Last week we spoke of some general features relative to the seven last plagues. This week we desire to present six of these plagues; viz., the first five and the seventh, and to notice especially one striking feature prominent in all of them.
The opening verse of the sixteenth chapter of Revelation relates the commission which is given to the angels having10charge over the seven last plagues: “And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.”
The word “ways” would indicate that all these angels do not go the same way. Some go one way, and some go another way. In other words, these plagues are not universal. Some fall upon one place, and some upon another.
A Noisome and Grievous Sore
“And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark [brand] of the beast, and upon them which worshiped his image.” Rev. 16:2.
From this it is evident that the first plague falls without any warning. Men will awaken to the fact that a new disease—“a noisome and grievous sore”—is working devastation and death. There is no train of events beforehand which indicates the approach of this malady. It is, to use a legal phrase, “an act of God,” that is, something which is in no sense the act or deed of men. It “falls,” says the scripture; it falls as the rain. Men suffer from it; but beyond this they have no part in it. It is a judgment of God upon men, but it is not the deed of man. Ever since the fall of the human race, God, from time to time, on account of their sins, has visited judgments upon the inhabitants of the earth. Frequently in the administration of these punishments, God uses one nation to scourge another. Thus he used Assyria to scourge Israel. Hence the words, “Woe to the Assyrian [margin], the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.” Isa. 10:5.
But this plague, this visitation of judgment, is of a different character; no man or men are used as agents for the chastisement of their fellows. The pain and torture of this plague are an inevitable necessity arising by reason of the operation of God, unaided and unmixed with human agency of any name or nature. The plague is wholly and altogether an “act of God.”
This plague falls upon those who have the mark, or brand, of the beast, and upon them who worship his image. The specific sins which call down this judgment are definitely stated.
As the Blood of a Dead Man
In nature and kind the second plague resembles the first: “And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.” Rev. 16:3.
There is no indication that this plague gives any warning of its advent. Ships will be sailing the ocean as they have since the time of the flood, when the water will become, or, more literally, be “congealed,” “as the blood of a dead man.” This also is an act of God in which no human agency is used.
There has been, according to the Scriptures, great persecution. Men have slain saints and prophets, and this is why God gives them blood to drink. And the third plague is similar, affecting the rivers and fountains of waters.
“And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which had power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.” Rev. 16:8, 9.
This plague, therefore, is caused by the sun being so hot that men are scorched with fire. Scorching is the very next thing to burning. And this is also an “act of God,” without the employment of any human instrumentality to administer it.
A Kingdom Full of Darkness
“And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.” Rev. 16:10, 11.
This “act of God” is localized. It falls upon “the seat of the beast and his kingdom.” The beast is the papacy; consequently Rome, the city of the Vatican, is the seat of the beast. The term “his kingdom” may apply to Roman Catholic countries, or to that territory formerly embraced by the Papal States, but which was made a part of United Italy under Victor Emmanuel in 1870. A plebiscite was held in the Papal States, Oct. 2, 1870. Out of 167,548 votes, 133,681 were cast for union with the kingdom of Italy, and 1,507 against such union. The remainder of the votes were not cast. From this it will be clear that the entire movement was a popular one. It was the people against the pope.
Nevertheless, the papacy has ever held that the whole transaction was a most iniquitous one. It was likened to the taking of Naboth’s vineyard by the wicked Ahab. See “Life of Pius IX,” Mgr. Bernard O’Reilly, chap. 34, par. 11. From that day to this there has been a constant agitation emanating from the Vatican, clamoring for the restoration of the temporal sovereignty of the papacy. Present events would indicate that it is not at all beyond the realm of possibility that the papacy may yet succeed in her endeavors to possess herself of the much-coveted civil scepter in the near future. The event of the plague, however, will make manifest the exact extent of its operation.
Voices, Thunders, Lightnings, Earthquakes
Passing by the sixth plague, for the present, we come to the seventh and last. “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon come in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. . . . And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.” Rev. 16:17-21.
Let it be noted that there are a number of separate and distinct acts in these plagues; but all of them, like the five plagues already considered, are acts of God without the use of any human agency. There are voices, and thunders, and lightnings. There is a great earthquake, such as never was since men were upon the earth. The cities of the nations fall. Great Babylon comes in remembrance before God. Islands flee away, and mountains are not found, and great hail falls from heaven.
It is very evident that when this plague is poured out, the destruction of this old earth has arrived. Certainly when there is an earthquake such as was not since men were on the earth, when islands are fleeing away, and mountains can not be found,—certainly when all this is going on,—the foundations of the earth are giving way, and everything is going to pieces. In short, with this seventh plague comes the end of the world; for, according to the seventeenth verse, this plague is poured out into the air. This is the time when the heavens depart as a scroll when it is rolled together, and a great voice from the throne speaks the words, “It is done.”
Now all the things which occur under this plague, considered by themselves, come without warning. How true this is of “voices, and thunders, and lightnings,” and of earthquakes, of the disappearance of islands and mountains. In fact, to come without warning is in the very nature of all these things.
Nowadays men scoff at the idea that earthquakes are divine judgments. We are told that a good and merciful God would not cause his creatures such suffering, sorrow, and death. Such a course is supposed to be utterly out of harmony with the nature of a divine and beneficent Creator.
But God himself, in the Inspired Book, distinctly and specifically takes the responsibility for these very things. “For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains.” “The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.” Deut. 32:22; Nahum 1:5, 6, R. V.
And Yea, verily all of these things are “acts of God.” Men may reason that they are strange acts. Aye, aye, they are; the Scripture styles them so: “For the Lord shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act.” The entire record11makes it clear that these plagues are his act, his strange act. They are strange because they are so different from God’s ordinary way of dealing with the human family. They are strange, for they are not commingled with mercy. They come only when divine patience is exhausted, when the limit of God’s forbearance is reached, when the Lord God of hosts hath “determined” “a consumption” “upon the whole earth.” They do not fall until the fiat has gone forth: “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Rev. 22:11.
Will there be no warning? no way by which men can tell when these terrible calamities are nigh at hand? Has God left the human family to sail an uncharted sea into the vortex of this Charybdis?—O, no; for “the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.”
And in a most striking manner, and by a most wonderful way—marvelous because of its simplicity—God has provided a sign whereby men may know when these things are close at hand.
That way is made clear in the story of the sixth plague, the only one of the seven not considered in this article. It will be the subject of the next article.
Madison, Tenn.
The Time to Help the Colored People
By C. F. MCVAGH
C. F. MCVAGH
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” Eccl. 3:1. October 2 has been appointed for the annual offering to the work for the colored people. God frequently commends in the Bible those who recognize the time of their visitation and obey the instructions that he sends by the testimonies of his Spirit and by the providences set before them.
“And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do.” 1 Chron. 12:32. If God’s people ever had evidence of anything, they have evidence of the fact that a strong and united effort should be made for the colored people in the South just now. In almost every discourse at the recent General Conference at Washington, D. C., the servant of the Lord referred to the great work to be done in the South and in the East. From a Testimony entitled “A Call for Colored Laborers,” I quote: “There is the greatest need for all kinds of missionary work in the South. Without delay workers must be prepared for this field. Our people should provide a fund for the education of men and women in the Southern States, who, being accustomed to the climate, can work without endangering their health.
“Promising young men and young women should be educated to become teachers. They should have the very best advantages. Schoolhouses and meeting-houses should be built in different places, and teachers employed.”
“Our churches in the North, as well as in the South, should do what they can to help support the school work for the colored children. The schools already established should be faithfully maintained. The establishment of new schools will require additional funds. Let all our brethren and sisters do their part whole-heartedly to place these schools on vantage-ground.”
Aside from this plain instruction God is telling us by his providences that now is the time to work for the colored people. Never since the days of the climax of the abolition sentiment has there been such a universal interest in, and widespread study of, the negro and the race problem in the South as at the present. In evidence of the popular interest in the subject, I need only refer to the articles in the June and August numbers of Hampton’s Magazine by Judge Harris Dickson, entitled respectively, “The Unknowable Negro” and “The Negro in Politics,” together with William Archer’s “White and Black in the South,” in the July number of McClure’s. The question is a live one just now. All shades of opinion on the problem are being freely expressed and publicly discussed.
Ex-Gov. Hoke Smith of Georgia, in his last message to the legislature, took occasion to deal specifically with the race question as related to the public-school system; and Mr. P. A. Bruce, in his “Rise of the New South,” voices this significant opinion: “Already it is the ultimate fate of the negro that is in the balance, not the ultimate fate of the Southern States in consequence of the presence of the negro.”
Again: a Southern health officer, in presenting and studying statistics, makes this comment: “The negro is with you for all time. He is what you will make him, and it is ‘up to’ the white people to prevent him from becoming criminal, and to guard him against tuberculosis, syphilis, etc. If he is tainted with disease, you will suffer; if he develops criminal tendencies, you will be affected.”
What is the significance of all this interest and agitation? It is God’s providence telling his people that now is the time to give the message to the colored race. Ought not these things to stir our people to make a liberal offering October 2?
Nashville, Tenn.
L. F. STARR
By L. F. Starr
The Lord's Supper—No. 1
L. F. STARR
“THE LORD JESUS in the night in which he was betrayed took bread; and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remembrance of me. In like manner also the cup, after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood: this do, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord's death till he come.” 1 Cor. 11:23-26.
The Lord's supper was given to commemorate the great deliverance wrought by the death of the Son of God on Calvary. Till he shall come the second time in power and glory, this ordinance is to be celebrated by the followers of our Lord and Master. This blessed sacrament is the means by which his great work for us is kept in mind. “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.” 1 Cor. 11:28.
The examination is not the investigation of the life of another, but the solemn, sober scrutiny of one's own life. The implication is also made that the bread is to be eaten, and the cup to be drunk. This is the duty in perpetuity upon those who name this name, and having named his name, it is a perpetual accountability. It is in no sense whatever a matter that we may lay off at pleasure. It is a solemn covenant which we have entered into with him, and these vows are to be a perpetual liability. It is not a question of opinion, but of solemn obligation and blessed privilege upon every member of the church.
To those who are Christians, there is not a mere solemn and sacred obligation. It is a duty which we, as Christians, owe to him. When the ordinances of the Lord's house are being celebrated, the members of the church should bear in mind that this is a time for all to search their hearts to see if they are willing to humble themselves as little children, to walk the pathway of obedience.
Many members of the church have misunderstood this ordinance, and their duty toward this memorial. The church at Corinth misunderstood it. They had turned it into a common feast, or banquet, and did not discern the Lord's body. They had brought disgrace upon this solemnity; and the apostle instructs them and tells them to eat as unto the Lord. They had gone astray in this, and yet they were taught: “Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup,” according to the result of that examination. The bread is to be eaten, and the wine to be drunk, according to the nature of this responsibility and the result of this personal examination of ourselves.
There are a number of terms by which the holy ordinances or observances are named; and each one is significant of certain characteristics that belong to the ordinance. First and last, it is a memorial service. In performing it, ye do it “in remembrance of me,” says Christ, “for as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord's death till he come.” 1 Cor. 11:26. It bridges the whole dispensation from his first advent until he comes again with power and great glory. But many who profess this name seldom appear around the Lord's table with the people of God to “proclaim the Lord's death till he come.” Can we deny him in this so sacred and important responsibility?
Some Men Never Make a Mistake
“SOME men never make a mistake because they never make a move.”
How Christian Women Should Dress
By Daniel H. Kress
D. H. KRESS, M. D.
“BE not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Rom. 12: 2. The Word of God does not encourage carelessness in dress, neither does it sanction extravagance. Christian women should be models of neatness, and their attire should be simple, appropriate, and becoming. Their aim should not be to be odd or peculiar in their dress, but to dress modestly and healthfully, and to have their dress conform to the standard of God’s Word. If in so doing they find themselves out of harmony with the existing fashion, it does not matter.
If the world should introduce a convenient and modest attire, there would be no virtue in dressing differently merely to appear peculiar; but when the fashion demands distorted, crippled, and useless feet, as in China, it is a sin to conform to fashion. If it demands compression of the waist by tight lacing, thus crippling the lungs and interfering with their action, preventing the waste matter from being eliminated, and making it impossible to take in the full supply of life-giving air, Christian women should refuse to conform to such a fashion. They can not comply with a fashion which calls for heavy, trailing skirts that sweep the filth and germs off the streets, for it is both extravagant and unhygienic. The wearing of artificial hair pads or rolls produces unnatural heat of the brain by bringing an excessive amount of blood to it. This congestion causes headache and neuralgia. Christian women should therefore avoid such a fashion.
The high-heeled boots and shoes are another modern abomination. Nature calls for elasticity in walking, but the high heels prevent this; the walk becomes stiff, the sensitive spinal cord, nerves, and brain are jarred, causing irritability and nervousness.
To be compelled to conform to these fashions would mean spiritual death in a short time to the most saintly woman, for in order to have spiritual health, every organ must be permitted freedom of action to do its appointed work; and the brain and the nerves, through which the Creator communicates, must be sacredly guarded. It is safe to say compliance with the demands of fashion have done more to mar the image of God in man and to destroy the human family than any other one thing. Here is sufficient cause for the rapid degeneracy of the race, to which attention is everywhere being called. Deformities, displacements, cancers, and a host of other diseases are among the evils due to these fashions. Infants, as a result of conformity to fashion, are born with weakly bodies and dwarfed minds; they come to remain but a few days, not having sufficient vitality to survive their advent into the world.
How should Christian women dress? — They should dress sensibly, healthfully, and neatly. They should study the Word of God and the human body instead of the fashion-plates. There should be no extravagance in dress. It is the character that should attract, and not the oddities or extravagance of what a woman wears. “A woman’s attraction should not depend on such external things as the arrangement of her hair, the jewelry she wears, or the style of her dress, but upon her inner life, the imperishable beauty of a quiet and gentle spirit; for this is very precious in God’s sight. That was how those holy women of old, who placed their hopes in God, made themselves attractive.” 1 Peter 3: 2, 3.
It is related of a great artist, that in drawing a picture of Christ seated at a table with his disciples, he put his whole being into it, making every effort to produce a face just as expressive of Christ’s character as possible. After the work was complete, he viewed it with satisfaction. Upon the table in front of Christ were some golden drinking vessels. Some ladies, in passing by, looked at the grand picture, and one of them exclaimed, “See the beautiful glasses!” The artist, it is said, took his brush and drew it over the glasses, saying, “I will have nothing in the picture that will detract from the loveliness of that face.”
The aim of every woman should be to reveal Christ’s life. Any other attraction, or anything worn that detracts from that face, should be laid aside. The attraction of Christian women should be that inward adorning of a meek and quiet spirit. There is little use, however, in urging any one not to wear this or that. As long as the love of these things exists in the heart, the laying of them off would only be like cutting the foliage off a tree. Every reform must come from within. When the heart is converted, changes will be cheerfully made, and everything out of harmony with God’s Word will drop off as soon as light reveals the wrong.
“Smile, Woman, Smile!”
HELEN A. STEINHAUER
My dear dead mother scarce would recognize
This haggard face,— these dreary, mirthless eyes,
The anxious brow, beneath the graying hair,
Once glossy brown, her pride and special care.
Friends of my youth would startled gaze
To see the changes — less of time and place
That circumstance. A saddened, bruisèd heart
And weary, painful days all bear a part
In changing her whom they of yore
Called “Sunshine-maker,”— now, alas! no more
Loved and praised for bonnie, blithesome ways
As in the old and happy girlhood days!
Smile, woman, smile! What if thy heart be sore
Burdened and sickened, saddened to the core?
Smile, woman, smile! for friends depart
When faces shadow forth the tingling smart
Of secret suffering.
Smile, woman, smile! Expected ’tis of thee
To set thy griefs aside. Know friends and neighbors flee
From saddened faces such as thine; those only care
To linger who would have thee share — nay, bear —
Their sorrows. Smile, woman, smile!
For Jesus knows thy grief; and in a little while
Sweet rest and peace, where silent heartaches cease,
Where friendships deepen, and where joys increase,
Where pain and sadness are fore’er unknown,
Where no tears fall, before God’s great, white throne,
Heaven’s bliss shall amply make amends to thee
For all the pain and grief which now must be!
Battle Creek, Mich.
The King Reproved
WHEN Frederick the Great, of Prussia, was ridiculing Christ and his church before a company of his nobles and generals who were convulsed with laughter at the king’s coarse witticisms, there was one brave general who remained gloomily silent. It was Joachim von Zieten, one of the ablest and bravest generals there. Rising at last and shaking his gray head solemnly, he said to the king: “Your Majesty knows well that in war I have never feared any danger, and everywhere I have boldly risked my life for you and my country. But there is One above us who is greater than you and I—greater than all men; he is the Saviour and Redeemer, who has died also for your Majesty, and has dearly bought us all with his own blood. This Holy One I can never allow to be mocked or insulted; for on him repose my faith, my comfort, and my hope in life and death. In the power of this faith your brave army has courageously fought and conquered. If your Majesty undermines this faith, you undermine at the same time the welfare of your state. I salute your Majesty.” Frederick looked at the man in admiration, and, then and there, in the presence of the illustrious company, apologized to him for what he had said. — Selected.
The Barotseland Mission, Africa
By R. C. Porter
R. C. PORTER
In company with Mrs. Porter, I left Cape Town, May 23, for the Barotseland Mission. After a ride of two days and nights we reached Bulawayo, where we lay over one day and two nights, waiting for connections for Pemba. As there are none of our people living in Bulawayo, it was necessary for us to lodge at a hotel. We took our meals at a café, to lessen the expense. One item will show something of the cost of living in this city.
Elder W. H. Anderson and daughter Naomi and Elder R. C. Porter and wife leaving the Barotseland Mission, the two latter to take the train
We had arranged for meals at fifty cents each. As we ate no meat, we called for eggs instead. We then called for milk in place of tea or coffee. About half a glass of nice rich milk was furnished to each. Thinking we were entitled to a full glass, we called for another order, receiving another half glass. It was all done with such grace on the part of the waiters that we ate our breakfast with a hearty relish. What was our surprise on receiving our bill to find that, in addition to the price agreed upon for meals, there was an extra charge of fifty cents for milk. The next meal we tried another café, but with similar results. This is a sample of the surprises awaiting an American while becoming initiated in traveling in Africa.
We had a pleasant trip from Bulawayo to Monze, where we were met by Elder W. H. Anderson and daughter, Naomi, with an ox team. We left the station at about 2 A. M., reaching the mission, a distance of six miles, at 7 A. M. We were happily surprised to find that, instead of a wild-looking frontier station, the surroundings were such as to remind us of home life and civilization,—a neat brick cottage for the superintendent and helpers; a Brick chapel for school and Sabbath services, and another brick cottage under construction for Brother and Sister J. R. Campbell, and another brick building for the natives' dining- and study-room. The native thatched huts for the students' living quarters, and a native cattle kraal, reminded us that we were in the wilds of Africa. The flower garden and the fruit orchard showed the care of an experienced manager.
DARKEST AFRICA
After a good, hearty breakfast we started out to look over some of the places of interest on the station. We tramped until nearly noon, but touched only a little corner of the five-thousand-acre farm.
Aside from this, there are two hundred acres with each of the six out-stations. This land is given by the government on condition that it be used continuously for mission purposes. When it fails to be used thus, it falls back to the government.
At the central station they have a great blessing that is not found on every five-thousand-acre farm; it is a spring of pure living water.
There is sufficient water here to irrigate a large field for cultivation. Mealies (corn) does well here, and there is a good profit in dairy farming. Elder Anderson has a nice herd of native cows, so their table is supplied with delicious separated cream and sweet butter.
The stock is in good condition. We remarked that their oxen must be well fed to look so sleek and fair. Elder Anderson replied, “We never feed them anything. They get their living the year round on the veldt when not in use.” And it is true of the cows and other stock as well. The native cow does not give a great amount of milk, but it is usually rich. The calves can not be weaned, as in America, else the mother cow will give no milk after three or four days; the calf must be kept with her, and this lessens the milk for the separator.
Each out-station is equipped with an ox team of six yoke, and a plow, that the work may be made self-supporting. As fast as possible these out-stations are also furnished cows. Some of Elder Anderson's out-stations are even now a little more than meeting expenses, and all above what is needed for the support of the teachers, is returned to the central station. The need is for means to open up more out-stations and equip them faster.
The instruction to us is to step faster, and our burden is to set these darkened lands all ablaze with the light of the message. Every station established is a torch that lights the territory for miles around, so let the money flow into the treasury that more torches may be lighted, for the African darkness is very dense. There are forty boys and ten girls at this station. Since Brother C. Robinson, a graduate nurse from the Plumstead Sanitarium, and Brother Campbell and wife from the Solusi Mission, have connected with the Barotseland Mission, it is well equipped with laborers, and is pushing the work vigorously and successfully into the vast field of Northwest Rhodesia. We are confident that the plans now being laid by this mission will result in the rapid extension of the work in this part of the field.
Returning from our visit to this mission, we spent one day at Victoria Falls. We greatly enjoyed seeing what is known as the greatest waterfall in the world. This fall is four hundred feet high, or twice the height of Niagara, and more than twice the width, and the river at this point is a mile and a quarter wide. The channel below the falls is narrower, but the regular flow at any one point is not so great except during the rainy season. The natural scenery is grand, but the surroundings have not been beautified by the expenditure of large sums of money, as is the case at Niagara Falls.
