39. AND he came out, and went, as his custom was, unto the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed him.
40. And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
41. And he was parted from them about a stone's cast; and he kneeled down and prayed,
42. Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
43. And there appeared unto him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.
44. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became as it were great drops of blood falling down upon the ground.
45. And when he rose up from his prayer, he came unto the disciples, and found them sleeping for sorrow, and said unto them,
46. Why sleep ye? rise and pray, that ye enter not into temptation.
47. While he yet spake, behold, a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them; and he drew near unto Jesus to kiss him.
48. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?
49. And when they that were about him saw what would follow, they said, Lord, shall we smite with the sword?
50. And a certain one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and struck off his right ear.
51. But Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him.
52. And Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and elders, which were come against him, Are ye come out, as against a robber, with swords and staves?
53. When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched not forth your hands against me; but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.
54. And they seized him, and led him away, and brought him into the high priest's house. But Peter followed afar off.
55. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the court, and had sat down together, Peter sat in the midst of them.
56. And a certain maid seeing him as he sat in the light of the fire, and looking steadfastly upon him, said, This man also was with him.
57. But he denied, saying, Woman, I know him not.
58. And after a little another saw him, and said, Thou also art one of them. But Peter said, Man, I am not.
59. And after the space of about one hour another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this man also was with him; for he is a Galilean.
60. But Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew.
61. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how that he said unto him, Before the cock crow this day, thou shalt deny me thrice.
62. And he went out, and wept bitterly.
THIS portion of the story of the last night of our Saviour before his death, may be divided into three parts, thus: The Temptation in the Garden, The Betrayal, and Peter's Denial of Christ.
1. After the supper, where did Jesus go with his disciples?
2. When he arrived there, what did he say to them?
3. What did he then do?
4. In what words did he pray?
5. How was he strengthened?
6. How great was his agony in striving against temptation?
7. When he rose up from prayer, how did he find the disciples?
8. What did he say to them?
9. While he yet spake, who came to him?
10. Who led them?
11. By what means did Judas point out Jesus?
12. What did Jesus say to him?
13. When the disciples saw what was about to be done, what did they ask?
17. What did he say to the chief priests and captains?
18. Why did they not take him when he was in the temple teaching?
19. To what place did they lead him?
20. Who followed afar off? What did he finally do?
21. Who saw Peter as he sat by the fire?
22. What did she say?
23. What reply did Peter make?
24. What further took place after a little while?
25. What did Peter do the second time?
26. About an hour afterward, what happened?
27. What did Peter do the third time?
28. What then took place?
29. What did the Lord then do?
30. How did this affect Peter?
NOTES.
1. "WHEREFORE, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin." Heb. 12: 1-4. Christ did resist unto blood, striving against sin. "His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground." There was the temptation for him to refuse to go on with the work assigned him. No man can ever realize the strength of the temptation that beset Christ in the garden. If he had failed then, Satan would have triumphed as surely as he would if he had overcome Christ in the wilderness. Christ endured the cross, despising the shame, and we may also expect to pass through severe suffering, but it will be with him. An angel strengthened him, and we have the assurance, "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." 1 Cor. 10: 13. "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind; for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin." 1 Peter 4: 1.
2. "AND the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. . . . And Peter went out, and wept bitterly." There is power in a look of the Saviour. There was no condemnation in that look, but love and pity. It melted the heart of Peter to repentance. People often use the words, "Thou God seest me," as a means of frightening children into obedience. They are taught to think that it is a terrible thing for the Lord to see them. Not so would the Lord have us regard his looks. There is salvation in his look. The Lord says, "To this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word." Isa. 66: 2. "Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved." Ps. 80: 19.
News and Notes.
By Editor
FOR THE WEEK ENDING OCTOBER 29.
RELIGIOUS.
—The Parliament of Finland has passed a law forbidding railway traffic and mail delivery on Sunday.
—A clause in the State constitution of Vermont provides that no Roman Catholic can hold the office of governor.
—The recent General Conference of the Free Methodist Church which convened at Greenville, Ill., decided against a proposition to ordain women.
—A conference, called by the pope for the purpose of arranging, if possible, a reunion between the Eastern and Western churches, was convened in Rome on the 24th ult.
—A Melbourne, Australia, paper says twelve young ladies took the black veil of the Sisters of Mercy in that city on the 25th ult. They had been selected in Ireland, but passed their novitiate in Melbourne.
—At a recent conference of Roman Catholic archbishops held in Philadelphia, the American branch of the Ancient Order of Hibernians was formally approved. Theoretically the Catholic Church opposes secret societies, but the Catholic secret societies are excepted from the proscription. Of all secret political organizations, the Roman Church is the most subtle.
—Constitutional guarantees of liberty of conscience do not count for much in these days—in fact they never did when disregarded by officials and their supporters. For instance, the constitution of Spain guarantees liberty of conscience, but quite recently two Protestants were fined and imprisoned by a Madrid court for not kneeling in the street before a priest who was carrying the viaticum.
—The pilgrims who started from Brooklyn, N. Y., last month, on a pilgrimage to the shrine at Lourdes, France, intended also to visit Rome. Papal Delegate Satolli sent them his blessing and some valuable directions. He gravely informed them that the women should wear black dresses and Brussels net veils instead of bonnets when received by the pope, and that the men should wear evening dress. How much the deluded “pilgrims” might save by going directly before the Lord himself, at home and in their everyday clothes! This supporting a pompous “vicar” is an expensive luxury, as well as a delusion and a snare to the soul.
—Bishop Watterson, the great outspoken temperance apostle of the Catholic Church, is a prohibitionist with an “if.” He is receiving great praise from certain temperance people and journals for this utterance: “If the liquor traffic in particular places becomes so bold, so outrageous, so overmastering and defiant that it cannot be controlled in any other way than the legal wiping out of the saloons, then let the saloons be legally wiped out; and I say, in God’s name, and in the name of an outraged community, the sooner they are legally wiped out in that case the better for the community.” Just as if the liquor traffic ever is, in any place, anything but “bold” and “outrageous” and “overmastering” and “defiant.” These are the characteristics of the great adversary of souls, one of whose foremost allies is the liquor traffic.
—Samuel Johnson, an English minister of prominence some 200 years ago, gave this direction about Sunday observance: “It should be different from any other day. People may walk, but not throw stones at birds; there may be relaxation, but there should be no levity.” On this the Scottish Review remarks: “Excellent, though the inference is perhaps rather droll—that on week days one might throw stones at birds. Not unlike the plea one put forward for polygamy—that it is only a bishop who, in Holy Writ, is enjoined to be the husband of one wife.” As to the logic (or rather want of logic) of Sunday observance, it is the same to-day. For instance, the clamor for the closing of saloons on Sunday is a virtual admission that the open saloon is all right on other days. We never hear of any special plea for closed saloons on any other particular day of the week.
SECULAR.
—The striking weavers at Fall River, Mass., have decided to return to work.
—The announcement a few weeks ago of the death of the ameer of Afghanistan is officially denied.
—Chile has declined to sell her war ships to China, and Argentina has refused an offer of Japan to buy her war fleet.
—A lamp explosion caused the burning of a hotel in Raton, N. M., last week, and two men were burned to death.
—Mary A. Woodbridge, corresponding secretary of the National W. C. T. U., died at Chicago on the 25th inst., of apoplexy.
—The freight depot of the St. Louis Transfer Company, St. Louis, Mo., was burned on the 28th inst., entailing a loss of $500,000.
—The latest advices from Hongkong report more cases of the plague that was supposed to have been thoroughly overcome a few weeks ago.
—A cloudburst near Redding, Cal., on the 24th inst., sent “rivers of water through the streets” of that town, and caused a great rise in adjacent streams.
—The West Hotel, Seattle, Wash., was destroyed by fire on the 27th inst., and sixteen persons—ten men, three women, and three children—were burned to death.
—The London Standard says that a silver loan of 1,500,000 taels for the city of Canton is being offered in that market, “probably in order to feel the pulse for a Chinese loan.”
—Official reports of the Japanese campaign in Corea, while indicating marked successes, also show heavy losses. The killed, wounded, and sick number over ten per cent. of the army.
—On the 22d ult. fifty delegates, representing railroad switchmen from various parts of the country, met at Kansas City for the purpose of organizing a new Switchmen’s Brotherhood.
—During the consecration of a church at Trokh, Russia, on the 25th inst., a lamp was upset. A panic followed, and in the rush for the door two women and three children were trampled to death.
—A great fire swept over portions of Cherry and Grant Counties, Neb., last week, destroying several homes, and large quantities of hay, together with fences and some live stock. Two men were also burned to death.
—Washington, D. C., is said to be the scene of a smallpox fright. Within two days last week nine cases were developed, and the sudden appearance of the disease necessarily exposed a great many unsuspecting people.
—A Madrid dispatch says: “The Finance Committee of the Cortes has decided to establish a gold standard of currency for Porto Rico. The Mexican dollar will hereafter be used only as a basis of weight for the value of silver.”
—The residence of Rev. Ross Taylor, son of Bishop Taylor, at Nyack, N. Y., was burned on the 22d inst., and four of his children, aged from 5 to 11 years, perished in the flames. Three men were also badly burned, one fatally.
—The Chinese Government has issued a decree granting protection to all foreigners. Such a guarantee in China is of about as much value as the guarantee of religious liberty to citizens in some “Christian” countries—it is principally theory.
—Late advices from Hawaii state that myriads of small bugs are devastating the orchards and fields. The destroyers work at night and are invisible in the daytime. The people think the little destroyers came from Japan, hence they call it the Japan bug.
—It appears that Colonel Breckenridge, of Kentucky, is not down yet. On the 24th ult. he spoke to a crowded house at Mount Sterling, and it is said there were many ladies present. He is now said to be coming to the front as a candidate for United States Senator.
—The weavers of a worsted cloth mill in Monayunk, Pa., have struck for a fifteen per cent. raise in wages. They say that they have been subjected to a fifty per cent. reduction since last spring, and now $8.50 per week is all they can earn on a daily run of thirteen hours.
—A Swedish schooner loaded with gunpowder was blown up near Peterhead, Scotland, on the 24th ult. Within two minutes after the explosion no part of the craft was to be seen excepting a few splinters floating about. The crew all went down with the wreck.
—The general superintendent of the Pacific Express Company says they will not risk carrying money into Indian Territory until assured of better protection from outlaws. He is also of opinion that only the Government of the United States can give adequate protection.
—The Chilean Government has pardoned all persons accused of political offenses prior to August 28, 1889. This includes all adherents to ex-President Balmaceda at the time he was forced to resign, but does not include those who resisted the new government after that date.
—The son of an ex city marshal and the son of an ex district judge have been arrested on a charge of committing the recent express robbery at The Dalles, Oregon. Of the $14,500 taken, all but $400 has been recovered, $5,000 having been found in the house of the ex-marshal.
—Charles A. Keller, of Chicago, was arrested a few days ago, while making a political speech, on charges connected with the great strike of last summer. He had taken an active part in organizing a boycott against merchants who sold goods to men who took the places of strikers. He was indicted by the grand jury on this charge, and, in default of bail, was lodged in jail.
—Colonel Cienfuegos, who has been held in this city for some time on demand of the Salvadoran Government for his extradition on a charge of murder, has been granted a release on a rehearing of his case at Washington. He was a member of the staff of General Ezeta, who was released a few weeks ago.
—Some whaling vessels returned to Dundee, Scotland, report having found a large number of Eskimo corpses on the shore of Elvin Bay, Prince Regent’s Inlet. They had evidently been caught by storm away from winter quarters and starved to death. This theory was sustained by evidences of cannibalism.
—It is said that Japanese detectives have arrested a Chinese woman at Hiroshima, who is charged with being a spy. Being unusually pretty, and proficient in the Japanese language, she succeeded in gaining an intimacy with several officers, and had accumulated considerable information concerning Japanese plans and equipments.
—Major Richter, formerly of the German army, who has been employed by the Chinese Government for the past two years to inspect the army and suggest movements, has resigned in disgust. He “found corruption and fraud rampant,” and his reports were garbled before they reached the head of the government.
—Advices from South America report a severe earthquake on the 27th inst., extending all over Argentina and part of Buenos Ayres. The town of La Rioja, Argentina, is said to have been entirely destroyed. At least 20,000 people are said to be homeless, and hundreds have lost their lives in the various localities heard from.
—Secretary of the Interior Hoke Smith, in reply to the question of what should be done to check the lawlessness among the Indians of Indian Territory, says: “Abrogate the treaties, abolish tribal relations, establish a Territorial government, and extend the jurisdiction of the United States over the whole Territory.” He adds that tribal government is a failure; their Legislatures make laws but cannot enforce them.
—Chancellor Von Caprivi, of Germany, has resigned his office because of continued bitter contentions in the cabinet. “He has had much opposition from various political sources during his entire service of four and a half years. The culminating crisis, it is said, grew of his opposition to the passage of laws for the repression of socialism. Prince Hohenlohe Shillingsfurst, governor of Alsace-Lorraine, succeeds him.
—The immense barbette for the U. S. war ship Oregon, now being built at San Francisco, has been completed by the Carnegie Company, at Homestead, Pa., being the largest piece of armor plate work ever turned out. It weighs 400 tons, and will require sixteen cars to carry it to San Francisco. A barbette is a gun carriage on which great guns are raised above deck to be fired and lowered again to avoid exposure while being loaded.
—The reign of terror continues in Venezuela. A late Caracas dispatch says that five members of a band organized to kidnap President Crespo were killed in a riot at Maracaibo and seven were captured. A plot has been divulged which had in view the establishment of a provisional government, with General Pinango, who is now in prison, at its head. The government has ordered the seizure of all arms and ammunition in shops, the streets are patrolled by troops, and several high military officials have been arrested.
—The Japanese have scored another victory in the capture of the fortified city of Kiu Lien Ching, which was held by 16,000 Chinese troops. The garrison made but a slight resistance and then fled. It is reported that 200 of the fleeing troops were killed, while the Japanese killed numbered but 20. An immense amount of ammunition and provisions was secured. It is also stated that the second Japanese army of 30,000 had landed to the northeast of Port Arthur, and that the Chinese at Port Arthur and Wei Hai Wei were in full flight.
—Lord Rosebery, premier of Great Britain, in a recent speech deplored the terrible results of a destruction of the central government of China, and said a headless China meant such a scene of chaos and horror as the world had never contemplated. Hundreds of millions of a barbarous and cruel population would be let loose, with their passions uncontrolled. This would be an appalling danger to every Christian within its reach. He may have had in mind the scramble of “civilized” nations for their “rights” in the partition of the headless body.
BIBLE ELECTION. By M. C. Wilcox. A brief presentation of God’s plan and purpose concerning man, showing that the doctrine of election, or predestination, according to the Bible, is full of comfort and instruction. It throws new light on old controversies. Bible Students’ Library, No. 67; 24 pp.; price 3 cents. Address Pacific Press Pub. Co., Oakland, Cal.
THOSE TENT MEETINGS.—We have a few more copies of “Those Tent Meetings,” a rhyming recital, by M. B. Duffy. Price, 25 cents, postpaid. Address this office.
Roman Catholic Temperance
By Editor
THE Roman Catholic temperance spurt, over which the W. C. T. U. and several Protestant journals have been gushing so enthusiastically of late, seems to be nothing more than a wail because of the abuse of the saloon business. This is the burden of Satolli's temperance sentiment, and Bishop Watterson, who has been the recipient of so much Protestant praise because of his temperance stand, states his position thus: "The great injury that has been done to the progress of our faith in this country is the disgrace inflicted upon it by those Catholics—and their name is legion—who are abusing the saloon business, to their own infamy and dishonor of the church." It is not the liquor traffic, the saloon business, that is evil in the minds of these great temperance apostles, but it is the abuse of the business that brings dishonor upon the church. Yet we find a San Francisco Protestant journal indorsing such sophistry in this way: "We could wish all other Catholics might speak as well and wisely as these." The W. C. T. U. has all along taught that the saloon business is the sum of all evils, that "there is no genuine temperance movement but prohibition," but there suddenly comes such an anxiety for alliance with the Romanists that their president officially congratulates that church on having such temperance leaders as Watterson and Satolli. Verily Rome is buying Protestant homage very cheaply just now.
Question Corner.
By Editor
"If ye will inquire, inquire ye." "But avoid foolish questions."
[From time to time we will reply under this head, if deemed advisable, to such candid inquiries as may be sent us. Correspondents wishing a reply to their questions must give their full name and address, not for publication unless they wish, but as an evidence of good faith on their part, and to give us opportunity to reply by letter if deemed best. It is always well to inclose stamp. Let the questions be short and pointed, and such as may be answered in limited space. The questions will be numbered continuously.]
155. DEGREES IN PUNISHMENT.
Please explain what idea the Saviour wished to convey when he spoke the words recorded in Matt. 10:15; Mark 6:11; Luke 10:12. W. T. N.
Matt. 10:15 reads as follows: "Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city." The same idea is expressed in all of the texts above referred to. The texts are comparisons between the punishment of the cities which rejected Christ in his day, and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah; and the words of Christ are that the punishment of the one will be more tolerable, or less severe, than that of the other. That is, the punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah will be less severe than that of Bethsaida and Chorazin. This does not in any wise mean that there will be a new probation granted to any of the people of these cities in the day of judgment. Sodom and Gomorrah had light sufficient to save them, although that light was nothing as compared with the light which shone upon Bethsaida and Chorazin. Nevertheless, it was light from the Lord, and if it had been grasped as such by the people of that day, it would have led them to the Source of all light, God. In fact, the smallest ray of light, if received with all the heart, and cherished as from God, will save the soul that receives it. And the greater amount of light must be received in the same way, and will have the same effect. He who receives or rejects the little light will have far less responsibility than he who receives or rejects the greater light. See Luke 12:47, 48. The punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah will be far less than that of Bethsaida and Chorazin, because they sinned against much less light.
Again, the word of God over and over again tells us that all shall stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and everyone shall give an account of himself for the deeds done in the body; and not only that, but everyone shall receive sentence according to those deeds. Certainly that indicates degrees in punishment, and that is all that is expressed in the words of our Saviour. The wages of sin is death, and Sodom and Gomorrah will meet that for their sin; so also will those who sinned in Judea in the time of Christ; but in the dying there will be also, as the apostle has expressed it in Rom. 2:8, 9, "indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil."
Another thought which is worthy of consideration in this connection is that the fate of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah is an example of those who should afterwards live ungodly. See 2 Peter 2:6. We know the result of God's judgment upon those cities. They were utterly annihilated. This will be the fate of all those who are found in the last days in rebellion against God. But, as our Saviour has expressed it, with some the punishment will be less severe than with others.
This query has been made many times, and has been many times during the last fifteen years answered in the Signs of the Times, and we have no especial light to give upon it other than has been given in the past. The time when Isa. 65:20 applies is probably at the close of the 1,000 years, or when the people of God are rewarded and the wicked receive their just sentence. Among the wicked there will be those who have lived in all ages of the world. There will be the antediluvians, whose ages reached nearly one thousand years. There also will be their children, who could be called children at the age of one hundred years. There also will be those who have lived at later ages who were old men at the same age. But at that time all the wicked will die together, the child of a hundred years and the sinner of a hundred years. And from that time forward "there shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days." The 20th verse is parenthetical, that is, thrown in to give an additional thought. The 19th and 21st verses are connected. God will rejoice in his people, and there shall be no more heard among them the voice of weeping or of crying, and they, his people, shall build houses and inhabit them, and they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them, but the wicked shall be forever cut off. It has been thought by some that the little season during which time the wicked are deceived by Satan (Rev. 20:8, 9) would be one hundred years, and that this is the time referred to in Isa. 65:20. That is, all those who are raised at the second resurrection, the resurrection of the unjust, will live upon the earth during that time and at its close will die. Sin will then forever be destroyed, and the glory of God will fill the earth as the waters cover the sea.
Mission Fields Report from Cuba
By Editor
In our Mission Fields department will be found an interesting report from a Baptist brother in Cuba.
Sabbath Uniformity
By Editor
The article on "Sabbath Uniformity," together with the one which will follow, shows conclusively that it is absolutely impossible to have uniformity in the matter of Sabbath observance till we yield to the will and way of God.
Life and Death
By Editor
In this number we give another article on "Life and Death." Read it, and ask yourselves what bearing it has in the light of the Scriptures on the doctrine of the inherent immortality of the soul, and Modern Spiritualism. Have you the relation with Life which it is your privilege to have?
The Sanctuary and Babylon
By Editor
WE give another article on the important subject of the sanctuary in this issue; we trust that it will be read thoroughly. Another is given on the Mysteries of Babylon in This Dispensation. "What Is the Image to the Beast" will, we hope, help our readers who may not be settled on what constitutes an image to the beast.
God Reigns
By Editor
God Reigns.—The kings, rulers, and governments of this earth exist only by permission of the great Ruler of the universe, who "removeth kings, and setteth up kings," "and none can stay his hand."
Just now the whole political world is speculating as to what the effect of the death of the czar of all the Russias will have upon the peace of Europe. And some believe that it will involve war. But the "Most High" yet "ruleth in the kingdom of men."
There will be no general war till God's work is done in the earth. His heavenly messengers are holding the winds of strife till the servants of God are sealed. (See Rev. 7:1-3.) Then the winds will blow, the great whirlwind of strife will ensue, and the great battle of the day of the Lord will take place. See Jeremiah 25.
Persecution of Our Brethren
By Editor
In Our Work and Workers department will be found an item concerning the persecution of our brethren in Maryland. The spirit of the dragon is becoming more and more manifest, and in the words of the Review and Herald we would say: "As the enemy becomes more bitter and unreasonable in his wrath, may we become more Christlike in our love and forbearance. The only power God's people have is that which comes from above." Let our brethren who suffer persecution be of good cheer. It is for Christ's sake. "On their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part is he glorified."
Wanted—Copies of Signs No. 45.—If any of our friends have clean copies of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES No. 45, of the date of September 17, 1894, which they do not particularly care to preserve, they would greatly oblige us by forwarding them to this office. All our extra copies of that issue are completely exhausted, and we are not able to fill calls that have been made for them.