Signs of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 34. (8/20/1902)

Signs of the Times

Aug 20, 1902

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Aug 20, 1902

JORDAN AND ITS LESSONS.

Jordan as a river is hardly worthy of particular notice. It does not compare in beauty or majesty at all with any of the great historic streams. But in its history there is none like it. The Nile, the Rhine, the Danube, the Mississippi, the Amazon, the Hudson, are all of minor importance in historic incident, in character moulding, and age-forming lessons.

The name Jordan means “descender.” Its principal sources are four in number, rising up among the mountains of Anti-Lebanon, at an altitude varying from 1,700 to 1,100 feet above sea level. It descends to “the waters of Merom,” 1,434 feet. Thence in the short distance of nine direct miles it falls 897 feet to “blue Galilee,” 682 feet below the Mediterranean. Down to the Dead or Salt Sea it flows through a deeply depressed valley varying in width from one to twelve miles, the hills on either side almost meeting at times. This valley, filled with a rich alluvial soil, is called the Plain of the Jordan. It formerly took in much of the surface now covered by the Dead Sea. The distance between Lake Tiberias and the Dead Sea in a straight line is only sixty-six miles, yet the length of the river, owing to its extreme crookedness, is 200 miles. Its whole descent from its source to the Dead Sea, a distance of 136 miles, is 2,999 feet. The devious windings of the stream are a blessing, as its flow would be much more rapid were it nearer straight. Its valley is semi-tropical in climate and fertile in soil, and its waters, saturated with alluvium, pour their fertilizing powers into the barren Dead Sea.

What incidents the very name Jordan recalls from the earliest times in connection with the cause of God and His people! Surely it were worth our while to recall some of the more striking, and learn anew the lessons God gave them record to teach.

The first mention of Jordan is in the thirteenth chapter of Genesis. Abraham and Lot were new-comers to Palestine, the former the leader and benefactor, the latter the blessed and benefited. Their flocks and herds grew apace, so that their herdmen strove against each other for room for pasturage. The old patriarch called his nephew and said: “Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between thee and me, and between my herdsmen and thy herdsmen; for we are brethren. Is not the whole land before thee? Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me; if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” What a noble utterance! and worthy of “the friend of God.” If men or their families can not agree when living together, it is better to agree by living separate. If the young man or young woman can not without strife remain in the parental home, it is better to seek a place elsewhere. It sometimes brings home and its blessed influences spiritually and lovingly nearer when we go physically away from it. But, O, be sure and make the wise choice, not the selfish choice of Lot. He looked from the heights of Bethel over into the fertile regions of Judea’s chief river, with its teeming, wealthy, luxury-loving cities; and Lot “beheld all the Plain of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere, before Jehovah destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, like the garden of Jehovah;” and “so Lot chose him all the Plain of the Jordan; . . . and Lot dwelt in the cities of the Plain, and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against Jehovah exceedingly.” The selfish choice led Lot to the selfish community, and his sad experience of the loss of all, including character. Jordan, the “descender,” surely did not belie its name to him.

Jordan was the boundary line between Jacob’s enforced journey from his father’s house, and the boundary line of his return from his semi-servitude with Laban. And yet God had blessed the sorely tried man. He went out from home empty, sad, and repentant of his sin that turned Esau’s face against him. He returned full. In his gratitude to God he declared: “I am not worthy of the least of all the loving-kindnesses, and of all the truth which Thou hast showed unto thy servant; for with my staff [only] I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two companies.” Gen. 32:10. At Jordan Jacob gained the great victory of his life. When he recrossed Jordan it was not as Jacob, the “supplanter,” fleeing for his life, but as Israel, the prince, the prevailer with God. The swift descending river marked upward work in his life.

Jordan marked the boundary of the promised land on the east; and Moses could lead the host of God no farther. His sin in taking glory to himself, prevented his entrance at the head of his people into the land which flowed with milk and honey. The work he might have finished must be taken up by another. Jordan marked the end of his earthly work because of “one little sin.” Yet his hearty repentance and submission was accepted of God, and before his death, far over Jordan, his divinely aided vision drank in the beauties of the “pleasant land.” Deut. 3:23-27.

Jordan witnessed the mighty power of God when Israel passed over. (See Joshua, chapters 3 to 6). Its proud, overflowing, turbulent waters were checked and piled up a mighty wall, mountain high, before the Ark of God’s law. As soon as the priests who bore the

law stepped into the swelling waters, they stayed their onward rush. “The Jordan was driven back.” Ps. 114:3. Below that bank of waters stood the priests with the ark. A Power mightier than the mightiest wall was holding them. Past that ark containing God’s holy law which condemned all sin, above which was the mercy-seat which represented God’s infinite compassion, both of which stood for a holy people, filed the long line of Israel’s host, till every soul passed over, humble, penitent, grasping by faith the hand of Him who held the mad waters. Then and there God “rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off” His children; and the turbulent descending river bore their sins in figure to the oblivion of the Dead Sea. Jordan was to them a river of judgment, of acquittal, of consecration, of victory.

The Coming of the Lord

By L. A. Phippeny

BY L. A. PHIPPENY

THE FORTHSHINING OF HIS PRESENCE.

And the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away; and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.” Job 34:20. This remarkable prophecy indicates the specific time of the Lord’s appearing. It is at midnight that the brightness far exceeding the noonday brilliancy of the sun bursts upon the world, and the Lord in terrible majesty comes for the deliverance of His people.

These words suggest the thought that twenty-four hours are occupied in the work of resurrecting and gathering together the glorified followers of Christ. At this time Christ does not actually descend upon the earth. He takes His position in the air, probably first over Palestine, the scene of His labors on earth, and remains stationary, surrounded by the hosts of the saints who are then resurrected and translated in that portion of the world, and who are caught up by the angels to their Lord. As the earth revolves, the hour of midnight with its awe-inspiring and unparalleled scenes is arrived at by every portion of the globe, and the angelic messengers speed hither and yon to the resting places of the saints, bearing them to the waiting glory as they come forth in response to the voice of the Son of God and the loud call of the trump of the archangel.

While this resurrection is the resurrection of the righteous, the Scriptures indicate that those who were particularly instrumental in persecuting Christ and His true followers will come forth from their graves at the summons of the King to witness the glory and triumph of Him whom they condemned. “Behold, He cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see Him; and they also which pierced Him” (Rev. 1:7) is the record concerning this event. In response to the question of the high priest as to His divinity, Jesus said, “I am [the Christ]; and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” Mark 14:62. To this apply in particular also the words of the angel to Daniel: “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Dan. 12:2. This special resurrection, if we may call it such, is however only for the purpose referred to, and the specially resurrected ones will speedily meet the common fate of the ungodly who are living at the time of the second advent.

With what different emotions will this event be regarded by the righteous and by the wicked! A prophet of old, looking forward to that time, places these words on the lips of the righteous: “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us; this is the Lord; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” Isa. 25:9. The wicked are filled with terror, and flee from the face of the One whom they have rejected, calling for the mountains and the rocks to fall upon them. This is the time so often mentioned by prophets, by priests, by people; the time long looked for. It is literally

The End of the World,

the end of the age. “Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come,” are the words applied to the time by the prophet Joel. Listen to the inspired language of Zephaniah as he views the terrible scenes of the last day: “That day, is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; and their blood shall be poured out as dust. . . . Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy; for He shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.” Zeph. 1:14–18.

The foregoing picture does not harmonize well with the popular view of the second coming of Christ and the ushering in of the millenium. True, it is not a pleasant picture; but the Lord has deemed it wise to portray in vivid language the events that must soon take place. There is a voice in the land saying, “Peace, and safety;” and it is proper to direct men’s minds to the true situation as the Lord pictures it. “It is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion,” are the inspired words of Isaiah. “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and He shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.” Isa. 13:9; 34:8.

How clearly this language reveals the unprecedented overturning of nations and the destruction of earth-kingdoms, and of existing social conditions at the second coming of Christ! He does not come to bring peace to the troubled state of human affairs, but rather to decree an end to the long reign of sin by the only means left for that purpose. The wicked perish in the presence of righteousness. “The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire yielding vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Thess. 1:7, 8. The “man of sin,” and every one in whom is the spirit of self-exaltation and pride, “the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thess. 2:8. This death meted out to the wicked is the first death. There will be also a “second death” (Rev. 20:14) for the unrighteous.

Of this time the following striking words are spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth. And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake. . . . The earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host

of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.” Isa. 24:17–21.

This is the end of the age, but not the time of the “full end” of the wicked. It is, however, the time when “the wicked cease from troubling,” and “the prisoners rest together.” It is the beginning of a long night to the wicked; the dawning of the bright day of eternity for the righteous. Speaking of sinners, the psalmist says, referring to the time under consideration: “Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed upon them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning.” Ps. 49:14. Thus perish the ungodly in the day of resurrection for the upright.

What then becomes of the translated and resurrected saints?—They have been “caught up together” off from the earth to meet the Lord in the air. 1 Thess. 4:17. This is the happy moment to which the dying children of God have looked in all ages. This is the glad time of the harvest, the joyful moment when families and friends separated by the cruel hand of death meet again in a reunion that will know no end. With glorified bodies and with a thrilling sense of eternal life they now shout, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” 1 Cor. 15:55.

Said Jesus to His disciples: “Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in Me. 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 14:1–3. The resurrection accomplished, every faithful soul rescued from the dungeons of death, the number of the kingdom completed, the Redeemer and the redeemed turn their faces toward “the land that is very far off” (Isa. 33:17), to the mansions prepared in the Father’s house, to the heaven of heavens, the home of the angels, the throne of the Eternal.

But will not the saints grieve for the lost ones of earth? for many families and dear friends will be separated forever at that day. I think there will be sorrow, but with it will be a vivid realization and recognition of God’s willingness to save all who would be saved. He has dealt justly by all, and in that day, and more and more as years and ages roll by, the terrible results of sin will be manifest; the great sacrifice will be appreciated as never before; the beauty and enduring principles of righteousness, and the love of God which passeth understanding will unfold with ever new glories, and time, which “heals all wounds,” will, as it becomes eternity, heal the cruel wounds caused by sin. Above all, God is just and good, and His Word of love now is: “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Ezek. 33:11. To-day is the day of salvation; to-morrow may be too late.

[The next article in the series is “The Millenium.”]

Jordan’s Divided Waters

Twice again Jordan opened its channel by the power of God to make a pathway, but not for a multitude. For Elijah and Elisha it parted, leaving a path of dry ground for the prophets of God. When the opened heavens received Elijah, the waters again divided for his successor, opening, as it were, his way into his prophetic mission to the children of God. Jordan became divine assurance to God’s servants that all things are possible to Him who sent them. 2 Kings 2.

Naaman’s Healing in the Jordan

JORDAN was to Naaman the Syrian a river of healing and cleansing. Said the prophet to the noble leper, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.” In rage Naaman scoffed at the message. How could the dirty Jordan compare with the clear, sweet rivers of his own land, “Abanah and Pharpar.” But his servants sweetly called him back from his wrath to the insignificant river and God’s power; and he “dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.” 2 Kings 5. So God’s means, however unworthy they may seem in man’s eyes, are always effectual if used in faith “according to the saying.”

From Moses to Jesus at Jordan

JORDAN marked the end of the special mission of Moses; it marked the beginning of the mission of Jesus. The work of Jesus began where the work of Moses ended. The law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." John 1:17. From Moses, a man, men could get only the law, the form, that which condemns. Moses himself looked to Christ, and obtained the grace and truth of the law. So did Joshua, Caleb, and others. But many then, and so even now, persisted in putting man between themselves and God, and so shut away the grace and truth, and received only law, naked, condemning, with no power to save. Moses could do no more than bring them to see their hopeless condition. But Jesus meets man in the lowest condition, and lifts him to righteousness and life and power. His baptism in Jordan, the descending and abiding Spirit, the Voice of the Father's approval, comes still with gracious and blessed assurance to every soul who would indeed be a follower of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Appreciating Our Blessings

By Thos. H. Nelson

SOME men with their health, others with their wealth, and still others with their time, influence, friends, etc., never begin to appreciate them till they have very little left to appreciate or take care of.—Thos. H. Nelson.

AS THY DAY.

By Edward B. Pusey

He who hath appointed thee thy task will proportion it to thy strength, and thy strength to the burden He lays upon thee. He who maketh the seed grow thou knowest not how, and seest not, will, thou knowest not how, ripen the seed which He hath sown in thy heart, and leaven thee by the secret workings of His good Spirit. Thou mayest not see the change thyself, but He will gradually change thee, make thee another man. Only yield thyself to His moulding hand, as the clay to the potter, having no wishes of thine own, but seeking in sincerity, however faint, to have His will fulfilled in thee, and He will teach thee what to pray for, and will give thee what He teacheth thee. He will retrace His own image on thee line by line, effacing by His grace and gracious discipline the marks and spots of sin which have defaced it.—Edward B. Pusey.

INCARNATION, HUMILIATION, GLORIFICATION.

By H. A. St. John

A BIOGRAPHY is the history of a person’s life. There are many such on the shelves of our book stores and libraries. Generally that which gives existence to these accounts of a human life is the fact that the individual whose life is recorded was specially noted for the achievement of some one or more great things,—a great king, emperor, ruler, astronomer, explorer, preacher, writer, or something else.

Now we have among the children of men a brief history of a brief portion of a life so grand and glorious in every feature that it entirely eclipses every other life, as the bright shining sun eclipses the light of a tallow candle.

The life of Jesus Christ has been translated into many languages, and scattered abroad everywhere among the children of men. While the lives of some men might be worthy of imitation in some things, the life of Christ is eminently worthy of imitation in all things, all the time. He was always true to the grand and immutable principles of eternal truth, and hence was the very personification of truth. He was always obedient to the laws that govern spirit, soul, and body. This is all expressed in the words, “I delight to do thy will, O my God.”

This Christ was one with the eternal Father from the days of eternity. He was dead in the sepulcher for three days, when He was called to life again by his Father, and is alive forevermore. Three events in His marvelous life tower above all others, and will ever be gratefully remembered by all the universe of God, as the events most of all that shine brightest in His biography, and entitle Him to an exaltation by the everlasting Father above every other creature, and to a name above every other name. These three things are expressed by the words incarnation, humiliation, and glorification. Let us briefly consider each in their order.

1. INCARNATION.—Divinity clothed with humanity. This would begin when the divine Son of God laid aside, of His own free will, all His authority and glory that He had with His Father before the world was. The culmination of His incarnation was reached when Jesus was born of a virgin, in a manger, in the village of Bethlehem. Above the hills and plains of Bethlehem a multitude of heavenly angels sang His cradle song, saying to the shepherds, and through them to all mankind of every age, “Unto you is born this day . . . a Saviour.” The fathomless mystery of the incarnation has been unfolding to the universe from that glad day to this, and will continue to unfold throughout eternity, ever revealing more and more, to the redeemed, to angels, and to all the inhabitants of the universe, of the infinite love of God and of Christ; every new revelation awakening a new wonder, admiration, and praise. The song of the angels at the birth of Jesus will be reproduced again and again, with ever new inspiration, even after the Sun of Righteousness has fully risen with healing in His wings. The mystery of the incarnation, being the first lesson in the study of the cross, will be an elementary part of the science and song of the redeemed, and of all the universe, worlds without end.

2. HUMILIATION.—The humiliation of Christ began with His incarnation, but did not reach its culmination until He was nailed to Calvary’s cross. He “made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant. . . . And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Phil. 2:7, 8. True humiliation could not descend lower—could not be greater. To submit to die such an ignominious death, the just for the unjust, was such an expression of the character and wonderful love of God, as to constitute the cross of Christ the science and song of all intelligent creatures in the universe of God, through the ceaseless ages of eternity. It may be truly said that the crucifixion of Christ was a crowning manifestation of condescension and humiliation, never again throughout eternity to be surpassed, equaled, or repeated. Hence that significant statement, “The Lamb that was slain,” will eternally constitute an unfolding and inspiring strain in the harmonious and melodious songs of a clean universe of immortal and supremely happy intelligences.

3. GLORIFICATION.—Jesus is exalted now above every other creature. He has already received a name above every other name. For long centuries, in answer to His prayer, He has been glorified with the glory that He had with His Father before the world was. Nevertheless His glorification is not yet complete. He is not yet satisfied—is waiting, is expecting. All through the period of His incarnation and humiliation there was a certain joy set before Him which He has not yet attained. This will come when He shall behold all the travail of His soul and be satisfied. When He shall come to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that believe. When He shall stand in the midst of His church triumphant, all of whom have been changed to immortality, their vile bodies fashioned like unto His glorious body, made possible for them by His incarnation and humiliation; then and not till then will the glorification of Christ reach its climax. Not until the church of Christ are all completely saved, completely glorified, and all gathered together unto Him, will Christ Himself be completely satisfied and glorified. Then, standing in the midst of His glorified church, Himself superlatively glorified, He will sing a solo of praise to His Father so full of power, and meaning, and melody, and sweetness, and victory, that a clean universe will listen with rapture, and then all will break forth in a responsive chorus of praise.

O, I want to hear Jesus sing,—He who spent long nights in Gethsemane, and in the mountains

in prayer, pouring out strong cries and tears; He who was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, who went about doing nothing but good to the bodies and souls of men; He who gave His life for me; He who has, for long centuries, been pleading for sinful men, and is still touched with the feelings of our infirmities. O, when this is all forever past, and the divine soul of Jesus is filled and thrilled with complete satisfaction, and He is glorified in His glorified church, I want to hear Him sing. H. A. St. John.

THREE MEASURES.

By Amos R. Wells

Psalm 103:11-13.

[Amos R. Wells, in S. S. Times.]

Of all things far, I love the best The distance from the east to west; For by that space, and all within, God’s mercy parts me from my sin.

And best I love, of all things high, The space between the earth and sky; For by that height beyond all ken God’s love exceeds the love of men.

I love, of deep things undefiled, A father’s pity for his child; For by that depth so far, so clear, God pities all that faint and fear.

O Father, Father, endless kind, I thank Thee for my human mind; But chief of all my praise shall be, That mind can not encompass Thee!

A REMARKABLE CONFESSION.

By C. Castberg

In the Holy Scriptures, as on a large kinetoscopic screen, the history of the past, present, and future passes before our vision in living, moving pictures. Acted out before our eyes we see the great, fierce conflict between Christ and Satan, between the ambassadors of light and the agents of darkness. Filled with amazement, we behold the wondrous love of God in His dealings with mankind, His tender mercy as it is revealed in Christ Jesus. Beginning with Genesis, we are carried down through the ages to the time brought to view in Revelation 20, when the closing scenes of this world’s great drama are passing across the stage of action.

While viewing these varied pictures, it seems as if the night of sin and shame never would cease; but at last the consummation of all things comes; the principles of truth and righteousness triumph; His loyal subjects are vindicated, and evil is trampled under foot—forever blotted from the fair face of the universe of God.

The thousand years have expired—years of peaceful bliss in heaven for the righteous, while the gloom of death hovered over the desolate earth, making it a dismal but appropriate prison-house for Satan and his angels. The judgment of the wicked, whose life and deeds the saints have had a share in weighing and investigating, has been irrevocably rendered. The New Jerusalem, with its happy, glorified throng, has come down out of heaven from God, and the voice of the Son of Man, which at the beginning of the thousand years awakened the righteous to life everlasting, sounds once more, and all the wicked dead, of every kindred, and tongue, and people, are brought forth; “the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp, of the saints about, and the beloved city.” Rev. 20:8, 9.

Led by Satan and his hosts of angels, these poor, deluded mortals imagine that they are powerful enough to take possession of the Edenlike valley that lies before them. Filled with astonishment and admiration, and carried away by their passions, they gaze with covetous eyes upon the vast city, with its beautiful golden spires and towering palaces. But from this jasper-walled metropolis flashes forth a light, the glory of which dazzles the spectators, and fills their hearts with awe and apprehension.

“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle.” Rev. 20:7, 8.

“Thus saith the Lord God: It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought; and thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages [See Zech. 2:4], I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. . . . And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company and a mighty army; and thou shalt come up against My people of Israel as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.” Eze. 38:10–16.

But of what avail is the cunning of Satan or the inventions and might of men against a city whose defense is the Lord God Almighty?

“Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein; for I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.” Zech. 2:4, 5.

“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.” Isa. 54:17.

“I will encamp about Mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth; and no oppressor shall pass through them any more; for now have I seen with Mine eyes.” Zech. 9:8.

“There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” Rev. 21:27.

“Without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters.” Rev. 22:15.

What a motley, restless crowd! They might have been among those who dwell safely within the walls of the holy city; but they loved the wages of unrighteousness, and the gates of the New Jerusalem are forever closed against them.

The clamorous, turbulent multitude soon realize that all attempts to take the city are utterly futile; hostilities are suspended, and beholding Him whom God has highly exalted, and given a name which is above every name, the knee of every one in that vast assemblage bows, and every tongue confesses “that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phil. 2:9–11.

The parable of the sheep and the goats here finds its application. Matt. 25:31–46. The sheep, the saved, are on His right side in “the camp of the saints” (Rev. 20:9); the goats, the wicked, are on His left side “without” the city. Rev. 22:15. It was of this time that Jesus spoke these solemn words:—

“There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.” Luke 13:28.

A graphic picture of this terrible hour is drawn in one of the books of the Apocrypha. We read there the confession of those “who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power,” “because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” 2 Thess. 1:9; 2:10. Having described their wasted, and ruined lives, and their pitiful end, the prophet of God carries us forward to the “resurrection of damnation,” and says:—

“And when they cast up the accounts of their sins, they [the wicked] shall come [in the second resurrection] with fear; and their own iniquities shall convince them to their face. Then shall the righteous man stand in great boldness before the face of such as have afflicted him, and made no account of his labors. When they see it, they shall be troubled at the strangeness of his salvation, so far beyond all that they looked for. And they, repenting and groaning for anguish of spirit, shall say within [among] themselves, This was he whom we had sometimes in derision, and a proverb of reproach; we fools accounted his life madness, and his end to be without honor. How is he numbered among the children of God, and his lot is among the saints! Therefore have we erred from the way of truth, and the light of righteousness hath not shined unto us, and the Son of Righteousness rose not upon us. We wearied ourselves in the way of wickedness and destruction; yea, we have gone through deserts where there lay no way; but as for the way of the Lord, we have not known it.”

“What hath pride profited us? or what good hath riches with our vaunting brought us? All those things are passed away like a shadow, and as a post that hasteth by; . . . even so we in like manner, as soon as we were born, began to draw to our end, and had no sign of virtue to show; but were consumed in our own wickedness. For the hope of the ungodly is like dust that is blown away with the wind, . . . but the righteous live forevermore; their reward also is with the Lord, and the care of them is with the Most High. Therefore shall they receive a glorious kingdom, and a beautiful crown from the Lord’s hand; for with His right hand shall He crown them, and with His arm shall He protect them. He shall take to Him His jealousy for complete armor, and make the creature [nature] His weapon for the revenge of His enemies. He shall put on righteousness as a breastplate, and true judgment instead of an helmet. He shall take holiness for an invincible shield. His severe wrath shall He sharpen for a sword, and the world shall fight with Him against the unwise. Then shall the right-aiming thunderbolts go abroad; and from the clouds, as from a well-drawn bow, shall they fly to the mark.” Wisdom of Solomon 4:15–20; 5:1–21.

Thus ends this world’s history, the closing scenes of which the pen of Inspiration has so vividly depicted:—

“Fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone.” Rev. 20:9, 10.

“The elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” 2 Peter 3:10.

“The breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.” Isa. 30:33.

Here all transgressors suffer “the second death.” Rev. 20:13–15; 21:8.

“Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves [Hebrew, their lives] from the power of the flame.” Isa. 47:14.

“They shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts.” Mal. 4:3.

“It is done.” The great controversy is ended. The Seed of the woman has bruised the head of the serpent. Gen. 3:15. From lips made immortal ascends a shout of victory and praise—a song that is heard to the uttermost parts of the universe, and which sounds and resounds through the golden portals of heaven:—

“Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints. Who shall not fear Thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? for Thou only art holy; for all nations shall come and worship before Thee; for Thy judgments are made manifest.” Rev. 15:3, 4.

“And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.” “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. . . . 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 will 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.” Rev. 21:5, 1–4. C. CASTBERG.

The Value of Criticism

By Thos. H. Nelson

THE best thing that ever happened to me is the bad things my contemporaries say about me. When I find those things to be true, I correct the fault; when I find them to be false, I recognize them as a rogue’s abuse, which I take as the highest compliment. —Thos. H. Nelson.

Continue reading: Is Affliction from God?