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Signs of the Times, Vol. 37, No. 27.

The Precious Blood of Christ

Signs of the Times

Jul 12, 1910

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Jul 12, 1910

The Precious Blood of Christ

"Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you." 1 Peter 1:18–20.
"But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." Heb. 2:9, 10.
ND all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as tho God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Cor. 5:18–21.

"IF YE WILL INQUIRE, INQUIRE YE."

By Editor

This Inquirer's Department is conducted for the purpose of helping those who are studying the Bible. The answers are oftentimes only suggestive. They are never to be considered infallible, only as they agree with the infallible Word. The writer who may answer them does not consider that his opinion is infallible. He will simply give the best that he has, and plead with the inquirer to search the Word. Such questions only will be answered as, to the editors, seem to minister to the good of the readers and to the mission of the paper. We can not answer repeatedly in the same volume questions upon the same scripture. The name and address must accompany question, not for publication, but as an evidence of good faith, and that answer may be made by letter if deemed advisable. No letters are answered which do not contain the name of the writer. It is well always to enclose stamp for reply.

3178.—The Devil and His Angels

Will you tell me where in the Bible I can find out where the devil and his angels are at present? Is he a real being?
Certainly if language means anything, to answer the last question first, the devil is a real being. He is brought before us as such. He is given titles and names which indicate the same thing. He does deeds which show that he has a personality. He has followers, his angels, his messengers, who do his bidding. He holds conversation, argues, quotes Scripture. Certainly we could not understand that this language would be used of an impersonal thing or principle.
Where the devil is, is clearly shown in Revelation 12. "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Verse 9. See also verses 12 and 13. Just where he or they are in this earth is another thing. The apostle Peter in his first epistle, chapter 5 and verse 8, warns us, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." He is powerful; he is crafty; he is a deceiver; but with God there is One stronger than he, who is able to meet all his power and devices.

3179.—Baptism

By Editor

Kindly explain in the Question Corner if the custom of the apostles was to dip three times in immersion. Give some historical quotations please. Matt. 28:19.
No, it was not the custom of the apostles to dip three times, nor does anybody dip three times. The trine immersionists make a show at it. The person is taken into the water, and the upper part is dipped three times forward, and the lower part once. It is a perversion of language to say that the "formula" found in Matt. 28:19 demands three immersions. We are baptized into the name of Deity, we become His children; and that threefold expression, simply means that the threefold manifestation of the Godhead is to be manifest in His children. God's name, meaning His righteousness; the name of the Son, His self-emptying, His unselfish, consecrated life; and the name of the Spirit, power to do God's work,—all these are summed up in the name of Christ, for so the later ones were baptized. See Acts 19:5.
That trine immersion was practised quite early in the church, is no evidence of its authority. A great many other perversions of the simple ceremonies of God's Word came into the church very early after the days of the apostles. What baptism is designed to represent is shown by comparing Rom. 6:3-6 and 1 Cor. 15:1-4. The three great facts manifested in the offering of Christ were His death, burial, and resurrection. These are expressed by baptism; but when men are buried, they are not buried three times; they are not lifted up from the grave and let down again twice over after the first burial. They are buried once and for all. The simple meaning of the act very clearly shows the kind of baptism. In trine immersion as practised by some, the candidate kneels and the body is dipped forward. This does not in any wise express the meaning designed to be conveyed by baptism, faith in the death and burial of Christ; but simple immersion, in which the candidate is buried, expresses perfectly faith in the great facts of the Gospel.
Dr. Francis Wayland, in his "Notes on the Principles and Practices of Baptist Churches," speaks of the simple method of immersion as follows: "In the administration of this ordinance we immerse the whole body in water instead of merely sprinkling water upon the face. . . . We believe this to be the meaning of our Saviour's command when He directs us to go forth to baptize the nations. In this belief we are confirmed by the testimony of all antiquity, the practice of the Greek Church, by the indirect allusions to the ordinance of baptism in the New Testament, and by the most universal consent of scholars from the revival of letters in Europe to Conybeare and Howson of the present day." See tract on "Baptism; Its Meaning," the last issue of Bible Students' Library.

3182.—Judge Not

By Editor

Please explain Romans 14. M. E. B.
Our inquirers must be more specific. Romans 14 covers a large field. We might use this entire page in the explanation of the chapter and still not touch the point upon which our inquirer desires information. We would say in general, however, that the fourteenth chapter of Romans is largely given for two things: first, we should not judge or condemn other believers; and secondly, we should be exceedingly careful of our own conduct, so that we may stand acquitted before God. The apostle is not dealing with what might be called essentials in the eating and drinking and days, etc. The one great essential which has been set before us in Romans is faith in God, and that faith which will lead to implicit obedience; and yet the apostle supposes that there may be differences between brethren. These differences may take the form of eating and drinking; they may take the form of the observances of feasts and holy days, as they doubtless did in the days of the apostle, some of the converts being Jewish and still observing the Passover, the Atonement, and so on. The chapter tells us that those who may observe these things should not be condemned. To their own Master they stand or fall. He who would condemn his brethren, would better look to his own case; because he must appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, and he too must be careful not to put a stumbling-block or an occasion to fall in his brother's way. The great important thing is faith; but that faith is worthless unless it comes right home to the individual heart. "Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God." If our readers will keep in mind these great thoughts in the chapter, they will have no trouble with any of its details.

3180.—The Separation. Matt. 25: 32, 33

When does the fulfilment of Matt. 25: 32, 33 occur? CANVASSER.
In the time of the judgment. First, all the people come before Christ at the examination of the books in which is the record of every individual soul. See Dan. 7:9, 10; Rev. 20:12. At the close of the examination of these records comes the final separation.
Secondly, when the sentence is executed at the end of the thousand years this also will be very clearly evident to which side the children of God belong and the children of the wicked.

3181.—First Day of the Week

By Editor

Will you kindly tell me where and how many times the first day of the week is mentioned in the New Testament? L. E.
The passages relating to the first day of the week are as follows: Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1, 19; Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2, eight occurrences in all, not one of which calls the first day the Sabbath or indicates that it is in any wise sacred. On the contrary it shows it to be a day of secular occupation. There is one other expression found in Luke 24:13 which refers to that day, showing that the disciples were about their regular business. Six of these texts refer to the same first day of the week. One of them refers to a meeting held on the evening or first part of the first day, the rest of the day being used for travel. The last occurrence refers to business transactions in which after the week was over the individual should reckon up his accounts and deduct therefrom a certain proportion.

3183.— Eating at Emmaus

By Editor

Will you kindly answer in the SIGNS what is your authority for the statement in Question 3132, lines twelve to fifteen? P. M. P.
The statement is a mere general one. Jesus was evidently with the disciples while they prepared their meal, for they constrained Him to come in; and He may have vanished at the very beginning of the meal, but we hardly believe with our inquirer that they returned supperless to Jerusalem. We read that they rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem. There is nothing in the context which would absolutely forbid His eating with them. Their eyes were opened when He broke bread. How long He stayed of course we do not know. It does not say that He immediately vanished out of their sight. He may have remained with them for a little time. That is uncertain. The uncertainty perhaps ought to have been expressed in the answer to the question.

3184.—A New Commandment

By Editor

Please explain 1 John 2:8.
L. E.
The text reads, "Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in Him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth." Read this verse in connection with the previous verse, "The old commandment is the Word which ye have heard from the beginning." That is God's truth and God's law and God's commandments which have come down to the children of God from the time of their utterance. They are new, however, to the believer. "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." God's commandments are no longer condemnatory precepts, but they are living, enabling acts. The old commandment becomes a new commandment, because the darkness is past and the true light shines.

3185.— Elisha

By Editor

Please explain 2 Kings 13:21. Did Elisha really live after that, do you think? H. G.
The thought is not that Elisha revived, but that the man revived. As soon as he had touched the bones of Elisha, it was the dead man who revived and stood up on his feet. The idea is not that Elisha lived at all; neither should we get the idea from it that the Lord designs that relics of holy men should have healing power. Evidently the Lord healed by that method to show that all the prophecies that Elisha had given in that kingdom would prove true. It was God's witness to the truthfulness of the messages which His servant had borne.

3186.— What Was in the Ark

By Editor

How do you harmonize Heb. 9:4; Ex. 16:33, with 1 Kings 5:10 and 2 Chron. 8:9? W. P. M.
With the simple understanding that the two descriptions have reference to different times. Heb. 9:4 and Ex. 16:33 evidently refer to the same time, when the sanctuary was prepared and the ark was placed in the sanctuary in the very beginning of its history. The last two passages have evidently been reversed by our correspondent. Does he not mean 1 Kings 8:9 and 2 Chron. 5:10? At that time the pot of manna, etc., may have been removed from the ark.

Man's Relation to the Law

By Mrs. E. G. White

By Mrs. E. G. White
"THE law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple." Before man was created, the heavenly intelligences were governed by the principles of the law of God.
When man was created, God gave to Adam and Eve a knowledge of His ten precepts. When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy, God laid the foundation for marriage and for the Sabbath institution. In their happy innocency, the Lord placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and gave them employment in dressing and keeping the garden which He had made for them. In activity of body and mind they had the means of obtaining good, and of glorifying their heavenly Father. Like the angels of God, who are ever engaged in doing good, in carrying out God's commands, man was ever to engage in earnest work.
Adam and Eve were placed upon trial, that it might be demonstrated as to whether they would obey the word of their Creator, or disobey His requirements. The Creator of man was his Father, and had an entire right to the service he could render. Body, soul, and spirit, man was the sole property of God. God revealed Himself to the innocent pair in Eden, and conversed with them freely. God was their teacher, and instructed them in regard to their work. He made it plain to them that by obedience to His holy law they would retain happiness, and finally be blessed with immortality. Eternal life should be theirs if they regulated their conduct according to the principles of the law of God. Man was not left in uncertainty to suppose as to what course he should pursue, or to take any risk by venturing on some line of conduct which he might think a safe course. As children are educated by faithful parents, so Adam and Eve were instructed as to what was required of them as intelligent creatures of God. Every provision was made whereby blessings might be secured to the human race, and but one mild restriction was placed upon the sinless pair to test their loyalty to God.
The Lord had said unto them, "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." In every matter God was to be obeyed; but the test of man's obedience in everything was to be found in his faithfulness in carrying out one particular command, in abstaining from taking of the forbidden tree. The result of obedience would be eternal life, and the outworking of disobedience would be death. Adam and Eve were tempted of Satan. The tempter came to them, saying: "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die."
"And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." They believed the words of the serpent, that were in contradiction to the words of God, their Maker. Falsehood was taken instead of truth, and the flood-gates of wo were opened upon our world.
It was as Eve was standing near the forbidden tree that Satan gave utterance to the query of her mind, and thus the controversy on earth was begun. For when she saw that the tree was "good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." Satan presented to man the bribe of attaining to a higher position, of gaining knowledge and wisdom beyond that with which their Creator had endowed them, through an act of disobedience to His divine will. Satan had lost his derived power and glory, had lost heaven, through pride and ambition; for he thought to place his throne above the stars of God, and to be like the Most High. And now, at a favorable opportunity, he presents the temptation which originated with himself, in order to lead the creatures of God to doubt divine wisdom, and to cast reflection upon divine provi-dences.
Satan did not scruple at deception in order to gain his purpose and bring shadow over the life and character of the holy pair, to cause sorrow and grief in heaven, and to thwart the purpose of God in the creation of man. Pretending to be the friend of man, he placed himself as the enemy of God, and used all his power to prove that Jehovah had made a mistake in instituting the law to regulate the conduct of His creatures. But in casting contempt upon the law of God he was only seeking to further his hellish design of bringing the human race under his own control.
Our first parents were without an experience for themselves; but had they lived by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God, they would not have disobeyed their Creator. The terrible and tremendous effects of their disobedience opened their eyes. They discerned that the holy covering of light that God had provided for them had departed from them, and that they were naked. O, if they had but heeded the instruction that God had given them,—to call upon Him when they were threatened with evil from the fallen foe,—they would have had the presence of angels to shield them in the hour of temptation, and the fascinating charm of Satan would have been broken! But they did not look for the fallen foe to come to them with soft words and fair speeches, as a friend who would give them information fraught with weighty importance to them. Had Satan come to them with rough words, charging God with dishonesty, accusing Him of being overbearing, and of giving them commandments that would require the degradation of their independence, they would have understood his attack; but in flattering their pride, in presenting to them a prospect of exaltation, he caused them to forget God, and sin entered into the world. The beings that God had created placed themselves on the enemy's side. The human family was lost.
Will God abolish His law because Adam sinned? Had He done this, He would have immortalized sin, which is the transgression of His law. No, this would have been impossible. Wherever there is a kingdom there must be statutes and laws; and the law of God is the transcript of His character. But provisions had been made in the counsels of the Father and the Son to meet this emergency. It had been provided that, should Adam fall a prey to the tempter's power, a ransom should be found in the Son of God, who should become man's Redeemer. An opportunity should be given to man to repent of his sin, and, through faith in Christ as his personal Saviour, to be restored to the divine image and favor. After the fall, the Lord said to the serpent, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
We have the example of Adam before us to warn us from treading on the dangerous ground upon which Adam fell. Adam accepted the false suggestions and the foul misrepresentations concerning God, rather than a plain "Thus saith the Lord." Let not the presumptuous assertions and claims of men be reiterated as the voice of God. Let those who would serve God remember that it is written, "Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the Tree of Life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."

Man's Sin and Saviour

By E. J. Hibbard

By E. J. Hibbard

I. Man in Creation

THE human mind naturally inquires about the origin of things. It asks first and especially concerning the beginning of the globe on which we live. And, since man himself is superior to all else which occupies the earth, his own parentage is of paramount interest.
Whence then came the first man? and what was he like? Was he evil of nature, and brutish in form and feature? or was he of noble bearing, symmetrically organized in body and mind?
The sacred books of most if not all heathen nations have discoursed upon the subject of creation; but in a manner so vague or so absurd as to merit only contempt from all who are possessed of ordinary common sense. It is therefore not worth while to consume time and space to even mention these vagaries.
On the other hand, Evolutionists endeavor to account for creation quite apart from the Creator. Knowing as they do that the ancestors of Americans and Europeans were, a few centuries ago, only barbarians and savages, while now we can boast of the best forms of civilization, they reason that all mankind has thus progressed from the earliest dawn of the human race; yes, and still back of that, by way of the "ape route," from the lowest forms of animal and vegetable life.
But no one has ever been able to account for the origin of life itself, by any of these processes, and so has not succeeded in ruling out the idea of the Creator; or, as some are pleased to term Him, a great "First Cause."
And while the theory is, that somewhere there must have been a "missing link," the most ardent advocates of the theory admit that the "link" is still "missing." We can trace the toad from the egg, through the "polliwog," until the legs form and the tail drops off; but not so from monkey to man. With over four thousand years of experience with monkeys and apes, not one has ever developed into a man. But it must be admitted with shame, that some men have degenerated to a plane not far above that of the ape. If the theory, therefore, were that apes and their like were degenerate men, I should see more in its favor than in the supposition that men are finely developed apes.
The only thing, then, which gives the slightest show of reason to the Evolution theory, is that above mentioned; namely, that some of the most progressive peoples of modern times can trace their ancestry to the savages of the German swamps and forests. It is true that in the providence of God these have made progress in many ways. But they were civilized by the very ones they conquered; and if advancement has been made in the matter of morals, it is easily traced to the influence of Christianity upon the individual heart.
And how about China and India, whose civilizations began not far from the time of the patriarch Abraham? How about Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon? They have every one been on the downward course. They have retrograded as surely as we have advanced.
The ancient Vedas, or sacred books of the Hindus, date back to near the time of Noah. These contained, in the main, the true idea of God, and of the origin of man; also of sin, and sacrifice for sin. But to-day the gods of India are as numerous as its inhabitants. And the degradation of her people, notwithstanding over a century of Christian endeavor and a half century of British rule, is almost past belief. So also is China, and the other nations which have taken a like course.

Modern Nations Retrograding

And close observers say that even such nations as have, during the past fifteen hundred years, been making progress in civilization, are worse now, morally speaking, than they were half a century ago. They tell us that modern science and invention have not lessened dishonesty nor decreased crime. They also say that knowledge itself, unless seasoned by that which God alone imparts to such as believe and obey Him, results in making men wise only in the way of evil. These facts are so patent that all who read the daily papers must know them, tho some may be loath to acknowledge as much.
But how about primitive man, the father and head of the human race? Was he inferior, or superior, to the best the world has since produced? The answer is found in the fact that there have been from the beginning to the present, but two real, genuine men; namely, Adam and Christ. For thus it is written, "The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord [Christ] from heaven." "The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." 1 Cor. 15: 47, 45.
And thus it stands: Adam was the first man; Jesus Christ was the "second man," and the "last Adam." It therefore follows that between the first man, Adam, and Jesus our Lord, there were no men after God's idea of man. And since Christ was the "last Adam," it also follows that no men from the birth of Christ to the present have ever reflected the glory of that first product from the hand of God, the masterpiece of his Maker, the head of the human race.
Christ was originally "the brightness ofHis [the Father's] glory, and the express image of His person." Heb. 1:3. So also, in the beginning, "God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them." Gen. 1:27. And tho Jesus Christ was the Son of God direct, and from an eternity of the past, according to the Scriptures, yet He delighted to call Himself "the Son of Man." And from the human side of His nature, He is traced, in Luke 3:23-38, back in unbroken line of descent, and by this is found to be "the Son of Adam, which was the Son of God."

The First Man

It has been thought by some that the record in Genesis 1 refers to a prehistoric and pre-Adamic race; that the man created from dust, mentioned in Gen. 2:7, and spoken of as "Adam" in verses 19, 20, 21, and 23, is not the man who was created in the image of God; that Genesis 1 refers to a first creation, and Genesis 2 to a second. But such talk is all folly; for have we not already found (1 Cor. 15:45) that the "first man" was "Adam"? And this could not be if there was a man created before him. The omission of the fact, in Genesis 2, that Adam was created in the image of God, is well supplied in Genesis 5, verses 1 and 2. The reading follows: "This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him; male and female created He them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created."
If anything were still lacking to prove that the first man was in every way superior to any who have followed, save Jesus only, it would be abundantly supplied in the fact that the entire work of the Gospel is for the purpose of restoring the image of God in man; and Adam had this at the outset.

In the Image of God

Thus Paul exhorts the Ephesian church, "That ye put off concerning the former conversation [manner of life] the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." Eph. 4:22-24. And the Colossians he enjoins that they "lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him." Col. 3:9, 10.
Any man, therefore, who is in character after the image of Him that created him, will tell no lies. The devil is called the father of lies; but of God it is written that He "can not lie." It is likewise stated that those who have "put off the old man," and have put on the "new," are free from "fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry." They have likewise "put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication," out of their mouth. Col. 3:5, 8. And if all this must now be done in order that we may bear the image of our Maker, surely that man who in the beginning was created in His image, was entirely free from the character-deformities mentioned above, and with which the world is reeking in this our day.
But this is not all. The character being restored, there is yet one thing lacking,—our bodies as well as our characters have likewise been defiled; and these must be made to conform to the divine pattern. "For our conversation [manner of life, or "citizenship"] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body." Phil. 3:20, 21. This completes the image or likeness of God in man. It is therefore plain that the first man, Adam, and likewise his wife, were created in physical form and character like unto that of their Creator. This is the record as found in the Word of God. Such a record is worthy of our divine Master and Lord. But the theory of Evolution disputes the record as found in the book of Genesis, and likewise disputes every line of the Gospel in reference to man's redemption. But the Bible record is true; and happy is the one who accepts it just as it reads.

The Superiority of the Primal Man

We now repeat our first question: "Whence came the first man? and what was he like? Was he evil of nature, and brutish in form and feature? or was he of noble bearing, symmetrically organized in body and mind?"—He was the latter, and not the former.
And not only was he the superior of all who have followed, in that he was created without sin, or any natural tendency toward sin; but he was superior in knowledge to any that have followed, with the exception of that One before mentioned. For "out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them; and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof."
At this point some one may say, I do not see anything remarkable in the fact that Adam named every living creature; that seems a small matter to me. Indeed! Do you know of a person who can do as much to-day? Suppose Adam's naming of "every living creature" consisted only in the matter of pronouncing the word which gave the correct name to each animal, large and small, which inhabits the earth; each fish and reptile whose home is in the sea, the lake, the river; every fowl, bird, or insect which flies in the air; would it not reveal a knowledge almost beyond our powers of comprehension?—Indeed it would.
But Adam did far more than this; because a "name," in the Bible meaning, comprehends a word, or a series of words, which expresses definitely and exactly the leading characteristics of the object thus identified. One case in point will serve to illustrate: The Lord had commanded Moses to return from Midian to Egypt for the deliverance of Israel. "And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is His name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM. . . . This is My name forever, and this is My memorial unto all generations." Ex. 3:13-15. This is to say, "I am that which I am." "This is My name forever." And this principle was so instilled into the minds of all the ancients (and it is even found among some modern peoples), that the names they gave their children were meant to express as nearly as possible the character of each. And with some, when the character changed, the name was also changed: Jacob became Israel; Abram became Abraham.
To say, then, that "whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof," is in other words to declare that the name Adam gave expressed the main characteristics of every living thing—every species on earth—of beast and fish and fowl. Thus Adam never had an equal in the knowledge of zoology, ichthyology, or ornithology; and he understood all these sciences (not by their present names; but the facts were his) more fully than any, and I dare also add, all who have succeeded him. Adam was neither an ape nor a brute-like cave-dweller; he was in every way worthy of his Maker, a man in the image of God.
Allow one other thought upon this marvelous feat of our forefather Adam: It does not read this way: "Whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that became the name thereof;" but this is the reading: "That was the name thereof." God was their Maker. He it was who had named them before He brought them before Adam to see what he would "call" them; and this noble offspring of God, this first father of our race, never missed, in a single instance, of callingeach living creature by the correct name, even the name which was its before Adam was asked to name it.
He was likewise the greatest landscape-gardener the world has ever seen. God "planted" a garden, and Adam "kept" it. He knew the secret of the life and growth of every tree and vine and plant. He also communed openly with his Maker and with the holy angels, and obtained further knowledge first-hand.
God likewise made him "an help meet for him," not as it is so often misquoted, "an helpmeet," or "an help-meet for him." What is a "helpmeet" anyhow? What does the word mean? It has been used so often that lexicographers have actually attempted to define it as "help-mate" or something of the sort. But the simple statement is, "I will make him an help meet [proper, fitted] for him." And a help proper for such a man as we have here found described in the Word of God, must have been able to enter into and appreciate every thought which occupied his master mind. She was likewise, as well as he, made in the image of God; and God called their name Adam — both the man and the woman. God made man in His own image — male and female; it takes the two to comprehend the term "man." The one without the other is but half a man.
"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." "And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good." Gen. 1:28, 31.
The entire earth was covered with a carpet of green, interspersed with majestic forests, and fruit-trees for man and beast. From a central fountain in the Garden of Eden ran rivers in four directions to water the earth. The air was vocal with birdsongs, and fragrant with the perfume of a million varieties of flowers.
Two giant intellects, with mind and body in harmony, equally balanced, without any natural tendency toward evil, happy in their Creator's love and in their affection for one another, stood our first parents, Adam and Eve, at the dawn of their creation.

Thy Kingdom Come

By Amos E. Flint

By Amos E. Flint
How long, O Lord, ere Thy return? Our waiting hearts within us burn To hail the dawning, rising ray Of that expected glorious day.
On time's relentless surges tossed, The Gospel bark seeks for the lost; While far beyond the sea-storm's surge, The promised haven's scenes emerge.
How pleasant to our hearts each day To hear the message win its way, Enlightening those who've long been bound By error's chain of guilt profound.
Awake! no time now for repose; Soon time's career fore'er will close; Soon will the trump of God resound Through vaulted skies. "We're homeward bound."
From the unnumbered, ransomed throng Will roll the victor's glad, new song, While they on wings of light ascend, And shining hosts from heav'n attend.
O, there'll be joy and peace and love, And naught to harm, in heav'n above; There all the faithful will be blessed In realms of endless, blissful rest.
Tho earthly warfare be severe, And scenes around seem dark and drear, Yet, tuning harps for heav'n and home, We'll daily pray, "Thy kingdom come." Granger, Wash.
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