Earlier text: EditorialThe Twenty-three Hundred Days
By Elder Uriah Smith
MAN'S SIN AND SAVIOUR. NO. 7.
The Twenty-three Hundred Days.
To this question, then, we now turn our attention. Where do the twenty-three hundred days, the termination of which marks the cleansing of the sanctuary, begin and end? The statement concerning the twenty-three hundred days is made in connection with a prophecy of paramount interest to the people of God. One angel was heard by Daniel addressing another, and asking him this important question: "How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden underfoot? And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." The whole prophecy, as an examination of the chapter will show, spans the duration of three great kingdoms, Medo-Persia, Grecia, and Rome, which are explained in the latter part of the chapter; but nothing further is there said in regard to that important period of time, the twenty-three hundred days. In chapter nine, however, the subject is again taken up. The same angel, Gabriel, appears, to give Daniel an understanding of what he did not understand at the close of chapter eight. He refers him back to the vision at the beginning (the vision of chapter eight), taking up the time and devoting himself to that, as recorded in verses 20-27. In now causing Daniel to understand the vision, Gabriel was but carrying out the instruction he had received, as recorded in chapter 8:16. He tells him that seventy weeks are cut off from the twenty-three hundred days, the word "determined," in verse 24, being from a word which means "cut off." Then the angel tells him where the seventy weeks were to begin: "Know therefore and understand," he says (verse 25), "that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease," etc. Here we have the seventy weeks (seven weeks and threescore and two weeks and one week) subdivided to mark the separate events by which the application of the prophecy can be determined without danger of mistake. The seventy weeks are, therefore, the first part of the twenty-three hundred days; for the angel came to explain the days; and the first thing to do in explaining the period is to tell where it begins. Where the seventy weeks begin, therefore, the twenty-three hundred days begin,—from the going forth of a commandment or decree to restore and to build Jerusalem. The date of this vision was B.C. 538. The Jews were captives in Babylon, the dominion of which had just passed over to the Medes and Persians; for it was in the first year of Darius that this vision was given. Dan. 9:1. Two years afterward, in the year 536 B.C., the decree of Cyrus was issued (Ezra 1:1-4) for as many of the Jews as were so disposed to go up to Jerusalem and build the temple of the Lord, thus beginning a series of movements which finally resulted in the full reestablishment of the Jewish nation in their own land. The prophecy says "to restore" as well as "to build;" and that can mean nothing less than the full reestablishment of the religion, polity, and policy of that people as a nation. The decree of Cyrus, which provided only for the building of the temple, was too limited to fulfill the prophecy. The Jews returned in large numbers, and began to build the temple, but, being hindered in their work by their adversaries (Ezra 4:7, 21), the decree of Cyrus was reaffirmed by a subsequent king named Darius (Ezra 6:1-12), B.C. 519; but this, like that of Cyrus, providing only for the building of the temple, not for the restoring of the nation, was too limited to meet the specifications of the prophecy. At length, in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes Longimanus, a decree was issued to Ezra the priest, as recorded in Ezra 7, as broad and ample as could be given without granting the nation entire independence. Here was the command in full to restore and build Jerusalem; and the seventy weeks could not begin until this point was reached; but from this point they must date; for here the specifications of the prophecy were fully met. The question now is, then, to determine in what year the seventh year of Artaxerxes Longimanus fell; and this, fortunately, can be clearly ascertained, as it is one of the best established dates in all history. It was B.C. 457. See Hales, Prideaux, Bliss, etc. Before looking at the intermediate dates, let it be noticed that the time we are now considering is symbolical, or what is called "prophetic" time; and when time is used symbolically in the Scriptures, a short period is taken to represent a longer one, the rule given being this, that a day stands for a year. Num. 14:34; Eze. 4:6. Aside from the eminent authorities who have adopted this method of the application of time, which is called "the year day principle," the events of the prophecy itself demonstrate that this is the right method of application; for the prophecy has been fulfilled on this very scale. Thus, we have in the prophecy forty-nine years allotted to the building of the wall, or the restoration of the city in its material aspects. Dating this period from 457 B.C., seven weeks allotted to the building of the wall, or forty-nine days, that is, forty-nine years, would reach to 408 B.C.; and in that very year (the fifteenth of Darius Nothus) the last act of reformation by Nehemiah completed the reestablishment of the Jewish society in Jerusalem. (See "Prideaux Connexion.") Then there were to be sixty-two weeks, that is, 434 years, more to the Messiah the Prince. The word "Messiah" means the "anointed one;" and the expression refers to Christ, and applies to him when he was anointed with the Holy Ghost and with power to preach the gospel. This took place at his baptism. Acts 10:37, 38; Luke 4:18. This period would terminate in A.D. 27, and in that very year Christ was baptized and entered upon his ministry (Mark 1:10, margin) and prefaced his message with the solemn declaration, "The time is fulfilled." Verses 14, 15. The statement of Luke 3:1 further confirms this date for the beginning of Christ's ministry. Christ was six months younger than John. Luke 1:36. They both, of course, entered upon their ministry at the age fixed by the law of the Jewish priesthood, that is, thirty years; and it is expressly declared of Christ that he "began to be about thirty years of age" when he began to preach. Luke 3:23. John would commence his work six months before Christ, and Luke tells us when John began his work. It was in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar. Luke 3:1. This date is doubtless to be reckoned from the time when Tiberius was associated with his stepfather, Augustus, on the throne of the Roman empire, which was in August A.D. 12. This would bring the close of Tiberius' fifteenth year in August A.D. 27. John must have therefore begun his ministry as early as the spring of that year, which brings the beginning of Christ's ministry, of course, six months later, in the autumn of the same year. The ministry of Christ was three years and a half in length, as is indicated by John's record of the four passovers which he attended (and he has presumably mentioned them all), in the following passages: John 2:13;101 5:1; 6:4; 13:1. At the last of these passovers Christ was crucified; and this was in the spring, the time to which the passover was fixed. But, according to the prophecy, he (Christ) was to cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease in the midst, or middle, of this week. Dan. 9:27. The terms "sacrifice and oblation" doubtless refer to the typical offerings and services of the Jewish system; and these Christ did cause effectually to cease, by dying as their antitype on the cross. The crucifixion, therefore, was the middle of the last week of the seventy, three years and a half from the beginning of that last week. But we have seen that the last or seventieth week began in A.D. 27, and now we learn that it must have been in the autumn, inasmuch as the middle of the week was in the spring. From the autumn of A.D. 27 we therefore could forward six months, which would bring us to the spring of A.D. 28, when Christ attended his first passover. His second passover would be in the spring of 29, his third in the spring of 30, and his fourth and last in the spring of 31, when he was crucified, just three years and a half from the autumn of A.D. 27, when he was baptized and entered upon his ministry. The year A.D. 31, as the year of the crucifixion, has in its favor almost the whole weight of chronological authority. See Dr. Hale's Chronology, vol. 1, pages 69, 70; vol. 3, page 230. Thus we find, so far, the utmost harmony and the most satisfactory historical support for the application of the prophecy. Now to find the close of the 70 weeks we have only to go forward three and a half years (the last half of the week) from the crucifixion, in the spring of 31. We find ourselves by this calculation in the autumn of A.D. 34, as the termination of that period which was cut off for the Jewish people. And here we should look for what the prophecy indicates to take place, namely, that that people would no longer be considered the separate and peculiar people of God, but that his work would then extend to all nations. And we find events strikingly in harmony with this view. In the martyrdom of Stephen in that very year the Jewish people, in the deliberate action of the Sanhedrim which condemned him, may be said to have formally and finally rejected the gospel of Christ. This was the first of a series of events which led to the conversion of Paul the following year, the great apostle to the Gentiles. And a little later the apostles declared in a formal and deliberate manner that since the Jews put away from themselves the word of God, and judged themselves unworthy of everlasting life, they would turn to the Gentiles. Acts 13:46. But one more conclusion remains to be drawn respecting the 2,300 days; but it is one of tremendous import, and should thrill with interest every heart. It is simply this: The first 490 years of the 2,300 having ended in the autumn of A.D. 34, we inquire how many years remain to complete the whole period; 490 from 2,300 leaves 1,810, and 1,810 added to A.D. 34, autumn, where the 490 ended, brings us to the autumn of A.D. 1844. There the great period, in our own generation, reached its termination; and there the prophecy said that the sanctuary should be cleansed. What sanctuary is referred to we now know; for the days have ended far down in the gospel dispensation, and the term must therefore refer to the sanctuary of this dispensation, which is the sanctuary in heaven. And what its cleansing is we have also seen. It is the work of atonement, the closing up of Christ's mediation in behalf of the world. There the books are being examined and the investigation is going forward, beginning, of course, with the first generation, and to continue until it reaches the generation of the living, with the judgment of whom the work of Christ for the world will close. In so momentous a period in the world's history have we been living for the last forty-eight years. Alas! how few know it; and fewer still realize it. FALSE PROPHETS.
By James White
"And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many." Matt. 24:11. In the common use of the word, a prophet is one that foretells; but the word sometimes means simply a teacher. Prophets of God declare the future, being instructed by good angels and the Spirit of God. False prophets make predictions by the agency of wicked spirits and the power of Satan. And while this is true of those who are under the direct inspiration of superior beings, good or evil, consecrated teachers of divine truth may be regarded as God's prophets; and teachers of error may properly be called false prophets. True and false prophets may be known. The prophets of God are teachers of purity, reprovers of sin, and faithful in warning the people of coming dangers. The duties of those whom God calls to speak in his great name are clearly expressed by the sacred writers. We here quote from three of them:— "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." Isa. 58:1. "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." Joel 2:1. "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine." 2 Tim. 4:1, 2. False prophets do not reprove the people for their sins, and do not warn them of coming danger; but they proclaim peace to the sinner. Their teachings lead from God and his word, and are such as please the unconverted mind. The inspired writers have also spoken definitely of the testimony and work of false prophets. We here give several for example:— "And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies; they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord God. Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar." Eze. 13:9, 10. "For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace." Jer. 6:13, 14. "Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place. Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name; I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them." Jer. 14:13, 14. After stating the duty of the faithful servant of God to preach the word, to reprove, to rebuke, and exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine, the apostle says: "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2 Tim. 4:3, 4. That time has now fully come. The people choose pleasing fables, which do not disturb them in their sins, rather than the reproving, searching declarations of the word of God. They love to be deceived by the teachings of false prophets, and "say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits." Isa. 30:10. "Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so; and what will ye do in the end thereof?" Jer. 5:29-31. The ears of the people are filled with the pleasing fables of the world's conversion, a good time coming, and that we are just entering the golden age. The threatenings of God's word on the proud, the haughty, the vain, the rich, the sinners in Zion, and those out of Zion, are kept back by the false teachers of these times. Many of them even dare to teach that the moral code of the ten commandments is abrogated. And as the result of such a course, and of such teaching, we see in the professed church of Jesus Christ that iniquity abounds.—Elder James White. WHAT IS THE MATTER?
By G. D. Ballou
HAVE you not frequently noticed when in society if the name of God or Christ were mentioned in a sincere, reverential manner, even sometimes in professedly Christian society, what a hush came over the conversation and over the feelings, almost if not quite a sense of shame? It seemed so untimely and out of place to introduce such thoughts. And what a relief came as soon as someone started off glibly on some other theme. But how does it affect society in general to hear a man take the name of God in vain? Does any hush come over the hearts of the hearers, any sense of shame? Is the one who uttered the oath made ashamed without a reproof?—No; and often not even by one. Again, when the pious heathen falls down and worships his god of wood or stone in the market place, and thousands of his fellow heathen are crowding past, does any sense of shame intrude on his feelings of devotion? Are any of his friends shocked at his untimely and out-of-place conduct?—Ah, no! And what does all this mean?—Simply this, that the devil has the control of human thought and sentiment, and is working with all his power to crush out of the hearts of men all sense of reverence and worship for the true God—to make them ashamed to speak or even think of God or his works. But he makes men bold to blaspheme and practice idolatry. And what is your duty in view of this?—"Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." "In all thy ways acknowledge God, and he shall direct thy paths." THE WAY TO CHRIST.
By Ellen G. White
It is impossible for man to save himself. He may deceive himself in regard to this matter, but he cannot save himself. Christ's righteousness alone can avail for his salvation, and this is the gift of God. This is the wedding garment in which you may appear as a welcome guest at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Let faith take hold of Christ without delay, and you will be a new creature in Jesus, a light to the world. Christ is called "the Lord our righteousness," and through faith each one should say, "The Lord my righteousness." When faith lays hold upon this gift of God, the praise of God will be upon our lips, and we shall be able to say to others, "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world." We shall then be able to tell the lost concerning the plan of salvation,—that while the world was lying under the curse of sin, the Lord presented terms of mercy to the fallen and hopeless sinner, and revealed the value and meaning of his grace. Grace is unmerited favor. The angels, who know nothing of sin, do not understand what it is to have grace exercised toward them; but our sinfulness calls for the exercise of grace from a merciful God. It was grace that sent our Saviour to seek us as wanderers and bring us back to the fold. Have you a sense of want in your soul? Do you hunger and thirst after righteousness? Then this is an evidence that Christ has wrought upon your heart, and created this sense of need, in order that he may be sought after to do those things for you through the endowment of his Holy Spirit which it is impossible for you to do for yourself. The Lord specifies no conditions except that you hunger for his mercy, desiring his counsel, and long for his love. "Ask!" The asking makes it manifest that you realize your necessity, and if you ask in faith, you will receive. The Lord has pledged his word, and it cannot fail. That you feel and know that you are a sinner is sufficient argument in asking for his mercy and compassion. The condition upon which you may come to God is not that you shall be holy, but that you shall ask God to cleanse you from all sin and purify you from all iniquity. Then why wait longer? Why not take God at his word, and say:— Here, Lord, I give myself to thee,
'Tis all that I can do? If Satan comes to cast his shadow between you and God, accusing you of sin, tempting you to distrust God and doubt his mercy, say: "I cannot allow my weakness to come between me and God; for he is my strength. My sins, which are many, are laid upon Jesus, my divine Substitute and Sacrifice. "Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to thy cross I cling." No man can look within himself and find anything in his character that will recommend him to God, or make his acceptance sure. It is only through Jesus, whom the Father gave for the life of the world, that the sinner may find access to God. Jesus alone is our Redeemer, our Advocate and Mediator; in him is our only hope for pardon, peace, and righteousness. It is by virtue of the blood of Christ that the sin-stricken soul can be restored to soundness. Christ is the fragrance, the holy incense which makes your petition acceptable to the Father. Then can you not say:— Just as I am, without one plea,
But that thy blood was shed for me,
And that thou bid'st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come. Coming to Christ does not require severe mental effort and agony; it is simply accepting the terms of salvation that God has made plain in his word. The blessing is free to all. The invitation is, "Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do you spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness." Then come, and seek, and find. The reservoir of power is open, is full and free. Come with humble hearts, not thinking that you must do some good work to merit the favor of God, or that you must make yourself better before you can come to Christ. You are powerless to do good, and cannot better your condition. Apart from Christ we have no merit, no righteousness. Our sinfulness, our weakness, our human imperfection make it impossible that we should appear before God unless we are clothed in Christ's spotless righteousness. We are to be found in him not having our own righteousness, but the righteousness which is in Christ. Then in the name that is above every name, the only name, given among men whereby men can be saved, claim the promise of God, saying, "Lord, forgive my sin; I put my hands into thy hand for help, and I must have it, or perish. I now believe." The Saviour says to the repenting sinner, "No man cometh unto the Father but by me, and him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out." "I am thy salvation." When you respond to the drawing of Christ, and join yourself to him, you manifest saving faith. To talk of religious things in a casual way, to pray for spiritual blessings without real soul hunger and living faith, avails little. The wondering crowd that pressed close about Jesus realized no accession of vital power from the contact. But when the poor, suffering woman, who for twelve years had been an invalid, in her great need put forth her hand and touched the hem of his garment, she felt the healing virtue. Hers was the touch of faith, and Christ recognized that touch. He knew that virtue had gone out from him, and turning about in the throng, he asked, "Who touched me?" Surprised at such a question, the disciples answered, "Master, the multitude throng thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me; for I perceive that virtue has gone out of me. And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately; and he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace." The faith which avails to bring us in vital contact with Christ expresses on our part supreme preference, perfect reliance, entire consecration. This faith works by love and purifies the soul. It works in the life of the follower of Christ true obedience to God's commandments; for love to God and love to man will be the result of vital connection with Christ. "If any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Jesus says, "I am the vine, ye are the branches." Can we conceive of a more intimate relation than this implies? The fibers of the branch are identical with those of the vine. The communication of life, strength, and nourishment from the trunk to the branches is unobstructed and constant. The root sends its nourishment through the branches. Such is the believer's relation to Christ, if he abides in Christ and draws his nourishment from him. But this spiritual relation between Christ and the soul can be established only through the exercise of personal faith. "Without faith it is impossible to please him;" for it is faith that connects us with the power of heaven, and brings us strength for coping with the powers of darkness. "This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." Faith familiarizes the soul with the existence and presence of God, and, living with an eye single to the glory of God, more and more we discern the beauty of his character, the excellence of his grace. Our souls become strong in spiritual power; for we are breathing the atmosphere of heaven, and realizing that God is at our right hand, that we shall not be moved. We are rising above the world, beholding him who is the chief among ten thousand, the one altogether lovely, and by beholding we are to become changed into his image. SALVATION IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST.
By Elder S. N. Haskell
THROUGHOUT the ceaseless ages of eternity the life and work of Christ will be an incomprehensible mystery, for “without controversy great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” 1 Tim. 3:16. “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and ye are complete in him.” Col. 2:9, 10. There was not an act in Christ’s life, nor a word that he spoke, but what that act and that word were a revelation of God the Father, and therefore they contained salvation. The apostle speaks of God commending his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us; and then he makes a statement,103 which we believe because he says so, and the mind grasps the fact without comprehending how it can be: “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” See Rom. 5:6-10. The question may be asked, How much of the life of Christ contains salvation? Was there salvation in his infancy, before he could have knowledge of good and evil? Was there salvation when he went to and from the place of labor carrying the tools for his father, Joseph? Was there salvation in his laboring as a carpenter? or was it simply when he entered upon his ministry? If there was no salvation in the infancy of Christ, how can infants be saved? Is there salvation in the parents? Was it not upon this point that the Jews failed to believe in Christ? They said, “This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world,” but they could not believe that he was “the bread which came down from heaven;” and they reasoned, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?” John 6:14, 41, 42. Who will dare to draw the line and say that salvation began at a particular time in his life, or that there were certain acts in his life or particular words which he spoke that did not contain salvation? Let those who get their authority from God and can comprehend the mystery of godliness draw the line. It was upon this point the Jews stumbled. They saw the humanity, but not the divinity. Hear Christ’s words to the Pharisees: “Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” John 14:10. Again, “If any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not; for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him; the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.” John 12:47-49. And again: “If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works; that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.” John 10:37, 38. Again, “I have greater witness than that of John; for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me. And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me.” John 5:36, 37. As the Saviour entered upon his public ministry, he revealed himself as the Son of God; but from his birth he was the same Son of God as when he entered upon his ministry. His life was practical, and from his life are sent forth rays of light which lighten every man that comes into the world. “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.” “That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that comes into the world.” John 1:4, 9. To receive and work out these rays of light is salvation. “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” Phil. 2:12, 13. This life covered every period, from his first inception in humanity until he expired on the cross; and thus the entire period of humanity is covered by the salvation of the life of Christ. To receive Christ by faith is but to open the heart to the reception of all the character of our Lord and Master; and Christ’s righteousness covers the entire period. When David describes himself in his sins, he says, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Ps. 51:5. Again of the wicked he speaks, “Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the Lord; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.” Ps. 109:14. This is as the unrepentant sinner appears before God; but when forgiven, entirely different expressions are used: “My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there were none of them. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with thee.” Ps. 139:15-18. Again: “But thou art he that took me out of the womb; thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breast. I was cast upon thee from the womb; thou art my God from my mother’s belly.” Ps. 22:9, 10. Who can then say that there is one single act or word in the entire life of Christ but that contains salvation; for it is his righteousness by faith that is imputed to the sinner. “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness; that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Rom. 3:25, 26. Truly salvation is in the life of Christ, and by its virtue all men are enlightened. This enlightenment is a conviction of right and wrong; “for when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves; which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another.” Rom. 2:14, 15. This conviction of right and wrong, however perverted the acts themselves may be, exists in the heart of every person that lives, from the most benighted Hottentot to the most enlightened Christian; and though their works oftentimes are in direct opposition to God’s law, yet when faithful to the inner voice which convicts them of sin, the righteousness of Christ makes them acceptable in the sight of God; for “God is my strength and power; and he maketh my way perfect.” 2 Sam. 22:33. Truly there is no righteousness like Christ’s righteousness; there is no Saviour like Jesus Christ, the Son of God, “who forgiveth all our iniquities, who healeth all our diseases,” and who in himself meets all the needs of humanity, from birth to old age. OUR PETITIONS.
By A. H. Perry
I saw a little child with trustful look
Run to his father’s knee and gently say,
“Father, I thirst; give me to drink, I pray,
Some water from yon clear and sparkling brook.”
The father brought a cup of milk and smiled.
“Drink this, ‘tis better for thy thirst,” he said;
“And if thou hungerest, lo, here is bread!”
Ah! would, methought, that, like that little child,
We to our Father went in simple love,
And, though he give us not the very thing
That we had asked for, vainly fancying
That it was best, yet will he hear our prayer,
And pour a richer blessing from above;
His grace our feet to guide; his strength our cross to bear.
—A. H. Perry. THE LAW OF GOD.
By George B. Thompson
BY ELDER GEORGE B. THOMPSON. THIS is the greatest document ever committed to mortals. It is summarily contained in the ten commandments, written by the finger of Omnipotence upon two tables of stone. When God had delivered his chosen people from beneath Egyptian bondage, and had led them out into the wilderness, in order that they might sense more fully the sacred character of his law, he proclaimed it orally, and wrote it upon the imperishable agate of the mountain. How sublime the scene! He commanded Moses to set bounds about the mount. This done, the third day the Maker of the universe, Jesus, the Son of God, in sovereign majesty, amid fire and smoke, and glory unapproachable, descended, and, in tones which caused this solid earth to quake, he thundered forth to quailing humanity the principles of his own loving perfection. Such a scene the world had never before witnessed. It never will again, until Jesus shall arise from the mediatorial throne, lay aside his priestly robes, and, in "all the glory of his Father," and a retinue of holy angels, come the second time to vindicate his insulted authority, by saving those who kept his law, and visiting everlasting destruction upon its transgressors. This law is but a reflection of the character of God, and is no more subject to change than its Author. It is the foundation of God's government, and all the intelligences in the eternal domain, from blazing sun to glimmering nebula, are amenable to its everlasting principles. When Moses was commanded to erect a sanctuary in the wilderness, he was shown a pattern, and the sanctuary, with all the instruments, was made after the pattern. Ex. 25: 9, 40. Among other things made was the "ark of the testimony." This was placed in the sacred apartment, or most holy place of the sanctuary, and in it was placed the ten commandments. This, too, was a "pattern of things in the heavens." The seer of Patmos, when beholding things in the heavens, saw among other things the great original from which this was fashioned. "And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament." Rev. 11: 19. From this it is clearly demonstrated that the law of God and its sacred coffer are in heaven, and that the copy given to Moses was but a transcript of the great original. Upon this citadel of truth the fragile arguments of Antinomianism are as nothing. Conscious of the impregnable character of the fortress, they but rarely attack it. Not until man can ascend into the third heaven, rush into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, take Jehovah from his place between the two cherubim, burst open the "ark of the testament," and, seizing with his wicked hands the code of heaven, grind it to atoms, can he change a jot or tittle of these immutable precepts. Let Antinomianism ponder well this fact, and behold the everlasting pillars that support the law of the mighty God. It has been truly said that long should pause the erring hand of man ere it seeks to chisel with human philosophy a single iota from these ten words. Thanksgiving and Murmuring
By Trench
WHEN thou hast thanked thy God
For every blessing sent,
What time will then remain
For murmurs or lament?
—Trench.