California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists · Oakland, Cal. · Mar 18, 1875
The Sermon.
By Eld. James White
SIGNS OF THE END.
BY ELD. JAMES WHITE.
"What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world."—DISCIPLES.
"When ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors."—JESUS. Matt. 24:3, 33.
THE FINAL SEPARATION.
Verses 40, 41: "Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left." This language was designed to illustrate the final separation of the righteous and the wicked. Many husbands and wives, parents and children, brothers and sisters, will then part, never to meet again.
THOSE WHO WATCH, WILL KNOW THE TIME.
Verses 42-44: "Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore, be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of man cometh."
The day and hour of Christ's second coming are not revealed in the Scriptures. Neither is the year in which this glorious event is to take place pointed out. No one of the prophetic periods reaches to the second coming of Christ. The sanctuary is to be cleansed at the end of the 2300 days, and Daniel is to stand in his lot at the end of the 1335 days. But that these events occur before the second appearing of Christ, is susceptible of the clearest proof. These prophetic periods terminated in 1844. But we cannot give a defense of our position in regard to these periods in this work.
The time from the end of the prophetic periods to the coming of Christ is emphatically the waiting, watching time. Those who watch, as our Lord commands, will know the time. No man will make it known; for it is not revealed to man in the Scriptures. Angels will not make it known, though they may minister to, and communicate with, the children of men. Neither will the Son. But the Father will make it known when he speaks again from Heaven. He once spake the ten commandments in the hearing of the people. His voice then shook the earth. When he speaks again, the heavens and earth will both shake. Says Paul: "Whose voice then shook the earth; but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven." Heb. 12:26. "The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake." Joel 3:16.
Probably there is no prophecy that better describes the present state of unbelief in the world in regard to the second advent, caused partly by fanatical time-movements, than the following: "Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth? Tell them, therefore, Thus saith the Lord God: I will make this proverb to cease, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The days are at hand, and the effect of every vision. For there shall be no more any vain vision nor flattering divination within the house of Israel. For I am the Lord: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged; for in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord God." Eze. 12:22-25. The burden of this prophecy is time; therefore, the word here mentioned that the Lord will speak, will be the time.
Rev. 3:3, is also to the point: "Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." Those who do not watch, will not know the hour. Those who watch, will know the hour.
The present watching condition is clearly defined in 1 Thess. 5:1-4: "But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief."
The present watching, waiting position requires much faith and patience. Says Paul, "Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God [in proclaiming the coming of Christ], ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul." Heb. 10:35-39.
Says James: "Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." Chap. 5:7, 8.
The present position and present duty of God's people are defined in Rev. 14:12: "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."
THE FAITHFUL AND WISE SERVANT.
Verses 45-47: "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods."
In this figure, Christ is represented as the lord of the household of faith (see Mark 13:35; Heb. 3:6), leaving his house, and committing the work of caring for his church to his servants. A blessing is promised those servants who are faithfully discharging their duty when their Lord comes. They are to feed the flock of God, over whom the Holy Ghost hath made them overseers. Acts 20:28. They must preach the word. 2 Tim. 4:2. They should watch for souls as they that must give an account. Heb. 13:17. They will not only give meat to the household, but they will give it in due season. They will preach the present truth. Their last work, before the return of their Master, will be to proclaim his coming, and to teach the necessary preparation. They will sacrifice the society and blessings of home, and go everywhere, preaching the word, suffering fatigue of body and burden of spirit. But such will have great reward in the kingdom of God. "Who is that faithful and wise servant?" Where shall we find him? Ans. He is faithfully and wisely attending to the interests of the household of faith.
1. He is faithful. As a faithful watchman, he will give timely warning when he sees the sword coming. His work just before the end is seen in the following scriptures: Joel 2:1: "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand." Isa. 58:1: "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." 2 Tim. 4:1-5: "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, exhort, with all long-suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry."
2. He is wise. "He that winneth souls is wise." He must be wise. He will expose error, then hold forth the truth in its harmony and beauty, and thus win men to the truth. When it becomes his duty to "reprove and rebuke," it will be at a proper time and place, and then with all "long-suffering and doctrine." He will study to show himself "approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Tim. 2:15.
THE EVIL SERVANT.
Verses 48-51: "But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of; and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." What the evil servant says and does, shows most clearly the position and work of the faithful and wise servant. Why the evil servant says, "My Lord delayeth his coming," is because the faithful servant is proclaiming the coming of his Lord. Why the evil servant smites the faithful servant, is because he teaches the speedy coming of his Lord. The faithful servant, true to his commission to preach the "gospel of the kingdom" to a fallen church and a scoffing world, toils on, and the evil servant smites on. One is laying up treasure in Heaven, and is preparing to go home to his eternal reward; while the other is calling down upon his head the displeasure of the high and holy One, and is getting ready to receive the unmingled cup of the fury of the Lord. The faithful servant is turning some, at least, to righteousness, to shine forever as stars in his crown of glory, while the evil servant pursues his downward course and work of death, making the bitter cup of woe which awaits him, still more bitter. But the separating day is coming. The Lord will come, and cut asunder the evil servant, and appoint him his portion with the lost. In the general wailing and gnashing of teeth, with hypocrites he will receive the portion due him for his works.
Read the doom of the false shepherds, the ministers of the last generation, who come up to the day of the Lord with their garments all stained over with the blood of souls. They now cry, Peace and safety; and their flocks confide in them. They stand between us and the people, and turn away the arrow of truth. But their day is coming, dreadful beyond description. Thus saith the Lord: "Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock; for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel. And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape. A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be heard; for the Lord hath spoiled their pasture. And the peaceable habitations are cut down, because of the fierce anger of the Lord." Jer. 25:34-37.
PARABLE OF TEN VIRGINS.
Chap. 25:1-4: "Then shall the kingdom of Heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them; but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps."
The twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chapters of Matthew are one connected discourse. The parable of the ten virgins of chapter 25, is a further illustration of the great subject of the second advent, treated in the previous chapter, especially of the action of the wise and the evil servants, given in the closing part of it. "Then shall the kingdom of Heaven be likened [compared, Campbell's translation] unto ten virgins." At the very time when both these classes of servants are manifested, may the kingdom of Heaven be compared to an eastern marriage. The parable, then, does not have a general application; but illustrates the kingdom of Heaven at a particular time. There can be no mistake on this point.
Some have desired to obtain a correct account of an eastern marriage, that they might better understand this parable. But let it be understood that our Saviour has here given the desired history, and testifies that the kingdom of Heaven shall be likened, or compared, unto it.
The kingdom of Heaven is not the future kingdom of glory. The parable can in no wise illustrate that kingdom. The term here, as in many other places in the New Testament, applies to the work of grace; or, more definitely expressed, it refers to the great second-advent movement, caused by the power of the word and Spirit of God upon the minds and hearts of men.
The ten virgins illustrate those who professed faith in the evidences of the soon coming of Christ, based upon fulfilled and fulfilling prophecy, and the signs of the times. Their lamps represent the word of God. Ps. 119:105; 2 Pet. 1:19. The oil may illustrate abiding faith, produced by a thorough work of the word and Spirit of God upon the hearts and lives of men. The difference, then, between those illustrated by the foolish, and the wise virgins, is that one class rest in that faith which alone is the result of theory, while the other class have that abiding faith which results not only from theory, but also from the work of grace wrought by the word and Spirit of God. And in the great advent movement, these two classes have been clearly manifested.
Verses 5-7: "While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps." The bridegroom in this parable represents Jesus Christ, and the tarrying of the bridegroom clearly shows a disappointment on the part of those looking for his second coming, and a consequent delay. The first point of expectation, as expressed in the title page of Wm. Miller's nineteen lectures, was "about the year 1843." This time passed, and believers, for a time, sank into a position which is well represented by the words, "They all slumbered and slept."
In the summer of 1844, it was seen that those evidences which had been relied upon as proof that the 2300 prophetic days of Dan. 8, would end in the year 1843, proved that they would terminate in 1844. The entire body of believers had been united, agreeing with Wm. Miller that the 2300 days dated from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem, B. C. 457.146This point settled, the figures 1843 were readily found:
From................................................2300
Take................................................457
And there remain................1843
But it was seen that it would require 457 full years before Christ, and 1843 full years after Christ, to make 2300 full years; so that if the 2300 years commenced with the first day of B. C. 457, they would reach to the first day of A. D. 1844. It was also seen that this prophetic period did not commence with the year 457, in the spring, but in the autumn of that year; consequently, 2300 full years would terminate in the autumn of 1844. In connection with this view of the subject, a most forcible application of the parable of the ten virgins, and other scriptures, was made, and a most solemn, searching cry went forth to Adventists everywhere, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him." This appeal to professed believers went with astonishing rapidity and power, and all were aroused to search the Scriptures with greater care and deeper interest, fitly represented by the words, "Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps."
(Concluded next number.)
Secure.
THE winds blow hard. What then?
He holds them in the hollow of his hand;
The furious blasts will sink when his command
Bids them be calm again.
The night is dark. What then?
To him the darkness is as bright as day;
At his command the shades will flee away,
And all be light again.
The wave is deep. What then?
For Israel's host the waters upright stood,
And he whose power controlled that raging flood
Still succors helpless men.
He knoweth all; the end
Is clear as the beginning to his eye;
Then walk in peace, secure though storms roll by,
He knoweth all, O friend!
S. S. Times.
Ministration of Angels.
By D. M. Canright
BUT where are God's people at this time? They are caught up to meet the Lord and are taken to Heaven where they reign with Christ during the thousand years. Paul says, "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. 4:16, 17. Jesus directly states that the saints will go to Heaven. Compare John 7:32-34; 13:33-38. Then he tells them when and how they will go there. "In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:2, 3. This shows that the saints will be taken to Heaven when the Lord comes.
In Rev. 19:1-10, John sees the saints in Heaven after their deliverance praising God. "And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in Heaven, saying, Alleluia! Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God." At his second coming Jesus takes his people to Heaven, to that place which he has prepared for them. The wicked, as we have seen, are all slain upon the earth.
Thus Rev. 19 presents us with these two grand facts: 1. The deliverance of the saints, and their triumphant entry into Heaven. Verses 1-10. 2. The destruction of the wicked upon the earth. Verses 11-21. Thus the earth is left entirely desolate, without an inhabitant. The next verses describe the binding of Satan, and his being cast into the earth. Rev. 20:1-3. A query may arise with regard to how Satan is bound. I understand it to be in this manner: The saints are all in Heaven beyond his reach. The wicked are all dead and in the earth; and hence they are out of his reach. Thus the devil is bound, having nothing to do but to roam up and down this desolate earth and meditate upon his sad condition. And it would also seem that he was confined to this earth, not allowed to go to other worlds.
That the wicked are not raised till the end of the one thousand years is directly stated in Rev. 20:4-7. "They [the saints] lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead [the wicked] lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection."
By reading Rev. 16-20, we find that God's people are taken from the earth before it is entirely desolated. Satan is not bound and cast into the earth till it is desolate. Therefore, when Satan is bound and presented before the Lord, the saints will be there to hear his sentence. I think that this is the time when Isa. 14 will have its fulfillment. The previous chapter foretells the destruction of the earth in the day of the Lord. "Howl ye, for the day of the Lord is at hand: it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty," &c. Chap. 14 opens with a prophecy foretelling the deliverance of God's people: "For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land. * And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this proverb [taunting speech, margin] against the king of Babylon [who represents Satan, the same as the "king of Tyrus" in Eze. 28], and say, How hath the oppressor ceased, the golden city ceased! The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the scepter of the rulers. [The "rulers of the darkness of this world," Eph. 6:12.] He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke [Satan has "smitten" God's people with a "continual stroke" from Abel to the present time], he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth." As we have before shown, Satan has ruled the nations in sin and wickedness for six thousand years. He has tempted, persecuted, and martyred the righteous without any mercy. But now the scene is changed; his power is broken. The "strong man armed" has been bound by "a stronger than he," and his "house" has been "spoiled of its goods." Luke 11:21, 22. Yes, Christ, the mighty conqueror, has bound Satan, opened the grave, and brought forth the saints. They are now out of Satan's power, and he is bound before them! What a scene! The devil in chains before his God against whom he has rebelled, before Christ whom he has despised, before the angels whom he has insulted, and before the saints whom he has persecuted and murdered! They now "take up a taunting speech against him," reminding him of his wicked rebellion, his multiplied crimes, and taunting him with his utter failure and his present helpless condition. "He is persecuted and none hindereth." Verses 1-6.
"The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet [because it is desolated of its inhabitants]; they [the righteous] break forth into singing. Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us." Now Jesus prepares to cast him into the earth to reap the fruits of his labor, to wander up and down in the desolate earth which has been made so by his wickedness.
"Hell [grave, margin] from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming; it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. All they shall speak and say unto thee [here the wicked dead are represented as greeting Satan as he is cast into the earth], Art thou also become weak as we? Art thou become like unto us? Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols; the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. How art thou fallen from Heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into Heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High; yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; that made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof?" Yes, the devil is the one who has made the earth to tremble and has shaken kingdoms, and, as the result of his course, the earth will at last be made a "wilderness."
But another mark of Satan follows: He "that opened not the house of his prisoners." When Satan had shut up the saints in his prison-house, the grave, he refused to open the house of his prisoners. But Jesus has conquered him; has opened his house and released his prisoners. Isaiah continues: "All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house [they are all dead and in their graves; hence they lie in their own houses. But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcass trodden under feet. Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial [no; Satan will have to live on this dreary earth a thousand years, while the wicked are all dead and in their graves; hence he will not be "joined with them in burial"], because, thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people; the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned." Verses 7-20.
It was through the devices of the devil that the human family was led into sin, and consequently into death. Since that time he has ruled in the kingdoms of this world. He has stirred up men to war and carnage, till at last, at the beginning of the 1000 years, the whole earth is desolate of its inhabitants. It is now one vast heap of ruins, of crumbling palaces, smoking villages, and forsaken cities. On every hand, in every clime, is written in characters of blood, Ruin, Destruction and Desolation! Thorns and brambles grow in the streets of once populous cities; wild beasts and satyrs roam through forsaken temples, and the doleful wind moans through their silent chamber. Ghastly skeletons of the dead lie strewn over all the earth. The clouds above are black, and the earth beneath sends up fire and smoke!
"For it is the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion. And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up forever; from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it forever and ever." Isa. 34:8-10. When this is fulfilled, in what an awful state the earth will be! Fire and brimstone on the face of the earth, and clouds and thick darkness above it! This is to be the home, this the kingdom, of the devil and his angels for one thousand years.
Now behold that mighty, fallen angel, terrible and majestic, even though fallen, the fiend of hell, as he stands and views this scene of ruin, of desolation, and of terror, the work of his own hands. As he looks upon the dark visages before him, his companions in woe, as he beholds their features, like his own, haggard and worn, as he glances at the awful scenery around him, his thoughts wander back to Eden—to Heaven—to the beautiful city of God. He remembers that he was once there, that he was a beautiful angel, that he was a companion of Christ, and the friend of God. He was then obedient and happy. Heaven was his home. Then he was surrounded by beauty, innocence, and loveliness. Now he remembers how he has rebelled against his God. Behold the result! One could almost pity him, devil though he be. Heaven, joy, happiness, immortality—all lost, and lost forever. Methinks I can hear him curse himself for his folly, and lament his bitter lot. Could he repent, could he be forgiven, oh! how quickly would he embrace the opportunity! But no; he sinned against too much light and knowledge to ever be forgiven. He must suffer the consequences of his sins; for one long, dreary thousand years he must wander up and down this dark, desolate earth, without employment, except his own thoughts, to meditate upon his sad condition! Lack of employment, the absence of hope, the certainty of his final doom, and the wrath of God resting upon him, must render him indescribably miserable. This is the wages of sin, this the harvest of evil-doers. He has fought against God, but now the blows have rebounded upon his own head; he has persecuted the righteous, but now they are safe; he has destroyed their beautiful home, and now it is his prison. Thus he has fulfilled the proverb: "Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit; but the upright shall have good things in possession." Prov. 28:10. Here he must remain a thousand years in "his own pit," and suffer for the sins of the righteous, which have been laid upon him by our High Priest, Jesus Christ.
THE JUDGMENT OF THE WICKED.
We have seen that the righteous dead are raised from the grave, and the righteous living changed, and all taken to Heaven when Jesus comes. The wicked are slain upon the earth at that time. In Rev. 19:1-10, the saints are seen in Heaven, just delivered, singing songs of praise and partaking of the marriage supper of the Lamb. Verses 10-21 relate the destruction of the nations. The first three verses of the next chapter say that an angel comes down from Heaven, binds Satan, and casts him into the abyss, to remain one thousand years. Having thus disposed of the wicked and of the devil for a thousand years, John again turns his attention to the saints, and tells us their occupation during this thousand years. "And I saw thrones, and they [the saints] sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them; and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark in their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. [Where were the wicked?] But the rest of the dead [in the first resurrection, Jesus will take out of the grave all the righteous. Then of course, "the rest of the dead" will be all the wicked. Hence, he says, the rest of the dead] lived not again until the thousand years were finished." Then there are two resurrections, and they are one thousand years apart. Then, of course, the wicked will live again when the thousand years are finished. This proves that the wicked are dead and in their graves during the thousand years. Thus we see that the first resurrection takes place at the beginning of the thousand years, and the second at the end of that time. Rev. 20:1-5.
Of the righteous, John says, "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them." What judgment? I answer, The investigative judgment upon the wicked; for the saints are to judge both wicked men and fallen angels. Proof: 1 Cor. 6:2, 3. "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?" This testimony is very direct and plain. Again Paul says, "Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts." 1 Cor. 4:5. This shows that when the Lord comes, all secrets will be laid open, and then the saints will judge men.
Daniel's language is to the same effect. He says, "I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High." Dan. 7:21, 22. By all this we see that the saints are in Heaven during the thousand years, judging the wicked who have not yet had a resurrection. All the deeds of the wicked are written down in books; these books are opened before God, and they are judged by what is found in these books. Rev. 20:12. During the thousand years the saints will have access to these records, from which they can see and know that God's judgment upon the lost is just. They will unite with him in his judgment and condemnation of the wicked. At the end of this time Christ and all the saints come down to the earth. Jesus comes down upon the Mount of Olives, from whence he ascended. The mountain parts asunder and becomes a great plain. Zech. 14:4, 5. Then the holy city comes down and rests upon this plain. The wicked will be raised, and gather up around the city. Rev. 20:4-9. Then the saints will execute upon them the punishment which has been apportioned to them for their crimes. Says Jude, "And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints [what for?], to execute judgment upon all and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him." Verses 14, 15. David tells us what judgment this is: "Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand; to execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written; this honor have all the saints." Ps. 149:5-9. The saints come to execute "the judgment written" during the thousand years.
D. M. CANRIGHT.
(Concluded next number.)
Wealth of the Ancient Hebrews
Wealth of the Ancient Hebrews.—In the times of David and Solomon gold existed in enormous quantities among the Hebrews. The figures given in the Old Testament appear almost fabulous. From 1 Chron. 20:14, we learn that David had collected together for the purpose of the Temple building a hundred thousand talents of gold and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and from 1 Chron. 29:3, we learn that over and above this enormous amount, he contributed from his own possessions three thousand talents of gold and seven thousand talents of silver; whilst the people in addition offered, “for the service of the house of God, five thousand talents and ten thousand drachms of gold, and of silver ten thousand talents,” (1 Chron 29:7). From these data the total value of the gold and silver has been calculated at nearly five thousand million dollars.—The Bible Educator.
What Shall We Do With Our Daughters?
What Shall We Do With Our Daughters?—This is the interrogative title of one of Mrs. Livermore's lectures. An exchange makes answer after this practical fashion:
Teach them self-reliance.
Teach them to make bread.
Teach them to make shirts.
Teach them to foot up store bills.
Teach them not to paint or powder.
Teach them to wear thick, warm shoes.
Teach them how to make their own dresses.
Teach them that a dollar is only a hundred cents.
Teach them how to cook a good meal of victuals.
Teach them to darn stockings and sew on buttons.