THE HERALD
of Christ's Kingdom
VOL. II. June 1 and 15, 1919 No. 11 and 12
Table of Contents
WHAT
SAY THE SCRIPTURES ABOUT OUR LORD'S RETURN
THE
PAROUSIA OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
WHAT
SAY' THE SCRIPTURES CONCERNING HELL?
PARABLE
OF THE SHEEP AND THE GOATS
EVERLASTING
PUNISHMENT
FORGIVABLE
AND UNPARDONABLE SINS
THE
WRATH OF GOD.
VOL. II. June 1 and
15, 1919 No. 11 and 12
THE DIVINE PURPOSE THE RESTITUTION,
OF ALL THINGS
CHRIST'S PRESENCE, APPEARING AND REVEALING
"And He shall send Jesus Christ,
which [who] before was preached unto you; whom the heaven must 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 3:20, 21.
FOR centuries past, a considerable
number of professed Christian people, in reading the Scriptures on the Second Coming of
Christ, have failed to find there, the comfort intended for the truth-hungry. Instead of
seeing in our Lord's return the dawn of hope for the groaning creation-the restitution of
all the willing and obedient to Paradise-they have seemed to read only a dreadful doom for
the great bulk of humanity, and the destruction of all things mundane. According to this
conception, the Plan of God is seen to end in disaster And defeat so far as the vast
majority of our race is concerned, and in an overwhelming victory for Satan.
Consequently many of God's people
have been offended, "stumbled," as respects the doctrine of the Second Coming of
our dear Redeemer, by reason of peculiar, extravagant, unreasonable, illogical and
unscriptural views on the subject, presented by some, who professedly love the Lord's
appearing. But this is all wrong; we are not to reject one of the grandest and most
prominent doctrines of the Scriptures, simply because some fellow-Christians have erred
egregiously respecting the matter, and brought a certain amount of worldly-wise contempt
upon everything connected with this subject. On the contrary, this doctrine, as a glorious
gem, should be given the first place among the precious jewels of Divine truth, where it
can cast its halo and splendor and brilliancy over all connected and related promises and
blessings. It should not be left in the imperfect setting which hides its glory and
beauty, but should be recovered, remounted, set in its true place, to the glory of God and
to the blessing of all who are sincerely and truly His people.
We need offer no apology for the
interest which we feel in this grand subject, which is the center upon which all the
testimony of Divine grace, through all the holy prophets, is focused. Rather do they need
to apologize who, knowing that the Second Coming of the Lord and the resurrection of the
dead hold the most important places in the Scriptures, next to the doctrine of the
atonement for sin, have nevertheless neglected these while they have quarreled,
skirmished, fought and bled over trifling things of no real importance, doctrinally or
otherwise.
St. John, the beloved, in his
wonderful revelation was given a glimpse of future events, and in marvelous vision was
borne across this dispensation with the powers of evil still in control; he saw its
changing scenes of church and state and witnessed the final culmination. He saw a great
change take place on earth-Satan was bound, the forces of evil overthrown; Christ and the
saints reigning
in glorious triumph. He saw the world
of mankind liberated from the prison-house of death, and their return to their home in
Eden-Paradise restored. No wonder the beloved John, as! he beheld this heavenly vision of
the future blessing of the world, out of the depths of his soul, cried, "Even so,
come, Lord Jesus."
As one of the twelve who walked with
Jesus while upon the earth, St. John remembered the prayer that, the Savior taught His
followers: "Thy Kingdom Come., 'Thy will be done in earth as in heaven." The
Apostle knew that there could be no more sure guarantee of the lifting of the, curse from
the earth, and the restoration of humanity, than in this promise of the Kingdom at the
Second Coming of the Lord.
Thank God, that with the clearer
light of our day shining upon the pages of His Holy Revelation, the sincere Bible student
is able to read in fairer lines the Plan of God with regard to our Lord's return and the
consummation of all things in the ultimate and everlasting defeat of Satan and in the
recovery of a sorrowing and ruined world.--Rev. 21:3-5; 22:3, 17.
We presume that it is admitted and
believed by all familiar with the Scriptures, that our Lord intended His disciples to
understand that for some purpose, in some manner, and at some time, He would come again.
True,, Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the Age"
(Matt. 28:20), and by His Spirit and by His Word He has been with the Church continually,
guiding, directing, comforting and sustaining His saints, and cheering them in the midst
of all their afflictions. But though the Church has been blessedly conscious of the Lord's
knowledge of all her ways and of His constant care and love, yet she longs for His
promised personal return; for when He said, "If I go, I will come again" (John
14:3), He certainly referred to a second personal
coming.
Some think He referred to the descent
of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; others, to the destruction of Jerusalem, etc.; but these
apparently overlook the fact that in the last book of the Bible, written some sixty years
after Pentecost, and twenty-six years after Jerusalem's destruction, He that was dead and is alive-the
risen Christ-in living tones speaks of the event as yet future, saying, "Behold I
come quickly, and my reward is with me," and the inspired John replies, "Even
so, come, Lord Jesus." -Rev. 22:12, 20
Quite a number think that when sinners are converted that forms a
part of the coming of Christ, and that so He will continue coming until all the world is
converted. Then, say they, He will have fully come.
These evidently forget the testimony
of the Scriptures on the subject, which declares the reverse of their expectation; that at
the time of our Lord's Second Coming the world will be far from converted to God; that
"in the last days perilous times shall come, for men shall be lovers of pleasure more
than lovers of God" (2 Tim. 3:1-4) ; that "evil men and seducers shall wax worse
and worse, deceiving, and being deceived."-Verse 13.
They forget the Master's special
warning to His Little Flock--"Take heed to yourselves lest that day come upon you
unawares, for as a snare shall it come on all
them (not taking heed) that dwell on the face of the whole earth." (Luke 21:34, 35.)
Again, we may rest assured that when it is said, "All kindreds of the earth shall
wail because of Him," when they see Him coming (Rev. 1:7), no reference is made to
the conversion of sinners. Do all men wail because of the conversion of sinners? On the
contrary, if this passage refers, as almost all admit, to Christ's presence on earth , it
teaches that all on earth will not love His appearing, as they certainly would do if all
were converted.
CHRIST COMES
BEFORE CONVERSION
OF THE WORLD
AND REIGNS TO ACCOMPLISH THAT END
Some expect an actual coming and
presence of the Lord, but set the time of the
event a long way off, claiming that through the efforts of the Church in its present
condition, the world must be converted and thus the Millennial Age be introduced. They
claim that when the world has been converted, and Satan bound, and the knowledge of the
Lord caused to fill the whole earth, and when the nations learn war no more, then the work
of the Church in her present condition will be ended; and that when she has accomplished
this great and difficult task, the Lord will come to wind up earthly affairs, reward
believers and condemn sinners.
Some Scriptures, taken
disconnectedly, Seem to favor this view; but when God's Word and Plan are viewed as a
whole, these will all be found to favor the opposite view, viz., that Christ comes before
the conversion of the world, and reigns for the purpose of converting the world; that the
Church is now being tried, and that the reward promised the overcomers is that after being
glorified they shall share with the Lord in that reign, which is God's appointed means of
blessing the world and causing the knowledge of the Lord to come to every creature. Such
are the Lord's special promises: "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me
in My throne." (Rev. 3:21.) "And they lived
and reigned with Christ, a thousand years."--Rev. 20:4.
GOD'S MESSAGE INTENDED TO CALL
THE CHURCH MERELY, IN THIS AGE
There are two texts chiefly relied
upon by those who claim that the Lord will not come until after the Millennium, to which
we would here call attention. One is, "This Gospel of the Kingdom Shall be preached
in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Matt.
24:14.) They claim this as having reference to the conversion of the world before the end
of the Gospel Age. But witnessing to -the world
does not imply the conversion of the world. The text says nothing about how the testimony
will be received. This witness has already been given. In 1861 the reports of the Bible
Societies showed that the Gospel had been published .in every language of the earth,
though not all of earth's millions had received it. No, not one-half of the sixteen
hundred millions living have ever heard the name of Jesus. Yet the condition of the text
is fulfilled-the Gospel has been preached in all the world for a witness--to every nation.
The Apostle (Acts 15:14) tells that
the main object of the Gospel in the present
Age is "to take out a people" for Christ's name-the overcoming Church which, at
His Second Advent, will be united to Him and receive His name. The witnessing to the world
during this Age is a secondary object.
The other text is, "Sit thou on
my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool." (Psa. 110:1.) The vague,
indefinite idea regarding this text seems to be that Christ sits on a material throne
somewhere in the heavens until the work of subduing all things is accomplished for Him
through the Church, and that then He comes to reign. This is a misconception. The throne
of God referred to is not a material one, but refers to His supreme authority and
rulership; and the Lord Jesus has been exalted to a share in that rulership.
St. Paul declares, "God hath
highly exalted Him [Jesus] and given Him a name above every name." He hath given Him authority above every other, next to the Father.
If Christ sits upon a material throne until His enemies are made His footstool (all
subdued), then, of course, He cannot come until all things are subdued. But if "right
hand" in this text refers, not to a fixed bench or locality, but, as we claim, to
power, authority, rulership, it follows that the text under consideration would in no wise
conflict with the other Scripture which teaches that He comes to "subdue all things
unto Himself" (Phil. 3:21), by virtue of the power vested in Him.
To illustrate: In common usage we may
make the statement that such and such a King is occupying a certain throne, yet we do not
refer to the royal bench, and, as a matter of fact, he seldom occupies it. When we say
that he is on the throne, we mean that he rules that country. Right hand signifies the
chief place, position of excellence or favor, next to the chief ruler. Thus Joseph was at
the right hand of Pharaoh in the kingdom of Egypt-not literally, but after the customary.
figure of speech. Jesus' words to Caiaphas agree
with this thought -"Hereafter shall ye see the Son of -Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of
heaven." (Matt. 26:64.) He will be on the right
hand when coming, and will remain on the right
hand during the Millennial Age, and forever.
JESUS CAME AT HIS FIRST ADVENT TO REDEEM MEN
HIS SECOND ADVENT IS TO RESTORE THE REDEEMED
A further examination of God's revealed plans shows a broader view of the
object of both the First and Second Advents; and we
should remember that both events stand related as parts of one Plan. The specific work of the First Advent was to redeem men; and that of the Second is to restore and bless, and liberate the redeemed.
Having given His life a ransom for all, our Savior ascended to present that sacrifice to
the Father, thus making reconciliation for man's iniquity. He tarries and permits
"the prince of this world" to continue the rule of evil, until after the
selection of "the Bride, the Lamb's Wife" who, to be accounted worthy of such
honor, must overcome the influences of the present evil world. Then the work of giving to
the world of mankind the great blessings secured to them by His sacrifice will be due to
commence, and He will come forth to bless all the families of the earth..
The Apostle informs us that Jesus,
has been absent from earth-in the heaven-during all the intervening time from His
ascension to the beginning of the Times of Restitution, or the Millennial Age--"Whom
the heaven must retain until the times of
restitution of all things," etc. (Acts 3:21.) Since the Scriptures thus teach that
the object of our Lord's Second Advent is the restitution of all things, and that at the
time of His appearing the nations are so far from being converted as to be angry (Rev.
11:18) and in opposition, it must be admitted either that the Church will fail to
accomplish her mission, and that the Plan of God will be thus far frustrated, or else, as
we claim and have shown, that the conversion of the world in the present Age was not
expected of the Church, but that her mission has been to preach the Gospel in all the
world for a witness, and to prepare herself,
under Divine direction, for her great future work. God has not yet by any means exhausted
His power for the world's conversion. Nay, more-He has not yet even attempted the world's conversion.
This may seem a strange statement to
some, but let such reflect that if God has attempted such a work He has signally failed;
for, as we have seen, only a small fraction of earth's billions have ever intelligently
heard of the only name whereby they must be
saved. We have only forcibly stated- the views and teachings of some of the leading sects
-- Baptists, Presbyterians and others; viz., that God is electing or selecting out of the
world a "little flock," a Church. They believe that God will do no more than
choose this Church, while we find the Scriptures teaching a further step in the Divine
Plan -- RESTITUTION for the world, to be accomplished through the elect Church, when
completed and glorified. The "little flock," the overcomers, of this Gospel Age,
are only the Body of "The Seed" in or by whom all the families of the earth are
to be blessed.
THE ELECTION AND FREE GRACE OF THE BIBLE
Those who claim that for six thousand
years, Jehovah has been trying to convert the world, and failing all the time, must find it difficult to reconcile
such views with the Bible assurance that all God's purposes shall be accomplished, and
that His Word shall not return unto Him void, but shall prosper in the thing whereto it was sent. (Isa. 55:11.) The
fact that the world has not yet been converted and that the knowledge of the Lord has not
yet filled the earth, is a proof that it has not yet been sent on that mission.
This brings us to the two lines of
thought which have divided Christians for centuries, namely, Election and Free Grace. That
both of these doctrines, notwithstanding their apparent oppositeness, have Scriptural
support, no Bible student will deny. This fact should lead us at once to surmise that in
some way both must be true; but in no way can they be reconciled except by observing
heaven's law--order, and "rightly dividing
the Word of Truth" on the subject. This order, as represented in the Plan of the
Ages, if observed, will clearly show us that while an Election has been in progress during
the present and past Ages, what is by way of distinction designated Free Grace, is God's
gracious provision for the world in general during the Millennial Age. If the distinctive
features of the Epochs and Dispensations indicated in the Bible be kept in mind, and all
the passages relating to Election and Free Grace be examined and located, it will be found
that all which treat of Election apply to the present and past Ages, while those which
teach Free Grace are fully applicable to the next Age only.
However, Election as taught in the
Bible, is not the arbitrary coercion, or fatalism, usually believed and taught by its
advocates, but a selection according to fitness and adaptability to the end God has in
view, during the period appointed for that purpose.
The doctrine of Free Grace, advocated
by our Methodist friends, is also a much grander display of God's abounding favor than its
most earnest advocates have ever taught. God's grace or favor in Christ is ever free, in
the sense of being unmerited; but. since the fall of man into sin, to the present time,
certain of God's favors have been restricted to certain individuals, nations and classes,
while in the next Age all the world, including the dead who will then be awakened, will be
invited to share the favors then offered, on the conditions then made known to all, and
whosoever will may come and drink at life's fountain freely. -- Rev. 22:17.
BOTH THE LIVING AND THE DEAD
SHARE IN THE BENEFITS OF MESSIAH'S REIGN
Some who can see something of the
blessings due at the Second Advent, and who appreciate in some measure the fact that the
Lord comes to bestow the grand blessing purchased by His death, fail to see the vast scope
of that blessing as applicable to all mankind, and that all those in their graves have as
much interest in the glorious reign of Messiah as well as those who happen to be living at
the time of His return. Is it not because of God's Plan for their release that those in
the tomb are called "prisoners of hope?"
We read that Jesus Christ by the
grace of God, tasted death "for every
man.". (Heb. 2:9.) But if He tasted for all humanity, both the living and the
dead, and from any cause that sacrifice becomes efficacious to only a small fraction of
earth's billions, was not the redemption comparatively a failure? And in that case, is not
the Apostle's statement too broad? When again we read, "Behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to ALL PEOPLE" (Luke 2:10), and, looking about
us, see that it is only to a "little flock" that it has been good tidings, and
not to all people, we would be compelled to wonder whether the angels had not overstated
the goodness. and breadth of their message, and overrated the importance of the work to be
accomplished by the Messiah whom they announced.
Another statement is, "There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself -,a ransom for all." (1 Tim. 2:5, 6.) A ransom
for all? Then why should not all for whom the ransom had been provided have some benefit
from Christ's death? Why should not all come to
a knowledge of the truth, that they may believe?
A RANSOM TO BE TESTIFIED "IN DUE TIME!'
Without the key how dark, how
inconsistent, these statements appear; but when we find the key to God's Plan, these texts
all declare with one voice, "God is Love." This key is found in the latter part
of the text last quoted -- "Who gave himself a ransom for all, To BE TESTIFIED IN DUE
TIME." God has a due time for every thing. He could have testified it to these in
their past life-time; but since He did not, except to a small minority, it proves that
their due time must be future. For those who will be of the Church, the Bride of Christ,
and share the Kingdom honors, the present is the "due time" to hear; and
whosoever now has an ear to hear, let him hear .and heed, and he will be blessed
accordingly. Though Jesus secured our ransom before we were born, it was not our "due
time" to hear of it for long years afterward, and only the appreciation of it brought
responsibility; and this, only to the extent of our ability and appreciation.
The same principle applies to all: in
God's due time it will be testified to all, and all will then have opportunity to believe
and to be blessed by it. The prevailing opinion is that death ends all probation,; but
there is no Scripture which so teaches; and all the above, and many more Scriptures, would
be meaningless, or worse, if death ends all hope for the ignorant masses of the world. The
one Scripture quoted to prove this generally entertained view is, "Where the tree
falleth, there it shall be." (Eccl. 11:3.) If this has any relation to man's future,
it indicates that whatever his condition when he enters the tomb, no change takes place
until he is awakened out of it. And this is the uniform teaching of all Scripture bearing
on the subject.
ALL MEN TO BE BROUGHT TO A KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH
(1 Tim. 2:4)
Since God does not propose to save
men on account of ignorance, but "will have all men to come unto the knowledge of the
truth" (1 Tim. 2:4) ; and since the masses of mankind have died in ignorance; and
since "there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave"
(Eccl. 9:10) ; therefore God has prepared for the awakening of the dead, in order to
knowledge, faith and salvation. Hence His Plan is, that "as all in Adam die, even so
all in Christ shall be made alive, but each one in his own order"--the Gospel Church,
the Bride, the Body of Christ, first; afterward, during the Millennial Age, all who become
His during that thousand years of His Presence (mistranslated
coming), the Lord's due time for all to know Him, from the least to the greatest. (I Cor.
15:22.) Thus the hope of the world lies beyond the return of the Lord.
As death came by the first Adam, so
life comes by Christ, the Second Adam. Everything that mankind lost through being in the
first Adam is to be restored to those who believe in the Second Adam. When awakened, with
the advantage of experience with evil, which Adam lacked, those who thankfully accept the
redemption as God's gift may continue to live everlastingly on the original condition of obedience. Perfect obedience
will be required, and perfect ability to obey will be given, under the righteous reign of
the Prince of Peace. Here is the salvation offered to the world. This will not mean of
course that God will coerce or force the world into a. state of salvation in the future
Age. In that Day of full knowledge and opportunity, only those who accept the Message and
reform and become obedient thereto, will be restored to everlasting life. Others who
wilfully reject the way of righteousness under the
reign of Christ, will be judged incorrigible and will be ultimately destroyed in the
"Second death" from which there will be no recovery.--Acts 3:23; Rom. 6:23.
THE JEWS WILL BE BROUGHT OUT OF THEIR GRAVES
AND PUT IN THEIR OWN LAND
(Ezek.
37:12-14)
St. Peter tells us that this
restitution is spoken of by the mouth of all the holy Prophets. (Acts 3:19-21.)
They all teach it. Ezekiel says of
the valley of dry bones, "These bones are the whole house of Israel." And God
says to Israel, "Behold, 0 my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come
up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am
the Lord, when I . . .. shall put my spirit in you, and I shall place you in your own
land; then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the
Lord."--Ezek. 37:11-14.
To this, the words of St. Paul agree
(Rom. 11:25, 26)-- "Blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fullness of the
Gentiles [the elect company, the Bride of Christ] be
come in; and so all Israel shall be saved,
"or brought back from their cast-off condition; for "God hath not cast off
His people which He foreknew." (Verse 2.) They were cast off from His favor while the
Bride of Christ was being selected, but will be reinstated when that work is accomplished.
(Verses 28-33.) The prophets are full of statements of how God will plant them again, and
they shall be no more plucked up. "Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel. . . . I
will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land; and I
will build them and not pull, them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. And
I will give them an heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be my people, and
I will be their God, for they shall return, unto Me with their whole heart." (Jer.
24:5-7; 31:28; 32:40-42; 33:6-16.) These cannot refer merely to restorations from former
captivities in Babylon, Syria, etc., for they have since been plucked up.
EVERY MAN WHO DIES THEN SHALL DIE FOR HIS OWN SINS
Furthermore, the Lord says, "In
those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's
teeth are set on edge, but every one [who dies] shall die for his own iniquity."
(Jer. 31:29, 30.) This is not the case now. -Each does not die now for his own sin, but
for Adam's sin--"In Adam all die." He ate the sour grape of sin, and our fathers
continued to cat them, entailing further sickness and misery upon their children, thus
hastening the penalty, death. The day in which "every man [who dies] shall die for
his own sin," only, is the Millennial or Restitution Day.
Though many of the prophecies and
promises of the future blessing seem to apply to Israel only, it must be remembered that
they were a typical people, and hence the promises made to them, while sometimes having a
special application to themselves, generally have also a, wider application to the whole
world of mankind which that nation typified. While Israel as a nation was typical of the
whole world, its priesthood was typical of the "little flock," the Head and Body
of Christ, the "royal priesthood;" and the sacrifices, cleansings and atonements
made for Israel typified the "better sacrifices," fuller cleansings and real
atonement "for the sins of the whole world," of which they are a part.
Christian people generally believe
that God's blessings are all and only for the selected Church, but now we begin to see
that God's Plan is wider than we had supposed, and that though He has given the Church
"exceeding great and precious promises," He has also made bountiful provision
for the world which He so loved as to redeem. The Jews made a very similar mistake in
supposing that all the promises of God were to and for them alone; but when the "due
time" came and the Gentiles were favored, the remnant of Israel, whose hearts were
large enough to rejoice in this wider evidence of God's grace, shared that increased
favor, while the rest were blinded by prejudice and human tradition. Let those of the
Church who now see the dawning light of the Millennial Age with its gracious advantages
for all the world, take heed lest they be found in opposition to the advancing light, and
so for a time be blinded to its glory and blessings. How different is this gracious Plan
of God for the selection of a few now, in order to the blessing of the many thereafter.
Seeing,
then, that so many of the great and glorious features of God's Plan for human salvation
from sin and death, lie in the future, and that the Second Advent of our Lord Jesus is the
designed first step in the accomplishment of
those long-promised and long-expected blessings, shall we not even more earnestly long for
the time of His Second Advent than the less informed Jew looked and longed for the First Advent?
"Watch,
therefore; for ye know not the day* your Lord doth come.". "What I say unto you,
I say unto all [believers], Watch!"--Matt.
24:42; Mark 13:37. 0
In view of the foregoing Scripture
testimony as to the object and purpose of our Lord's return, we are prepared to recognize
what great importance logically attaches to the time
as well as the signs or indications which
mark the appearing and presence of earth's new King and the exercise of His power in the
affairs of men.
Whatever. the character of the
watching, and whatever the thing to be looked for, there can be no question that the
exhortation to watch for an event whose precise time. is not stated implies that the
watching ones will know when the event does take place.. Watch, because ye know not, in
order that at the proper time ye may know, is the thought; and the intimation clearly is,
that those who do not watch will not know: that the events which are to be known in due
time to the Watchers will be recognized by them, and not recognized by others, at the time
of accomplishment.
This, the only logical interpretation
of our Lord's exhortation, is fully corroborated by several of the apostles. The Apostle
Paul urges us, saying: "Yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh
as a thief in the night, and when they [the world, unbelievers] 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 Thes. 5:3, 4) ; because, being children of the light, ye
brethren will be watching and be enlightened and taught of the Lord. The Apostle Peter
suggests the means by which the Lord will teach us and inform us respecting our location
upon the path of the just which shineth more and more unto the perfect day. He shows that
it will not be by miraculous revelations, nor by dreams, but through the Word of
testimony, the Bible. He says, "We have a more sure word of prophecy, to which ye do
well that ye take heed, as unto a light which shineth in a dark place, until the Day dawn
and the Day-star, arise in your hearts."--2 Pet. 1:19.
The united testimony of these
Scriptures teaches us that, although it was not proper nor possible for the Lord's people
to know anything definite in advance, rerespecting the exact time of the Second Presence
of the Lord Jesus and the establishment of His Kingdom, yet when the due time would come
the faithful ones, the Watchers would be informed-would not be left in darkness with the
world. It is in vain to urge, as contradicting this, our Lord's statement, "Of that
day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels in heaven, neither the Son, but my Father
only." Those who use this Scripture to prove to themselves and to others that no man
will ever know anything respecting the time of
the Second Advent find it to prove too much, and thus spoil their own argument; for if it
means that no man will ever know, it must
similarly mean that no angel will ever know, and
that the Son Himself will never know. This
evidently would be an absurd construction to place upon the passage. he Son did not know
at the. time He uttered this statement, the angels did not know then, and no man knew
then: but the Son certainly must know of the time of His own Second Advent, and at least a
little while before it takes place; the angels also must know a little while before it
takes place, and the true children of God, the Watchers, as We have seen above, are to
watch in order that they also may know at the proper season, and not be in darkness, in
ignorance, with the world; an& that their watching
shall be rewarded is guaranteed: "None of the wicked shall understand; but the wise
[in heavenly wisdom] shall understand."--Dan. 12:10.
*Thus
read the oldest Greek MSS.
HOW ARE WE TO WATCH?
Our watching consists not in looking
up into the sky -- stargazing;" for those who study the Lord's Word to any purpose
soon learn that "the day of the Lord so cometh as [like] a thief in the
night," and that its dawning cannot be discerned with the natural eye. If the Lord's
people would discern anything by watching the sky with their natural eyes, could not the
world discern the same thing? If the Second Advent of our Lord were to be an open outward
manifestation, would not the world know of it just as soon as the saints, the Watchers? In
such event it could not be true that the day of the Lord should come as a thief, as a
snare, unawares, upon the world, while the Church would have foreknowledge thereof not be
left in darkness.
We
are to watch the signs of the times, in the light of the Lord's Word, our lamp: as the
Apostle declares, "We have a more sure Word of prophecy. . . . as a light shining in
a dark place, until the Day dawn."
Those who have taken heed to the
landmarks, pointed out by the Lord through Daniel and Isaiah and Jeremiah, and all the
holy prophets, realize that we have come already a much longer journey than was expected
by the Church when first she started out; but we -realize also from these landmarks that
we have approached very closely to the end of the journey, very near to the time when the
great blessing, for which God's people have so long waited and prayed, is at hand. For
instance, the Watchers have noted the Lord's testimony through the Prophet Daniel that
"the time of the end" would be a period of time (more than a century), and that
in this "time of the end" there would be a great increase of travel, running to
and fro throughout the earth, and a great increase of general intelligence, increased
knowledge, as it is written, "In the time of the end many shall run to and fro, and
knowledge shall be increased."--Dan. 12:4.
Those carefully watching see the
lifting of the curtain of ignorance, and the
letting in of the light, and that thus God is
using mankind at the present time to make ready in a natural way the mechanical and other
arrangements and conveniences which ultimately shall be such great blessings to the world,
when the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His beams, and the Millennial
Day shall be ushered in, with all its multiplied blessings and mercies and
opportunties;--"the times of restitution of all things, spoken by the mouth of all
the holy prophets since the world began."--Acts 3:21.
1 Watching intently, earnestly,
interestedly, because they know of the good things God hath in reservation (1 Cor.
2:10-13), the Watchers note that Daniel's prophecy further points out that, as the
increase of travel brings the increase of knowledge, so the increase of knowledge will
bring an increase of discontent to the world of mankind in general; and the result will be
as prophetically stated, that "there shall be a time of trouble such as never was
since there was an nation." The Watchers, seeking to note whether these things have
yet a fulfillment or not, look about them and behold on every hand discontent,
unhappiness; far more than when the world enjoyed far fewer of the mercies and blessings
of heaven. These latter day gifts of
Providence (preparations for the Millennial age), instead of provoking thankfulness, gratitude and love to God and generosity to man,
produce in unregenerate hearts ambition, greater avarice, selfishness, envy, hatred, strife, and other
works of the flesh and of the devil. Yes; the Watchers can clearly discern the great
approaching climax of human trouble in which the Scriptures distinctly declare that all
the present human institutions shall go down in anarchy, in confusion, in chaos. But the
Watchers do not lose sight of God and His providence. They see that, while the approaching
social and ecclesiastical catastrophe will be the natural result of the operation of
selfishness under highly favored conditions, nevertheless they remember that God is at
the. helm, and that He is able to cause the wrath of man to praise Him, and the remainder
of man's wrath (which would not praise Him) He will restrain.
PAROUSIA VS. EPIPHANIA, APOKALUPSIS
Because not heedless, careless,
indifferent servants of the King, but faithful and earnest, the Watchers have scrutinized
every little particular which fell from the lips of Him who spake as never man spake; and
all the messages which He has sent them through His faithful apostles and prophets. And
discriminating carefully, they discern that there are three words of distinctly different
signification used in respect to the Lord's Second Advent; namely, parousia and epiphania and apokalupsis. Parousia is used in
respect to the earliest stage of the Second Advent, while epiphania and apokalupsis relate to the same advent
later;--not that apokalupsis and epiphania relate to another or a third advent, but merely
to a later feature of the Second Advent. These Greek words, it is true, are somewhat obscured or hidden in the
Common Version of the Bible, and probably for a purpose. The Lord's purpose evidently was
to keep the world and the wicked in ignorance of His gracious Plan until His due time; nor
did He wish the particulars to be understood by the Watchers until nearly the time of the
fulfilment. But now we are "in the time of the end," in "the day of His
preparation," in the time in which it was foretold that then "the wise [not the
worldlywise but the humble Watchers who are wise enough to take heed to the Word of the
Lord] shall understand. (Dan. 12:10.) And hence, since many of the Watchers are not Greek
scholars, God has made gracious provision through valuable helps (such as Young's
Analytical Concordance and the Emphatic Diaglott), so
that the very humblest of His people may have a clear and discriminating understanding of
the meaning of certain features of His Word which hitherto have been kept hidden under
imperfect translations: and these matters God Himself has been bringing to the attention
of His people, through special helps in the way of Scripture Studies. These "Helping
Hands for Bible students" have reached many of the faithful Watchers all over the
world.
By these helps, the Watchers are
rapidly coming to see that the word "parousia,"
translated in our Common Version "coming," does not mean what our English word
signifies; namely, to be on the way, approaching; but that on the contrary it signifies presence, cis of one who has already arrived. The
Greek word epiphania signifies bright shining or
manifestation. It is rendered
"appearing" and "brightness." The Greek word apokalupsis signifies revealment, uncovering, unveiling. Thus these words
epiphania and apokalupsis signify
"appearing" and "revealing," as of a thing previously present but hidden. The Watchers note also that the
Scriptures predicate certain things respecting the Lord and respecting His parousia (His presence), which clearly intimate
that He will be present and doing His. work, His great work (of setting tip His Kingdom
and smiting the nations with the sword of His mouth) wholly
unknown to the world,--"as a thief in
the night." The Watchers also notice that the Scriptures clearly indicate that after
the Lord has done certain things during His presence (parousia) and unknown to the world, He will later
make a manifestation of His presence;-a
manifestation which will be discerned by all mankind; and the outward manifestation is
designated His "epiphania" and
"apokalupsis" which signify
"shining forth ... .. bright shining" and "uncovering" and
"unveiling."
During
the period of the parousia (presence) preceding
the epiphania (shining forth) a certain work
will be accomplished, unknown to the world, unknown to the nominal Church, known only to
the Watchers. The ignorance of the impending trouble in the end of this Age will be
similar to that of the people who lived in the days of Noah. "As it was in the days of
Noah, so also shall it be in the days of the Son of Man.'"--Luke 17:26.
As "the days of Noah" were
not days before Noah's time, neither are
"the days of the Son of Man" days before the
Son of Man's presence. The days of the Son of Man are the days of His parousia, or
presence-invisible and unknown to the world, known only to the Watchers and seen by them
only with the eye of faith. "As in the days that were before the flood they were
eating, drinking, marrying, . . . and knew not, . .
. so shall also the presence [parousia] of the Son of Man be:"the world will
simply go on about its usual affairs, and know not of the Lord's presence.--Matt. 24:38.
IN THE DAYS OF THESE KINGS"
We have a number of general
prophecies, indicating that we are living in about the time of the Master's Second
Presence. We have already referred to Daniel's testimony respecting "the time of the
end " in which many will run to and fro, and knowledge will le increased, and the
wise understand, and which the time of trouble follows. Then we have the inspired dream of
Nebuchadnezzar, and its inspired interpretation by Daniel, showing the earthly governments
which would bear rule over the earth-during the interim between the overthrow of the
typical Kingdom of God, whose last king sitting upon the throne of David was Zedekiah, and
the installation of the true King, Immanuel, in His Millennial Kingdom glory. These
different governments of earth are here pictured as a great image; Nebuchadnezzar's
government, the first universal empire of earth, being. represented by the head of gold;
the Medo-Persian Empire, which, according to history, was the second universal empire, is
here shown as the breast and arms of silver; the Grecian Empire, which overthrew the
Persian, and became the third universal empire, is represented by the belly and thighs of
brass; the Roman Empire, which succeeded the Grecian, and constituted itself the fourth
universal empire of earth, was represented in the image by the legs of iron-strong
exceedingly; and the later development of the same Roman Empire with the intermixture of papal influence is represented in the image by
the feet, which were partly iron (civil government), and partly of clay (ecclesiastical
government-Papacy). These were to constitute the sum total of Gentile dominion; and
"in the
days of these kings"
(represented by the ten toes of the. image), Jehovah God Himself would establish His
Kingdom--the very Kingdom for which we pray, "Thy Kingdom come!"
We are all witnesses that the
heavenly Kingdom has not yet come-that we are still under the dominion of the "prince
of this world"--the prince of darkness. All the efforts to prove to us that the
greedy and unholy governments of Christendom, so-called, are the Kingdom for which we
prayed, and were taught to pray, could not prevail: we could never recognize these as
Immanuel's Kingdom: they are only the kingdoms established by Antichrist, and recognized
by Antichrist, and named by Antichrist "Christendom."
The true Kingdom waits for establishment at the hands of Him whose right it is; and He
has promised that, when He sits upon His throne, all His faithful ones, the "little
flock" of the Gospel Age, shall sit in that throne with Him, and be associates in the
work and in the honor of blessing the world.
The Church is not neglected in the
picture of earthly dominion given to Nebuchadnezzar, and interpreted by the Prophet
Daniel. She is shown therein as a stone taken out of the mountain without hands (by Divine
power). This stone represents God's Kingdom (Christ and the Church), and the inspired
dream and explanation show that the disaster which shall come to the kingdoms of this
world, represented in the image and in the toes of its feet, would come through the impact
or smiting of the image by the stone. Daniel says: "A stone was cut out, which,
without being in hands, smote the image upon his feet. . . . 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 threshing floor, and the wind carried them away that no place was found for
them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain [kingdom], and filled the
whole earth."
The explanation is that--"The
great God hath made known to the king [and indirectly more particularly to the Watchers]
what shall come to pass hereafter." "In the
days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be
destroyed, and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; [it shall have no
successors, for the others will all be destroyed] it shall break in pieces and consume all
these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever." Here is a prophecy which gives a full
delineation of the empires of earth, to which God granted dominion during the interim
between the removal of the typical crown from His typical kingdom, and the institution of
the crown of righteousness and glory upon the true King in the inauguration of the Kingdom
of Heaven. Even the surface evidences are that human empire has nearly run its., course,
and that heavenly empire is needed to deliver the world from its own selfishness; this
next universal empire will be the Kingdom of God's dear Son.
But the scrutinizing Watcher will
readily perceive that it is one thing to know the time when earthly dominion shall cease,
and give place to the completed Kingdom of God,
while it would be a totally different matter to know when the "stone" Kingdom
would begin to smite the image upon its feet, preparatory to its destruction. This period
of smiting of the image, which precedes its destruction, must also precede the full
establishment of God's Kingdom to fill the whole earth. This smiting period, is the period
of the parousia; the period in which Christ is
present, gathering His "jewels," His "elect," and in which He will
smite the nations with the rod of iron and with the two-edged sword of His mouth, dashing
them in pieces as a potter's vessel, and preparing mankind for the royal majesty of the
heavens. Let the Watchers note critically the Prophet Daniel's explanation that it will be
"in the days of these kings" (the
kingdoms represented in the feet and toes of the image-the divisions of Papal Rome) that
the God of heaven will set up His Kingdom. God
began the selection of His Kingdom class in the days of Civil Rome-represented by the legs
of iron: He has continued the selection -ever since, and the setting up or bringing of His Church (Kingdom) into
power comes toward the close of Gentile dominion, but before it ends; .for it is to be "in the days of these kings" and not
after -their days. Now: note the similarity of the expressions, "in the days of the
Son of Man" and "in the days of these kings,"
and give both the same significance and remember that, as we have proven, they will be the same days-days before the lease of Gentile
power expires, in which the Son of Man will be present to "set up" His
Kingdom, which shall a little later destroy all these Gentile kingdoms.
The Kingdom which we are expecting, and the establishment of which
we believe is now closely approaching, is not
an earthly kingdom, but a heavenly one, not a fleshly kingdom, but a spiritual one, not a
kingdom which will be visible to the natural eye, but an invisible yet powerful kingdom.
We find nothing in the Scriptures to corroborate the thought entertained by some that this
Gospel Age having begun in the spirit is to culminate in a reign of Christ and His Church
in the flesh with an earthly throne, etc. Quite to the contrary, the King and His
joint-heirs, the Church, as spirit beings, will have a spiritual empire, though their
subjects to whom they will offer the blessings of the restitution purchased at Calvary
will be men in the flesh, whose highest hope and ambition will be restitution to the grand perfection of the human
nature lost in Eden, redeemed at Calvary--an earthly image of the Heavenly Father. We hold
that Christ and His saints during the Millennial Age will be no more visible to mankind
than is the prince of this world, Satan, whose associates in the misrule of the present
evil world, the fallen angels, are likewise invisible.
One point which more than any other
seems to confuse the student of this subject is our Lord's resurrection. They note the
fact that He appeared in a body of flesh and bones, after His resurrection, and they
therefore conclude that He still has a body of flesh and bones bearing .all the scars of
Calvary; hence, in thinking of His Second Advent they invariably expect it to be another
advent--as a human being (in flesh and bones), "a little lower than the angels."
These expectations are wrong, as we shall show from the Scriptures. Our Lord after His
resurrection was a spirit being, and His manifestations of Himself to His disciples in various fleshly bodies, then, were similar to
manifestations made before He became the man Christ
Jesus, while He still possessed the glory which He had with the Father before the
world was-the glory of a spirit being. For instance, are we not particularly told that the
Lord and two angels appeared as men in bodies of flesh and blood and bones, and in
ordinary human garb, to Abraham and Sarah? And the record is ,that "they did eat
and talk with Abraham." On another occasion the Lord appeared to Moses, not in a body
of flesh, but "as a flame of fire" in a bush which apparently burned, and from
which He spoke to Moses. We contend that such a power to appear in any kind of a body is a
power which in the past was considerably used in communicating the Divine will to
mankind, and that it is only discontinued now because the canon of Divine revelation is
complete, so that in it the man of God is thoroughly furnished unto every good word and
work, and needs no special message or revelations.--2 Tim. 3:17.
In reading the narrative of our
Lord's appearance to His disciples after His resurrection, the fact seems generally to be
overlooked that He appeared only a few times, in all, and that these visits were always
brief, and that between these visits, after the day of His resurrection, there were long
periods of days and weeks in which the disciples saw nothing of Him. It is generally
overlooked, also, that He, appeared in various forms, one of which was identical with the
body that was crucified, because Thomas had said he would not believe unless he could have such a demonstration. Even then our
Lord rather upbraided Thomas, assuring him that
there was a still greater blessing in store
for those who ask not for such ocular demonstration. it is generally forgotten that none
of the world ever saw our Lord after His resurrection, but merely His disciples, to whom,
it is said, He "showed Himself," This
was in harmony with His statement made before His death, "Yet a little while and the
world seeth me no more."--John 14:19.
The Scripture declaration is, that our
Lord was "made flesh," took upon Him our nature "for the suffering of
death-," and not for to be encumbered with fleshly conditions to all eternity.
Besides, if our Lord must bear the scars of His wounds to all eternity, the implication
would be that His people would also bear all their blemishes and scars to all eternity.
Surely, if such were the Divine arrangement, that which is perfect would never come, for
we should be encumbered with the imperfect forever. --1 Cor. 13:10.
When we get the correct view of this
matter, every difficulty and objection ceases. As the Scriptures declare, so it was,
"He was put to death in flesh, He was quickened in spirit." "Though we have
known Christ after the flesh, yet how henceforth
know we Him no more [so]." (2 Cor. 5:16.) It was at His resurrection that He became
the Second Adam--"the last Adam, a quickening spirit." (1 Cor. 15:45.) "Now
the Lord is that spirit.' (2 Cor. 3:17.) After appearing to His disciples under various
peculiar conditions after His resurrection, in various bodies, the Lord invariably vanished-as soon as He had communicated to them the
appropriate lessons, causing, as they declared, their hearts to burn within them. He
appeared in these various form-, for two reasons:
(1) They could best receive His
instructions under such conditions, whereas, if He had appeared to them in the glory of
His spirit being, and had performed a miracle upon their eyes by which they could have
discerned His spiritual glory, they would have
been too :much affrighted to have benefited by what He would have said.
(2) They were still natural men, not
fully begotten of the Holy Spirit, because Pentecost was not yet come (John 7:39), and
hence they were unprepared to understand spiritual things; "for the natural man
receiveth not the things of the spirit of God, neither can He know [appreciate] them,
because they are spiritually discerned."
The Apostle Paul was the only one of
the disciples who saw the Lord "as He is."
He tells us that the Lord's real spiritual presence, so far from being fleshly or
humanlike, shone with a brightness "above the brightness of the sun at noonday."
The effect upon St. Paul's eyes was serious and, we may readily believe the effects
remained with Him to his dying day, notwithstanding the miraculous removal of the callous
scales, which permitted him to see, though indistinctly. Very evidently our Lord's design
was to educate His apostles up to the thought of His resurrection, and also to the thought
of His resurrection being not to former conditions, limited by the flesh, but to -new
conditions, in which He (as He had already explained to Nicodemus) could. come and go like
the wind, and none could know whence He came nor Whither He went -I He could appear in one
body or in another body, or be present with them without their being aware of it, just as
"the angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him," yet invisible
to them, because a spirit being.
" WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, FOR WE SHALL SEE HIM AS HE
IS"
When the right conception of our
Lord, in His glorified condition, is gained, and when the Apostle's statement is
remembered, that His Church shall be like Him, and "see Him as He is," it is comparatively easy to understand
that the entire glorified Church will be as invisible to the world as the Heavenly Father
is, and as our Lord Jesus was after His resurrection; and when it is remembered that this
Church constitutes the Kingdom of God, the "royal priesthood," which is to rule
and bless the world during the Millennial Age, our
Lord's words to the Pharisees are quite intelligible--"The Kingdom of God cometh
not with observation-neither shall ye say, Lo here or, Lo there! for behold, the Kingdom
of God is in the midst of you"--a present but invisible authority, government, rule
of righteousness.
"EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM"
Looking about us today for evidences of
a change of dispensation and of the Kingdom approaching, we find that many even, who are
not of the Watchers, are noting the signs of our times and are startled, and led to
exclaim, What do these things mean?--This remarkable latter-day advance in science, art
and mechanical invention?--This latter-day unsettling of all the social and economic
relations of mankind? This discontent and general unrest in the midst of plenty and
luxury?--This latter-day growth of millionaires and paupers?--This growth of giant
corporations of world-wide power and influence ?-Why are national policies and public men
and their utterances and doings criticized (judged) by the masses as never before?--And
what means it that with an apparent growth in wealth and numbers in all denominations of
Christians there is a growing dissatisfaction, discontent in them all: a growing tendency
to criticize the creeds and the preaching and everything?--How comes it that nine-tenths
of the preachers in all denominations know that their hearers desire a change, and would
gladly "move on," if they knew how to better themselves even at smaller
salaries?
The Scriptural answer is, The hour of
God's judgment is come; the time when "Christendom," political, financial,
social and ecclesiastical is being judged-being tried in the Divine balances. And the
Scriptures declare that she will be found wanting, and will be adjudged unworthy to
further administer the affairs of earth, which will be turned over to Messiah and His
Bride, the elect "little flock," according to the Divine promise.--Luke 12:32.
Thus in fulfillment of the Scriptures and with great clearness
the presence of Jesus is to be made manifest to the world. He is to "appear," to be "revealed." His Presence is to be made
known to the whole world so that "every eye
shall see [discern] Him;" that is, the eyes
of understanding' of the whole human family shall be opened to a realization of the
great truth, when Messiah's Kingdom has come into power, and henceforth to rule the world,
to overthrow sin and Satan, to uplift righteousness, to bless all the willing and
obedient, and to destroy in the Second Death all willful sinners.
"He which testifieth these
things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."--Rev. 22:20.
"Mine eyes can see the glory of the
presence of the Lord;
He is trampling out the winepress where the grapes of wrath are stored
I see the flaming tempest of His swift descending sword:
Our King is marching on.
"I can
see His coming judgments, as they circle all the earth
The signs and groanings promised, to precede a second birth;
I read His righteous sentence, in the crumbling thrones of earth :
Our King is marching on.
"The
seventh trump is sounding, and our King knows no defeat;
He will sift out the hearts of men before His judgment seat.
O! be swift, my soul, to welcome Him; be jubilant, my feet:
Our King is marching on."
"To the Law and to the Testimony;
If they speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no Light in
them."--Isa. 8:20.
A CORRECT understanding of, this
subject has become almost a necessity to Christian, stead fastness. For centuries it has
been the teaching of "orthodoxy," of all shades, that God, before creating
man, had created a great abyss of fire and terrors, capable of containing all the billions
of the human family which he purposed to bring into being; that this abyss he had named
"hell;" and that all of the promises and threatenings of the Bible were designed
to deter as many as possible (a "little flock") from such wrong-doing as would
make this awful place their perpetual home.
As knowledge increases and
superstitions fade, this monstrous view of the divine arrangement and character is losing
its force; and thinking people cannot but disbelieve the legend, which used to be
illustrated on the church walls in the highest degree of art and realism, samples of which
are still to be seen in Europe. Some now claim that the place is literal, but the fire
symbolic, etc., etc., while others repudiate the doctrine of "hell" in every
sense and degree. While glad to see superstitions fall, and truer ideas of the great, and
wise, and just, and loving Creator prevail, we are alarmed to notice that the tendency
with all who abandon this long-revered doctrine is toward doubt, skepticism, infidelity.
Why should this be the case, when the
mind is merely being delivered from an error, do you ask? Because Christian people have so
long been taught that the foundation for this awful blasphemy against God's character and
government is deep-laid, and firmly fixed, in the Word of God-the Bible-and, consequently,
to whatever degree that belief in "hell" is shaken, to that extent their faith
in the Bible, as the revelation of the true God, is shaken also;--so that those who have
dropped their belief in a "hell," of some kind of endless torment, are often
open infidels, and scoffers at God's Word.
Guided by the Lord's providence to a
realization that the Bible has been slandered, as well as its divine Author, and that,
rightly understood, it teaches nothing on this subject derogatory to God's character nor
to an intelligent reason, we will attempt to lay bare the Scripture teaching, on this
subject, that thereby faith in God and his Word may be re-established, in the hearts of
his people, on a better, a reasonable foundation. Indeed, it is bur opinion that whoever
shall hereby find that his false view rested upon human misconceptions and
misinterpretations, will, at the same time, learn to trust hereafter less to his own and
other men's imaginings, and, by faith, to grasp more firmly the Word of God, which is able
to make wise unto salvation.
That the advocates of the doctrine of
eternal torment have little or no faith in it is very manifest from the fact that it has
no power over their course of action. While all the denominations of Christendom sustain
the doctrine that eternal torment and endless, hopeless despair will constitute the
punishment of the wicked, they are mostly quite at ease in allowing the wicked to take
their course, while they pursue the even tenor of their way. Chiming bells and pealing
organs, artistic choirs, and costly edifices, and upholstered pews, and polished oratory
which more and more avoid any reference to this alarming theme, afford rest and
entertainment to fashionable congregations that gather on the Lord's day and are known to
the' world as churches of Christ and representatives of his doctrines. But they seem
little concerned about the eternal welfare of the multitudes, or even of themselves and
their own families, though one would naturally presume that with such awful possibilities in view they would be almost frantic
in their efforts to rescue the perishing.
The plain inference is that they do
not believe it. The only class of people that to any degree show their faith in it by
their works is the Salvation Army; and these are the subjects of ridicule from almost all
other Christians, because they are somewhat consistent with their belief. Yet their
peculiar, and, often absurd, methods, so strikingly in contrast with those of the Lord. of
whom it was written, "He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard
in the street" (Isa. 42:2), are very mild compared with what might be expected if
they were fully convinced of the doctrine. We cannot imagine how sincere believers of this
terrible doctrine go from day to day about the ordinary affairs of life, or meet quietly
in elegance every Sunday to hear an essay from the pulpit on the peculiar subjects often
advertised. Could they do, so while really believing all the time that fellow mortals are
dying, at the rate of one hundred a minute, and entering
"That lone land of deep despair," where
No God regards their bitter prayer"?
If they really believed this few saints could complacently sit
there and think of those hurrying every moment into that awful state described by that
good, well-meaning, but greatly deluded man, Isaac Watts (whose own heart was immeasurably
warmer and larger than that he ascribed to the great Jehovah), when he wrote the hymn
"Tempests of angry fire shall roll
To blast the rebel worm,
And beat upon the, naked soul
In one eternal storm."
People often become frantic with
grief when friends have been caught in some terrible catastrophe, as a fire, or a wreck,
though they know they will soon be relieved by death; yet they pretend to believe that God
is less loving than themselves, and that he can look with indifference, if not with
delight, at billions of his creatures enduring an eternity of torture far more terrible,
which he prepares for them and prevents any escape from forever. Not only so, but they
expect that they will get literally into Abraham's bosom, and will then look across the
gulf and see and hear the agonies of the multitudes (some of whom they now love and weep
over); and they imagine that they will be so changed, and become so like their present
idea of God, so hardened against all pity, and so barren of love and sympathy, that they
will delight in such a God and in such a plan.
It is wonderful that otherwise
sensible men and women, who love their fellows, and who establish hospitals, orphanages,
asylums, and societies for the prevention of cruelty even to the brute creation, are so
unbalanced mentally that they can believe and subscribe to such a doctrine, and yet be so
indifferent about investigating its authority!
Only one exception can we think
of-those who hold the ultra-Calvanistic doctrine; who believe that God has decreed it thus, that all the efforts they could put forth could not alter the result with
a single person; and that all the prayers they
could offer would not change one iota of the
awful plan they believe God has marked -out for his
and their eternal pleasure. These indeed could sit
still, so far as effort for their fellows is concerned: but why sing the praises of such a scheme for the
damnation of their neighbors, whom God has told them to love as themselves?
Why not rather begin to doubt this
"doctrine of devils," this blasphemy against the great God, hatched in the
"dark ages," when a crafty priesthood taught that it is right to do evil that
good may result?
The doctrine of eternal torment was
undoubtedly introduced by Papacy to induce pagans to join her and support her system. It
flourished at the same time that "bull fights" and gladiatorial contests were
the public amusements most enjoyed; when the Crusades were called "holy wars,"
and when men and women were called "heretics" and were often slaughtered for
thinking or speaking contrary to the teachings of the Papacy; at a time when the sun of
gospel truth was obscure; when the Word of God had fallen into disuse and was prohibited
to be read by any but the clergy, whose love of their neighbors was often shown in
torturing "heretics" to induce them to recant and deny their faith and their
Bibles-to save them, if possible, they explained, from the more awful future of
"heretics,"--eternal torture. They did not borrow this doctrine from the
heathen, for no heathen people in the world have a doctrine so cruel, so fiendish and so
unjust. Find it, whoever can, and show it up in all its blackness, that, if possible, it
may be shown that the essence of barbarism, malice, hate and ungodliness has, not been
exclusively appropriated by those whom God has most 'highly favored with light from every
quarter, and to whom he has committed the only oracle-his Word. Oh 1 the shame and
confusion that will cover the faces of many, even good men, who verily thought that they
did God service while propagating this blasphemous doctrine, when they awake in the
resurrection, to learn of the love and justice of God, and when they come to know that the
Bible does not teach this God-dishonoring, love-extinguishing, truth-beclouding,
saint-hindering, sinner-hardening, "damnable heresy" of eternal torment. -2 Pet.
2: 1.
But we repeat that, in the light and
moral development of this day, sensible people do not believe this doctrine. However, since they think that the
Bible teaches it, every step they progress in real intelligence and brotherly kindness,
which hinders belief in eternal torment, is in most cases a step away from God's Word,
which is falsely accused of being the authority for this teaching. Hence the second crop
of evil fruit, which the devil's engraftment of this error is producing, is skepticism.
The intelligent, honest thinkers are thus driven from the Bible into vain philosophies and
sciences, falsely so-called, and into infidelity. Nor do the "worldly" really
believe this doctrine, nor is it a restraint to crime, for convict's and the lower classes
are the firmest believers in it.
But, says one, Has not the error done
some good? -Have not many been brought into the churches by the preaching of this doctrine
in the past?
No error, we answer, ever did real
good, but always harm. Those whom error brings into a church, and whom ,the truth would
not move, are an injury to the church. The thousands terrorized, but not at heart
converted, which this doctrine forced into Papacy, and which swelled her numbers and her
wealth, diluted what little truth was held before, and mingled it with their unholy
,sentiments and errors so that, to meet the changed condition of things, the
"clergy" found it needful to add error to error, and resorted to methods, forms,
etc., not taught in the Scriptures and useless to the truly converted whom the truth
controls. Among these were pictures, images, beads, vestments, candles, grand cathedrals,
altars, etc., to help the unconverted heathen to a form of godliness more nearly
corresponding to their former heathen worship, but lacking all the power of vital
godliness.
The heathen were not benefited, for
they were still heathen in God's sight, but
deluded into accepting what they did not understand or do from the heart. They were added
"tares" to choke the "wheat," without being profited themselves. The
Lord tells who sowed the seed of this enormous crop. (Matt. 13:39.) The same is true of
those who assume the name "Christian" to-day, who are not really at heart
converted by the truth, but merely frightened by the error, or allured by promised earthly
advantages of a social or business kind. Such add nothing to the true Church: by their
ideas and manners they become stumbling blocks to the truly consecrated, and by their
inability to digest the truth, the real food of the saints, they lead even the few true
pastors to defraud the true "sheep" in order to satisfy the demands of these
"goats" for something pleasing to their unconverted tastes. No: in no way has
this error accomplished good except in the sense that God is able to make even the wrath
of man to praise him. So also he will overrule this evil thing eventually to serve his
purposes. When by and by all men (during the Millennium) shall come to see through this
great deception by which Satan has blinded the world to God's true character, it will
perhaps awaken in them a warmer, stronger love for God.
Seeing, then, the unreasonableness of
man's view, let us lay aside human opinions and theories and come to the Word of God, the
only authority on the subject, remembering that "God is His own interpreter, and He
will make it plain."
"HELL," AS AN ENGLISH WORD
In the first place bear in mind that
the Old Testament Scriptures were written in the Hebrew language, and the New Testament in
the Greek. The word "hell" is an English. word sometimes selected by the
translators of the English Bible to express the sense of the Hebrew word sheol and the Greek words hades, tartaroo and gehenna, -sometimes rendered "grave" and
"pit.
The word "hell" in old
English usage, before Papal theologians picked if up and gave it a new and special
significance to suit their own purposes, simply meant to conceal, to hide,
to cover; hence the concealed, hidden or covered place. In old English literature records
may be found of the helling of potatoes--putting
potatoes into pits; and of the helling of a
house-covering or thatching it. The word hell was
therefore properly used synonymously with the words "grave" and "pit,"
to translate the words sheol and hades as signifying the secret or hidden condition
of death. However, the same spirit which was willing to twist the word to terrorize the
ignorant is willing still to perpetuate the error; presumably saying" Let us do evil
that good may follow."
If the translators of the Revised
Version Bible had been thoroughly disentangled from the Papal error, and thoroughly
honest, they would have done more to help the English student than merely to substitute
the Hebrew word sheol and the Greek word hades as they have done. They should have
translated the words. But they were evidently afraid to tell the truth, and ashamed to
tell the lie; and so gave us sheol and hades untranslated, and permitted the inference
that these words mean the same as the word "hell" has become perverted to mean.
Their course, while it for a time shields themselves, dishonors God and the Bible, which
the common people still suppose teaches a "hell" of torment in the words sheol and hades.
Yet anyone can see that if it was proper to translate the word sheol thirty-one times "grave" and
three times "pit," it could not have been
improper to so translate it in every other instance
A peculiarity to be observed in
comparing these cases, as we will do shortly, is that in those texts where the torment
idea would be an absurdity the translators of the King James Version have used the words
"grave" or "pit;" while in all other cases they have used the word
"hell" and the reader, long schooled in the Papal idea of torment, reads the
word "hell" and thinks of it as signifying a place of torment, instead of the
grave, the hidden or covered place or condition. For example, compare job 14:13 with Psa.
86:13. The former reads,--"Oh, that thou wouldst hide me in the grave [sheol],
etc.," while the latter reads,--"Thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell [sheol]." The Hebrew word being the same
in both cases, there is no reason why the same word "grave" should not be used
in both. But how absurd it would have been for Job to pray to God to hide him in a hell of
eternal torture! The English reader would have asked questions and the secret would have
gotten out speedily. While the translators of the Reformation times are somewhat excusable
for their mental bias in this matter, as they were just breaking away from the old Papal
system, our modern translators, specially those of the recent Revised Version, are not
entitled to any such consideration. Theological professors and pastors of congregations
consider that they are justified in following the course of the revisers in not explaining
the meaning of either the Hebrew or Greek words sheol
or hades and by their use of the words
they also give their. confiding flocks to understand that a place of torture, a lake of
fire, is meant. While attributing to the ignorant only the best of motives, it is
manifestly only duplicity and cowardice which induces educated men, who know the truth on
this subject, to prefer to continue to teach the error inferentially.
But not all ministers know of the
errors of the translators and deliberately cover and hide those errors from the people.
Many, indeed, do not know of them, having merely accepted, without investigation, the
theories of their seminary professors. It is the professors and learned ones who are most
blameworthy. These have kept back the truth about "hell" for several reasons.
First, there is evidently a sort of understanding or etiquette among them, that if they
wish to maintain their standing in the "profession" they "must not tell
tales out of school" i. e., they must not
divulge professional secrets to the "common people," the "laity."
Second, they all fear that to let it be known that they have been teaching an unscriptural
doctrine for years would break down the popular respect and reverence for the
clergy," the denominations and the theological schools, and unsettle confidence in
their wisdom. And, oh, how much depends upon confidence and reverence for men, when God's
Word is so generally ignored! Third, they know that many of the members of their sects are
not constrained by "the love of Christ" (2 Cor. 5:14), but merely by the fear of
hell, and they see clearly, therefore, that to let the truth be known now would soon cut
loose the names and the dollars of many in their flocks; and this, to those who
"desire to make a fair show in the flesh" (Gal. 6:12) would seem to be a great
calamity.
But what will be the judgment of God,
whose character and plan are traduced by the blasphemous doctrine which these untranslated
words help to support? Will he commend these unfaithful servants? Will he justify their
course? Will the Chief Shepherd call these his beloved friends, and make known to them his
further plans (John 15:15) that they may misrepresent them also to preserve their own
dignity and reverence? Will he continue to send forth "things new and old,"
"meat in due season," to the household of faith, by the hand of the unfaithful
servants? No, such shall not continue to be his mouthpieces or to shepherd his flock.
(Ezek. 34:9, 10.) He will choose instead, as at the first advent, from among the
laity--"the common, people"--mouthpieces, and will give them words which none of
the chief priests shall be able to gainsay or resist. (Luke 21:15.) And, as foretold,
"the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent
men shall be hid."-Isa. 29:9-19.
"HELL" IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
The word "hell" occurs
thirty-one times in the Old Testament, and in every instance it is sheol in the Hebrew. It does not mean a lake of
fire and brimstone, nor anything at all resembling that thought: not in the slightest degree! Quite the reverse: instead
of. a place of blazing fire it is described in the context as a state of
"darkness" (Job 10:21) ; instead of a place where shrieks and groans are heard,
it is described in the context as, a place of "silence" (Psa. 115:17) ; instead
of representing in any sense pain and suffering, or remorse, the context describes it as a
place or condition of forgetfulness (Psa. 88:11, 12.) "There is no work, nor device,
nor knowledge, in the grave [sheol] whither
thou goest." -Eccles. 9:10.
The meaning of sheol is "the hidden state," as applied
to man's condition in death, in and beyond which all is hidden, except to the eye of
faith; hence, by proper and close association, the word was often used in the sense of
grave-the tomb, the hidden, place, or place beyond which only those who have the
enlightened eye of the understanding can see resurrection, restitution of being. Arid be
it particularly noted that this identical word Sheol is translated "grave"
thirty-one times and "pit" three times in our common version by the same
translatorsmore times than it is translated "hell;" and twice, where it is
translated "hell," it seemed so absurd, according to the present accepted
meaning of the English word "hell," that scholars have felt it necessary to
explain in the margin of modern Bibles, that it means grave. (Isa. 14:9 and Jonah 2:2.) In
the latter case, the hidden state, or grave, was the belly of the fish in which Jonah was
buried alive, and from which he cried to God.
ALL TEXTS IN WHICH "SHEOL" IS TRANSLATED
"HELL"
(1) Amos 9:2.--"Though they dig
into hell, thence shall mine hand take
them." [A figurative expression; but certainly pits of the earth are the only hells
men can dig into.]
(2) Psa. 16:10 .--"Thou will not
leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer
thine Holy One to see corruption." [This refers to our Lord's three days in the
tomb.-Acts 2:31; 3:15.]
(3, 4) Psa. 18:5 and 2 Sam. 22:6--margin.--"The cords of hell compassed me about:" [A figure in which trouble is represented as hastening one to
the tomb.]
(5) Psa. 55:15.--"Let them go down quick into hell" -margin, "the grave."
(6) Psa. 9:17.--"The wicked
shall be turned into hell, and all the nations
that forget God." This text will be treated
later, under a separate heading.
(7) Psa. 86:13.-"Thou hast delivered my soul from the
lowest hell"--margin, "the grave."
(8) Psa. 116:3.--"The sorrows of death compassed me, and
the pains of hell gat hold upon me."
[Sickness and trouble are the figurative hands of the grave to grasp us.]
(9) Psa. 139:8.--"If I make my
bed in hell, behold, thou art there."
[God's power is unlimited: even over those in the tomb he can and will exert it and bring
forth all that are in the graves.-John, 5:28.]
(10) Deut. 32:22.--"For a fire
is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn into the lowest hell." [A figurative representation of the
destruction, the utter ruin, of Israel as .a nation--"wrath to the uttermost,"
as the Apostle called it, God's anger burning that nation to the "lowest deep" as Lesser here translates the word sheol.--1 Thes. 2:16.1
(11) job 11:8.--"It [God's
wisdom] is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell .[than any pit] ; what canst thou know?"
(12) job 26:6.--"Hell [the tomb] is naked before him,
and destruction hath no covering."*
(13) Prov. 5:5.--"Her feet go
down to death; her steps take hold on hell [i. e., lead
to the grave]."
(14) Prov. 7:27.--"Her house is
the way to hell [the grave], going down to the
chambers of death."
(15) Prov. 9:18.--"He knoweth
not that the dead are there, and that her guests are in the depths of hell." [Here the harlot's guests are
represented as dead, diseased or dying, and many of the victims of sensuality in premature
graves from diseases which also hurry off their posterity to the tomb.]
(16) Prov. 15:11.--"Hell and destruction are before the
Lord." [Here the grave is associated with destruction
and not with a life of torment.]
(17) Prov. 15:24.--"The path of
life (leadeth) upward for the, wise, that he may depart from hell beneath." [This illustrates the hope of
resurrection from the tomb.]
(18) Prov. 23:14.--"Thou shalt
beat him with the rod, and shall deliver his soul from hell" [i. e., wise correction will save a
child from vicious ways which lead to premature death, and may also possibly prepare him
to escape the "Second Death"].
(19) Prov. 27:20 Hell [the
grave] and destruction are never full: so the eyes of man are never satisfied."
(20) Isa. 5:14.--"Therefore hell hath enlarged herself and opened her mouth
without measure." [Here the grave is a symbol of destruction.]
(21, 22) Isa. 14:9, 15.--"Hell [margin, grave] from 'beneath is
moved for thee, to meet thee at thy coming." . . . "Thou shalt be brought down
to hell" [the grave -so rendered in verse
11.]
(23) Isa. 57:9.--"And didst
debase thyself even unto hell." [Here
figurative of deep degradation.]
(24, 25). Ezek. 31:15-17.--"In
the day when he went down to the grave, . . . I made the nations to shake at the sound of
his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them
that descend into the pit. . . . They also went down into hell with him, unto them that be slain with the
sword." [Figurative and prophetic description of the fall of Babylon into
destruction, silence, the grave.]
(26) Ezek. 32:21.--"The strong
among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him." (A continuation
of the same figure representing Egypt's overthrow as a nation to join Babylon in destruction--buried.]
(27) Ezek. 32:27.--"And they,
shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down I
to hell with their weapons of war: and they have
their swords under their heads; but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though
they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living." (The grave is the only
"bell" where fallen ones are buried and lie with their weapons of war under
their heads.]
(28) Hab. 2:5.--"Who enlargeth
his desire as hell [the gravel and as death, and
cannot be satisfied."
(29) Jonah 2:1, 2.--"Then Jonah
prayed unto the Lord his God, out of the fish's belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine
affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice,"
[The belly of the fish was for a time his grave-see margin.]
(30, 31) Isa.
28:15-18.--"Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell
[the gravel are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall
not come unto us, for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid
ourselves: Therefore, saith the Lord,
Your covenant with death shall be
disannulled, and your agreement with hell [the grave] shall not stand." [God thus
declares that the present prevalent idea, by which death and the grave are represented as
friends, rather than enemies, shall cease; and men shall learn that death is the wages of
sin, and that it is in Satan's power (Rom. 6.23; Heb. 2:14) and not an angel sent by God.]
ALL OTHER TEXTS WHERE "SHEOL" OCCURS
RENDERED "GRAVE" AND "PIT"
Gen. 37:35.-"1 will go down into
the grave unto my son."
Gen. 42:38.--"Then shall ye
bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave." [See also the same expression in
44:29, 31. The translators did not like to send God's servant, Jacob, to hell simply because his sons were evil.]
1 Sam. 2:6--"The Lord killeth,
and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up."
I Kings 2:6, 9.--"Let not his
hoar head go down to the grave with peace. . . . His hoar head bring thou down to the
grave with blood."
Job 7:9.--"He that goeth down to
the grave."
Job 14:13.--"Oh, that thou
wouldst hide me in the grave, that thou wouldst keep me secret until thy wrath be past,
that thou wouldst appoint me a set time, and remember me [resurrect me] !"
Job 17:13.--"If I wait, the
grave is mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness." [job waits for
resurrection--"in the morning."]
Job 17:16.--"They shall go down
to the bars of the pit [grave], when our rest together is in the dust."
Job 21:13.--"They spend their
days in mirth, and in a moment go down to the grave."
Job 24:19, 20.--"Drought and heat
consume the snow waters: so doth the grave those which have sinned." [All have
sinned, hence "Death passed upon all men," and all go down to the grave. But all
have been redeemed by "the precious blood of Christ;" hence all shall be
awakened and come forth again in God's due time--"in the morning," Rom. 5:12,
18, 19.]
Psa. 6:5.--"In death there is no
remembrance of thee; in the grave who shall give thee thanks?"
Psa. 30:3.-"0 Lord, thou hast
brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit." [This
passage expresses gratitude for recovery from danger of death.]
Psa. 31:17.--"Let the wicked be
ashamed; let them be silent in the grave."
Psa. 49:14, 15, margin.--"Like
sheep they are laid in the grave: death shall feed on them; and the upright [the
saints-Dan. 7:271 shall have dominion over them in the morning [the Millennial morning];
and their beauty shall consume, the grave being an habitation' to every one of them. But
God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave."
Psa. 88:3.--"My life draweth
nigh unto the grave."
Psa. 89:48.--"Shall he, deliver
his soul from the hand of the grave?"
Psa. 141:7.--"Our bones are
scattered at the grave's Mouth."
Prov. 1:12.--"Let us swallow
them up alive as the grave: and whole, as those
that go down into the pit" [i. e., as of an
earthquake, as in Num. 16:30-33].
Prov. 30:15,
16.--"Four things say not, it is enough: the grave,"
etc. I
Eccl. 9:10.--"Whatsoever thy
hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge,
nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou
goest."
Song of Solomon 8:6.--"Jealousy
is cruel as the grave."
Isa. 14:11.--"Thy pomp is
brought down to the grave."
Isa. 38:10.--2'1 shall go to the
gates of the grave: I am deprived of the residue
of my years."
Isa. 38:18.--"The grave cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate
thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth."
Num. 16:30-33.--"If . . . they
go down quick into the pit, then shall ye
understand. . . . The ground clave asunder that was under them, and the earth opened her
mouth and-swallowed them up, and-their houses, and all the men that appertained unto
Korah, and all their goods. They and all that appertained to them went down alive into the
pit, and the earth closed upon them; and they
perished from among the congregation."
Ezek. 31:15.--"In the day when
he went down to the grave."
Hosea 13:14.-"1 will ransom them from the power of
the grave; I will redeem them from death. 0
death, I will be thy plagues; 0 grave, I will be
thy destruction.. Repentance shall be hid from mine eyes." [The Lord did not ransom
any from a place of fire and torment, for there is no such place; but he did ransom all
mankind from the grave, from death, the penalty brought upon all by Adam's sin, as this verse
declares.]
The above list includes every
instance of the use of the English word "hell" and the Hebrew word Sheol in the Old Testament. From this examination
it must be evident to all readers that God's revelations for four thousand years contain
not a single hint of a "hell," such as the word is now understood to signify.
"HELL" IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
In the New Testament, the Greek word hades corresponds exactly to the Hebrew word sheol. As proof see. the quotations of the
Apostles from the Old Testament, in which they render it hades. For instance, -Acts 2:27, "Thou wilt
not leave my soul in hades," is a quotation
from Psa. 16:10, "Thou wilt not leave my soul in Sheol." And in 1 Cor. 15:54, 55, "Death
is swallowed up in victory. 0 death, where is thy sting? 0 grave [hades], where is thy victory?" is an allusion
to Isa. 25:8. "He will swallow up death in victory," and to Hos. 13:14, "0
death I will be thy plagues; 0 Sheol, 'I will be
thy destruction."
HELL" FROM THE GREEK WORD "HADES"
Matt. 11:23--"And thou, Capernaum,
which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought I down to hell," Luke 10:15: "Shall be thrust down
to hell." [In privileges of knowledge and
opportunity the city was highly favored, or, figuratively, "exalted unto
heaven;" but because of misuse of God's favors, it would be debased, or,
figuratively,, cast down to hades, overthrown,
destroyed. It is now so thoroughly buried in
oblivion, that even the site where it stood is a matter of dispute. Capernaum is certainly
destroyed, thrust down to hades.]
I Luke 16:23.--"In hell he lifted up his eyes, being in
torments." [A parabolic figure explained further along, under a separate heading..]
Rev. 6:8.--"And behold a pale
horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell
followed with him." [Symbol of destruction or the grave.]
Matt. 16:18.--"Upon this rock I
will build my church; and the gates of hell shall
not prevail against it." [Although bitter and relentless persecution, even unto
death, should afflict the Church during the Gospel age, it should never prevail to her
utter extermination; and eventually, by her resurrection, accomplished by her Lord, the
Church will prevail over hades--the tomb.]
CHRIST IN "HELL" (HADES) AND
RESURRECTED FROM "HELL" (HADES).
ACTS 2:1, 14, 22-31
"And when the day of Pentecost
was fully come, Peter . . . lifted up his voice and said, Ye men of Israel, hear these
words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you, . . . being delivered by the
determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God ['He was delivered for our offenses'], ye
have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having
loosed the pains [or bands] of death, because it was not possible that he should be holden
of it [for the Word of Jehovah had previously declared his resurrection] ; for David
speaketh concerning him [personating or speaking for him], 'I [Christ] foresaw the Lord
[Jehovah] always before my face; for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.
Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest
in hope, because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell
(hades, the tomb, the state of death], neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy .One to see
corruption. Thou [Jehovah] hast made known to me [Christ] the ways of life."' Here
our Lord, as personified by the prophet David, expresses his faith in Jehovah's promise of
a resurrection and in the full and glorious accomplishment of Jehovah's plan through him,
and rejoices in the prospect.
St. Peter then proceeds,
saying--"Men and brethren, let me freely speak I unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulcher
is with us unto this day [so that this prophecy could not have referred to himself
personally; for. David's soul was left in "hell" -[hades], the tomb, the state of death-and his
flesh did see corruption]: Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with
an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins
according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; he, seeing this
before [prophetically], spake of the resurrection of Christ [out of "hell"--hades, the tomb-to which he must
go for our offenses], that his soul was not left
in hell [hades--the death state], neither his flesh did see corruption." Thus St.
Peter presents a strong, logical argument based on the words of the prophet David-showing
first, that Christ, who was delivered by God for our offenses, went to "hell,"
the grave, the condition of death, destruction (Psa. 16:10), and, second, that according
to promise he had been delivered from hell, the
grave, death, destruction by a resurrection--a
raising up to life; being created again, the same identical being, yet more glorious
and exalted even to "the express image of the Father's person." (Heb. 1:3.) And
now "this same Jesus" (Acts 2:36), in his subsequent revelation to the Church,
declares
Rev. 1:18.-"1 am he that liveth and was dead, and, behold, I am alive
forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell [hades, the gravel and of death,.",
Amen! Amen! our hearts respond; for in
his resurrection we see the glorious outcome of the whole Plan of Jehovah to be
accomplished through the power of the Resurrected One who now holds the keys of the tomb
and of death and in due time will release all the prisoners who are, therefore, called the
"prisoners of hope." (Zech. 9:12; Luke 4:18.) No craft or cunning can by any
possible device wrest these Scriptures entire and
pervert them to the support of that monstrous and blasphemous Papal tradition of eternal
torment. Had that been our penalty, Christ, to be our vicarious sacrifice, must still, and
to all eternity, endure such torment, which no one will claim. But death was our penalty,
and "Christ died for our sins," and "also for the sins of the whole
world."--1 Cor. 15:3; 1 John 2:2.
Rev. 20:13, 14.--"And the sea
gave Up the dead which were in it; and death and hell
[the grave] delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged, every man,
according to their works. And death and hell [the
grave.] were cast into the lake of fire: this is the Second Death." [The lake of fire
is the symbol of final and everlasting destruction. Death and hell [the grave] ,both go into it. There shall be
no more death; "the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."--1 Cor. 15:26;
Rev. 21:4.]
OTHER OCCURRENCES OF THE WORD "HELL"
Having examined the word sheol, the only word in the Old Testament rendered
"hell," and the word hades, most
frequently in the New Testament rendered "hell" we now notice every remaining
instance in Scripture of the English word "hell," In the New Testament two other
words are rendered "hell;" namely, gehenna
and tartaroo, which we will consider in the
order named.
GEHENNA" RENDERED "HELL"
This word occurs in the following
passages-in all twelve times:--Matt. 5:22, 29, 30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43-47;
Luke 12:5; Jas. 3:6. It is the Grecian mode of spelling the Hebrew words which are
translated "Valley of Hinnom." This valley lay just outside the city of
Jerusalem, and served the purpose, of sewer and garbage burner to that city. The offal,
garbage, etc., were emptied there, and fires were kept continually burning to consume utterly all things deposited therein,
brimstone being added to assist combustion and insure complete destruction. But no living
thing was ever permitted to -be cast into Gehenna. The
Jews were not allowed to torture any creature.
When we consider that in the people
of. Israel God was giving us object lessons illustrating his dealings and plans, present
and future, we should expect that this Valley of Hinnom, or Gehenna, would also play its part in illustrating
things future. We know that Israel's priesthood and temple illustrated the Royal
Priesthood, the Christian Church as it will be, the true temple of God;, and we know that
their chief city was a figure of the New Jerusalem, the seat of kingdom power and center
of authority--the city (government) of the Great King, Immanuel. We remember, too, that
Christ's government is represented in the book of Revelation (Rev. 21:10-27) tinder the
figure of a city--the New Jerusalem. There, after describing the class permitted to enter
the privileges and blessings of that Kingdom-the honorable and glorious, and all who have
right to the trees of life -- we find it also declared that there shall not enter into it an thing that defileth, or that worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but only
such as the Lamb shall write as worthy of life. This city, which thus will represent the
entire saved world in the end of the Millennium,
was typified in the earthly city, Jerusalem; and the defiling, the abominable, etc.,
the class unworthy of life ever lasting, who do not enter in, were represented by the
refuse and the filthy, lifeless carcasses cast into Gehenna outside the city,--whose utter
destruction was thus symbolized--the Second Death. Accordingly, we find it stated that
those not found worthy of life are to be cast into the "lake of fire" (Rev.
20:15)--fire here, as everywhere, being used as a symbol of destruction, and the symbol, lake of fire, being
drawn from this same Gehenna, or Valley of
Hinnom.
Therefore, while Gehenna served a
useful purpose to the city of Jerusalem as a place for garbage burning, it, ,like the city
itself, was typical, and illustrated the future dealings of God in refusing and committing
to destruction all the impure elements, thus preventing them from defiling the Holy City,
the New Jerusalem, after the trial of the Millennial age of judgment shall have fully
proved them and separated with unerring accuracy the "sheep" from the
"goats."
So, then, Gehenna was the type or illustration of the Second
Death-final and complete destruction, from which there can be no recovery; for after that,
"there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins," but -only "fiery indignation
which shall devour the adversaries."--Heb.
10:26.
Let us remember that Israel, for the
purpose of being used as types of God's future dealing with the race, was typically
treated as though the ransom had been given before they left Egypt, though only a typical
lamb had been slain. When Jerusalem was built, and the Templerepresentative of the true
Temple, the Church and the true Kingdom as it will be established by Christ in the
Millennium-that people typified the world in the Millennial age. Their priests represented
the glorified Royal Priesthood, and their Law and its demands of perfect obedience
represented the law and conditions under the New Covenant, to be brought into operation
for the blessing of all the obedient, and for the condemnation of all who, when granted
fullest opportunity, will not heartily submit to the righteous ruling and law's of the
Great King.
Seeing then, that Israel's polity,
condition, etc., prefigured those of the world in the coming age, how appropriate that we
should find the Valley or abyss, Gehenna, a
figure of the Second Death, the utter destruction in the coming age of all that is
unworthy of preservation; and how aptly, too, is the symbol, "lake of fire burning
with brimstone" (Rev. 19:20), drawn from this same Gehenna, or Valley of Hinnom, burning continually
with brimstone. The expression, "burning with brimstone," adds force to the
symbol, "fire," to express the -utter and irrevocable destructiveness of the
Second Death; for burning brimstone is the most deadly agent known. How reasonable, too,
to expect that Israel would have courts and judges resembling or prefiguring the
judgments' of, the next age; and that the sentence of those (figurative) courts of that
(figurative) people under those (figurative) laws to that (figurative) abyss, outside that
(figurative) city, would largely correspond to the (real) sentences of the (real) court
and judges in' the next age. If these points are kept in mind, -they will greatly assist
us in understanding the words of our Lord in reference to Gehenna, for though the literal Valley just at
hand was named and referred to, yet his words carry with them lessons con cerning the
future age and the antitypical Gehenna-the Second
Death.
SHALL BE IN DANGER OF GEHENNA.--MATTHEW 5:21, 22
"Ye have heard that it was said
by them of old time, 'Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be amenable to
the judges;' but I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall [future-under the regulations of the real
Kingdom] be amenable to the judges; and whosoever shall say to his brother, 'Raca
[villain]' shall be in danger of the high council; but whosoever shall say, 'Thou fool,'
shall be in danger of hell [Gehenna] fire."
To understand these references to
council and judges and Gehenna, all should know
something of Jewish regulations. The "Court of judges" consisted of seven men
(or twenty-three,--the number is in dispute), who had power to judge some classes of
crimes. The High Council, or Sanhedrin, consisted of seventy-one men of recognized
learning and ability. This constituted the highest court of the Jews, and its supervision
was over the gravest offenses. The most serious sentence was death; but certain very obnoxious criminals were
subjected to an indignity after death, being refused burial and cast with the carcasses of
dogs, the city refuse, etc., into Gehenna, there
to be consumed. The object of this burning in Gehenna
was to make the crime and the criminal detestable in the eyes of the people, and
signified that the culprit was a hopeless case. It must be remembered that Israel hoped
for a resurrection from the tomb, and hence they were particular in caring for the corpses
of their dead. Not realizing fully God's power, they apparently thought he needed their
assistance to that extent. (Exod. 13:19; Heb. 11:22; Acts 7:15, 16.) Hence the
destruction of the body in Gehenna after death
(figuratively) implied the loss of hope of future life by a resurrection.
Thus to such Gehenna represented the Second Death in the same
figurative way that they as a people represented or illustrated a future order of things
under the New Covenant.
Notice that our Lord, in the above
words, pointed out to them that their construction of the Law, severe though it was, was
far below the real import of that Law, as it shall be interpreted tinder the real Kingdom
and judges, which theirs only typified. He shows that the command of their Law, "Thou
shalt not kill," reached much farther than -they supposed; that malicious anger and vituperation "shall
be" considered a violation of God's Law, under the New Covenant; and that such as,
under the favorable conditions of that new age, will not reform so thoroughly as to fully
observe God's Law will be counted worthy of that which the Gehenna near them typified-the Second Death.
However, the strict severity of that Law will be enforced only in proportion as the
discipline, advantages and assistance of that age, enabling each to comply with its laws,
shall be disregarded.
The same thought is continued in
MATTHEW 5.22-30
"Ye have heard," etc.,
"but I say unto you . . . it is better for thee to lose one of thy members, than that
thy whole body should be cast into Gehenna."
Here again the operation of God's Law
under the New Covenant is contrasted with its operation under the Old or Jewish Covenant,
and the lesson of self-control is urged by the statement that it is far more profitable
that men should refuse to gratify depraved desires (though they be dear to them as a right eye, and apparently indispensable as a right hand)
than that they should gratify these, and lose,
in the Second Death, the future life provided through the atonement for all who will
return to, perfection, holiness and God.
These expressions of our Lord not
only serve to show the perfection (Rom. 7:12) of God's Law, and how fully it will be
defined and enforced in the Millennium, but they served as a lesson to the Jews also, who
previously saw through Moses' commands only the crude exterior of the Law of God. Since
they found it difficult in their fallen state to keep inviolate even the surface
significance of the Law, they must now see the impossibility of their keeping the finer
meaning of the Law revealed by Christ. Had they understood and received his teaching
fully, they would have cried out, Alas! if God judges us thus, by the very thoughts and
intents of the heart, we are all unclean , all undone, and can hope for naught but
condemnation to Gehenna (to utter destruction, as brute beasts). They would
have cried, "Show us a greater priesthood than that of Aaron, a High Priest and
Teacher able fully to appreciate the Law, and able fully to appreciate and sympathize with
our fallen state and inherited weaknesses, and let him offer for us 'better sacrifices,'
and apply to us the needed greater forgiveness of sin, and let him as a great physician
heal us and restore us, so that we can obey the perfect Law of God from our hearts."
Then they would have found Christ.
But this lesson they did not learn,
for the ears of their understanding were "dull of hearing;" hence they knew not
that God had already prepared the very priest and sacrifice and teacher and physician they
needed, who in due time redeemed those under the typical Law, as well, as all not under
it, and who also "in due time," shortly, will begin his restoring work-restoring
sight to the blind eyes of their understanding, and hearing to their deaf' ears. Then the
"vail shall be taken away"--the vail of' ignorance, pride and human wisdom which
Satan now uses to blind the world to God's true law and true plan, of salvation in Christ.
And not only did our Lord's teaching
here show the Law of the New Covenant, and teach the Jew a lesson, but it is of benefit to
the Gospel Church also. In proportion as we learn the exactness of God's Law, and what
would constitute perfection under its requirements, we see that our Redeemer was perfect,
and that we, totally unable to commend ourselves to God as keepers of that Law, can find
acceptance with the Father only in the merit of our Redeemer, while none can be of that
"Body," covered by the robe of his righteousness, except the consecrated who
endeavor to do only those things well pleasing to God, which includes the avoidance of'
sin to the extent of ability. Yet their acceptability with God rests not in their
perfection, but upon the perfection of Christ, so long as they abide in him. These,
nevertheless, are benefited by a clear insight into the perfect Law of God, even though
they are not dependent on the perfect keeping of it. They delight to do God's will to the
extent of their ability, and the better they know his perfect Law, the better they are
able to rule themselves and to conform to it. So, then, to us also the Lord's words have a
lesson of value.
The point, however, to be specially
noticed here is that Gehenna, which the Jews
knew, and of which our Lord spoke to them, was not a lake of fire to be kept burning to
all eternity, into which all would be cast who get "angry with a brother" and
call him a "fool." No; the Jews gathered no such extreme idea from the Lord's words. The eternal torment theory was
unknown to them..
It had no place in their theology, as
will be shown. It is a comparatively modern invention, coming down, as We have shown, from
Papacy--the great apostasy. The point is that Gehenna
symbolizes the Second Death-utter, complete and everlasting destruction. This is
clearly shown by its being contrasted with life as
its opposite. "It is better for thee to enter into life halt, or maimed, than otherwise to be cast
into Gehenna." It is better that you should
deny yourselves sinful gratifications than that you should lose all future life, and
perish in the Second Death.
ABLE TO DESTROY BOTH SOUL AND BODY IN GEHENNA--MATTHEW
10:28; LUKE 12:5
"Fear not them which kill the
body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell [Gehenna]." See also another account of
the same discourse by Luke-12:4, 5.
Here our Lord pointed out to his
followers the great cause they had for courage and bravery under the most trying
circumstances. They were to expect persecution, and to have all manner of evil spoken
against them falsely, for his sake, and for the sake of the "good tidings" of
which he made them the ministers and heralds; yea, the time would come, that whosoever
would kill them Would think that he did God a service. Their consolation or reward for
this was to be received, not in the present life, but in the life to come. They were
assured, and they believed, that he had come to give his life a ransom for many, and that
all in their graves must in consequence, in due time, hear the Deliverer's voice and come
forth, either to reward (if their trial had been passed in this life successfully), future
trial, or judgment, as must be the case with the great majority who do not, in this
present life, come to the necessary knowledge and opportunity essential to a complete
trial.
Under present conditions men are able
to kill our bodies, but nothing that they can do will affect our future being (soul),
which God has promised shall be revived or restored by his power in the resurrection
day--the Millennial age. Our revived souls will have new bodies (spiritual or
natural--"to each 'seed' his own [kind of] body"), and these none will have
liberty to kill. God alone has power to destroy utterly-soul
-and body. He alone, therefore, should be feared, and the opposition of men even to
the death is not to be feared, if thereby we gain divine approval. Our Lord's bidding then
is, Fear not them which can terminate the present (dying) life in these poor, dying
bodies. Care little for it, its food, its clothing, its pleasures, in comparison with that
future existence or being which God has provided for you, and which, if secured may be
your portion forever. Fear not the threats, or looks, or acts of men, whose power can
extend no farther than the present existence; who can harm and kill these bodies, but can
do no more. Rather have respect and deference to God, with whom are the issues of life everlasting--fear him who is able to destroy in Gehenna,
the Second Death, both the present dying existence and all hope of future existence.
UNDYING WORMS AND QUENCHLESS FIRES
MATTHEW 18:8, 9; MARK 9:43-48
Here it is conclusively shown that Gehenna as a figure represented the Second
Death-the utter destruction Which must ensue in the case of all who, after having fully
received the opportunities of a future being of existence through our Lord's sacrifice,
prove themselves unworthy of God's gift, and refuse to accept it, by refusing obedience to
his just requirements. For it does not say that God will preserve soul or body in Gehenna, but that in it he can and will
"destroy" both. Thus we are taught that any Who are condemned to the Second
Death are hopelessly and forever-blotted out of existence.
[Since
these two passages refer to the same discourse, we quote from Mark-remarking that verses
44 and 46, and part of 45, are not found in the oldest Greek MSS., though verse 48, which
reads the same, is in all manuscripts. We quote the text as found in these ancient and
reliable MSS.] "If thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter
into life maimed, than having two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the fire that never shall be quenched. And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off:
it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into Gehenna. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it
out: it is better for thee to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye, than having two
eyes to be cast into Gehenna, where the worm
dies not and the fire is not quenched."
After reading the above, all must
agree with the Prophet that our Lord opened his mouth in figures and obscure sayings.
(Psa. 78:2; Matt. 13:35.) No one for a moment supposes that our Lord advised the people to
mutilate their bodies by cutting off their limbs, or gouging out their eyes. Nor does he
mean us to understand that the injuries and disfigurements of the present life will
continue beyond the grave, when we shall "enter into life." The Jews, whom the
Lord addressed, having no conception of a place of everlasting torment, and who knew the
word Gehenna to refer to the valley outside
their city, which was not a place of torment, nor a place where any living thing was,
cast, but a place for the utter destruction of whatever might be cast into it, recognizing
the Lord's expression regarding limbs and eyes to be figurative, knew that Gehenna also
was used in the same figurative sense, to symbolize utter destruction.
The Lord meant simply this: The
future life, which God has provided for redeemed man, is of inestimable value, and it will
richly pay you to make any sacrifice to receive and enjoy that life. Should it even cost
an eye, a hand or a foot, so that to all eternity you would be obliged to endure the loss
of these, yet life would be ,Cheap at even such a cost. That would be better far than to
retain your members and lose all in Gehenna. Doubtless,
too, the hearers drew the lesson as applicable to all the affairs of life, and understood
the Master to mean that it would richly repay them to deny themselves many comforts,
pleasures and tastes, dear to them as a right hand, precious as an eye, and serviceable
a's a foot, rather than by gratification to forfeit the life to come and be utterly
destroyed in Gehenna-the Second Death.
But what about the undying worms and
the unquenchable fire?
We answer, In the literal Gehenna, which is the basis of our Lord's
illustration , the bodies of animals, etc.' frequently fell upon ledges of rocks and not
into the fire kept burning below. Thus exposed, these would breed worms and be destroyed
by them, as completely and as surely as those which burned. No one was allowed to disturb
the contents of this valley; hence the worm and the fire together completed the work of destruction-the fire was not quenched and the worms
died not. This would not imply a never-ending fire, nor everlasting worms. The thought is
that the worms did not die off and leave the
carcasses there, but continued and compIeted the work of destruction. So with the fire: it
wasnot quenched, it burned on until all was consumed. just so if a house were ablaze and
the fire could not be controlled or quenched, but burned until the building was destroyed,
we might properly call such an "unquenchable fire."
Our Lord wished to impress the
thought of the completeness and finality of the Second Death, symbolized in Gehenna. All who go into the Second Death will be
thoroughly and completely and forever destroyed; no ransom will ever again be given for
any (Rom. 6:9) ; for none worthy of life will be cast into the Second Death, or lake of
fire, but Only those who love unrighteousness
after coming to the knowledge of the truth.
Not only in the above instances is the
Second Death pointedly illustrated by Gehenna, but
it is evident that the same Teacher used the same figure to represent the same thing in
the symbols of Revelation,--though there it is not called Gehenna, but a "lake of fire."
The same valley was once before used
as a basis of a discourse by the Prophet Isaiah. (Isa. 66:24.) Though be gives it no name,
he describes it; and all should notice that he speaks, not as some with false ideas might
expect, of billions alive in flames and torture, but of the carcasses of those who transgressed against the
Lord, who are thus represented as utterly destroyed in the Second Death.
The two preceding verses show the
time when this prophecy will be fulfilled, and it is in perfect harmony with the symbols
of Revelation: it appertains to the new dispensation, the Millennium, the "new
heavens and new earth" condition of things. Then all the righteous will see the
justice as well as the wisdom of the utter destruction of the incorrigible, willful
enemies of righteousness, as it is written: "They shall be an abhorring unto all
flesh."
MATTHEW 23:15, 33
The class here addressed was not the
heathen who had no knowledge of the truth, nor the lowest and most ignorant of the Jewish
nation, but the Scribes and Pharisees, outwardly the most religious, and the leaders and
teachers of the people. To these our Lord said, "How can ye escape the judgment of Gehenna?" These men were hypocritical; they
were not true to their convictions. Abundant testimony of the truth had been borne to
them, but they refused to accept it, and endeavored to counteract its influence and to
discourage the people from accepting it. And in thus resisting the holy spirit of light
and truth, they were hardening their hearts against the very agency which God designed for
their blessing. Hence they were wickedly resisting his grace, and such a course, if
pursued, must eventually end in condemnation to the Second Death, Gehenna. Every step in the direction of wilful
blindness and opposition to the truth makes return more difficult, and makes the
wrong-doer more and more of the character which God abhors, and which the Second Death is
intended to utterly destroy. The Scribes and Pharisees were progressing rapidly in that
course: hence the warning inquiry of our Lord, "How can ye escape?" etc. The
sense is this,--Although you boast of your piety, you will surely be destroyed in Gehenna, unless you change your course.
SET ON FIRE OF GEHENNA--JAMES 3:6
"So [important] is. the tongue
among our members, that it defileth the whole body,, and setteth on fire the course of nature, and [or
when] it is set on fire of Gehenna."
Here, in strong, symbolic language,
the Apostle points out the great, and bad
influence of an evil tongue--a tongue set on -fire (figuratively) by Gehenna (figuratively). For a tongue to be set on
fire of Gehenna signifies that it is set going
in evil by a perverse disposition, self -willed, selfish, hateful, malicious, -- the sort
of disposition which, in spite of knowledge and opportunity, unless controlled and
reformed, will be counted worthy to be destroyed-the
class for whom the "Second Death," the real "lake of fire," the
real Gehenna, is intended. One in that attitude
may by his tongue kindle a great fire, a destructive disturbance, which, wherever it has
contact, will work evil in the entire course of nature. A few malicious words often arouse
all the evil passions of the speaker, engender the same in others and react upon the
first. And continuance in such an evil course finally corrupts the entire man, and brings
him under sentence as utterly unworthy of life.
"TARTAROO" RENDERED "HELL
The Greek word tartaroo occurs but once in the Scriptures, and is
translated hell. It is found in 2 Pet. 2:4,
which reads thus:
"God spared not the angels who
sinned, but cast (them] down to hell [tartaroo], and
delivered them into chains of darkness, to, be reserved unto judgment."
Having examined all other words
rendered "hell," in the Bible, and all the texts in which they occur, I we
conclude the examination with this text, which is the only one in which the word tartaroo occurs. In the above quotation, all the
words shown in Italic type are translated from
the one Greek word tartaroo. Evidently the
translators were at a loss to know how to translate the word, but concluded they knew
where the evil angels ought to be, and so they made bold to put them into
"hell," though it took six words to twist the idea into the shape they had
pre-determined it must take.
The word tartaroo, used by St. Peter, very closely resembles
tartarus, a word used in Grecian mythology as
the name for a dark abyss or prison. But tartaroo seems to refer more to an act than to a
place. The fall of the angels who sinned was from honor and dignity, into dishonor and
condemnation, and the thought seems to be -"God spared not the angels who sinned, but
degraded them, and delivered them into chains of
darkness."
This certainly agrees with the I
facts known to us through other Scriptures; for these fallen spirits frequented the earth
in the days of our Lord and the Apostles. Hence they were not down in some place, but
"down" in the sense of being degraded from former honor and liberty, and
restrained under darkness, as by a chain. Whenever these fallen spirits, in spiritualistic
seances, manifest their powers through mediums, pretending to be certain dead human
beings, they must always do their work in the dark, because darkness is the chain by which
they are bound until the great Millennial Day of judgment. Whether this implies that in
the immediate future they will be able to materialize in daylight is difficult to
determine. If so, it would greatly increase Satan's power to, blind and deceive for a
short season-until the Sun of Righteousness has fully risen and Satan is fully bound.
Thus we 'close our investigation of
the Bible use of the word "hell." Thank God, we find no such place of
everlasting torture as the creeds and hymn books, and many pulpits erroneously teach. Yet
we have found a "hell," sheol, hades, to
which all our race were condemned on account of Adam's sin, and from which all are
redeemed by our Lord's death; and that
"hell" is the tomb-the death condition. And we find another "hell"
(Gehennathe Second Death--utter destruction)
brought to our attention as the final
penalty upon all who, after being redeemed and brought
to the full knowledge of the truth, and to full ability to obey it, shall yet choose death
by choosing a course of opposition to God and righteousness. And our hearts say, Amen!
True and righteous are thy ways, thou King of
nations! Who shall not venerate thee, 0 Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou art ,entirely
holy. And all nations shall come and worship before thee, because thy righteous dealings
are made manifest.--Rev. 15:3, 4.
PARABLE OF THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS
LUKE 16:19-31
The great difficulty with many in
reading this Scripture is that, though they regard it as a parable, they reason on it and
draw conclusions from it as though it were a literal statement. To regard it as a literal
statement involves -several absurdities; for instance, that the rich man went to
"hell" because he had enjoyed many earthly blessings and gave nothing but crumbs
to Lazarus. Not a word is said about his wickedness. Again, Lazarus was blessed, 'not
because he was a sincere child of God, full of faith and trust, not because he was good,
but simply because he was poor and sick. If this be interpreted literally, the only
logical lesson to be drawn from it is, that unless we are poor beggars full of sores, we
will never enter into future bliss; and that if now we wear any fine linen .and purple,
and have plenty to eat every day, we are sure of future torment. Again, the coveted place
of favor is "Abraham's bosom;" and if the whole statement be literal, the bosom
must also be literal, and it surely would not hold very many of earth's millions of sick
and poor.
But why consider absurdities? As a
parable, it is -easy of interpretation. In a parable the thing said is never the thing
meant. We know this from our Lord's -own explanations of his parables' When he said
"wheat," he meant "children of the kingdom;" when he said
"tares," he meant "the children of the devil;" when he said "
reapers," his servants were to be understood, etc. (Matt. 13.) The same classes were
represented by different symbols in different parables. Thus the "wheat" of one
parable correspond to the faithful servants," and the "wise virgins" of
others. So, in this parable, the ."rich man" represents a class, and
"Lazarus" represents another class.
In attempting to expound a parable
such as this, an ,explanation of which the Lord does riot furnish us, modesty in
expressing our opinion regarding it is certainly appropriate. We therefore offer the
following explanation without any attempt to force our views upon the reader, except so
far as his own truth-enlightened judgment may commend them as in accord with God's Word
and Plan. To our understanding, Abraham represented God, and the "rich man"
represented the Jewish nation. At the time of the utterance of the parable, and for a long
time previous, the Jews had "fared sumptuously -every day"--being the especial
recipients of God's favors. As St. Paul says: "What advantage, then hath the Jew?
Much every way: chiefly, because to them were committed the oracles of God [Law and
Prophecy]." The promises to Abraham and David and their organization as a typical
Kingdom of God invested that people with royalty, as represented by the rich man's
"purple." The typical sacrifices of the Law constituted them, in a typical
sense, a holy (righteous) nation, represented by the rich man's "fine
linen,"--symbolic of righteousness.Rev. 19:8.
Lazarus represented the outcasts from
divine favor under the Law, who, sin-sick, hungered and thirsted after righteousness.
"Publicans and sinners" of Israel, seeking a better life, and truth-hungry
Gentiles who were "feeling after God"
constituted the Lazarus class. These, at the time of the utterance of this parable, were
entirely destitute of those special divine blessings which Israel enjoyed.
They lay at the gate of the rich man.
No rich promises of royalty were theirs; not even typically were they cleansed; but, in
moral sickness, pollution and sin, they were companions of "dogs." Dogs were
regarded as detestable creatures in those days, and the typically clean Jew called the
outsiders "heathen" and "dogs," and would never eat with them, nor
marry, nor have any dealings with them.-John 4:9.
As to how these ate of the
"crumbs" of divine favor which fell from. Israel's table of bounties, the Lord's
words to the Syro-Phoenician woman give us a key. He said to this Gentile woman--"It
is not meet [proper] to take the children's [Israelites'] bread and to cast it to dogs
[Gentiles];" and she answered, "Truth, Lord, but the dogs eat of the crumbs that
fall from their master's table." (Matt. 15:26, 27.) Jesus healed her daughter, thus
giving the desired crumb of favor.
But there came a great dispensational
change in Israel's history when as a nation they rejected and crucified the Son of God.
Then their typical righteousness ceased, then the promise of royalty ceased to be theirs,
and the kingdom -was taken from them to be given to
a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof-the Gospel Church, "a holy nation, a peculiar people." (Titus 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:7, 9;
Matt. 21:43.) Thus the "rich man" died to
all these special advantages, and soon he (the Jewish nation) found himself in a cast-off
condition,--in tribulation and affliction. In such condition that nation has suffered from
that day to this.
Lazarus also died; the condition of
the humble Gentiles and the God-seeking "outcasts" of Israel underwent a great
change, being carried by the angels (messengersapostles, etc.) to Abraham's bosom. Abraham
is represented as the father of the faithful, and receives all the children of faith, who
are thus recognized as the heirs of all the promises made to Abraham; for the children of
the flesh are not the children of God, "but the children of the promise are counted
for the seed" (children of Abraham) ;
"'which seed is Christ;"--and "if ye be Christ's, then are ye [believers]
Abraham's seed '.children], and heirs according to the [Abrahamic] promise."--Gal.
3:29. 1 Yes, the termination of the condition of things then existing was well illustrated
by the figure, death-the dissolution of the Jewish polity and the withdrawal of the favors
which Israel had so long enjoyed. There they were cast off and have since been shown
"no favor," while the poor Gentiles, who before bad been "aliens from the
commonwealth [the polity] of Israel and strangers from the covenant of promise [up to this
time given to Israel only] having no hope and without God in the world" were then
"made nigh by the blood of Christ'' and reconciled to God.-Eph. 2:12, 13.
To the symbolisms of death and burial
used to- illustrate the dissolution of Israel and their burial or hiding among the other
nations, our Lord added a further figure -"In hell [hades, the grave] he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and
seeth Abraham afar off,'' etc. The dead cannot lift up their eyes, nor see either near or
far, nor converse; for, it is distinctly stated,
"There is no work nor device, nor knowledge,
nor wisdom, in the grave;" and the
dead are described as those who "go down into silence." (Eccl. 9:10; Psa. 115:17.) But the
Lord wished to show that great sufferings or "torments" would be added to-the
Jews as a nation after their national dissolution and burial amongst the other peoples dead in trespasses
and sins; and that they would plead in vain for release and comfort at the hand of the
formerly despised Lazarus class.
And history has borne out this
parabolic prophecy. For eighteen hundred years the Jews have not only been in distress of
mind over their casting out from the favor of God and the loss of their temple and other
necessaries to the offering of their sacrifices, but they have been relentlessly
persecuted by all classes, including professed Christians. It was from the latter that the
Jews have expected mercy, as expressed in the parable--"Send Lazarus, that he may dip
the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue;" but the great gulf fixed between
them hinders that. Nevertheless, God still recognizes the relationship established in his
covenant with them, and addresses them as children of the covenant. (Verse 25.) These
"torments" have been the penalties attached to the violation of their covenant,
and were as certain to be visited upon them as the blessings promised for obedience. -See
Lev. 26.
The "great gulf
fixed" represents the wide difference between the Gospel Church and the Jew-the
former en joying free grace, joy, comfort and peace, as true sons of God, and the latter
holding to the Law, which con demns and torments. Prejudice, pride and error, from the
Jewish side, form the bulwarks of this gulf which hinder the Jew from coming into the
condition of true sons of God by accepting Christ and the gospel of his grace. The bulwark
of this gulf which hinders true sons of God from going to the Jew -- under the bondage of
the Law -- is their knowledge that by the deeds of the Law none can be justified before
God, and that if any man keep the Law (put himself under it to try to commend himself to
God by reason of obedience to it), Christ shall profit him nothing. (Gal. 5:2-4.) So,
then, we who are of the Lazarus class should not attempt to mix the Law and the Gospel,
knowing that they cannot be mixed, and that we can do no good to those who still cling to
the Law and reject the sacrifice for sins given by our Lord. And they, not seeing the
change of dispensation which took place, argue that to deny the Law as the power to save
would-be to deny all the past history of their race, and to deny all of God's special
dealings with the "fathers" (promises and dealings which through pride and
selfishness they failed rightly to apprehend and use); hence they cannot come over to the
bosom of Abraham, into the true rest and peace--the portion of all the true children of
faith -- John 8:39; Rom. 4:16; Gal. 3:29.
True, a few Jews probably came into
the Christian faith all the way down the Gospel age, but so few as to be ignored in a
parable which represented the Jewish people as a whole. As at the first, Dives represented
the orthodox Jews, and not the "outcasts of Israel," so down to the close of the
parable he continues to represent a similar class, and hence does not represent such Jews
as have renounced the Law Covenant and embraced Christianity or such as have become
infidels.
The plea of the "rich man"
for the sending of "Lazarus" to his five brethren we interpret as follows:
The people of Judea, at the time of
our Lord's utterance of this parable, were repeatedly referred to as "Israel,"
"the lost sheep of the house of Israel," "cities of Israel," etc.,
because all of the tribes were represented there; but actually the majority of the people
were of the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, but few of the ten tribes 'having returned from Babylon under Cyrus' general permission.
If the nation of the Jews (chiefly two tribes)
were represented in the one "rich
man," it would be a harmony of numbers to understand the "five brethren" to
represent the ten tribes chiefly scattered
abroad. The request relative to them was doubtless -introduced to show that all special favor of God ceased to all Israel (the ten
tribes, as well as to the two more directly addressed). It seems to us evident that Israel
only was meant, for no other nation than Israel had "Moses and the prophets" as
instructors. (Verse 29.) The majority of the ten tribes
had so far disregarded Moses and the prophets that they did riot return to the land of
promise, but preferred to dwell among idolaters; and hence it would be useless to attempt
further communication with them, even by one from the dead-the figuratively dead, but now
figuratively risen, Lazarus class.-Eph. 2:5.
Though the parable mentions no
bridging of this "great gulf," other portions of Scripture indicate that it was
to be "fixed" only throughout the Gospel age, and that at its close the
"rich man," having received the measurement of punishment for his sins,* will
walk out of his fiery troubles over the bridge of God's promises yet unfulfilled to that
nation.
Though for centuries the Jews have
been bitterly persecuted by pagans, Mohammedans and professed Christians, they are now
gradually rising to political freedom and influence; and although much of "Jacob's
trouble" is just at hand, yet as a people they will -be very prominent among the
nations in the beginning of the Millennium. The "vail" (2 Cor. 3:13-16) of
prejudice still exists, but it will be gradually taken away as the light of the Millenial
morning dawns; nor should we be surprised to hear of great awakenings among the Jews, and
many coming to acknowledge Christ. They will thus leave their hadean state (national :death) and torment, and
come, the first of the nations, to be blessed by the true Seed of Abraham, which is
Christ, Head and Body. Their bulwark of race prejudice and pride is falling in some
places, and the humble, the poor in, spirit, are beginning. already to look upon him whom
they have pierced, and to inquire, Is not this the Christ? And as they look the Lord pours
upon them the spirit of favor and supplication. (Zech. 12:10.) Therefore, "Speak ye
comfortably to Jerusalem, -and. cry unto her that her appointed time is
accomplished." -Isa. 40:1, 2, margin.
In a word, this parable seems to
teach precisely what St. Paul explained in Rom. 11 :19-32. Because of unbelief the natural
branches were broken off, and the wild branches grafted into the Abrahamic root-promise.
The parable leaves the Jews in their trouble, and does not refer to their final
restoration to favor--doubtless because it was not pertinent to the feature of the subject
treated; but St. Paul assures us that when the fullness of the Gentiles-the full number
from among the Gentiles necessary to make up the Bride of Christ-is come in, "they
[natural Israel] shall obtain mercy through your [the Church's] mercy." He assures us
that this is God's covenant with fleshly Israel (who lost the higher, spiritual promises,
but are still the possessors of Certain earthly promises), to become the chief nation of
earth, etc. In proof of this statement, he quotes from the prophets, saying: "The
deliverer shall come out of Zion [the glorified Church], and shall turn away ungodliness
from Jacob [the fleshly seed] ... .. As concerning the Gospel [high calling], they are
enemies [cast off] for your sakes; but as touching the election, they are beloved for the
fathers' sakes." "For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might
have mercy upon all. 0 the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of
God!"--Rom. 11:26-33.
*See Isa. 40:1, 2, margin; Rom.
11:27-31, and SCRIPTURE STUDIES, Vol. 11, page
227.
"These shall go away into
everlasting punishment, hut the righteous into
life eternal."--Matt. 25:31-46.
WHILE the Scriptures, as we have
shown, do not teach the blasphemous doctrine of everlasting torment, they do most emphatically teach the
everlasting punishment of the wicked, the class
represented in the parable as "goats." Let us examine the parable, and then the
sentence pronounced at its close.
It has been truly said that
"Order is Heaven's first law;" yet few, we think, have realized how emphatically
this is true. In glancing back over the Plan of the Ages, there is nothing which gives
such conclusive evidence of a Divine Director as the order observed in all its parts.
God has had definite and
stated times and seasons for every part of his work; and in the end of each of these
seasons there has been a, finishing up of its work and a clearing off of the rubbish,
preparatory to the beginning of the new work of the dispensation to follow. Thus in the
end of the Jewish age order is observed--a harvesting and complete separation of the
"wheat" class from the "chaff," and an entire rejection of the latter
class from God's favor. With the few judged worthy in the end of that age, a new age-the
Gospel age--began. And now we find ourselves amidst the closing scenes, the
"harvest," of this age: the "wheat" and the "tares," which
have grown together during this age, are being separated. With the former class, of which
our Lord Jesus is the Head, a new age is about to be inaugurated, and these
"wheat" are to reign as kings and priests in that new dispensation, while the
"tare" element is judged as utterly unworthy of that favor. 11
While observing this order with
reference to the Jewish age and the one just closing, our Lord informs us through the
parable under' consideration that the same order will be observed with reference to the
age to follow this Gospel age.
The harvest of the Jewish age was
likened to the separation of wheat from chaff; the harvest of this age to the separation
of wheat from tares; and the harvest of the Millennial age to the separation of sheep from
goats.
That the parable of the sheep and the
goats refers to the Millennial age is clearly indicated in verses 31 and 32
-"When the son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory,
and before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them one from another,
as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats." As in the present age every act of
those on trial (the Church) goes to make a part of that character which, in due time, will
determine the final decision of the judge in our case, so will it be with the world (the
"nations") in the age to come.. As in the present age the trial of the majority
of the individual members of the Church ends, and the decision of their case is reached,
long before the end of the age (2 Tim. 4:7, 8),
so under the Millennial reign the decision of some individual cases will be reached long
before the end of the age (Isa. 65:20) ; but in
each age there is a "harvest" or general separating time in the end of the age.
In the dawn of the Millennial age,
after the "time of trouble," there will be a gathering of the living nations
before Christ, and, in their appointed time and
order, the dead of all nations shall be called to appear before the judgment seat of
Christ-not to receive an immediate sentence, but to receive a fair and impartial,
individual trial (Ezek. 18:2-4, 19, 20) under the
most favorable circumstances, the result of which trial will be a final sentence, as
worthy or unworthy of everlasting life.*
The scene of this parable, therefore,
is laid after the time of trouble, when the nations shall have been subdued, Satan bound
(Rev. 20:1, 2) and the authority of Christ's
kingdom established. Ere this, the Bride of Christ (the overcoming Church) will have been
seated with him in his throne of spiritual power and will have taken part in executing the
judgments of the great day of wrath. Then the Son of man and his Bride, the glorified
Church, will be revealed and be seen by men, with the eyes of their understanding and
shall "shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father."--Matt. 13:43.
Here is the New Jerusalem as St. John
saw it (Rev. 21), "that holy city [symbol of government] . . . coming down from God
out of heaven." During the time of trouble it will be coming down, and before the end
of it, it will have touched the earth. This is the stone cut out of the mountains without
hands (but by the power of God), and it will then have become a great mountain (kingdom),
filling the whole earth (Dan. 2:35), its coming having broken to pieces the evil kingdoms of
the prince of darkness.--Dan. 2:34, 35.
Here is that glorious city
(government), prepared as a bride adorned for her husband (Rev. 21:2), and early in the
dawn of the Millennium the nations will begin to walk in the light of it. (Verse 24,)
These may bring their glory and honor into it, but "there shall in no wise enter into
it [or become a part of it] anything that defileth," etc. (Verse 27.) Here, from the
midst of the throne, proceeds a pure river of water of life (truth unmixed with error),
and the Spirit and the Bride say, Come, and take it freely. (Rev. 22:17.) Here begins the
world's probation, the world's great judgment Day -- a thousand years..*
But even in this favored time of
blessing and healing of the nations, when Satan is bound, evil restrained, mankind in
process of release from the grasp of death, and when the knowledge of the Lord fills the
earth, two classes will be developed, which our Lord here, likens to sheep and goats.
These, he tells us, he will separate. The sheep class-those who are meek, teachable and
willing to be led, shall, during the Millennial age, be gathered at the judge's right
hand-symbol of his approval and favor but the goat class, self-willed and stubborn, always
climbing on the rocks-seeking prominence and approval among men-and feeding on miserable
refuse, while the sheep graze in the rich pastures of the truth furnished by the Good Shepherd-these are gathered to the judge's left hand, the opposite of
the position of favor--as subjects of his disfavor and condemnation.
This work of separating sheep and
goats will require all of the Millennial age for its accomplishment. During that age, each
individual, as he comes gradually to a 'knowledge of God and his will, takes his place at
the right hand of favor or the left hand of disfavor, according as he improves or
misimproves the opportunities of that golden age. By the end of that age, all the world of mankind will have arranged themselves,
as shown in the parable, into two classes.
The end of that age will be the end
of the world's trial or judgment, and then final disposition will be made of the two
classes. The reward of this "sheep" class will be granted them because, during
the age of trial and discipline, they
cultivated and manifested the beautiful character of love, which St. Paul describes as the
fulfilling of the Law of God. (Rom. 13:10.) They will have manifested it to each other in
their times of sorest need; and what they will have done for one another the Lord will
count as done unto him, counting them all as his brethren -children of God, though they
will be of the human nature, while he is of the divine.
*See SCRIPTURE-STUDIES, Vol. I., Chapter VIII. "The
Day of Judgment."
The condemnation of the
"goat" class is shown to be for the lack of this spirit of love. Under the same
favorable circumstances as the "sheep," they willfully resist the molding
influence of the Lord's discipline, and harden their hearts. The goodness of God does not
lead them to true repentance, but, like Pharaoh, they take advantage of his goodness and
do evil. The "goats," who will not have developed the element of love, the law
of God's being and Kingdom, will be counted unworthy of everlasting life, and will be
destroyed; while the "sheep," who will have developed God-likeness (love), and
who will have exhibited it in their characters, are to be installed as the subordinate
rulers of earth for future ages.
In the end of the Millennial age, in
the final adjustment of human affairs, Christ thus addresses his sheep: "Come, ye
blessed. . . . inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the
world."
It is manifest the "sheep"
here addressed, at the close of the Millennium, are not the sheep of the Gospel age, the
Gospel Church, but those "other sheep" to whom the Lord referred in John 10:16.
And the kingdom prepared for them in the Divine Plan, from the foundation of the world, is
not the kingdom prepared for the Gospel Church. The Church will receive her kingdom at the
beginning of the Millennium; but this is the kingdom prepared for the "sheep" of
the Millennial age. Their kingdom will be the dominion of earth which was originally given
to Adam, but which was lost through sin, and which is ,again to be restored. when man is
brought to perfection, and so made fit to receive and enjoy it. That dominion will not be
a dominion of some of the race over others, but a joint dominion, in which every' man will
be a king, and all will have equal rights and privileges in appropriating and enjoying
every earthly good. It will be a sovereign people--a great and grand republic on a basis
of perfect righteousness, wherein the rights of every man will be conserved; because the
golden rule will be inscribed on every heart, and every man will love his neighbor as
himself. The dominion of all will be over the whole earth, and all its rich and bountiful
stores of blessing. (Gen. 1:28; Psa. 8:5-8.) The kingdom of the world, to be given to the
perfected and worthy ones of the redeemed race at the close of the Millennium, is clearly
distinguished from all others by being called the kingdom prepared for them "from the
foundation of the world," the earth having been made to be the everlasting home and
kingdom of perfect men. But the kingdom bestowed upon Christ, of which the Church, his
"Bride," becomes joint-heir, is a spiritual kingdom , "far above angels,
principalities and powers," and it also shall "have no end"--Christ's
Millennial Kingdom, which will end, being merely
a beginning of Christ's power and rule. (I Cor. 15:25-28.) This endless heavenly,
spiritual kingdom was prepared long before the earth was founded -- its inception being
recognized in Christ, "the beginning of the creation of God." It was intended
for Christ Jesus, the First Begotten; but even the Church, his Bride ,and joint-heir, was chosen or designed also, in
him, before the foundation of the world.-Eph. 1:4.
The kingdom or rule of earth, is the
kingdom that has been in preparation for mankind from
the foundation of the world. It was expedient
that man should suffer six thousand years under
the dominion of evil, to learn its inevitable results of misery and death, in order by
contrast to prove the justice, wisdom and goodness of God's law of love. Then it will
require the seventh thousand-year, under the reign of Christ, to restore him from ruin and
death, to the perfect condition, thereby fitting him to "inherit the kingdom
*prepared for him from the foundation of the world."
That kingdom, in which all will be
kings, will be one grand, universal republic, whose stability and blessed influence will
be assured by the perfection of its every citizen, a result now much desired, but an
impossibility because of sin. The kingdom of Christ during the Millenium will be, on the
contrary, a theocracy, which will rule the world (during the period of its imperfection
and restoration) without regard to its consent or approval.
The brethren of the Gospel Church are
not the only "brethren" of Christ. All who at that time will have been restored
to perfection will be recognized as sons of Godsons in the same sense that Adam was a son
of God (Luke 3:38-human sons. And all of God's
sons, whether on the human, the angelic or the divine plane, are brethren. Our Lord's love for these, his human
brethren, is here expressed. As the world now has the opportunity to minister to those who
are shortly to be the divine sons of God, and brethren of Christ, so they will have
abundant opportunity during the age to come to minister to (each other) the human
brethren.
The dead nations when again brought
into existence will need food, raiment and shelter. However great may have been their
possessions in this life, death will have brought all to a common level: the infant and
the man of mature years, the millionaire and the pauper, the learned and the unlearned,
the cultured and the ignorant and degraded: all will have an abundant opportunity for the
exercise of benevolence, and thus they will be privileged to be co-workers with God. We
are here reminded of the illustration given in the case of Lazarus,: Jesus only awakened
him from death, and then were the rejoicing friends permitted to loose him from his grave
clothes and to clothe and feed him.
Further, these are said to be
"sick and in prison" (more properly, under ward or watch). The grave is the
great prison where the millions of humanity have been held in unconscious captivity; but
when released from -the grave, the restoration to perfection is not to be an instantaneous
work. Being not yet perfect, they may properly be termed sick, and under ward; not dead, neither are they yet
perfected in life: and any condition between those two may be properly symbolized by
sickness. And they will continue to be under watch or ward until made well--physically,
mentally and morally perfect. During that time there will be abundant opportunity for
mutual helpfulness, sympathy, instruction and encouragement, and any failure to assist
will mark a lack of the Lord's spirit of love.
Since all mankind will not be raised
at once, but gradually, during the thousand years, each new group will find an army of
helpers in those who will have preceded it. The love and benevolence which men will then
show to each other (the brethren of Christ) 'the King will count as shown to him. No great
deeds are assigned as the ground for the honors and favors conferred upon the righteous:
they will have simply come into harmony with God's law of love and proved it by their
works. "Love is the fulfilling of the law" (Rom.. 13:10), and "God is love." So, when man
is restored again to the image of God--"very
good"--man also will be a living expression of love.
"Inherit the kingdom prepared
for you from the foundation of the
world," does not signify a rule independent of the divine law and supremacy: for although God gave earth's dominion
to man at first, and designs restoring it to him when he has prepared him for the great
trust, we are not to suppose that God intends man to rule it, otherwise than as under, or
in harmony with, his supreme law. "Thy will be done in earth as in heaven," must
forever be the principle of government. Man thenceforth will rule his dominion in harmony
with the law of heaven -- delighting continually to do his will in whose favor is life,
and at whose "right hand [condition of favor] there are pleasures forevermore."
(Psa. 16:11.) Oh! who would not say, "Haste ye along, ages of glory!" and give
glory and honor to him whose loving plans are blossoming into such fullness of blessing?
Let us now examine the message to
those on the left "Depart from me, ye cursed" (condemned) -condemned as unfit
vessels for the glory and honor of life, who would not yield to the molding and shaping
influences of divine love. When these,
"brethren," were hungry and thirsty, or
naked, sick, and in prison, ye ministered not to
their necessities, thus continually proving yourselves out of harmony with the
Heavenly City (Kingdom); for "there shall in no case enter into it anything that
defileth." The decision or sentence regarding this class is--"Depart from me
into everlasting fire [symbol of destruction], prepared for the devil and his
angels." Elsewhere (Heb. 2:14) we read without symbol that Christ "will destroy him that had the power of death, that is,
the devil."
"And these [the
"goats"] shall go away into everlasting [Greek, aionios--lasting] punishment, but the righteous
into life eternal [Greek, aionios-lasting.]"
The punishment will be as lasting as the reward. Both will be everlasting.
THE EVERLASTINGNESS of the punishment
being thus established, only one point is left open for discussion; namely, the nature of
the punishment. Take your Concordance and search out what saith the great judge regarding
the punishment of willful sinners who despise and reject all his blessed provisions for
them through Christ. What do you find? Does God there say-All sinners shall live in
torture forever? No; we find not a single text where life in any condition is promised to
that class.
God's declarations assure us that
ultimately he will have a clean universe, free -from the blight of sin and sinners,
because "All the wicked will he destroy." -- Psa. 145:20.
But while we do not find one verse of
the Bible saying that this class can have life in
torment, or in any other condition, we do find numerous passages teaching' the reverse. Of
these we give a few merely as samples -- "The wages of sin is death." (Rom. 6:23.) "The soul that
sinneth, it shall die." (Ezek. 18:4, 20.)
"The wicked shall perish." (Psa. 37:20.) "Yet a little while and the wicked
shall not be." (Psa. 37:10.) Thus God has told us plainly the nature of the
everlasting punishment of the wicked-that it will be death, destruction.
The false ideas of God's plan of
dealing with the incorrigible, taught ever since the great "falling away," which
culminated in Papacy, and instilled into our minds from childhood, are alone responsible
for the view generally held, that the everlasting punishment
provided for willful sinners is a life of torment. This view is held, notwithstanding
the many clear statements of God's Word that their punishment is to be death. Here St. Paul states very explicitly what
the punishment, is to be. Speaking of the same Millennial Day, and of the same class' who,
despite all the favorable opportunities and the fullness of knowledge then, will not come
into harmony with Christ, and hence will "know not God," in the true sense and
"obey not," he says,--"Who shall be
punished." Ah, yes! but how punished?
He tells us how: They "shall be punished with everlasting
destruction" [a destruction from which there shall be no recovery, no redemption
or resurrection--Heb. 10:26-29] from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his
power." (2 Thes. 1:9.) This destruction is represented. in the parable as the
everlasting "fire" prepared for the
devil and his angels: it is "the lake of fire and brimstone," which is the
Second Death (Rev. 20:14), into which the "goat" class of this parable are
sent.-Matt. 25:41.
Thus the meaning and reasonableness
of this statement concerning everlasting punishment are readily seen when looked at from
the correct standpoint. The fire of the parable, by which the punishment (destruction) is
to be accomplished, will not be literal fire, for the "fire" is as much a symbol
as the "sheep" and "goats" are symbols'. Fire here, as elsewhere,
symbolizes destruction, and not in any sense preservation.
We might well leave this subject
here, and consider that we have fully shown that the everlasting punishment of the
"goat" class will be destruction; but we direct attention to one other point
which clinches the truth upon this subject. We refer to the Greek word kolasin, translated "punishment," in
verse 46. This word has not in it the remotest idea of torment. Its primary significance
is to cut off, or prune, or lop off, as in the pruning of trees; and a secondary meaning
is to restrain. The wicked will be everlastingly restrained, cut off from life in the
Second Death. Illustrations of the use of kolasin
can easily be had from Greek classical writings. The Greek word for
"torment" is basinos, 4 word totally
unrelated to the word kolasin.
Kolasin,
the word used in Matt. 25:46, occurs in but one other place in the Bible, viz., 1 John
4:18, where it is improperly rendered "torment" in the common version' whereas
it should read, "Fear hath restraint." Those who possess a copy of Young's
Analytical Concordance will see from it (page 995) that the definition of the word kolasin is "pruning, restraining,
restraint." And the author of the Emphatic Diaglott, after translating kolasin in Matt. 25:46 by the words "cutting
off," says in a foot note:
"The common version and many
modern ones render kolasin aionion, 'everlasting
punishment,' conveying the idea, as generally interpreted, of basinos, torment. Kolasin in its various forms occurs in only three
other places in the New Testament: Acts 4:21; 2 Pet. 2:9; .1 John 4:18. It is derived from
kolazoo, which signifies, 1. To, cut off; as
lopping off branches of trees, to prune. 2. To restrain,
to repress. The Greeks write--'The charioteer restrains [kalazei] his fiery steeds.' 3, To chastize, to 'punish. To cut off an individual
from life, or from society, or even to restrain, is esteemed as a punishment; hence has
arisen this third or metaphorical use of the word. The primary signification has been
adopted [in the Diaglott], because it agrees better with the second member of the
sentence, thus preserving the force and beauty of the antithesis. The righteous go to life, the wicked to the cutting off from life, death.-2 Thes. 1:9."
Now consider carefully the text, and note the antithesis, the contrast, shown
between the reward of the "sheep." and the reward of the "goats," which the correct idea of kolasin gives-the one class goes into everlasting
life, while the other is everlastingly cut off from
life-forever -- restrained in death. And
this exactly agrees with what the Scriptures everywhere else declare concerning the wages
or penalty of willful sin.
Consider for a moment the words of
verse 41: "Depart from me, ye cursed [once redeemed by Christ from the Adamic curse
or condemnation to death, but now condemned or cursed, as worthy of the Second Death, by
the One who redeemed them from the first curse], into everlasting fire [symbol of everlasting destruction, prepared for the devil and
his messengers [servants]."
Remember that this is the final
sentence at the close of the final trial-at the close of the Millennium; and that none
will then be servants of Satan ignorantly or
unwillingly, as so many now are; for the great Deliverer, Christ, will remove outside
temptations, and provide assistance toward self-improvement, which will enable all who
will to overcome inherent weaknesses and to attain perfection. These "goats,"
who love evil and serve Satan, are the messengers ("angels") of Satan. For these
and Satan, and for no others, God has prepared Second Death -the everlasting destruction.
Fire will come from God out of heaven and consume
them. Consuming fire and devouring fire all can appreciate, unless their eyes are
holden by false doctrine and prejudice. No one ever knew of a preserving fire; and as fire never preserves, but
always consumes, God uses it as a symbol of
utter destruction.-Rev. 20:9.
"THE LAKE OF FIRE AND BRIMSTONE
WHICH IS THE SECOND DEATH"
Ex. 19:20; 20:10, 14, 15; 21:8--
"The lake of fire and
brimstone" is several times mentioned in the book of Revelation, which all Christians
admit to be a book of symbols. However, they generally think and speak of this particular
symbol as a literal statement giving strong support to the torment doctrine,
notwithstanding the fact that the symbol is clearly defined as meaning the Second Death:
"And death and hell were cast into the lake of
fire. This is the Second Death," etc. (Rev. 20:14.) It is sometimes spoken of as
"a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Rev. 19:20), the element brimstone
being mentioned to intensify the symbol of destruction, the Second Death; burning
brimstone being one of the most deadly elements known. It is destructive to all forms of
life.
The symbolism of this lake of fire is
further shown by the fact that the symbolic "beast" and the symbolic "false
prophet," and death and hell [hades], as
well as the devil and his followers, are destroyed in it.-Rev. 19:20; 20:10, 14, 15; 21:8.
This destruction or death is called
the Second Death in contradistinction to the First or Adamic death, and not to signify
that everything which goes into it dies a second time. For instance, death (the first or
Adamic death), and hades, the grave, are to be
cast into it; -- this work will require the entire Millennium to accomplish it; and in no
sense will they ever have been destroyed before. So also "the devil," "the
beast," and "the false prophet," will never have been destroyed before.
From the first, or Adamic death, a
resurrection has been provided. All that are in their graves shall therefore come forth.
The Revelator prophetically declares: "The sea gave up the dead which were in it, and
death and hell [hades, the grave] gave up the
dead which were in them. . . . And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and
the books were opened." (Rev. 20:13, 12.) It was in view of God's plan for redeeming
the race from Adamic death that in both the Old and New Testaments it is called a "sleep." In Israel's history of the good
and the wicked it is repeatedly stated that they "slept with their fathers." The
Apostles used the same symbol, and our Lord also. But no such symbol is used in reference
to the Second Death. On the contrary, the strongest figures of total and utter destruction are used to symbolize it; viz.,
"fire and brimstone;" because that will be a destruction from which there will
be no recovery.
Blessed thought! the Adamic death
(which claimed the whole race for the sin of their progenitor) shall be forever swallowed
up, and shall cease in this Second Death into which it is to be cast by the great Redeemer
who bought the whole world with the sacrifice of himself. Thus God tells us through the
Prophet, "I will ransom them from the power of the grave [sheol]. I will redeem them from death. . . . 0
grave [sheol] I will be thy destruction."
(Hos. 13:14.) The first or Adamic death shall no longer have liberty or power over men, as
it has had for the past six thousand years; no longer shall any die for Adam's sin. (Rom.
5:12; Jer. 31:29, 30; Ezek. 18:2) Thenceforth the New Covenant, -sealed with the precious
blood, shall be in force, and only willful transgressions will be counted as sin and
punished with the wages of sin--death--the Second Death. Thus will the Adamic death be
cast into and swallowed up by the Second Death.
And hades and sheol--the dark, secret condition, the
grave, which in the present time speaks to us of a hope
of future life by God's resurrection power in Christ shall be no more; for the
Second Death will devour no being fit for life-none for whom there remains a shadow of
hope, but such only as, by the unerring judge, have been fully, impartially and
individually found worthy of destruction. And
Satan, that lying tempter who deceived and ruined the race and who, with persistent energy
and cunning, has sought continually to thwart the purpose of God for our salvation through
Christ, and with him all who are of his spirit, "his angels," shall be destroyed, and shall never awake from death to
trouble the world again.
Here he is said to be cast into
"the lake of fire,"--the Second Death; and St. Paul in Heb. 2:14, referring to
the same thing, calls it destruction--"that he might destroy death, and him that hath the power of
death, that is the devil." And "the beast and the false prophet," the great
false systems which have long oppressed and misled nominal Christendom, shall never
escape from it. These systems are said to be cast "alive" (that is, while they
are still organized and operative) into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.-Rev.
19:20.
The great time of trouble, the Lord's
judgment, which will utterly destroy these systems, will undoubtedly cause great social,
financial and religious difficulty and pain to all those identified with these deceived
and deceiving systems, before they are utterly destroyed. These systems will be cast in,
destroyed, at the beginning of the Millennium, while Satan's destruction is reserved until
its close, when all the "goats" shall have been separated from the
"sheep," and they shall perish with Satan in the Second Death as "his
angels," messengers or servants. None of those abominable characters among men, who,
knowing the truth, yet love unrighteousness-none of "the fearful and
unbelieving"--those who will not trust God after all the manifestations of his grace
afforded during the Millennial reign of Christ; nor the abominable, who, at heart are
murderers and whoremongers and sorcerers and idolaters and liars: none of these shall
escape from the Second Death, to defile the earth again. All such, after a full and
abundant opportunity for reformation, will be judged unworthy of life, and will be forever
cut off in the Second Death, symbolized by the lake of fire and brimstone.
Several prophetic pen pictures of the
Millennial age and its work, in chapters 20 and 21 of Revelation, clearly show the object
and result of that age of trial, in harmony with
the remainder of the Scriptures already noted.
Chapter 20, verses 2, 4, 11, with
verses 1, 2, 10, 11 of chapter 21, show the beginning of that Age of judgment, and the
restraining of blinding errors and misleading systems. The "beast" and the
"false prophet" are the chief symbols, and represent the organizations or
systems of error which, together, constitute "Babylon." This judgment against
the "thrones" of the present time, and against "the beast and the false
prophet" systems follows speedily upon the
introduction of this Millennial judgment reign. The thrones of the present dominion of
earth will be "cast down," and the dominion transferred to the great Prophet,
Priest, King and judge, "whose right it is." (Compare Dan. 7:14, 22; Ezek.
21:27.) Then the systems of error will be speedily judged worthy of destruction, "the lake of fire,"
"the Second Death."--Rev. 19:20.
Thus the second destruction (or death) begins quite early in
the new judgment: it begins with the false systems symbolized by the beast, false prophet,
etc., but it will not reach the world of mankind, as individuals, until they have first
had full trial, with full opportunity to choose life and live forever. Chapters 20:12, 13,
and 21:3-7, indicate the blessed, favorable trial in which all, both dead and living
(except the Church, who, with Jesus Christ, are kings, priests, joint-heirs and judges),
will be brought to a full knowledge of the truth, relieved from sorrow and pain, and freed
from every blinding error and prejudice, and tried "according to their works."
The grand outcome of that trial will
be a clean universe. As the Revelator expresses it, "Every
creature which i's in heaven and on the earth . I . beard I saying, Blessing and honor
and glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb
forever." But this result will be accomplished in harmony with all God's dealings
past and present, which have always recognized man's freedom of will to choose good or
evil, life or death.
We cannot doubt then that in the
close of the Millennial age, God will again for a "little season" permit evil to
triumph, in order thereby to test his creatures (who will by that time have become
thoroughly acquainted with both good and evil, and the consequence of each, and will have
had his justice and love fully demonstrated to them), that those who finally prefer and
choose evil may be cut offdestroyed. Thus God will for all eternity remove all who do not
love righteousness and hate iniquity.
We read, regarding that testing, that
Satan will endeavor to lead astray all mankind, whose numbers will then be as the sand of
the sea for multitude; but that many of them will follow Satan's evil example and choose
evil and disobedience, with past experience before them, and unhampered by present
weaknesses and blinding influences, we need not suppose. However, when God does not tell
us either the number or the proportion of those to be found worthy of life, and those to
be judged worthy of death (the Second Death), we may not dogmatize. Of one thing we may be
confident, Cod willeth not the death of the wicked, but would that all should turn to him
and live; and no one will be destroyed in that "lake of fire and brimstone"
(figurative of utter destruction,-Gehenna) who
is worthy of life, whose living longer would be a blessing to himself or to others in
harmony with righteousness,
Utter and hopeless destruction is
intended only for willful evil doers, who, like Satan, in pride of heart and rebellion
against God, will love and do evil notwithstanding the manifestations of God's
disapproval, and notwithstanding their, experience
with its penalties. Seemingly the goodness and love of God in the provision of a ransom, a
restitution, and another opportunity of life for man, instead of leading all to an
abhorrence of sin, will lead some to suppose that God is too loving to cut them off in the
Second Death, or that if he did so he would give them other, and yet other future
opportunities. Building thus upon a supposed weakness in the divine character, these may
be led to try to take advantage of the grace (favor) of God, as a license for wilful sin.
But they shall go no further, for their folly shall be made manifest. Their utter
destruction will prove to the righteous the harmony and perfect balance of justice,
Wisdom, Love and Power in the Divine Ruler.
REVELATION 21:8
The true character of the goat class
is portrayed. The fearful and unbelieving [who will not trust God], the abominable,
murderers [brother-haters], whoremongers, sorcerers, idolaters [such as misappropriate and
misuse divine favors, who give to self or any other creature or thing that service and
honor which belong to God], and all "liars"--"whosoever loveth and maketh a
lie" [in a word, all who do not love the truth and seek it, and at any cost defend
and hold it] "shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone
[Gehenna, symbol of utter destruction], which is
the Second Death." Such company would be repulsive to any honest, upright being. It
is hard to tolerate them now, when we can sympathize with them, knowing that such
dispositions are now in great measure the result of inherited weakness of the flesh. We
are moved to a measure of sympathy by the remembrance that in our own cases, often*, when
we would. do good evil is present with us. But in the close of the Millennial judgment,
when the Lord, the righteous judge, shall have given every advantage and opportunity of
knowledge and ability, this class will be an abhorrence and detestation to all who are in
harmony with the King of Glory. And the righteous will be glad when, the trial being
ended, the gift of life of which these shall
have proved themselves unworthy, shall be taken from them, and when the corrupters of the
earth, and all their work and influence, shall be destroyed.
THE DEVIL, THE BEAST AND THE FALSE PROPHET TORMENTED
Rev. 20:9 tells of the destruction of
those individuals who join with Satan in the last rebellion; and verse 15 tells of that
same destruction in other words, using the symbol "lake of fire." They are"
devoured or consumed in fire. This being the case, the
torment of verse 10 cannot refer to these human
beings who are consumed, destroyed. Hence the question narrows down to this, Will
Satan and a false prophet and a beast be tortured forever? and does this verse so teach?
We answer in God's own words,
"All the wicked will he destroy." Concerning Satan, the arch enemy of God and
man, God expressly advises us that he will be destroyed, and not preserved in any sense or
condition.--Heb. 2:14.
The beast and false prophet systems, which during the Gospel age have deceived
and led astray, will be cast into a great, consuming trouble in the close of this Gospel
age. The torment of those systems will be aionion,
i. e., lasting. It will continue as long as they
last, until they are utterly consumed. So also the system of error, which will
suddenly manifest itself at the end of the Millennial age and lead the "goats"
to destruction, will be consumed. (Rev. 20:7-10.) That deceiving system (not specified as to kind, but merely called Satan, after
its instigator) will be cast into the same sort of trouble and destruction, in the end
of the Millennial age, as the beast and false rophet
systems are now being cast into it, in the end of the Gospel age.
Rev. 19:3, speaking of one of these
systems, says: "Her smoke rose up forever
and ever." That is to say, the remembrance ("smoke") of the destruction of these systems of deception and
error will be lasting, the lesson will never be forgotten-as smoke, which continues to
ascend after a destructive fire, is testimony that the fire has done its work.-See also
Isa. 34:8-10.
Of Rev. 14:9-11 we remark,
incidentally, that all will at once concede that if a literal worshiping of a beast and image were meant
in verse 9, then few, if any, in civilized lands are liable to the penalty of verse 11;
and if the beast and his image and worship and wine and cup are symbols, so also are the torments and smoke and fire
and brimstone.
The casting of death and the grave
into utter destruction, the e Second Death, during the Millennial age, is a part of the
utter destruction which will include every improper, injurious and useless thing. (Isa.
11:9; Psa. 101:5-8.) The Second Death, the sentence of that individual trial, will be
final: it will never be destroyed. And let all the lovers of righteousness say, Amen; for
to destroy the Second Death, to remove the sentence of that just and impartial trial,
would be to let loose again not only Satan, but all who love and practice wrong and
deception, and who dishonor the Lord with their evil institutions-to oppose, offend and
endeavor to overthrow those who love and desire to serve him and enjoy his favor. We
rejoice that there is no danger of this, but that divine justice unites with divine
wisdom, love and power, to bring in everlasting righteousness on a permanent basis.
TURNED INTO HELL
"The wicked shall be turned into
hell, and the nations that forget
God."--Psa. 9:17.
This statement of the Lord recorded
by the Psalmist we find without any qualification whatever, and we must accept it as a
positive fact. If the claims of "Orthodoxy" respecting hell were true; this
would be, indeed, a fearful message.
But let us substitute the true
meaning of the word sheol, and our text will
read: "The wicked shall be turned into the
condition of death, and all the nations that forget God." This we believe; but
next, who are the wicked? In one sense all men are wicked, in that all are violators of
God's law; but in the fullest sense the wicked are those who, with full knowledge of the
exceeding sinfulness of sin, and the remedy provided for their recovery from its baneful
effects, willfully persist in sin.
As yet few-only consecrated
believers--have come to a true knowledge of God. The world knows him not, and the nations
cannot forget God until they are first brought to a knowledge of him. The consecrated have
been enlightened, led of the Spirit through faith to understand the deep and hidden things
of God, which reveal the glory of God's character, but which, though expressed in his
Word, appear only as foolishness to the world.
As
we have hitherto seen, this will not be so in the age
to come, for then "The earth shall be full
of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (Isa. 11:9.) Much that we
now receive. by faith will then be demonstrated to the world. When he who has ransomed man
from the power of the grave (Hos. 13:14) begins to
gather his purchased possessions back from the prison-house of death (Isa. 61 - 1), when
the sleepers are awakened under the genial rays of the Sun of Righteousness, they will not
be slow to realize the truth of the hitherto
seemingly idle tale, that "Jesus Christ,
by the grace of God, tasted death for every man."
We have also seen that the gradual
ascent of the King's Highway of Holiness in that age will be possible to all, and
comparatively easy, because all the stones--stumbling-blocks, errors, etc.--will have been
gathered out, and straight paths made for their feet. It is in that age that this text
applies. Those who ignore the favoring circumstances of that age, and will not be obedient
to the righteous judge or Ruler--Christ--will truly be the wicked. And every loyal subject
of the Kingdom of God will approve the righteous judgment which turns such an one again into sheol--the
condition of death. Such an one would be unworthy of life; and, were he permitted to live,
his life would be a curse to himself and to the rest of mankind, and a blemish on the work
of God.
This will be the Second Death, from which there will be no
resurrection. Having been ransomed from the grave (sheol)
by the sacrifice of Christ, if they die again on account of their own sin, "there
remaineth no more sacrifice for sin." (Heb. 10:26.) "Christ dieth no more; death
hath no more dominion over him." (Rom. 6:9.) The Second Death should be dreaded and
shunned by all, since it is to be the end of existence to all those deemed unworthy of
life. But in it there can be no suffering. Like Adamic death, it is the extinction of
life.
It is because through sin mankind had
become subject to death (sheol, hades) that
Christ Jesus came to deliver us and save us from death. (I John 3:8; Heb. 2:14.) Death is
a cessation of existence, the absence of life. There is no difference between the conditions in the Adamic and Second deaths, but
there is hope of a release from the first, while from the second there will be no release,
no return to life. The first death sentence passed ,upon all on account of Adam's sin,
while the Second Death can-be incurred only by willful, individual sin.
That the application of our text
belongs to the coming age is evident, for both saints and, sinners go into sheol or hades
now. This Scripture indicates that, in the time when it applies, only the wicked shall go there. And the nations
that forget God must be nations that have known him, else they could not forget him; and
never yet have the nations been brought to that knowledge, nor will they be until the
coming time, when the knowledge of the Lord shall fill the whole earth, and none shall
need to say unto his neighbor, Know thou the Lord, for all shall know him, from the least
to the greatest of them.-Isa. 11:9; Jer. 31:34.
The Hebrew word goi, rendered "nations" in this verse, is
elsewhere used by the same writer and rendered "heathen," "Gentiles"
and "people." The thought seems to be,--any who do not become God's covenant
people, even though they be not openly wicked. The
nations (Gentiles, all who under that full knowledge do not become Israelites indeed) who
are forgetful or negligent of God's favors enjoyed, and of their, duties and obligations
to him, shall share, the fate of the willfully "wicked," and be cast into the
Second Death.
In further proof of this, we find
that the Hebrew word shub, which in our text is
translated "turned," signifies turned
back, as to a previous place or condition, Those referred to in this text either have
been in sheol or are liable to enter it, but
being redeemed by the precious blood of
Christ, will be brought out of sheol. If then they are wicked, they, and all who forget
God, shalt be turned back or returned to sheol.
DID THE JEWS BELIEVE IN EVERLASTING TORMENT?
Noting that we teach that the doctrine
of everlasting torment
was engrafted upon the doctrines of the Christian
Church during the period of the apostasy, the great falling away which culminated in
Papacy, some have inquired whether it does not seem, according to the works of Josephus,
that this doctrine was firmly held by the Jews; and, if so, they ask, does it not seem
evident that the early Christians, being largely converts from Judaism, brought this
doctrine with them, in the very outstart of Christianity ?
We answer, No; the doctrine of
everlasting torment sprang naturally from the doctrine of human immortality, which as a
philosophic question was first promulgated in anything like the present form by the
Platonic school of Grecian philosophy. These first affirmed that each man contained a
fragment of deity,_ and that this would prevent him from ever dying. This foundation laid,
it was as easy to describe a place for evil-doers as for well-doers. But to the credit of
those heathen philosophers be it recorded that they failed to develop, or at least to
manifest, that depth of degradation from benevolence and reason and pity, necessary to
paint, by word and pen and brush, such details of horrors and agonies as were soon
incorporated into their doctrine, and a belief thereof declared necessary to
salvation" in the professed Church of Christ.
To appreciate the case, it is
necessary to remember that, when the Christian Church was established, Greece stood at the
head of intelligence and civilization. Alexander the Great had conquered the world, and
had spread respect for Greece everywhere; and though, from a military point of view, Rome
had taken her place, it was otherwise in literature. For centuries, Grecian philosophers
and philosophies led the intellectual world, and impregnated and affected everything. It
became customary for philosophers and teachers of other theories to claim that their
systems and theories were nearly the same as those of the Grecians, and to endeavor to
remove differences between their old theories and the popular Grecian views. And some
sought to make capital by claiming that their system embraced all the good points of
Platonism with others which Plato did not see.
Of this class were the teachers in
the Christian Church in the second, third and fourth centuries. Conceding the popularly
accepted correctness of the philosophers, they claimed that the same good features of
philosophy were found in Christ's teachings, and that he was one of the greatest
philosophers, etc. Thus a blending of Platonism and Christianity took place. This became
the more pronounced as kings and emperors began to scrutinize religious teachings, and to
favor those most likely to awe the people and make them law-abiding. While heathen
teachers were truckling to such imperial scrutiny, and teaching an everlasting punishment
for those who violated the laws of the emperors - (who ruled as divinely appointed), we
cannot suppose otherwise than that the ambitious characters in the church at that time,
who were seeking, to displace heathenism and to become the dominant religious power
instead, would make prominent such doctrines as would in the eyes of the emperors seem to
have an equal hold upon the fears and prejudices of the people. And what could be more to
the purpose than the doctrine of the endless torment of the refractory?
The same motives evidently operated
with Josephus when writing concerning the belief of the Jews. His works should be read as
apologies for Judaism, -and as published his "Wars" A. D. 75 and
"Antiquities" A. D. 93 efforts to exalt that nation in the eyes of Rome and the
world. It should be remembered that the Jews had the reputation of being a very rebellious
people, very unwilling to be ruled even by the Caesars, They were hoping, in harmony with
God's promises, to become the chief nation. Many rebellious outbreaks had occurred among
them, and their peculiar religion, different from all others , came in for its share of
blame for favoring too much the spirit of liberty.
Josephus had an object in writing his
two principal works, "Antiquities" and "Wars of the Jews." He wrote
them in the Greek language while living at Rome, where he was the friend and guest
successively of the Roman Emperors Vespasian, Titus and Domitian, and where he was in
constant contact with the Grecian philosophers. These books were written for the purpose
of showing off the Jewish people, their courage, laws, ethics, etc., to the best advantage
before the Grecian philosophers and Roman dignitaries. This object is covertly admitted in
his preface to his "Antiquities," in which he says:
"I have undertaken the present
work as thinking it will appear to all the Greeks worthy of their study. . . . Those that
read my book may wonder that my discourse of laws and historical facts contains so much of
philosophy. . . . However, those that have a
mind to know the reasons of everything may find here a very curious philosophical
theory."
In a word, as a shrewd man who
himself had become imbued with the spirit of the Grecian philosophers then prevailing,
Josephus drew from the Law and the Prophets, and from the traditions of the elders and the
theories of the various sects of the Jews, all he could find that in the most remote
degree would tend to show -
First, that the Jewish religion was
not far behind popular Grecian philosophy; but that somewhat
analogous theories had been drawn from Moses' Law, and held by some Jews, long before
the Grecian philosophers broached them.
Secondly, that it was not their
religious ideas which made the Jews as a people hard to control or
"rebellious,", as all liberty-lovers were esteemed by the Caesars. Hence he
attempts to prove, at a time when virtue was esteemed to consist mainly in submission,
that Moses' Law "taught first of all that God is the Father and Lord of all things,
and bestows a happy life upon those that follow him, but plunges such as do not walk in
the paths of virtue into inevitable miseries." And it is in support of this idea, and
for such purposes, evidently, that Josephus, after saying: "There are three
philosophical sects among the Jews; first, the Pharisees; second, the Sadducces, and
third, the Essenes," proceeds to give an account of their three theories; especially
detailing any features which resembled Grecian philosophy. And because the last and least,
the Essenes, most resembled the doctrines of the Stoics and leading Grecian theories,
Josephus devotes nearly ten times as much space to their views as to the views of both
Sadducees and Pharisees combined. And yet the Essenes were so insignificant a sect that
the New Testament does not even mention them, while Josephus himself admits they were few.
Whatever views they held, therefore, on any subject, cannot be claimed as having Jewish
sanction, when the vast majority of Jews held contrary opinions. The very fact that our
Lord and the Apostles did not refer to them is good evidence that the Essenes' philosophy
by no means represented the Jewish ideas. This small sect probably grew up later and
probably absorbed from Grecian philosophy its ideas concerning immortality and the
everlasting torment of the non-virtuous. It should be remembered that Josephus was not
born until three years after our Lord's crucifixion, and that he -at a time when he and
other Jews, like all the rest of the world, were eagerly swallowing Grecian philosophy and
science falsely so called, against which St. Paul warned the Church.-Col. 2:8; 1 Tim.
6:20.
Josephus directed special attention
to the Essenes be cause it suited his object to do so. He admits that the Sadducees, next
to the largest body of Jewish people, did not believe in human immortality. And of the
Pharisees' views he makes a blind statement, calculated to mislead, as follows: "They
also believe that souls have an immortal vigor in
them [This might be understood to mean that the Pharisees did not believe as the Sadducees
that death ended all existence, but believed in a vigor or life beyond the grave--by a
resurrection of the dead], and that under the earth there will be rewards and punishments,
according as they have lived virtuously or viciously in this life; and that the latter are
to be detained in an everlasting prison [death-not
torture], but that the former [the virtuous] shall have power to revive and live again.
Is it not apparent that Josephus has
whittled and stretched the views of the Pharisees, as much as his elastic conscience would
allow, to show a harmony between them and the philosophies of Greece? St. Paul, who had
been a Pharisee, contradicts Josephus. While Josephus says they believed "that only
the virtuous would revive and live again [Does
not this imply a resurrection, and imply also
that the others would not live again, but
remain dead, in the great prison-the tomb?] St.
Paul, on the contrary, says: "I have hope toward God, which they themselves also
allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the. just and
unjust."--Acts 24:15.
We have no hesitancy about accepting
the testimony of the inspired Apostle Paul, not only in regard to what the Jews believed,
but also as to what he and the early Church believed; and we repeat, that the theory of
the everlasting torment of the wicked, based
upon the theory that the human soul cannot die, is
contrary to both the Old and the New Testament teachings, and was introduced among
Jews and Christians by Grecian Philosophers. Thank God for the purer philosophy of the
Scriptures, which teaches that the death of the soul (being) is the penalty of sin (Ezek.
18:20) ; that all souls condemned through Adam's sin were redeemed by Christ's soul (Isa.
53:10) ; and that only for wilful, individual sin will any die the Second Death-an
everlasting, punishment, but not an everlasting
torment.
CHOOSE LIFE THAT YE MAY LIVE
"I have set before thee this day
life and good, death and evil." "I have set before thee life and death, blessing
and cursing; therefore choose life, that both thou and
thy seed may live."--Deut. 30:15, 19.
We come now to the consideration of other Scripture statements in harmony with the
conclusions set forth in the preceding articles.
The words here quoted are from Moses
to Israel. To appreciate them we must remember that Israel as a people, and all their
covenants, sacrifices, etc., had a typical significance.
God knew that they could not obtain
life by keeping the Law, no matter how much they would choose to do so, because they, like all others of
the fallen race, were weak, depraved through the effect of the "sour grape" of
sin which Adam had eaten, and which his children had continued to eat. (Jer. 31:29.) Thus,
as St. Paul declares, the Law given to Israel could not give them life because of the
weaknesses or depravity of their fallen nature. -- Rom. 8:3; Heb. 7:19; 10:1-10.
Nevertheless, God foresaw a benefit
to them from even an unsuccessful attempt to live perfectly; namely, that it would develop
them, as well as show them the need of the better sacrifice
(the ransom which our Lord Jesus gave) and a greater
deliverer than Moses. And with all this their trial furnished a pattern or shadow of
the individual trial insured to the whole world (which Israel typified) and secured by the
better sacrifices for sin, which were there prefigured, to be accomplished by the great
Prophet of whom Moses was but a type.
Thus seeing that the trial for life
or death presented to Israel was but typical of the individual trial of the whole world,
and its issues of life and death (of eternal life or the Second Death), may help some to
see that the great thousand-year-day of trial, of which our Lord Jesus has been appointed
the judge, contains the two issues, life and
death. All will then be called upon to decide, under that most favorable opportunity, for
righteousness, and life or sin and death, and a choice must be made. And, although there
will be rewards and "stripes" according to the deeds of the present life, as
well as according to their conduct under that trial (John 3:19; Matt. 10:42; Matt.
11:20-24), the verdict in the end will be in harmony with the choice expressed by the
conduct of each during that age of trial.
The second trial, its sentence and
its result, are also shown in the words of Moses quoted by St. Peter (Acts 3:22, 23):
"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 [being] which will not hear [obey] that Prophet [and thus choose life] shall be destroyed from among the people." In few
words this calls attention to the world's great trial, yet future. It shows the great
Prophet or Teacher raised up by God to give a new judgment or trial to the condemned race
which he has redeemed from the condemnation which came upon it through its progenitor,
Adam. It shows, too, the conditions of eternal life to be righteous obedience, 'and that
with the close of that trial some will be judged worthy of that life, and some worthy of
destruction--the Second Death.
Our Lord Jesus, having redeemed all
by his perfect and precious sacrifice, is the Head of this great Prophet.: and during the
Gospel age God has been selecting the members of his Boy, who, with Christ Jesus, shall be
God's agents in judging the world. Together they will be that Great Prophet or Teacher
promised. "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?"--1 Cor. 6:2.
The first trial was of mankind only,
and hence its penalty or curse, the first death, was only upon man. But the second trial
is to be much more comprehensive. It will not only be the trial of fallen and imperfect
mankind, but it will include every other thing and principle and being out of harmony with
Jehovah. "God will bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing."
The "judgment to come" will
include the judgment to condemnation of all false systems-civil,
social and religious. These will be judged, condemned and banished early in the
Millennial Day, the light of truth causing them to come into disrepute and therefore to
pass away. This judgment comes first, in order that the trial of man may proceed
unhindered by error, prejudice, etc. It will also include the trial of "the angels
which sinned"--those angels "which kept not their first estate" of purity
and obedience to God. Thus it is written by the Apostle of the members of the Body of the
great Prophet and High Priest, who is to be judge of all--"Know ye not that the
saints shall judge angels?"--1 Cor. 6:3.
This being the case, the condemnation
of the Millennial trial (destruction, Second Death) will cover a wider range ,of offenders
than the penalty or curse for the sin of Adam, which "passed upon all men." In a word, the destruction at the
close of the trial will be the utter destruction of every
being and every thing which will not glorify
God and be of use and blessing to his general creation.
IN THE preceding pages we briefly
show the extreme penalty for willful sin. Adam's penalty, which involved his entire race,
was of this sort; and only as the result of Christ's death as our ransom from that penalty
of that willful sin, is any forgiveness of it or subsequent sins possible.
Forgivable sins are those which
result from. weaknesses incurred through that one Adamic sin which Christ settled once for
all. They are such as are not willful, but are committed through ignorance or weaknesses
of the flesh. God stands pledged to forgive all such sins upon our repentance, in the name
and merit of Christ's sacrifice.
Unpardonable sins, sins which cannot
be forgiven, are such as are willfully done. As the penalty of the first willful sin was
death-extinction of being-so death is the penalty of every willful sin against full
knowledge and ability to choose and to do the right. This is called Second Death, in
distinction from the first or Adamic penalty, from which Christ's ransom sacrifice will
release all mankind.
The "sin unto [Second]
Death," for the forgiveness of which the Apostle declares it is useless to pray (1
John 5:16), is not only a wilful sin, but a sin against clear knowledge; a sin for which
no adequate excuse can be found. Because it is a sin against clear knowledge, or
enlightenment in holiness; it. is called the "sin against the Holy Spirit"
(Matt. 12 :31, 32), for which there is no forgiveness.
But there are other partly-willful
sins, which are, there fore, partially unpardonable. In such the temptations within and
without (all of which are directly or indirectly results of the fall) have a share;--the
will consenting under the pressure of the temptation or because of the weakness. The Lord
alone knows how to properly estimate our responsibilities and guilt in such cases. But
to the true child of God there is but one proper course to take; -- repentance -- and an
appeal for mercy in the name and merit of Christ, the great sacrifice for sin. The Lord
will forgive such a penitent, in the sense of restoring him to his favor; but he will be
made to suffer "stripes" (Luke 12:47, 48) for the sin, in proportion as God sees
it to have been willfully committed.
Not infrequently a conscientious
person realizes that he has committed sin, and that it had some willfulness in it. He.
properly feels condemned, guilty before God; realizing his own guilt, and forgetting the
fountain for sin and uncleanness, opened by God for our weak, fallen race, he falls into a
state of sadness, believing that he has, committed the sin unto death. Such wander in
deserts drear, until they find the cleansing fountain. Let such remember, however, that
the very facts of their sorrow for sin and their desire to return to divine favor are
proofs that they have not committed the sin unto death; for the Apostle declares that
those who commit sin of this sort cannot be renewed unto repentance. (Heb. 6:6.)
Penitents, then, may always feel confident that their sins were in part, at least, results
of the fall, and hence not unto death, but requiring forgiveness and stripes.
Such is the wonderful provision of
God, through Christ for the acceptance of every soul which, forsaking sin and the love of it, seeks
righteousness and life through him who is the Way, as well as the Truth and the Life. Thus
all, whether naturally stronger or weaker, have an equal opportunity to gain everlasting life as well as to gain the great prize of
joint-heirship with Christ.
FUTURE RETRIBUTION
While the Scriptures teach that the
present Gospel age is the Church's judgment-day or period of trial, and that the world's
judgment-day or time of trial will be the Millennial age, it is, nevertheless, a
reasonable question to ask,--To what extent will those who are not of the consecrated
Church be held responsible, in the Millennial age, for their misdeeds, of cruelty,
dishonesty and immorality, of the present time? And to what extent will those of the same
class then be rewarded for present efforts to live moral and benevolent lives?
These are important questions,
especially to the world; and well would it be for them if they could realize their
importance and profit thereby. They are important also to the Church, because of our
interest in the world, and because of our desire to understand and teach correctly our
Father's plans.
We have learned that the sacrifice of
Christ secures for all mankind, however vile, an awakening from death, and the privilege
of thereafter coming to perfection, and, if they will, of living forever. "There
shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust." (Acts 14:15.)
The object of their being again brought into existence will be to give them a favorable
opportunity to secure everlasting life, on the conditions which God requires-obedience to
his righteous will. We have no intimation whatever in the Scriptures that, when awakened,
the moral condition of men will have changed, but we have much, in both reason and
revelation, to show that as they went into death weak and depraved, so they will come out
of it. As there is "no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave"
(Eccl. 9:10), they will have learned nothing; and since they were sinners and unworthy of
life and divine favor when they died, they will still be unworthy; and as they have
received neither full rewards nor full punishments for the deeds of the present life, it
is evident that just such a time of awakening as God has promised during the Millennium is
necessary;--for rewarding, and punishing, and giving to all mankind the opportunity for
eternal life secured by Christ's great ransom-sacrifice.
While, strictly speaking, the world
is not now on trial: that is, the present is not the time for its full and complete trial,
yet men are not now, nor have they ever been, entirely without light and ability, for the
use of which they are accountable. In the darkest days of the world's history, and in the
deepest degradation of savage life, there has always been at least a measure of the light
of conscience pointing more or less directly to righteousness and virtue. That the deeds
of the present life have much to do with the future, St. Paul taught very clearly when,
before Felix, he reasoned of justice and self-government, in view of the judgment to come,
so that Felix trembled. -- Acts 24:25, Diaglott translation.
At the first advent of our Lord, an
increased measure of light came to men, and to that extent increased their responsibility,
as he said: "This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men
loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:19.) For
those evil deeds committed against the light possessed,
whether of conscience or of revelation, men will have to give an account, and will
receive, in their day of judgment, a just recompense of reward. And, likewise, to the
extent of their effort to live righteously: they will receive their reward in the day of
trial.-Matt. 10:42.
If men would consider what even reason
discerns, that a time of reckoning, of judgment, is coming, that God will not forever permit evil to
triumph, and that in some way he will punish evil-doers, it would undoubtedly save them
many sorrows and chastisements in the age to come. Said the Prophet, "Woe unto them
that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and
they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?" (Isaiah 29:15.) Behold, "The eyes
of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good" (Prov. 15:3) ; and
"God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be
good, or whether it be evil." (Eccl. 12:14.) He "will bring to light the hidden
things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts."--1 Cor. 4:5.
The age of Christ's reign will be a
time of just judgment; and though it will be an age of golden opportunities to all, it
will be a time of severe discipline, trial and punishment to many. That the judgment will
be fair and impartial, and with due consideration for the circumstances and the
opportunities of each individual, is also assured-by the character of the judge (the
Christ -- John 5;22; 1 Cor. 6:2), by his perfect knowledge, by his unwavering justice and
goodness, by his divine power and by his great love as shown in his sacrifice to redeem
men from death, that they might enjoy the privilege of this favorable, individual trial.
'The varied circumstances and
opportunities of men, in this and past ages, indicate that a just judgment will recognize
differences in the degree of individual responsibility, 'which will also necessitate
differences in the Lord's future dealings with them. And this reasonable deduction we find
clearly confirmed by the Scriptures. The Judge has been, and still is, taking minute
cognizance of men's actions and words (Prov. 5:21), although they have been entirely
unaware of it; and he declares that "Every idle ["pernicious," injurious or
malicious] word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of
judgment" (Matt. 12:36) ; and that even a cup of cold water, given to one of his
little ones, because he is Christ's, shall in no wise lose its reward. (Matt. 10:42.) The
context shows that the "pernicious" words to which Jesus referred were words of
willful and malicious opposition spoken against manifest light. (Matt. 12:24, 31, 32.) He
also affirmed that it would be more tolerable for Tyre, Sidon and Sodom in the day of
judgment than for Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum, which had misimproved greater
advantages of light and opportunity.--Matt. 11:20-24.
In the very nature of things, we can
see that the punishments of that age will be in proportion to past guilt. Every sin
indulged, and every evil propensity cultivated, hardens the heart and makes the way back
to purity and virtue more difficult. Consequently, sins wilfully indulged now, will
require punishment and discipline in the age to come; and the more deeply the soul is dyed
in willing sin, the more severe will be the measures required to correct it. As a wise
parent would punish a wayward child, so Christ will punish the wicked for their good.
His punishments will always be
administered in justice, tempered with mercy, and relieved by his approval and reward to
those who are rightly exercised thereby. And it will only be when punishments,
instructions and encouragements fail; in short, when love and mercy have done all that
wisdom can approve (which is all that could be asked), that any will meet the final
punishment which his case demands--the Second Death.
None of the world will meet that
penalty until they have first had all the blessed opportunities of the age to come. And
while this is true of the world, the same principle applies now to the consecrated
children of God in this our judgment (trial) day. We
now receive God's favors (through faith), while
the world will receive
them in the next age, viz.,
instruction, assistance, encouragement,
discipline and punishment. "For what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not? But if
ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards and not
sons." Therefore, when we receive grievous chastisement, we should accept it as from
a loving Father for our correction, not forgetting "the exhortation which speaketh
unto us as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint
when thou are rebuked of him; for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every
son whom he receiveth."--Heb. 12:4-13.
How just and equal are God's ways!
Read carefully the rules of the coming age--Jer. 31:29-34 and Ezek. 18:20-32. They prove
to us, beyond the possibility of a doubt, the sincerity and reality of all his professions
of love to men: "As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of
the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: Turn ye, turn ye from your
evil ways; for why will ye die?"--Ezek. 33:11.
All who in this life repent of sin,
and, as the term repentance implies, begin and continue the work of reformation to the
best of their ability, will form character which will be a benefit to them in the age to
come; when awakened in the resurrection age, they will be to that extent advanced towards
perfection, and their progress will be more rapid and easy; while with others it will be
more slow, tedious and difficult. This is implied in the words of our Lord (John 5:29,
30--Diaglott) : "The hour is coming in the which all that are in their graves shall
hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of
life [those whose trial is past, and ,who were judged worthy of life, will be raised
perfect the faithful of past ages to perfect human life, the overcomers of the Gospel age
to perfect life as divine beings], and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of
judgment."--These are awakened to judgment-to receive a course of discipline and
correction-as the necessary means for their perfecting, or, otherwise, their condemnation
to the Second Death.
The man who, in this life, by fraud
and injustice, accumulated and hoarded great wealth, which was scattered to the winds when
he was laid in the dust, will doubtless awake to lament his loss, and bewail his poverty
and his utter inability under the new order of things to repeat unlawful measures to
accumulate a fortune. With many it will be a severe chastisement and a bitter experience
to overcome the propensities to avarice, selfishness, pride, ambition and idleness,
fostered and pampered for years in the present life.. Occasionally we see an illustration
of this form of punishment now, when a man of great wealth suddenly loses all, and the
haughty spirit of himself and family must fall.
We are told (Dan. 12:2) that some
shall awake to shame and age-lasting contempt. And who can doubt that, when every secret
thing is brought into judgment (Eccl. 12:14.), and the dark side of many a character that
now stands measurably approved among men is then made known, many a face will blush and
hide itself in confusion? When the man who steals is required to refund the stolen
property to it's rightful owner, with the addition of twenty per cent interest, and the
man who deceives, falsely accuses or otherwise wrongs his neighbor, is required to
acknowledge his crimes and so far as possible to repair damages, on peril of an eternal
loss of life, will not this be retributive justice? Note the clear statement of this in God's typical dealings with Israel, whom he made to represent the
world.--1 Cor. 10:11; Lev. 6:1-7. See also "Tabernacle Shadows," page 99.
As we are thus permitted to look into
the perfect plan ,Of God, how forcibly we ate. reminded of his word through the Prophet
Isaiah, "Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the
plummet." (Isa. 28:17.) We also see the wholesome influence of such discipline.
Parents, in disciplining their children, realize the imperative necessity of making their
punishments proportionate to the character of the offences; and so in God's government:
great punishments following great offences are not -greater than is necessary to establish
justice and to effect -great moral reforms.
Seeing that the Lord will thus
equitably adjust human affairs in his own due time, we can afford to endure hardness for
the present, and resist evil with good, even at the cost of present disadvantages.
Therefore, "Recompense to no man evil for evil ...
.. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus our Lord."--Rom.
12:17-19; Phil. 2:5.
The present order of things will not
always continue: a time of reckoning is coming. The just judge of all the earth says,
"Vengeance is mine, I will repay;" and the Apostle Peter adds, "The Lord
knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to reserve the unjust unto the day
of judgment to be punished." (2 Pet. 2:9.) And, as we have seen, those punishments
will be adapted to the nature of the offences, and the benevolent object in view-man's
permanent establishment in righteousness.
Other Scriptures corroborative of
this view of future reward and punishments are as follows: 2 Sam. 3:39; Matt. 16:27; 1
Pet. 3:12; Psa. 19:11; 91:8; Prov. 11:18; Isa. 40:10; 49:4; Matt. 5:12; 10:41, 42; Luke
6:35; Rev.. 22:12; Rom. 14:11, 12.
LET HONESTY AND TRUTH PREVAIL
Having demonstrated that neither the
Bible nor reason ,offers the slightest support to the doctrine that eternal torment is the
penalty for sin, we note the fact that the various church creeds, and confessions, and
hymn-books, -and theological treatises, are its only supports; and that under the increasing light of our day, and the
consequent emancipation of reason, belief in this horrible, fiendish doctrine of the dark
ages is fast dying out. But alas! this is not because Christian. people generally are
zealous, for the truth of God's Word and- for his character and willing to destroy their
grim creed-idols. Ali no! they still bow before their admitted falsities; they still
pledge themselves to their defense, and spend time and money for their support, though at
heart ashamed of them, and privately denying them.
The general influence of all this is,
to cause the honest-hearted of the world to despise Christianity and the Bible; and to
make hypocrites and semi-infidels of nominal Christians. Because the nominal church clings
to this old blasphemy, and falsely presents its own error as the teaching of the Bible,
the Word of God, though still nominally reverenced, is being practically repudiated. Thus
the Bible, the great anchor of truth and liberty, is being cut loose from, by the very
ones who, if not deceived regarding its teachings, would be held and blessed by it.
The general effect, not far distant,
will be, first open infidelity, then anarchy. For much, very much of this, lukewarm
Christians, both in pulpits and pews, who know or ought to know better, are responsible.
Many such are willing to compromise the truth, to slander God's character, and to stultify
and deceive themselves, for the sake of peace,
or ease, or present earthly advantage. And any minister, who, by uttering a word for an
unpopular truth, will risk the loss of his stipend and his reputation for being
"established" in the bog of error, is considered a bold man, even though he
ignominiously withhold his name from his published protests.
If professed Christians would be
honest with themselves and true to God, they would soon learn that "their fear toward
God is taught by the precepts of men." (Isa. 29:13.) If all would decide to let God
be true, though it should prove every man a liar (Rom. 3:4), and show all human creeds to
be imperfect and misleading, there would be a great creed-smashing work done very shortly. Then the Bible would be studied and
appreciated as never before; and its testimony that the wages of sin is death (extinction), would be recognized as a
"just recompense of reward."
We have given foregoing but a mere
suggestion of the light now shining in "due season" for the "household of
faith." We invite correspondence from all who "hunger and thirst after
right." We have free tracts, and books to
loan to the poor in spirit who are poor also in purse. See page 2.
"The wrath
of God is love's severity
"The wrath of God is a consuming fire,
In curing sin-the zeal of righteousness
That burns while there is evil to destroy
In overcoming wrong -- the remedy
Or good to purify; nor can expire
Of justice for the world's redress.
Till all things are relieved from sin's alloy.
"The wrath
of God is punishment for sin,
"The wrath of God is love's parental rod,
In measure unto all transgressions due,
The disobedient to chastise, subdue,
Discriminating well and just between
And bend submissive to the will of God
Presumptuous sins and sins of lighter hue,
That love may reign when all things are made new.
"The wrath
of God inflicts no needless pain
"The wrath of God shall never strike in vain,
Merely vindictive or Himself to please;
Nor cease to strike till sin shall be no more;
But aims the ends of mercy to attain,
Till God His gracious purpose shall attain,
Uproot the evil and the good increase.
And earth to righteousness and peace restore."
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