Signs of the Times, Vol. 3, No. 18. (5/3/1877)

Signs of the Times

May 3, 1877

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · May 3, 1877

PARABLE OF THE SOWER.

By Ellen G. White

BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.

Jesus had spent the entire night in prayer, and he came down to the beach in the early morning to look for his disciples who were fishing by the shore. He could not long remain undisturbed by the people. As soon as it was known that Christ was by the sea-side, the multitude flocked to him. Their numbers increased so that he was pressed upon all sides. As he stood teaching them, the crowd became so dense that he stepped into a boat and pulling out a little from the shore, gave the people a better opportunity to see and hear him, as he continued his discourse.

What a scene was this for angels to contemplate! Their glorious Commander, sitting in a fisherman’s boat, swayed to and fro by the restless water, and preaching salvation to the listening crowd that are pressing down to the water’s edge! He who was the honored of Heaven teaches his grand doctrine of deliverance in the open air to the common crowd. Yet he could have no more magnificent scene for his labors. The lake, the mountains, the spreading fields, the sunlight flooding the earth, all furnish subjects by which his lessons can be impressed upon the human mind.

In plain sight are the sowers and the reapers, side by side, the one casting the seed and the other harvesting the early grain. The fruitful valleys, and the hill-sides are clothed in beauty. The barren rocks are seen upon the beach, and the birds make the air vocal with their music. The sea-fowls skim upon the surface of the water. Jesus takes this opportunity to draw lessons from nature that will sink into the minds of his listeners. He employs the scenery about him to illustrate his doctrine, so that in the future, whenever these objects are presented to their eyes, their thoughts will revert to the lessons of truth drawn from them by Jesus. They will be daily reminders of the precious instruction which they had received from him.

Sitting thus, and looking upon the animated scene before him, Jesus uttered the parable that has been handed down to us through the ages, as pure and beautiful to-day in its unadorned simplicity as when it was given that morning on the Sea of Galilee more than eighteen hundred years ago.

“Hearken; behold, there went out a sower to sow. And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the wayside, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth; but when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up, and increased, and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

This striking illustration of the spreading abroad of the gospel of the Son of God engaged the earnest attention of the people. The speaker carried with him the minds of his hearers. Their souls were stirred, and many a heart throbbed with the animation of a new purpose. They were charmed with a doctrine so ennobling in its principles, yet so easily understood. The high spiritual attainments which Jesus taught seemed then very desirable. But how soon the impressions there received were to pass from the minds of many, when they again mingled with the world. The sins that had seemed so heinous under the holy light of the Master’s presence, would be clasped again to their erring hearts. Unfavorable surroundings and worldly cares and temptations would cause them to relapse again into indifference.

But others who listened commenced from that moment a holier life, carrying out daily the principles of Christ’s teachings. The subject matter of his discourse, illustrated by the scene before them, would never be effaced from their minds. The varied ground, some producing only thistles and noxious weeds, the ledges of rock covered with a surface of earth, the sowers with their seed, all being before their eyes, fastened his words in their minds as nothing else could have done.

The existing state of things led Jesus to give the parable of the sower. The people who followed Christ had been disappointed that he did not set up a new kingdom. Long had they looked for a Messiah who would exalt and glorify them as a nation, and now that their expectations were not realized, they refused to receive him as their Redeemer. Even his chosen disciples were becoming impatient that he did not assume temporal authority, and his relatives were disappointed in him and rejected him. They had addressed him in these words: “Depart hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples may see the works that thou doest. For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, show thyself to the world.”

His followers were mortified that the learned and wealthy were not the most willing to accept Jesus as their Saviour. They felt the stigma that attached to their Master, because it was the poor, the afflicted, and the humbler class generally, who became his disciples. Why, they asked themselves, did not the scribes and Pharisees, the teachers in the schools of the prophets, acknowledge that he was the long-looked-for Messiah? It was to meet this doubt and discontent that Jesus spoke this parable. When the multitude had departed, the twelve with the other believers gathered about him, and asked him to explain it to them. And he said unto them, “Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables; that seeing they may see, and not perceive, and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?” In these words he explained that his illustrations were to awaken thought in the minds of his hearers. If they desired a fuller explanation of his words they could ask it of him, as the disciples had done, and receive it.

The Pharisees understood the parable, but affected not to perceive its meaning. They closed their eyes lest they should see and their ears lest they should hear; therefore their hearts could not be reached. They were to suffer retribution for their willful ignorance and self-imposed blindness. One reason why he taught so much in parables was that the spies of the Jews were ever watching to find cause for complaint against him. Jesus designed to expose their hypocrisy and evil deeds without laying himself liable to the danger of being arrested and imprisoned by them, and thus cut off from the work which he came to do among the people.

He could speak cutting truths in parables, reveal the iniquity that it was necessary to expose, without any fear of their laws. They could make the application, for they could not fail to recognize his meaning, yet they were powerless to condemn him for using a simple illustration in his discourse.

The great Teacher blessed his disciples because they both saw and heard with eyes and ears that believed. Said he, “Many prophets and righteous men have desired to see these things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear the things which ye hear, and have not heard them.” Jesus then explained to his disciples the different classes represented in the parable he had given them.

Christ, the Sower, scatters the seed. There are the worldly ones, whose hearts are like the hard-beaten highway, insensible to the teachings of divine wisdom. They love not the requirements of God, and follow their natural impulses. Many are convinced as they listen to the important lessons of Christ. They believe his words, and resolve to lead holy lives, but when Satan comes with his evil suggestions, they are overcome before the good seed has fairly sprung into life.

There are those who receive the precious truth with joy; they are exceedingly zealous, and express amazement that all cannot see the things that are so plain to them. They urge others to embrace the doctrine that they find so satisfying. They hastily condemn the hesitating and those who carefully weigh the evidences of the truth and consider it in all its bearings. They call such ones cold and unbelieving. But in the time of trial these enthusiastic persons falter and fail. They did not accept the cross as a part of their religious life, and they turn from it with dampened ardor, and refuse to take it up.

If life moves smoothly with this class, if their way is never crossed, if all things are in harmony with their inclinations, they appear to be consistent Christians. But faint beneath the fiery test of temptation; they cannot endure reproach for the truth’s sake. The good seed that had sprung into so flourishing a plant, withers and dies because it has no root to sustain it in the time of drought. The very thing which should have caused the fibers to strike down deeper and send up more vigorous growth, parches and kills the whole plant. Just so the hot summer sun, that strengthens and ripens the hardy grain, withers and destroys that which, though fresh and green, has no depth of root, because the tender fibers cannot pierce the hard and stony ground.

These persons could cultivate and enrich the soil of their hearts, if they would, so that the truth would take deeper hold; but this involves too much patience and self-denial. It costs them too much effort to make a radical change in their lives. They are easily offended by reproof, and ready to say with the disciples who left Jesus, “This is a hard saying; who can hear it?” “And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time, afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.”

Jesus represents the seed as falling into neglected borders and patches covered with rank weeds which choke the precious plants that spring up among them; they grow sickly and perish.

Many hearts respond to the voice of truth, but they do not properly receive and cherish it. They give it a place in the soil of the natural heart, without preparing the ground and rooting out the poisonous weeds that flourish there, and watching every hour in order to destroy them should they again appear. The cares of life, the fascination of riches, the longing for forbidden things, crowd out the love of righteousness before the good seed can bear fruit. Pride, passion, self-love, and love of the world, with envy and malice, are no companions for the truth of God. As it is necessary thoroughly to cultivate the soil that has once been overgrown with weeds, so it is necessary for the Christian to be diligent in exterminating the faults that threaten his eternal ruin. Patient, earnest effort in the name and strength of Jesus, can alone remove the evil tendencies of the natural heart. But those who have allowed their faith to be overcome by the growth of Satan’s influences, fall into a worse state than that which they occupied before they heard the words of life. “And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.”

Few hearts are like the good soil, well-cultivated, and receive the seeds of truth and bring forth abundant fruit to the glory of God. But Jesus finds some earnest Christians, rich in good works and sincere in their endeavors. “And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirty-fold, some sixty, and some an hundred.”

Thus Christ represents the characters of those whom he came to teach, in a brief and comprehensive parable. The worldly-minded, the evil-disposed, the hard-hearted, are all exhibited to the minds of his hearers. He thus answers the question that we often hear to-day: Why was the work of Christ productive of such meager results, during his personal ministry upon earth? Miracles of goodness and mercy marked his life; but while he healed the afflicted, and cast out the demons that persecuted men, he left to themselves the work of correcting the evils of their natures. He instructed them how to unite their human efforts with his divine power, and triumph through his strength over the sins that beset them.

This experience was necessary in order to give moral power to the Christian character and fit it for the courts of Heaven. Jesus employed no miraculous agency to compel men to believe in him. They were left to choose or reject him, of their own free will. No direct power was to force them into obedience, and destroy the free moral agency that God has given to man. The parable of the sower plainly sets forth the tendencies of the human heart, and the different classes with which Christ had to deal, and also explains the reasons that his ministry was not more successful in its immediate effects.

The parables of Jesus were designed to arouse a spirit of inquiry which would result in a clearer exposition of the truth. As he was thus instructing his disciples in the meaning of his words, the people again gathered about to listen, and his teachings were received and cherished in the minds of many who heard them. These discourses of Jesus were not merely to a class of inferior minds; but there were intelligent and cultivated persons present who were capable of the closest criticism. Scribes, Pharisees, doctors, rulers, lawyers, and the representatives of all nations, were there to hear; yet there were none to gainsay his words in all that vast assembly.

I Am Debtor.

When this passing world is done, When has sunk yon glaring sun, When we stand with Christ in glory, Looking o'er life's finished story, Then, Lord, shall I fully know— Not till then—how much I owe.

When I hear the wicked call On the rocks and hills to fall, When I see them start and shrink On the fiery deluge brink, Then, Lord, shall I fully know— Not till then—how much I owe.

When I stand before the throne Dressed in beauty not my own, When I see Thee as Thou art, Love Thee with a sinless heart, Then, Lord, shall I fully know— Not till then—how much I owe.

When the praise of heaven I hear, Loud as thunders to the ear, Loud as many waters' noise, Sweet as harps' melodious voice, Then, Lord, shall I fully know— Not till then—how much I owe.

A LOVING REBUKE.

John Howe once observed two men in a violent passion. Their mutual cursings shocked his religious sensibilities. He looked at them, raised his hat, and said in a solemn voice:—

“I pray God to bless you both!”

This prayer so impressed the quarrelsome men that they ceased their strife, and thanked Mr. Howe for his supplication.

THE BIBLICAL INSTITUTE.

FIRST LESSON.

THE GREAT IMAGE OF DANIEL, SECOND CHAPTER.

An image of gigantic form was shown to Nebuchadnezzar in a dream. Its head was of gold, breast and arms of silver, sides of brass, legs of iron, feet and toes part of iron and part of clay. Beginning with the most precious metals, there is a uniform descent till it ends with the basest. Finally a stone cut out of the mountain without hands smote the image upon the feet, dashed it to atoms, the wind carried away the fragments like chaff, and the stone became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

This indicates that the image denotes something which occupies the territory of the earth, inasmuch as the stone which succeeds it, expanding into a mountain, occupies its place and fills the earth. With this the dream ends, and the state of things thus introduced is to be eternal. First there is change and degeneracy, indicated by the different metals of the image; lastly a permanent, eternal, glorious condition of things, shown by the mountain filling the earth.

In his interpretation of the image, Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar, Thou art this head of gold. Verse 38. He did not mean Nebuchadnezzar as an individual; for he was speaking of kingdoms. Verses 39, 40. One part of the image could not represent a kingdom, and another part an individual. This would be inconsistent. The head of gold therefore symbolizes that kingdom over which Nebuchadnezzar was ruler.

Who, then, was Nebuchadnezzar? King of the old Chaldean or Babylonian monarchy. This was the head of gold. It is sometimes objected to Adventism that it has no starting point; that the first steps have to be assumed or taken for granted, whereas its great feature is, as in this instance, that the starting point is given and the stakes set for us in unmistakable language in the Scriptures themselves.

An old Assyrian empire, founded by Nimrod the great grand-son of Noah, Gen. 10: 6–10, had ruled in Asia for 1300 years. On the ruins of this was founded the Chaldean or Babylonian empire of the Scriptures, by Belesis, the Baladan of Isa. 39: 1, B. C. 747. In prophecy it dates from B. C. 677, because then it became connected with the people of God, by the capture of Manasseh, king of Judah, 2 Chron. 33: 11. It reached the height of its glory under Nebuchadnezzar to whom this dream was given.

From this point the road was steep and short to its decline and overthrow. The kings and their reigns were as follows: Nebuchadnezzar 43 years. Evilmerodach, his son, 2 years. Nerglissar, his son-in-law, 4 years. A son of Nerglissar, nine months, not counted in Ptolemy's canon, and lastly Nabonadius, son of Evilmerodach, grand-son of Nebuchadnezzar, the Belshazzar of the book of Daniel, who reigned 17 years, and with whom that kingdom came to an end.

The kingdom that succeeded Babylon, represented by the breast and arms of silver, was Medo-Persia. Dan. 5: 30, 31. Cyrus overthrew Babylon B. C. 538, it having continued from 677, B. C. 139 years. 538 marks the beginning of the Medo-Persian kingdom and 331, B. C. its close, when Darius was overthrown by Alexander the Great, at the battle of Arbela. The Persian kingdom continued 207 years.

The third kingdom, the one which succeeded Persia, was Grecia. Dan. 8: 5–7, 21.

We are to look for one more universal kingdom and only one, for there were to be but four in all. Therefore, whatever universal kingdom we find anywhere this side of Grecia, that must be the kingdom represented by the legs of iron. Such a kingdom is brought to view in Luke 1. Cæsar Augustus sent out a decree that all the world should be taxed. Then he had jurisdiction over all the world. His kingdom was universal. But Cæsar Augustus was a Roman Emperor. Here we find the fourth and last universal empire, Rome, the legs of iron. The clay of the feet and toes denotes the degeneracy which came into the kingdom, and the ten toes the ten kingdoms into which the Roman empire was finally divided by the incursions of the northern barbarians. Rome in prophecy dates from its league with the Jews, B. C. 161, seven years after its conquest of Macedonia. Its division into ten parts was accomplished between the years 356 and 483 A. D. Grecia ruled from B. C. 331, to B. C. 161, a period of 170 years, and Rome from B. C. 161, to its division in 483, a period of 644 years.

The two legs do not denote the division of Rome into the Eastern and Western Empires. If they do, Rome should have been thus divided from the beginning of its history, or the legs should have been united down to the ankles, as it was not till A. D. 330 that the seat of empire was moved from Rome to Constantinople. But history forbids the former, and consistency forbids the latter.

"In the days of these kings" the kingdom of God is to be set up. Not in the days of any one of the previous kingdoms which had passed away, nor of Rome in its undivided state, when it was but one kingdom. It is not till after we find a plurality of kingdoms existing contemporaneously, that we can look for the setting up of the kingdom of God, and we do not find these contemporaneous kingdoms till we find Rome breaking up into its final divisions 356 to 483 A. D. Not till then was the image complete ready to be smitten by the stone upon the feet. The kingdom represented by the stone could not therefore have been set up in the days of Christ and his apostles 483 years before this division was completed. The fact is therefore forever settled that the kingdom represented by the stone is not a spiritual kingdom, but is literal like the four preceding it; and that it is yet future; for nothing to answer to the setting up of this kingdom has taken place since 483 A. D.

It will be asked if those kings or kingdoms are still in existence, in the days of which the God of Heaven was to set up his kingdom. If they were established so long ago as 483, have they not all passed away? We answer, No. They are the kingdoms which, as Dr. Scott remarks, have generally been known since that time as the ten kingdoms of western Europe. Many of them can easily be traced to the present time. Originally they were the Huns, Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Franks, Vandals, Suevi, Heruli, Burgundians, Anglo-Saxons and Lombards. And we have now the French from the Franks, the English from the Anglo-Saxons, the Portuguese from the Suevi, the Spanish from the Visigoths, the modern Italians from the Ostrogoths, and the Huns, and Lombards from the original stock of that name.

The image is all complete. We are still in the days of these kings, and wait for the setting up of the kingdom of God, which is the next and only remaining event in this line of prophecy.

SECOND LESSON.

By G. S.

THE VISION OF DANIEL SEVENTH CHAPTER.

The symbolic language of the Scriptures is to be explained by the literal. All the figures of the Bible are defined by the literal language of the Bible. We have here the sea, winds, and four great beasts, none of which, of course, are to be regarded as literal. The sea, rivers, or waters, used as figures, denote “peoples, multitudes, nations and tongues.” Rev. 17:15; Isa. 8:7. Winds denote political strife and war. Jer. 25:32, 33. The beasts denote four kingdoms that arose on the earth, one after the other. Dan. 7:17, 23. The fourth beast is the fourth kingdom; therefore the other beasts denote kingdoms though they are like this one sometimes called kings.

The consistency of the figures as illustrating the events of human history is at once seen. In the most populous civilized portions of the earth, which from earliest history have been western Asia, and Europe, political strife has moved among the people. As a consequence revolution has succeeded revolution, and four great kingdoms have one after another arisen and fallen.

We have seen from the great image of Dan. 2, that there were to be but four universal kingdoms from Daniel’s day to the end of time. The fourth beast of this vision of Dan. 7, denotes the last one of these earthly governments; for he is given to the burning flame, and the kingdom passes into the possession of the saints with a perpetual title.

The four beasts of Dan. 7 therefore denote the same four kingdoms that are represented by the great image: the first beast, the lion, symbolizing Babylon, B. C. 677 to B. C. 538; the second, the bear, Medo-Persia, B. C. 538 to 331; the third, the leopard, Grecia, B. C. 331 to 161; the fourth, the great and terrible nondescript, Rome, B. C. 161 to A. D. 483.

The lion had at first two wings as of an eagle, representing the rapid conquests and ruling power of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar, who raised it to the height of its power. The wings were plucked and a man’s heart given to it—as it was under the last king, the weak and pusillanimous Belshazzar.

The bear raised itself up on one side, showing the ascendency of the Persian element in the Medo-Persian empire, as more fully brought out in the symbol of the ram of chapter 8. The three ribs denote, probably, the three provinces especially devoured by this kingdom, Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt, which greatly stimulated the Persian lust for power, or said to it, Arise and devour much flesh.

The leopard had four wings, denoting the rapidity of Grecian conquests under Alexander; and four heads, signifying the division of the kingdom into four parts after Alexander’s death, more particularly noticed under the symbol of the goat of chapter 8.

The fourth great and terrible beast had ten horns. These are declared to be ten kingdoms which should arise out of this empire. Dan. 7:24. These correspond to the ten toes of the image. Rome was divided into ten kingdoms between the years A. D. 356 and 483, as follows: Huns, A. D. 356, Ostrogoths, 377, Visigoths, 378, Franks, 407, Vandals, 407, Suevi, 407, Burgundians, 407, Heruli, 476, Anglo-Saxons, 476, Lombards, 483. This enumeration of the ten kingdoms is given by Machiavel in his History of Florence, lib. 1. The dates are furnished by Bishop Lloyd, and the whole is approved by Bishop Newton, Faber and Dr. Hales.

Among these ten horns another little horn diverse from the others thrust itself up, plucking up three in its course. This was the papacy, established in 538. The decree of Justinian, emperor of the East, declaring the pope the head of all the churches, was issued in 533; but before it could be carried out, three Arian powers who stood opposed to papal doctrines and assumptions had to be removed out of the way, namely, the Heruli, Vandals and Ostrogoths. The Ostrogoths were forced into a final retreat from Rome in March 538, and Justinian’s decree was carried into effect.

This horn spoke great words. Witness the titles the pope has assumed, and received from his flatterers. He has worn out the saints of the Most High. Between fifty and one hundred millions of martyrs testify on this point. He has thought to change times and laws; the law, say the Septuagint, the German and Danish translations; pointing out the law of the Most High. This the papacy has thought to do, by endeavoring to change the fourth commandment, substituting the first day of the week for the Sabbath, in place of the seventh, which the commandment enjoins. See Hist. of the Sabbath and Catholic Catechisms. They have been given into his hands a time, times, and dividing of time, or half a time: three times and a half. A time in Scripture signifies a year. Dan. 4:16, compared with Josephus who says that the “seven times” were seven years. Three times and a half are therefore three years and a half. As the Bible year consists of 360 days (12 months of 30 days each) three and a half of such years give us 1260 days; and these days being symbolic, a day for a year, Eze. 4:6; Num. 14:34, we have 1260 years for the continuance of papal supremacy. This is the same as the 1260 days and 42 months of Rev. 12 and 13 applied to the same power. Reckoned from 538, they bring us to 1798. Feb. 10, of that year, Berthier acting under the French Directory, took Rome, and carried the pope into exile where the next year he died. Here sat the judgment of verse 26, and his dominion was taken away (temporarily overthrown but not consumed), and has been waning away both temporally and spiritually from that time to the present.

In verses 9 and 10 judgment of another kind is brought to view; the investigative judgment of the Heavenly Sanctuary, commencing in 1844. In connection with that a special utterance of great words is heard by the prophet. The great Ecumenical Council held in Rome in 1870, furnishes a marked fulfillment. There by a deliberate vote of the highest dignitaries of all the Catholic world, 538 against 2, July 21, 1870, the pope was decreed to be infallible. In two months from that time, Sept. 20, 1870, Rome surrendered to the troops of Victor Emanuel, and the last vestige of the pope’s temporal power departed. His destruction in the burning flame must be at hand.

The fifth kingdom of this vision which the saints take and possess forever, is the one under the whole heaven, including the territory of these beast kingdoms. It is therefore the same as the kingdom of Dan. 2, which fills the whole earth. What folly then to talk of the kingdom of Dan. 2 being set up at the first advent of Christ, since it is not set up till after the papacy has run its allotted career, and is destroyed, an event that takes place only at the second coming of Christ in power and glory. 2 Thess. 2:8.

G. S.

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