good for Israel to call to remembrance the leadings of the Lord with them, is it not good also for us? In ecstasy the psalmist again says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”

In all ages the Lord has had important truths, calculated, by his grace, to lead out a people from the bondage of sin, and fit them for an entrance into the heavenly Canaan; and it is profitable to consider the dealings of the Lord with those who have proclaimed these truths.

Great Results from Smallest Means — D’Aubigné’s Testimony

D’Aubigne, in his “History of the Reformation,” says, “God, who prepares his work through ages, accomplishes it by the weakest instruments, when his time has come. To effect great results by the smallest means, such is the law of God. This law, which prevails everywhere in nature, is also found in history.”

When God, in ancient time, began choosing a special people in order to establish them as a peculiar nation for himself, it was by calling one man — Abraham — who dwelt among the heathen, in Ur of the Chaldees. From him sprang a numerous progeny; but of them, when exalted to the dignity of a nation, the God of heaven said: “The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people.”

Then again, when he would deliver his people from their bondage in Egypt, he chose as their leader one who, in his infancy, was hidden for three months in his mother’s house, and afterward placed in a simple, rude ark composed of bulrushes and daubed with pitch, and committed to the keeping of the River Nile. This same Moses, however, was one who, when he came to years of understanding, chose the humble

path of suffering with the people of God rather than the enjoyment to be found in the “pleasures of sin for a season.”

Gideon’s Victory

Afterward, when the Lord would deliver Israel from the Midianites and the Amalekites, who came upon their land “as grasshoppers for multitude,” and destroyed the increase of the earth, leaving “no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass,” the Lord sent an angel to Gideon. This son of Joash was reduced to the extremity of threshing out a little wheat and hiding it from his enemies. When the angel notified him that he should deliver Israel, Gideon with astonishment inquired, “Wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” This same humble, poor man went out with his three hundred men, with their simple lamps and pitchers (an action which would seem like foolishness to finite judgment), and making God their strength, they gained a mighty victory. Previous to the deliverance, Gideon might have uttered a lamentation like that of the prophet Amos when he inquired, “By whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.”

The Babe in the Manger

In the Lord’s appointed time the Saviour of mankind was born, and the shepherds found him lying in a manger. His earthly relatives followed the humble though honorable pursuits of life. Concerning his earthly poverty the Saviour said, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” He chose his apostles “from among that lower rank, which, although not the meanest, does not reach the level of the middle classes. Everything was thus intended to manifest to the world that the work was not of man, but of God.”

Not Many Wise Called

Paul said of the work in the days of the primitive church: “The foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called; but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are; that no flesh should glory in his presence.”

Humble Men in the Reformation

We find the same principle exemplified in the lives of the great Reformers of the sixteenth century. The historian says: “The Reformer Zwingle emerged from an Alpine shepherd’s hut; Melanchthon, the theologian of the Reformation, from an armorer’s shop; and Luther from the cottage of a poor miner.” Of himself, Luther said: “My parents were very poor. My father was a poor wood-cutter (afterwards he became a miner), and my mother has often carried wood upon her back, that she might procure the means of bringing up her children. They endured the severest labor for our sakes.”

The apostle James, speaking of the calling of the people to the Lord’s service, says, “Hearken, my beloved brethren, hath not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?”

Early Methodists

In looking down on the advancing line of reformers to the early days of Methodism, when the doctrine of free grace was assiduously proclaimed, we find it accompanied by the power of God. As it was faithfully set before the people,

with the tender love of Christ, and was grasped by living faith, the believers not only found remission of past sins, but a sanctifying power to enable them to lead a life of holiness. Methodism had a humble beginning, and was blessed according to the faith and simple trust of the ministry and laity.

In tracing the incidents and experiences connected with the advent movement, we find that, as in every work of the Lord in the accomplishment of which man is an agent, its origin was among the poor and obscure; but let none decide against it on this account before carefully examining the evidence upon which this great work is based, lest they be found in the position of those of whom the Lord inquired, “Who hath despised the day of small things?”

Luther’s Retort to Eck

For the benefit of those who may be inclined to decide whether a doctrinal point is right or wrong by the few or many who accept it, we quote, in part, the controversy between Luther and Eck. As Luther took his position upon the Scriptures, and presumed to dispute the right of men to place their opinions above the word of God, Eck retorted in these ironical words: “I am surprised at the humility and modesty with which the reverend Doctor undertakes to oppose, alone, so many illustrious fathers, and pretends to know more than the sovereign pontiffs, the councils, the doctors, and the universities! . . . It would be surprising, no doubt, if God had hidden the truth from so many saints and martyrs until the advent of the reverend Father.”

This retort might well be met with that of Zwingle to John Faber, at Zurich, when the latter expressed his “amazement at the pass to which things had come, when the ancient usages which had lasted for twelve centuries were forsaken, and it was clearly concluded that Christendom had been in error fourteen hundred years.” Zwingle quickly replied that “error was not less error because the belief of it had lasted fourteen hundred years, and that in the

worship of God antiquity of usage was nothing unless ground or warrant for it could be found in the sacred Scriptures.”

The Word of the Lord vs. Human Wisdom

The danger of leaning to the opinions of men, instead of settling the question, “What is truth?” by the word of the Lord, is sharply defined by the prophet Hosea when he says, “Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies; because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.” The tendency of the human heart has always been to trust in man; but as we approach the time when the Lord is to “arise and shake terribly the earth,” the prophet Isaiah exhorts, “Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?”

Being thus cautioned in the Scriptures respecting our danger in this direction, let none hastily pass condemnation on the advent movement, as though unworthy of consideration because of its humble beginning, or because those called great in the eyes of the world have not espoused the cause. Rather let all weigh carefully its claims. Truth is of inestimable value, compared with which mere opinions of men are but worthless chaff.

CHAPTER II

THE PLAN OF SALVATION UNFOLDED

HOPE deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.” “For thus saith the Lord of hosts: Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.”

From the time that Adam was driven from the garden of Eden and the tree of life, the words addressed to Satan respecting the seed of the woman — “It shall bruise thy head,” — has given hope of the final defeat of the devil, the overthrow of his wily schemes, and a restoration to the tree of life. The expected One — the promised Seed — thus became the “Desire of all nations.”

In the above quotation from Haggai it appears that the coming of this Desired One is connected with the time when the Lord shall shake both the heavens and the earth. Paul, in writing to the Hebrews, placed that shaking in the future, saying, “Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.” This language concerning the one shaking, yet to come, seems to place it

in close connection with the final setting up of God’s kingdom, under Christ, the promised Seed, “the Desire of all nations.”

The restoration to be accomplished through Christ can be clearly viewed in these last days by all who have the whole Bible open before them. It was not so with the ancients. The word of the Lord came to them, “precept upon precept, precept upon precept: line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” So in the revelation to them of the plan of salvation, it was like the path of the just, “as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” Thus it becomes a matter of much interest to trace briefly the gradual unfolding of that plan to his ancient people.

Delay not Revealed at First

The Lord did not at once defer their hope, making their heart sick by revealing to them the fact that it would be hundreds of years before they should reach the consummation of their hopes in the promised Seed. From facts recorded we infer that they were allowed to think that the first child born would be that Seed: and that very soon, in some way, Eden would be restored, and they again have access to the tree of life. When Cain was born, Eve exclaimed, “I have gotten a man from the Lord.” Some Hebrew scholars testify that literally and fully rendered the text reads, “I have gotten a man, the Lord.” That is, Here is the Seed that is to do this lordly work of defeating Satan. There is no record of any such expression on the part of Eve when Abel was born. She could, and naturally would, suppose the first-born was the one to fulfil the promise. How her hopes must have fallen, and even died, as the character of Cain developed, and she witnessed his evil course that finally led to the killing of his brother. Before Abel was slain they must have received some light and knowledge concerning the future sacrifice to be made in their behalf; for Abel, as

divinely instructed, brought his lamb for an offering, while Cain, who had been taught the same as his brother, brought an offering of the fruits of the ground, and this even mingled with the spirit of wrath and jealousy. Abel’s offering was more acceptable than Cain’s, for it was made “by faith,” and of it Paul writes, “He being dead yet speaketh.”

Is Seth the Seed?

After the death of Abel, Seth was born, when hope revived; “for God,” said Eve, “hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.” Afterward Seth was counted in the line of descent from Adam. (See Gen. 5:3.) Cain, the real first-born, is not counted in the pedigree. Quite probably Eve supposed that Seth was now the promised Seed. It appears from the record that after the birth of Seth, men began to call themselves by the name of the Lord. (See margin of Gen. 4:26.) Perhaps they did this on the supposition that Seth was the one who was to be the final ruler, the Lord, and overthrow Satan’s usurped dominion.

Hope Centered on Noah

In the brief record of events from the time of Adam to the birth of Noah, but little more than the genealogy of the race is given. In the birth of Noah (“the upright,” margin) hope sprang up again, and the people said, “This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed.” The divine word is silent as to how, or the way, they expected comfort; but the hope was entertained that the curse upon the earth was in some way to be mitigated. A knowledge of the wickedness that existed in Noah’s day, when men were to so fill the world with sin and violence that the race would be swept from the earth by a flood, and only Noah and his family escape the destruction; and the fact that he was for

one hundred and twenty years to warn the world of the impending destruction, were all withheld from them.

Babel Built

Following the flood, the people were instructed, through Noah, to replenish the earth; but as they began to multiply, they rejected the Lord’s plan of ruling them. Nimrod established the kingdom of Babel (afterward called Babylon, the first of earthly governments). A little later the people began the building of the tower of Babel, to make unto themselves a name, and to prevent their being scattered abroad, just contrary to what the Lord, through Noah, had taught them. Instead of patiently waiting for the Lord to accomplish his purposes, they took the matter into their own hands, when God confounded their language, and thus they were scattered.

Continue reading: Abraham to be Heir of the World