p. 320 | Signs of the Times, Vol. 41, No. 20. (5/26/1914)

Earlier text: The Great South American World

"Listen . . . You Rich Men"

By Editor

THE persistent demonstrations against Mr. Rockefeller in New York City are nothing more than the prelude, or a sort of premonition, of what is coming upon the wealthy men of this whole world.

The sentiment has been spread abroad that Mr. Rockefeller is largely responsible for the terrible conditions that have existed in the mining regions of Colorado. It is not within the purview of this paper to discuss either the merits or the demerits of this claim. But we point to the great fact that menacing crowds have been at work in front of Mr. Rockefeller's residence in New York City, in and about his church, and elsewhere; and they are inflaming the populace with the thought that he alone is to blame for the distressing conditions already mentioned.

Nearly two thousand years ago, the apostle James was inspired to speak of the heaping together of treasures that would occur in the last days; and five hundred years before that, the prophet Isaiah had spoken of the vast accumulations of silver and gold that would be seen in these very same last days. Line after line of prophecy has pointed to this generation as the time specifically denominated in the word of God as the one that would see the great climax of this world's history, the second coming of Christ.

In harmony with these prophetic utterances, we find fortunes heaped together that go beyond anything the world has ever seen or known. There have been wealthy men in past times, but these men were limited to specific neighborhoods in their acquirement of wealth. But the financial kings to-day, through the railroad, the steamship, the telegraph, have the whole world at their command, and the millionaire has increased to the billionaire; and when it comes to the question of financial control, we have men that are even multi-billionaires. This is truly a heaping together of treasure that any one should see answers most strikingly to the prophecy. The words as recorded by James are:

"Listen to me, you rich men, weep and wail for the miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches have wasted away, and your clothes have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are rusted; and the rust of them shall be evidence against you, and shall eat into your very flesh. It was fire, so to speak, that you stored up for yourselves in these last days. I tell you, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you have been fraudulently keeping back, are crying out against you, and the outcries of your reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts! You have lived on earth a life of extravagance and luxury; you have indulged your fancies in a time of bloodshed. You have condemned, you have murdered, the Righteous One! Must not God be opposed to you? Be patient, then, brothers, till the coming of the Lord. Even the farmer has to wait for the precious fruit of the earth, watching over it patiently, till it has had the spring and summer rains." James 5: 1-7, Twentieth Century New Testament.

We submit that the foregoing verses are as graphic a presentation of the actual situation in the world to-day as can be presented by any literature of this time. And since the prophets had such a clear view of these times and their meaning, as wise men we should be guided by the divine and clear predictions. Without any question, we are living in the last days; and without any question, the stormy violence that is being stored up against the wealthy will become worse and worse and more and more bitter, until the climax is at last reached in the coming of the Lord.

Egg-Shells, Hammers, and Battle-Ships

MR. CHURCHILL, the first lord of the British admiralty, has recently said that a battle between modern ironclads would be "more like a battle between two egg-shells striking each other with hammers" than like a battle between two men in armor striking at each other with heavy swords. He says further:

"The offensive power of modern battle-ships is out of proportion to their defensive power. Never was the disproportion so marked."

In the light of his illustration, he says to his countrymen:

"The awful importance of good gunnery must come home to us — the importance of hitting first, and hitting hard, and keeping on hitting, and the necessity of spending money in arriving at the highest possible efficiency."

In other words, the gun power of the modern battle-ship enables it to strike blows that are altogether out of proportion to the strength of its armor to receive these blows. Hence the necessity, from the standpoint of the nations, of keeping to the highest tension, and sparing no expense in reaching top-notch efficiency in speed, as well as in accuracy in handling the guns.

For this work of naval gunnery, the insatiable appetite of the war-gods insists upon the very best of our young men. They must be keen, accurate, and efficient both in aiming the guns and in getting the ammunition to them with which they are to be served. In this work, time is counted by fractions of seconds; and the young man who can do his work in a fraction of a second less than some other young man, is the one that is put forward. There must be no "fumbling" nor awkward movements in the gun crews. Those who can not reach the highest standard of mental and nervous and physical efficiency are passed down below to shovel coal, or to do any other less important work, while the very brightest flower of the national manhood must be kept to operate these great engines of destruction.

The sanest and the best men and women of the world are rightfully calling for the cessation of this terrible waste in human energy that is training to the highest point of efficiency in destruction. But we are in the time when, as God's word has shown, the war-gods will be driving the nations of the earth furiously toward the great culmination in the battles of Armageddon. Things so luminously plain as the prophecies that point to the meaning of these conditions ought to convince any person of the portents of these times.

The Crucifixion and the Sabbath

By Editor

We are continually receiving documents and manuscripts from different ones who are seeking to prove that the crucifixion of Christ occurred on some other than the sixth day of the week, or Friday; whereas the Scripture is very plain upon this question, if we will take the pains to follow its literal teaching.

The principal object some of these writers and students have in trying to fix the day of the crucifixion on some other day, is that they may make some kind of special argument on the Sabbath question. But the Sabbath does not depend, for its authority, upon the time of either the crucifixion or the resurrection of Christ. The authority for the Sabbath is in the commandment itself, and that commandment is plain and specific. We lose ground and waste valuable time when we seek for an argument that would add anything to the clearness of God's commandments.

"So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty." God's "law of liberty" is that which we will meet in the Judgment; and it is plain enough in all its precepts, including the Sabbath command, that no one need make any mistake, or wander away from the definite truth of the infinite God. He is so particular to have everybody understand Him that He has given His divine book in the simplest language of the commonest people.

Edison Puts a Ban on Cigarettes

By Editor

MR. THOMAS A. EDISON, at his extensive works in West Orange, New Jersey, employs some 6,700 men. He has recently caused to be posted all through his establishment: "Cigarettes Not Tolerated. They Dull the Brain."

This decision came about through a request from Mr. Henry Ford, Detroit automobile manufacturer, that a chemical analysis be made of some twenty different brands of the cigarette. The inventor made the analysis himself, and found that while some of these cigarettes were worse than others, they each contained a variety of qualities of tobacco, and he found poison in all the papers in which they were rolled. Mr. Edison reported that "this poison attacks the folds of the brain and works havoc with a man's mental activity."

Mr. Edison's report on the cigarette is very valuable, and we trust that it may have a wide circulation, and that thousands of young men may be thereby turned away from the evil of cigarette smoking, which is one of the worst forms in which tobacco can be used. But it is hoped that a still further request will be made of Mr. Edison, by some influential person, that will lead him to make the same critical examination of tobacco in any form. And if this can be brought about, he will find out that the smoking of the cigar or the chewing of tobacco, or using it in any way whatever, is very injurious to the system. While cigarette smoking is one of the worst forms of tobacco using, the other forms are alike harmful, even though in a lesser degree.

Any stimulant or narcotic that is taken into the system in reality depresses and lowers our powers; for while there is the momentary stimulation, there is always the greater depression that follows the temporary exhilarating effects.

Medical and World News

THE Journal of the American Medical Association publishes the fact that certain cases of sore eyes are due to some of the face powders that are upon the market. The rice crystals in these objectionable powders are driven into the eye by the puff with which the powder is applied to the face. When coming in contact with the tears in the eye, a mucilaginous substance is formed that sets up an irritation.

ON May 4 a tornado swept through portions of Illinois, killing one man and destroying considerable property. On the next day a tornado visited portions of Texas, where two men were killed and several towns were greatly injured.

ON May 10 a bomb was exploded in the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, famous as Spurgeon's church. The bomb was evidently not timed as intended, and did not explode until half an hour after the service, so no one was killed, and the damage is confined to the property alone.

ON May 9 a violent earthquake shock destroyed much property and two hundred lives in Sicily. This earthquake was in the neighborhood of the disaster of 1909.

Lift Up Your Heads

ALREADY the reports are beginning to tell us of individuals stricken by the heat in some of the Eastern cities. Tornadoes are working their fearful havoc. Earthquakes of terribly destructive nature are following each other in very quick succession. Every one who is keeping track of passing events knows that these conditions of storm and destructive upheaval are becoming worse and worse each passing year, and bringing more and more dread to the human family. But this dread is occasioned by not knowing the meaning of it. With these disturbances in nature in mind, read this scripture:

"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. And He spake to them a parable; Behold the fig-tree, and all the trees; when they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but My words shall not pass away." Luke 21: 25-33.

The Master desires not only that we should be acquainted with the fact that He is coming again, but He desires that we shall learn to know Him personally as our Saviour and Friend; and knowing Him, we are resting in the promises of His infinite word, and in harmony with the admonition in the foregoing text, we are looking up and lifting up our heads, because our redemption is drawing nigh.

No other joy that can thrill the soul is equal to the joy which comes into the heart of the one who knows that the Lord's coming is near, and who is rejoicing in the knowledge of that great event.