A Vindication of the Seventh-Day Sabbath and the Commandments of God

In the three preceding verses, God's people are called away, and required, under penalty of their salvation, to continue disconnected from Babylon, the churches to which the great mass before this belonged. Now the very next thing after these messages, John declares that they are keeping the commandments of God; that is, they are keeping the seventh-day Sabbath. Where is the proof? says the objector. Here it is – when this same people were making their sacrifice, in 1843 and '44, expecting the Lord to come, they were walking out in all the commandments of God, as far as they were taught or knew them at that time; and we all fully believed then, and do now, that all the honest ones were in a saved state; and if called away then, as was brother Fitch and others, the same hope would follow them; but we know that they could not be honest, nor be saved, if they were knowingly living in violation of any of God's commandments; and yet we all positively know now, that with a very few exceptions, we were all living in open violation of the 4th commandment, which we were taught to do, (though not always designedly,) in the churches to which they belonged, and where they are still continued to be taught; and our staying with them, we now see, would not have altered, for they fell for rejecting the message that came before this, and therefore the subject of this 12th verse was not presented to them. Our keeping the first day of the week for the fourth commandment, never was, nor ever will be, fulfilling it, any more than keeping Friday for the Sabbath. John, who kept the right Sabbath, and was now describing our real labors and characters, could not have said that we kept the commandments, unless we were keeping the seventh-day Sabbath, according to God's direction and his practice. This, then, being the only commandment that ever had been objected to, from the days of the Apostles, by those who pretended to keep them, makes it clear that John could not have had any reference to either of the others, but the Sabbath only. Here then, for the first time, they were right in the keeping of God's commandments; and the history of God's confiding children since the messages of 1844, are fully demonstrating this point, which clearly proves this exposition to be unobjectionable and perfect. Another point is, that they could not keep the seventh-day Sabbath, until they were separated and undefiled by the woman, (see 4th verse,) hence the declaration that they were doing so after the message of the third angel had separated them from Babylon. John saw the dragon making war with this remnant, (xii: 17,) and the unclean spirits coming out of the mouth of the dragon (or devil,) have been, and are now, doing this work. The very object in sending forth this work, has been to expose these deceivers, who for the last five months more especially, have been bearing down upon this remnant in a paper war, with all the power they could wield. We do not, by any means, expect this is all of it, because we know that the devil will never yield, nor discharge the volunteer company which he is so judiciously marshalling out of the second advent ranks, until every device to destroy the remnant is resorted to, and they are seen emerging from the smoke and carnage of this unholy warfare, ascending to the gates of the holy city, under the waving banner of the commandments of God. – Rev. xx: 11-14.

The judgment hour cry, in 6th and 7th verses, was the only one that was designed to go to all the nations of the earth; and that of itself was sufficient to condemn a world of sinners and false professors that rejected it. Other tests were required, especially in this land, more than England and other lands, because the light of the church was, and still is, in these middle and northern states. Here also, is where this doctrine emanated from; hence the other messages to test and bring out the true. Then those who reject the messages are the false ones; but the unlettered slave and those who have been, as it were, enshrouded in moral darkness, and have been honestly following the Lamb whithersoever he goeth, as far as they knew, have not rejected this light as have the advent believers in this land; therefore they are not under the same condemnation.

“And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, write: Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth; yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works do follow them,” 15th verse.

I understand this verse as still referring to the same messengers and their adherents, who had been laboring almost incessantly to convince their friends of the reality of the messages, in an especial manner, during a cry at midnight, where they closed with the world. If it was not true of them then as a body, then there is no history since John had this vision, to show any thing like it; and it looks like making scripture, to attempt its application in the future, disconnected with the labor in the preceding verses. The inference is natural, and it is just like God's order every where, that these his honest believers, should rest from their labors with the world, to get their own minds cloudy and calmly fixed on the great event before them. Isaiah saw it; see xxvi: 20, 21, and xxv: 19. How can God's children be shut away in their chambers from the world, and then say at his coming we have waited for him, if they were not resting from their labors with the world, doing what he says, in his 40th chapter 1st verse. It is also in perfect harmony with the type.

Do stop here a little while, and turn to Lev. xxii: 27-32, and show, if you can, where the harmony, anti-type, or clear fulfillment of these verses are, if they are not found in Revelations xiv: 12th and 13th verses.

First– then, the type in Leviticus: Here the primitive established church annually, on the tenth day of the seventh month, had a twenty-four hour day of atonement, to cleanse them from their sins. During these twenty-four hours they were positively required by the statute or law to enter into a Sabbath of rest and day of affliction, or trial, and rest from all their labor, “from even to even,” under penalty of being forever cut off from his people. – 29th and 30th verses. There is one more peculiar trait in this type which demands our particular attention; that is, in every other Sabbath or holy convocation they were positively required to abstain from all servile work– but in the tenth day it is not specified; see also Num. xxix: 7. This shows the perfect order of God that when the church in the last days should enter upon the anti-type, as in Rev. xiv: 12, 13, that they would not be required to cease from servile work, (if necessary), because the atonement for them would require more than twenty-four hours, seeing that them were 144,000 from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people; whereas those represented by the type could all be assembled in a few hours. This is also in harmony with the fourth commandment for laboring the other six days for food and raiment, as long as we keep the Sabbath even to the gates of the city. – 22: 14.

Second– the anti-type – Rev. xiv: 12, 13. After passing through the messages above described they are now out of the Sardis, (or nominal,) into the Philadelphia state of the church, and commenced their day of atonement since Oct. 1844, they also enter into the same kind of rest by keeping for the first time the right Sabbath of the Lord our God in their patient waiting, or trying time; resting from their labors, in these messages, from the world: having now done with them; waiting for their great high priest to finish the cleansing of the sanctuary, which blots out their sins, and purifies them to enter into the holy city. The reason of the anti-type in the atonement, being longer than the type (twenty-four hours) is obvious, because God will give his people sufficient time to accept or refuse the light presented to them after their labors with the world, to perfectly fulfill the type, by voluntarily entering into this Sabbath and resting from their labors.

Will this be objected to because it reads “Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from henceforth;” and must mean such as die a natural death. Well, Paul says “prove all things,” &c. Suppose then we say this verse was to have its fulfillment from A.D. 96, when John wrote it, henceforth from that time. Then the strong and clear inference would be, that Stephen and James, and all the rest of the disciples who had died before, would not be blessed – because the blessing here given, is from the time when given, henceforward. If we move the beginning of this time to Luther's day, as some will have it, then we cut off John and all the saints up to that time; and if we move it to Oct. 1844, then we cut off every saint that has died in the Lord before.

But to get clear of all this, we are told that this 13th verse evidently represents the saints at the resurrection. (See Bible Advocate, Sept. 23, 1847.) He refers, (as I have,) to the advent message in 6th and 7th verses, but avoids the second and third angels' messages, (8-11 verses) or leaves them and the 12th verse also, to be fulfilled in connection with the 13th verse, at the resurrection. Then to make his view clear to our understanding, we must read it something like this: Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, from the time the advent message began, (say 1840,) until Babylon falls, and the statement is being made about what is recorded in the 12th verse “where is the patience of the saints,” &c. Well, say then, that one hundred saints, or more, have actually departed this life, since that time commenced, and they will be blessed at the resurrection. The question then arises – If this must actually be fulfilled for these few, where is the blessing for John, who had this vision, and all the saints who have actually died since 1840? Is God partial? Shall we find this distinction in the 7th chapter, 9, 10, 15 and 17th verses, where the great multitude of all the departed saints are represented before the throne of God with white robes, and palms in their hands? No. Shall we find it in the 20th chapter? where he says, “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection;” where not only the departed saints, but the 144,000 living ones, are brought to view? No – nothing of the kind. This Revelation was concerning “things present, (A.D. 96,) and things to come.” We see, then, if this 13th verse, as we are told, does represent the departed saints any where, or time, since A.D. 96, and will be fulfilled at the resurrection, it is yet incomprehensible. Is it not clear that it only has reference to all the righteous saints in these messages from Oct. 1844? How can it mean the literal dead? Is it not clear that the dead know not any thing; therefore the blessing would not effect them as this text teaches any more than to bless any other inanimate substance. The Blessing belongs always to the living. Just look at Jesus' sermon on the mount. – Matt. v: 3-11 – “Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake” &c. &c. This is now being fulfilled to the letter; see also Rev. i: 3; xvi: 15; xix: 9; xxii: 7; v: 12, 13; Luke xxiv: 50, 51, “Blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it.” —Jesus. “Blessed are they that do his commandments,” they shall be saved, – xxii: 14. Also, Isaiah lvi: 2, that keep the Sabbath; these two last are to the point, just what they are doing in our text, 12th and 13th verses of Rev. xiv. John is here certainly speaking of a class, or company, of living believers, and not the literal dead. Rest is opposite to labor. He shows that the seraphim and cherubim, (invisible angels,) rest not day, nor night, but are continually “saying Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.” – also v: 11, 12. The sleeping saints at the resurrection have no rest, they serve God day and night in his temple – vii: 15. Then the rest spoken of here in the 13th verse is of the living; resting from their labors with the world. Once more, “Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord.” Paul said the commandment so affected him that he died– Rom. vii: 9. He means that he died to sin. Again, he says, “I die daily,” – 1st Cor. xv: 31; “In deaths oft” – 2d Cor. xi: 23; “If ye be dead with Christ,” &c. – “For ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God” &c. – Col. ii: 20; iii: 3, 4; also, see Rom. vi: 8, 11, “Dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” In all these, and much more, he uses these terms for himself and others that were actually alive in the church. But the general term used for such as were literally dead, by Jesus and the apostles, are asleep; they sleep; “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.” He spake of his death; the people did not understand; he explained by saying “plainly he is dead.” – John xi: 11-14. Paul says, “they also which are fallen asleep in Christ” – 1st Cor. xv: 18; “Some are fallen asleep.” – 6th verse: “We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed.” – 51st verse: see also 1st Thes. iv: 15, “Them also which sleep in Jesus” &c.; “Since the Fathers fell asleep” – 2d Pet. iii: 4.

History.– We prove these, then, to be a part of the same class of the messengers and their adherents that came out of the churches. Thousands of living testimonies could be adduced to prove the multitudes who died in the camp meetings and conferences, about the time that the messengers were closing up their messages. Why, many were burdened with the cry, die to sin, and the world; and live unto God. And thousands passed through this death struggle. Yes, they were blessed by dying in the Lord. Those who deny and make light of this part of our experience, were but little acquainted with the work of God in the fall of 1844, and need to be instructed again. But those that died to sin, and the world then; cannot be in a saved state now, if returned to the world. To be safe, follow Paul's example, “die daily.”

Then, without destroying one single link of this harmonious chain of events, these saints will be in the right place to fulfill the next message in the 15th verse, “crying with a loud voice,” (different from the preceding ones,) this I understand will be a combination of labor among the resting ones, to be united in the incessant prayer, or crying to God day and night in the time of Jacob and Daniel's trouble (Jer. xxx: 7; Dan. xii: 1,) for deliverance, and for Christ to come on the white cloud, as represented in 14th verse, with his sharp sickle and reap the harvest for all things will appear to be ripe on the earth; see Sam. vii: 8; Jer. xxii: 4, 5; Mark xv: 34, 37; Luke xviii: 1, 7. Here, I believe, is where the 144,000 living saints of all nations, are sealed; especially will it be manifest among the tried ones then, that have passed through these messages. Then the four angel governments will cease to restrain war and bloodshed; God will speak as in Joel iii: 16, 17: the Sanctuary will be cleansed; the sins of God's people blotted out – in other words, the atonement finished and their trials ended; their captivity turned. Two such ones will then put ten thousand to flight. Jesus comes out of the most holy place, changes his garments, puts on his kingly robes and stands up to reign over the nations, as in Dan. xii: 1; mounts his cloudy chariot with his sharp sickle to reap the harvest of the earth. Here the 144,000 are in a state of deliverance, ready for the next and last message in the 17th and 18th verses. This message looks like one united and incessant prevailing prayer, (differing from all the others, because of the everlasting union that these messages have at length accomplished with these sealed saints,) ascending to God, while these messengers who have now, as it seems, become reapers similar to those in xix: 14, 15, “and are to gather the vine of the earth and cast it into the great wine press of the wrath of God,” (19. v.) “to execute upon them (the wicked) the judgment written; this honor have all the saints. Praise ye the Lord.” Now return to the 7th chapter, 9-15 verses – “After this,” (when? after the saints were numbered and sealed,) “I beheld, and lo, a great multitude which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands. And they cried saying amen, blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might be unto our God forever and ever, Amen.” The 144,000 will then stand on the Mount Zion.

“Fear not little flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

CHRIST NOT REPRESENTED AS AN ANGEL.

Christ is no where represented as an angel, in Rev. unless it can be proved that he is so, in the 8th ch. 3-5 vs. He tells us that the 7 stars in his right hand are the angels, or messengers; see i: 20. He is called “one like unto the son of man.” Read his description i: 13-18; xiv: 14; the same in Dan. vii: 13; x: 5, 6; xii: 6, 7. He is also called the Lamb 26 times; see v: 6, 8, 12, 13 vs.; vi: 1, 16; vii: 9, 10, 14, 17; xii: 11; xiii: 8, 11; xiv: 1-4; xv: 3; xvii: 14; xix: 7, 9; xxi: 9, 14, 22, 23, 27; xxii: 1, 3. This Lamb is the Lord of Lords, and king of kings; and they that are with him are called and chosen, and faithful; see xvii: 14; xix: 16. He is called the word of God, and “the armies” the “chosen and faithful” ones follow him; see xix: 13, 14. He is called the first and the last i: 8, 17; ii: 8; xxii: 13. And the one which was, and is, and is to come, i: 4, 8; iv: 8; xi: 17. He is the true and faithful witness i: 5; iii: 14. Also the root of David, the morning star, xxii: 16; ii: 28; also Mich. xii: 7. And faithful witness i: 5; iii: 14; xix: 11. Please examine this subject:

TYPE. Now turn to Lev. xxiii: 10, 11; when you reap the harvest (in the spring,) then ye shall bring a sheaf of the first fruits, and the Priest shall wave it before the Lord – on the morrow after the Sabbath, (as in 3d v.). And ye shall count from the day after the Sabbath, (the some 7th day Sabbath in 3d v.) the day after ye offer the wave sheaf, 7 Sabbaths shall be complete; that is, counting the next day after the 7 Sabbaths, which will make 50 days, 16, 17 vs.; then with the sacrifices they are to offer two wave leaves, the bread made from the harvested grain; see 17-20. Now turn to Exo. xxxiv: 21, 22: here we see God required the people to keep the 7th day Sabbath, i. e. to rest in caring time, and harvest, but they were to observe the first fruits in their place, Deut. xvi: 9, shows where; begin to count the 50 days from the time thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn. Now send the reapers forth the next morning after the Sabbath, what day is that? why, it is Sunday in the morning; so we see in the anti-type the morning of the resurrection instead of being a holy day (and as the world will have it the Sabbath) it was the day for the laborers to go out into the fields to reap the spring harvest. How could that be a holy day.

HYMN. – Tune —ZionBy H. S. GURNEYLo, an Angel loud proclaiming,With the gospel of good news;To every kindred, tongue and people;Fear the Lord, give glory due;Proclamation,Of the hour of judgment near.Lo, another Angel follows,With another solemn cry!Babylon the great is fallen,Peals like thunder through the sky:Let "Thy People,"Now forsake her pois'nous creeds.Yet, a third and solemn message,Now proclaims a final doom;All who “worship Beast or Image;”Soon shall drink the wrath of God:Without mixture,Mercy, now no longer pleads.Here are they, who now are waiting,And have patience to endure;While the Dragon's hosts are raging,Those confide in God secure:Faith of Jesus;And commandments, keep them pure.Hear a voice from heav'n proclaiming,“Write” the message, “firm decree”:Bless'd are they, who die in Jesus,“From henceforth” forever be:The Spirit sanctions,And the Saints adore His Law.

1

Campbell translates this in three, and Matt. xxviii: 63, within three days.

2

Small sea birds.

3

Allow me, once more, to recommend to your careful, candid and prayerful attention, the simple, unadorned, scriptural, published visions of Ellen G. Harmon, now White. If you do not see the simple outlines of our history past and at that time in the future, marking our pathway, then I fear you will not comprehend what I have written. Reject it not because of her childhood and diseased bodily infirmities, and lack of worldly knowledge. God's manner has ever been to use the weak things of this world to confound the learned and mighty. I often feel to praise my God for this simple means to strengthen and encourage the little flock, just at the time that their teachers and shepherds were deserting them. It looks like God's work.