p. 1 | Review and Herald, Vol. 18, No. 21. (10/22/1861)

Review and Herald

Oct 22, 1861

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 22, 1861

The Scattering and Gathering of Israel.

By E. B. Saunders

IN presenting a few thoughts on this great subject, I shall not pretend to give more than a brief outline of the dealing of God with his covenant people, being not so much a description of events, as of the reasons he assigns for scattering them; also a short argument concerning their restoration. In order to see this subject properly, we must take a bird's-eye view of events that transpired during a period of more than three thousand years.

CONDITIONS UPON WHICH ISRAEL REMAINED IN THE LAND OF CANAAN.

When God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt to possess the land of Canaan, he did so to fulfill the promise made to Abraham four hundred and thirty years before; but we must not think, because God will fulfill his promise to Israel, that he does so unconditionally. Though God says that he does not bring them into the promised land because of any righteousness of theirs, yet he will not do so while they live in willful disobedience. This is evident when we reflect upon the fact that Israel was kept in the wilderness forty years, and only two of the original number permitted to enter Canaan, because they followed the Lord fully; the others falling in the wilderness because they sinned.

The conditions upon which they could, as a nation, remain in the land, will plainly appear when we consider the agreement, or covenant made between God and Israel before they entered the land God had promised their fathers. Moses, acting as the mediator between God and the people, came to the people with these words: "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. Ex. xix, 4-6. Here the condition on which they should be a peculiar treasure and an holy nation was obedience to his voice. God also showed his willingness, power and right, to give them the land by the words, "for all the earth is mine," which implies the right to give it, or any portion of it, to whomsoever he pleases; and if they were a peculiar treasure above all people, a willingness to give them a national existence in it.

The people agreed to perform the required obedience in these words: "And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord." Then follows the preparation to hear the voice of God as he proclaims his law in awful majesty from Mt. Sinai. The people now desired Moses to act as mediator, they fearing to hear the voice of God any more; and Moses then goes up before the Lord, and God gives him some judgments, or decisions of the highest court, or the ministration of the law in certain cases, that applies peculiarly to Israel while sojourning in Canaan. These judgments occupy chapters xxi-xxiii, of Exodus. In chapter xxiv, we have an account of the confirmation of the covenant; thus, Moses returns to the people and relates the judgments, and all the people agree again to perform all the Lord required. Moses then writes the conditions (laws and judgments, as I understand it) of the covenant in a book, which is called the "book of the covenant." Then follows the signing and sealing of the agreement; but the Bible description is brief, so I give it entire. "And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words."

To make it still plainer that the condition of Israel's inheritance of the land was obedience to the ten commandments, or law of God, I will now go to Deut. xv, 4, 5: "For the Lord shall greatly bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it: only if thou carefully hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all these commandments which I command thee this day." This is to the point, but let us read again: "And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you: because it is your life; and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it." Deut. xxxii, 46, 47. If more proof is required, see Deut. iv, 23-26, 40; v, 33; xxx, 15-20; xi, 8-24. It is also evident that the above view is correct when we consider

THE SCATTERING: TIME OF ITS ACCOMPLISHMENT, AND THE REASON FOR IT.

Whether we regard the Jews or Christians as the true Israel, it is evident that they are in a scattered condition, and have no national existence. The Jews are a nation "meted out and trodden under foot." Persecution has thinned their ranks at different periods, yet they remain a peculiar and distinct people to this day. When we reflect that once they were a peculiar treasure unto the Lord, above all people, we are led to ask, Why is this? What has brought about this great change? When did this great event take place? an event which was to affect Israel throughout all time. It is plain that no power short of the hand of the Lord could perform this work; and the Bible furnishes abundant proof that the Lord scattered them. See Jer. xxx, 11: "Thus saith the Lord God: Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come." Eze. xi, 16. A difference of opinion may exist in different minds about the exact time when this was accomplished, some fixing upon the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans as the time, others dating back to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Certain it is that the scattering commenced at the latter, and may not have been accomplished till the last destruction by the Romans. The Lord warned them by Moses, that if they were disobedient he would bring a nation against them "as swift as the eagle fleth." Deut. xxviii, 49. The

nation that fulfils this specification is found by reference to Jer. iv, 13; Hab. i, 6-8; Dan. vii, 4, to be the Babylonians. Moses also says that they should eat their own children in their distress when besieged; and Jeremiah laments that such was the case when the Babylonians destroyed their city. See Lam. iv, 10. The prophet Ezekiel [chapter xxiii] also speaks of the king of Babylon coming against Jerusalem, and of the removing of the diadem from the head of the profane, wicked prince of Israel, and of the overturning of the kingdom till he come whose right it is. This was before Christ 593. See also 2 Chron. xxxvi.

There must be a good reason for all this; for God never would bring such things upon a nation that hitherto enjoyed his smiles, without some good reason; and we shall see as we proceed, that the reason was disobedience to his commandments.

God told Moses to set before the people a blessing and a curse: "Behold I set before you this day a blessing and a curse: a blessing if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you this day; and a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods which ye have not known." Deut. xi, 26-28. It is evident from Deut. xxviii, 1, 2, 9, that the ten commandments are the ones referred to. "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day: that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth; and all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God. . . . The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways." And in verses 15, 20, and 21, a curse is pronounced for breaking the commandments, thus: "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day: that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: the Lord shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thy hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly: because of the wickedness of thy doings whereby thou hast forsaken me. The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it." Also verse 45: "Moreover, all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed: because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee." This is very plain, but let us drive a nail in a sure place on this point; for the Lord has given us his reason: "Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through? And the Lord saith, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein; but have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them: therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink. I will scatter them also among the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers have known: and I will send a sword after them till I have consumed them." Jer. ix, 12-16. See also Jer. xxii, 8, 9; xiii, 22-25.

These texts tell the painful story: God had promised to give them the land of Canaan if they would obey his voice, or law; they promised to do so, and even accepted of a curse if they failed: yet they continued in willful sin in spite of the repeated warnings of God by his prophets, till at last they called down the curse upon themselves, and God drove them from his land. Well might Jeremiah weep as he saw the calamities that befell his people: but God saw his weeping, and comforted his heart by promises of mercy yet in store for them, which we will notice, after we show that there were

TWO CLASSES SCATTERED.

This is a point seldom or never touched upon, but I would respectfully call attention to it, and especially of those who look for the return of the Jews, and restoration of Jerusalem, before our Lord comes. God has used similitudes when speaking by the prophets; thus, he has compared Israel to two baskets of figs, good figs and evil figs: "The Lord shewed me, and behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the Lord, after that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. Then said the Lord unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? and I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down, and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. And I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart. And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the Lord, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt. And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers." Jer. xxiv. Here we see two classes are scattered; one for their good and the other for their hurt; one class to be planted again and not plucked up, the other to be a reproach, a taunt, and a proverb till they are consumed from off the land. It is not those that will be gathered that are a proverb and taunt, but those that are not gathered. The Jews (one class) are now a taunt and a proverb, and the inference is that they will not be gathered. Concerning the rebuilding of Jerusalem, God has used another similitude, a potter's vessel. Jeremiah was told to take a bottle and break it in the sight of the men that were with him. "And shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, that cannot be made whole again: and they shall bury them in Tophet, till there be no place to bury." Jer. xix, 11. Jerusalem is to be desolate till the consummation. Dan. ix, 27. The class that is gathered are to return unto the Lord, "with their whole heart." If they are Jews after the flesh, who are they that are a taunt, a proverb, and a curse?

THE GENTILES TO BE JOINED TO ONE CLASS, AND THEY TO RETAIN THE NAME "ISRAEL."

Nearly all opposers are willing to admit that the Gentiles are fellow-heirs with ancient Israel; but all are not ready to admit that they take the same name. They still act as though there was a middle wall separating Israel from Christians.

We have already found that the nation of Israel is divided into two parts, one part scattered for their hurt and the other for their good; one part to be consumed, the other to be gathered again. Again the Lord likens the nation unto a green olive tree, of which some of the branches are broken off. Broken branches will of course wither away, and be fit only for burning, while lively branches may be grafted in to occupy their place, and the tree still be called "an olive tree," but will one be insane enough to call the broken branches an olive tree? The Lord uses this similitude in Jer. xi, 16, which taken in connection with Rom. xi, 17 (what a coincidence in chapter and verse. Paul begins where Jeremiah left off), proves that the Gentiles that seek the Lord will be joined with Israel. So let us read them: "The Lord called thy name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken." "And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree," &c. Then follows an exhortation not to be highminded lest we too be broken off; and in verse 23 we are told that if the broken branches abide not in unbelief, they shall be grafted in again.

There are conditions upon which they can be saved, and it rests with them to comply with the conditions; for God will not graft them in against their will. The idea conveyed in these few verses [Rom. xi, 17-26], is that God cast away some of the natural branches because of sin, and accepts of the Gentiles instead, if they continue in his goodness, and will also accept of the broken branches if they repent and turn to the Lord; and so (by being turned away from sin) all Israel (those who prevail with God) will be saved.

To show still further that Christians are the true Israel, we will go to Rom. ix, 6-8, which says "For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel; neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children; but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted for the seed." Gal. iv, 28 tells us who the children of the promise are: "Now we brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise." By brethren he does not mean Jews, but Christians, for he says, Gal. iii, 29, "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." This is conclusive on the point, but we introduce a few more texts to make assurance doubly sure. "Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh . . . . That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: but now, in Christ Jesus, ye, who sometime were afar off, are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us: having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances: for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace: and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: and came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God." Eph. ii, 12-19.

All admit that the new covenant is made with Christians, and we are also told [Jer. xxxi, 31] that it is made with the house of Israel; so we conclude that Christians are joined with the house of Israel and the new covenant made with them all under that name, or that Christians constitute the Israel spoken of.

Again: James writes to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad [James i, 1], and calls them

his brethren, and tells them to be patient unto the coming of the Lord, which he never would have written to the Jews; for if they believed not in his first advent, how could they be benefited by the second?

Again: That the Gentiles are joined to the house of Israel when they are gathered, we refer to Isa. xiv, 1. "For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob." This leads us to examine

THE PROMISES OF GOD TO GATHER ISRAEL.

We do not understand by these promises that Israel will gather themselves and rebuild Jerusalem; for by an examination of the scriptures on this point, we find that God will gather them. But little else is needed to make this point clear than to read a few texts concerning it. "But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make him afraid. Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the Lord; for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee; but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished." Jer. xlvi, 27, 28. "And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead." "In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve." "Thus saith the Lord God, When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob. And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the Lord their God." See also Eze. xxxiv; xxxvi; xxxix, 23-29; Amos ix, 13-15; Jer. xxx; xxxi, Isa. xi, 11, 12.

ISRAEL TO BE GATHERED IN CHRIST.

We do not mean by this that the Jews are to be converted, but that Christ is the good Shepherd that gathers the scattered flock. In connection with the gathering of Israel the Lord says, "And I will set up one Shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd." Eze. xxxiv, 23.

We learn from Ps. lxxxix, that David is David II, or Christ, who, as the son of David, is to reign on David's throne. Luke i, 32, 33. He is there called a son, "my first-born," also his kingdom is to endure forever. Eze. xxxvii, 24, 25.

Christ calls himself the good Shepherd, and speaks of having other sheep that he must bring [John x, 14-16]; and Paul in the benediction to the Hebrews, calls him the great Shepherd of the sheep, &c.

But we have something more positive than all this; for we are expressly told that Christ is to gather together in one the children of God that are scattered abroad. "Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself: that in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth: even in him." Eph. i, 9, 10.

"And one of them, named Caiaphas, being high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not." And this spake he not of himself; but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; and not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. John xi, 49-52.

The prophet also bears witness on this point thus: "And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth." Isa. xlix, 5, 6.

TIME OF THE GATHERING.

We have found that Christ is to gather his people, so if we can find the time when he does this, we will have settled a point upon which there has been some diversity of opinion: some supposing that when we join the church we are then gathered to the fold of Christ: others, that at death the saints are gathered home; but we trust that the incorrectness of these views will be manifest when we examine the scriptures on this point, without the necessity of first showing the error of them. In Jer. xxx, 23, 24, the whirlwind of God's wrath is spoken of, which we are to consider in the latter days. Now "at the same time" God promises to be the God of all the families of Israel, and says, "Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and thou shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry." Verse 4.

Again we read, "For thus saith the Lord, Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither. . . . Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he."

Satan is the strong man armed, and Christ the stronger than he, who will redeem his saints from his prison-house (the grave) at the resurrection. Then we learn from this that the gathering takes place at the resurrection. With this agrees the prophet Ezekiel where he says, "Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my Spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord." Eze. xxxvii, 12-14.

Again the Lord says by the same prophet, "Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; after that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid." Chap. xxxix, 25, 26. But some of Israel are in their graves, consequently this cannot be fulfilled till they are raised. He is also to cleanse them from all their iniquities before the day that he causes them to dwell in the cities; for "thus saith the Lord God, In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded." Eze. xxxvi, 33. They are not cleansed till Jesus ceases to plead in the heavenly sanctuary, and blots out their sins.

But let us hear our Saviour on this point: "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." Matt. xxiv, 30, 31. This scripture locates the time thus: when the Son of man comes with power and great glory; then the dead are raised and gathered home to God. "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." 1 Thess. iv, 16, 17. We now come to notice some of

THE CONDITIONS UPON WHICH ISRAEL ARE GATHERED.

We have seen that the reason for the scattering was disobedience to the law of God, or ten commandments, and we would naturally expect that if they are gathered, they must first repent of their transgressions of the law, and do that which is lawful and right. Repentance is a turning from sin to obedience; and if it avails anything, our sins must be blotted out through the merits of the blood of Jesus. His blood will help us if we manifest faith in him. Faith is manifested by obedience to the gospel ordinances. So if they repent of disobedience and seek the Lord in order to be gathered with his people, they will also keep the faith of Jesus.

The Scriptures bear us out in regarding these as the true conditions upon which they are gathered. Thus, after speaking of their scattered condition, he says, "But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul. When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice." Deut. iv, 29, 30. In verses 12, 13, 33 we learn what "his voice" is. "And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, and shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, that then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee." Deut. xxx, 1-3.

These scriptures are very plain. It is in the latter days that they are to call this to mind; consequently in those days we have the third angel's message calling our attention to the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. This message ripens the harvest of the earth preparatory to the great gathering day, when the sheaves will be gathered into the garner of God.

In Isa. lvi we find the same conditions of obedience to the law of God, not for the Jews alone, but for the Gentiles also. Thus: "Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all people." The Lord God which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, besides those that are gathered unto him. The breaking of the Sabbath was one reason for the scattering. Jer. xvii, 19-27. And now it is one condition of being gathered. "If thou turn away

thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words, then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Isa. lviii, 13, 14.

Reader, do these things, and be gathered with God's people.

E. B. SAUNDERS.

Eagle Harbor, N. Y.

"WILL YOU BE THERE?"

Beyond this life of hopes and fears, Beyond this world of grief and tears, There is a region fair; It knows no change and no decay, No night, but one unending day;— O say, will you be there?

Its glorious gates are closed to sin; Nought that defiles can enter in To mar its beauty rare; Upon that bright, eternal shore, Earth's bitter curse is known no more; O say, will you be there?

No drooping form, no tearful eye, No hoary head, no weary sigh; No pain, no grief, no care; But joys which mortals may not know, Like a calm river, ever flow,— O say, will you be there?

Our Saviour, once a mortal child, As mortal man, by man reviled, There many crowns doth wear; While thousand thousands swell the strain Of glory to the Lamb once slain!— O say, will you be there?

Who shall be there? The lowly here— All those who serve the Lord in fear, The world's proud mockery dare; Who by the holy Spirit led, Rejoice the narrow path to tread,— These, these shall all be there!

Those who have learned at Jesus' cross All earthly gain to count but loss So that his love they share; Who, gazing on the Crucified, By faith can say, "For me he died,"— These, these shall all be there!

Will you be there? You shall, you must, If, hating sin, in Christ you trust, Who did that place prepare; Still doth his voice sound sweetly, "Come! I am the way—I'll lead you home— With me you will be there!"

MATTHEW XVIII, 1--6

By James White

QUESTION. "Bro. White: Will you please explain Matt. xviii, 1--6, or whether all infants will be saved? H. C. H."

ANSWER. "At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name, receiveth me. But, whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."

We do not see that this scripture has any bearing on the subject of the salvation of all infants. Jesus wished to rebuke growing pride in the hearts of his disciples, who were cherishing unsanctified feelings as to who should be the greatest in the kingdom. He set a little child in the midst to illustrate before them the humility and simplicity of the truly converted.

It will be seen that the "little ones" of verse 6, are believers, therefore they are not infants. Our Lord leaves the figure with verse 4, and in verses 5, 6, calls truly converted souls "such little child," and "little ones which believe in me."

In regard to the salvation of infants, we consider it a very unprofitable subject. Those ministers who introduce such subjects among our brethren should know that their discussion can result in no possible good, and that in many cases it does much harm. What harm for mothers to believe that all infants will be saved? What good can result from telling the bereft mother that her child she followed to the grave when she was in unbelief will never be raised to life? Rather than to be unskilfully meddling with such a sensitive question, the judicious servant of his Lord's household will comfort the bereaved Rachels of this day with, "Thus saith the Lord, Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord, and they shall come again from the land of the enemy." Jer. xxxi, 16.

SUBSTITUTION.

By R. F. Cottrell

“You are to behold him [Elijah] then at present on the heights of Carmel, surrounded by the four hundred and fifty priests of Baal, the four hundred prophets of the groves, who ate at Jezebel's table, a lewd and profligate race, by the idolatrous king and his pompous court, and by multitudes of the poor, perishing, seduced people, awaiting, with anxious curiosity, the transactions about to transpire.

“These being assembled, Elijah appears before them upon the rising ground, conspicuous to all; a plain man covered with a mantle. He looks around him with a cheerful and undaunted countenance, while all are silent to listen to his address. He then exclaims audibly to the whole assembly, ‘How long halt ye between two opinions? If Jehovah be God, follow him: but if Baal, follow him.’ The effect of this bold and serious address was a dead silence on the part of the assembled multitude. They seem to have felt the power of his expostulation concerning their doubt and indecision. With the court and the priesthood the case was different; they were decided idolaters, who had sold themselves to work wickedness in the service of Baal. But the people, perhaps, had not been able entirely to forget what great things Jehovah had done for their forefathers; they could not bring themselves to renounce entirely all allegiance to him; therefore they sought to persuade themselves that they were not idolaters in reality, but worshipers of the true God under the name of Baal. They confounded Jehovah and Baal together, and invented a religion in which they gave themselves up to all the lusts and abominations of heathenism, but retained the self-complacent notion that they still walked in the way of their fathers; that though the form of their worship might be a little different from that of their ancestors, the substance was the same. What awful self-delusion! what pitiful double-mindedness! Such were the people to whom Elijah addressed his remonstrance.”—Elijah the Tishbite.

We have a parallel at the present day. Those idolaters broke the first commandment, these the fourth. To worship the true God under the name of Baal, and to keep the true Sabbath on the first day of the week, are equally consistent. One idea has as much plausibility as the other. Doubtless they both had one origin.

The commencement of that great apostasy in Israel which culminated in the worship of Baal, under the reign of Ahab, or, rather, that of his wife Jezebel, was characterized by some seemingly slight changes in what God had ordained, similar to a change of the Sabbath to another day. “And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made. So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel.” 1 Kings xii, 32, 33. In like manner has “that woman Jezebel”—the papal church seduced Christ's servants in this dispensation. Rev. ii, 20.

The third angel's message is almost precisely like that of Elijah. The reader may carry out the analogy. R. F. Cottrell.

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