NO. 823: THE PASSOVER OF THE FIRST-BORNS

No. 823

“And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.” (Exod. 12:14)

Once again the time comes to celebrate the Memorial of our Lord’s crucifixion, the correct time for 2026 being after 6 p.m. on March 31. The date is determined by this method: The moon nearest the Vernal Equinox becomes new in Jerusalem on March 19 at 3:23 a.m., thus establishing 6 p.m. March 18 as the beginning of Nisan 1, Bible reckoning. Counting forward to Nisan 14, we arrive at 6 p.m. March 31. Any time that evening after 6 p.m. would be proper for the celebration.

The date of the Paschal Supper at which the Jews ate a lamb, commemorative of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage and of the sparing of their first-born at that time, was of course calculated by the Jewish method of reckoning time; viz., lunar time. (Exod. 12:2-14) Instead of dividing the months as we do, they allowed the new moon to mark the beginning of a new month; and the difference between the sun time (solar time) and moon time (lunar time) was equalized every year by always beginning the new year with the appearing of the new moon about the spring equinox. The Jews still maintain this method of reckoning in celebrating their religious festivals. And since our Lord, the Apostles, and the early Church followed this same rule for determining the date for the annual celebration of our Lord’s Last Supper, we also follow it.

THE PASSOVER MEMORIAL

The Passover celebrates one of the most momentous chapters in the history of the Israelites, and is associated with their national birth. According to the Scriptures, God had brought to the throne of Egypt a Pharaoh of indomitable will. Although others might have been in line for the throne, God favored this man attaining it, knowing his natural arrogance and obstinacy would allow divine power to be manifested in the succession of plagues which his actions would make necessary and proper. We read, “And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to show in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.” (Exod. 9:16) The ten plagues sent upon the Egyptians were manifestations of divine justice against their unjust treatment of the Israelites, God’s chosen people. The last of the ten plagues relates to our subject, The Passover.

The edict was that all of the first-born of the Egyptians were to die, but the first-born of the Israelites would not die. (Exod. 11:5-7) The Israelites were directed to mark themselves as separate and distinct from the Egyptians by each family taking a lamb without blemish and bringing it into the house on the tenth day of the first month. They were to cherish it and care for it until the fourteenth day, when they were to slay it. Its blood was to be sprinkled on their outside doorposts and lintels, while its flesh was to be roasted in the fire without a bone of it being broken. It was to be eaten in the night of the fourteenth with bitter herbs and with unleavened bread. Strengthened by this food, the next day they were to march out of Egypt to go to the Promised Land for an inheritance under the Covenant made with Abraham.

The first-borns of the Egyptians died that night, but the first-borns of the Israelites were passed over, just as the Lord had foretold through Moses. By the divine edict given through Moses, this event was memorialized every year at the appropriate season. On the tenth day of the first month, a lamb was taken into each of the houses of the Israelites, one for each family or group. All leaven, representing sin, was banished from their homes, and only unleavened bread was eaten with the lamb. The annual celebration of the Passover was for eight days, the first and the eighth day being high days, to be specially commemorated.

The Passover season is not only the oldest institution of the Jewish people, it is also their most joyous festival. It celebrates one of the earliest manifestations of divine favor toward them, and it reminds them of the prophecies of the still greater favor to come to them in the future: “Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers.” (Jer. 16:14-15)

It was further prophesied that this deliverance from Egypt at the Passover time, the most notable event in the past history of the Israelites, would pale in comparison with future blessings: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord.” (Jer. 31:31-32)

This New Covenant is old as it relates to the Law and the divine requirements, but it is new in the sense that it will be based upon better sacrifices and have a better Mediator. It will be able to do exceedingly better things for Israel than Moses was able to accomplish as the mediator of the Covenant made at Sinai, although all his endeavors to serve the people were noble. Moses spoke of this better Mediator and better Covenant: “For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” (Acts 3:22-23; Deut. 18:15)

THE MEANING OF THE PASSOVER CELEBRATION

For centuries, observant Jews have celebrated the Passover memorial, seeing its outward significance but not recognizing that the slain lamb typified Jesus – “the Lamb of God” – whose death constitutes the ransom price for the sins of the whole world. His death was necessary before the promise to Abraham could possibly have fulfillment. In order to be everlastingly efficacious, the redemption from sin must be based upon a better sacrifice than the annual sacrifice of a literal lamb.

It was necessary that Jesus become a perfect man in order to give His life as a sacrifice for mankind, but it was also necessary that He ascend on high to the Father’s right hand after finishing that sacrificing work. There He was to be the Spiritual Messiah, who will in due time accomplish for fleshly Israel all the gracious promises made to them in the Covenant with Abraham. They will be used by the Lord to convey His blessings to all nations, peoples and tongues. The world was under the condemnation for sin – “For the wages of sin is death.” (Rom. 6:23) Man’s penalty had to be met before this condemnation of death could be fully and forever set aside – before man could be entirely and forever lifted out of the conditions of sin and death and back to the conditions of eternal life and harmony with the Creator.

In harmony with the divine arrangement, Jesus first offered Himself to Israel as their King, but Israel did not recognize Him as their Messiah, because He had neither wealth, armies or influential friends. They disdained Him as a deceiver. When He declared Himself the Son of God and their deliverer, they thought Him an impostor and blasphemer, and worthy of death. They sentenced Him in their own Sanhedrin Court, but not having the authority to execute Him themselves, they charged Him with the only crime which the Roman Governor would hear – treason to the Roman Emperor. By threatening to associate Pilate with Jesus in treason, they finally effected the crucifixion of the antitypical Passover Lamb. He was stretched upon the cross much after the manner in which they impaled their Passover lamb for its roasting.

THE LAMB OF GOD

Note that Jesus presented Himself as the Lamb of God and was rejected exactly at the appropriate time – the tenth day of the first month, when the Jews were taking up their lambs for the Passover. His presentation was on the exact day and in exactly the manner specified by the Prophet Zechariah: “Behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. . . . and he shall speak peace unto the heathen [nations]: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.” (Zech. 9:9-10) This was fulfilled to the very letter as the Prophet foretold, and it was on that very day that Israel’s “double” of experiences began. Israel was blinded with self-satisfaction and repudiated the lowly King, refusing to accept Him as their Lamb and to receive Him into their hearts and homes. Nevertheless, He proceeded to fulfill this wonderful type, dying as the antitypical Passover Lamb on the fourteenth day.

Some of the Jews, the Apostles of Jesus and others whose hearts were in a humble, obedient and faithful condition, quickly received a great blessing through Him. These faithful ones fed upon the Lamb and through Him the unleavened bread of God’s grace. The blood of Jesus was sprinkled upon the door posts and the lintels of their hearts. Members of this “Household of Faith” still celebrate and commemorate the death of the Lamb of God as the foundation for all their hopes, joys and blessings. They are continually refreshed by the favor of the Lord, whether they be poor or rich, whether their honors be many or few as respects earthly things.

Those faithful followers of Jesus were recognized by the Father on the day of Pentecost when He received them to a higher plane, begetting them of the Holy Spirit. Those faithful in following in the footsteps of Jesus will share with Him the Spiritual Kingdom through which the earthly blessings will soon begin to come to Israel and to all the world. Not only will Messiah be King of the Jews, but as the prophecy of Zechariah declares, His Kingdom “shall be from sea to sea” (world-wide). All nations will recognize His power and glory, and at His name every knee will bow and every tongue confess, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:10-11) Israel will receive the glorious Messiah promised to them when He is revealed in the end of this age, but, except for a remnant, they will have missed the honor first offered to them of constituting His Spiritual Bride, as the Prophets foretold. (Isa. 1:9; Isa. 10:21-23; Psa. 45:9-14)

God kept hidden the fact that Messiah’s Kingdom would be a spiritual one. Not one promise of a Spiritual Messiah was given either in the Law or the Prophets, for every promise from Genesis to Malachi is earthly. This was the promise to Abraham: “For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.” (Gen. 13:15) Israel has not lost this promise. Not only is a remnant of them most prominently represented in the Spiritual Seed of Abraham, but Abraham and all their faithful Prophets are to be made “princes [rulers] in all the earth.” (Psa. 45:16)

The seed of Abraham will be uplifted and made the channel of divine blessings to all peoples. As the Apostle Paul said, “God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew.” (Rom. 11:2) He is about to fulfill to them every good promise under His New Covenant, with its greater Mediator and grander antitypical priesthood symbolized by Melchizedek and foretold by the Prophet Malachi. (Jer. 31:31; Psa. 110:4; Mal. 3:1-3)

LIKE UNTO MOSES, BUT GREATER

According to God’s plan, the long-promised antitypical Priest, King, and Messiah will stand as the Mediator between God and Israel, as the antitype of Moses. The fact that He will be a spiritual Messiah and not in the flesh will not diminish His glory and power, but will augment them. From Him the Israelites will receive earthly glory and blessings beyond their fondest dreams. Under the New Covenant, a way of approach to God will be opened up for all Gentiles through Israel and the Mediator.

Thus it is written: “And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain [kingdom] of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion [the Spiritual Kingdom] shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Isa. 2:3) Any nation that will not recognize Jerusalem (the earthly Kingdom of Israel restored) as the divine government will receive no special blessing: “And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.” (Zech. 14:17)

Zechariah mentioned the blessing of the Gentiles when he said Messiah will “speak peace” unto the nations. But this blessing of peace will come first to Israel, God’s Chosen People, and then proceed through them to the Gentiles. The same holds true with respect to the selection of Spiritual Israelites, as we have already noticed how the “remnant” of Jews who were ready for Messiah received Jesus and the Pentecostal blessing. After giving the first opportunity for the spiritual blessings to Israel, the invitation to become Messiah’s associates on the spirit plane has been extended to the Gentiles throughout the Gospel Age – to those of them who have had the hearing ear and the understanding and obedient heart.

Thus, God has been selecting from both Jews and Gentiles worthy individuals for association with His Son, the Redeemer. These are but a “little flock” out of millions of nominal Christians. To this “little flock” the Redeemer said, “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) That Kingdom is to bless Israel, and through Israel it is to speak peace to all Gentiles – to every member of Adam’s race. It will afford all a full opportunity to return from sin and death conditions to everlasting life in harmony with God.

There are precious lessons and blessings for Israel in the Passover type, and in its antitype. Their condition of being blind and outcast from God’s favor was not to prevail forever, but merely until He had gathered Messiah’s “elect” associates on the spirit plane. Then all Israel will be recovered from this blindness, and abundant blessings will come to them. God intended for their casting off and blinding as a nation to work out for them a national blessing. Under adverse conditions they have been held together as a people, condemned as a whole, that they might receive mercy as a whole. (Rom. 11:30-32)

“CHURCH OF THE FIRST-BORN”

Remember that not all of the Israelites were in danger the night the Passover lamb was eaten – it was only the first-born who were “passed over.” A little later, God exchanged the first-born of every family for an entire tribe – the tribe of Levi. (Num. 3:12, 41) Hence that one tribe thereafter represented those saved by the passing over of the destroying angel – saved by the blood of the lamb and the eating of its flesh with bitter herbs and unleavened bread.

Note the types blended in this tribe of Levi:

(1) The spiritual Israelites constitute the primary type, with Aaron (who performed the sacrifices) being the type of the great High Priest, the glorified Messiah.[1] Aaron’s sons, the under-priests, typified the saintly few who have followed their Master in sacrificing faithfully unto death. As we have seen, the first of these were called out from among the Jews, God’s chosen people, but when not a sufficient number responded to the call, the remainder were accepted from among the Gentiles.

(2) Additionally, there is a class of faithful but less zealous followers of Jesus who have done noble work of service, but have failed to some extent of the proper sacrificing spirit. These, who correspond to the Levites, are similarly called from both Jews and Gentiles.

Together the two classes typed by the Priests and Levites constitute the “church of the firstborn.” (Heb. 12:23) Of these, the Apostle said: “Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” (Jas. 1:18) Selected first from the Jews and secondly from the Gentiles, they were further typified in the first-born of Israel who were passed over on that night when the first-born of Egypt were slain.

Thus, we see that this Gospel Age, from the time of the first Advent of Jesus to the time of the setting up of the Messianic Kingdom, is represented by that night. As the Prophet foretold, “For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth [civilized society], and gross darkness the [heathen] people.” (Isa. 60:2) During this dark night, the Household of Faith has sprinkled the blood of Jesus, the Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7), upon their door post. They have been under its protection, sharing in the unleavened bread of Truth and the strength and blessing freely provided by the sacrifice.

THE AFTER-BORN SAVED ALSO

A great mistake has been made by many of us in the past in supposing that only the firstborn are to be saved. An examination of the picture or type given to us through Israel’s Passover shows that this is clearly not the case. Instead of the firstborn of Israel being the only ones saved, the narrative shows that after that dark night came a morning of blessing and joy when all Israel went forth out of bondage – not merely the firstborn.

Under the command of Moses, the firstborn in the type led the people out of darkness and slavery into emancipation and light. They became the Priests and Levites, the religious leaders of the people. In like manner, the “Church of the Firstborn,” elected during this Gospel Age from Jews and Gentiles, will lead all the tribes of Israel put of the power of sin and death in the morning of the new dispensation, the Messianic Kingdom. In the type, Moses represented the great spiritual Messiah who will soon lead forth His people Israel and grant them all the blessings and privileges and favors included in the Abrahamic promise.

Only Israel was delivered from Egyptian bondage, crossing the Red Sea with dry feet, and only they experienced the special divine provi­dences of the wilderness, but this should not be understood to mean that Messiah will bless the natural seed of Abraham only. The blessing will come first to Israel, who are beloved for the fathers’ sakes, and they will be brought into Covenant relationship with God. Other nations are not included in the type, because in order to come into fellowship and relationship with God through the great Mediator, the Messiah, they will have to become citizens of Zion – they will have to become Israelites.

This may astonish some Christian people who are well-versed students of the Bible, because many of them have overlooked certain features of the divine promise of the New Covenant. We are distinctly told that the New Covenant is to be made between God and Israel, His chosen people, and not with any other nation, and thus it will be that all the families of earth will be blessed through Israel. (Gen. 12:3; Gen 28:14) The making of the New Law Covenant with Israel will bless the other nations because the opportunity will be granted to every nation and people to come under the terms of that New (Law) Covenant, mediated by the greater than Moses. To come under that Covenant will mean a full subordination to the divine law as expressed in the Law of Moses, the fulfilling of which is love.

After first blessing God’s chosen people, the Great Messiah will be pleased to serve all nations and peoples when they prove willing to accept His favors and conform to the divine laws. Thus all nations will gradually become of the seed of Abraham during Messiah’s reign, and by the end of His reign the promise of God to Abraham will be fulfilled: “And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” (Gen 28:14)

Here the two seeds are clearly identified: (1) The stars symbolize the spiritual seed, the antitypical Priests and Levites on the spirit plane. (2) The “dust of the earth” represents the earthly seed – Israel and all peoples who will be absorbed into Israel through Messiah’s mediation of the New Covenant. At the close of Messiah’s Kingdom, all mankind will be included in God’s Chosen People, because all who will refuse to hear and obey that great Prophet, Priest, and King will be cut off from life in the Second Death – everlasting destruction.

(Based on What Pastor Russell Wrote For the Overland Monthly, pages 93-98.)

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OUR LORD’S MEMORIAL SUPPER

It was in harmony with this type of the killing of the Passover lamb on the 14th day of the first month – the day preceding the seven days’ Feast of the Passover celebrated by the Jews – that our Lord died, as the antitypical Passover Lamb, “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” At no other time was it possible for our Lord to have finished in death the sacrifice which He began when He was thirty years of age, in His baptism unto death. Hence it was that, although the Jews many times sought to take Him, no man laid hands on Him, because “his hour was not yet come.” (John 7:8, 30)

It was at the close of His ministry, on the fourteenth day of the first month, on “the same night in which He was betrayed” (1 Cor. 11:23), that our Lord celebrated the typical Passover with His disciples, eating the typical lamb representing Himself and His own sacrifice for the sins of the world. The eating of this supper on the night preceding our Lord’s death, and yet on the same day, was made possible by the Jewish custom of beginning each day, not at midnight, but in the evening. The Lord evidently arranged all the affairs of Israel in conformity with the types they were to express.

As Jews born under the Law, it was obligatory for our Lord and His Apostles to celebrate this type at its proper time, but after they had thus observed this Jewish Supper, the Lord instituted for His disciples and for His entire Church a new thing to take its place. Our Lord did not institute another, higher type of the Passover. On the contrary, the type was about to begin its fulfillment – our Lord, as the antitypical Lamb, was about to be slain. As the Apostle expressed it, “For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.” (1 Cor. 5:7)

For anyone accepting Christ as the Passover Lamb, thus accepting the antitype as taking the place of the type, it would not be proper to prepare a typical lamb and eat it in commemoration of the typical deliverance. For all believers in Jesus as the true Passover Lamb, the appropriate thing going forward would be the sprinkling of the doorposts of the heart with His blood, realizing that through His blood they now have forgiveness of sins. (Heb. 10:22) Henceforth they must “eat,” or appropriate to themselves by faith, the merits of their Redeemer – the merits of the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all. By faith they must partake of those merits, and realize that as their sins were laid upon the Lord, and He died for them, so His merits and righteousness are imputed to them.

When our Lord instituted His Memorial Supper, called the Last Supper, it was a new symbol, built upon and related to the old Passover type, though not a part of it, being a commem­oration, or memorial of the antitype. We read: “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.” (1 Cor. 11:23-25)

The word “remembrance” implies that this new institution was to take the place of the former one, which was about to become obsolete by reason of fulfillment. This does not imply that it should be done without regard to time and place; it instead signifies that when the cup and unleavened bread were used thenceforth as a celebration of the Passover, it should on every occasion be considered a celebration, not of the type, but of the antitype. As it would not have been lawful, proper or typical to celebrate the Passover at any other time than that appointed of the Lord, likewise it is still not appropriate to celebrate the antitype at any other time than its anniversary.

The Apostle added, “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till he come.” (1 Cor. 11:26) This shows us that the disciples clearly understood that thenceforth the annual Passover celebration must have a new meaning for them: the broken loaf representing the Lord’s flesh, the cup representing His blood. Although this new institution was not laid upon His followers as a law, and no penalties were imposed for failing to properly observe it, the Lord knew well that all trusting in Him and appreciating Him as the antitypical Passover Lamb would be glad to take up the Memorial which He thus suggested to them.

(Excerpt from Studies in the Scriptures, Volume VI, Chapter XI, with editing.)

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We extend Christian love to all God’s people wherever they may assemble, and pray for the Lord’s blessing in this coming Memorial service.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

[1] The Aaronic priesthood typified chiefly the humiliation and sufferings of Christ, while His future glory as King and Priest was typed by Melchisedec, who sat as a priest upon his throne. (See Tabernacle Shadows, Chapter II.)

NO. 822: THINGS WHICH MUST SHORTLY COME TO PASS

No. 822

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass.” (Rev. 1:1)

These words, true when our Lord uttered them, are no less true now, some 1,900 years later. We are sure that the wonderful events with which this age is to close and the Millennial Age is to open are now near. There are some, however, who argue that the Lord and the Apostles must have been mistaken when they used such language; for they say, 1,900 years are not “shortly.” From the human standpoint, 1,900 years is a long period, but not so from the divine standpoint. The Prophet intimated this saying, “For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” (Psa. 90:4) The Apostle Peter responded, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2 Pet. 3:8)

Both the object and manner of the second coming have confused many, holding as they do that Christ’s second coming will be in a body of flesh and visible to mankind, and holding also, as they mostly do, that the object of His coming will be to gather His Saints to Himself and to utterly destroy the remainder of mankind and the world itself with fire. They have been led to pull and twist the various prophetic time prophecies so as to have them all end at the same moment of the one day in which they expect Christ to appear, the judgment of the world to take place, and the burning to begin.

Delivered from both of these errors, our eyes have been opened to a realization of the fact that the judgment of the world means its trial for life everlasting, and not its condemnation to the Second Death. We see that the world was condemned as a race because of original sin, and that the whole world has been under this curse or sentence of death We see that in much mercy God redeemed us from that curse or sentence of eternal death by the death of His Son, our Lord. We see that the only ones who have been accounted as escaped from that death sentence are the few who have been blessed with hearing ears and understanding hearts, having “escaped the corruption that is in the world.” (2 Pet. 1:4) The great mass of mankind is still under the original sentence – eternal death. We see that God’s object in giving some a knowledge during the Gospel Age whereby they might escape this sentence, and reach life everlasting in Christ, was to gather out a “little flock” to be joint-heirs with His Son in the glorious Millennial Kingdom.

THE SEED OF ABRAHAM

We see that Christ and His overcoming Church, His Bride, constitute the seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:29) which is to bless all the families of the earth during the Millennial Age. We see that the blessing that will come to the world will be the trial or judgment of that blessed Millennial Day, and that the knowledge of the Lord and full opportunity are promised as incidental to the world’s trial for life everlasting. This saves us from the thought that the Church, the Little Flock of Christ, alone has a part in the blessings secured from the atonement. It saves us too from the error of supposing that the second coming of Christ is the end of all hope, mercy and probation. It shows us, on the contrary, that so far as the generality of our race is concerned, that event is but the beginning of divine mercy and opportunity and trial for life eternal for the world.

A careful examination of the Father’s Word has assured us fully that our Lord Jesus left the glory, dignity and honor of His spiritual condition when He became a man, not that He might remain a man to all eternity, but that as a man He might give the ransom price for Adam and all his race. We see that He did this, and we have the clear scriptural testimony that the Father was pleased to honor Him, not merely with the same honor that He had before, but He was pleased to exalt Him far above angels, principalities and powers, and every name that is named. We perceive the clear scriptural testimony that He was “put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” (1 Pet. 3:18) We perceive that after His resurrection, though still in the world for 40 days, He was with His disciples but for a few moments on the seven occasions, and then in different forms, as proving to them and to us that, although He was the same Jesus, He was now “changed” and no longer human and subject to human conditions. To demonstrate this, He appeared in the room with His disciples while “the doors were shut,” (John 20:19) and, departing, “vanished out of their sight.” (Luke 24:31) He appeared in flesh and garments as suited the convenience of the occasions, and thus manifested the same powers that He and associated holy angels had manifested in previous times; as, for instance, when the Lord and three angels appeared to Abraham and took dinner with him and talked with him and afterward went down and delivered Lot out of Sodom.

NO LONGER A MAN

We thus realize that our Lord Jesus is no longer a man, but, as the Apostle declares, “The Lord is that Spirit.” (2 Cor. 3:17) And, “Though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.” (2 Cor. 5:16) We, therefore, are no longer expecting as do others that He will come a second time in the flesh. On the contrary, the expectation of the Church was that they were to be changed and made as He is, in order to see Him as He is – not as He was at the First Advent. (1 John 3:2)

“But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” (Matt. 24:36) This text is frequently misapplied. It does not say that of that day and hour no man shall ever know. At the time of its utterance neither men nor angels nor the Lord Jesus Himself knew the time of His second coming; but at the time of the second coming, the Lord undoubtedly would be aware of it before the time, and so also the holy angels who would be His escort; and there would be nothing inconsistent with the statement if some of the Lord’s consecrated people might have intimations respecting the event. Other Scriptures speak of “the day of the Lord,” signifying a period in which He will be manifested. For instance, the Apostle tells us that “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” (1 Thess. 5:2-4) Note how explicit is this declaration, and how clearly it divides between the class who will know in advance respecting the day of the Lord and the class that will not know until the great trouble of the “day of wrath” is upon them.

PAROUSIA VERSUS EPIPHANIA

The Greek Scriptures use both parousia and epiphania in referring to the second coming of Christ; but neither of them has the same meaning as our English word “coming.” The Scriptures clearly teach that in the end of this Gospel Age our Lord, at His Second Advent, will for a time be present (parousia) but invisible, and that subsequently His presence will be revealed (epiphania) or made known. None will know of His presence until after He is here, only the thoroughly consecrated, Israelites indeed, will know of the matter at all until the outward manifestation in the day of trouble – judgments coming upon present institutions.

Our Lord made a distinct statement concerning His Second Advent: “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matt. 24:37) There is a seeming incongruity in comparing the days of Noah and the coming of the Son of man, but it is made clear when we find that the word here rendered “coming” is parousia, which means “presence” not “coming.” When we read it thus, it becomes plain. The days of the presence of the Son of man will in some respects resemble the days of Noah, preceding the flood. Now we turn to Luke’s account of the same discourse and read, “And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.” (Luke 17:26) Now the two statements are in harmony, and we know to look for some correspondence as between Noah’s days and the days of the presence of Christ in the end of this age.

As to what the correspondencies will be, it is specifically stated: “For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming [parousia, presence] of the Son of man be.” (Matt: 24:38-39) Let us not lose the point of the illustration: the Lord was not suggesting that eating, drinking, planting, building, marrying and giving in marriage were wicked things in the days of Noah, which would be duplicated in the days of the presence of the Son of man. The point is that as the people of Noah’s day did not know of the coming flood, but were going about their ordinary business, so also in the end of this age, in the time of the presence of the Son of man, the world will be going about its ordinary business, totally unaware, that the time in which they are living is the closing time of the Gospel Dispensation and the opening time of the great Millennial Age, to be ushered in with a great Time of Trouble.

“BEHOLD, I COME AS A THIEF”

The Scripture prophecies clearly teach that we are now living in “the days of the Son of man” (Luke 17:26) – in the parousia, in the time of the Lord’s presence. We are not pointing you to a future date, but pointing back to the fall of 1874, when no one had the slightest knowledge of the facts of the case when it occurred. Our Lord said, “Behold, I come as a thief.” (Rev. 16:15) He came without our knowing it – quietly, secretly. It is since His presence that the light has shone particularly upon His Word. He has indeed girded Himself and come forth to serve His people. We have been the recipient of His favors, of His grace, of His truth, as respects things new and old. It is our understanding of the teachings of the Word that, during the Harvest Time and before the great time of anarchy and trouble upon the world and the smiting of present institutions, that all the Lord’s true people, all who are Israelites indeed will have been brought to a knowledge of the Lord and of the truth, a knowledge of the Divine Plan of the Ages and of the presence of the Chief Reaper in the harvest of this age.

It need not surprise us that all of the Lord’s people do not receive the meat in due season at the same moment. It must be passed from one to another, until all “the wise shall understand.” But the Scriptures are equally explicit in the statement that “none of the wicked shall understand.” (Dan. 12:10) His is the still small voice intended only for those who have an ear to hear, and this hearing is granted only to those who have hearts in accord with the Lord’s spirit.

TIME PROPHECIES

The various time prophecies, although making no mention of the second coming of Christ, clearly indicate and imply that His parousia, His presence, would begin in October, 1874 (see the chart representing the Plan of the Ages – Studies in the Scriptures, Volume I, Study XII). First, we call to mind the Jubilee type. It explicitly indicates that the “times of restitution of all things” – earth’s great Jubilee – were due to begin in October 1874 (see Studies in the Scriptures, Volume II, Study VI). The two lines of testimony on the subject – the law and the prophets – both point to the same time. We look about us and see evidences of restitution work, finding that since 1874 the work of blowing the trumpets, the demanding of human rights and privileges, has been the order of the day.

Now let us notice the words of the Apostle Peter: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive [retain] until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” (Acts 3:19-21) Note that the heavens were to receive or retain our Redeemer, until the restitution times. The lesson clearly would be that if restitution times chronologically began in October, 1874, the heavens no longer retain our Lord. This is an indirect way that the Scriptures teach that the Lord became present in 1874, yet all were unaware of the matter at the time.

The Prophet Daniel foretold of the rise of Papacy, and, foretold the length of its dominion to be 1,260 prophetic days, or literal years – exactly the same that is stated three times in the book of Revelation as measuring the prosperity of the great system which “shall wear out the saints of the most High” (Dan. 7:25) for 1,260 days or 1,260 literal years. The 1,260 years of papal dominion lasted from the year 539 to the year 1799 A.D. – from the time papacy was set up in power, until the time when its power was broken by Napoleon Bonaparte, who carried the pope a prisoner to France, and in so doing showed the whole world that the claims of the man who sat upon the papal throne that he was “another God on earth” and had power in heaven, earth and purgatory, were bombastic claims, unsupported by any real evidence of power.

The next period of 1,290 days (years) ended in 1829 with the beginning of the Second Advent movement of that period, which had a great influence upon its time. The 1,335 prophetic days (years) of the same prophecy reached to October, 1874 – ending exactly at the same place, at the time indicated by the Jubilee. We call your attention to the words of the Prophet Daniel in connection with these 1,335 days. He said, “Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.” (Dan. 12:12) (See Studies in the Scriptures, Volume III, Study III for a detailed discussion of this subject.) Those who have lived and patiently waited for the fulfillment of the Lord’s gracious promises have received a special blessing.

Now notice the other prophecy respecting Israel’s seven times of chastisement under the nations – 2,520 years from the time the crown was removed from the head of their last king, Zedekiah, and down to the year 1914. A period of 40 years is thus appropriated, first to the gathering of the harvest of the Gospel Age – the resurrection of the sleeping Saints and the testing and proving and gathering to the Lord of the living members of the Body. Look at the (nominal) church and see how infidelity under the name of higher criticism is invading the nominal sanctuary – how few are clean and free from the contamination. Look at the world, and see how the love of money has bewitched all, so that little else than money or pleasure is ever thought of in civilized lands. See how this spirit of selfishness is working amongst the masses and the classes of the world in general, how these are being bound in bundles – into organizations, combina­tions and unions, and how the capitalistic class is being bound also into other unions, confederations, combinations, and trusts, and note that the same spirit is infecting churchianity and for the same reasons: self-protection, self-aggrandizement, and power.

The Scriptures tell us distinctly how the battle will result, that Babylon the Great will fall, and that with her in the battle will go down the kings and princes and mighty ones of earth, and that a terrible time of anarchy will prevail, and the only bright spot in the future lies beyond in the gracious promises of the God of Heaven, that on the ruins of present institutions He will establish His Kingdom.

JEWISH AND GOSPEL AGES PARALLEL

All of these prophecies are harmonized and unified in the teaching of the parallels between the two Israels, the house of servants and the house of sons – the one under Moses, the Mediator of the Law Covenant; the other under Christ, the Mediator of the New Covenant – the one founded by Jacob with his twelve sons (natural Israel), the other founded by Christ, the true Israel of God, with His twelve Apostles. The house of servants began with the death of Jacob and lasted 1,811 years, until the First Advent movement at the time of our Lord’s birth, when all men were in expectation of Him. Likewise, from the death of Christ, where this Gospel Age began, 1,811 years reached to the Second Advent movement, which occurred in 1844.

We are not Second Adventists, nor would Second Adventists in any sense or degree recognize us or our teachings, but we do believe that the movement which culminated in 1844 was in some measure instigated by the Almighty, and that it had a powerful influence favorable to the truth. There the virgins, as foretold in Matthew 25, went forth to meet the Bridegroom and he tarried, and they all afterward slumbered and slept until the morning, until the announcement, “Behold, the bridegroom.” (Matt. 25:6) Thirty years after the Advent Movement at Bethlehem there was another Advent Movement at Jordan, when John the Baptist proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah, and when our Lord really entered upon His work. And similarly in the end of this age, 30 years from 1844 brings us to 1874, where the Jubilee testimony proclaims to us the Lord’s presence. Forty years from the time Jesus was baptized by John at Jordan, the Jewish nation was utterly overthrown in the greatest time of trouble ever known to that troubled people – their city was utterly destroyed. So likewise, 40 years from 1874 reached to 1914, where the antitype of Israel, namely, Christendom, had the beginning of its overthrow in a Time of Trouble.

These things are all based upon the Scriptures, they are all simple and easy of demonstration, and yet they were all hidden by the method of their statement or by facts related to their interpretation, so that they could not be understood until God’s due time, when He lifts the veil. Thus, the Lord said to Daniel the Prophet, in respect to his inquiry of those times and seasons, “Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” (Dan. 12:9) We understand that the Time of the End began in 1799, more than two centuries ago, and that we have been in the Time of the End ever since, and that the Time of the End is another name for what another prophet calls “the day of his preparation.” (Nah. 2:3) Since 1799 we have been in the time of the Lord’s preparation for the Millennial Kingdom. He has lifted the curtain, and light has shone in upon the world from every quarter, on mechanics, on chemistry, on every science and on every art.

SIGNS ALL ABOUT US

All of these things make the day in which we live the grandest that the world has ever known; and yet these grand privileges and blessings are about to work out the great catastrophe of anarchy which will wreck the entire social fabric. All this is noted by the Prophet, for he gives us a description which fits so marvelously that it will surprise everyone who will examine it. Mark the words: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation . . . But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased . . . none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” (Dan. 12:1, 4, 10)

Note the four items. First, the running to and fro. What a marvelous fulfillment we see before our eyes – first with steamboats, railroads, every contrivance for locomotion, and with ever-increasing speed and ever-increasing numbers (add to that today, automobiles, high speed rail, air travel, and space flight). The whole world is running to and fro, just as the Lord indicated through the Prophets would be the case in this Time of the End. Note the second point: Knowledge shall be increased. Not only is scientific knowledge increased, but generally disseminated (today we have television and the internet which put all kinds of knowledge, both good and evil, at our fingertips). Education is progressing in a wonderful manner; children of 10 years are studying subjects which their great-grandfathers never thought of studying (today even toddlers have tablet computers in their hands). In every land knowledge has been increased, another remarkable fulfillment of prophecy. Mark the third point: The wise shall understand – understand the vision which Daniel could not understand, which Daniel was not permitted to understand, which Daniel was not intended to understand.

We are not worldly wise. On the contrary, we are seeking the wisdom which comes from above, the light which shines forth from the lamp which God has given us, His Word, and all who follow its leadings from the divine standpoint are the truly wise. This class may now understand; but as the text declares, none of the wicked shall understand. They will take their own course, and the Plan of God and the Word of God will daily come to appear to them more and more foolish as their scientific minds grapple with their evolution theories and their higher critical thinking. But are not the Word and Plan of God opening before His consecrated people as never before? It most assuredly is so! Note the fourth point: “There shall be a time of trouble such as was not since there was a nation.” The outlook from any standpoint, but particularly from the standpoint of those who are looking from God’s standpoint, is that the Time of Trouble is nearing.

We see that the prosperity of this Time of the End is not conducive to happiness and peace; we see the whole world growing more and more discontented, although enjoying more of the blessings and favors of the Lord in temporal matters than ever before. We see that the secret of this discontent is knowledge. Knowledge is power – power for good or for evil, according to the sentiments of the heart. We must expect that only those hearts which are consecrated to the Lord and dominated by His spirit will receive this power of knowledge in such a manner as to profit themselves and their fellows; and since these are the small minority of the civilized world, we are not to be surprised that the knowledge and the power are about to wreck the present order of things.

God will thus cause the “wrath of man” to praise Him. (Psa. 76:10) Looking back, man will see from the Millennial standpoint the wickedness and errors of the present time as they cannot see them now. They will see that selfishness is at the foundation of present institutions in every sense of the word. Even the benevolences of the present time are to some extent handicapped by selfishness. God wishes the whole world to learn the result of selfishness in the cataclysm of trouble. He wishes all to learn that His way is not only the right way, but the only way in which knowledge and liberty and power may be used to blessing and to profit.

Our hearts should be leaping with joy at the thought that the dark night of earth’s sin and suffering will soon be at an end and the glorious morning of the Kingdom soon be ushered in. We will then be attentive respecting the things which must shortly come to pass – the things which are coming to pass day by day in the midst of which we are living. We read, “The Lord knoweth them that are his.” (2 Tim. 2:19) We further read: “For the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7)

The Lord speaks of Christendom or “churchianity” as a whole under the name of Babylon – the name which originally applied to the “mother of harlots,” but which has become appropriate to all her daughter systems as well. These are addressed by the Lord in His last message, saying: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen . . . Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” (Rev. 18:2, 4)

ABLE TO STAND IN THE EVIL DAY

The fields are white for the harvest, and every day is making a division between the nominal Christianity and the true Christianity, and the more apparent it becomes that the nominal systems are growing more and more worldly. The colleges and seminaries of every denominational shade have for years been turning out polished infidels, who no more believe in the inspiration of God’s Word than they believe in the inspiration of Shakespeare or Dickens. They do not hesitate to speak of those who accept the Bible as foolish, and old fogies. Let us be glad to be counted fools for Christ’s sake. Let us note, too, that the line of division is turning here on the same issue as at the First Advent. At the First Advent the question turned on the necessity for Christ’s death as the sin offering, and so today it is turning on the same question. Is Christ our Redeemer or merely a great teacher? All these “higher critics” claim the latter, that Jesus was a Great Teacher, but not a redeemer, and that no redemption was necessary. They hold the evolution theory that man, instead of falling from the image of God into savagery and depravity, has been falling upward, as they express it – coming from brute conditions up to the present status. This is the line of battle; let no one be deceived on the subject.

We are living today in the time referred to by the Apostle when he said, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” (Eph. 6:13) We are in the evil day – the day of trial, the day of testing, the day referred to by the Prophet when he declared: “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand.” (Psa. 91:7) These thousands are already falling under the shafts of skepticism, higher criticism, evolution, etc., but the battle has already begun. There is still time for those who are the Lord’s true people to hear the jubilee trumpet, to recognize the situation, and to put on the whole armor of God, that they may be able to stand in the evil day, and that they may help others to stand.

(Based on a sermon given by Pastor Russell in 1903 and printed in Harvest Gleanings, Volume II. It has been edited to fit the space and to update certain references and language.)

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 821: THE EARTH TREMBLED AND FELL

No. 821

“His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.” (Psa. 97:4)

God’s holy Prophets of the Old and New Testaments give us numerous pictures of our day and the events now taking place in the world. Taking a prophetic view of the future, the Psalmist David, declared, “The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof!” (Psa. 97:1) This began to be true when our Lord Jesus, having returned to earth to set up His Kingdom, took unto Himself His great power (see Studies in the Scriptures, Volume III, Study IX). Yet, not until His Kingdom has been fully established in the earth will His glorious reign be clearly recognized.

That the Prophet David is referring especially to the present time, from 1878 down to the full inauguration of the Kingdom, is clear from his succeeding statement: “Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.” (Psa. 97:2-3) How true it is that the storm clouds are all about us in this day of the Kingly presence of Jehovah’s great representative, the executor of His great purposes! Daily the darkness of gloom and perplexity deepens on every side for those not acquainted with Jehovah’s purposes.

This day of His presence is such a Time of Trouble and distress of nations because He is judging the nations and weighing them in the balance. Judgment is being laid to the line and righteousness to the plummet (Isa. 28:17), so that before long the equitable principles of His government may be established in all the earth. Not only will all unrighteousness be made manifest, but all the willful and persistent opposers of His righteous course will be “cut off,” “destroyed,” “burned up,” and “devoured with the fire” of His jealousy. (Zeph. 3:8)

This work of judgment and the consequent Time of Trouble is a necessary preparation for the glorious Reign of Righteousness to immediately succeed it. It is being wisely directed by the High and Holy One, who is “too wise to err, too good to be unkind.” The Prophet urges us to discern in it an abundant cause for rejoicing and gladness. (See Psa. 96:9-13; Psa. 98:1-9) Indeed, there is great cause for rejoicing, not only among those of the Household of Faith, but in the whole earth; and it is the privilege of believers to tell the glad tidings to all who will hear.

But whether or not anyone heeds the message, let us tell it out. When the great afflictions of this judgment hour begin to seal the instruction upon the hearts of men, then the blessed testimony will be as healing balm. They will see that He who rebuked them in His wrath, and chastened them in His hot displeasure, is also merciful, gracious, and unwilling that they perish, but rather desires that they turn to Him, obey His counsels, and live.

“THE EARTH SAW, AND TREMBLED”

It is in the midst of the clouds and darkness of this Day of Trouble incident to the setting up of Messiah’s Kingdom that the statement of the Prophet is verified: “His lightnings enlightened the world; the earth saw, and trembled.” How apt is this figure! The remarkable glimpses of the great principles of Truth and Righteousness are truly like lightning flashes in the midst of the gloom and perplexity of this cloudy day, in contrast with the world’s present manifest disorder! A flash of lightning from the obscured Throne discloses here one error, and there another, and another.

Soon the whole world will be aroused, and it is already largely so. Every day adds to the intensity of the trouble, and the whole world trembles for fear, not knowing what the outcome will be, but dreading the worst. How truly are the Master’s words concerning this time being fulfilled: “Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” (Luke 21:26)

It is remarkable that these lightning flashes are continually calling attention to the Word of God, to the Golden Rule, to the equal rights and privileges of human brotherhood, to the faultless character and loving and self-sacrificing disposition of Jesus Christ, to the Law of Love in contrast with the law of selfishness everywhere prevailing. It seems remarkable, too, how often in these days of war and stress worldly men are drawing attention to the prophecies of the Scriptures, and wondering whether present conditions, and the troubles which all intelligent people see just ahead, are not fulfilments of these Bible prophecies. All this is leading men to reason of righteousness and of coming judgments (Acts 24:25), when they hope and believe that in some way present wrongs will be righted and righteousness established.

By the sudden, and increasingly frequent, flashes of light from the storm clouds that surround the invisible, spiritual presence of our glorious King, these principles of the Word of God are being illuminated and brought to the forefront. Even heathen nations are discussing them, and are contrasting both the daily lives of professed Christians and the present course of the professed Christian nations with the character and the teachings of the great Founder of the Christian religion. The lightning flashes are revealing the corruption in the world, the dishonesty in high places, and showing men that they are living far below the dignity of manhood. But how to right things they are not able to see; and the conflicting ideas, voices, theories and threats, reveal the facts which the Prophets foretold; for “the nations are angry,” “the heathen [Gentiles, peoples] rage,” and the whole earth trembles

“ZION HEARD, AND WAS GLAD”

Is the Household of Faith in dismay and distress in the midst of all this trouble and tumult in the world, as the judgments of the Lord fall heavily upon the wayward and disobedient so that the whole earth reels and staggers as a drunken man? (Psa. 107:27) No, for it is written, “Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord!” (Psa. 97:8) It is the “sinners in Zion” that are “afraid.” In Psalms we are shown why the faithful rejoice and are restful of heart while others weep and lament: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” (Psa. 91:1-2) “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psa. 46:1) “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant.” (Psa. 25:14) The “secret place” is represented by the Holy of the typical Tabernacle, while the “shadow of the Almighty” pictures how the typical Tabernacle was covered by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

These dwellers in the secret place of the Most High are provided in these perilous times with a clear knowledge of the Divine Plan, with its times and seasons. This enables them to see both the necessity for the present method of divine discipline upon the world and also the peaceable fruits of righteousness that are to result. In the midst of the storm and battle of this great Day of the Lord, they hear the commanding voice of the Lord of armies, and their hearts rejoice; for they have full confidence in His ability to bring order out of all the confusion. They realize that in the judgments of this Day it is the Lord that speaks from Heaven – from the high place of authority and control; therefore they give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness (Psa. 30:4) – of His Justice, Wisdom, Love and Power, which ensure His doing all things well.

THE HEEDLESS WHO WILL NOT HEAR

While the world at large is ignorant of the real significance of present events, and therefore in fear and dread, and while the Household of Faith is rejoicing and lifting up their heads because they see the outcome with clear knowledge, the Psalmist implied that some, heedless both of the world’s distress and the rejoicing of the faithful, will still serve idols: “Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols.” (Psa. 97:7) These words call to mind the warning of the Apostle Paul: “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth [Moses], much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.” (Heb. 12:25) St. Paul addresses these words to those who know the Lord’s voice and recognize it, warning them against at any time refusing to heed it.

Sadly, there are some who, although they recognize the voice of the Lord, refuse to obey it. They turn away from He who speaks from Heaven, and turn toward the idols their wayward hearts have set up in place of God. These “graven images” are indeed the works of their own hands – the human philosophies, and “science falsely so called” (false knowledge) of this evil day. And those who reject the testimony of God, when once they have heard it, invariably fall into one of the many forms of idolatrous worship now so prevalent; or else they drift restlessly from one to another of them.

They will surely be put to shame and confusion and their idols will be destroyed. The willful sinner, once enlightened and blessed with the hallowed influences of the Holy Spirit and the Truth, will not, as the Apostle declared, escape the just punishment for his deeds. The Apostle points out this danger to the children of God, and warns them of the fearful penalties of turning away from the holy commandment delivered unto them. (Heb. 12:14-19) Here he shows the scenes accompanying the inauguration of the old Law Covenant to be a picture of events which will accompany the establishment of the New Law Covenant, at the close of this present age, under the greater than Moses – our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Mountain (Kingdom) of the Lord’s House is now being established (since 1878) in the top of the mountains, superseding the great kingdoms of this world, and is being exalted above the hills – the smaller governments. (Isa. 2:2) Clouds and darkness, trouble and perplexity and distress of nations are all around, and the thunderings and lightnings are making all the earth to tremble as did Israel at Mt. Sinai. (Exod. 19:1-25) “Yet have I [Jehovah] set my king [our Lord Jesus] upon my holy hill of Zion.” (Psa. 2:6) If those who refused to obey Moses and disgraced the ceremonies at Sinai met with instant death, how can we escape if we disregard the voice of the great Mediator of the New Covenant and the remarkable events which now accompany its establishment?

ONLY THE UNSHAKABLE TO REMAIN

We see the deepening clouds of trouble. We hear the thunder tones of judgment: “The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof [from the east to the west].” (Psa. 50:1) We see the lightning flashes of truth and righteousness, and observe how the whole earth is now in the shaking process which will result in the complete overthrow of all existing institutions, systems and governments. Present events indeed speak in trumpet tones.

Surely, dear brethren, we must regard these things with thoughtful and reverent hearts! Watching and praying, “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.” (Heb. 4:1)

In this eventful period everything that can be shaken will be shaken, that only the unshakable things of truth and righteousness may remain. (Heb. 12:25-29)

(Excerpts from Reprint 5989 with editing.)

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POLITICIANS AND FALSE RELIGION

“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image . . . Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God.” (Exod. 20:4-5)

Jeroboam was not a bad man in the sense of sympathizing with viciousness and crime, nor in the sense of wishing to bring his people into slavery. On the contrary, he was a man of courage and love of liberty, who desired to deliver his people from what he considered to be oppression in connection with the new king Rehoboam, Solomon’s successor. Under his leadership, the ten tribes of Israel revolted from the House of David and established themselves as a separate kingdom, with the avowed object of being free from the oppressions of the kings. (1 Kings 12:25-33)

In many respects this would seem to have been a noble procedure; but it was a great mistake, as is every move which ignores God and His arrangements. The divine arrangement for the nation was that its affairs were all to be under God’s care as God’s kingdom, with the family of David as God’s representatives. Under these conditions the religious interests had gradually gathered more and more about the vicinity of the Temple at Jerusalem. The more religious of the people liked to be near it, especially as it was obligatory under the Law that they should go up there to worship at least once or twice a year.

Whatever were the good thoughts of Jeroboam respecting the preservation of the rights and liberties of the people, he quickly manifested the spirit of a politician. He reasoned that the going of the people to Jerusalem to worship yearly would mean that sooner or later they would again be drawn back to the kings of the line of David; and that in order to preserve his own power he must break off the religious connections with Jerusalem by establishing a new religious cult.

Two golden calves were prepared, the one located in the northern part of the territory, and the other towards the southern part, that thus the people might have the general thought that worship and sacrifice could be performed at one place as well as at another. Moreover, he arranged for religious festivals, at times different by about a month from the times of celebrations at Jerusalem. This was skillful political wisdom of the kind which would appeal to the majority of rulers not deeply imbued with faith in God. Sadly, it seems that much of the religion of the masses is but a “form of godliness.” (2 Tim. 3:5) King Jeroboam was not very different from the people he ruled, as they readily fell in with his plan and it was successful.

GOD’S PLANS WERE NOT DEFEATED

Many might be inclined to say that God’s plans were thus defeated by an ordinary man; but the Scriptures show us that the very opposite was the case – that God’s plans were forwarded by this opposition of Jeroboam.

God accepted Israel as the typical people of His favor. He had made the Promise to Abraham that through his posterity ultimately all the world would be blessed, which implied great exaltation to Abraham’s posterity of the line of Isaac. Four hundred years elapsed before any movement was made in this direction. By that time Israel was numerous and in bondage in Egypt, and God sent word to them through Moses that if they were willing, He was ready to fulfil to them the Promise made to Abraham.

They rejoiced greatly and followed Moses to Mount Sinai, where the Lord entered into a covenant with them, that if they would keep His Law perfectly, He would give them everlasting life and qualify them to be the Seed of Abraham who would inherit the promise of being the instruments for the blessing of the world. They entered the covenant, but like all imperfect men were unable to keep the Law – unworthy therefore of everlasting life, and of being the favored Seed of Abraham to bless others.

Later on, when they were discouraged, God promised to send them Messiah, whose Kingdom would bless them and afford them an opportunity of sharing in the Promise made to Abraham. God’s dealings with Israel, therefore, were of a typical character. Their Atonement Day, their Law, their mediator, their sacrifices, all typified better sacrifices, etc., under a better Mediator, Christ. The entire dealing of God with Israel was with a view to raising them up out of their fallen condition to as high a standard as possible for them, that thus they might be prepared, when Messiah would come, to be associated with Him in His Kingdom, as His Bride class.

The deflection of Jeroboam and the majority of the nation had the effect of separating the most faithful and loyal of the Israelites from the ten tribes, and driving them into the territory of the two tribes. To these the idolatries established by Jeroboam were properly repulsive. They were willing to forsake their earthly interests. They refused the opportunities of the politician, remained loyal to God and His institutions, and were thus at a disadvantage. This continued for years, until in God’s providence the ten tribes went into captivity to Babylon, at which time more and more of the people gravitated towards the territory of Judah and Benjamin, known as the kingdom of Judah. Later on, God overthrew the kingdom of Judah, and allowed those people also to go into Babylonian captivity; but they preserved in large measure their religious sentiments and interests while in the land of Babylon.

THE RETURN FROM BABYLON

Later, when the Lord delivered the people from Babylon through the instrumentality of King Cyrus, matters had so changed that there were only a few who considered it advantageous to return to Palestine. The great mass of the ten-tribe kingdom had become thoroughly incorporated with the Gentiles, and no longer professed the religion of their fathers or had faith in the Promise made to Abraham. Many of the Judean captivity similarly lost faith and became Gentiles. Those who returned to Palestine were the faithful who trusted in God, sacrificing Babylonian advantages and privileges to return to a desolate land and the city of Jerusalem.

These became the nucleus of a new people, who, in the days of Jesus, were in wonderful readiness for Him, as compared with the remainder of mankind. The remainder of the nation being then cast off from special favor, the door was opened to the Gentiles, that they might hear the Gospel Message and become fellow-heirs of the same Body, or company. If we lacked evidence of the value of the divine dealing with the nation of Israel in preparing them to accept Messiah, we see it in the fact that so many were ready to receive Him in so comparatively short a time; whereas it has required nearly two centuries to gather from all other nations the remainder of the elect company.

Our lesson indicates no failure on God’s part, but wisdom, in permitting the rebellion of Jeroboam and the ten tribes of Israel. Surely it will eventually be seen, as the Bible declares, that all of God’s good purposes will be accomplished; and that the word which has gone forth out of His mouth shall not return unto Him void, but shall accomplish that which He pleases and shall prosper in the thing whereunto He sent it. (Isa. 55:10-11) Soon with the spiritual Seed of Abraham completed, God’s Promise to Abraham will begin to be fulfilled. (Gal. 3:8, 16, 29) All the families of the earth will be blessed by the Kingdom of Christ and His Church.

“WAIT UPON THE LORD”

Modern Jeroboams may be found throughout history. Under the guise of respect for religion, they are really politicians, willing to sell the people to any religious system which would work to their benefit. Every one familiar with history must realize that religion has been made a cloak for all kinds of political intrigue, and always, as in the case of Jeroboam, under pretense of giving the people greater liberties.

The proper thought for the people today is the one which would have been the safe one for the ten tribes of old – namely, to wait for the Lord to overrule their affairs and to deliver them from the bondage of kings in His own way. This is the Lord’s message to us now. God’s people are forewarned not to use carnal weapons, and not to trust in such weapons in the hands of others. The trust of God’s people is to be in God. They are to realize His faithfulness and the truth of His promises, which assure them that all things are working together for good to them that love God, to the called according to His purpose. (Rom. 8:28)

To these God is now saying, as in olden times, “Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.” (Zeph. 3:8) This will not be literal fire devouring the literal earth, but a symbolic fire of trouble devouring the political, financial, social and religious structure of the world, and preparing them for the great blessings of Messiah’s Kingdom. These are referred to in the next verse, in which the Lord declares, “For then [following the fire of trouble] will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.” (Zeph. 3:9)

That pure message is what the Bible elsewhere speaks of as the “still small voice” of God, which will be heard among the people during the thousand years of Messiah’s Reign and which will accomplish their full deliverance from ignorance, superstition, and sin back to harmony with God. Whosoever will not obey that voice of God through the great Messiah will be utterly destroyed from among the people. (Acts 3:19-23)

(Excepts from Reprint 5732 with editing.)

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FURTHER THOUGHTS

To reflect further on the topics of this paper, we offer this quote from Pastor Russell’s writings:

“And though the faithful children of God have often pointed out that union between the Church and the civil power is out of order, being in the Scriptures termed harlotry (Rev. 17:5), and though in a great measure the world has withdrawn from the churches, the union still exists, and the Scriptures seem to point out that, in the time of trouble approaching, the nominal churches, professedly virgins of Christ, will be on the side of the kings of the earth, and united to them . . .

“Not only does prophecy point out a closer union between these than at present exists, but any close observer can see that the principal lever by which the royal aristocracy rules the masses is the superstition that God appointed these ‘great men,’ though often both weak and vicious, to rule over them; and that to rebel against tyranny and injustice, and to claim justice, liberty and equal rights, is to oppose God’s will. Hence the tendency of governments and churches is toward open or secret union for their mutual welfare in the coming storm.

“Not only so, but the coming struggle between the aristocracy and the masses of every civilized land will be so peculiar, so unlike any former experience, that moderate, conservative, religiously-inclined people, fearing the utter wreck of society in chaos and anarchy, will naturally prefer monarchy, oppression and bondage to anything certain to be worse . . .

“When repressive, restrictive and coercive measures are thought to be necessary, such measures will probably include not only labor organizations and the publications which advocate their rights and wrongs, but also such others as point out the plan of God, and the real cause and only remedy for the great distress of the nations. Yes, the time is probably not many years distant, when repressive measures may be brought to bear against every effort of the saints to spread the good news of the coming kingdom, all on the plea that the general interests and the public welfare demand such a course . . .

“The same necessity for restricting liberty on political and social questions will probably be supposed to apply equally to freedom of expression on religious questions, which really lie at the foundation of all liberty. It would not be surprising if a ‘strong government,’ a monarchy, would someday replace this present Great Republic; and it is entirely probable that one common standard of religious belief will be deemed expedient and will be promulgated, to teach outside of which will be treated and punished as a political offense. Such a persecution would not only furnish, in the end or harvest of this age, another parallel to the harvest of the Jewish Age (Acts 4:10-13, 23-30; Acts 5:29-41; Acts 11:19), but would also give a wider and deeper significance to the words of the Apostles Paul and John (2 Tim. 4:3; Rev. 13:17), and to the typical illustrations of the close of the earthly career of the true Church, as represented in Elijah’s whirlwind departure and John the Baptist’s imprisonment and beheading.”

(Excerpt from Studies in the Scriptures, Volume II, pages 261-264.)

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ANNOUNCEMENT

The date of our Lord’s Memorial is March 31, 2026 after six p.m.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 820: GREAT JOY FOR ALL PEOPLE

No. 820

“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)

Can we implicitly believe in this message sent by the angels? If so, it is surely “good tidings” – a message of “peace on earth and good will to men.” Such a momentous change from current conditions seems inconceivable, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” (Rom. 8:22) But the words of the Prophet indeed assure us, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (Psa. 30:5)

While darkness now covers the earth and gross darkness the people, in the “morning” of the New Dispensation the light of divine glory will arise. In the meantime, the Lord’s faithful must walk by faith and not by sight, and the Father’s word of promise must light their footsteps. (2 Pet. 1:19) Our Lord Himself is referred to as the “Sun of righteousness,” who will arise with healing (restitution) in His wings. (Mal. 4:2) His Church will also be with Him: “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” (Matt. 13:43)

The results will be the scattering of the ignorance, superstition, and darkness of sin which now prevails, and the enlightenment of all mankind. One of the first works of our Lord in the establishment of His Kingdom will be the binding of Satan: “And he laid hold on . . . Satan, and bound him a thousand years . . . that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years should be fulfilled.” (Rev. 20:2-3)

God’s Word assures us that every detail of that glorious plan has been worked out, and that nothing will fail: “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. . . . So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isa. 55:9-11)

Our Lord said: “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” (Matt. 5:4) The great majority of mankind have experienced much mourning and sorrow under the reign of sin and death, but there is comfort in the thought that the same large majority will be comforted and will receive joy during the promised “times of restitution of all things.” (Acts 3:21) All except the Church will share in that glorious restitution blessing, the faithful of the Church having before then received their richer blessing through the change of nature from human to divine.

The restitution work will begin following the great time of trouble which will usher in the Millennium. As soon as order and blessing are established under that glorious Kingdom, invisible to men except through its agents or channels, the awakening of the sleeping millions will gradually begin. They will be brought to an accurate knowledge of the Truth, and if they are rightly exercised in obedience to Christ, the great Mediator between God and men, they will gradually regain the perfection lost through original sin. If they become careless, they will receive “stripes,” that by these judgments of the Lord they may finally regain all that was lost. Their joys will be increasing with every step taken on the return journey back from sin and death to perfection of life. This opportunity for restitution is a message of joy unto all people, yet there is the indication that some will reject the divine favor and be “destroyed from among the people.” (Acts 3:23) Thus enlightened by the divine message, let our hearts be drawn nearer to the fountain of all grace.

(Based on a sermon given by Pastor Russell in 1908 and published in “Harvest Gleanings.”)

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“WE SEE JESUS”

It is once again the time of year when we consider the birth of Jesus. However, at the outset we would say that nowhere in the Bible are we told to remember His birth, although He emphatically told us to remember His death when He said, “This do in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19)

Most of our readers know that December 25 is not the correct date for Jesus’ birth. This date has been plucked out of thin air; the Atonement Day type and other Scriptures inform us that He was born on the tenth day of the seventh Jewish month, Tishri, Tishri being approximately our October. But we would not haggle about the exact date. We are persuaded that the Christian world does receive some moral uplift and spiritual encouragement through the observance of His birth, and we readily join with others in the observance. Many in Christendom reveal a milder and more pleasant spirit at that time.

If we were to ask many believers if they see Jesus – that is, do they understand Him – many would give a ready answer: “Of course, we do!” But how do we “see” Jesus? The Apostle Paul, referencing the Psalmist, had this commentary: “But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” (Heb. 2:6-9; Psa. 8:3-9)

To present a proper foundation for our analysis, we quote from the Gospel of John: “In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was a god. This was in a beginning with the God. Through it everything was done; and without it not even one thing was done, which has been done. In it was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shown in the darkness, and the darkness apprehended it not. . . . The Logos became flesh, and dwelt among us – and we beheld his glory, a glory as of an Only-begotten from a Father – full of favor and truth.” (John 1:1-5, 14, Diaglott) This is quoted from the Emphatic Diaglott translation, and the following is a footnote from that same translation: “This term [the Logos] should be left untranslated for the very same reasons why the names Jesus and Christ are left untranslated. As every appellative of the Savior of the world was descriptive of some excellence in his person, nature, or work, so the epithet Logos, which signified a word spoken, speech, eloquence, doctrine, reason, or the faculty of reasoning, is very properly applied to him.” (See also 1 John 1:1)

We also quote from Philippians: “Christ Jesus, though being in God’s form, yet did not meditate a usurpation to be like God, but divested [emptied] himself, taking a bond-man’s form, having been made in the likeness of men; and being in condition as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Phil. 2:6-8, Diaglott) Here is clear Scriptural proof that Jesus was a man – “made flesh” – “a little lower than the angels.”

“THE DUST OF THE GROUND”

“And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7) When Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, He began to partake of the foods common to man, and grew into a man of thirty years of age – the exact duplicate of Adam. He presented Himself to John in the River Jordan on the day He was thirty, the age at which the Jews reasoned, with Scriptural authority, that their males reached full manhood.

Analyzing this a little further, we know that vegetation grows from the earth – the dust of the ground – and is consumed by man as well as by flesh-producing animals, which are in turn eaten by man. We are all formed from “the dust of the ground,” even as Jesus was; and the record is clear: “For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” (Gen. 3:19) Thus, at the age of thirty Jesus was in every detail an exact duplicate of Adam when God breathed the “breath of life” into him.

We do not infer from this that God was thirty years in producing Adam, but the moment he was animated, Adam was the exact image of Jesus when He was thirty. Jesus told the disciples that He came “to give himself a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:28) The word “ransom” here is from the Greek lytron anti, which means an exact duplicate, or something in place of. Therefore, Jesus had to be an exact duplicate of Adam – no more, no less – so that He could provide the ransom for Adam, which no other human being was able to do. “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” (Psa. 49:6-7)

“That disciple whom Jesus loved” (Jesus loved all but for some He had a special love) reveals the intimate acquaintance and understanding that the Apostles had of Jesus: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life [the Logos]; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal [aionian, ‘age-lasting’] life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us.)” (l John 1:1-2) In the words “our hands have handled,” the Apostle reveals the intimate relationship he had with our Lord when He was on earth – a comradeship of the closest nature.

“CALL HIS NAME JESUS”

We stress that the Apostle did not say, “We see Jesus Christ,” and there is good reason for this. When the angel was speaking to Joseph, the instruction was given: “Thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” (Matt. 1:21) The name Jesus means “savior” or “God’s salvation.” From His birth to His baptism by John in Jordan, our Lord was known by the single appellation Jesus, and not Jesus Christ. Christ means anointed, and He did not become the “anointed” Savior until He received the Holy Spirit without measure at His baptism in Jordan.

Therefore, it was not Jesus Christ who was made “a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death”; because the Christ, the Anointed, was not sacrificed on the cross, but merely Jesus, the perfect man. Had Jesus the Christ been nailed to the cross, He would have offered much beyond what the man Adam had, because Adam was never anointed with the Holy Spirit; he was simply “a living soul” – a man from any viewpoint. Christ was not lower than the angels, and, when He said on the cross, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46), He was referring to the spiritual life that had begun in Him at Jordan, which was raised from the tomb three days later: “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11) “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.” (Heb. 12: 2)

HIS POSITIONS AND TITLES

During His existence our Lord has held three positions in relationship to God, and these positions are indicated by three names:

Logos: Before His First Advent to the earth, He was known as the Logos – the Word. As the Word of God, He was the principal agent of God’s creation; He was second to God, but above every other creature in Heaven or earth. As the Bible tells us, “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” (John 1:3) As the Logos, He was a spirit being not subject to being described with our limited knowledge.

Jesus Christ: St. Paul vividly described the situation when the Logos came to earth and became Christ Jesus: “Christ Jesus . . . made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men . . . and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Phil. 2:5-8) “In the likeness of men” means He had the appearance of a man, although it was a most unusual likeness of men – so much so that Pilate exclaimed in admiration, “Ecce homo” – “Behold the man!” (John 19:5) St. Paul wrote of Him: “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Heb. 4:15) Although Pilate saw the excellent features of a most unusual man, he could not see that Jesus was “without sin.” Yet Jesus’ sinlessness had set Him apart from all men. Like David, we may all say, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” (Psa. 51:5)

Express Image of God’s Person: Jesus now and forever will occupy a third position, described by the Apostle: “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” (Heb. 1:3-4) In our earlier text, we learned that Jesus “was made a little lower than the angels” at His First Advent, but here we learn that He is now “so much better than the angels.”

Scores of additional names and titles are used in the Bible in discussing Jesus, but we shall offer just a few of them here: “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending . . . the Almighty.” (Rev. 1:8) “The bright and morning star.” (Rev. 22:16) “Arm of the Lord.” (Isa. 51:9) “Rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.” (Song 2:1) “The chiefest among ten thousand.” (Song 5:10) “The light of the world . . . the light of life.” (John 8:12) “The dayspring from on high.” (Luke 1:78) “The blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.” (1 Tim. 6:15) “That great shepherd of the sheep.” (Heb. 13:20)

FOUR GREAT OFFICES

The risen Lord is now the possessor of four great offices, in which He is to do a certain work for the human race. There are many subdivisions of these four, but we will not go into that detail. These offices are presently operative only in a very limited way; but He will come into the full glory of them all when He establishes His reign on earth – “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matt. 6:10) These offices are Biblically referred to as prophet, judge, priest, and king, and each is closely related to one of God’s four great attributes of wisdom, justice, love, and power. We will comment briefly on each of these descriptive pairs:

Prophet – Wisdom: “For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.” (Acts 3:22) The word prophet here is from the Greek prophetes, from which the English word prophet is derived, and it has the meaning of public expounder, or teacher. To be a good teacher, one must be endowed with wisdom, thus the Lord’s office of Prophet is readily linked with the divine attribute of Wisdom. In making this statement we should be alert not to confuse wisdom with knowledge, because wisdom is the proper application of knowledge. It is well stated, “Knowledge is power”; but this is true only if we know what to do with knowledge. Also, it is a sound observation that “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” Knowledge in inexperienced hands often causes great disaster – in the laboratory, in construction, in the operation of intricate machinery, etc. But we have strong Bible assurance that our risen Lord will know perfectly what to do on every occasion, and how to do it. Thus, it is properly foretold of Him: “The government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor [able to advise and counsel in every situation].” (Isa. 9:6)

He who discerns clearly teaches clearly. Of the Teacher it is recorded: “And [Jesus] needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.” (John 2:25) And His crushing answers to all the tricky questions of the Scribes and Pharisees offer ample proof that Jesus did know what was in man. “For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” (Matt. 7:29) Concerning the Jews, St. Paul said: “For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.” (Rom. 10:2) Quite a contrast to the knowledge that Jesus had! “By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many.” (Isa. 53:11) And the Apostles stressed this point concerning the true followers of Jesus: “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments . . . And hereby we know that we are of the truth” (1 John 2:3; l John 3:19) However, we know, “When thy judgments are in the earth [when the Great Teacher supervises the teaching] the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.” (Isa. 26:9)

Judge – Justice: “The Lord . . . cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.” (Psa. 96:13) “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation . . . Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.” (Isa. 28:16-17) To be a good judge requires a keen sense of justice, making the divine attribute of Justice the fitting counterpart of the office of Judge.

In the book of Isaiah we find one of the classic Scriptures describing Jesus as Judge, administering quick and perfect Justice: “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.” (Isa. 11:1-5)

The most just and well-intentioned of our courts today must judge according to the seeing of the eyes and the hearing of the ears. Thus, some who are guilty go free, and some who are innocent are convicted. That is the best we have today, but that will not be so when the Great Judge administers Justice. We have “the sure word of prophecy” to verify this conclusion: “Because he hath appointed a day [the thousand-year Millennial Day], in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.” (Acts 17:31)

Indeed, “For the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7) Often do our judges favor the strong, and burden the weak, and our judgment is often based on the “outward appearance.” Consider the case of Pilate: He admired the fine physical features of Jesus; thus, he said to the Jews: “I find in him no fault at all.” (John 18:38 – repeated in John 19:4) But the “envy” of the Jews was so pronounced and clamorous that they prevailed. Thus, the law is often decided through prejudice, trickery, oratory or brute force. And the doctrine “Might is right” often prevails

Priest – Love: “Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.” (Heb. 5:6) The office of a Priest is to forgive and bless. Therefore, we are counseled: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy [forgiveness of sins], and find grace [blessing] to help in time of need.” (Heb. 4:16) All of this is clearly an operation of love, therefore, we pair the office of Priest with the divine attribute of Love. The great love-work that Jesus will accomplish is well expressed by the Prophet Hosea: “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction.” (Hos. 13:14)

Of Melchisedec it is recorded that he was a Priest upon his throne; that is, he was not subservient to any earthly power, which is an excellent description of our High Priest Jesus. Melchisedec was the King of Salem (probably Jerusalem) and “priest of the most high God.” (Heb. 7:1) The name “Salem” is derived from the Hebrew word for peace, shalom, thus identifying it as a place of peace and safety. We are also told: “In Salem also is his [God’s] tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion.” (Psa. 76:2)

The Apostle describes Melchisedec this way: “Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.” (Heb. 7:3) This means he did not inherit his priestly office from his father or mother, and he had no children in this priesthood, typifying Christ whose priesthood was not inherited, and who has no successors. Melchisedec’s lineage and death are not recorded; his priesthood was without beginning or ending, typifying Christ whose office as priest of the Millennial Kingdom is not a limited one.

It is a sad record that most movements, religious, governmental, or political, have been relatively pure at the outset, but almost all of them have followed a very fixed pattern as the years have come and gone. Regarding religious movements, they have gone through three stages: Priest-hood, Priest-craft and Priest-graft. The pristine purity of the early Christian Church under the leadership of the Apostles was a thing of beauty, earnestly striving for the welfare of its adherents. But the Apostle Paul said of his day, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work . . . whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” (2 Thes. 2:7-10)

Much the same could be said for the Jewish Church. When it was organized under Moses at Sinai, Aaron was the ideal priest. “And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.” (Heb. 5:4) But by the time Jesus arrived, the noble ideals of Aaron had disappeared; the priesthood had degraded to the bottom of the dirty barrel – priest-graft. He said to the Scribes and the Pharisees, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” (Matt. 21:13)

King – Power: “But thou, Bethlehem . . . out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2) “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.” (Isa. 9:7) The rulership of this kingdom is a display of power, and so the office of King is coupled with the divine attribute of Power, which Jesus will exercise as King over all the earth.

Since the time that historical records began to be kept, men have striven to improve their living conditions; and while some progress has been made in certain respects, yet the overall picture is well described by the Prophet: “From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.” (Isa. 1:6)

It is a wise observation that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, and the Bible emphasizes this in classic and emphatic fashion. The Prophet Daniel described King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to him this way: “Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.” (Dan. 2:31) He went on to describe the head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, and legs of iron. This describes the four great universal Gentile empires, and from the viewpoint of Nebuchadnezzar and the world in general, they appear “great” and “excellent.” He then told King Nebuchadnezzar: “Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory . . . Thou art this head of gold.” (Dan. 2:37-38)

But these same kingdoms, regarded by the world as glorious, are portrayed to Daniel in the seventh chapter of the same book as four beasts: a lion, a bear, a leopard, and “a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly.” (Dan. 7:7) In both instances the four universal empires are described – Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. We are later given this terse summarization of them all: “The most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.” (Dan. 4:17)

When we consider Nero, Ivan the Terrible, the Pharaohs of Egypt, the emperors of Rome, etc., along with more recent rulers, we recognize the truth of this statement. They may be the conquering heroes in their time, but they do not appear at all favorably when compared to The Prince of Peace!

“We see Jesus” with the eyes of our understanding; and we can join with St. Paul in his superb exclamation, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” (2 Cor. 9:15)

With this comes our warm wishes to all for a blessed Holiday observance.

(Written by Brother John J. Hoefle, and first published in 1980. Reprinted with modifications.)

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 819: THE KINGDOMS OF THIS WORLD

No. 819

“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish [fill] the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (Gen. 1:26-28)

In the first chapter of the Divine Revelation, God thus declares His purpose concerning His earthly creation and its government. This commission to multiply, and fill, and subdue, and have dominion over the earth was not to Adam alone, but to all mankind: “Let them have dominion,” etc. Had the human race remained perfect and sinless, this dominion would never have passed out of its hands.

Notice that in this commission no man is given dominion or authority over fellowmen, but the whole race is given dominion over the earth, to cultivate and to make use of its products for the common good. Had the race remained perfect and carried out this original design of the Creator, as it grew in numbers it would have been necessary for men to consult together, and to systematize their efforts, and to devise ways and means for the just and wise distribution of the common blessings. And as, in the course of time, it would have been impossible, because of their vast numbers, to meet and consult together, it would have been necessary for various classes of men to elect certain of their number to represent them. And if all men were perfect, mentally, physically and morally; if every man loved God and His regulations supremely, and his neighbor as himself, there would have been no friction in such an arrangement.

Thus seen, the original design of the Creator for earth’s government was a republic in form, a government in which each individual would share. This dominion of earth conferred upon man had but one contingency upon which its everlasting continuance depended; and that was that this divinely-conferred rulership be always exercised in harmony with the Supreme Ruler of the universe, whose one law, briefly stated, is Love. “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” (Rom. 13:10) “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. . . . Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” (Matt. 22:37-40)

But man’s disobedience to the Supreme Ruler forfeited not only his life, but also all his rights and privileges as God’s representative ruler of earth. Then speedily the kingdom of God on earth ceased, and has not since been established, except for a short time, in a typical manner, in Israel.

Our Lord’s death redeemed or purchased not only man, but also all his original inheritance, including the dominion of earth. He is now the rightful heir, and in due time He will take possession of His purchase. (Eph. 1:14) But as He bought man not for the sake of holding him as his slave, but that He might restore him to his former estate, so with the dominion of earth: He purchased it and all of man’s original blessings for the purpose of restoring them when man is again made capable of exercising them in harmony with the will of God. Hence the reign of Messiah on earth will not be everlasting. It will continue only until, by His strong iron rule, He will have put down all rebellion and insubordination, and restored the fallen race to the original perfection, when they will be fully capable of rightly exercising the dominion of earth as originally designed. When thus restored, it will again be the Kingdom of God on earth, under man, God’s appointed representative.

During the Jewish Age God organized the people of Israel as His kingdom, under Moses and the Judges – a sort of Republic – but it was typical only. And the more despotic rule afterward established, especially under David and Solomon, was in some respects typical of the Kingdom promised, when Messiah should reign. Unlike the surrounding nations, Israel had Jehovah for their King, and their rulers nominally served under Him. (Psa. 78:70-71) Israel is called “the kingdom of the Lord” (2 Chron. 13:8) and it is said that Solomon “sat on the throne of the Lord, instead of David his father” (1 Chron. 29:23),who sat upon or exercised the rule of the same throne for the forty years previous, following Saul, the first king.

When the people of Israel transgressed against the Lord, He chastised them repeatedly, until finally He took away their kingdom entirely. In the days of Zedekiah, the last who reigned of the line of David, the scepter of royal power was removed. There the typical kingdom of God was overthrown. (Ezek. 21:25-27) In fulfilment of this prophecy the king of Babylon came against Israel, took the people captive and removed their king. Though afterward restored to national existence by Cyrus the Persian, they were subjects and tribute payers to the successive empires of Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, down to the final destruction of their nationality, A.D. 70, since which time they have been scattered among all nations.

The kingdom of Israel is the only one, since the fall, which God ever recognized as in any way representing His government, laws, etc. All kingdoms other than that of Israel are Scripturally called heathen or Gentile kingdoms – “the kingdoms of this world,” under the “prince of this world” – Satan. The removal of God’s kingdom in the days of Zedekiah left the world without any government of which God could approve, or whose laws or affairs He specially supervised. The Gentile governments God recognized indirectly, in that He publicly declared His decree (Luke 21:24) that during the interregnum the control of Jerusalem and the world should be exercised by Gentile governments (“the Times of the Gentiles”).These “times” or years, during which the “kingdoms of this world” are permitted to rule, are fixed and limited, and the time for the re-establishment of God’s Kingdom under Messiah is equally fixed and marked in Scripture.

Evil as these Gentile governments have been, they were permitted or “ordained of God” for a wise purpose. (Rom. 13:1) Their imperfection and misrule form a part of the general lesson on the exceeding sinfulness of sin, and prove the inability of fallen man to govern himself, even to his own satisfaction. God permits them, in the main, to carry out their own purposes as they may be able, overruling them only when they would interfere with His plans.

Man’s inability to establish a perfect government is attributable to his own weaknesses in his fallen, depraved condition. These weak­nesses, which of themselves would thwart human efforts to produce a perfect government, have also been taken advantage of by Satan, who first tempted man to disloyalty to the Supreme Ruler. Satan has continually taken advantage of man’s weaknesses, made good to appear evil, and evil to appear good; and he has misrepresented God’s character and plans and blinded men to the truth. Thus working in the hearts of the children of disobedience (Eph. 2:2), he has led them captive at his will and made himself what our Lord and the Apostles call him – the prince or ruler of this world. (John 14:30; John 12:31) He is not the prince of this world by right, but by usurpation, through fraud and deception and control of fallen men. It is because he is a usurper that he will be summarily deposed. Had he a real title as prince of this world, he would not thus be dealt with.

Thus it will be seen that the dominion of earth, as at present exercised, has both an invisible and a visible phase. The former is the spiritual, the latter the human phase – the visible earthly kingdoms measurably under the control of a spiritual prince, Satan. It was because Satan possessed such control that he could offer to make our Lord the supreme visible sovereign of the earth under his direction. (Matt. 4:9) When the Times of the Gentiles expire, both phases of the present dominion will terminate: Satan will be bound and the kingdoms of this world will be overthrown.

In order that His children should not be in darkness relative to His permission of present evil governments and concerning His ultimate design to bring in a better government, God has given us, through His Prophets, several grand panoramic views of the “kingdoms of this world,” each time showing, for our encouragement, their overthrow by the establishment of His own righteous and everlasting kingdom under the Messiah, the Prince of Peace. That man’s present effort to exercise dominion is not in successful defiance of Jehovah’s will and power, but by His permission, is shown by God’s message to Nebuchadnezzar, wherein God gives permission to rule, until the time for the setting up of Christ’s Kingdom, to the four great empires, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. (Dan. 2:37-43) This shows where this lease of the dominion will end. As we now glance at these prophetic views, let us remember that they begin with Babylon at the time of the overthrow of the kingdom of Israel, the typical kingdom of the Lord.

NEBUCHADNEZZAR’S DREAM

Among those things “written aforetime” for our edification (Rom. 15:4), is the dream of Nebuchadnezzar and its divine interpretation through the Prophet Daniel, who explained the dream, saying:

“Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. . . . This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.” (Dan. 2:31-34)

“Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer thresh­ingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.” (Dan. 2:35)

“This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. . . . Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee [silver], and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter’s clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.” (Dan. 2:36-42)

The student of history can readily trace, among the many smaller empires of earth which have arisen, the four above described by Daniel. These are termed “universal empires” – Babylon, first, the head of gold; Medo-Persia, conqueror of Babylon, second, the breast of silver; Greece, conqueror of Medo-Persia, third, the belly of brass; and Rome, fourth, the strong kingdom, the iron legs and clay-mixed feet. Three of these empires had passed away, and the fourth, the Roman, held universal sway over “all the world” at the time of our Lord’s birth, as we read, “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.” (Luke 2:1)

The iron empire, Rome, was by far the strongest, and endured longer than its predecessors. In fact, the Roman Empire still continues, as represented in the nations of Europe. This division is represented in the ten toes of the image. The clay element blended with the iron in the feet represents the mixture of church and state. This mixture is in the Scriptures termed “Babylon” – confusion. As we shall presently see, stone is the symbol of the true Kingdom of God, and Babylon substituted an imitation of stone – clay – which it has united with the fragmentary remains of the [iron] Roman Empire. And this mixed system – church and state – the church nominal wedded to the kingdoms of this world, which the Lord calls Babylon, confusion, presumes to call itself Christendom – Christ’s Kingdom.

Daniel explains: “And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men [church and world blend – Babylon]: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. [They cannot thoroughly amalgamate.] And in the days of these kings [the so-called “Christian kingdoms” or “Christendom” represented by the toes] shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” (Dan. 2:43-44)

Continuing his interpretation, Daniel states: “Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.” (Dan. 2:45)

The stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which smites and scatters the Gentile powers, represents the true Church, the Kingdom of God. When complete, when entirely cut out, it will smite and destroy the kingdoms of this world. Not the people, but the governments, are symbolized by the image, and these are to be destroyed that the people may be delivered. Our Lord Jesus came not to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. (John 3:17)

The stone does not become the mountain until it has smitten the image; and so the Church, in the full sense, will become the Kingdom to fill the whole earth when “the day of the Lord,” the “day of wrath upon the nations” or “time of trouble,” will be over, and when it will be established and all other dominions have become subservient to it.

When the iron rod has accomplished the work of destruction, then will the hand that smote be turned to heal, and the people will return to the Lord, and He shall heal them, giving them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. (Isa. 19:22; Jer. 3:22-23; Hos. 6:1; Hos. 14:4; Isa. 2:3; Isa. 61:3)

DANIEL’S VISION

The stone class, the true Church, during its selection or taking out of the mountain, has been esteemed by the world as of no value. It has been despised and rejected of men. They see no beauty in it that they should desire it. The world loves, admires, praises and defends the rulers and governments represented in this great image, though it has been continually disappointed, deceived, wounded and oppressed by them. The proud are now called happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up in power. (Mal. 3:15) Can we not see, then, that the destruction of this great image by the smiting of the stone, and the establishment of God’s Kingdom, means the liberating of the oppressed and the blessing of all? Though for a time the change will cause disaster and trouble, it will finally yield the peaceable fruits of righteousness.

But now, calling to mind the difference of standpoint, let us look at the same four universal empires of earth from the standpoint of God and those in harmony with Him, as portrayed in vision to the beloved Prophet Daniel. As to us these kingdoms appear inglorious and beastly, so to him these four universal empires were shown as four great and ravenous wild beasts. And to his view the coming Kingdom of God (the stone) was proportionally grander than as seen by Nebuchadnezzar. (For Daniel’s description of these four beastly empires, see Dan. 7:2-7)

Of the fourth beast, Rome, Daniel says: “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; . . .and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.” (Dan. 7:7-8)

Here the Roman Empire is shown; and the divisions of its power are shown in the ten horns, a horn being a symbol of power. The little horn which arose among these, and which appropriated the power of three of them to itself, and ruled among the others, represents the small beginning and gradual rise to power of the Church of Rome, the Papal power or horn. As it rose in influence, three of the divisions, horns or powers of the Roman Empire were plucked out of the way to make room for its establishment as a civil power or horn. This last especially notable horn, Papacy, is remarkable for its eyes, representing intelligence, and for its mouth – its utterances, its claims, etc.

After giving some details regarding this last or Roman beast, and especially of its peculiar or Papal horn, the Prophet states that judgment against this horn would be rendered, and it would begin to lose its dominion, which would be consumed by gradual process until the beast should be destroyed.

No matter what may be the means or instrumentality used, the cause of this fall will be the establishment of the Fifth Universal Empire of earth, the Kingdom of God, under Christ, whose right it is to take the dominion. The transfer of the kingdom from the fourth beast, which for its appointed time was “ordained of God,” to the fifth kingdom, under the Messiah, when its appointed season has come, is described by the Prophet in these words: “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him [the Christ – head and body complete] dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” This the angel interpreted thus: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” (Dan. 7:13-14, 27)

The dominion of earth is to be placed in the hands of Christ by Jehovah (“the Ancient of days”), who shall “put all things under his feet.” (1 Cor. 15:27) Thus enthroned over God’s Kingdom, He must reign until He shall have put down all authority and power in conflict with the will and law of Jehovah. The “kingdoms of this world,” like the “prince of this world,” will not surrender peaceably, but must be bound and restrained by force. And thus it is written, “To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints.” (Psa. 149:8-9)

Each of these governments represented in the image and by the beasts existed before it came into power as the universal empire. So, too, with the true Kingdom of God: it has long existed separate from the world, not attempting rulership, but awaiting its time – the time appointed by the Ancient of days. And, like the others, it must receive its appointment and must come into authority or be “set up” before it can exercise its power in the smiting and slaying of the beast or kingdom preceding it. Hence the appropriateness of the statement that God will set up His Kingdom in “the days of these kings” (while they still have power) and it will consume all those kingdoms and stand forever. (Dan. 2:44) Hence, however we may look for it, we must expect God’s Kingdom to be inaugurated before the fall of the kingdoms of this world, and that its power and smiting will bring their overthrow.

Man’s idea was self-government independent of God; and when God permitted him to try the experiment, Satan embraced the opportunity to extend his influence and dominion. Thus it was by wishing to forget God (Rom. 1:28) that man exposed himself to the influence of this wily and powerful though unseen foe; and therefore he has ever since been obliged to work against Satan’s machinations, as well as his own personal weaknesses.

While, therefore, we recognize the beastly character of these governments, as rendered so by the exaltation to power of a majority of unrighteous rulers, through the intrigues and deceptions of Satan, operating through man’s weaknesses and depraved tastes and ideas, yet we recognize them as the best efforts of poor, fallen humanity at governing itself. But after centuries of experiment, the results are as far from satisfactory today as at any period of the world’s history. In fact, the dissatisfaction is more general and widespread than ever before; not because there is more oppression and injustice than ever, but because, under God’s arrangement, men’s eyes are being opened by the increase of knowledge.

This increase of knowledge among men, which is of God’s appointment, and comes to pass in His own due time, is one of the mighty influences which are now at work binding Satan. The increase of knowledge in every direction awakens a feeling of self-respect among men, and a realization of their natural and inalienable rights, which they will not long permit to be ignored or despised; rather, they will go to an opposite extreme. And the Prophets declare that because of the increase of knowledge a still more general and widespread dissatisfaction will finally express itself in a world-wide revolution, in the overthrow of all law and order; that anarchy and distress upon all classes will be the result; but that in the midst of this confusion the God of heaven will set up His Kingdom, which will satisfy the desires of all nations. Wearied and disheartened with their own failures, and finding their last and greatest efforts resulting in anarchy, men will gladly welcome and bow before the heavenly authority, and recognize its strong and just government. Thus man’s extremity will become God’s opportunity, and “the desire of all nations shall come” – the Kingdom of God, in power and great glory. (Hag. 2:7)

Knowing this to be the purpose of God, neither Jesus nor the Apostles interfered with earthly rulers in any way. On the contrary, they taught the Church to submit to these powers, even though they often suffered under their abuse of power.

The Church of God should give its entire attention and effort to preaching the Kingdom of God, and to the advancement of the interests of that Kingdom according to the plan laid down in the Scriptures. If this is faithfully done, there will be no time nor disposition to dabble in the politics of present governments.

The early Church, shortly after the death of the Apostles, fell a prey to this very temptation. The preaching of the coming Kingdom of God, which would displace all earthly kingdoms, and of the crucified Christ as the heir of that Kingdom, was unpopular, and brought with it persecution, scorn and contempt. But some thought to improve on God’s plan, and, instead of suffering, to get the Church into a position of favor with the world. By a combination with earthly powers, they succeeded. As a result, Papacy was developed, and in time became the mistress and queen of nations. (Rev. 17:3-5; Rev. 18:7)

By this policy everything was changed: instead of suffering, came honor; instead of humility, came pride; instead of truth, came error; and instead of being persecuted, she became the persecutor of all who condemned her new and illegal honors.  She made all nations “drunk” with her erroneous doctrines. (Rev. 17:2) Thus it comes that the kingdoms of Europe today claim to be Christian kingdoms, and announce that their sovereigns reign “by the grace of God,” i.e., through appointment of either Papacy or some of the Protestant sects. The Reformers fell into the same error, and exercised the authority of monarchs in appointing and sanctioning governments and kings, and denominating such “Christian kingdoms,” or kingdoms of Christ.

God never approved of calling these kingdoms by the name of Christ. The claim that these imperfect kingdoms, with their imperfect laws and often selfish and vicious rulers, are the “kingdoms of our Lord and his Anointed” is a gross libel upon the true Kingdom of Christ, before which they must shortly fall, and upon its “Prince of Peace” and righteous rulers. (Isa. 32:1)

Let it be seen that the best and the worst of earth’s nations are but “kingdoms of this world,” whose lease of power from God is now about expired, that they may give place to their ordained successor, the Kingdom of Messiah, the Fifth Universal Empire of earth (Dan. 2:44; Dan. 7:14, 17, 27) – this view will do much to establish truth and to overthrow error.

The world is fast coming to realize that the “kingdoms of this world” are not Christlike, and that their claim to be of Christ’s appointment is not unquestionable. In fact, the tendency with many is to conclude that Christianity itself is an imposition without foundation, and that, leagued with civil rulers, its aim is merely to hold in check the liberties of the masses.

O that men were wise, that they would apply their hearts to understand the work and plan of the Lord! Then would the present kingdoms melt down gradually – reform would swiftly follow reform, and liberty follow liberty, and justice and truth would prevail until righteousness would be established in the earth. But they will not do this, nor can they in their present fallen state; and so, armed with selfishness, each will strive for mastery, and the kingdoms of this world will pass away with a great time of trouble, such as was not since there was a nation. Of those who will be vainly trying to hold to a dominion which has passed away, when the dominion is given to Him whose right it is, the Lord speaks, urging that they are fighting against Him – a conflict in which they are sure to fail:

“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. . . . Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss [make friends with] the Son [God’s Anointed], lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” (Psa. 2:1-6, 10-12)

(From Studies in the Scriptures, Volume I, Chapter XIII, condensed and edited.)

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