Earlier text: Truth Never DiesLoyalty to God
By F. M. W.
NEHEMIAH engaged in a great work for God. He undertook the restoration of the city of his fathers, and the relief of his brethren who were left of the captivity. From the first, opposition was invited by his efforts. In the surrounding territory were heathen kings, among whom were Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem. These felt bitter opposition to the restoration of a national center which had been a rebuke and menace to them in past years. In Jerusalem itself was a mixed multitude, some of whom had no sympathy for the prosperity of Israel. These united in intrigue with the outside enemies to bring the work into disrepute, and to frustrate the plans of rebuilding. Ridicule was first employed, but without results. They then resorted to intimidation, but Nehemiah remained resolute. Next they endeavored to effect a compromise. They asked Nehemiah to cease operations for a time, and meet them in conference to see if the matter could not be adjusted. Four repeated efforts were made to bring this about, but Nehemiah was unyielding. He returned to them this loyal and resolute answer: “I am7 doing a great work, so that I can not come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?” He knew that his strength was in sustained loyalty and faithfulness. He had no time for bickering, no place in his purpose for compromise. God had given him a great work to do. It admitted of no delay, of no unholy alliance. This consistent zeal was manifested through all his labors. God recognized his honesty of purpose, his steadfastness of endeavor, and accomplished through his efforts a great work for the cause of truth in the earth. God has committed to his people to-day a great charge, that of giving to the world the message due this generation. No more important work was ever committed to his church. His people to-day, as was Nehemiah, are confronted with difficulties. Satan is doing all in his power to wreck the message, and destroy the souls of its advocates. By threats, by ridicule, by intrigue, by compromise, he will seek to corrupt the truth and weaken its power. Tobiahs and Sanballats will arise without number. Opposing and conflicting interests will unite to withstand the progress of the message. And as in Nehemiah’s day, some even in Israel may sympathize with the elements which are seeking Israel’s downfall. This has always been so in every age of the church. The days of Moses produced Korah, Dathan, and Abiram; the days of Christ saw the apostasy of Judas; the apostle Paul witnessed the falling away of Hymeneus and Philetus and a host of others; Luther saw the cause of the young Reformation well-nigh wrecked by fanatical movements. And so the history of the church in almost every age of its progress records the work of dishonest or fanatical men who have drawn off from the great track of truth. Some of them have apparently prospered for a time, but their end has been darkness and despair. These off-shoots have felt that they had just cause for withdrawal. They thought they saw errors in leadership, their talents did not receive proper recognition, or in some way there were wrongs in the operation of the work. Doubtless in some measure these wrongs may have existed. The church of God has never been free from sin. Moses “spake unadvisedly with his lips,” Paul made mistakes, Luther was not perfect. But God led, and notwithstanding the imperfections of his people, he regarded them as his own precious heritage, and rebuked kings for their sakes. In the wilderness, the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night went before Israel, and the divine presence was manifested in the daily service. And woe to him who stretched forth his hand against the Lord’s anointed, or sought to bring in an order of things which God had not ordained. Principles are above men, and the work is greater than the worker. Man is frail and fallible. He may fall, but God lives, and his work goes on. Death has claimed many of the men who were once the very strength of this last-day movement, so far as the human factor was concerned. Had this cause been of human origin, it must have died with its original advocates. But it has demonstrated that it has in it the vitality of heaven. Triumphant over death, and stronger than all the adverse influences which have combined to oppose it, it has gone steadily forward. And He who has been its life and power hitherto, will carry it to a glorious consummation. Loyalty to God in Nehemiah’s day meant a decisive, straightforward course of conduct, with no parleying with sin, and no compromise with the enemies of the Lord. It meant that in the days of Moses, and Caleb, and Joshua; in the days of Paul and Luther. Loyalty means no less to-day. Let us be true to God and his work for this day and generation, no matter how difficult the way may sometimes appear, or how dark at times may be the outlook from a human standpoint. God is watching over his own. He “knoweth them that are his,” and his foundation standeth sure. There is light ahead; let every downcast soul look up and rejoice; let the fearful be brave, and the trembling strong and courageous. In our personal experience we may have victory now through Christ Jesus. We may have the joy of heaven in our hearts here, the Spirit to lead and guide us, and the witness that Enoch had, that our ways please God. This will make the bitter of life sweet, the toil pleasant, and will sanctify to our good every experience which his wisdom shall choose and his love permit. “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” To All Who Are Coming to the General Conference.
By A. G. DANIELLS
THOSE who are charged with the heavy responsibilities of preparing for the coming General Conference are endeavoring to be ready to meet every real need of all who shall come. They are anxious that the details incident to the arrival and getting settled shall all be pleasant and agreeable, and that during the Conference every condition shall be satisfactory, so that nothing shall exist which will be calculated to spoil the meeting. To this end every reasonable preparation is being made to meet all on their arrival at Takoma Park, convey them and their baggage promptly to their rooms or tents, and make them as comfortable as possible during the meeting. But it should be remembered that the spiritual interests of the meeting, and the great problems of the evangelization of the world in this generation, are matters of far greater consequence than the details of getting located and being comfortable. If all who come to the Conference will come with a full realization of this, they will not be very much annoyed if everything does not move off without friction. They will take a few minutes of delay cheerfully, and they will make the best of circumstances. The Conference will be held “in camp,” or on the Chautauqua plan. Tens of thousands of people all over the country leave their pleasant homes and spend from one to three weeks in camp at Chautauqua every summer. They do not expect to have all the conveniences and comforts of their homes. They make up their minds to camp out and rough it. They do this for enjoyment, and for the blessings of the great meetings they attend. In behalf of the committees who are making preparations, and who are to conduct affairs while the Conference is in progress, I wish to earnestly impress upon all who think of coming to the Conference, that they can assist wonderfully in making every feature a success. Do you ask how? As follows:— Read with care the instruction given on the twenty-second page of the REVIEW, dated April 8, regarding the Conference, and follow strictly every detail. Be sure that arrangements are made before you leave home for your entertainment at the Conference. A failure to do this may cause great perplexity and expense, and may prevent some from securing accommodations near the grounds. This point must be emphasized because it is so generally neglected. When you arrive, be cheerful even if it is raining, or you are obliged to wait for a conveyance, or for some one to find your place. If your quarters or facilities are not so good as you had expected, reflect that they might be not nearly so good. This will deter you from complaining. Above all, come to the Conference praying earnestly that God will give us the blessings we all so greatly need. Love, Courtesy, and Blessing
“FINALLY, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile.” Lessons From the Life of Enoch
By Ellen G. White
We read of the prophet Enoch, that he “walked with God . . . three hundred years.” Enoch’s walk with God was not in a trance or a vision, but in all the duties of his daily life. He did not become a hermit, shutting himself entirely from the world; for he had a work to do for God in the world. In the family and in his intercourse with men, as a husband and father, a friend, a citizen, he was the steadfast, unwavering servant of the Lord. His heart was in harmony with God’s will; for “can two walk together, except they be agreed?” Enoch was a public teacher of the truth in the age in which he lived. He taught the truth; he lived the truth; and the character of the teacher was in every way harmonious with the greatness and sacredness of his mission. Enoch was a prophet who spoke as he was moved by the Holy Ghost. He was a light amid the moral darkness, a pattern man, a man who walked with God, being obedient to his law,—that law which Satan had refused to obey, which Adam had transgressed, which Abel obeyed, and because of his obedience was murdered. Now God would demonstrate to the universe the falsity of Satan’s charge that men could not keep God’s law. He would demonstrate that though man had sinned, he could so relate himself to God that he would have the mind and spirit of God. This holy man was selected to denounce the wickedness of the world, and to give evidence that man can keep the law. How little is said of Enoch; how brief is his biography! Many volumes are written of Napoleon; much is said of Cæsar and other great men of the world. Their exploits are recorded and sent through the length and breadth of the land; yet we have no evidence that these men honored God, or that God honored them. Of Enoch it is recorded, “Enoch walked with God; and he was not; for God took him.” Enoch walked with God, while of the world around him sacred history records, “The wickedness of man was great in the earth,” “every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Enoch’s righteous life was in marked contrast with that of the wicked people around him. His piety, his purity, his unswerving integrity, were the result of his walking with God, while the wickedness of the world was the result of their walking with the deceiver of mankind. Enoch was an active worker. He did not seek ease and comfort. Nor did he spend his time in idle meditation, or in striving to gain happiness for himself. He did not participate in the festivities and amusements that constantly engaged the attention of the pleasure-lovers of the antediluvian world. In his day the minds of many were absorbed in worldly pleasures,—pleasures that tempted them to go astray. But Enoch was terribly in earnest. With the sinful and with the workers of iniquity he mingled only as God’s messenger, to warn them to turn with abhorrence from their evil ways, and to repent and seek God. Enoch did not become polluted with the iniquities existing in his day. Why need we in our day? But we may, like our Master, have compassion for suffering humanity, pity for the unfortunate, and a generous consideration for the feelings and necessities of the needy, the troubled, and the despairing. Those who are Christians indeed will seek to do good to others, and at the same time will so order their conversation and deportment as to maintain a calm, hallowed peace of mind. Selfishness and worldliness are not fruits of a Christian tree. No man can live for himself, and yet enjoy the approbation of God. Christ cursed the fig-tree because it bore no fruit. Thus he would teach that God is not pleased with his human agencies if in their lives they utterly fail to fulfil the purposes for which they were created. Through the help provided, man, in his fallen nature, can do the very things God expects him to do. He can walk and work and live by faith in the Son of God. The Lord draws man close to his side, to walk with him, to work with him, and to teach him how to overcome temptation. With every temptation there is a way of escape, by walking humbly with God. Were Enoch upon the earth to-day, his heart would be in harmony with all God’s requirements; he would walk with God, although surrounded with influences which are the most wicked and debasing. So may we remain pure and uncorrupted. He was a representative of the saints who live amid the perils and corruptions of the last days. For his faithful obedience to God, he was translated. So, also, the faithful, who are alive and remain, will be translated. They will be removed from a sinful and corrupt world to the pure joys of heaven. Enoch meditated and prayed, and put on the armor of watchfulness, and he came forth from his pleadings with God to plead with his fellow men. He did not mask the truth to find favor with unbelievers. His close connection with God gave him courage to work the works of God. He had the testimony that his ways pleased God. This is the privilege of every believer to-day. It is man dwelling with God, and God taking up his abode with man. “I in them, and thou in me,” says Jesus. To walk with God and have the witness that their ways pleased him, is an experience not to be confined to Enoch, to Elijah, to patriarchs, to prophets, to apostles, to martyrs. It is the privilege of all the followers of Christ to have Jesus enshrined in their hearts, to carry him with them in their lives. This will make them fruit-bearing trees. I wish I could impress upon every worker in God’s cause the great need of continual, earnest prayer. They can not be constantly upon their knees, but they can be uplifting their hearts to God. We have too slight a hold upon God and upon eternal realities. Those who teach the word must themselves live in hourly contact, in conscious, living communion, with God. The principles of truth and righteousness and mercy must be within them. They must draw from the fountain of all wisdom moral and intellectual power. Their hearts must be alive with the deep movings of the Spirit of God. It is our privilege to-day to stand with the light of heaven upon us. It was thus that Enoch walked with God. It was no easier for Enoch to live a righteous life in his day than it is for us at the present time. The world at that time was no more favorable to growth in grace and holiness than it is now, but Enoch devoted time to prayer and communion with God, and this enabled him to escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. It was his devotion to God that fitted him for translation. We are living amid the perils of the last days, and we must receive our strength from the same source as did Enoch. We must walk with God. A separation from the world is required of us. We can not remain free from its pollution, unless we follow the example of faithful Enoch. The love revealed in the Saviour’s life of self-denial and self-sacrifice is to be seen in the lives of his followers. We are called upon “so to walk, even as he walked.” The cause of our weakness lies in our refusal to obey this command. On every side there are opportunities to work for our fellow men. It is our duty to lead souls to the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. It is important that we fill aright our position in the world, in society, and in9 the church; but we can not do this unless we have a firm hold on Heaven. Our faith must reach within the veil, whither our Forerunner has for us entered. It is possible for us to take hold by faith of the eternal promises of God; but to do this we must have a faith that will not be denied,—a steadfast, immovable faith that will take hold of the unseen. Every man, woman, and youth who professes the religion of Christ should realize the responsibility resting upon the believer. All should feel that this is an individual work, an individual warfare, an individual preaching of Christ. If each would realize this, and take hold of the work, we should be mighty as an army with banners. The heavenly dove would hover over us. The light of the glory of God would no more be shut away from us than it was from the devoted Enoch. A Call for Volunteers
By CLIFFORD G. HOWELL
WHEN the Master calls for soldiers,
He will lead against the foe.
Do not fear his steps to follow;
He will give thee grace to go. Fear thou not to trust his guidance,
He has drunk thy cup of woe;
He will lift thy heavy burden;
He's the best friend we can know. If thou gird the armor on thee,
He will give thee grace to stand;
He will hide thee in the hollow
Of his mighty, nail-pierced hand. It is not with men, thy warfare,—
Fight thou not with “flesh and blood;”
But uplift “the poor in spirit,”
Lead them to “the Lamb of God.” And when all thy warfare's over,
When have ceased the din and strife,
Thou wilt know a bright forever,
And receive a crown of life. In all great epochs of this world's history God has sent his own chosen messengers with admonitions suited to the times. There had been heard no prophetic voice for a long time before Christ, not for some four hundred years, till just before Jesus was to make his public appearance. “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matt. 3:1, 2. He did not preach of interesting things about the ancestors, nor tell about a flood. He touched the needs of his own day,—repentance as a preparation for the kingdom at hand. Six months or more later Jesus was baptized by John in Jordan, and was pointed out as the one whose advent John had come to proclaim. “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Noah's message was repentance toward God, and faith in his word concerning the flood of waters which was to destroy the impenitent. Isaiah and Jeremiah preached the same message of repentance. Repent and obey, so shall the kingdom of Israel be preserved. Later the message was, Repent and submit to the king of Babylon. As opposed to this the false prophets counseled war, and promised victory. We know the outcome. Jerusalem was laid in desolation. Luther's message was given of God, and was suited to the generation in which he lived—an age of sin and unbelief. It was a message of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. There are now some seventy or eighty denominations working in China. Each one represents some special doctrine or board of management led by men from various countries. Now we are not to attach ourselves to some particular foreigner from America or England or from any other country, and follow him as our guide, but we must take the Bible, which they as the servants of God have brought to us, and give to China the message of God for this age. We must “preach the word.” Some popular preachers take a text from the Scripture, and proceed to tell many stories or pleasing things about it. We must not do so. Perhaps you have seen the children playing a certain game in which one has a handkerchief tied over his eyes, and is then turned loose to catch some one else. He catches this way and then that way, clutching at the air, because he can not see. We are not to go at our work in this manner. We are to do away with our blinders, and have the Spirit of God to enlighten the eyes of our understanding, so that we shall know what is meant in due season. When the Jews read the ninth chapter of Isaiah, they thought their Messiah was to be a person of great fame and power and glory, who would lead them in a successful revolt against their Roman oppressors; but they made a great mistake. In the time of Jesus the Jews said no prophets had ever come out of Galilee, and therefore this man of Nazareth could not be the Christ. Mistaken again! These preconceived theories of theirs blinded them. God sent a special messenger to prepare the way for Christ's first advent, John the Baptist. He was to make the crooked ways straight and the rough places plain for the coming One. Just so will his second advent be heralded. My brethren, you are now standing in the place of John the Baptist. I am now as John the Baptist. This message of preparation for the return of the King is represented in Rev. 14:6, 7. It calls for repentance and faith in view of the judgment at hand. Some one may say this text says “an angel,” and that I am not an angel, and I can not preach this message. Look! The text says this messenger preaches the everlasting gospel. Has God ever sent literal angels to preach the gospel? He sends men: his whomsoever he sends, whomsoever he inspires to preach the gospel for this time, are represented by this messenger. Not slowly, slowly; the angel flies with the everlasting gospel,—flies to do the work of God. This, then, is our work,—this everlasting gospel our message. The judgment is at hand, but as in the days before the flood, men are buying and selling, engaged in worldly business, and know not that the kingdom is at hand. This world is at strife with the gospel. Jesus said, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.” “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matt. 24:9, 13. This gospel of suffering, of endurance with patience, is totally opposite to the spirit of this world. Our only safety is in following implicitly the leading of God. Gideon and his army did not gain the victory by force of arms. At God's command they broke their pitchers and shouted, “The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon.” Some are saying the law of God is done away. Over the chapel doors in many places back in the country we see a copy of the treaty between China and the foreign power represented by the missionary locating a particular chapel. We come with a message by the authority of that law lodged in the ark of the covenant in heaven, in patience to proclaim it, if need be to lay down our lives for it. I do not say it is wrong for us to comply with the request of this government and of foreign consuls in posting treaty regulations, etc., in the chapels, but we can not depend upon the protection of earthly powers in the promulgation of this message; for the dragon (Rev. 12:17) is very wroth with the commandments of God and with those who teach and obey them. Our message is drawn from the Old and New Testaments. The everlasting gospel embraces the two as representing the revealed will of God. Rev. 12:1 represents the church under the symbol of a woman. The moon under her feet is said the Old Testament, with its types and shadows prefiguring the way of salvation. This is the foundation of the church, which is clothed with the full brightness of the gospel of salvation. The Old Testament is not obsolete; it contains up-to-date truth. This, then,—the everlasting gospel which is represented by the three angels of Revelation 14, and which is to prepare the world for the second advent of Christ,—is our message. It is the present truth of to-day, meat in due season for this generation, a message of obedience to the commandments of God and faith in Jesus Christ. What Is the Beast?
By George I. Butler
“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name [or names, margin] of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death: and his deadly wound was healed; and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome10 them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity, shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.” Rev. 13: 1-10. This scripture is in the chapter immediately preceding the one in which the third angel’s message is found, the principal burden of which is to warn all who will receive it of the terrible consequences of worshiping “the beast,” etc. Therefore, in order to get a clear understanding of the third message, it is absolutely necessary to understand what “the beast” is. The book of Revelation is quite largely a book of symbols. A symbol is something which stands for something else because of a similarity or resemblance to it. The prophet beheld in his vision a beast, or monster, emerging from the sea, which the winds were lashing into furious waves. This creature seemed to have seven distinct heads, from which grew ten horns. The creature was in appearance like a leopard. It had feet like a bear, and a mouth like a lion. The dragon (of chapter 12) gave it his power and seat and great authority. In symbolic prophecy, we have this forcible figure: the great sea of humanity is represented by the sea of waters; when lashed into immense waves, monsters appear, symbolizing empires, kingdoms, nations: as, in the sea of humanity, when wars and tumults and fearful collisions of mankind occur, great nations and political powers emerge to do their work in the earth. It is very clear that this symbolic beast was used to represent a great and mighty world-power. It is plainly stated that the sea out of which the beast emerged was a sea of peoples: “And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest . . . are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.” Rev. 17: 15. Thus arose the power symbolized by this beast, the great Roman empire, universal in the days of its prosperity, the mightiest political force in history. It appeared in two great phases: first, as a pagan or heathen power; second, as a papal or professed Christian power. But, lest we be considered as taking too much for granted, it will be well for us to consider quite carefully at this important point of the last, closing message for mankind, the true identity of this Roman beast or symbolical creature. Therefore we will briefly compare the prophecy of Daniel 7 with the one we have been considering. It would be well for the reader to turn and read the seventh chapter of Daniel and compare it with Rev. 13: 1-10. We want to make no mistake in this matter. Daniel beheld in this vision the same great sea of peoples that John beheld. In his case, four great monsters arose out of this symbolic sea. The first resembled a lion, having wings; the second, a bear; the third, a leopard with four wings and four heads; and the fourth was a nondescript beast, too fierce and terrible to be fitly symbolized by any creature on earth. It had great iron teeth, and ten horns upon its head. He calls it “dreadful and terrible.” It devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet. As he beheld it, a change took place among its ten horns: three disappeared, and in their place a sturdy “little horn” appeared; “and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.” The next event in the vision was the great judgment scene of the last day, the Ancient of days presiding, and more than a hundred million million angels in attendance: “The judgment was set, and the books were opened.” The leading commentators of the Protestant world have agreed as to the meaning of this wonderful prophecy, that it points out the successive empires of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Grecia, and Rome, and then the coming of the great judgment day. The last of these prophetic powers was greater than any of the others; first, as pagan Rome, and second, as Rome ruled by the popes. An angel appeared on the scene, and explained the substance of the vision, especially the last portion, that relating to papal Rome, in these words: “The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth. . . . And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings [or kingdoms] that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings [that is, kingdoms]. And he shall speak great words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and the law [American Revised Version]: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” Dan. 7: 23-25. Most certainly this is a prophetic description of the papacy. So the great Martin Luther and his fellow Reformers understood it; and so John Wesley, Adam Clarke, and other leading Protestant commentators believed; and so the facts of history demonstrate. This scripture is the declaration of the angel of God to Daniel and to all mankind of the character and work of the papacy. The great words spoken against the Most High refer to the blasphemous titles borne by the popes,—“God on earth,” “Christ’s Vicegerent,” the “Vicar of the Son of God,”—and the claim that the church has power to forgive sins, etc. He should “wear out the saints of the Most High.” From fifty million to one hundred million martyrs slain by this power, often tortured by the Inquisition, fully justifies the use of the words, “wear out,” a most forcible expression of the long-continued persecutions of this power. He should “think to change” the times and the law of the Most High, that is, claim power to do it. In multitudes of passages from Catholic authors, catechisms, etc., the claim is put forth most positively that “the church” (the Roman Catholic Church) has the right to change even the law of God; and most surprising of all, Catholics boldly taunt Protestants with keeping the Sunday, which the Catholic Church has made to take the place formerly occupied by the Sabbath of the fourth commandment,—one of the immutable ten words spoken and written by God himself. As there is not in all the Bible one single text of scripture in behalf of Sunday sacredness, the Catholic claim of changing the Sabbath seems clearly demonstrated. History also emphatically demonstrates the same conclusion. The foregoing scripture also teaches that this power would have apparent ability, for a given period,—“a time and times and the dividing of time,”—to accomplish the work already specified. “A time” is an expression meaning a year. The ancient year of the Jews was 360 days. One “time,” therefore, would be 360 prophetic days, or years; plus “times” (plural), twice 360, that is, 720; plus half a time, 180, would equal, in all, 1260 years. The papacy received power from the emperor of Rome, Justinian, going into effect in the year A. D. 538, to make the pope, or bishop of Rome, head over all the churches, conferring also power to correct heretics. This bestowal of power by the emperor of Rome is considered by Roman Catholics themselves as a most important era in the history of the papacy. The three horns were plucked up at about the same time by the armies of Justinian, under the influence of the papacy, to make way for its power to become well established. Thus, A. D. 538 becomes an established era of importance in the pope’s history and assumptions. It marks the beginning of his political power, and becomes the proper date for the commencement of papal supremacy. But when must the supremacy end? The period of its continuance, 1260 years, added to A. D. 538, the time of its commencement, would mark 1798 as its close. Did anything remarkable in the history of that power occur that year?—Most certainly; the French republic, then existing, sent an army under General Berthier, who entered Rome, put an end to the papal government, established a republic in its place, carried the pope a prisoner to France, where he died in exile. For a brief period then there was no pope in existence. These are very plain historical facts, easily verified. Here we have a chain—A. D. 538, the 1260 years of papal supremacy, and 1798, marking its close—which is a wonderful demonstration of the truthfulness and inspiration of the prophetic writings. The year 1798 marks the beginning of the time of the end, during which special light and truth concerning the second advent of our Saviour should go forth. What has all of this to do with the third angel’s message?—Much every11 way. Daniel gave a description of the rise, characteristics, and fall of this power some six hundred years before John the revelator described the same power, and foretold the message which would go forth in the very last days of human history, warning us of its final doom and the terrible consequences of obeying its teachings. We reserve for another article an explanation of the beast power warned against by the third angel’s message.