Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jun 23, 1859
SAINTS' INHERITANCE.
By John Norton Loughborough
BY J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH.
"Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth." Matt. v, 5.
(Concluded.)
We wish now to look at a testimony in Isaiah xi. By reading from the 1st to the 5th verse, you will see that this testimony concerning the "Rod out of the stem of Jesse," cannot refer to any earthly monarch; for they have no way of judging, but "after the sight of the eyes," nor to reprove but "after the hearing of the ears." We also learn that this personage is the one who is to slay the wicked with his breath, and also, that what follows from the 6th to the 9th verse, is after he has thus slain the wicked. This, then, refers to Christ's kingdom. Let us read a description of it: "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice's, (margin adder's) den." Here again we have a description of a state, when the evil dispositions of the beasts are taken away, and when the manner of their living even is changed. And the 9th verse shows that "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea."— This we have already shown cannot be, till after Christ comes and subdues all his foes.
"Then, bears and wolves no longer wild,
Obey the leading of a child;
The lions with the oxen eat,
And dust shall be the serpent's meat."
Those who deny the application of the above text, and Isaiah lxv, to a future state, claim that it is fulfilled here. Their claim is, that "this testimony is mystical, and has a hidden meaning. That these beasts, the wolf, lion, kid, and lamb, are used to represent men with different dispositions, whose hearts are softened and subdued by the ameliorating influence of the gospel." "The text," they say, "is fulfilled, when a man with a wolfish or lion-like disposition, is converted and brought into the fold of Christ, and with the lambs (christians) feeds on the heavenly manna." We object to this application for two reasons: First, when a man with a wolfish or lion-like disposition is converted, he is no longer a wolf or lion, but a lamb; and so in the sequel, those who make the above application of the text, will simply have two lambs feeding together, instead of a lion and a lamb. So to make the text bear the above application which they desire, it will be necessary for them to claim that men with unchanged hearts, and lives, are brought into the church, and feed on the heavenly manna.
Our second objection is, it is positively stated, (Isaiah lxv, 17-25.) that there shall be such a state of things in the new earth.
Thus we see, allowing these testimonies a literal application, a glorious scene is portrayed to our mind when the curse is removed, and the "fear of man" (Gen. ix, 2.) is so far taken away that the beasts are again in perfect subjection to him, as in the beginning, (Gen. i, 26.) even to that extent that "the little child shall lead" the fierce lion, "the king of the forest."
Again, Isaiah describes the saints' inheritance in chapter xxxv, 1-7: "The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." On the Sahara, and great desert of Arabia, the weary traveler now plods his way, scorched with the burning rays of the sun, finding no cooling shade beneath which to rest his aching limbs, but, faint with thirst, he lays himself down to die. No merry songsters beguile his sufferings and as his voice grows husky and still, nothing meets his vision but a vast plain of burning sand: not one beautiful flower to change the sad monotony of the desert; and in the distance, the driving Simoon threatening to bury him in its columns of sand. How changed the scene when the "restitution" work shall have been accomplished. "The desert shall blossom as the rose." Yes, and it shall "rejoice even with joy and singing." When it is clothed with green foliage and decked with blossoms abundant, the merry songsters will chirp from bough to bough, and warble forth their songs of praise to the Most High.
Verse 2. "It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon, (the forest of Lebanon is described as the most beautiful in appearance of any in the eastern world) shall be given to it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon." The valley of Sharon was anciently decorated with the most beautiful flowers of every description. In view of this glorious clothing which is to be given to the desert, the prophet says, [verses 3, 4.] "Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not; behold your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you."
Who would not feel strengthened with a hope of such a glorious inheritance as this, constantly before him? These promises have been given, not only that we might know what is coming, but to impart strength to us who are heirs of promise.— Reader, are you a believer in these glorious promises? We would say to you, when your heart gets fearful amid the trials and conflicts of the way, look at these hope-inspiring records respecting the future, and "be strong;" for in Jesus' name, we are able to go up and possess the goodly land. Thus Paul could say: Our "light affliction." "While we look not at the things which are seen, (the affliction) but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen, are eternal." 2 Cor. iv, 17, 18.
Isaiah continues in verses 5, 6: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing; for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert." As an aid to an understanding of the rejoicing of those who in that glorious state have been made free from all their infirmities, our mind turns to a case of healing, that was performed in the days of the Apostles, as recorded in Acts iii. A man who had been lame from his birth, who was daily laid at the beautiful gate of the temple, to ask alms, saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, and asked an alms.— He expected no relief from his infirmity, but asked a little pittance to enable him to protract his miserable existence here. When Peter said to him34"Look on us," his expectation was raised that they would give him a portion of money; but when
Peter said, "Silver and gold have I none," his hopes in that direction were blasted, and how unexpected must the next sentence have fallen on his ears:— "Such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk! And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up; and immediately his feet and ankle-bones received strength." What a thrill of joy must have filled his heart at this unexpected healing of his infirmities. He "entered with them into the temple, walking and leaping and praising God." If this temporary relief would cause the poor cripple to leap for joy, what must be the feelings of those in the resurrection morn, who, all their lives have been bowed down with lameness and the infirmities of the flesh, when they find not only their feet and ankle-bones made straight, but their whole being glowing with the vigor and energy of eternal youth! "Then shall the lame man leap as an hart." They will go like the deer bounding through the forest, as they shout forth their praises to the Most High. Like David of old, they will dance "before the Lord with all their might."
Isaiah speaks again of this glorious state, chap. li, 3. "For the Lord shall comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord." In the garden of the Lord, planted eastward, in Eden, there was "every tree that was pleasant to the sight, and good for food." In the restitution, this will be the condition of the whole earth. As is stated in Isa. lv, 13, "Instead of the thorn, shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the briar, shall come up the myrtle tree." Thorns are a part of the curse that was put upon the earth.— Gen. iii, 18. But these are to be removed. In that glorious state God's people can "dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. . . . And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beasts of the land devour them: but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid." Ezek. xxxiv, 25, 27, 28. And this is to be (verse 23,) when there is "set up one shepherd over them," and when Christ, who is here called by the Lord, "my servant David" "shall be their shepherd," and "shall be a prince among them."
We shall now examine John's testimony in Rev. xxi, xxii, concerning the new-earth state: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away." We do not understand from this, that there is to be a passing away of the matter of which the first heaven and earth are composed. Peter has shown, as we have already examined in the former part of this book, that the new heavens and new earth is to be brought in by the melting of the elements of the present heavens and earth, and the burning up of the works in the earth.
"And I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God, out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away." Not only will these not exist, but, as we have already seen, the opposite will exist: life, joy, rejoicing, and eternal pleasures. What a contrast with the present state of affliction, weeping and death. No raging epidemic there, sweeping its thousands into an untimely grave, and in a moment filling joyous hearts with the keenest anguish; no miasma or destructive thunderbolts; no funeral knell; no pall; no bier; no death-dirge will there be sung; no grave-yards ever greet our sight, and sadden our hearts with the thoughts of mortality; the grave-digger's spade will find no labor there; no soothing cordial will be needed to still the aching limbs and weary head; but immor-
tality and the tree of life will forever accomplish the work, and free the saints from all liabilities to pain or suffering. Yes, "And the inhabitants will not say, I am sick." Isa. xxxiii, 24.
"Death will be banished, his scepter be gone."
Says JOHN WESLEY: "We may more easily conceive the changes which will be wrought in the lower heaven, in the region of the air. It will be no more torn by hurricanes, or agitated by furious storms, or destructive tempests. Pernicious or terrifying meteors will have no place therein. We shall have no more occasion to say,
'There like a trumpet, loud and strong,
Thy thunder shakes our coast;
While the red lightnings wave along,
The banners of the host!'
"No! all will then be light, fair and serene; a lively picture of eternal day.
"And what will the general produce of the earth be? Not thorns, briers and thistles; not any useless or fetid weed; not any poisonous, hurtful or unpleasant plant; but every one that can be conducive, in any wise, either to our use or pleasure. We shall no more regret the loss of the terrestrial paradise, or sigh at the well-devised description of our great poet:
'Then shall this mount
Of paradise by might of waves be moved
Out of its place, rushed by the horned flood,
With all its verdure spoiled, and trees adrift,
Down the great river to the opening gulf,
And there take root an island salt and bare.'
"For all the earth shall be a more beautiful paradise than Adam ever saw."
Verses 9-16. "And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God: having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone, most precious, even like a jasper stone clear as crystal; and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel; on the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth; and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal."
We understand that this measure of the city is its entire circumference; for the announcement is made as soon as this measure is taken, that all sides are alike; length, breadth and height. The ancient custom of measuring cities was to begin at the corner and go entirely around, and not simply to measure one side. The measure of the city was twelve thousand furlongs. At eight furlongs to the mile, it would be fifteen hundred miles. This being the entire circumference of the city, one fourth of it would give us the length of either side: three hundred and seventy-five miles. Truly this is a great city. This is indeed the city that Abraham looked for, "which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." Heb. xi. This is the Jerusalem which Paul says "is above," and "is free, which is the mother of us all." It is the Father's house, in which Christ said "there are many mansions." It is the place he was going to prepare for his saints prior to his coming again to receive them to himself. John xiv, 1-3.
Verse 17. "And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel." This we suppose to refer to the height of the wall, for he has already given us the length and the breadth. Eighteen inches to the cubit would give the height of the wall at two hundred and sixteen feet.
Verse 18. "And the building of the wall of it was of jasper; and the city was pure gold like unto clear glass." JASPER: "A precious stone of various colors, as purple, cerulean, green, &c." Greenfield. "Mostly green." Robinson. "Of a beautiful bright green color, sometimes clouded with white, and spotted with red or yellow." Clarke.
Verses 19, 20. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. These twelve stones are the foundation of the wall, but the wall is of jasper, which we have already described.
SAPPHIRE. "A precious stone of a blue color in various shades." Greenfield, Robinson. "A bright gem, properly of pure blue." Cobbin. "Perfectly transparent." Clarke. "Of a beautiful azure or sky-blue color, almost as transparent and glittering as a diamond." Stuart.
CHALCEDONY. "The name of a gem generally of a whitish, bluish, or smoky-green color, susceptible of a high and beautiful polish." Greenfield. Some Greek MSS. read carbuncle, instead of chalcedony. Carbuncle "is a very elegant gem of a deep red color, with an admixture of scarlet. From its bright, lively color, it had the name, carbunculus, which signifies a little coal; because when held before the sun it appears like a bright burning charcoal." Clarke.
EMERALD, "is one of the most beautiful of all the gems, and is a bright green color, without any other mixture." Clarke.
SARDONYX. "A precious stone exhibiting a milk-white variety of the chalcedony, intermingled with shades or stripes of sardian or carnelian" (flesh color). Robinson.
SARDIUS. "A precious stone of blood-red, and sometimes flesh color." Greenfield.
"CHRYSOLITE is of a beautiful yellow color, and is so called by the ancients from its looking like a golden stone." Cobbin.
BERYL, "is of a blueish green, and very brilliant." Cobbin.
"TOPAZ of the present day seems to be reckoned as yellow, but that of the ancients appears to have been green." Stuart.
CHRYSOPRASUS. "Its color is commonly apple-green, and often extremely beautiful." Cleveland.
JACINTH. "A precious stone of a dead red, with a mixture of yellow. It is the same as the hyacinth, or cinnamon stone." Clarke.
AMETHYST, "is a pure rock-crystal, of a purplish-violet color, and of great brilliancy." Chambers.
Stuart says of these precious stones: "There is classification therefore in the arrangement; a mixture not dissimilar to the rainbow, with the exception that it is more complex." And this forms the foundation of the wall of the city. That wall is itself bright green, spotted with red and yellow. In addition to this, it is transparent, so it will admit the rays of different colors to pass through it which emanate from the stones that form its foundation, (for many of these stones emit light of themselves.) Here is a scene of beauty, indeed; but when we contemplate still further, in addition to this, that the glory of God, which far outshines the sun, will cause those precious stones to sparkle and glisten, we have a wall of such splendor as is far beyond the conception of mortals.
Verse 21. "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass." Here is gold that is worth striving for. It is imperishable. One ounce of it would be worth more to you, dear reader, than all the gold of California. I would give more for a surety of enough of that gold to set my feet upon, than for all the treasures of earth. He that secures a standing-place on those streets will be safe.
Verse 23. "The city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof." The glory of God will so far outshine the sun, that its rays will give no light in the city. This is35not simply the sun as it now shines, but it is when as the Prophet says, "The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be seven fold." Isa. xxx, 26. Again, speaking of this same time [chap. xxiv, 23] he says: "Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously." This refulgent light, shining on those most precious stones, will cause them to sparkle and glow, and shine forth such as by human sight hath never yet been seen.
Verse 24. "And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it; and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it." This it seems is to be the great metropolis, or capital of the new earth kingdom, into which all the nations of them that are saved shall come to offer their tribute of praise.
In chap. xxii, we have a description of the river of life "clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Every month the tree will yield a fruit, and as God's saints, "from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another come to worship before" the Lord, [Isa. lxvi, 23.] they may obtain of the fruits of the tree of life. Those who obey God's commandments, as we learn in chap. xxii, 14, are to have a right to the tree of life, and enter in through the gates into the city, and participate in this glorious rest.
Thus we have briefly investigated some of the many testimonies which speak of the glorious inheritance of the saints. The meek shall inherit the earth, as Christ has promised; but not till sin and the curse are removed. But says the objector, Christ said, "Great is your reward in heaven." True, there is a rich reward reserved for us. We are to reign with Christ in heaven 1000 years, but that city with all its dazzling glory, as we have just seen from Rev. xxi, is to come down and be the capital of the earth restored. But, it is still urged, Paul said "we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens." True, the building is eternal; but he does not say it will eternally remain there. God's word shows that it will come down and be the tabernacle of God, when he dwells with men.
THE SKEPTIC.
I ENVY not the skeptic
His gloomy realm of doubt—
Whose sun is but a meteor,
To flash and then go out—
No moon or star of comfort,
To cheer affliction's night;
No gleam of lovely morning,
To bless his longing sight.
The fairest earth-born flowers,
That bloom along his way,
Unfold, mature, and wither
In life's bleak, transient day.
Then comes the cheerless winter
Of dark, unbroken death;
No future smiling spring-time,
Seen by the eye of faith.
Without a chart or compass,
On life's dark stormy sea;
And near the fearful "maelstrom,"
Unknown eternity;
Toss'd by contending passions,
His bark goes drifting on,
Till, in the circling eddies,
'Tis caught—and he is gone.
Give me the christian's Saviour,
Blest "Sun of righteousness,"
Whose brightest beams are rapture,
Whose feeblest rays are peace.
Forever in the ascendant,
Throughout life's changeful day,
To shine in cloudless glory,
Through long eternity.
Give me the bow of promise,
That spans the christian's sky;
Displaying hope's bright colors,
When clouds go drifting by.
The flowers that in their beauty,
Along his pathway rise;
Nor wither—but, transplanted,
Unfold in Paradise.
Give me the christian's compass,
His sure unerring chart,
My eye upon the Bible,
The Spirit in my heart.
'Twixt Scylla and Charybdis,
I'll safely steer my way,
And make the blissful harbor
Of everlasting day.
Forever and forever,
Safe from earth's toil and strife,
Beside the crystal river,
Beneath the tree of life—
In everlasting mansions,
Bright regions of the blest,
Within the gold-paved city,
Give me the christian's rest.—S. S. Times.
Sins Exposed
SINS EXPOSED.—A certain king, who had been conquered by another, was made to kneel before him. He begged that it might be done in private. A tent was erected for the purpose, but the moment the conquered king bowed on his knees, the tent was removed, and he was exposed to the gaze of the whole army. We may now conceal our deeds of iniquity, but in a moment, we little suspect, they will be exposed to the universe, and we stand confounded.
CONCLUSION.
Dear reader, is not the inheritance God has promised good enough, especially when we consider that man, the participant of these glories, is to be clothed with immortality? "Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God." But "when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then will God's saints be qualified to possess an immortal inheritance. Man will stand forth perfected, beauteous in form, free from pain, the stain of sin all washed away from his heart, and his lips shouting forth the praises of Him who has thus wrought for him. Methinks your better feelings say, It is glorious. Yes, and the best of all is, that state will never end. The countless ages of eternity will roll on, and
“When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise,
Than when we first began.”
Dear reader, do you not feel a longing desire in your heart to be a partaker of the saints' inheritance? Don't you want to go to glory, and dwell with the angels, hear their rapturous songs, and sing with them? The Spirit calls you, there is yet room. The heavenly city, with all its charms, welcomes you to come. The way is easy, if you seek it through Christ.
First. "Break off from your sins by righteousness, and turn away from your transgressions by obedience to God." Have you no hope in Christ? speedily obtain one. "If we confess and forsake our sins, he is just and true to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." In the very day you seek him with all the heart he will be found of you.
Second. We must comply with the conditions on which the promise was made. Christ says, "Blessed are they that do His (the Father's) commandments (the condition of the inheritance given to Abraham) that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Rev. xxii, 14. Then leave the trifles of earth. Come away. Why will you linger and die? While mercy lingers, why will you dally with the vanities of earth, and neglect the preparation for that rich inheritance which you may obtain?
Are you a christian, striving to obtain a rich reward with the faithful? Take courage, the kingdom will be cheap enough, though you may wade through seas of blood to obtain it. Contrast all your afflictions here with that "far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory" at the end of the race. Cease your murmurings, heaven is cheap enough. Remember, your trials here are only workmen sent to polish you, and fit you for your heavenly inheritance.
“Why should I murmur or repine at hardship, grief or loss?
They only will the gold refine, and purge away the dross.”
God is displeased with murmuring christians. Look how he recompensed those who murmured in the wilderness. Paul has told us, "Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured." Be as consistent in the heavenly way, as you are with temporal matters. Let the object of your pursuit spur you forward, and instead of murmuring at your lot, let your actions tell to all that you consider that object of greater value than worldly ease or pleasure. If some lord of earth should come to your town and advertise, saying, "Ho! every one that is in my hearing! Any man who will labor for me carrying wheat, shall receive a bushel of gold for every two bushels of wheat he will carry a mule," what a rush of people you would behold flocking to the scene of action, each anxious to get a burden to carry. Behold them loading themselves to the ground almost, with their heavy burdens. Why, the more load I take the more gold I shall get, and you know I can't go but once. See them trying their loads, and concluding they "can carry a little more." On they go. Down goes one. "Well," says another, "got too much load?" "Oh, no, I'll get along." Not a word of complaining among that company. The gold spurs them forward. Have you ever murmured? Stop and think. An "eternal weight of glory" is to be worked out by this suffering. What? Why, your "light affliction which is but for a moment, is working out for you an ETERNAL weight of glory." The more afflictions the heavier the glory. Well, I can carry a little more; for I have only to carry it a moment, (compared with eternity,) and Jesus says his grace is sufficient.
“The road may be rough, but it cannot be long,
I'll smoothe it with hope, and I'll cheer it with song.”
Are you a minister of Christ, striving to lead the flock in the way of God's truth, and win souls to Christ? Toil on. "Thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just." He who has said, "Feed the flock of God," has also said, "When the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away." Think often of the inheritance. No aching head, no hearts saddened then by opposition of men to God's truth. No fevered lungs worn with incessant labor; but there those who have turned many to righteousness "shall shine as the stars forever and ever." Toil on! and may we meet as fellow-laborers on mount Zion with the Lamb. Amen.
Report of Meetings in Oakland, Mich.
By J. L. Edgar
Bro. Smith: I have been making some feeble efforts of late to spread the truth, and for fear of moving wrong my soul has been bowed down for months. I desire to be found in my proper place in this solemn message. I commenced a series of meetings in the town of Oakland, Kent Co., Apr. 3d and gave eighteen lectures in all, until one of my eyes failed and I was obliged to return home. The Lord is blessing the means made use of, and my eyes are being restored. The meetings in Oakland were well sustained, notwithstanding the strong opposition from a certain class calling themselves Free-thinkers, more properly denominated Free-lovers. April 5th I gave notice that on next First-day I would give the Bible view of Spiritualism. The Spiritualists turned out en mass. I endeavored to lay the ax at the root of the tree by showing from the Scriptures that the dead know not anything. This stirred the ire of the dragon to find himself thus exposed where he evidently thought of reaping a fine harvest. On the evening of the 11th, a lecturer by the name of B. and his clique whose name is legion, came down to drive out that "little fanatic," (as they termed me) for certain strange things were brought to their ears, and the people were stirred against them. I spoke from Rev. xiii, 11-18. B. arose and occupied some time in reviewing me. His ideas were scattered and not to the point, and ended by saying that one horn of the beast was Republicanism, the other England. He also stated that the Bible did teach Spiritualism and quoted as proof the appearance of Moses and Elias on the mount, "I am thy fellow servant, [Rev. xxii, 9.] and the witch of Endor, [1 Samuel xxviii]. Being driven from his strong hold he denied the Bible which previous to this he had professed to believe. Thus they deceive. He called the Bible an old rotten thing upon which, like an old fiddle, you could play any tune you saw fit; called the God of the Bible a God of war, and more cruel than the savage &c. The speaker's views were so contradictory that all could see for themselves. They completely overturned, ate up and annihilated each other. The Lord gave me some liberty in presenting the truth to that people, and while some seed has fallen by the wayside, I trust some has fallen on good ground. A few have decided to obey God rather than man by keeping all of his commandments. O that God would prepare the hearts of that people for the reception of the third angel's message; the last to be given to fallen man, to prepare for translation a people who will be keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. May he bless those Baptist brethren who gave me a fair hearing and kindly invited me to their homes to partake of their hospitalities. Some have commenced keeping the Sabbath of the Lord, others have readily embraced the Bible view of no immortality out of Christ, the final destruction of the wicked, and the earth the final abode of the saints. And as they have thrown off the heathen dogma of natural immortality handed down to us from the "Roman dunghill of decretals," may they be enabled to see another pet of Romanism, namely Sunday-keeping for which there is no authority in the word of God; the highest authority we have for First-day keeping being the Catholic church, the mother of harlots. J. L. Edgar.
Bourne, May 19th, 1859.
Presently.
NEVER say you will do presently, what your reason or your conscience tells you, you should do now. No man ever shaped his own destiny, or the destinies of others, wisely and well and dealt much in presentlies. Look at nature. If she never hurries, she never postpones. When the time arrives for the buds to open, they open—for the leaves to fall, they fall. Look upward. The shining worlds never put off their risings or their settings. The comets even, erratic as they are, keep their appointments; and eclipses are always punctual to the minute. There are no delays in any of the movements of the universe which have been pre-determined by the absolute fiat of the Creator. Man, however, being a free agent, can postpone the performance of his duty; and he does so too frequently to his own destruction. The drafts drawn by indolence upon the future are pretty sure to be dishonored. Make now your banker. Do not say you will economize presently, for presently you may be bankrupt; nor that you will repent or make atonement presently, for presently you may be judged. Bear in mind the important fact, taught alike by the history of nations, rulers and private individuals, that in at least three cases out of five, presently is too late.—Sel.
TWO GOLD REGIONS.
By Editor
"THE PIKE'S PEAK DRAMA."
"THE scenes enacted on the plains of Kansas, in consequence of the explosion of the Pike's Peak humbug, are of the most tragic, as well as touching character. The Postmaster at Denver City, says a correspondent of the N. Y. Evening Post, was accused, tried and convicted of tampering with the mails, of opening letters, distributing false reports, purporting to be from the miners to their Eastern friends. A father was astonished by the arrival of his son, to whom he had written a true statement of the poverty of the mines, and his own intention of returning at the earliest opportunity. Upon inquiring the cause of his starting, the son showed him a letter purporting to be from himself, and instructing him to make arrangements to leave immediately for Denver City. The disguised handwriting was proved to be the Postmaster's, and the father charging him with the deed, he confessed its truth, and was shot dead on the spot. A well known contractor living at St. Joseph, is also reported to have been shot by some infuriated victims of his falsehoods. A party going out had determined to return, on account of the discouraging reports brought by the reflex tide of emigration, when they met a man who had the hardihood to assert that he had four hundred dollars' worth of gold dust in his possession. He was offered a hundred dollars an ounce for all he would produce, and failing to exhibit it upon this inducement, they told him if he did not disgorge they would shoot him, upon which he confessed that he had none, never saw so much as a thimble full, and only made the statement to induce the emigrants to continue their journey. It is said that large meetings have been held by the miners, at which resolutions were passed, calling for the entire destruction of all the frontier towns which had been instrumental in raising the excitement, from St. Joseph to Kansas City! All editors are to be exterminated.
"The returning emigrants are compelled to resort to all manner of expedients to raise money to pay their passage down the Missouri, or even to keep themselves from starving. Many are working on the farms along the route for their board; some trying to get positions as drivers in the Salt Lake mail train, and others waiting for starvation. Cattle are sold at a merely nominal price, wagons burned for firewood, or left by the wayside, and pistols, rifles and arms of every description given for a meal of corn bread and bacon, and a drink of whisky."
What a comment is this on the cupidity of mankind, and the slight inducement on which they will embark their all in the prospect of a trifle of earthly gain. To justly estimate this Pike's Peak movement which, like a wave has rolled over the whole land, it is necessary to take into consideration a fact or two. 1. The reports from that locality have ever been contradictory. There has not been a time when there has not been an outstanding contradiction of all the favorable representations that have come from that quarter; hence, 2. Faith in the success of the enterprise on the part of those who embarked in it, could not be implicit. They must have had some misgivings as contradictory statements, of the truth of which they had no power of judging, were reported to them. And, 3. Even if the favorable reports were all correct, and the adverse ones all false, and it were certain that all who went there would succeed in obtaining a quantity, greater or less, of sordid gold, what then? They would only obtain a perishing bauble of this world, a little earthly gain, subject to all the casualties of this mortal life. And yet, under all this uncertainty, and for this meager prospect, the fact that favorable reports outnumbered or overbalanced the unfavorable, was sufficient to induce men to embark their all in the enterprise, part with houses and lands, endure the privations, the toils and hardships of a perilous journey and a miner's life.
The Pike's Peak humbug has exploded. We have abundant occasion to notice the sacrifices men will incur in a scheme liable to such an issue. But our heading promises to speak of another region in contrast with this. We gladly turn to it. It is a region from which no contradictory reports have ever come. There is but one testimony respecting it, and that is from the lips of inspiration itself. It is a region that the chilly hand of death never visits, and the treasures we secure there are not subject to the casualties of this mortal life. There is the gold that never fades. And the representations we have of it are not the forgeries of fraudulent post-masters, and interested villains banded to deceive us. And yet how few are in earnest search after these durable riches? How few are looking forward to the recompense of reward—the harp and crown of gold, as motives of present action. How few are willing to comply with the conditions on which they hang, or endure the sacrifices necessary to obtain them. Yea, and even those professing to esteem the interests of the Redeemer's kingdom paramount to everything else, will make a greater effort, and show more zeal, in making their way to Pike's Peak, or some such region, than they will to bear the burdens and crosses that lie in the line of their journey to eternal life.
What can we infer from these facts? Simply this: that people have more real, living, implicit faith in the contradictory reports from Pike's Peak, than they have in the promises of God. For as a man believes, so will he act. And thus we have tangible evidence that love for gold triumphs over love for Christ.