VERSE 1. Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.
The trumpet among the ancient Israelites was to be blown as a token of alarm when danger was near. Was a hostile army approaching, were dangers impending, which required action and haste to escape or avert, the trumpets pealed out an alarm through all the land to arouse the people.
This custom is used as a medium through which to enforce a command upon the servants of God, when the great day of the Lord, in which is summed up for the wicked, all dangers, and all calamities, is about to burst upon the world. Not that a trumpet is now literally to be blown; but an alarm is to be given which shall be as startling, and arrest the attention of the people as effectually, as the trumpet blasts that echoed of old over the mountains of Judea.
The trumpet anciently was to be blown by the priests. Num. 10:8. So now the alarm is to be given by the ministers of the Lord. As the priests were the guardians of the people, and were to warn them of approaching danger, so those who are set apart as teachers of God's word, are required to understand the developments of his work in the earth, and to give warning when in the accomplishment of his dispensations, judgments are declared, and to be executed, upon the unfaithful.
The Lord has set his ministers as his watchmen, to see when the sword is coming and warn the people; and by the prophet Ezekiel he charges them with their solemn responsibility in these words:— “If when he [the watchman] seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul. But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand. So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.” Eze. 33:3–9.
The trumpet is to be blown in Zion and the alarm sounded in God's holy mountain. A movement is first to be made by the church of God. If the church is asleep what can be expected of the world? The church is set as the light of the world, and should be prompt to see the light and make it known to the people.
But what are the professed churches of our land doing? They have gone down into the plains of Ono, and are joining hands with a pleasure-loving, Judgment-hating, world. And while nature is already beginning to quiver with the throes of its final convulsion, and all over the sea and land around us, and the heavens above us, tokens are multiplying to show that the great day of the Lord is hastening upon us like a lion leaping upon its prey, the church join in the world's mad chase after delusive phantoms, the ministers preach smooth things, and prophesy peace; and the wicked plunging down to death are made to feel quiet and at ease.
Never were there so widespread and confident assertions of a good time coming as at the present day. The cry of peace finds a ready reception in the carnal mind. And since the delusive doctrine of a temporal millennium was invented by Daniel Whitby, about two centuries ago, this sentiment has found such marvelous growth that it is now echoed from almost every pulpit and religious paper in the land.
And what shall be the end thereof? This dream and cry of peace, so securely fostered by the doctrine of the world's conversion, is marked in prophecy as one of the characteristics of the last days, and one of the signs of impending destruction. The day of the Lord, says Paul, comes as a thief in the night. 1 Thess. 5:2. And he writes to his “brethren,” the true church, that they know this perfectly, but are not in darkness that the day should overtake them as a thief. Verses 2, 4. Then he says of the world, “For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them.” Verse 3. And this is the time when the prophet, in the chapter before us, calls upon us to blow the trumpet and sound the alarm; for the inhabitants have reason to tremble rather than be at ease, in view of the impending day of the Lord, which shall try every man and every work, with its fiery ordeal.
The next verse sets forth the nature of this day:—
VERSE 2. A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
The world is looking for light; but that which is coming is darkness; they look for joy; but shall find gloominess instead; they look for ease, prosperity, and pleasure, but will suddenly find themselves in clouds and thick darkness; and this day comes like the morning spread upon the mountains, covering all at once.
In the next sentence, as if overwhelmed with the sublimity of the scene before him, with an abrupt exclamation, he introduces the agents by which the events of the day of the Lord are accomplished. “A great people and a strong!” Some mighty army comes forth at the bidding of the Lord. We shall see who they are in subsequent verses.
But does not the reference to future generations destroy the application of this language to the great day of the Lord, beyond which we look for no generations in the ordinary sense of that term? We think not. We take the expression simply to mean that as there had been no day before it like it, there never should be afterward. It stands out conspicuous and alone as a day unparalleled for the sublimity of its scenes, the terror of its judgments, and the magnitude of its revolutions.
The prophet now turns his attention more particularly to the agents concerned in this great work, and devotes the next nine verses to a description of them and their doings.
VERSE 3. A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. 4. The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. 5. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. 6. Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. 7. They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks. 8. Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. 9. They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. 10. The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. 11. And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great; for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible, and who can abide it?
These verses have been the occasion of considerable study: some considering them a description of the devouring locusts mentioned in the first chapter; others, that the language is altogether too strong, and the description altogether too elevated to apply to any insects, or any ravages they have ever been known to commit. Those who apply it to the locusts, as do commentators generally, spend much time in showing their likeness to horses, their sound to that of chariots, their running like men with unbroken ranks, &c. But there are insuperable objections to such an application.
1. When the plague of locusts fell on Egypt, Ex. 10:14, it was said that there never should be the like again. If Joel 2:2, refers to locusts that came upon Judea in Joel's day, it describes a greater calamity than that of Egypt; for it says that there never had been any like it before; and hence the language of Ex. 10:14, is plainly contradicted.
2. The expression, “the day of the Lord,” can refer to nothing else but the great day so often referred to in other scriptures. A reference to this day introduces the “great people and strong” described in the verses before us. And the description closes, verse 11, with a reference to the same day. It is most reasonable to conclude that all that intervenes refers to the same time, and the agencies God then makes use of to accomplish his will. It is hardly conceivable that between these plain references to the day of the Lord, Joel should throw in a long description of locusts which in this case devastated Judea centuries ago.
3. The language seems to be entirely too strong for simply a description of the local ravages of a swarm of locusts; especially such expressions as the earth quaking before them, the heavens trembling, and the sun and moon and stars withdrawing their shining.
But the Lord has an army which will be called forth in martial array in the great day of the Lord, to whom the language will apply, and of whose movements and operations the words of the prophet are a striking description; an army that will accomplish the work here specified, and the results of whose presence it is beyond the power of language adequately to portray.
1. The Lord's army. “A great people and a strong,” says Joel. Daniel and John in giving the number of this army, which we believe to be none other than the angels of God, say, “Ten thousand times ten thousand [that is one hundred millions] and thousands of thousands.” Dan. 7:10; Rev. 5:11.
2. Will these angels accompany the Lord when he appears in the clouds of heaven? “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him.” Matt. 25:31.
3. “A fire devoureth before them.” “The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven, with his mighty angels, in flaming fire.” 2 Thess. 1:7, 8.
4. “The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses.” “And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen white and clean.” Rev. 19:14. The context shows this to be at the second coming of Christ, and that this is a figure of the angelic hosts which then attend him.
5. “Like the noise of chariots.” The Lord “shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple [Rev. 16:17], a voice of the Lord that rendereth recompense to his enemies.” Isa. 66:5, 6. “A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the Lord.” Jer. 25:31. The context shows that this takes place in the day of the Lord.
6. “All faces shall gather blackness.” Paleness is the sign of fear and alarm; blackness, of despair. There is no time when “all faces” will gather blackness except in that fearful hour when they realize that probation is no more; that the harvest is past, and the summer is ended, and they are not saved.
7. Verse 7, 8, and 9, reveal some of the characteristics of these heavenly agents whom the Lord at this time commissions to execute his will. No wall can obstruct their march; no bolts nor keys can bar their entrance; their ranks cannot be broken; the sword cannot hurt them; the most secret chamber cannot conceal from them the objects of God's displeasure. Then shall the wicked realize that they are in the hands of executioners, against whom all human safeguard and all human weapons are utterly powerless.
8. Before them the earth quakes, and the sun, moon, and stars withdraw their shining. Joel 3:12–15 shows that this is in the day of the Lord; when multitudes are in the valley of decision, when the heathen are gathered to be judged, and the sickle is put in for the final harvest.
9. The Lord utters his voice before his army. The last manifestation the Lord gives to the wicked of his majesty and power, is to utter his voice from heaven just before the appearing of Christ. See Jer. 25:30; Joel 3:16; Heb. 12:26; Rev. 16:17.
10. “The day of the Lord is great and very terrible and who can abide it?” Similar language is uttered by the wicked in that day. They exclaim, “The great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?” Rev. 6:17. None will be able to stand but such as are then clothed in the panoply of truth, and who, while mercy was offered, made the Lord their friend. And they will not only be able to stand, but to them that day will be the rising of the sun of righteousness and the morning of everlasting joy. U. S.
The Second Coming of Christ.
By V. S.
HOW WILL IT AFFECT THE RIGHTEOUS?
In response to the cry which was heard out of the land of Seir, “Watchman, what of the night?” the watchman responded, “The morning cometh and also the night.” Isa. 21:12.
There are two very different classes of persons in the world, and there are two very different conditions before them into which they will respectively enter. Before one class there is a dark and interminable night; before the other a glorious and unending day. These classes are the righteous and the wicked; and the event that constitutes the dividing line between their present and their future, is the second coming of Christ.
Before the wicked, unless they shall repent, there lies a state of such despair, remorse, and punishment, that, compared with their present state, it is as night compared with day; but before the righteous there lies a state of such surpassing happiness and glory that, compared with their present state, it is as day compared with night. This present state which the righteous and wicked both share alike, in which the righteous, aside from their heavenly hope, have no less of happiness, and no more of sorrow, than the wicked, is to the wicked a period of joyous day preceding a dismal night, their condition here is so much more favorable than what it will be hereafter; but to the righteous it is a period of gloomy night preceding a glorious day, their condition here is so infinitely below what it will be in the paradise of God.
We noticed, last week, how the coming of Christ will affect the cases of the wicked. It leaves them no hope. It is the end of all their pleasures, their ambition, their wealth, their power. It turns their laughter into mourning. It fills their cup of joy with the gall of bitterness. And amid the convulsions in which our world shall go back to its original chaos, they shall be swept from the face of the earth.
Now let the reader imagine conditions which are infinitely the opposite of all these, and he will have some idea of what is given to the righteous at this time. To them it is the consummation of their blessed hope. Titus 2:13. It introduces them to that condition in which there are pleasures for evermore. Ps. 16:11. It is the fulfillment and satisfaction of their highest ambition. Phil. 3:12-14. It puts them in possession of that wealth which the Lord promised when he said, “All things are yours.” 1 Cor. 3:21. It gives them the most glorious power a man can covet; for they triumph over death. 1 Cor. 15:57. It turns their mourning into laughter and shout and song. Luke 6:21. It takes their cup, and extracting every trace of bitterness, it fills it to the brim and runs it over, with exuberance of joy. Isa. 35:10. And amid the destruction of all things below, borne upward on the wings of those celestial beings revealed to us as the “morning stars,” and “the sons of God,” Job 28:7, they will rise to be forever with the Lord. Matt. 24:31; 1 Thess. 4:17.
Sinner, we do not ask you which company you will wish to be with then. There is no question about that. We know well enough how it will be. But the decision must be made before that time; and the fearful probability is that you will put it off too long. We therefore ask you to decide now, and act accordingly.
1. The coming of Christ is to the righteous the hope of salvation. While the wicked are calling to the rocks and mountains to fall on them and hide them from the presence of Christ, the righteous gladly exclaim, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us; this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” Isa. 25:9.
2. The coming of the Lord is the hope of the righteous dead; for it brings the resurrection. The resurrection is sometimes spoken of aside from its connection with the coming of Christ, and the promise of that event is ample and sure; but there are other scriptures which show the inseparable connection between these two events, and that the resurrection cannot take place without the coming of Christ. See John 5:28, 29; 1 Thess. 4:16; 1 Cor. 15:52.
3. The coming of Christ brings the Christian’s reward. Behold, I come quickly, he says, and my reward is with me to give every man as his work shall be. Again the Lord, instructing his disciples in regard to their recompense for good deeds done to the poor, said: “And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee; for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just. Luke 14:14. No other time of reward is given in the Scriptures, except at the coming of Christ, and the resurrection of the just.
4. The coming of Christ brings the overcomer’s crown. The great apostle to the Gentiles thus speaks: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous Judge shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” 2 Tim. 4:7, 8. The “day” of which he speaks is the day of Christ’s appearing, and the crown is for all such as love that event.
5. The coming of the Lord ends the Christian’s exile, terminates his pilgrimage, and brings him home to the many mansions of the Father’s house. John 14:2, 3; Heb. 11:13-16; Rev. 22:14.
6. It is by this means that the absent members of Christ’s body are gathered to their living Head, and brought to enjoy his personal presence forever. When the disciples were filled with sorrow at the thought that their Master was soon to leave them, he bade them not to be troubled; for, said he, “I will come again, and receive you to myself, that [in order that] where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:1-3. Paul, after telling the Thessalonians that the righteous would be caught up to meet the Lord in the air at his second appearing, says, “And so [in this manner, or by this means] shall we ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thess. 4:17. And John says, “It doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” 1 John 3:2.
Since, then, the Christian’s hope is thus all laid up in the coming of the Lord, is it any wonder that it should be loved and longed for by all his people? Their hearts being filled with love for him, there is no enmity but union between them. Feeling that he is their friend, they rejoice in the prospect of soon entering into his presence.
All the difference between the righteous and the wicked is summed up in this one sentence—Christ an enemy, and Christ a friend. The one class have followed the leadings of the carnal mind, and have continued their opposition to him, and their alienation from him. The other have yielded to his holy requirements and have found his forgiveness and favor. So the thought of his coming fills the wicked with alarm, but the righteous with joy. And the manifestations of the day of his appearing, which to the righteous will fill the whole heaven with untold splendors, will be to the wicked sharp arrows of indignation and wrath; and the brightness of his coming, to the righteous a glad vision of “the King in his beauty,” Isa. 33:17, will be to the wicked a “consuming fire.” Heb. 12:29.
Let us share in the lot of the righteous; for though they may be in this life poor, humble, unhonored, and unknown, the portion of their inheritance hereafter is glory and blessedness forever. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Matt. 13:43.
V. S.
Editorial Correspondence.
By John Nevins Andrews
MISSION TO PRUSSIA.
Our meeting at Chaux-de-Fonds closed on first-day evening about dark, and we returned immediately to Neuchatel. The way was now open to visit the Sabbath-keepers in Prussia, and I thought that the next train for the north should see us on the way. Before sleeping that night our preparations for the journey were completed, and in the earliest light of the morning we were on our way.
Our course for the entire journey has been almost directly north. The first day we were in the valley of the river Aar, a branch of the Rhine, which receives the water of lake Neuchatel. On our left hand were the Jura mountains; on our right were high hills which hid the Alps from our view. The valley of the Aar is several miles in breadth, very level, and evidently very fertile, and almost wholly without fences, the division of the lands between the different owners being indicated by stone posts. In this valley there is little appearance of winter, but you can see on the sides of the mountains where winter commences. I noticed that the alders in the valley were in full blossom.
When we reached Olten we left the valley of the Aar and through a tunnel nearly two miles in length, we passed under the mountain into the canton which the French call Bale Campagne, and the Germans, Baselland. When this tunnel was excavated an accident by fire caused the suffocation of sixty-two persons. We remained at Buckten in this canton till noon of the next day in order to give Bro. E. time to arrange his affairs for the mission to Prussia. Then we started on our way again; but at Basel we spent an hour in conferring with a printer who has done some work heretofore for Bro. E. This printer understands French and German and Italian. His wife understands also the English language. These persons have some interest in the Advent faith, and seem to fear God. We left Basel about 7:30 P. M. for Strasbourg, which place we reached about midnight. We wandered some time in its dark, narrow, crooked streets before we could find a hotel.
On leaving the cars at night we found ourselves each time much chilled, and of course at the hotels had to take a cold room, and beds which seemed to be a little damp. But we have experienced no lasting injury. Everywhere in Europe the covering of the beds is simply a feather bed. In America where the feather bed is to lie on and not under, I have found it easy to dispose of the article; but in Europe where it is the covering to protect one from the cold there is only one thing to do, and that is to accept the situation.
The train which we wished to take from Strasbourg did not leave till one in the afternoon. This gave us an opportunity to see something of the city. It is situated a little way from the Rhine, on its west side, and though a very strongly fortified town, it is in a country that is very flat. It is surrounded by walls of stone some thirty feet in height, and outside this is a deep ditch filled with water. This stone wall is backed by a very heavy bank of earth and under this bank of earth and within the wall itself are places for the soldiers who defend the city. But outside the regular walls of the city are walls and earthworks and ditches covering the fields for a long distance from the city. Here we saw many Prussian soldiers. In fact every Prussian city through which we have come has many soldiers drilling all the time. These cities seem like our northern cities during the great rebellion.
When a child I read of the wonderful clock in the cathedral of Strasbourg. I will not speak of its wonders in general, but only of what we saw during the half hour that we observed it. At noon the figure of death walks out in front of the dial and strikes the hour. Then a door opens and the twelve apostles in a stately procession with Peter at the head and John next walk out and pass in front of Christ. Each apostle in passing the Saviour turns and bows to him in a reverent manner, and the Saviour lifts his hands as in the act of blessing them. But what made a deeper impression upon my mind than anything of this was the solemn reminder of Peter’s denial of Christ. At the left hand of the clock and somewhat higher than the place of the apostles is perched a cock. The appearance of Peter is the signal for this cock to flap his wings, lift his head, and curve his neck, and crow with a loud, shrill voice; all of which was a very perfect imitation of nature. This was done three times while the procession of the apostles walked slowly in front of Christ. There was a large crowd of the people of Strasbourg to witness this sight, which shows that though of every-day occurrence it does not lose its interest to them.
The country from Basel where we leave Switzerland to Strasbourg is very level, and it continues to be such all the way to Mainz. It is principally devoted to the raising of hops and to vineyards. At a considerable distance to the west, as we came through the territory conquered by the Prussians from the French, we could see the Vosges mountains which constitute the new frontier between France and Germany, and in the passes of which mountains the Prussians are building a chain of fortresses which they hope will render a French invasion impossible.
About 6 o’clock on Wednesday evening we passed through the town of Worms where Luther so courageously met the emperor of Germany and the dignitaries of the church of Rome. It was too dark to see the town, and we had only a moment to spend; but I stepped out of the car to get at least a glimpse of the town rendered so memorable by the firmness and moral heroism of Martin Luther.
We remained at Mainz for the night, and the following day came down the left bank of the Rhine to Cologne, and thence to this place. Between Mainz and Cologne, the Rhine passes through the mountains, and the scenery is very grand. On the cliffs may be seen the ruined castles of the old robbers who called themselves great lords. Occasionally also may be seen castles not yet ruined, but which, no doubt, deserve to be leveled with the dust. At Cologne, we crossed the Rhine, and in about two hours we reached Elberfeld, our place of destination, a city of about 70,000 inhabitants. I have spoken, perhaps, too largely of matters of little consequence. I will now speak of things in which I feel a deeper interest.
Sometime since, a beggar called at the house in Buckten, Switzerland, where Bro. Ertzenberger has made his home. This man told Bro. E. that there were Sabbath-keepers in Prussia, and gave him their address. Bro. E. opened a correspondence with them, and found that the beggar had told the truth. Bro. E. gave me information concerning this people, and from that day forward I have labored earnestly to make preparation for this mission. The very hour there was evidence that our way was prepared of the Lord, we set out. We suffered plenty of discomfort in coming; but we could not complain, for we felt the angel of God to be present all the way. On arriving here, we find forty-six adult Sabbath-keepers scattered over a territory some fifty miles across. We have now spent one Sabbath with them, and have had a very interesting meeting. They speak a very pure German, but know neither French nor English. Of course, Bro. E. is at home in this language, and I find him an excellent interpreter. I spoke to them Sabbath forenoon from 2 Pet. 3, and had much help from the Spirit of God. The words seemed to take deep hold upon them. In the afternoon, we each gave them an account of the work of God in America. Only a short time since, they had no knowledge that there were any Christians in the world observing the seventh day except themselves. They thought indeed that there must be others, but they knew of none. As we gave them an account of the Sabbath-keepers of America, and of those of other countries of which we have knowledge, they were made to rejoice, and the tears stood in many eyes.
This work seems to have originated with Bro. J. H. Linderman. He belonged in early life to the national church, as indeed almost every one does in this country who is not a Catholic. But in 1842 he was converted to God, though at that time ignorant of the truth only as he learned it imperfectly from the national church. But his mind now turned to the Bible as the great fountain of truth. In 1850 he became satisfied that infant baptism, the universal custom of the national church, was not of God, and that the burial of penitent believers in the watery grave is the only scriptural baptism. Now he was in trouble; for there were no Baptists in this part of the world. After a considerable time, however, he was able to find a suitable administrator, and he was baptized. In the course of years, the Baptists became comparatively numerous. But as Bro. L. continued to study the Scriptures, he learned that the Bible Sabbath had been lost as well as Bible baptism. So it came to pass that in 1860 he began to hallow the Sabbath of the Lord. And now many of his dear Baptist brethren, with whom he had suffered much, became wholly alienated from him. Three years he observed the Sabbath all alone. Since that time, God has blessed his labors in leading this body of Christians to the Sabbath. He is now seventy years of age.
I will now speak of this people as far as my observation and inquiry have extended. They are believers in the near coming of Christ. They have banished tobacco from their ranks. Their dress is plain, but it is very neat and in good taste, and they are very cleanly in their habits. They are a sensible, substantial-looking class of people, and I think they truly fear God. I do not discover that they hold any serious errors, or that they are fanatical in their worship. Probably they attach undue importance to some minor or indifferent points. When we first came, though they received us very cordially, it was plain that they were somewhat afraid of us. Nor did this fear very much abate till our Sabbath meeting. It happened to be the time of general meeting with them, so that the larger part of their company was present. They requested us to manage the meeting in our own way. We sought the help of God, and we had it, I am very certain. When our meeting closed, their fears were gone, and they were not slow to say so. We showed them our credentials from America and from Switzerland, but they said they had no further occasion for them.
I have come here to aid Bro. Ertzenberger in commencing the work in Prussia. We shall visit these Sabbath-keepers at their own homes, in the77different towns where they reside, and shall have many meetings with them, and with the people who may be willing to hear. Probably I shall not remain more than two weeks; but this will be determined by providential circumstances. But I think here is a very excellent opening for labor before Bro. Ertzenberger. God is greatly blessing him, and he is a free man in the Lord. But nothing will be accomplished here without faithful, painstaking labor, and this must be under the direction and with the help of the Holy Spirit. Who is sufficient for these things? Our brethren will not forget to pray for us. God is our helper, and it is in answer to prayer that his blessing is given.
On returning to Switzerland, we shall print at Neuchatel several of the tracts that have been prepared for translation into foreign languages. We have means raised to pay for this work, and have ascertained that at present we can have the best terms at N. I think hereafter we may be able to do better at Basel with the printer of whom I have spoken. We shall contract no debts. We mean to keep our funds good by paying for the tracts as we circulate them. It is proper, perhaps, that I should say that our means are limited. The brethren cheerfully raised 300 francs to send us on this mission to Prussia. And in coming here, we practiced the most rigid economy in the matter of expense.
Perhaps the brethren in America may think it proper to replace this sum in the Swiss treasury. I speak the more freely as I have not hesitated to use my own means to help forward the work, in addition to that placed in my hands by the General Conference Committee.
The few Sabbath-keepers in Italy must soon have help. I think there are seventh-day Christians in the Austrian empire, especially in Hungary. Bro. Jones of London told me that he had heard there were Sabbath-keepers in Holland. Now I wish to advertise in one of the best papers in each of these countries; also to do the same in Russia. I have felt that I would not invite the aid of others till I had done all that my own means would enable me to do. I have now come to this point, and therefore now submit the work to the judgment of those in America that God has called to fill the places of chief responsibility in the cause. I shall do nothing in Europe without laying all open before the brethren in America. Nor shall I act here without the knowledge and approval of our experienced brethren in Switzerland. I hope to stand in the counsel of God, and neither to step ahead of the providence of God, nor yet to fall behind. What it is possible to do, I mean to try hard to accomplish. Hitherto the Lord has helped us. The brethren in Prussia send greeting to the Sabbath-keepers in America.
