Signs of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 5. (1/29/1902)

Signs of the Times

Jan 29, 1902

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Jan 29, 1902

A GREAT FAILURE.

By G.

JUDGED by the world's standard, Napoleon Bonaparte was one of the great men; but in the one great purpose of his life, no man ever more signally failed. In his career were fulfilled the words of Job: “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down; he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.”

NAPOLEON undertook the impossible. Altho he had espoused every principle in politics from republicanism to absolute monarchism, and had made many varied pretensions as to his purpose, he admitted when all was over that he had “endeavored to organize a grand federal system in Europe,” and claimed that he had regarded that purpose as “agreeable to the spirit of the age, and favorable to the progress of civilization.” However, to attain his purpose he had sought, and gradually acquired, the title of emperor; and all the factors gained for the “federal system” became subject to his dictation. In a heated discussion with a civilian official, Napoleon said, “You are no soldier; you do not know what passes in a soldier’s mind. I grew up in the field, and a man like me troubles himself little about the lives of a million men.”

In the explanation of the great image which Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream, as set forth in the second chapter of Daniel, the prophet says of the fourth kingdom (Rome): “Whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter’s clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.”

This iron kingdom became so degenerated by mingling the miry clay of luxury and corruption with the iron strength by which it had gained the ascendancy, that it fell to pieces. There was not sufficient internal adhesiveness to withstand the crush of external pressure. Therefore the parts that had formed the Roman Empire never could be cemented into one government again.

The very symbols of iron and clay, together with the express Word of God, forever forbade such a consummation.

SEVERAL attempts have been made by ambitious men to imitate the Western Empire of Rome on the same territory. The last, and the one that came nearest to apparent success, was the effort of Bonaparte. At times the goal seemed almost within his grasp, when unexpected reverses—political or military, domestic or foreign—would compel a revision of schemes. Between 1800 and 1805 he was absolute ruler of France, including Belgium, the left bank of the Rhine, Savoy, and Nice, and practically ruler of Holland, Switzerland, and north Italy. He was then a king of kings. At first the title of emperor meant merely a military ruler, but by this time it had come to signify, as in medieval times, a paramount control over a confederacy of principalities.

LATER the empire took in Germany and Austria. Now Napoleon began to make kings and princes of his brothers and other favorites. He created many hereditary dukes, counts,

and barons, setting up a system extremely monarchical and lavishly wasteful. In 1806 the confederation had twelve members, and the empire controlled as much or more territory than was comprised in Western Rome. But it lacked England, and Napoleon lacked the ability to hold securely what he had gained. With all his genius, he made frequent blunders at critical moments. His ambition would lead him to overreach and nearly lose all. His selfishness would cause him to break with valuable allies and personal friends; and his rashness often led him to take desperate risks on the prestige of former very close successes.

ALL through Napoleon’s career he had indulged the hope of subduing England; but this one portion of the Roman Empire never came under his control. Several times he overreached and met disaster while endeavoring to weaken England. In the early part of his career he planned the expedition to Egypt in order to destroy England’s interests in the Orient, and the whole affair proved disastrous in the extreme. He sold the Louisiana Territory in America to the United States for $15,000,000, to raise means with which to build a navy to destroy England’s prestige on the seas. But in its first engagement (at Trafalgar) Lord Nelson’s fleet sent the new ships to the bottom of the Mediterranean.

ANOTHER attempt, not wholly a military scheme, was also a failure. He sought to establish a grand continental commercial blockade, and annexed territory on the Northern Sea in order to carry out the project. But in this he incurred the opposition and enmity of Russia, and made her an ally instead of an opponent of England, as before. It also turned out that the blockade was more injurious to the welfare of the continental States than to England.

THE disastrous campaign against Russia was also undertaken to humble his former ally, which had now become friendly to England, in fact was England’s only open sympathizer. With Russia conciliated or defeated, Napoleon thought to pit the whole continental coalition against England, and thus bring her to his feet. He had humbled Austria and Prussia while they were assisted by a strong contingent from Russia. Now with these two factors under his dictation, Russia seemed a comparatively easy prey. The army sent against Russia consisted of French, German, Austrian, Polish, and Italian troops. Everything seemed propitious, for England was at war with the United States. But the result, as all students of history know, was a defeat from which Napoleon and his great project never recovered.

AFTER this unparalleled reverse, Napoleon lost the confidence of the French; he was obliged to abdicate, and was stationed on the little island of Elba. But he did not long remain; it was not his first practical banishment. His expedition to Egypt was of that character in part; for he had been encouraged in the project mainly to get him out of France. But when he returned, he found the government in such a state the people were glad to have his help. So, after his retirement to Elba, the government was in bewilderment. The great coalition was broken, and every former ally was now the enemy of France. Says the historian, “Never was a great State in a position so untenable and monstrous as France after Napoleon quitted the helm.” Again the people are described as being “disgraced, bewildered, and alarmed,” regretting even the loss of the reign of Napoleon. So when he suddenly appeared again in Paris, he was once more placed at the head of the army. This time he was set to defend the national honor against triumphant foreigners. He promised to turn over a new leaf, and stand for national independence and modern ideas.

BUT this last chapter of his active career was of short duration, just one hundred days. Immediately on hearing of his return, the great powers issued a declaration putting him “outside of all civil and social relations,” and consigning him to public vengeance as “an enemy and disturber of the peace of the world.” And following his defeat at Waterloo, he was held in no higher esteem by the ascendant party in France. There was no chance for escape; so he went on board the English cruiser Bellerophon, at Rochefort, and surrendered to its captain. It was the best he could do. He recognized that his career was ended, and being regarded as an outlaw by all Europe, he surrendered to England because he deemed her “the most powerful, the most constant, and the most generous” of his enemies. England banished him to St. Helena, where he died six years later, May 5, 1821.

IT is generally conceded that even if Napoleon had won Waterloo, it would have been merely to postpone the inevitable for a few weeks at most. His army was now terribly emaciated, at best but a handful as compared with the half million or more already marching against France from different parts of the old confederacy. Militarism, after a trial of about twenty years, had utterly failed as a peace-maker and prosperity promoter; and its weakness as against the decree of the Almighty was most thoroughly tested. Of the three governments that France had endured within twenty-six years, this great military power was the only one that actually succumbed before an invader. Such was the fate of the last and the greatest effort to make the iron and the clay cleave together.

“ALL flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away; but the Word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you.” 1 Peter 1:24, 25. G.

THE FIRST PERSECUTION.

By J. O. Corliss

The first sin known in the universe was that of rebellion against the kingdom of God. This was generated through jealousy against the Son of God, by Satan, and developed finally into open discord, until it was necessary to drive out from heaven all who were found united against the authority of heavenly rule. Rev. 12:7-10. Finding himself cast off from his earlier connection, Satan came to earth, and began to persecute the seed of the Son of God, who had been made in the image of God (Rev. 12:13; Matt. 13:38, 39; Gen. 1:26), and through falsehood, led the first pair to join him in his rebellion against heaven. Gen. 3:1-6.

Ever since that time, every work of God in the earth has been bitterly opposed by man's arch-deceiver, and God's inveterate enemy. So strong has been his opposition, that he has influenced earthly governments to enforce, by human enactment, systems of religion which were contrary to the principles of heaven. This, of course, has always created antagonism between these earthly governments and the government of heaven, as these have exercised authority over God's loyal citizens dwelling in what Satan claims to be his domain. Luke 4:5-7.

This was the situation in the days of Christ and of the early disciples, as it has been in all succeeding centuries. The rulers of Judea were very zealous for the traditional religion of their ancestors, and took every occasion offered to persecute those who worshiped in some other form than that which their laws decreed. When Christ appeared as a teacher, and undermined confidence in the existing religious system, a bitter hatred sprang up toward Him, and the rulers could not be satisfied until they had put Him to death. It mattered not that He displayed the credentials of heaven in the mighty power He manifested in healing the sick, cleansing the leper, and raising the dead. The delivery of these souls from mortal ills was nothing to them when weighed against the thought that He did the work in another way than that which their customs sanctioned. It was easy for the influential ones of that day, in order to carry out their purpose, to say His were the works of the devil (John 8:52), altho some in high rank secretly acknowledged that no one could do those things He did except God were with him. John 3:1, 2.

With this condition of things, it could not well be expected that the rulers at Jerusalem would let pass without notice the incident of the healing of the lame man before the temple, when done in the presence of so many people who were likely to be influenced by it to unite their interests with the same power by which this work had been accomplished. There can be no question but that the enemy of all good must be at the head of any movement designed to stop the work of a power which could restore defective ankle-bones, to the relief and comfort of a poor outcast. But when fellow-men, who themselves are liable to need the same sort of help, unite against such work, their mental blindness is indeed lamentable.

But as it was then, so it has ever since been, to a greater or less extent. In the particular case under consideration, so great a stir was

made among the people at the manifestation of the witnessing power of God through Peter and John, that toward evening, while they were yet speaking, the priests, with the captain of the temple and others, came on the scene, and, arresting the disciples, and probably the man who had been healed of his lameness, put them in prison, where they remained till the next day. Acts 4:1-3, 10. This did not, however, arrest the power of God; for about five thousand people, having seen and heard the wondrous things of the day, gave their hearts to the Lord.

The next morning all the dignitaries of the temple came together to question the disciples as to the authority they had for doing the work of the previous day. Verses 6, 7. So great was the interest, or curiosity, to see and hear about this affair, that all the relatives of the high priest were permitted to find a place in the court of inquiry thus instituted. Upon being questioned about the power, and the name by which the lame man had been healed, Peter told again the simple story that he had repeated so often of late: “Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole.” Then, calling attention to that scripture in Ps. 118:22, so familiar to all Jews because of being chanted at each Passover, he decisively said: “This is the stone which was set at naught of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:10-12.

Under the circumstances this was unexpected boldness. It was probably supposed that, finding themselves under the ban of the law, these men would become very submissive, and perhaps beg to be released on promise not to preach these things again. But when they spoke so promptly and firmly, yet without any display of oratory, their simple yet resolute manner struck conviction to the hearts of their persecutors, because it could be plainly seen that they had been with Jesus, and were not simply talking hearsay.

Then, too, there was the man who had been healed, right before them, in evidence of the power of Christ. What could they do under the circumstances? Many people had been influenced in favor of the work accomplished, and, since there was no way by which to compass the destruction of the men through which it was performed, it was decided to let them go for that time. Had the rulers been able to produce any plausible reason for holding them longer, that would probably have been the sentence. But in private consultation, they acknowledged that a most notable miracle had been performed, of which all the people were cognizant. What, then, could they do with these men, while the attitude of the people was favorable toward them? Plainly nothing; so they decided to let them go, but with the threat that if they taught those things again they would pay the penalty.

This threat was intended to have its effect on the people, as well as upon the disciples, to deter them from giving ear to these things again. But the disciples would not compromise the truth, nor their relation to the power of God, by promising not to preach Christ again. They replied to the threat: “Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we can not but speak the things which we have seen and heard.” Verses 19, 20. Noble men! Even under persecution they would not abate their zeal in the least. While they did not design to fling defiance at the government of earth under which their lot was cast, yet they were determined to maintain loyalty to heaven under all circumstances. Theirs is indeed a worthy example for any age, especially the present one, when so many are led to feel that the civil government should have a part in maintaining respect for certain religious forms.

J. O. CORLISS.

GIVING AND GETTING.

ONE of life's paradoxes is that he who gives gets. The way to success is by surrender. They who are most lavish of their own life are the ones into whose lap the world pours the richest treasures. Thousands of hearts are starving to-day simply because they are stingy. They have withheld themselves, and in the withholding have grown lean and poor. The fat and prosperous soul is the one which is liberal with itself, which offers itself as food and strength to every needy man and cause. There is no secret for greatness like the secret of giving—constant and unsparing giving of self's best.

Not they who seek to get—to gather to themselves the world's best things, and thus find satisfaction—but they who bountifully offer themselves in sympathy and service to the world, learn life's deepest joy.

How shall young men and young women secure greatest success?—Simply by offering themselves on the altar of the world's every-day needs. Largeness of life, fineness of character, honor of the honorable, love of all, will crowd toward the young person who unselfishly labors to serve men through commonplace days and weary nights. In ways humble and high, by means insignificant and great, give up your best talents to all whom you can by any means help, and reward in time and eternity is certain.—Forward.

THE POWER OF PRAYER.

By Ellen G. White

PRAYER is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend. In the secret place of prayer, where no eye but God’s can see, no ear but His can hear, we may pour out our most hidden desires and longings to the Father of infinite pity; and in the hush and silence of the soul, that voice which never fails to answer the cry of human need, will speak to our hearts.

By prayer man is braced for duty and prepared for trial. Morning and evening our earnest prayers should ascend to God for His blessing and guidance. True prayer takes hold upon Omnipotence, and gains the victory. Upon his knees the Christian obtains strength to resist temptation. And while engaged in our daily work, we should lift the soul to heaven in prayer. It was thus that Enoch walked with God. The silent, fervent prayer of the soul rises like holy incense to the throne of grace, and is as acceptable to God as if offered in the sanctuary. To all who thus seek Him, Christ is a present help in time of need. In the day of trial they will be brave and strong.

From the experience of Moses we may see what intimate communion with the Most High it is man’s privilege to enjoy. After Israel had shown such great dishonor to God by worshiping the golden calf, Moses pleaded with God in their behalf. The Lord read the sincerity and unselfish purpose in the heart of His servant, and communed with him face to face, “as a man speaketh unto his friend.”

Moses had carried the burden of Israel; he had borne an overwhelming weight of responsibility; when the people sinned, he suffered keen remorse, as if he himself were guilty. Now there pressed upon him a realization of the terrible result should God give Israel up to their darkness and impenitence. He prayed that the favor of God might be restored to His people, and that the token of His presence might continue to direct their journeyings: “If Thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For wherein shall it be known here that I and Thy people have found grace in Thy sight? is it not in that Thou goest with us? So shall we be separated, I and Thy people, from all the people that are on the face of the earth.”

And the Lord said, “I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken; for thou hast found grace in My sight, and I know thee by name.” Still the prophet did not cease pleading. Every prayer had been answered, but he thirsted for greater tokens of God’s blessing. He now made a request that no human being had ever before made: “I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory.”

God did not rebuke his request as presumptuous; the gracious words were spoken, “I will make all My goodness pass before thee.” The unvailed glory of God, no man in this mortal state can endure to look upon and live; but Moses was assured that he should behold as much of the divine glory as he could endure. Again he was summoned to the mountain summit; then the hand that made the world, the hand that “removeth the mountains, and they know not,” took this creature of dust, this mighty man of faith, and placed him in a cleft of the rock, while the glory of God and all His goodness passed before him.

Those who seek God in secret, telling the Lord their needs, and pleading for help, will not plead in vain. “Thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” As we make Christ our daily companion, we shall feel that the powers of an unseen world are all around us; and by looking unto Jesus, we shall become assimilated to His image. By beholding, we shall become changed. The character is softened, refined, and ennobled for the heavenly kingdom. The sure result of our intercourse and fellowship with God will be to increase piety, purity, and fervor. There will be a growing intelligence in prayer. We are receiving a divine education, and this is illustrated in a life of diligence and zeal.

Christ’s days were passed in ministering to the crowds that pressed upon Him, and in unveiling the treacherous sophistry of the rabbis, and this incessant labor often left Him so utterly wearied that His mother and brothers, and even His disciples, had feared that His life would be sacrificed. But as He returned from the hours of prayer that closed the toilsome day, they marked the look of peace upon His face. It was from hours spent with God that He came forth, morning by morning, to bring the light of heaven to men.

We can no more live the Christian life without prayer than we can live the physical life without food. To grow in grace, we must ask and receive the bread of heaven. The strength gained by prayer gives a preparation for duty and fills the heart with peace.

To every sincere, earnest prayer an answer will come. The answer to your prayer may not come just as you desire, or at the time you look for it; but it will come, and in the way and at the time that will be for your best good. The prayers you offer in loneliness, in weariness and trial, God answers, not always according to your expectations, but always for your good.

Not one sincere prayer is lost. Amid anthems of the celestial choir, God hears the cries of the weakest human being. We pour out our heart’s desire in our closets, we breathe a prayer by the way, and our words reach the throne of the Monarch of the universe. They may be inaudible to any human ear, but they can not die away into silence, nor can they be lost through the activities of business that are going on. Nothing can drown the soul’s desire. It rises above the din of the street, above the confusion of the multitude, to the heavenly courts. It is God to whom we are speaking, and our prayer is heard.

MRS. E. G. WHITE.

THIS TOO SHALL PASS AWAY.

By Paul Hamilton Hayne

Art thou in misery, brother? This I say, Be comforted. Thy grief shall pass away. Art thou elated? Ah! be not too gay, Temper thy joy. This too shall pass away. Art thou in danger? Still let reason sway, And cling to hope. This too shall pass away. Tempted art thou? In all thine anguish lay One truth to heart: This too shall pass away. Do rays of laureled glory round thee play? Kinglike art thou? This too shall pass away. Whate'er thou art, where'er thy footsteps stray, Heed Wisdom's voice. All things must pass away. —Paul Hamilton Hayne.

Slothfulness

SLOTHFULNESS casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.—Solomon.

The Devil Possesses Those Who Desire Him

“THE devil possesses no one who does not desire him.”

The Letter that fell from Heaven

By E. A. Axon

“A Sunday-Sabbath Forgery”

By E. A. Axon, Hon. LL.D., F.R.S.L. &c.

FOURTH ARTICLE.

XII. Letters in the Eighteenth Century.

WHEN Belgium, in 1798, formed part of the French Republic, the authorities were alarmed by the circulation of “a fresh libel, forged by the grossest fanaticism.” “In this,” observed the revolutionary Dogberry, referring to the Royalists, “they promise the pardon of the greatest crimes; they therefore invite the commission of them.” The “libel” was a “Copie d’une lettre miraculeuse trouvée sous pierre bleu dans l’église de Henlen, écrite avec le sang de Jésus Christ.” It denounces the sins of the world, inculcates prayer to the Virgin and the saints, orders the people to fast five Thursdays on bread and water in honor of the “five bleeding wounds,” and threatens vengeance on those who doubt the authenticity of the letter. He who follows the behests it contains is assured that if his sins were as numerous as the drops of water in the sea, or as the stars in the firmament, they should all be pardoned. While this is doubtless a descendant of the “celestial letter,” it is in the main apocalyptic, and names the year 1799 as that in which the threatened punishments are to commence. There is no mention of Sunday.

XIII. In Modern Times.

We come now to the nineteenth century. Mention has already been made of the continued and extensive diffusion of the “heavenly letter” in the lands where Greek orthodoxy is the prevalent religion. About the middle of the century an edition was in circulation in Oldenburg, in which the letter was said to have been found in Holstein.

In 1849 there appeared at Vechta, in Oldenburg, a “Gebet zum Abwenden aller Unglücke.” This is said to have been found in 783 on the sepulchre of Christ, and sent by the pope to Charlemagne. In the same sentence it is declared to have been sent to St. Michael’s, in France, where it can be found beautifully printed in golden letters. The doubting Christian is assured that the heavenly letter is as certainly true as the Gospel.

From this lengthy catalogue it will be seen that the pretended “heavenly letter” can be traced from the sixth century to the present day. In varying editions it exists in Latin, Anglo-Saxon, French, Spanish, Russian, German, Czech, English, Welsh, Arabic, Greek, Syriac, Ethiopic, and Icelandic. It had a part in the medieval “revival” movements, such as those of Aldebert, Peter the Hermit, and Eustace of Flaye. The story varies greatly in the different editions. Jerusalem, Rome, Constantinople, and even Holstein, are among the places named as that where the letter fell from heaven. The number of those who witness its reception varies from a single individual to many thousands of persons. The names are changed at the will of the scribes. The contents vary also; but with few exceptions the theme is the observance of the Sunday-Sabbath.

What Is the Motive?

What, it may be asked, is the motive of a “pious” forgery of this nature? The answer is to be found in the uncertainty as to the authority for the observance of Sunday. The early Christian church was formed of Jews, on whom a due regard to the sanctity of the seventh day was obligatory. They would doubtless continue to “keep the Sabbath;” and as all days then were reckoned from the evening, it is probable that the early gatherings of the Christians for religious communion were held at the close of the Jewish Sabbath. There is no warrant in the New Testament for the transference of the weekly festival of rest from the seventh to the first day of the week. The women who came with Christ from Galilee, and prepared spices and ointments for the body in the tomb, intermitted their labor on the seventh day; and on the Sabbath they rested “according to the commandment.” But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, “bringing the spices which they had prepared.” This is twofold evidence that the seventh was the day of rest, and that labor was permitted on the first day. So the journey to Emmaus was longer than a Sabbath day’s journey. When St. Paul went from Troas to Assos on a Sunday, his journey was more than twenty of “the Sabbath day’s journeys” allowed by the Jews.

From Justin Martyr’s testimony it is evident that the Sabbath was, in his day, still observed by many Christians. Nor is there evidence that, apart from the meeting for worship, the early church made any difference as to work between Sunday and other days. Even in the edict of Constantine the work of the agriculturist is recognized as lawful on the Sunday, altho the courts of justice are ordered to be closed, and the shops to be shut.

Constantine May Be Regarded as the Founder of the Sunday-Sabbath.

In every age of the Christian church there has been a remnant who held that in the absence of any explicit abrogation, the seventh day remained the true Sabbath, and that its observance was as much the duty of Christians as of Jews. In such a controversy the “heavenly letter” was a weapon of great strength. The careless, whose disregard of the Sunday-Sabbath was mere wantonness, might be terrified by its threatenings of the divine anger and punishments. The “Judaizers,” whose dissent arose, not from laxity, but from strict obedience to the Decalogue, were presented in the “heavenly letter” with authority, in what claimed to be Christ’s own handwriting, for paying to the Sunday all, and more than all, the honors of the seventh-day Sabbath.

The “letter that fell from heaven” is a remarkable example of forgery as a method of theological controversy and religious edification.

A Cheerful Face for the Invalid

“A CHEERFUL face is nearly as good for an invalid as healthy weather.”

A Single Thread of Love

“A SINGLE thread of love has drawn more than cords of hatred.”

THE HIGHER AND THE HIGHEST CRITICISM.

By C. B. Fitzgerald

IN almost all religious literature, we see of late a great deal about “the higher criticism.” This is stating the matter in the comparative degree; but it is desirable to express it in the superlative. The higher criticism may be the work of scholars and literary critics; but the highest criticism is the work of the Divine Commentator.

If any regard the New Testament as in any degree the work of divine inspiration, such must admit that it is, to a great extent, an inspired commentary upon the Old. Therefore those comments which were made by holy men of God, who wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, are the highest criticisms known under heaven among men. In these inspired commentaries the narratives of the Old Testament are regarded as veritable records of literal facts, not as allegorical fictions; and the characters as real personages, not as fictitious heroes of allegorical romance.

To be able to trace his lineage back to Abraham was the pride of every Israelite. This was to him the proof of citizenship in the Jewish nation, and of his right to the blessings of the covenants. It is with this idea that Matthew and Luke trace the lineage of our Lord back, not only to Abraham, but in the latter to Adam. Now the name of Adam is here associated with the names of real persons, as the first of a line of literal progenitors, of which Joseph and Mary are the last. Then it follows that Adam and all the persons named as the literal progenitors of our Lord were just as real as were Joseph and Mary and their parents, and the facts of history connected with them are just as literal as the later facts of Jewish history. The narratives of the creation, of Eden, and of the antediluvian and patriarchal ages, are records of consecutive events leading to, and connected with, the literal history of Israel as a nation. Now it is certain that neither fictitious allegory nor the characters named therein could have any such connection and relation with the facts and characters of real history. And this is in perfect accord with the thought presented by Inspiration, and recorded by the writers of the New Testament.

As recorded in John 5:46, 47, our Lord appealed to Moses and his writings in proof of His own Messiahship. But if Moses were not a real character, and were not the author of the writings ascribed to him, it is not possible that the power of divine inspiration, by which our Lord and His apostles were moved, could have failed to detect the fact. Nay, verily. The writings of Moses were quoted many times by the Lord Jesus and the inspired writers, as the voice of divine authority, accompanied with the declaration that “the Scripture can not be broken.” Therefore, to look with distrust upon the writings of Moses is to regard with the same distrust the testimony of Jesus.

If all the New Testament testimony concerning the validity of the Old were distilled and condensed, it would all appear in Paul’s declaration in 2 Tim. 3:16: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.” And from this there is not the slightest dissent by any inspired writer.

While we entertain profound respect for the scholars and the scholarship of this and all enlightened countries, we aver that the Word of God should be tested before a tribunal higher than that of human wisdom. Therefore let us accept the writings of Moses as viewed by the inspired commentators of the New Testament. There can be no higher criticism than this. C. B. FITZGERALD.

Sam’s Valley, Oregon.

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