Magnificant Disappointment (C. Mervyn Maxwell)

What really happened in 1844 … and its meaning for today.

E dited by Marvin Marvin Mo ore D esigned esigned b y Tim Larson Cover Illustration Illustration by Lars Justinen Justinen In side side art by b y Jam Jam es Con verse Typese Typesett in in 11/ 12 Adobe Adobe G aramond aramond Cop yright right © 1994 by P acifi acificc P ress Pu blishing blishing Association Association Printed in Un ited States of Am erica erica All Righ Righ ts Reserved Reser ved All Scripture references in this book are from the Revised Standard Version unless otherwise indicated. Library Library of Co ngress Cataloging Cataloging-i -in-P n-P ub licati lication on D ata: Maxwell, Maxwell, C. Mervy Merv yn , 1 925Magnificent disappointment: a restored view of what really happened in 1844 and what it teaches us about Jesus and the Adventist church t od ay / C. Mervyn Mervyn Maxwel Maxwelll. p. cm. In clud cludes es bibliograp bibliograp hical references. referen ces. ISBN ISBN 0-8163-1180-3 1. Milleri Millerite te m o vem ent. en t. 2. Miller, Miller, Willi William am,, 1782-1849. 1782-18 49. 3. Sevent h-d h- d ay Adventists-United States. 4. Adventists-United States. 5. SabbatariansUn ited States. States. 6. E nd o f the world-H world-H istory of do ctrines-19th ctrines-19th century. century. I. Title. BX6115.M38 1994 286,7-dc20

E dited by Marvin Marvin Mo ore D esigned esigned b y Tim Larson Cover Illustration Illustration by Lars Justinen Justinen In side side art by b y Jam Jam es Con verse Typese Typesett in in 11/ 12 Adobe Adobe G aramond aramond Cop yright right © 1994 by P acifi acificc P ress Pu blishing blishing Association Association Printed in Un ited States of Am erica erica All Righ Righ ts Reserved Reser ved All Scripture references in this book are from the Revised Standard Version unless otherwise indicated. Library Library of Co ngress Cataloging Cataloging-i -in-P n-P ub licati lication on D ata: Maxwell, Maxwell, C. Mervy Merv yn , 1 925Magnificent disappointment: a restored view of what really happened in 1844 and what it teaches us about Jesus and the Adventist church t od ay / C. Mervyn Mervyn Maxwel Maxwelll. p. cm. In clud cludes es bibliograp bibliograp hical references. referen ces. ISBN ISBN 0-8163-1180-3 1. Milleri Millerite te m o vem ent. en t. 2. Miller, Miller, Willi William am,, 1782-1849. 1782-18 49. 3. Sevent h-d h- d ay Adventists-United States. 4. Adventists-United States. 5. SabbatariansUn ited States. States. 6. E nd o f the world-H world-H istory of do ctrines-19th ctrines-19th century. century. I. Title. BX6115.M38 1994 286,7-dc20

CONTENTS I n trod tr odu u ction ct ion....... ............. ............ ............. ............. ............ ............. ............. ............ ............. ............. ............ ............. .......... ... 5

P art 1: 1: Arriv Arriving ing at the th e Date D ate Ch apt ap t er 1 - Best Be st Man M an Availab Av ailab le.......... le.............. ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ......11 ..11 Chap Ch apte terr 2 - H o w Miller Mad Ma d e H is Mistake Mist ake... ...... ...... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .........23 ..23 Chap Ch apte terr 3 - Ho H o w D o You Yo u Calculate Calcu late 1844 18 44?? ...... ......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .........35 ..35 Ch apt ap t er 4 - Why Wh y O cto ct o b er 22? 22 ? .... ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ .......47 ...47 Part Pa rt 2: 2: Discovering Discovering th e E vent Chap Ch apter ter 5 - What Wh at Actually Act ually H app ap p ened en ed in H eaven eave n ? .... ...... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... ...61 .61 Chapter Chapt er 6 - Investigati Investigative ve Jud udgmen gment: t: A Seventh Seventh -day Adve Ad venn t ist I n ven ve n t ion io n ?...... ?.......... ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ......71 ..71 Part Pa rt 3: 3: E xplori xploring ng the Meaning Mea ning Chap Ch apte terr 7 - 1844 184 4 an andd Be Bein ingg “Ad “A d ven ve n t ist“ ..... ........ ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .........89 ..89 Chap Ch apte terr 8 - 18 1844 44 and an d t h e Sabb Sab b ath at h ...... ......... ...... ...... .......... ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .........99 ..99 Chap Ch apte terr 9 - 18 1844 44 and an d Being Bein g Read Re ady... y...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... ..... 111 Chapter 10 - In vestigati vestigative ve Judgm Judgment ent:: G oo d N ews or Bad N ews?. ews?..... 12 1233 Chap Ch apte terr 11 - 18 1844 44 and an d Wo rsh rs h ip... ip ...... ...... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... ..... 137 Chap Ch apte terr 12 - 184 1 8444 an d Bein Be ingg Like Jesus Jesu s ..... ............ ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... ..... 151 Ch apt ap t er 13 - 18 1844 44 an d Lifes Lif estt yle.... yle ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ ........ 161 Chap Ch apte terr 14 - T h e Mean M eaning ing o f 184 1 8444 ...... ............. ...... .......... ...... .......... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... .......... ...... ..... 173

INTRODUCTION WHICH IS MEANT TO BE READ What difference does 1844 make today, a century and a half after the great disappointment? I have found that it makes much more difference than I supposed it could when I started teaching courses in Seventh-day Adven tist h istory twenty-five years ago. I first learned about the sorrow of the great disappointment from my mother when I was a little boy. But in recent years I have come to see that the dark cloud of 1844 had a silver lining so bright that we can speak of it as “the magnificent disappointment.” The silver lining, the magnificence of 1844, is – as I have foun d to m y person al satisfaction – a special message abo ut Jesus. All Christians believe in the Christ of history who died on the cross. Millions today believe in the Christ of the future who is coming in glory on the clouds. But only Seventh-day Adventists understand in addition the work of the contemporary Christ who has been ministering grace, sanctification, and judgment in the most holy place since 1844. Thus 1844 is, first of all, a special message abo ut Jesus. It is also … • Th e basic reason th e Seventh -day Adventist mo vement exists • Th e un ique reason that Seventh-day Adventists are “Ad ventists” • Th e mo tivating reason why we keep the seventh day • Th e principal reason b ehind o ur vast mission pro gram • Th e sp iritual reason for ou r classic lifestyle • Th e most imp elling sign th at Jesus is com ing soo n • Th e m ost fo rcible argument for Ch ristian education • A most p ersuasive reason fo r seeking to be “ like Jesus”

5

6 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T 1844 was a magnificent disappointment! 1844 derives its significance fro m being: • Th e end of th e 2,300 days of D aniel 8:14 • A major sign of th e end t ime • The beginning of the final judgment • Th e onset of heaven's D ay of Atonem ent • The cue for the first angel to announce, “The hour of his judgment is come.” Thus 1844 triggers also the second angel's message, and the th ird. The relationship of 1844 to the three angels' messages is particularly imp ortant for un derstanding “the 1844 difference.” Because of the magnitude of 1844 and its value for today, I have thought it best to provide some evidence for the validity of the date and of the event before going into its meaning for today. Chapters 1 to 4 talk  about the date itself, chapters 5 and 6 about the event, and chapters 7 to 14 abo ut the meaning. If you feel con fident abou t th e date, you may skip chapters 2 to 4 for n ow and com e back to them later. During my years of seminary teaching I have become increasingly impressed with the significance of 1844. It is my prayer that in this book I will be able to com municate this significance to you . Please, if you would, begin your reading with a prayer for God's Spirit and also by reviewing th e three angels' messages, printed o n the n ext page. C. Mervyn Maxwell Berrien Springs, Michigan

INTRODUCTION 7

Th e Th ree Angels' Messages Revelation 14:6-12, RSV First angel “ 6Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; 7and he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of  his judgment has come; and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the foun tains o f water.’ ” S econd angel . “ 8Another angel, a second, followed, saying, ‘Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink th e wine o f her imp ure passion .’ ” T hird angel . “ 9And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If any one worships the beast and its image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10he also shall drink the wine of God's wrath, poured unmixed into the cup of his anger, and he shall be tormented with fire and sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of  the Lamb. 11And the smoke of their torment goes up for ever and ever; and th ey have no rest, day or n ight, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.’ 12 H ere is a call for th e endu rance of th e saints, tho se who keep th e comm andmen ts of G od and the faith o f Jesus.”

Acknowledgments I would like to than k my broth er Lawrence for reading the m anuscript meticulously, my brother Graham for the picture of angels welcoming a family to New Jerusalem, and my colleague P. Gerard Damsteegt for many insights into early Adventist publications. I also want to thank my students of many years for their stimulation – and particularly the irate student near the back of the room when I began teaching at the Seventhday Adventist Theological Seminary for his incredulous question, “Whatever does 1844 have to do with Ad ventist h istory?”

PART 1 ARRIVING AT THE DATE

CHAPTER 1

BEST MAN AVAILABLE You wo uld have liked him. I mean, if you had met William Miller and gotten to know him, you would have found h im attractive and d epen dable. Miller's neighbors liked him and trusted him. In their little towns and farming centers, year after year they elected him their local magistrate and  justice of the peace. A thousan d of the documen ts that he sign ed have been discovered in a barrel in t he attic of his old h om e. Soldiers liked him and trusted him. As the War of 1812 drew near, forty-seven men, whose names have been preserved, volunteered for military service on the basis that he would serve as their captain. (He did serve as a captain and fought in the pivotal Battle of Plattsburgh in 1814.) Some time after the war, two soldiers who had served under him but had since moved up near the Canadian border and become estranged from each other walked all the way to Miller's farm to ask him to help them settle th eir d ifferences. Th e two men came to his place by separate ro utes, but they traveled h om e to gether, goo d friends again.1 Local politicians liked and trusted William Miller. In an era of  staunchly partisan politics, people in both major parties counted him their friend . When a local com mittee o f o ne of the po litical parties asked 11

12 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Miller's permission to hold its July 4 picnic on his property, he persuaded the com mittee to invite the other p arty to join th e fun.2 Teenager Ellen Harmon liked him. All her later years she remembered how good she felt in 1842 when she saw “Father” Miller, at a crowded meeting in Portland, Maine, interrupt his sermon and step down into the crowd ed co ngregation t o lead elderly latecom ers to available seats near th e front. “He was indeed rightly called Father Miller,” she recalled, “for he … was affectionate in his manner, of a genial disposition and tender heart.”3 We're glad to know that Miller's family members also liked and trusted him. In 1843, when the second coming was expected very soon, Miller could refer to his “wife and eight children” and rejoice that “I have great reason to believe they are all the children of God, and believers in the same doct rine with myself.”4 We admit, of course, that during the surging days of the Millerite excitemen t, from 1840 to 1844, the editors of various n ewspapers showed that th ey neither liked no r trusted h im. But th ese editors d idn 't kno w him personally. The editor of the S andy H ill H erald  who, by exception, did know him personally (but who didn't necessarily agree with his characteristic theology) pointed out in his defense that “Mr. Miller is now, and has been for many years, a resident of this county [Washington County, New York], and as a citizen, a man, and a Christian, stands high in the estimation of all who k now him .” 5 The title of this first chapter is “Best Man Available.” And th at is what William Miller was – t he best m an available at the time to alert America to the judgment-hour significance of 1844. We're glad to be reminded that he was honest and nice, but to be the “best man available” on the subject of 1844 and the judgment, we hope that h e had even m ore to him th an b eing likable and tru stworthy, rare and precious as such a com bination of characteristics maybe. Miller did h ave more to him th an th at. Much m ore. We have suggested that he was a good military officer and a good civil servant. He was also a good farmer and a good businessman. When most young Farmers in the area were still dependent on oxen, he was quickly able to bu y ho rses. When his father d ied, he was able to d o wh at his father never did – pay off the mortgage on the family farm, freeing his widowed mo ther from d ebt. In addition , he bought about two hun dred acres nearby and built his own house and barns. (The house and barns still stand BEST MAN AVAILABLE.

BEST MAN AVAILABLE 13 and can be visited any day from Jun e to Septem ber.) So we're glad to learn that Miller was judicious, diligent, and frugal. But could he reason and d o research? H ere is ano ther paragraph fro m th at S andy H ill editorial: All who have ever heard him lecture, or have read his works, must acknowledge that he [William Miller] is a sound reasoner, and, as such, is entitled to fair arguments from those who differ with him. … Who that has witnessed his earnestness in the pulpit, and listened to the uncultivated eloquence of nature, which falls in such rich pro fusion from his lips, dare say he is an imp osto r? We answer, witho ut fear of con tradiction from an y candid mind, N on e! Then the editorial made a statement that for our purposes is its most important: “Mr. Miller certainly goes to the foundation of knowledge – revelation and h istory – for p roo f .”6 Evidence fully supports this statement in the editorial. Miller did go to “revelation” (that is, to the Bible) and to “history” for his arguments, and he d id so because he was studious by nature an d was an earnest Ch ristian by conversion. H e became a con verted Ch ristian in 1816. Two years after the Battle of  Plattsburgh he caught himself taking God's name in vain and was mortified. In the army he had been grieved to hear the other soldiers blaspheme and had made a point of not copying them. Suddenly, in 1816, after the war was over, he realized that he too was a common sinner. For years his mo ther h ad urged h im to study the Bible and accept Jesus, bu t he had felt no need t o. N ow, lon ging for salvation , he peeked at last into the Bible to see whether perhaps it could help him. Immediately he discovered that “the Bible did indeed present just such a Saviour as I need ed,” and , h e wrote later, “the Scriptu res … became m y delight, and in Jesus I fou nd a friend.” 7 Please pause a moment. When we talk about 1844 today, we of ten think first o f William Miller. But wh en Miller th ou ght abo ut 1844, he first thought about Jesus. For when, in 1818, two years after his conversion, Miller discovered the 2,300 days, he became convinced of their importance because they seemed to say something special about his new friend Jesus! Miller became and remained an earnest Christian – a studious Christian. H e was by nature studious.

14 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T As a boy, with no formal schooling available in Low Hampton, New York, during most of the year, he borrowed books – serious ones, many of th em d ealing with history – from any neighbo r affluent en ough to own some and generous enough to lend them. He read them at night by the op en fire, Linco ln style, after his father, who was no t p articularly stud iou s, was sou nd asleep. When he m arried, he lived across th e state line in h is wife's hom etown Poultney, Vermont. He liked Poultney because it boasted a public library with books for him to study. And the library offered a modest upstairs hall where the local intellectuals, known as deists, 8 gathered to debate. Miller was of ten among them. (The old building still stands and is being restored.) Miller heartily joined in the debates, discussing contemporary issues and po king fun at th e Scriptures. When Miller became a Christian, his debating deist friends were scandalized. They eagerly reminded him that the Bible was full of  contradictions and insoluble puzzles. Miller, who had formerly agreed with them, now determined to start at Genesis 1 and let the Bible explain itself, if it could. He reasoned that if the Bible really were a message to hum anity from G od, G od must h ave made it simp le enough for people to understand. But if the Bible could not be understood, he would know it was not from God; and in that case, he promised his friends, he “would be a deist still.”9 Whenever he found a verse that he didn't understand, he used the margin to direct him to other verses that dealt with the same subject. He used Cruden's Concordance to find verses that used the same words as in the difficult verse. After following this procedure for about two years, he came) in 1818, to Daniel 8:14, “Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” (KJV). Like many people of his day, he wrongly assumed that the sanctuary was a symbol for the earth, but he rightly determined that the days were symbols for years. Because of  the m any links between D aniel 8 and 9, he co ncluded th at the 2,300 years of Daniel 8:14 began with the same event in 457 B.C. that initiated the seventy weeks of D aniel 9:24-27. With reasoning we'll understand better in our following chapters, Miller cautiously arrived at the astonishing conclusion that “around the year 1843” (later corrected to 1844), Jesus would come on the clouds to purify the earth with flaming fire and introduce the millennium – that is, “that in about 25 years … all the affairs of our present state would be wound up .”10

BEST MAN AVAILABLE 15 Was Jesus really coming that soon? If so, everybody ought to know! A disturbing conviction caught fire in Miller's mind: “Go, and tell it to the world!”11 It is important to our understanding of 1844 that Miller resisted this conviction for thirteen years, from 1818 to 1831. Miller was no end-of-the-world fanatic. He was in no sense a selfpromoting sensationalist. He did not want to tell the world about the 2,300 d ays. After five years of total resistance, he began to talk about Christ's near return to individuals here and there. But not until 1831, after thirteen years of refusal, did h e finally agree to step ou t b y faith and preach. H e stepp ed out reluctantly, even angrily, arguing with God to send someone else instead. The moving story needs no retelling here, for it has been told and retold many times in books. I have retold it myself in T ell it to the W orld  – how in 1831 he desperately promised the Lord he would preach  provided  someone sent him an invitation to do so, fully knowing that at age fortynine he had never received such an invitation; and how, within less than an h ou r, his nep hew arrived o n h orseback with just such an invitation ; and how Miller strode angrily into the maple grove that still stands beside his house and wrestled furiously with God before finally making his surrender.12 The point is that it was God, not William Miller, who wanted Miller to preach. Miller himself is not accountable for the great disappointment. If  G od had left him alone, he would n ever have preached th e 2,300 days. But God knew that Miller was wrong. So why did He want Miller to preach? He evidently wanted Miller to preach, because in 1844 Jesus was planning to commence a work of salvation so absolutely vital and so magnificent that the world must be alerted to it. And Miller was the best man available to d o th e job . But why didn't God show Miller his mistake and thereby prevent the great disapp ointm ent? Miller certainly wanted to be right. One response to this important question is that when Millcr's mistake was corrected, it was corrected out of the Bible. This means that the answer was in the Bible all the time. God provided it thousands of years before Miller was born. But Miller didn't see it there. So why didn't God shine a light on the verses so Miller could see them? We don't know MILLER'S RELUCTANCE.

16 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T exactly why God chose not to do this, but we do remember that Jesus once said to His disciples, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you canno t bear them no w” (Joh n 16:12). Wh en a car speeds to ward us at night with its bright lights on , we of ten cannot see where we're going. T oo much light blinds a person! Perhaps G od knew that either Miller or his followers would be confused rather than guided by getting to o mu ch light all at on ce. The cross was a magnificent act by God to save the human race from sin, but at the time it seemed to His disciples like a crushing defeat. Only after the cross did the Old Testament prophecies about Christ's death make sense. We recall the walk to E mmaus in Luke 24:13-35. Similarly, the judgment that began in heaven in 1844 was one of the most magnificent events in the history of the universe. But it hardly seemed magnificent to the Adventist believers who passed through that time.? Only after the disappointment  did the Bible texts William Miller and his followers had read of ten without comprehension suddenly make sense. O nly after the event did th ey realize th at the disappo intm ent was in fact a magnificent disappo intm ent. But even though Miller was wrong in his understanding of the precise event to take place in 1844, he was nonetheless the most nearly right Bible student o n th e entire planet. G od called him b ecause he was the best m an available. That Miller was an unusually fine Bible student we'll document briefly in our next chapter. But we don't want to leave the present chapter without agreeing that on his characteristic points of doctrine he was, in fact, more nearly correct than any of the seminary professors and big-city pastors of his time. Some scholars and pastors in Miller's day had nothing at all to say about the second coming. Surely Miller was more right than they were! And was he not right when he described the second coming as literal, personal, near, and  premillenn ial (coming literally at the beginning of the thou sand years)? Was he no t right to urge peop le to get ready for it? Was he not also right when he said that in symbolic prophecy a day stands for a year, that the 2,300 days of Daniel 8:14 are 2,300 years, that they began in 457 B.C. and would therefore end “around 1843” (later corrected to 1844)? Was he not right in saying that the 2,300 days were to end at judgment h our, and th at thus th e time h ad com e for the first angel's message – “T he h our of h is judgment is come”? MILLER MORE RIGHT THAN OTHERS.

BEST MAN AVAILABLE 17

Major characteristic points on which Miller was right and man y scho lars of his day were wron g: 1. Jesus is coming again, at th e beginning of th e millenn ium . 2. Th e secon d com ing will be literal and person al. 3. Th e second com ing is near. 4. By faith we sho uld all be prep aring for it. 5. In symbo lic prop hecy, a day represent s a year. 6. Th e “2,300 evening-morning” represen ts 2,300 symb olic days. 7. Th e 2,300 days represent 2,300 years. 8. Th ey began in 457 B.C. and end ed in 1844. 9. 1844marked the judgmen t ho ur; therefore, 10. It was time for th e first angel's message, “T he ho ur of his  jud gm en t has co me.” By holding all these views rather than just certain ones of  them, Miller was the most nearly right man of his day. When his other qualifications are also taken into account, he can be recognized as the Best Man Available for initiating God's message for th e last days. In contrast to Miller's presentation of the second coming as literal, personal, premillennial, near, and requiring heartfelt preparation, most of Miller's more learned contemporaries were postmillennialists, teaching that the literal return of  Christ wo uld no t o ccur till the end of th e m illenn ium , a tho usand years in the future. In the meantime, they said, the millennium was beginning with a spiritual coming of Christ that was in its own power converting the world. They pointed to the many Bible societies, missionary societies, and Sunday schools that had sprung up in recent decades and to the reform movements that were doing so much for prisons, insane asylums, slaves, women , and world p eace. Such developments, they said, proved that a spiritual coming of Christ was happening right then, ushering in the world's conversion, the kingdom of G od on earth, and a tho usand years of world p eace. In 1835, not long after Miller began preaching about the literal second coming, the widely respected minister Edward Beecher observed enthusiastically in his sermons that the churches of America were “aroused ERRORS OF MILLER’S CONTEMPORARIES.

18 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T as never before” to the belief that “a glorious advent of the kingdom of  G od” was near at h and. N o lon ger did the con version of the wo rld seem the “ distant vision of inspired p rop hets.”13 In 1839, the very year that Miller got his first invitation to preach in a major city (Boston), Samuel S. Schmucker appealed for Protestant denominations to unite in training twenty-five thousand missionaries on the basis that “the Son of God appears to be coming in his glory, conquering and to conquer [that is, converting] the kingdoms of the earth.”14 Th is erroneo us mo od of un biblical op timism even attached itself to th e American Civil War, a short while after Miller's death! Near the end of  1861, when the war was just well under way, Julia Ward Howe was one of  many people who saw in the Northern armies, with their potential for saving the Union and releasing the slaves, one of God's means for bringing in a spiritual coming of Christ that would convert the world and introduce the millennium. After watching an impressive military parade one day, with its row upon row of brave, well-trained soldiers, Mrs. Howe wrote words that were to become classic: “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the L ord , ” she said, and, a stanza later, “I have seen  H im in the watchfires of a hu nd red circling camp s.” In 1861 Mrs. Howe thought  she saw the spiritual coming of Christ at a military parade. But the terrible Civil War, lasting until 1865 and producing hundreds of thousands of casualties, shocked many Americans out of th eir con fidence t hat th e m illenn ium was underway. William Miller knew in 1818 that “evil men would wax worse and worse,” not better and better. He knew it, because the Bible says so in 2 Timothy 3:13. He began preaching in 1831 that the literal second coming was the o nly ho pe for th e reconstruction of ou r planet. Th us, on the salient subject o f th e second com ing, Miller was far m ore right th an m ost o f his learned con temp oraries. But what abo ut 1844? Was he really right abo ut the 2,300 days? As it appears in the Hebrew language in which it was written, Daniel 8:14 does not actually use a term precisely equivalent to “2,300 days.” Instead, it uses an unusual idiom, “2,300 evening-morning.” Some of Miller's critics then and today say that if   M iller had k nown H ebrew, he would never have supposed that “2,300 evening-morning” could mean 2,300 days. And if M iller had k nown  H ebrew, they said then and still say now, he most certainly would not have MILLER RIGHT ON THE 2,300 DAYS.

BEST MAN AVAILABLE 19 supp osed that the term cou ld mean 2,300  years. If he had known H ebrew. But the trut h is just the o pp osite. We'll have mo re to say abou t th is subject in later chap ters, but for n ow, let m e say that th e seventy or m ore Jewish rabb is who , before th e time o f  Christ, translated the Hebrew Old Testament into the Greek version known as the “Septuagint” (or “LXX”) unquestionably knew Hebrew. They spoke Hebrew and were scholars in it. Yet when they came to Daniel 8:14, they translated (into Greek, of course), “evenings and mornings, two thousand three hundred days.” They knew that in Genesis God called each day of Creation week an “ evening and a mo rning.” In the second century after Christ, an outstanding rabbi named Theodotian made another translation from Hebrew into Greek. He too used th e ph rase, “evenings and m orn ings, twenty-th ree hu nd red d ays.” But did anyone who knew Hebrew perceive Daniel 8:14 to refer symbolically to 2,300  years? Yes, ind eed! Already in th e ninth cen tury A.D ., one thousand years before Miller came to the same conclusion, an influential rabbi, Nahawendi by name, taught convincingly that the “2,300 evening-morning” symbolized 2,300  years. And he wasn't the only such rabbi. Nahawendi lived in Persia (modern Iran), but other rabbis who taught the same interpretation over the next few centuries were located in P alestine, Spain, P ortugal, Italy, Fran ce, and Algiers!15 During Miller's own time, one of his most vigorous opponents was the Rev. George Bush. As another postmillennialist who held that Jesus would not come visibly until the far end of the millennium, Bush, like Beecher, Schmucker, Howe, and many others, saw a spiritual coming occurring in his own day. Even so, he agreed with Miller that the “2,300 evening-morning” symbolized 2,300 years. He even agreed that the ending of the 2,300 years was imminent. 16 Professor Bush generously added that in interpreting the 2,300 evening-morning as 2,300 years, Miller had the support of Sir Isaac Newton, the famous scientist, and also of such significant commentators as Bishop Thomas Newton, Joseph Mede, Alexander Keith, “and a host of others, who have long since come to substantially” (his emp hasis) th e same conclusion s as Miller had . Professor George Bush was a faculty member at New York University. H is specialty was Hebrew! So the truth is that scholars who have known Hebrew have been among those people who, with Miller, have recognized that Daniel 8:14 talks abo ut 2,300 days and even 2,300 years.17

20 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Miller was a friendly neighbor, a respected public servant, a successful farmer and businessman, a natural leader, a brave soldier, and, after his conversion, a warm lover of Jesus. He was right about the 2,300 days and right about the personal, literal, and  premillennial second coming of Jesus. We have reason to view him as an exceptionally fine student for his day. H e was G od 's best man available. B ut he m ade a mistak e. In our next chapter we'll try to understand how Miller made his characteristic error. It was the kind of mistake that only a serious Bible student wo uld have mad e.

1. Sylvester Bliss,  M emoirs of W illiam M iller  (Boston, 1853), 61, 62. 2. Ib id.,64. 3. Ellen G . White, T estimonies for the Church, 1:22. 4. William Miller, 4 February, 1843, to S igns of the T imes, in Bliss,  M emoirs of W illiam M iller , 180, 181. 5. S andy H ill H erald  in S igns of the T imes, 1 March 1843; in Bliss,  M emoirs of W illiam M iller , 181, 182; and in Francis D. Nichol, The Midnight Cry (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1944), 132, 133, emphasis supplied. 6. To make clear that “revelation and history” are what the editor meant by “the fo untain of kn owledge,” I h ave substituted d ashes for comm as. 7. William Miller,  A pology and D efence (Boston , 1845), 5. 8. D eists believed in a creator G od who organized th e un iverse und er such perfect laws of cause and effect that He could safely leave It to run on its own. They rejected prayer for miracles, arguing that it would be asking God to violate His own perfect laws. They saw Jesus as a very good man, but the virgin birth and the resurrection, being miracles, they denied. Thomas Jefferson and other foun ding fathers of t he U nited States were deeply influenced b y deism. 9. Miller,  A pology and D efence, 5, 6. 10. Ib id., 12. 11. Ib id., 15-17. 12. See, for example, Paul Gordon,  H erald of the M idn ight C ry (Boise: Pacific Press Publishing Assn., 1990); Nichol, T he M idnight C ry; and R. W. Schwarz,  L ight B earers to the R emn ant  (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Publishing Assn., 1979). 13. See Timothy L. Smith,  R evivalism and S ocial R eform in M id-N ineteent h-C entury  A merica (N ew York: Abingdon Press, 1957), 225. 14. Samuel Simon Schmucker, F raternal A ppeal to the A merican C hurches, with a Plan for C atholic U nion, on A postolic Principles (2d. ed., New York, 1839), 139, 140; in Timo thy L. Smith,  R evivalism and S ocial R eform , 226.

BEST MAN AVAILABLE 21 15. Le Roy Edwin Froom, T he Prophetic F aith of O ur F athers, 4 vols. (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1946-1954), 1:713; 2:194-240. 16. See Nichol, T he M idnight C ry, 439,440. 17. Not every biblical scholar who has known Hebrew has concluded that the “2,300 evening-morning” represents 2,300 days. The argument here is simply that a rich knowledge of Hebrew does not keep a person from reaching the conclusion that Miller reached. Of ten such knowledge has helped scholars reach this conclusion.

CHAPTER 2

HOW MILLER MADE HIS MISTAKE If Miller was God's “best man available”, how could he have been so con spicuously wron g? The question is important. If we are expected to have sufficient confidence in 1844 to base our lifestyles on it, we need to know where Miller went wron g so we can evaluate his mistake Fo r ourselves. I find encouragement, personally, in knowing that the mistake Miller made was the kind of mistake that only an expert Bible student would have made. Most people don't know enough about subatomic physics to make an intelligent mistake when discussing quarks. Similarly, hardly anyone, it seems, knows enough to make the mistake Miller did when discussing the climax es to the four parallel prophecies in D aniel . It bears repeating that Miller really was an excellent Bible student. His characteristic package of teachings on the literalness and nearness of the second coming – the arrival of the judgment hour, the timeliness of the first angel's message (“the hour of his judgment has come”), and the yearday interpretation of the “2,300 evening-morning” of Daniel 8:l4 – was far better th an anyon e else's in t he wo rld. From time to time over the years, Seventh-day Adventists have 23

24 MAG MAG N IFICEN IFICEN T D ISAPP ISAPPO O INTMEN T reop ened th e question question abou t Mill Miller's correctness. Fo r instance, instance, not so very long ago, the fine Old Testament scholar Dr. Lynn Wood and the worldclass archaeologist Dr. Siegfried Horn reevaluated the evidence that 457 B.C. is is th e “seventh “ seventh year of o f Artaxerxes,” Artaxerxes,” K ing of P ersia ersia (see (see E zra 7:7), 7:7), th e 1 date Miller took for beginning the 2,300 years. Wood and Horn probed several several kind kind s of arcane arcane data, some written written on Persian Persian clay clay tablets, som e o n E gy gypt pt ian p apyri, apyri, and so on , and co ncluded that, yes, yes, 457 B.C. B.C. was ind ind eed the seventh year of King Artaxerves. William Miller was wa s right on that crucial po int , the starting date fo r th e 2,300 days. In 1980, the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists appointed a D aniel aniel and and Revelati Revelation on com mittee to restudy D aniel aniel verse verse by verse. verse. Th e committee commissioned scholars to write professional papers, then had the scholars read the papers to one another and listen to each other's questions and criticisms. Out of this grueling process have come seven volumes. The first of the seven volumes, Selected Studies on Prophetic Interpretation , is composed of papers or chapters by the Old Testament scholar and chronologist William H. Shea. One of the chapters takes up the paramount concept of a year for a day in time prophecies. This chapter pro vides vides n ot on e or two lines o f biblical biblical eviden eviden ce in in favor of the year-day principle, but more than twenty lines of evidence supporting it! William Miller's characteristic presentation that the 2,300 days symb symb olize olize 2,300 years years and b egan egan in 457 B.C. and and end ed in 1844 bears the weight weight o f very pen etrating mo dern analysi analysis. s. Nonetheless, you should know that modern Seventh-day Adventist scholars do not accept every one of Miller's positions. In fact, Adventist pioneers rejected some of his positions long ago. Miller had a sermon 2 about the “seven times” punishment (Leviticus 26:18-28), in which he assumed assumed that t he seven times were seven seven “ pro ph etic etic years years”” o r 2,520 2,520 actual years (7x360). But most commentators and translators, including most Seventh-day Adventist scholars, see the “seven times” as having a very different meaning, as when a teacher might say, “Write out this assignmen t seven times.” times.” We should note, however, that Miller's sermon about the “seven times” times” d iscusses scusses the seven seven times only near the end . Most of the sermo n is a very practical, very sensible, and very spiritual appeal for repentance. Miller's primary goal was to win souls for God's kingdom. In 1834 he shared with a friend his joy in “having God for paymaster,” because God “p ays ays in so uls.” uls.”3

H O W MILLER MILLER MAD MAD E H IS MISTAKE MISTAKE 25 Miller was constantly concerned about the implications of 1844 for peo ple's lives. lives. One of Miller's minor errors had to do with the bridegroom, the midnight cry, and the marriage, in the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25. (We'll have more to say about the parable of the virgins in chapter 6.) Correction of this particular group of mistakes led within hours after the great disappointment to a truer understanding of what Jesus Jesus really really did do in 1844. Miller was wrong when he assumed that the “sanctuary” to be “cleansed” at the end of the 2,300 years (Daniel 8:14) was the earth rather than the sanctuary in heaven. But in his defense we can say that no one, no t even his mo st learned learned op po nen ts, chall challenged him on this error. error. Miller certainly knew that there is a sanctuary in heaven. The books of  Hebrews and Revelation make this plain. But, like almost all other Christians, Christians, he co uld no t co nceive nceive th at th e h eavenly eavenly sanctuary would ever 4 be d efil efiled o r in n eed o f eleansi eleansing. ng. In a sixteen-p sixteen-p age pamp hlet, Mil Miller cited seven things or persons called “sanctuary” or “temple” in the Bible. The second on his list was “heaven,” but he dismissed any possibility that it might might apply to D aniel aniel 8:14 8:14 with with the simple statemen statemen t, “N ot … heaven, for that is no t un clean.” clean.” But d idn 't Mill Miller's Bible Bible con tain H ebrews ebr ews 9:22, 9:22, 23? Almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedd ing o f bloo d is no remissi remission [of sin]. sin]. It was therefo re necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these (KJV). If, on first reading, you missed the significance of this passage, let me repeat it, this time with some words in italics and some explanations in brackets. Almost all things [in the earthly sanctuary system] are by the law [the ceremonial law] purged with blood [with animal sacrifices]; and without shedding of blood is no remission [of sin]. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens [the earthly sanctuary as a pattern of the heavenly sanctuary] should be  purified   pu rified  with these [that is, with animal sacrifices]; but the heavenly things themselves [the heavenly sanctuary itself] with better sacrifices th an t hese [with [with th e sacrifi sacrifice ce of o f Jesus]. Jesus].

26 MAG MAG N IFICEN IFICEN T D ISAPP ISAPPO O INTMEN T With explanation explanation s in in brackets and som e word s in in itali italics, the meaning of  the passage becomes clear. Whereas the earthly sanctuary was purified by animal sacrifices, the heavenly sanctuary requires purification with “better sacrifices,” that is, with the sacrifice of Jesus. There it is! Hebrews 9:22, 23 says that the heavenly sanctuary did need  es, H ebrews eb rews 9:22, 23 was in in Miller's Miller's Bib Bib le. to be purified . And , yyes, So how did he miss it? Perhaps because it speaks of “things in the heavens” rather than expressly saying, “heavenly sanctuary.” And it uses  purified   pu rified  instead of  cleansed . When Miller was originally studying the words in Daniel 8:14 and was using his concordance to look up the use of  sanctuary an d cleansed  in other parts of the Bible, his concordance did not lead him to this passage in Hebrews. For this passage, unlike Daniel 8:14, uses things in the heavens an d  purifi  pu rified  ed  instead o f sanctuary an d cleansed. Failing at an early point in his study to see the significance of Hebrews 9:22, 23, Miller went on believing what everyone else believed, namely, that the heavenly sanctuary could never be defiled or need cleansing. He didn't even see the connection when he read Hebrews later in his life, for his mind had b een made up. But it was a mistake that everyone else made. Rather than “making” this mistake, Miller failed to recognize it and “unmake” it. Let's not forget that no one else knew the Bible well enough to correct him. Miller was a superb Bible student. The rules of interpretation that he set for himself  comm and o ur respect respect..5 Miller's first rule for interpreting the Bible was that “every word must have its proper bearing on the subject presented in the Bible.” Miller was determined not to be satisfied with a superficial reading of a passage or with casually guessing at its meaning. “E very word” was to be accorded “its prop er bearing.” bearing.” His fourth rule expanded his first one, taking in the whole Bible. “To understand doctrine, bring all the Scriptures together on the subject you wish wish to kno w; then let every word have its prop er influence. influence.”” His fifth rule put the Bible above all human commentaries. “Scripture must be its own expositor, since it is a rule of itself.” Here is the great Protestant principle: “The Bible and the Bible only.” Miller's tenth rule recognized that God gives us common sense and expects us to use it even when studying the Bible. If a conclusion we come to is both out of harmony with the rest of the Bible and silly, then it is obviously wrong. “The right construction will harmonize with the Bible, MILLER'S RULES OF INTERPRETATION.

H O W MILLER MAD E H IS MISTAKE 27 and m ake goo d sense; oth er con struction s will no t.” His thirteenth rule shows how very cautiously he went about looking for the fulfillment of prophecy in history. It is a rule that should be ho no red by every studen t of p rop hecy tod ay. When com paring a historical event with a Bible prophecy that you think was fulfilled by a particular historical event, he said t hat “ if you find every word of t he p rop hecy … is literally fulfilled, then you may know that your history is the true event; but if one word lacks a fulfillment, then you must look for another event, or wait its future development; for God takes care that history and pro ph ecy shall agree, so th at th e true b elieving ch ildren of G od may never be ashamed.” Miller's. fourteenth and final rule was spiritual, involving a willingness, by faith, to make any sacrifice that Bible study might lead to. “The most important rule of all is, that you must have  faith . It must be a faith that … if tried, would give up the dearest object on earth, the world and all its desires, – character [reputation], living [livelihood], occupation, friend s, ho me, com forts and wo rldly ho no rs. If any of th ese sho uld hinder our believing any part of G od 's word, it wou ld sh ow o ur faith to be vain.” Miller's integrity and sincerity were revealed in h is adh erence to his own good rules. He laid aside all commentaries, letting the Bible stand on its own. He used margin and concordance to let the entire Bible speak to each problem text. He used history books to help him compare history with p rop hecy, and – after resisting G od fo r thirteen years – he gave himself unstintingly, at great physical and monetary sacrifice, to the pro clamation of th e m essage his Bible study had led h im to. It is well that he did go out and preach, for he was God's best man available, and he had a vital, life-changing message that the world needed to hear. That is why, for thirteen years, God begged and begged him to preach. But Miller was wron g on his most co nspicuous p oint. H e said t hat 1844 was crucially imp ortant . H ere he was right. H e dated th e judgmen t and the first angel's message to that year and said that thinking abo ut them shou ld ind uce repen tance and change lives. H ere again he was right. H e said th at Jesus was soon to ret urn to earth literally and person ally. Here, too , he was right. But then h e said that 1844 was imp ortant b ecause Jesus would com e to earth literally and personally in that year , and here he was tragically wrong. How could a man who was so nearly right, who was such a superb

28 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Bible student, be so con spicuously wron g? Partly, perhaps, because God mercifully kept him from being blinded by too much light. (Remember from our first chapter that Jesus withheld info rm ation fro m H is disciples because they cou ld not bear it yet. See Joh n 16:12.) Miller was wrong also b ecause he knew his Bible so well that he m ade a mistake that on ly an expert wou ld th ink o f. Miller didn 't m ake his most conspicuous error by reading Daniel 8:14 alone: “Unto two thousand three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Seventh-day Adventists who cannot find the second coming in Daniel 8:14 are no t b lind , and n eith er was he! As we just saw, Miller's fourth rule for Bible interpretation stipulated, “To understand doctrine, bring all the Scriptures together on the subject you wish to kno w; then let every word have its prop er influence.” Serious Bible students have recognized for centuries that Daniel has four  parallel prophecies. As every Seventh-day Adventist knows, Daniel 2 uses a metal and clay image to forecast a sequence of empires – Babylon, Media-Persia, Greece, and Rom e – followed by a breakup of the fourth empire into the nation s of Europe. In parallel fashion, Daniel 7 uses wild animals and horns to predict the same sequence o f emp ires followed by a division into the “ten kingdoms.” Once more in  parallel fashion, Daniel 8 traces the future history of Media-Persia, Greece, and Rome; and Daniel 10-12 does so a fourth time, in considerable detail. The chart on page 29 illustrates this point visually. Miller was by no means the first to notice that Daniel presents these four parallel prophecies, but in doing so, he noticed something else that many Bible students have not noticed or have ignored, and that is that each empire sequence is  followed  by a Ch rist-cent ered climax . The climax to the vision in Daniel 2 is a stone that destroys the image and grows into a great mountain, which is given to God's people (verses 44,45). The climax to the vision of the wild animals in Daniel 7 is the judgment that sits and annihilates earthly kingdoms and assigns the earth to God's saints (verses 9-14). The climax to D aniel 8 is the cleansing of the sanctuary (verse 14).6 The climax to Daniel 10-12 is Prince Michael standing up to deliver G od 's peop le from the time of tro uble and to resurrect H is sleeping saints. HOW MILLER MADE HIS MOST CONSPICUOUS ERROR.

H O W MILLER MAD E H IS MISTAKE 29  D aniel 2

D aniel 7

D aniel 8 ,9

D aniel 1 0 -12

BABYLO N

G old

Lion

PE RSIA

Silver

Bear

Ram

A K ing

G REE CE

Brass

Leopard

G oat

Mighty K ing

RO ME

Iron

Monster

H orn

Robbers

E URO PE

Iron & Clay

H orns

H orn

Contemptible Person

CLIMAX

Stone hits

Judgment sits

Sanctuary cleansed

Michael stands

JE SUS as

The Stone

Judge

H igh Priest

Prince

MILLER'S VIEW

The end

The end

The end

The end

CORRECTION 

E nd of the end   B eginning of  time end tim e

 B eginning of  end time

E nd of the end  time

Notice these climaxes on the chart in bold-faced type just below the center. Each of these four climaxes is a message about Jesus. In Daniel 2, Jesus is the Stone or Rock that will dispose of all national governments (see Luke 20:18; Romans 9:23). In Daniel 7, Jesus is the Son of man who comes to the judgment (see John 5:22). In Daniel 8, Jesus is the “apostle and high priest of our faith” (Hebrews 5:1) who cleanses the sanctuary. And in Daniel 12:1, 2, Jesus is “Michael, the great prince” who stands for His people, delivers them from trouble, and raises them from the dead (see G enesis 48:16; 1 Th essalon ians 4:16; Jude 9). 7 Inasmuch, then, as the empire sequences in these four prophecies are parallel, William Miller concluded that the four C hrist-centered climax es are also parallel . H is insight was brilliant. But the conclusion that he drew from his insight was not quite so brilliant. It was p artly right , but no t co mpletely so. Miller concluded that if the climaxes are parallel (and they are), then if  we can date any one of them , we can d ate th em all. And we can date one of them. In Daniel 8:14, God Himself gives the date for the cleansing of the

30 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T sanctuary. He says it was to be cleansed at the end of the 2,300 days, in 1844. Following the logic that if you can date one climax you can date them all, Miller concluded that the stone of Daniel 2 would destroy the image in 1844, Christ would stand up and deliver and resurrect H is peop le in 1844, the judgment would convene in 1844 (here he was right!), an d  in 1844 th e Son of m an would com e to earth on the clouds o f heaven. Whenever I present this line of reasoning to my students or to campm eeting co ngregation s, I n otice ho w solemn t hey get. The reasoning seems unanswerable even today. Imagine how it sounded when Miller preached it, Bible in han d, in his earnest, friend ly mann er in th e 1830s and early 1840s! Imagine how it sounded when buttressed by the mistaken und erstanding held by mo st Christians that the final judgmen t is confined to the second coming, that the “marriage” is to take place on earth, and that th e sanctu ary of D aniel 8:14 cann ot b e the on e in h eaven. But evidently som ething was wrong. Miller was an expert Bible student. He wrestled with things that most people haven't even thought about. Even so, he did not adequately question other people's assumptions. And he did not adequately notice the differences among the four visions or take into account th e  precise wording of D aniel 7:15. The p recise word ing that Miller overloo ked in D aniel 7:13 is this: “With the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the A ncient of D ays.” He came “to the Ancient of days”! Miller assumed, like almost everyon e else who read th e verse, th at it seemed like such a clear reference to the second coming of Christ when Miller read it, because Daniel said the Son of man came “with clouds of heaven.” What Miller failed to no tice is that Jesus did n ot com e on th ese cloud s to the earth. H e came “ to the A ncient of days.” Th is little phrase, so easy to see no w bu t o verloo ked b y almost everyone for centuries, proved a major key for explaining the great disappointment. Look at the illustration on the cover of this hook. The artist shows it right there: Jesus coming into the presence of the Father on a cloud of  angels. The artist gives us a faint glimpse into what must have been a magnificent event in the heavenly sanctuary. If the Adventist believers had understood this, they would surely have proclaimed October 22, 1844, WHAT MILLER OVERLOOKED.

H O W MILLER MAD E H IS MISTAKE 31 a m agnificent disappo intm ent. But G od wasn't ready for th em to und erstand it that way yet. As Miller compared the four major visions in Daniel, he noticed that they were parallel, but h e failed to n ot ice th at th ey are no t ident ical. Every Seventh-day Adventist today knows that Daniel 2 is easy to understand, that Daniel 7 is harder, and that interpretation of Daniel 11 requires unusual skill. The basic message in each vision is similar, but the overall message of each is unique. The empires in Daniel 2 are symbolized by a polished image “of exceeding brightness” (verse 31). In Daniel 7 the same empires are symbolized by ferocious wild animals. In Daniel 8 the empires are symbolized by farm animals used in the sanctuary services; and in D aniel 10-12, they appear as quarrelsom e hu man beings. Just as the four visions, though parallel, are not the same, so the four climax es, tho ugh parallel, are not the same. The stone in Daniel 2 proves that even at their outward best the nations of earth are no match for the King of heaven, who will easily grind th em to powder. The judgment scene in Daniel 7 shows that when governments choose to condemn and torture God's people, God will call them to account on  jud gm en t day an d acquit t he p eo ple they p ersecu ted. The cleansing of the sanctuary in Daniel 8 directs us to study the Old Testament tabernacle rituals for insights into God's dealings with people and nations. And the standing up of Prince Michael in Daniel 12 teaches us that no matter what evil deeds earthly kings and princes may perpetrate, God's people have a Prince of their own who will have the last word, who will even raise to life the saints wh om the persecutors executed. So the climaxes are definitely parallel, but they are not precisely the same. Furthermore, although all the climaxes pertain to the end time, they cannot all apply specifically to the very end of the end time. If the Son of  man in Daniel 7 comes to the Ancient of days at the beginning of   jud gmen t hour an d does not at that time co me to the earth, th e begin ning of th e judgmen t m ust be at a time earlier than t he second com ing. Analysis shows that the judgment (Daniel 7) and the cleansing (Daniel 8) were to begin at the beginning of the end time, whereas the crushing of  emp ires (D aniel 2) and the resurrection of the saints (D aniel 12) will occur at the end  of the end time.8 We'll have more to say about these things in chapter 6. In the

32 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T meantime, we're going to review how to calculate the prophetic numbers that lead to 1844. (If you feel confident about calculating the prophetic nu mbers, you may, if you wish, skip o ver to chap ter 7.)

1. See Siegfried H. Horn and Lynn H. Wood, T he C hronology of E z ra 7 , 2d. ed., rev. (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1970). 2. In the 1842 edition of Miller's sermons, E vidence from S cripture and H istory of the S econd C oming of C hrist, about the Y ear 18 43 ; E x hibited in a C ourse of   L ectu res, reprinted by Leaves-of -Autumn Books, Box 440, Payson, Aria., his message on the “ seven times” is Lecture XVI I, 250-265. 3. William Miller to Truman Hendryx, 28 November, 1834, in Francis D. Nichol, T he M idnight C ry (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1944), 56. 4. See William Miller,  L etter to Joshua V H im es, on the C leansing of the Sanctuary (Boston, 1842). 5. Miller's rules of interpretation may be found in Isaac C. Wellcome,  H istory of  the S econd A dvent M essage and M ission, D octrine and People (Yarmouth, Maine., 1874), 45,46. 6. Some modern translations give be restored to its rightful state or  justified  in place of the KJV term, be cleansed . Careful analysis reveals that the unusual Hebrew term translated h ere do es mean “cleansed,” along with several oth er m eanings. 7. First Thessalonians 4:16 refers to “the” archangel, not to one of several archangels. Evidently there is only one archangel, popular legend notwithstanding. Also in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, “the” archangel raises the dead, which is what Michael the Prince does in D aniel 12:1, 2, and wh at Michael does for Mo ses in Jude 9. Genesis 48:16 is speaking of Jesus when it mentions an “angel“ who is our Redeemer. The word angel means “messenger,” and Jesus is God's supreme Messenger or Angel, sent to bring us the message of the gospel. But being both God and Angel, Jesus is necessarily the Prince of the angels, which is what the term archangel means. Bible study thus leads to the conclusion that Prince Michael who raises the dead in Daniel 12:1, 2 is Jesus, the Archangel who raises the dead in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Michael, the Archangel who raises Moses in Jude 9. 8. whereas modern Westerners like to see topics arranged in a sequential pattern, A B CD, ancient readers of ten preferred topics arranged in a mirror like pattern, A B B A, called a “chiasm.” (Every normal face is arranged like a chiasm: Left ear, left eye, nose, right eye, right ear. Couples of ten sit in meetings in chiastic order: First husband, first wife, second wife, second husband.) Daniel's arrangement – End of the end time (chapter 2), Beginning of the end time (chapter 7), Beginning of th e end time (chapter 8), E nd of th e end time (chapter 12, – is thus a chiasm.

CHAPTER 3

HOW DO YOU CALCULATE 1844? Miller discovered 1844 only after he had been converted, had studied the Bible till it became his “delight,“ and had found in Jesus a personal friend. T he year 1844 struck h im as d ramatically significant because it said som e dramatically significant things about Jesus. The purpose of our study together in this book is to help you und erstand and cherish som e o f th e “ dramatically significant” things that 1844 says about Jesus so that 1844 can have a “dramatically significant” effect on your life too, and the magnificence of the great disappointment will glow in your soul. But, you say, I can't explain even to my best friend how to arrive at 1844 from th e Bible, let alone app ly its m eaning to my life. You're no t alon e. Many N orth American Seventh -day Adventists think  they can't explain 1844. Really, this is surprising, because the earliest Adventists, who weren't nearly as well educated as many Adventists are to day, cou ld exp lain 1844 with grace and ease. If th ey cou ld exp lain it, so can we! . First off, let's rem ind ou rselves that 1844 is worth explaining. It is fundamental to what we believe. It has tremendous potential for our WORTH

35

36 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T lifestyles. And it's about Jesus where He is today, as our High Priest, cleansing the heavenly sanctuary and also cleansing from sin those people who believe in H im. Jesus wants to help us understand this Bible prophecy. On the Tuesday night before His crucifixion, He referred to Daniel's prophecies and said, “Let the reader understand ” (see Matthew 24:15). We remember that “all His biddings are enablings.” 1 Inasmuch as He wants us to understand, we know that H e's ready to help us und erstand. Jesus wanted to help Daniel himself understand the prophecy, or at least begin to understand it. It is true that the fullest understanding would have to wait until our day, the time of the end. A heavenly Being said to Daniel, “Shut up the words, and seal the book, until the time of the end” (Daniel 12:4). But in the immediate context of Daniel 8:14, a heavenly voice (probably Christ's) said to the angel Gabriel, 2 “Make this man [Daniel] understand  the vision.” Immediately Gabriel came to Daniel's side and said, “ U nderstand  … that the vision is for the time of the end” (D aniel 8:16,18). HELP.

Jesus wants u s to und erstand . Th at is enco uraging. So let's start with the m athem atics. It's not impo ssibly hard . You have probably heard already that the 2,300 days began in the autum n o f 457 B.C. Taking 457 B.C. as the b eginn ing year, all you need to do to locate the ending year is to subtract the 457 B.C. years from the 2,300 years. The remaining years will automatically be A.D. years. EASY MATHEMATICS.

2300 – 457 = 1843 Surprise! Something went wrong. We expected to get 1844 and got 1843 instead. Then someone reminds us that between B.C. dates and A.D. dates there is no z ero year , making it necessary for us to add  one to our A.D. years. Add ing one to 1843 b rings us to 1844. 2300 – 457 = 1843 + 1 = 1844 There we h ave it. And it wasn't hard , was it? William Miller did not at first think about the zero-year problem. This is why he talked about 1843 before he made the correction to 1844. (If  you would like to know the reason why there is no zero year and also wh at

H O W D O YO U CALCULATE 1844? 37 A.D . means precisely, see the Add ed N ote at th e end o f this chapter.) If reviewing how to do the mathematics is all the help you needed for calculating 1844, you may go on now to chapter 4. But if you would like to know why 457 is the beginning date, stay by. The explanation is not difficult, once you realize that Daniel 9:20-27 is a con tinuation of D aniel 8. First let us go to the bottom line. The year 457 B.C. was the “seventh year of Artaxerxes” mentioned in Ezra 7. This was the year in which Artaxerxes I (ART-a-ZERK-seez), king of Persia, in fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 9:20-27, issued a decree authorizing the Jews to “restore and build Jerusalem.” But let's go through the argument step by step, for any friend you may try explaining th is to will want to b e sure th at the decree of Artaxerxes was in fact a fulfillment of prophecy and that it was in fact th e beginning of th e 2,300 days. WHY 457?

The secret, as we just mentioned, lies in realizing that Daniel 9:20-27 is a continuation of Daniel 8. This involves seeing first ho w D aniel 8 is organized. Daniel 8, the chapter that contains the prophecy about the 2,300 days, is divided roughly into two halves. The first half (8:1-14) contains prophetic symbols, while the second half (8:15-27) provides an explanation of th e prop hetic symb ols. The first half is also divided into two smaller subsections. The first subsection (8:2-12) consists of symbolic animals and horns, which Daniel saw. The second subsection (8:13,14) contains the announcement about the 2,300 days, which D aniel heard . In the second half of D aniel 8, G abriel is com mission ed (verses 15,16) to help Daniel understand  the vision and its symbols, and he attempts (verses 17-26) to fulfill the com mission . Gabriel had little trouble helping Daniel understand the symbolic animals and horns, for Daniel was already acquainted with the world's future kingdoms from the image of chapter 2 and the wild animals of  chapter 7. But when he told Daniel that one of the horns symbolized a great king who wo uld “rise up against t he P rince of p rinces” (8:25), D aniel fainted before Gabriel could finish. Daniel was quite elderly by this time. All that Gabriel could get in about the 2,300 days was that they were “true” and that they pertained to “many days hence.” Then Daniel “was overcome and lay sick for some days” (8:27). He was “appalled“ by what DANIEL 9:20-27 AND DANIEL 8.

38 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T he had learned about the great king who would attack the Prince of  princes, and he says that he did not  understand the prophecy about the days (see verses 26, 27). Daniel's sickness prevented Gabriel from completing his commission to make Daniel understand  the vision. Gabriel had to try again on a later occasion , as we shall now see. According to chapter 9, “in the first year of Darius,” which was 558 B.C. and some thirteen years after the vision of chapter 8, Daniel set himself m ost earnestly to p lead with G od to forgive the Jews and let them go back from Babylon to Jerusalem to restore the temple there. Jerusalem had been in ruins since Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it in Daniel's youth. Now, while Daniel was “speaking and praying,” Gabriel, whom he “had seen in the vision at the first” (verses 20, 21), came back to complete his commission. Gabriel's first words prove that chapter 9:20-27 is indeed a continuation of chapter 8. Said Gabriel, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you wisdom and understanding. … Th erefore consider the word and understand the vision .“ Gabriel's words in Daniel 9 contain the key to help both Daniel and us to understand the vision of the 2,300 days. This key was a new pro ph ecy abou t th e seventy weeks. In chapter 8, as we saw a moment ago, Gabriel explained the animals and ho rns. H owever, faced with D aniel's sudden illness, he was unable to explain the 2,300 days. No doubt Daniel hoped that when Gabriel returned som e day, he wo uld start directly with an explanation of t he d ays, showing whether they were literal or symbolic and indicating when they would b egin and end. Daniel was not disappointed. Gabriel's very first sentence of explanation in chapter 9:24 focused directly on time and also indicated when the time was to begin. (Please pay close attention to the definitions inside the brackets.) “Seventy weeks of years,” be said, “are decreed [amputated ] concerning your people [the Jews] and your holy city [ Jerusalem ]. … Know therefore and un derstand that from the going forth o f the word [ the issuing of a decree] to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince [ Jesus C hrist ]” (9:25), shall be sixty-nine weeks, followed by a seventieth week, du ring which th e Messiah wo uld be killed. Here is the prophecy about the decree to restore and build Jerusalem, the prophecy that we said Artaxerxes was going to fulfill in 457 B.C. But THE SEVENTY WEEKS.

H O W D O YO U CALCULATE 1844? 39 let's make sure your friend un derstands wh at G abriel said. You noticed that when we quoted Gabriel, we pu t several definition s in b rackets. Som e of th e definition s are obvious eno ugh, while ot hers m ay no t seem so clear. The “coming of an anointed one, a prince” obviously refers to the bapt ism o f Prince Jesus in A.D . 27. Th e H oly Spirit descend ed o n Jesus at His baptism. A short time later, in Nazareth, Jesus chose to read from Isaiah 61: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me” (Luke 4:18; see also verse 16). Jesus is the preeminent “anointed one.” His name, Christ , means “anointed one” in Greek and is the equivalent of  M essiah in H ebrew. The translation in brackets, “issuing of a decree” in place of “going forth of the word,” is a matter of skilled preference. Outstanding Bible translations like the New International Version and the New American Standard Bible prefer the translation “issuing of a decree.” The Hebrew word dabar , which underlies the English translation “decree,” has the basic meaning of “word” or “message.” In Bible times, the kind of “word” or “m essage“ th at would auth orize the restoration and rebuilding of a capital city like Jerusalem had to be a decree issued b y a great king. Th e m ost interesting o f ou r definition s in brackets is “amp utated.” It is a translation of the Hebrew word chathak  (kah-thal), which is used only this one time in the Bible but is well-known from its use outside the Bible. The widely respected Hebrew-English dictionary by Gesenius says that chathak  means to “cut” or “divide.” Ancient Jewish teachers (the rabbis), who employed this Hebrew word in connection with preparing animals for sacrifice, used it with the meaning of “amputate.”3 Th e point in D aniel 9 is that seventy weeks were to be “cut o ff” or “ ampu tated” from a lon ger period. Furthermore, these seventy weeks were to be devoted in a special way to the well-being of the Jews and were to include the earthly life and death of th e Prince Messiah, Jesus Christ. You should know that some modern Bible translators believe the seventy-week prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27 does not refer to Jesus Christ, but refers rather to the little king Antiochus Epiphanes (an-TIE-okus ePIF-anees), who prevented temple sacrifices from being offered during the years 167-164 B.C. Translators who believe this tend to translate the Hebrew words in such a way as to make them fit Antiochus Epiphanes. However, when we allow the words to speak for themselves, they clearly refer to Jesus Christ. TOUGH TEEMS DEFINED .

40 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Because the 490 days of the seventy weeks (7x70-490) stretch from the issuing of the decree to “restore and build“ Jerusalem until the time when Jesus would live and die on the earth, the days of the seventy weeks are plainly symbolic, representing years. Four hu nd red an d n inety literal days would h ave covered less than a year and a half. So if the 490 d ays of th e seventy weeks are symbo ls th at rep resent years, then the 2,300 days are also symbols and represent 2,300 years, since the 490 days were “amputated” from the 2,300. Anything that is amputated from something else has to be smaller than the something else. A finger is amputated from a h and and a leg from a bod y, not th e oth er way around. In chapter 2 of this book we referred to a volume in which William H. Shea presents more than twenty evidences from the Bible that when a “day” is a prophetic symbol, it represents a year. To keep our present discussion simple, it is sufficient to remind ourselves that when the Israelites were coming out of Egypt, God specified “a day for a year” when sentencing them to wander forty years in the wilderness (Numbers 14:34). Thus the concept of “a day for a year” was imprinted firmly in Jewish consciousness from the very beginning of their nation. Second, God reminded the Jewish people of this “day for a year” concept through the prophet Ezekiel, who was an exile in Babylonia at the same time D aniel was, and who lived only fifty miles or so away from Daniel. In connection with a very symbolic assignment, God expressly specified to Ezekiel, “I assign you , a day for each year” (E zekiel 4:6). We conclude that the 2,300 days represent 2,300 years – and that they began with th e decree of Art axerxes in 457 B.C. THE DAYS ARE SYMBOLIC.

N ow it's time that we loo k at the d ecree itself. You will have to depend on scholars such as Lynn Wood and Siegfried Horn, whom we mention ed in chapter 2, and on a host of o ther scholars whom we haven't mentioned, for the conclusion that the “seventh year of  Artaxerxes” was in fact 457 B.C. 4 But you can definitely show your friend what happened in that seventh year of Artaxerxes to start the seventy weeks and t he 2,300 days. Help your friend find Ezra 7. As you read through Ezra 7, notice the references to Artaxerxes and Ezra in verse 1 and to the “seventh year of  Artaxerxes the king” in verse 7. Verses 7 to 10 tell about Ezra's trip from Babylonia to Jerusalem and his arrival there in the “fifth month,” which, according to calendars in th ose d ays, was pro bably August o r Septemb er. THE 457 DECREE.

H O W D O YO U CALCULATE 1844? 41 Ezra 7:12 begins the decree that King Artaxerxes issued. Think of the decree as an authentic ancient document, and you'll find it unusually interesting. The decree gives Jews living in Bab ylon ia perm ission to move to the ruined city of Jerusalem and to take money with them. It also gives E zra a sizable grant of m on ey and sup plies. But th e last two verses of the decree (25, 26) interest us the m ost right no w: And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God which is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River [the province in which Jerusalem was situated], all such as know the laws of your God; and those who do not know them, you shall teach. Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed upon him, whether for death or for banishment or for con fiscation of h is goo ds or for imp risonm ent. This is the “word” (RSV) or “decree” (NIV) to “restore and build Jerusalem” th at fulfilled th e pro ph ecy of G abriel in D aniel 9:24-27. Gabriel delivered this prophecy to Daniel in 558 B.C. Within a year or two, the great King Cyrus issued a decree providing for the rebuilding of  the Jerusalem temple (see Ezra 1:2-4), and another Persian king later reconfirmed this first temple-building decree (see Ezra 6). But it was not until 457 B.C. that King Artaxerxes issued the decree for rebuilding the ruined city of Jerusalem. This decree specified that th e Jewish governor was to “appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province” (Ezra 7:25). This specification restored  Jerusalem to capital-city status.5 To put teeth into the restoration to capital-citystatus, the decree added that “ who ever will no t o bey the law of your G od and t he law of th e king” was to be p un ished with fines, imprison ment , exile, or d eath (E zra 7:26). In order t o carry out this autho rization , Jerusalem wo uld have to h ouse the appointed magistrates and judges. It would also have to house the police and soldiers needed to enforce the orders of the magistrates and  jud ges. An d the magist rates, jud ges, so ldiers, an d police wo uld have to be assisted by merchants and craftsmen, who could provide food, clothing, furniture, and so on. And all of these people would need builders to provide government offices, public streets, city walls, shops, and human dwellings. The builders would have to be guided by architects and engineers, who also would need to be housed, fed, and protected. Thus

42 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T the decree of 457, which provided for Jerusalem to be a center for magistrates and judges fully authorized to enforce both religious laws and the king's own laws, envisaged the restoration of Jerusalem to capital-city status an d n ecessarily also en visaged th e rebuilding of t he city. The decree that Gabriel foresaw when he spoke of a “word“ or “decree” to “ restore” and “ bu ild” Jerusalem was this decree of 457 B.C. Th is is the d ecree that was to start th e seventy weeks. And inasmuch as Gabriel's reference to the decree was intended to help Daniel and us understand  the 2,300 days, we know that the 2,300 days also began in 457 B.C. Be sure your friend realizes that this talk about chronology and ancient history is also talk about Jesus. For without question, the center and focus of the seventy-week and 2,300-day prophecies that began in Daniel 8 and ran over into chapter 9 is our loving, living Lo rd an d Saviour, Jesus Christ. H e is the P rince wh o was “anointed” at the end o f the sixty-ninth week  and “cut of” in the middle of the seventieth week and who “anointed the mo st ho ly place” up on H is ascension to heaven after H is resurrection (see Daniel 9:24-27). Jesus is the High Priest who was to cleanse the heavenly sanctuary at the end of th e 2,300 days. The Christ-centeredness of Daniel 8 and 9 is revealed even in the choice of symbols to represent Media-Persia and Greece. In Daniel 2 these empires were symbolized by metals – silver and brass. In Daniel 7 they were symbolized by wild animals – a bear and a leopard. But in Daniel 8 and 9 the same empires are symbolized by a ram and a goat. In Old Testament times, rams (male sheep) and goats were the most prominent animals used for sacrifices. Supremely, the special annual day for offering a male sheep was Passover (see Exodus 12). Jesus our Passover Lamb (see 1 Co rinth ians 5:7) was sacrificed o n the cross o n Passover d ay. Supremely also, the special annual day for offering a goat was the Day of Atonement, when a goat's blood was used symbolically by the high priest to cleanse the earthly sanctuary (see Leviticus 16). Jesus as our sacrificial Lamb provides forgiveness of sin. Jesus as our High Priest provides victory over sin, the eradication of sin from our characters, and the blotting out of even the record of confessed sin from the m ost ho ly place in t he h eavenly sanctuary. All Christians b elieve in th e Christ of history who died on the cross. Many Christians look forward to the Ch rist of t he future, arriving o n th e cloud s at the secon d co ming. CHRIST THE CENTER.

H O W D O YO U CALCULATE 1844? 43 Seventh-day Adventists are among the Christians who cherish these great truths about Jesus. But Seventh-day Adventists, with their Godgiven understanding of 1844, have, in addition, something absolutely vital to tell th e world abo ut the contempo rary Christ, curren tly engaged in a un ique m inistry in the m ost h oly place of th e heavenly sanctuary. Jesus wants to help us, and our friend s, understand  all this. Additional N ote Th is addition al no te is for readers who would like to kno w why there is no zero year between B.C and A.D. and what A.D. means precisely. If  when you finish reading this note you would like still more information about calculating 1844, you will find excellent help in Clifford Goldstein's 18 44 M ade S imple. You might also like to read G od C ares, vol.1 (about D aniel), 205-210, 237-240, 251-253. To understand why there is no zero year we need to start with the difference between coun ting “zero , one, two” an d co unt ing “first, second , third.” Numbers like “zero, one, two” are known as cardinal numbers, and num bers like “first, second , third” are kno wn as ordinal numbers. When we give a person's age, we usually use cardinal numbers. We say that a person is six or forty-five or ninety-two. But when we give the age of a tiny infant , we of ten use ord inal num bers and say that the child is in the “first” year of her life. When the baby is one year old, we say she is in her second  year. Wh en sh e is two, she's in her t hird year, and so on . Th e ord inal age – first, secon d, th ird – is always on e n um ber larger th an the cardinal age – zero, one, two. This is because when we use first, second, third, we don't speak of the zero year. When the baby is in her first year (using ordinal numbers), we could say that she is “zero” (using cardinal num bers) – b ut it wouldn't soun d right, would it? Notice very carefully that when we count “first, second, third“ we have no year num bered z ero. There is no zero year between t he b irth o f a baby and the b eginn ing of h er  first  year. Because o f th is absence o f a zero year, ord inal num bers (first, secon d, third) are always one number larger than their equivalent cardinal numbers (zero, one, two). Elderly people sometimes exaggerate their ages, honestly enough, by using ordinals. When th ey're eight y-seven, for examp le, th ey say th ey're in their eighty-eighth year. Let's repeat it for emphasis: ordinal numbers (first, second, third) are always one number larger than the equivalent

44 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T cardinal numbers; cardinal numbers (zero, one, two) are always one num ber smaller than the equ ivalent o rdinal num bers. Now most ancient people preferred ordinal numbers. When dating events, rather than counting “zero, one, two,” they used “first, second, third.” Further, they normally dated events to the years during which ind ividual kings reigned. We h ave examp les of t hese custom s in the bo ok  of Daniel, such as, „In the third  year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of J udah“ (Daniel 1:1), and we have already looked at “the seventh year of  Artaxerxes“ (Ezra 7:7). Even to this day in Britain, acts of Parliament are ceremonially dated to the third or tenth or twenty-fifth or whatever year of the reign of Q ueen E lizabeth II. Th is ancient p ractice of dating events to the o rdinal-num bered year of a given king's reign meant that dating had to start all over again with the beginning of each reign. Imagine the complexity of calculating the years from the third year of King A to the fifth year of King G, when Kings B, C, D , E, and F each reigned variou s num bers of years in b etween! But in the year we call 532, an intelligent monk named Dionysius Exiguus proposed the brilliant idea that events should be dated to the one ongoing reign of our ever-living Lord and King, Jesus Christ. Under this system, an event could be spoken of as happening “in the twenty-fifth year of our Lord,” for example, and a later event could be dated “in the three h un dred and seventy-fifth year of ou r Lord.” We're ready no w to discuss the p recise meaning of  B .C . an d  A .D . The abbreviation  B .C . is easy. It is English and stands for “before Christ.“ Dionysius Exigutis did not use B.C. He invented only A.D. The abbreviation  A .D . stands fo r anno D omini, which is Latin. The word anno is related to “annual,” our word for yearly, and in this expression means “in the year of“ The word  D omini is related to “ do minion” and h ere refers to the Lord Jesus, who has dominion over all of us. Thus  A .D . means “ in the year of o ur Lord .” But remember that in ancient times, people used ordinal numbers for expressing d ates. H ence  A .D . , when used p recisely, is no t to be read as “in the year [zero, one, two] of our Lord” but as “in the [first, second, third] year of our Lord.” Thus, the correct reading of “A. D. 1843“ is not the way we usually say it – “in th e year 1844,” using th e cardinal nu mb er 1844; rather, it is “in the 1843th year of our Lord,” using the ordinal number, which, in cardinal num eration is on e nu mb er higher, or 1844. Let's admit it. Almost everyone in the world has forgotten this distinction in dating the A.D. years – and for most situations in life, the

H O W D O YO U CALCULATE 1844? 45 distinction doesn't matter. But for measuring the years between a B.C. date and an A.D. date, the distinction can be very important. It is very important when determining the correct date for Christ's entry into heaven's most holy place in fulfillment of the 2,300-day prophecy. Calculators and computers are typically set up to count with cardinal numbers (zero, one, two), and likewise we are taught in school to count with cardinal numbers (zero, one, two). So when we subtract 457 from 2,300, either in our heads or with a calculator, we get the cardinal number, 1843, just as Miller did. But if calculators and computers were set up, as they should be, to count ordinal numbers (first, second, third) when figuring dates from B.C. to A.D., they would automatically take into account the absence of the zero year. When subtracting 457 B.C. from A.D. 2300, they would automatically give us “in the 1844th year of our Lord” or “A.D. 1844,” instead o f 1843. Most computers aren't smart enough to do this. But now, I trust, you are! G od has helped you understand .

1. Ellen C. White, C hrist’s O bject L essons , 333. 2. Daniel 9:21 calls Gabriel a “man,” but the term seems to mean the same as person. In Luke 1:19 Gabriel is specifically designated an angel. 3. Jacques Doukhan, “The Seventy Weeks of Daniel 9: An Exegetical Study,”  A ndrews U niversity S eminary S tu dies 17 (1979):1-22. 4. Som e com men tators give 458 B.C. instead o f 457 B.C., but the argum ents in favor of 457 as given in the S eventh-day A dventist B ible C omm entary and in the boo k  by Wood and Horn demonstrate the clear superiority of 457. 5. In 444 B.C., thirteen years after 457 B.C., King Artaxetxes issued another decree, which some Christians think was the decree that Gabriel had in mind. But close inspection shows that the 444 B.C. decree authorized Nehemiah to repair some damage done to the city walls by local enemies (see Nehemiah 2). This was after the walls had been rebuilt as part of the restoration and rebuilding of  Jerusalem th at was don e und er the d ecree of 457.

CHAPTER 4

WHY OCTOBER 22? We've been talking about the year 1844, but we haven’t said anything about the specific date, October 22. You have probably heard that the “great disappointment” – the magnificent disappointment – when Jesus didn't appear took place on October 22, 1844. Perhaps you thought that because the Millerites were wrong about the year 1844, their being wrong about the specific date, October 22, wasn't worth wondering about. But you have b een reassured in this boo k that Miller was not wro ng abou t the year; he was right abo ut it. And in this present chap ter I h op e you will find evidence that, like 1844, the date October 22 was based on sound Bible study. I ho pe you will also find t hat O ctober 22 h as a significance of its own fo r tod ay. To pu t th e matter as briefly as possible, the d ate O ctob er 22 came fro m the D ay of Ato nem ent in the Bible. Th e Caraite Jews, who were regarded as the m ost careful of all Jews in p reserving th e Bible calend ar, held that in 1844 the Day of Atonement fell on October 22. That is essentially where October 22 came from. If you would like to know more about the whys and wh erefores, please read on. WILLIAM MILLER AND O CTO BER 22.

William Miller did not select October

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48 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T 22. H is associates did, in the sum mer o f 1844. Miller first examined Daniel 8:14 in 1818. He understood that the 2,300 days would end in 1843 (later corrected to 1844 when the matter became clear about the year zero). But Miller never was positive that he had found the correct year for beginning the 2,300 days. He had  found the correct year, 457 B.C., but he wasn't absolutely certain that historians hadn't been off a year or two. If they were off a bit, he reasoned, the ending year would also be o ff a bit. Besides, Jesus had beco me his person al friend , and Miller hoped that He would return sooner than 1843. So throughout most of his preaching career, beginning in 1831, Miller preferred to date the close o f th e 2,300 days no m ore closely than “ abo ut t he year 1843.” When December 1842 rolled around, many Millerite Adventists found themselves eagerly looking for Christ's return within the first few days of  1843. About this time they discovered that in Daniel's day, Bible years began and ended in the spring. So now they began to look for Christ to come around March 21. By now, the Millerite “second advent” movement had grown quite large. At its peak th e following year it would include h un dred s of m inisters and oth er leading speakers and wo uld coun t p erhaps 150,000 followers in a national population of eighteen million.1 Miller's movement was not a church; most of his people remained members of their various denominations. Pastors felt honored to have Miller come and hold meetings for them and o f ten urged him to com e again soo n. When attendance at large second advent rallies grew too large for available church buildings, the Millerite leaders in 1842 voted to hold open-air camp meetings. When these proved enormously attractive, they voted to buy the largest tent yet made in America. This great tent could seat four thousand, with standing room for two thousand more. The Millerites had it ord ered and in u se within a m on th. T here was no time t o lose if Christ was coming “around the year 1843.” But with only one such tent, many camp meetings con tinued to m eet in th e op en air. It is important for our understanding of October 22 to know that the Millerite Adventists saw themselves – at their camp meetings and in their many publications – as fulfilling the “midnight cry” of Matthew 25. When, in the parable of the virgins, the bridegroom finally shows up at the hour of  midnight , a cry goes up, “Behold, the bridegroom cometh” (KJV). Jesus called Himself the Bridegroom in Mark 2:19,20. So with their emphasis on the second coming of Jesus, the THE MIONIGHT CRY.

WHY O CTO BER 22? 49 Millerites called their principal publication T he M idnight C ry. As the movement grew, they published the W estern M idnight C ry in Cincinnati and th e S outhern M idnight C ry. Later they had a paper called T he T rue M idnight  C ry, but with th is we are getting ahead o f our sto ry. When Jesus didn't return in March 1843, Miller wrote a particularly thoughtful article for publication in the various volunteer periodicals. In it he argued – without setting a precise date – that Jesus was more likely to return in the autumn than in the spring. Miller's reasoning was further evidence of the acuteness of his Bible study – though the idea wasn't original with him. Isaac N ewton, th e famou s scientist, had th ought of th is years before. Miller's basic argument (and I saac N ewton 's before h im) had to do with “types” and “antitypes.” He reasoned that because Jesus fulfilled the spring types in connection with His  first coming, H e could b e expected to fulfill the autumn types in connection with His second coming. Let's try that again. An “antitype” is the fulfillment of a “type.” The most familiar typeantitype relationship is the one between the sacrificial lamb (the type) and the crucified Lamb of God, Jesus Christ (the antitype). Antitypes tend to be mu ch larger th an types. Th e crucifixion of th e Creator of th e universe is vastly more profound than the death of a lamb; yet there is a similarity in th e deaths of two com pletely inn ocent beings. The Old Testament offered many different types that looked forward to the ministry of Jesus. Among the most important of these were the ann ual festivals that are listed an d d escribed in Leviticus 23. Th ese ann ualfestival types were divided into two major categories: the spring types and the autumn types. The spring types were (1) the Passover, together with its week-long extension, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, (2) the offering of  the “ Wavesheaf” o r first fruits on the d ay after the P assover Sabbath, and (3) the Day of Pentecost. The autumn types were (1) the Blowing of  Trum pets, (2) the D ay of Ato nem ent, and (3) the F east of T abernacles. Don't overlook what we mentioned a moment ago, that the Millerites learned that ancient Bible years began in the spring rather than in January.2 The first month in Bible times came in late March or April, and the seventh mo nth fell in Septem ber or O ctob er, in th e autum n. Now in Leviticus 23, God specified the precise dates in spring and autumn when these ceremonial types were to be observed. (1) Passover was to be observed on th e “fourteenth d ay of th e first mo nth .” (2) A

50 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T SPRING

FIRST CO MING

AUTUMN

SECOND COMING

TYPES 

 A N T IT Y PE S 

TYPES 

 A N T IT Y PE S 

Passover

*Cross

Blowing of  Trumpets

Three Angels’ Messages

First Fru its

Resurrection

Day of  Atonement

+Investigative Judgment

Pen tecost

“Pen tecost”

T abern acles

H eaven

*Year of predicted in th e seventh-week  pro ph ecy (Daniel 9)

+ Year of p redicted in th e 2,300-day pro ph ecy (Daniel 8)

sheaf (the “Wavesheaf”) of first-ripe barley (first fruits) was to be waved before the Lord by a priest “o n th e mo rrow after the sabbath ” of Passover week. (3) And as for Pentecost, “you shall count from the morrow after the sabbath , from the day that you b rought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven full weeks … counting fifty days to the morrow after the seventh sabbath.“ Likewise, in the autumn , (1) “in the seventh month, on the first day of  the month,” the Blowing of Trumpets was to take place, (2) “on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement,” and (3) “on the fifteenth day of this seventh month and for seven days is the Feast of  Booth s” (or Tabern acles). It is not surprising that God was so precise, giving exact dates for these ceremonial types. G od made time. So precise is God's universe that astronomers can predict eclipses thousands of years in advance. So precise was God's prophecy of the 430 years of servitude (Genesis 15:13; compare Galatians 3:17) that Moses could record that the children of Israel left Egypt “on that very clay” (Exodus 12:40, 41). Jesus began His earthly ministry proclaiming, “The time is fulfilled!” knowing that the seventy-week prophecy had accurately predicted H is baptism at the en d o f the sixty-ninth week. King David could say, “My times are in thy hands” (Psalm 31:15). God kno ws when it is best for u s to marry or d ie and when to en joy success or learn fro m a failure. H e kno ws precisely the best times for each of us. When the time came for Jesus to die, He died in the year predicted, A.D. 31, in the “midst” of the seventieth week of Daniel 9:24-27. And He died not only in the very year of prophecy but also on the very day of  that year when the Passover lamb was slain . Indeed, He died at the very time

WHY O CTO BER 22? 51 of d ay, in t he m idd le of th e afternoo n, when the P assover lamb was slain! Furthermore, on the “day after the Sabbath,” when the first fruits of  the barley harvest were offered by the priest, Jesus rose from the dead, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:20). Th e accuracy is amazing! To add another marvel to this amazing list, after His ascension to heaven, Jesus sent H is H oly Spirit in “P entecostal power” o n the very day of th e annu al Pen tecost (see Acts 2). With new force we remember Acts 17:31, where long ago God told us that He had “ fix ed a day on which He will  judge the world in righteousness by a Man wh om he h as app ointed.” The same God who appointed the very year and day for Jesus to die appo inted a year and day for th e judgm ent to begin. In his May 1843 article, Miller went so far as to suggest that just as Jesus fu lfilled (was the antitype of ) th e spring types at H is first coming, so H e m ight b e expected to fulfill (becom e the antitype o f) the autumn types in connection with His second coming. Thus He might well fulfill the autumn types and return to the earth in th e autum n. Miller set no precise date in the autumn, but Samuel Sheffield Snow, one of the many leaders who were now voluntarily assisting Miller, took Miller's observation to its logical conclusion. If Jesus fulfilled the spring types not only in the correct year of the seventy-week  prophecy but also on the very dates of the types, so He could be counted on to fulfill the autum n D ay of Ato nem ent type no t on ly in th e year of the 2,300-day prophecy but also on the very date of the D ay of A tonement . On the Day of Atonement in the Bible, the high priest completed the work of atonement in the most holy place and then came out  to bless his waiting people. The Day of Atonement was the tenth day of the seventh Bible month. T herefore, Snow concluded, Jesus could be counted on to leave heaven and come to bless His waiting people on the tenth day of the seventh (B ible) m onth . It was as simp le as that. But only a few people listened to Snow's argument at first. In any case, Jesus didn't come in the autumn of 1843. When March 1844 rolled around, confidence grew that Jesus would come before the end of the spring-to-spring Bible year. But H e didn't com e th en either, and a genuine disapp ointment ensued. The Millerites restudied the parable of the virgins (see Matthew 25:110), and this time they paid special attention to the words “As the S. S. SNOW.

52 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T bridegroom tarried , they all slumbered and slept” (KJV). They saw themselves in the tarrying time – or, in the idiom of the day, in the “tarry” – and longed m ore th an ever for th e true m idn ight cry. An extra-large camp meeting (but without benefit of the big tent, which was in use elsewhere) was held in Exeter, New Hampshire, beginning August 12, 1844. Interested people came from all over New England and also from several other states and even from Canada. At first, things didn't go very well. The preaching, though earnest, seemed unconvincing. Besides, some troubling fanaticism erupted . Th e fo lk from Watertown, Massachu setts, held lon g, noisy prayer meetings in their dormitory tent, shouting and clapping; and some other peo ple kept t elling everyon e ho w they had been “ imp ressed” to do this or that trivial thing. Elder James White, one of the leaders present, was particularly disturb ed. 3 O n the oth er han d, Joseph Bates arrived with great expectation s. While he was riding to Exeter, a conviction had forced itself on his mind: “You are going to have new light here, something that will give a new impetus to this work.”4 At one of the Exeter meetings, the old records tell us with astonishing frankness, the normally powerful Captain Bates was preaching away “in a dull, prosy style,” 5 no t yet h aving fou nd the new light h e was loo king for, when a horseman galloped into the campground, quickly dismounted, hurriedly cared for h is h orse, and d ashed o ver to where h is sister and Joh n Cou ch, her husban d, were seated. Suddenly Mrs. Couch 6 stoo d co urageously to her feet an d said in a loud but pleasant voice, “Brother Bates, it is too late to spend our time upon these truths, with which we are familiar. … Time is short. The Lord has servants here who have meat in due season for his household. Let them speak, and let the p eop le hear them .” Th e crowd was electrified. Cho ked “Am ens” were h eard o n every side. Many people began to weep. Bates himself, far from objecting to the interruption, sat down at once, eagerly awaiting the new light he had been pro mised while traveling to the meeting. A consultation was held, and the decision was made to have Brother Sno w take advantage of th e mo rning meeting th e next d ay. H e was ready, for he had already presented his evidence to gatherings in New York, Ph iladelph ia, and Bo ston .7 Snow's first argument that needs to concern us here 8 was not based on THE EXETER, N.H., CAMP MEETING.

WHY O CTO BER 22? 53 the ceremo nial types and antitypes, which h e had been studying for over a year. Instead, he first dwelt on evidence that the 2,300 years could not po ssibly have en ded in the spring – b ecause they didn't start in th e spring! The decree of 457 B.C., under which Jerusalem was to be restored and rebuilt, was not promulgated and executed until Ezra arrived at Jerusalem in the fifth month of that year (see Ezra 7), and not even then, but only after he had m anaged to settle in as governo r. Besides, the year didn't start in March, as most modern Jews were teaching and as the Millerites had co me to believe. It h ad to have started in April, he said, as the extremely careful Caraite Jews pointed out. The “first month” couldn't begin until the barley was nearly ripe, for ripe barley had to be available for the “Wavesheaf” (first fruits) ceremony in the middle of the first month, and barley didn't ripen in Palestine in March. So starting in April 457 B.C. and counting from there to the fifth month, then adding a little time for Ezra to get settled, meant that the decree could not have been carried out until the autumn. So if the 2,300 years didn't begin until the autumn of 457 B.C., they could not end until the autumn of A.D. 1844! The audience looked at their Bibles, at Snow, and at one another and wondered how they could have been so blind. Here was impressive new light! Building on this foundation, based on an accurate understanding of  the prophecy of the 2,300 days of Daniel 8:14, Snow advanced to an accurate understanding of the annual ceremonial types of Leviticus 23. He pointed out that “Christ our Passover” was sacrificed for us (1 Corinth ians 5:7, KJV) on the fo urteenth day of th e first mo nth at about 3:00 p.m., “on the same day, and at the same hour” when the Passover lamb died. He also observed that in this type-antitype fulfillment of the Passover lamb, “ time was most strictly regarded ” (his emphasis). Jesus fulfilled th e “first fruits” type b y com ing b ack from the dead, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:23), on the very Sunday when the first fruits were waved b efore th e Lord . And as for Pentecost, “the anniversary of the Lord's descent on mount Sinai at the giving of the law,” the Holy Spirit fell on the apostles on that very day, to enable them to carry out th e great gospel comm ission . “Thus we see,” Snow continued, in a “solemn and dignified” manner, 9 “that those types that pointed to events connected with our Lord's first coming, were fulfilled exactly at the time of their observance.” Therefore,

54 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T he reasoned, “those which remain unfulfilled, will be fulfilled with an equally strict regard to time.” Snow referred especially to the Day of Atonement (see Leviticus 9:7, 22-24; 16; 23:26-32), on th e tenth day of th e seventh mo nth , on which day the high priest wen t into the mo st h oly place of the earthly tabern acle and sprinkled blood on the mercy seat, after which “on the same day he came ou t and b lessed the waiting con gregation o f Israel.” Snow led his large congregation to his triumphant conclusion: “Our blessed Lord will therefore come, to the astonishment of all them that dwell up on the earth, and to the salvation of th ose who truly loo k for him, on the tenth day of the seventh month of the  year of jubilee: and th at is the  present  year, 1844.” In 1844, according to the extremely careful reckoning of the Caraite Jews, the tenth day of the seventh month, the Day of Atonement, was to fall on O ctob er 22. A nd this is how that specific date was arrived at . James White long remembered that as Snow completed his Bible study, “the deepest solemnity pervaded the entire encampment.”10 A conviction gripped almost everyone, that “in all probability the speaker was correct, and that in a few short weeks human probation would close forever.”11 Still, these Millerite Adventists were Bible students. They had to be certain that new light came from the right place. They unanimously asked Snow to repeat his message the next day so they could evaluate it by the Bible more precisely. And he obliged them, speaking “with still greater clearness and force.”12 Meanwhile, other speakers, including Mrs. Couch's husband John, stirred the people with earnest exhortations to live in harmony with the new light. If it was indeed time for the true midnight cry, “Behold the bridegroom cometh on tenth day, seventh month ,“ let no one sleep like the foo lish virgins! Let all trim their lamp s and carry the new light everywhere – the Bible light, the “ true midn ight cry.” The message itself, that Christ was coming on the tenth day of th e seventh mo nth (O ctober 22), was known as the “true m idn ight cry.” The respo nse to t he m essage became kno wn as the “seventh-mon th mo vement.” And wh at a mo vement it was! As the historic Exeter camp meeting closed, Bates recalled some time later,13 “the granite hills of New Hampshire rang with the mighty cry, THE SEVENTH MONTH MOVEMENT.

WHY O CTO BER 22? 55  B ehold the B ridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him ! As the stages and railroad cars rolled away through the different states, cities, and villages of New England, the rumbling of the cry was still distinctly heard: Behold the Bridegroom cometh! Christ is coming on the tenth day of the seventh month! Time is short, get ready! get ready!” “Who does not still remember,” Bates asked his readers, “how this message flew as it were upon the wings of the wind – men and women mo ving o n all the cardinal points o f th e com pass, going with all the speed of locomotives, in steamboats and rail cars, freighted with bundles of  books and papers, wherever they went distributing them almost as pro fusely as the flying leaves of autum n.” But the seventh-month movement was not merely one of  proclamation. It was a deeply spiritual movement marked by confession, consecration, restitution, and earnest appeals, as well as by the sweet prospect of seeing Jesus soon. As Bates said, Oh, “the agonizing prayers and entreaties for our families, friends and brethren. Surely time can never efface those deep impressions, besides the deep searchings of heart and consecrations of time, friends, property, all, all, to God.“ S.S. Snow was not a principal Millerite leader. At first, the principal leaders, including Miller himself, opposed the specific day. But the principal leaders became persuaded as they observed the genuineness of  the p eople's respo nse. “It produced everywhere the most deep searching of heart and humiliation of soul before the God of high heaven,” said their leading publication, T he M idnight C ry, for October 51, shortly after the great disappo intm ent. “It caused a weaning of affection s from the t hings of this world – a healing of controversies and animosities – a confession of  wrongs – a breaking down before God, and penitent, broken-hearted supplications to him for pardon and acceptance. It caused self-abasement and p rostration o f soul, such as we never before witnessed.” What a list of good things! Making things right with other people. Solving misunderstandings. Replacing materialism with unselfishness. Seeking earnestly a closeness with Jesus. The kinds of things that every spiritual Christian longs to see take place. No wonder T he M idnight C ry editors went on to say, “It seemed not to be the work of men. We could bu t exclaim, ‘What were we, that we shou ld resist G od !’ ” Miller himself, after meticulously restudying the evidence, wrote in a letter to th e variou s publication s, “I see a glory in the ‘seventh mon th ’ th at I never saw befo re. We are almost h om e. G lory! G lory!”

56 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Neither Miller nor his followers were in fact almost home, though they had made yet another advance in truth. They were right about the date, October 22, but once again they were not com pletely right. Jesus did n ot com e out of th e ho ly of h olies on that d ay as the Millerites expected, for He had a work to do there that would take many days. Nonetheless, Jesus did honor the actual Day of Atonement in 1844 as the day to enter  the m ost ho ly place and com men ce the great work  H e had to perform th ere. On page 457 of  T he G reat C ontroversy, Ellen White endorsed the reasoning that focused on the autumn of 1844: “The computation of the pro ph etic period s … placing the close of the 2300 days in the autum n of  1844, stands without impeachment.” And Ellen White endorsed the related concept that we are even today living in the ongoing antitypical Day of Atonement. “We are now living in the great day of atonement,” says T he G reat C ontroversy, page 489. In reminding us of this, T he G reat C ontroversy, page 490, wants us to remem ber th at when describing the typical D ay of Ato nem ent in Leviticus 23:26-32, God specified that it was to be observed as a day for sincere self-examination and soul searching, a day for repentance and making things right. THE DAY OF ATON EMENT AND US.

In the typical service, while the high priest was making the atonement for Israel, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from amo ng th e peo ple. In like mann er, all who would have their nam es retained in t he b oo k of life, sho uld no w, in t he few rem aining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin, and true repentance. There must be deep, faithful searching of  heart. The light, frivolous spirit indulged by so many of professed Christians must be put away. There is earnest warfare before all who would subdue the evil tendencies that strive for the mastery. The precise date October 22, 1844 was arrived at through assiduous examination of both Bible prophecy and Bible typology. Its penetrating significance for us at the present time will appear even more clearly in the chapters th at follow.

1. Miller, with characteristic understatement, placed the number of converts

WHY O CTO BER 22? 57 at 50,000. In a 1930 doctoral dissertation, Professor Everett Dick estimated closer to 150,000. See near the back of his book. 2. Many ancient peoples began their year in the spring, when the winter was over and crops began to grow and leaves reappeared o n th e trees. Even ou r own Julio-Gregorian calendar once began in March! If you don't believe it, look at September, October, November, and December. Today we call them our ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth months; but their names mean seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth months! We're familiar with oct , as in “oct o pus,” an eight -legged sea creature; and dec, as in “ decimal,” a numbering system based on ten. Julius Caesar, who gave his own name to July, ordered that New Year's should be mo ved from March to January in 46 B.C. 3. James White,  L ife I ncidents (Battle Creek, Mich., 1868), 153-156. 4. Joseph Bates, S econd A dvent W ay M ark s and H igh H eaps (New Bedford, Mass., 1847), 30,31. 5. James White,  L ife I ncidents, 159. 6. Sorry, the on ly nam e we kno w! James White, L ife I ncidents , 159. 7. “The History of the Late Movement,” T he M idnight C ry, 31 October 1844, and Bates, S econd A dvent W ay M ark s. 8. The summary of his sermon is based on T he T rue M idnight C ry, August 22, 1844, which consists entirely of Snow's material. See also James white,  L ife  Incidents , 160-163. 9. James White,  L ife I ncidents, 160. 10. Ib id., 163. 11. Bates, S econd A dvent W ay M ark s, 30,31, said later that other believers in addition to Sno w had com e to th e same conclusion. 12. James White,  L ife I ncidents, 163. 13. Bates, S econd A dvent W ay M ark s , 30,31.

PART 2 DISCOVERING THE EVENT

CHAPTER 5

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED IN HEAVEN? When skeptics ask, “What on earth happ ened o n O ctober 22, 1844, to fulfill D aniel 8:14?” your correct respo nse I s, “N ot hing at all.” That's right! Daniel 8:14 speaks of a “heavenly event” – a magnificent heaven ly event. What d id h appen on earth, the Millerite second advent awakening, was ind eed a fulfillmen t of p rop hecy, but n ot o f D aniel 8:14. It was part of th e fulfillment of the first angel's prophecy of Revelation 14:6, 7. But the “sanctuary” to be “cleansed” in Daniel 8:14 is the one in heaven. Thus D aniel 8:14 was to b e fulfilled in h eaven. T he qu estion is, “Wh at in heaven happened in 1844?” Does the Bible give us th e details of th at anywhere? Yes, the Bible does give us the details, in t he judgmen t scene in D aniel 7:9-14. The heavenly event that marked the close of the 2,300 days is clearly described, not in the symbolic language of Daniel 8:14, the climax passage of Daniel 8, but in the ordinary language of the parallel climax of Daniel 7. In plain, nonsymbolic language, Daniel 7:9, 10 – the first portion of the climax passage – says, “As I loo ked, thro nes were placed and on e that was THE JUDGMENT SCENE IN DANIEL 7.

61

62 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T ancient of days took his seat; … his throne was fiery flames, its wheels were burning fire. … A thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment [the  jud gm en t was set, K JV], an d the books were open ed .” D aniel's attention h ad b een riveted o n the series of h orrid wild an im als that had been coming up out of a stormy sea. Suddenly, and mercifully, his attention was drawn upward to a new event developing in heaven. Th ere he watched G od 's glorious th ron e being installed in a new h eavenly place and other thrones being grouped around it. He watched as the Ancient of Days Himself “came” (Daniel 7:22). He saw heavenly beings by the million, singing God's praises, no doubt, as described in Revelation 4 and 5. Daniel also saw record books being opened and observed that “th e judgment was set.” But although Daniel saw that the judgment was “set,” it evidently was no t able actually to b egin! But wh y not ? Because th e Son o f m an h ad n ot yet arrived and Jesus says in Joh n 5:22, that “the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son.” This statement by Jesus Himself is very important for the correct biblical understanding o f what h appened in 1844 and of what has been going on in heaven ever since. Don't forget John 5:22: “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgmen t to the Son .” Happily, in Daniel's vision, the commencement of the judgment was not long delayed. Daniel continued his eyewitness account: “I saw in the night vision s, and b eho ld, with the cloud s of h eaven there cam e on e like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days” (Daniel 7:13). 1 Here is another vital verse, one we referred to earlier, in our discussion of Miller's mistake. When the Son of man arrived at the judgment scene in 1844, the  jud gm en t at last co uld begin . An d the first an gel of Revelation 14:6, 7 proclaimed with a triumphant shout, “The hour of his judgment has come.” The hour of His judgment had come. Looking back, we speak of  the first phase of the final judgment as beginning in 1844. But if the investigative judgment is the first phase of the final judgment, then the  final judgment  had begun. This is part of the stupendous significance of 1844. In that year the final  judgment began . And if in our day the final judgment has already been un derway for so me 150 years, we kno w for certain th at we are living in th e last days, in the end time. We'll have more to say on this in later chapters. In the m eantime, please rememb er that it was the Son o f man wh o started

WHAT ACTUALLY H APPEN ED IN H EAVEN ? 63 the judgmen t. 1844 is a message abo ut Jesus. Let us now dwell a moment on the magnificence of the 1844 event. Doing so can help us savor its significance realistically. But h ow are we to visualize it? The earthly sanctuary that Moses built, the tabernacle in the wilderness, was a tent about forty-five feet long, fifteen feet wide, and fifteen feet high – abou t th e height of t he walls of a two -story ho use. It h ad goldplated wooden walls that could be taken apart for moving. The roof  consisted of four layers: richly embroidered tapestry inside and animal skins outside. As most Adventists know, this earthly sanctuary was divided into two rooms. The holy place was thirty feet long, fifteen feet wide, and fifteen feet high. It co ntained on the sou th side (to th e left as the priests entered) the solid-gold, seven-branched lampstand; on the north side (to the right as the priests en tered) the little gold-plated t able of sho wbread; and to t he west (straight ahead) the gold-plated altar of incense, up against the magnificent curtain that walled off the most holy place. The most holy place, the second room in the sanctuary, was a cube, fifteen feet in all directions. It co ntained th e ark of th e covenan t, a gold-plated chest inside of which were the Ten Commandments. The top of the ark was a lid of  solid go ld (the “m ercy seat”) with an angellike cheru b at each en d sculpted out of the same piece of gold. At first, in Moses' day, a mysterious light shone between the cherubim. The light represented the presence of G od, enth ron ed abo ve H is law and occup ying the seat of mercy. It is helpful to note that the light, which represented God's presence, was not always located in the most holy place. In Moses' day, whenever the children of Israel needed to move to a new location, the light left its location in the tabernacle and rose up as a cloudy pillar of fire that guided them to their new destination (see Numbers 9:15-23). Much later, Ezekiel in vision saw God's presence symbolized in the holy place rather than in the most holy place (see Ezekiel 10). Still later, John saw God's throne, a single throne with both God and the Lamb seated on it, located no longer in heaven but as it will be after the millennium, down here on the earth (see Revelation 21:10; 22:3). Th e m ost ho ly place was o ff-limits to everyon e, even to the h igh priest, except on on e day each year. O n th e D ay of Aton ement, and o nly on that day, the high priest was required to enter th e mo st ho ly place and sp rinkle MAGNIFICENCE OF THE 1844 EVENT.

64 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T blood seven times on the mercy seat, symbolically asking God, through the b loo d o f Jesus, to b lot o ut th e sins H is peop le had b een com mitting all year against G od 's law. So what happened on the Day of Atonement, October 22, in the year 1844, to fulfill the cleansing of t he t rue tab ernacle in heaven ? Are we, perhaps, to picture Jesus ministering in a thirty-foot holy place until 1844, then drawing an embroidered curtain aside and taking a few steps west into a fifteen-foot mo st h oly place? O r sho uld we visualize an ep isode far mo re dram atic? We remember that antitypes are vastly more impressive than mere types. The cross is only minimally comparable to the death of a yearling lamb. As for comparing the heavenly sanctuary with Moses' tabernacle, Patriarchs and Prophets, page 357, reminds us that “the heavenly temple, the abiding place of the King of kings, where ‘thousand thousands minister unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before him,’ that temple filled with the glory of the eternal throne, where seraphim, its shining guardians, veil their faces in adoration – no earthly structure could represent its vastness and its glory ” (my italics). The passage continues, “As Christ's ministration was to consist of two great divisions, each occupying a period of time and having a distinctive place in the heavenly sanctuary [my italics again], so the typical ministration consisted of two d ivisions, the daily and th e yearly service, and to each a dep artm ent of th e tabernacle was devo ted.” The two-part heavenly sanctuary, “the true tent which is set up not by man but by the Lord” (Hebrews 8:2), must indeed be a wonderful place, created by God Himself as a center of worship for the universe and the ho me of m illion s of bright an d gloriou s angels. Our passage, Daniel 7:13, teaches us that the heavenly temple is no box-shaped symbolic tent when it says that the Son of man journeyed to the judgment “ on the clouds of h eaven.” O ne can hardly picture a journ ey on clou ds taking p lace in a bo x-shaped symb olic tent! A helpful clue to the nature of  the 1844 event is that the Bible speaks of Jesus taking three journeys on clouds. The words about th e Son of man on the clouds o f heaven that we find in Daniel 7 are also used to describe the second coming in Matthew 24:30, and similar word s are used for H is ascent int o h eaven (see Luke 24:50, 51; Acts 1:9) after His resurrection. When we Seventh-day Adventists read what the Bible says about CHRIST'S THREE JOURNEYS ON CLOUDS.

WHAT ACTUALLY H APPEN ED IN H EAVEN ? 65 Christ's ascension and about His second coming, we believe it describes dramatic, literal events. We recall Luke 24:50, 51, “He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them.” We remember Acts 1:9, “As they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.” As hymn 415 in th e S eventh-day A dventist H ymnal says, Christ th e Lord , all power p ossessing, Parting, mounted heaven's height, Gracious hands outstretched in blessing. Clouds received him from their sight. Christ ascended on the clouds.

We believe that Christ did ascend to heaven on clouds, literally, perso nally, visibly. And we believe that at the second coming, He will return on clouds, literally, personally, visibly. “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, … and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him” (Revelation 1:7). “The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel's call, and with the sound of  the trumpet of God. … Then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:16,17). Revelation's word fulfilling, Trumpet, voices pierce the air. Saint and sinner, fainting, thrilling, Every eye behold Him there. Christ is coming on the clouds.

So we look again at the judgment scene in Daniel 7. After describing the arrival of the Ancient of Days and the gathering of myriads of  heavenly beings, the opening of the books, and the setting up of the  jud gm en t, the passage co ntinues by saying, “ I saw in the night visio ns, an d behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a Son of man, and he came to the An cient o f D ays and was presented b efore him” (verse 13). Daniel views earth's judgment hour, Angels gathering, open books; G od enthroned in flaming power Fo r H is Son's arrival looks.

66 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Christ approaches on the clouds.

We are fully justified in seeing Christ's journey on clouds to the  jud gm en t scen e in 1844 as bein g equally as real, literal, and perso nal as was His cloudy trip to heaven at His ascension and as His journey will he at H is second co ming. Try again now to visualize the magnificence of the event. Think about the antiphonal drama at Christ's victoriou s ascent to the ho ly city after H is resurrection as written in P salm 24. The angelic choir attending Jesus sang out, “Lift up your heads, 0 gates! … that the King of glory may come in,” and the gate-keeping choir sang hack, “Who is the King of glory?” Then they did it again. The gatekeepers asked th eir qu estion repeatedly, not because they didn't kn ow th e answer, but b ecause they liked to h ear Jesus praised repeated ly. Now visualize the millions of angels in Daniel's vision. Listen to their magnificent music. Their gorgeous harmonies. The mellow tones of their multiple harps. The electrifying fanfares of their silver trumpets. The pageantry of the Father's arrival on His flame-wheeled throne. His entourage of seraphim and cherubim, installed with joyful solemnity on all their thron es. Th e open ing of the b oo ks. The court is ready. The judgment is set. But the process cannot begin, because the D elegate Judge has not yet put in H is appearance. Remem ber Joh n 5:22: “T he F ather judges no o ne; he has com mitted all  jud gm en t to the So n.” In my imagination – in yours too, I assume – the trumpets and harps and angel choirs fall silent. All eyes turn east in confident anticipation of  the Son 's arrival on the clou ds precisely at the sch eduled instant. And right on time the cry erupts from every throat, “There He is! There He is! The Son of m an is com ing on the clouds!” The trumpeters at God's side discharge a welcoming fanfare. An answering fanfare reverberates from the clouds. The angels beside the throne burst into rapturous melody, and the angels in the clouds respond antiph on ally. And th e entire un iverse – all of it, with th e except ion of  sinful humanity – comes alive, echoing and reechoing and resonating with a rhapsody of sweetest singing. The Son of man is arriving at last to reverse the judgments of human tribunals (see T he G reat C ontroversy, 650), to vindicate once and for all H is victorious, down trod den saints. Such a magnificent event deserves retelling again and again. Every Christian worthy of the name should be telling it. In its own way, it is as VISUALI7E THE MAGNIFICENT EVENT.

WHAT ACTUALLY H APPEN ED IN H EAVEN ? 67 eternally significant as the cross and the second coming. It is an event in the ministry of Jesus that has meaning for all the universe and every sinner. Yet Seventh-day Adventists are the only people who say anything about it. What a pity. May God help each of us to be faithful in talking abo ut it and telling it eagerly to th e world. It is reassuring to know that leading Seventh-day Adventists over the years have made a co nscientious effort to tell the world th at, indeed, both Father and Son did m ove from on e part of heaven (the Holy Place) to another part of heaven (the Most Holy Place) in 1844 to com men ce a grand n ew work of grace. Joseph Bates, one of the foremost Adventist “founders,” taught it faithfully. In 1850 2 he reminded his readers that he had “already adduced the proof that Jesus was sitting with his Father on his throne in the Holy, where the seven lamps of fire were. Then at the appointed time, 2300 days, the Ancient of Days moves in something that has wheels burning like fire, with tho usands o f angels in attendan ce. Th en o ne like the Son of  Man is brought near before him, thirteenth verse. … How evident that bo th F ather and Son here left the throne in th e H oly and mo ved into th e Most Holy, in accordance also with, and close of, the message of the flying angels in Rev. xiv. 6, 7, to sit in judgm ent.” Uriah Smith edited th e  R eview during most of the first half-century of  its existence. He also wrote several books. In 1877 3 he wrote, “We have seen Christ on the throne with the Father in the holy place. But we have seen the F ather chan ging his position and o pen ing a new scene, a scene o f   jud gm en t. To do th is, he must first move to the place wh ere this scen e is to transpire. Th en C hrist … is escorted b y a multitude of h eavenly beings, … into the p resence of the An cient o f days in h is new po sition , according to D an 7:13.” A leading soul winner, counselor, and conference president for well over fifty years, Stephen N. Haskell also spoke of the movement of  Father and Son in 1844. In 19144he reviewed how “Daniel beheld the Father's throne changed from the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary to the second.” But something was “lacking yet. Daniel's attention,” Haskell went on, was “now attracted to the ‘clouds of heaven’ – myriads of angels – bearing the Saviour in before the Father in triumph.” Haskell explained: “In heaven the throne of God was in the first apartment when Ch rist ascended an d sat at the right hand of H is Fath er,” bu t was moved from there to th e second apartmen t in 1844. ADVENTIST LEADERS AND 1844.

68 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T We could cite similar statements from W. A. Spicer,5 the best-lovedever General Conference president (1922-1930), and from another effective General Conference president (1950-1954), W. H . Branson.6 Seventh-day Adventists rightly believe – and report – that in 1844 Father and Son moved from one part of heaven to another to mark the com men cement o f the final judgmen t. E llen White fu lly agreed with h er brethren in this matter of what happened in heaven in 1844. She watched it  happen in one of her early visions. Whereas Daniel seems to have viewed the 1844 event from the “camera angle” of the most holy place, in February 1845, Ellen White saw the same magnificent event from the camera angle of th e ho ly place. “I saw a throne,” she wrote after her vision, “and on it sat the Father and the Son. … I saw the Father rise from the throne, and in a flaming chariot go into the ho ly of h olies within th e veil, and sit do wn. Th en Jesus rose up from the throne. … A cloudy chariot, with wheels like flaming fire, surrounded by angels, came to where Jesus was. He stepped into the chariot an d was born e to th e ho liest, where the F ather sat. " 7 So th is is what happ ened in h eaven on O ctob er 22, 1844; and we'll have mo re to say abou t E llen W hite's vision of F ebruary 1845 in a later chapter. THE 1844 EVENT AND ELLEN C. WHITE.

1. Daniel's narrative about the judgment scene picks up in verse 13 where it left off in verse 10. Daniel 7:11, 12 describe the outcome of the judgment. In some modern versions, the fact that verses 11, 12 area parenthesis is indicated by a change in the way they are printed. In such Bibles, these two verses are printed like prose, whereas the two verses preceding – verses 9, 10 – and the two verses following – verses 13, 14 – are correctly printed in the form of Hebrew poetry. 2. Joseph Bates,  A n E x planation of the T ypical and A nti-T ypical S anctuary (New Bedford, Mass., 1850), 10. 3. Uriah Smith, T he S anctuary and the T wenty-three H undred D ays of D aniel V II I. 1 4 (Battle Creek, 1877), 234-236. 4. Stephen N. Naskell, T he C ross and lts S hadow (South Lancaster, Mass.: The Bible Training School, 1914), 212-214. 5. W. A. Spicer, O ur D ay in the L ight of Prophecy (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press, 1917) 216, 217. 6. W. H. Branson,  D ram a of the A ges (Nashville: Southern Publishing Assn., 1950), 296. 7. E llen G . White, E arly W ritings , 54, 55, italics supplied.

CHAPTER 6

INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT: A SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST INVENTION? People who don't understand the meaning of 1844 sometimes say that the investigative judgment – or the “pre-advent” judgment – was invented by Ellen White, or perhaps by Hiram Edson, and so isn't worth anything. Sometimes they say it was worked up to ease people's embarrassment o ver the great disapp ointm ent. What I wo uld like you to see in this chapter is that th e investigative preadvent judgment was not invented by Hiram Edson, nor did it come out of Ellen White's visions. The main features of the investigative pre-advent  jud gm en t were circulating in prin t, in books an d magazin es, before H iram E dson too k his famou s walk thro ugh his corn field and b efore E llen Wh ite had a vision on the subject; in fact, som e of t he features were in print an d circulating before Ellen White had a vision on any subject. As for the impression that the investigative pre-advent judgment was worked up by Millerites as a zany way of coping with the great disapp ointm ent, I would like to sho w that the b asic foun dation al con cepts were in p rint and circulating some years before the great disappointm ent! To help make sure that we are both talking about the same thing, let us review the main features of the MAIN FEATURES OF THE DOCTRINE.

71

72 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T investigative judgment doctrine as Seventh-day Adventists understand it. What features com e to  your  mind? It began in 1844? It is happening in the heavenly sanctuary? It has a funny name that isn't in the Bible? It is somehow related to Daniel 8:14, even though Daniel 8:14 doesn't say anything about “judgment”? Very good ! And we can add mo re. The investigative pre-advent judgment is no t for everybody but is limited to believers. It has to do with blotting out sins. It is closely related to the Day of Atonement. It is a basis for the three angels' m essages. As you reflect o n our list, you realize that in previous chapters we have already discussed when and by whom several of th e features were first presented. As early as 1818 William Miller saw that the “cleansing of the sanctuary” at th e end o f the 2,300 days was datab le to 1844 (or, at first, to “abou t th e year 1843”). Miller also saw in 1818 th at th e cleansing of th e sanctuary invo lved judgment. H e knew t hat it involved judgmen t b ecause the climax of D aniel 8 (the cleansing) is  parallel with th e climax of D aniel 7 (the judgment). He also recognized that with the judgment only about twenty-five years away, the time had come to proclaim the first angel's message, “The hour of his judgment is come (Revelation 14:7). Some eighteen years after h e developed these ideas he p ublished them (in 1836) in h is sermon bo ok, E vidence from S cripture. In chapter 4 we saw that in the summer of 1844, S.S. Snow, relating type to antitype, showed that the 2,300 days would end on the Day of  Atonement, “the 10th day of the 7th month,” October 22, 1844.1 H e had been teaching this for about a year, but now published a tract on the subject, T he T rue M idnight C ry, August 22, 1844, two months before the great d isappo intm ent. So you have already seen in previous chapt ers that m any features of th e investigative judgment were circulating before the great disappointment. But what about the “pre-advent” idea? Did any of Miller's people say anything abo ut a judgm ent starting before the secon d com ing? Yes, ind eed. The second most influential Bible student among the Millerites, second only to Miller himself, was Josiah Litch, a Methodist writer on the prophecies. As Litch studied the prophecies in 1840 (four years before the great disappointm ent), the co nviction came to h im that th e judgmen t m ust take place before people are resurrected. His book on prophecy,  A n DEVELOPMENTS BEFORE THE GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT.

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 73  A ddress to the P ublic, and E specially to the C lergy, which came o ut th e following year (1841), mad e th e p oint clearly:

Difficulty arises from confounding the resurrection and judgment, or at least from giving the resurrection the precedence in the order of time; whereas the Scriptures place the  judgment  first [his italics]. 2 Here in 1841 is the teaching, in print, that the judgment must begin before the resurrection at the second coming. A year later (1842), in a two-volume work, Prophetic E x positions, Litch noted that according to John 5 and Revelation 20, some people will be resurrected “to life” at the second coming, and others will be resurrected “to death” at a later time. This proves clearly, he said, that judgment comes before resurrection, because the decision as to who is righteous and who isn't is made before anyone is resurrected. And inasmuch as the resurrection of the righteous occurs at the second coming, their judgment must  precede the second coming. Th is reason ing reinforced th e argument in his previous (1841) bo ok. But in this second work (1842), Litch al50 went on to ask his readers to distinguish between two “senses” (or phases) of judgment, the punishment or “executive” phase and, on the other hand, the “trial” or investigative ph ase, which p recedes the p unishmen t p hase. He wro te: TH E TRIAL MUST PRECE D E TH E E XECUTIO N . This is so clear a p rop osition that it is sufficient to state it. N o h um an tribunal would think of executing judgment on a prisoner until after his trial; much less will G od .3 To clinch his argument, Litch quoted the last verse of Ecclcsiastes, indicating the kind of investigative “trial” God will engage in before the resurrection: “For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret th ing, wheth er it be go od , or wh ether it be evil" (E cclesiastes 12:14). We must be careful here! Litch, in 1842, believed with Miller that the second coming would occur “about the year 1843.” It was natural, therefore, that in his mind, the pre-advent “trial” judgment couldn't wait to start  at th e end of the 2,300 days. N on etheless, he was biblically sou nd when he spoke of a pre-advent “trial” (or investigative) judgment. And he had it in print and circulating years before the great disappointment. Litch's understanding of a “trial” judgment that occurs prior to the

74 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T resurrection and the second coming was persuasive. Apollos Hale, a leading Millerite editor, came to believe it too, and began teaching it at least as early as 1843.4 Many other Millerites, especially in Maine, came to believe in the summer of 1844 that the trial judgment had already commenced, before the second coming. 5 So the concepts that (1) judgment is linked to the Day of Atonement, the 2,300 days, and 1844 and that (2) a “trial” type investigative judgment was to p recede the secon d co ming were ind eed circulating in print p rior to the great disapp ointmen t! Not one of the writers who presented these ideas was a Seventh-day Adventist! And young “Sister Ellen,” as she was known in those days, had no t yet received a vision o f any kind. Features Pub lished Before the Great Disappointm ent FUTURE

AUTHO R

PUBLICATIO N

D ATE

1. Judgment related to sanctuary cleansing (Daniel 8:14)

William Miller

E vidence from Scripture

1836

2. Date by 2,300 days to “about 1843”

William Miller

E vidence from Scripture

1836

3. Anno unced b y first Angel’s m essage

William Miller

E vidence from Scripture

1836

4. Precedes second coming (pre-advent)

Josiah Litch

 A dressed to the C lergy

1841

5. “Trial” judgment (investigation) distinct from “execution ”

Josiah Litch

Prophetic E x positions

1842

6. D ated by D ay of  Atonement (O ct. 22)

S. S. Snow

T rue M idnight C ry

August 1842

Th e chart summ arizes what we have seen so far. After the great disappointment, the Millerite Adventists divided three ways. (1) Perhaps half of them quickly gave up all faith in the 2,300 days. (2) A second group, numbering perhaps thirty thousand to fifty thousand retained faith in the 2,300 days bu t speculated on oth er years in the future DEVELOPMENTS RIGHT AFTER THE GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT.

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 75 when they might end. (3) The third group, a few thousand at most, clung correctly and nobly to both the 2,300 days and October 22, 1844. It was the people in this third group – those who had begun to understand the magnificence of their great disappo intm ent – who n ow con cluded th at October 22, 1844, marked the beginning of the pre-advent judgment. Th ey did so o n t he b asis of furth er Bible study. Enoch Jacobs, a member of this third group, was editor of  T he W estern  M idnight C ry (soon to become the  D ay-S tar ) in Cincinnati, Ohio. In his issue of November 29, 1844,6 Jacobs urged, on the basis of several Bible passages, that “unless something as decisive as the setting of the judgment took place on the tenth day [October 22, 1844], the antitype is not yet given,” p roph ecy is no t fulfilled, and we are yet in darkness. Jacobs noted that the high priest wore a garment known as the “breastplate of   judgment  ” (Exodus 28:29, his italics), and that the twelve ston es on the breastplate were engraved exclusively with the nam es of th e Israelite tribes. He also noted that even among the Israelites, individuals who failed to afflict themselves on the Day of Atonement were cut off: “O n th e tenth day of this seventh m on th is the day of atonemen t; … and you shall afflict yourselves. … For whoever is not afflicted on this same day shall be cut off from his peo ple” (Leviticus 23:27, 29). Jacob s's po int was that no on e's nam e could be carried in mercy on the breastplate of judgment unless the person met the requirement of deep soul searching (“afflicting the soul”). All other persons, he noted, were “condemned already” (see John 5:18) and suffered judgment “to go against them ” b y “default.” Thus Jacobs implied (on November 29, 1844) that the pre-advent  jud gm en t had begu n on O ctober 22 an d was dealing only with the cases of  G od’s people. In January 1845 two Millerite editors collaborated to produce a brilliant publication, the  A dvent M irror . O ne of th e two men was Joseph T urner, editor of  T he H ope of Israel in Portland, Maine. The other was Apollos Hale, editor of  T he  A dvent H erald  in Boston, whom we met a few pages back when we mentioned that in 1843 he began teaching Litch's interpretation of a “trial” judgment preceding the second coming. The special contribution of Turner and Hale in their  A dvent M irror  had to do with the interpretation of the midnight cry. You will remember from our chapter “Why October 22?” that the TURNER AND HALE AND THE  A D V E N T M IR R O R .

76 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Millerites to ok great interest in th e parable of th e virgins (Matth ew 25) and in the midnight cry) “Behold the bridegroom cometh.” They endeavored to be “ready” to “go into the wedding” with the wise young women when Jesus would come to earth to marry His bride, the church. Samuel Snow persuaded them that the true midnight cry was that Jesus was to come to the wedding on “10th day, 7th m on th,” or O ctober 22. But in the  A dvent M irror , Turner and Hale showed, first of all, that according to Revelation , the b ride o f Christ is no t th e church , as almo st all Christians had believed! It is the New Jerusalem, the capital of His kingdom: “Then came one of the seven angels … and spoke to me, saying, ‘Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ And in the Spirit he carried me away … and showed me the holy city Jerusalem ” (Revelation 21:9-11). Next, Turner and Hale pointed to another wedding parable, in addition to the parable of the virgins – the one in Luke 12:35-57, where Jesus warns us, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding” (KJV). 7 Th e Millerites had used th is passage o ften, exhorting one anoth er to be ready when t he Bridegroom would com e to th e wedding. But o n rereading the passage after the great disappointment, Turner and Hale noticed – evident ly to their comp lete aston ishm ent – t hat it does n ot say, “Be ready when your Lord comes to the wedding,” but that it says, instead, to be ready when the Lo rd sh all “return from ” t he wedding. The meaning could only be that the Millerites had been wrong in expecting Jesus to come here, to the earth, for the wedding. The wedding would have to be in heaven, where the New Jerusalem is, and  from which Christ could return after  the wedd ing was over. Their astonishment at discovering this new biblical light is revealed in the fact that they put “returning from the wedding” in italics: “the Lord, returning from the wedding.” Then Turner and Hale proceeded to bring in, at last, a correct understanding of Daniel 7:13. The Millerites and virtually all other Christians had assumed that when the Son of man comes on the clouds at  jud gm en t time, H e will come to the eart h at the seco nd advent. But read correctly, as we saw in our previou s chapter, D aniel 7:13 do es no t p ortray the Son of man coming to the earth at judgment hour but to the Ancient of Days: “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of  heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the  A ncient of 

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 77  D ays and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom ” (D aniel 7:13,14). Here was true light, right out of the Bible. “The coming of the Bridegroom to the marriage [parable of the virgins, Matthew 25],” Turner and H ale said, “m ust den ote t hat ch ange in h is heavenly state, in wh ich h e com es to th e Ancient of D ays [D aniel 7] to receive do minion.” In other words, the marriage of Christ to His kingdom and His reception of dominion and power in the pre-advent judgment are tile same thing; and Jesus all along planned to come to the marriage, that is, to “come” to the judgment – in heaven – before coming to the earth at the second advent. (Miller himself liked what the two editors had done and wrot e a letter to say so. 8) Turner and Hale now called attention to a third wedding parable in addition to the parable of th e ten virgins (see Matthew 25) and the parable of the lord returning from the wedding (see Luke 12:35-37). This third parable is the one about the king who prepared a wedding feast for his son and offered a free wedding garment to every guest. As part of the ongoing wedding process, the king came into the banquet hall and examined – judged! – the guests to see whether th ey had th e garmen ts on . Mindful of the practical application of what they were talking about, Turner and Hale warned, We are “now in the guestchamber, where all depends on our keeping our garments,” for “we have only the final examination of th e K ing to p ass.” “T he judgment is here!” th ey cried, putting the word s in italics.

We started this book emphasizing that Miller was the best man available at the time and the most nearly right man in the world. He definitely was right in seeing the 2,300 days as 2,300 years from 457 B.C. to “about the year 1843.” He was definitely right in preaching a literal, perso nal second co ming o f Jesus; in saying that the cleansing of the sanctuary (see Daniel 8:14) involves the  jud gm en t (see D an iel 7); an d in saying that th e tim e had co me to preach the first angel's message. He could have been more accurate than to say “about the year 1843,” an d  from the B ible, S.S. Snow sharpened the statement down to “10th day, 7th mo nth (= O ctober 22), 1844.” Litch, on the basis of   B ible study , enriched Miller's concept of the  jud gmen t by calling atten tio n to a pre-advent “trial” (or investigative)  judgment. MILLER'S ERRORS CORRECTED THROUGH BIBLE STUDY.

78 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Then Turner and Hale, on the basis of   B ible study , showed that Christ was to “come” to the New Jerusalem for the wedding-judgment before returning to the earth, thereby reinforcing what Enoch Jacobs had observed on N ovember 29 – that therefore the judgment was to begin , no t end, on O ctob er 22 at the close of th e 2,300 days. And no w H ale, in a furth er, two-part, follow-up article in F ebruary and March l845,9 corrected th e idea that th e “sanctuary” o f D aniel 8:14 had to be the earth because the one in heaven couldn't possibly need cleansing. H ale called atten tion to that passage in the Bible, H ebrews 9:22, 23, that we looked at in our chapter 2 and that most Christians have misread: “It was therefore necessary that the patterns o f th ings in the heavens [that is, the earthly sanctuary] should be purified with these [the blood of calves and of goats], but the heavenly things themselves [that is, the heavenly sanctuary] with bet ter sacrifices than these.” Features Published Right After the Great Disapp ointment FUTURE

AUTHO R

PUBLICATIO N

D ATE

1. Began on O ctober 22, 1844

Enoch Jacobs

W estern  M idn ight C ry

November 29, 1844

2. Limited to pro fessed believers

Enoch Jacobs

W estern  M idn ight C ry

November 29, 1844

3 In volves “m arriage” to kingdom in heaven

Joseph Turner, Apollos Hale

 A dvent M irror 

January 1845

4. Christ to return from wedding

Joseph Turner, Apollos Hale

 A dvent M irror 

January 1845

5. “ T he Judgment is here”

Joseph Turn er, Apollos Hale

 A dvent M irror 

January 1845

6. Sanctuary of D aniel 8:14 is in heaven

Joseph Turner, Apollos Hale

 A dvent M irror 

Feb. Mar. 1845

The people we have quoted thus far – none of whom ever became a Seventh-day Adventist – got their understanding of the investigative  jud gm en t out of their Bibles. Perhaps you are wondering about Hiram Edson, the Methodist farmer who is famous for his experience in the grain field EDSON AND CROSIER.

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 79 the d ay after the great disappo intm ent. I have purp osely left E dson out of  the discussion thus far because he didn't  publish his ideas; he didn't get them circulating in print as soon as the other men did. But it's time to mention him now. Edson was both a successful farmer and a fine soul winner. As is well known, on Wednesday morning, October25, 1844, while walking across his farm, he was struck with dynamic new thoughts. He suddenly realized that the day before (October 22), Jesus had (1) gone into the most holy place on the clouds of heaven and that He was (2) to marry His kingdom there and then return from the wedding.10 I saw distinctly, and clearly, that … our High Priest … on the tenth day of th e seventh mo nth , at the end of the 2300 days, … for the first time entered … the secon d apartm ent o f that [the h eavenly] sanctuary; and that he had a work to perform in the Most Holy before coming to this earth. That he came to the marriage at that time; in other words, to the Ancient of days to receive a kingdom, dominion, and glory; and we must wait for his return  from the wedding [his emp hasis]. The tradition that Edson saw this in a vision may or may not be true, but in any case the information that came to him is to be found in anybody's Bible. You know enough by now to recognize that his new ideas came from Daniel 7 (Son of man comes to the  A ncient of D ays) and Luke 12 (the Lord returning from the wedd ing) and were the same ideas that came, also from Daniel 7 and Luke 12, to Joseph Turner and Apollos Hale. Edson did not publish his discoveries at once. 11 But on February 7, 1846, Edson, along with an educator friend, O. R. L. Crosier, and a physician friend, F. B. Hahn, collaborated in producing an extra issue of  the Day-Star. Almost the entire issue was taken up with a single article, “T he Law of Mo ses,” in which Christ's con temp orary, po st-1844 ministry was interpreted in light of Leviticus 16. While Edson and Hahn guaranteed the expense, Crosier did the writing. On behalf of Edson and Hahn, Crosier showed that the sanctuary of Daniel 8:14 is the one in heaven, that the Day of Atonement was to be fulfilled in heaven rather than on earth, and that the cleansing began when Jesus in 1844 entered heaven's most holy place.12 The cleansing was not to be achieved by fire burn ing up the earth b ut b y Christ's bloo d b lotting out sins.

80 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Within two months, the  D ay-S tar  carried a fascinating observation by Crosier in respect to two cleansings going on at the same time – a cleansing of our souls on earth while the sanctuary is being cleansed in heaven. It represents a profound spiritual insight, and we'll discuss it in chapter 9. For now, let's review the basic features published by O. R. L. Crosier in th e  D ay-S tar Extra. Investigative Judgm ent F eatures P ublished by O. R . L. Crosier FUTURE

AUTHO R

PUBLICATIO N

D ATE

1. H eavenly Atonem ent taught by Leviticus 16

Crosier, Edson, Hahn

 D ay-S tar  Extra

February 7, 1846

2. Cleansing “blots out” sins

Crosier, Edson, Hahn

 D ay-S tar  Extra

February 7, 1846

3. Parallels a special cleansing of G od’s people on earth

Crosier

 D ay-S tar 

April 18, 1846

Let's say it again: Th e do ctrine o f th e pre-advent investigative judgm ent was not invented by Seventh-day Adventists. In fact, many of its features were printed and in circulation before the great disappointment of  October 22, 1844, and the others were developed from the Bible by people who for the most part were not and did not go on to become Seventh-day Adventists. What was young sister Ellen doing while all this was going on? If she did not invent the investigative-judgment doctrine, did she p lay any part in its develop men t? When Jesus didn't come to earth on October 22, 1844, Ellen was so disappointed that she questioned whether the “midnight cry” about 10th day, 7th month was in any sense correct. In December 1844, she had her first vision – two years after Litch first published his understanding of the pre-advent “trial” (investigative) judgment. In this first vision, 13 Ellen saw a long path on which the saints were traveling to the city, with Jesus graciously traveling the path with them. At “the beginning of the path,” a “bright light” was shining. The angel told her this light was the midnight cry. Here was encouragement! What the angel meant was that the midnight-cry message about 10th day, 7th ELLEN G. WHITE.

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 81 mo nth was true light after all. More than this, Ellen noticed that the midnight-cry light “shone all along the path and gave light for their [the saints’] feet so that they might no t stumble.” H owever, som e of th e saints “ rashly denied th e light b ehind them.” For them, the light went out, and they stumbled and “fell off the path down into the d ark and wicked wo rld.” The meaning of this part of the vision was that God intended 1844 to guide His people all the way to the holy city. This is the reason I am writing these words to you right now. If any of us give up 1844 and say that it has no special meaning for us today, its light will sooner or later go ou t for us, and we will drift into apo stasy. May G od 's grace keep this from happen ing to you and me. Two months later, in February 1845, Ellen received the “Bridegroom” vision 14 that we talked abo ut in o ur p revious ch apter. It's the vision abou t both Father and Son leaving the throne in the holy place to go into the most holy place – her first vision about the magnificent event that took  place in heaven in 1844. What we didn't mention in our previous chapter is that as Jesus left the holy-place throne to go into the most holy place, He said to His people, “Wait here; I am going to M y F ather to receive the k ingdom ; keep your garments spotless, and in a little while I will return from the wedding and receive you to myself.” In the words that I have italicized, you can see Jesus Himself making use of Daniel 7 (“going to My Father to receive the kingdom”) and Luke 12:35-37 (“return from the wedding”). Thus in vision, Jesus, in February 1845, endorsed the very interpretation that Turner and Hale had pub lished in the  A dvent M irror  in January.15 At the commencement of the holy Sabbath during a season of prayer four years later, on January 5, 1849, Ellen – now Mrs. James White – saw in vision that “Jesus would not leave the most holy place until every case was decided eith er for salvation or destruction.”16 The Seventh-day Adventist doctrine of the pre-advent investigative  jud gm en t was not wo rked up by E llen White or H iram E dso n an d is not based on an isolated proof text. It was developed by many Bible students from a large body of interrelated data located in both Old and New Testamen ts. Sister White's role was to con firm the features discovered b y others. Additional N ote This additional note is for readers who would like to survey the great

82 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T breadth of Bible study that underlies the investigative-judgment doctrine – a doctrine th at was not develop ed by any on e person and is not based o n D aniel 8:14 alon e. 1. Daniel 7:9-14, 22 shows Father and Son both “coming” to a new place in heaven for the judgment. In this classic portrayal of judgment day in heaven, both the Ancient of Days and the Son of man come to a new place in heaven for judgment. Verses 25, 26 indicate that this judgment was to b egin around the end of th e 1260 years (1798). 2. Daniel 12:1,2; Revelation 20:6 show that at the second coming, the “blessed and holy,” whose “names are found written in the book of life,” are resurrected to receive life everlasting, indicating that their judgment precedes the secon d com ing. 3. Daniel 8:14 gives the year for the judgment (it parallels the  jud gm en t scen e in D an iel 7). By using san ctuary language (“th en sh all the sanctuary be cleansed”), it directs our attention to the Day of Atonement (see Leviticus 16, 23) in o rder to learn m ore abou t th e judgment. 4. Leviticus 16, 23. On the Day of Atonement, when the high priest. entered t he m ost h oly place to cleanse the sanctuary and the co ngregation of their sins, the people – as on a day of   judgment  – were to “afflict their souls” or be  judged  and “cut off” (see Leviticus 23:26-32, KJV). The Day of Atonement was a day of reconciliation and salvation to the repentant bu t a day of judgment to p eop le who refused to participate spiritually. 5. Comparison of the spring and autumn types directs attention t o the actual date O ctob er 22, the correct D ay of Ato nem ent in 1844. Just as Jesus fulfilled the springtime Passover ceremony in the year of prophecy and o n th e actual day of th e Passover, so H e could be coun ted o n to fulfill the autumn Day of Atonement ceremony in the year of prophecy (1844) and on the actual D ay of Atonem ent (10th day, 7th mo nth= O ctober 22. See chapter 3). 6. Malachi 3 says that the Lo rd was to “co me” sudden ly to H is temp le to “purge” or cleanse the sons of Levi. The coming and cleansing recall Daniel 7 and Leviticus 16 and point to the special parallel cleansing of  God's people while the heavenly sanctuary is being cleansed. 7. H ebrews 8 and 9 affirm the existence of a two-part heavenly sanctuary (by comparison with the earthly tabernacle; see Hebrews 9:1-5) and inform us of the need of the heavenly sanctuary to be purified at som e time (see H ebrews 9:22, 23). 8. Acts 3:19, 20 promises that sins that have been repented of will be “blotted out” at the time when God will “send the Christ,” whom the

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 83 heavens mu st retain until the time com es for “establishing all” that G od 's prop hets have predicted. 9. The wedding parables sho w that th ose saints wh o are ready would go “into the marriage” near the end of time (parable of the virgins, Matthew 25). Evidently Jesus meant that they would go in only by faith, because in Luke 12:35-37 He spoke of His followers as waiting on earth until He would return from the wedding. In Matthew 22 He portrayed the wedding guests as being examined (judged) to see if they were wearing th e wedding garment. 10. Other wedding imagery. In various places the New Testament teaches that Christ is at present betro thed to H is corpo rate church (that is, to the church as a whole, otherwise known as His “kingdom,” not to the individual members, who are married to their own human spouses). Jesus is busy purifying His church-kingdom from every spot and wrinkle. When His church-kingdom is fit to be His bride – that is, after the cleansing and examination period is completed – He will marry it, thus receiving His kingdom. Then He will return to earth to take His individual church members as guests to the wedding supper, which follows immediately. See Ephesians 5; Luke 12:35-37; Luke 19:11,12; Revelation 19:9. 11. Revelation 14:6-12 contains the first angel's message with its announcement of the arrival of judgment hour while the gospel is still being preached. The second and third angels call the saints to separate themselves from all false Christians and to keep the commandments of  God. Thus, while the judgment is sorting out God's people in heaven, a sorting-out process is called for among the professe4 people of God on earth. 12. First Peter 4:17 announces the basic principle that “judgment [mu st] begin with th e ho usehold of G od .” Peter's words echo th e teaching of Ezekiel 9:6, “Begin at my sanctuary.” They have a special relationship and relevance to the end -time judgment o f the first angel's message and to the sealing work o f Revelation 7:1-3. 13. The doctrine of perseverance shows that even tho se who accept Christ as their Saviour are expected by God to persevere in their faithobedience relationship to Him or lose out in the judgment. The person who “h as the Son o f G od has life” right no w, but h e will be saved o nly if  he “endures to the end” (1 John 5:12; Matthew 24:13). A believer is expected to call Jesus “Lord,” but unless the believer obeys Jesus, calling Him “Lord” will not avail (Ro mans 10:9; Matthew 7:21). To be forgiven

84 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T ultimately, the Christian must be forgiving (see Matthew 6:14). A Gentile grafted into Paul's olive tree will, if unpersevering, be cut off as surely as th e jewish n ation o nce was (see Rom ans 11:21). We are saved b y faith , but only if our faith is a living faith that produces acts of mercy and goodness (see James 2). The judgment investigates people who have at any time professed faith in Jesus to see whether they persevered in their faithob edience relation ship. Let's say it again: The Seventh-day Adventist doctrine of the pre-advent investigative judgment is not based on an isolated proof text but was developed from a large body of interrelated data located in both the Old and N ew Testaments.

1. Although contemporary reports of the Exeter camp meeting refer only to “the 10th day of the 7th month” and not specifically to October 22, the  M idnight  C ry for October31, 1844, says that Snow began advocating “about the 22d of  O ctob er” as early as the spring of 1844. 2. See Josiah Litch,  A n A ddress to the Public, and E specially to the C lergy (Boston, 1841), 37. The preface is dated May 10, 1840. 3. Josiah Litch, Prophetic E x positions (Boston, 1842), 1:50-54. 4. See A. Hale,  H erald of the B ridegroom! (Boston, 1843), 22-24. 5. T he M idnight C ry, 13 O ctober 1844. 6. Enoch Jacobs, “The Time: Evidence That the Judgment Might Have Set on the 10th Day of the 7th Month,” T he W estern M idnight C ry, 29 November 1844, 18-20. 7. Some modern translations have “return from the wedding supper.” For a discussion, see G od Cares, 2:407-410. 8. Miller liked what his editors had done in their  A dvent M irror . He wanted other people to know that he liked it, so on February 6, 1845, he wrote a letter, published in the  D ay-S tar  of March 11, referring to Turner and Hale and saying, “I do believe in the main they are right.” We are to await Christ's return from the wedding. “Christ has risen up from his mercy-seat, and now stands as a judge at the door.” Miller followed up this letter with another dated March20, published in the  D ay-S tar  for April 8, in which he specifically defended the validity of “the 10th day, 7th month” (October 22, 1844). Referring to the first angel's message, “the hour of his judgment is come,” he asked, “is there anything in the scriptures to show that the hour has not come, or in our present position to show, that God is not now in his last judicial character deciding the cases of all the righteous, so that Christ (speaking after the manner of men) will know whom to collect at his coming?” Miller provided a list of judgment events in sequence, using Daniel 7 and Revelation 20. “Who can say,” he asked, that “God is not already justifying

INVESTIGATIVE JUDG MEN T 85 his Sanctuary [Daniel 8: 4, margin], and will yet justify us in preaching the time?” Apparently at the urging of Joshua V. Himes, Miller later abandoned this interpretation. 9. The article was published in two parts in the  A dvent H erald  for February 26 and March 5, 1845, and reprinted with a warm recommendation by James White in th e  R eview for Septemb er 16 and O ctober 7, 1851. 10. What remains of Edson's handwritten account is preserved in the Adventist Heritage Center, Andrews Universiry. 11. It is not known when Edson's new discoveries first appeared in print. In the spring of 1845, a friend, F. B. Hahn, launched the  D ay-D awn , of Canand aigua, New York. When it first appeared, evidently in April, Enoch Jacobs of the  D ayStar  (in his April 15, 1845, issue, p. 36) commented that the sentiments of the  D ay-D awn differed little from the ideas of Apollos Hale, Joseph Turner, and Samuel Snow, editors whom we have been citing. No copy of the  D ay-D awn from 1845 is known to exist, and some of his arguments in the Day-Star edition of F ebruary 7, 1846, definitely go beyond the p osition s of th ese other m en. 12. Crosier appealed to the Greek terms hagia an d ta hagia underlying various references to the heavenly sanctuary and to the holy place in the book of  Hebrews. He showed that, properly translated, Hebrews does not present Jesus as having en tered h eaven’s m ost ho ly place up on 1-us ascension . It is regrettable that the New International Version and some other modern versions mistranslate hagia an d ta hagia in such ways as to force Hebrews to teach that Jesus went into the mo st ho ly place upo n H is ascension to h eaven. 13. E llen G . White, E arly W ritings , 13-20. 14. Ib id., 54-56. 15. When some critics said that Ellen Harmon didn't get the information from Jesus but read it in the  A dvent M irror , she responded emphatically that she had been en tirely too ill to read th e magazine. Fro m what is kno wn o f her co nd ition at the time, we must be inclined to believe her. 16. Ellen G . White, E arly W ritings , 36.

PART 3 EXPLORING THE MEANING

CHAPTER 7

1 8 4 4 AND BE BEING ING “ ADVEN DVENTI TIST” ST” In the intro duction we p rom ised ourselves ourselves that after we we loo loo ked at 1844 as a date and as an event, we would explore the meaning of 1844 for today. We are now ready to do this. To begin with, let's try the question, “Wh ere did the nam e ‘Adventist’ ‘Adventist’ com e from ?” “That's an easy question,” you reply. “An Adventist is a person who believes that Christ is coming soon, and Seventh-day Adventists believe that Ch rist rist is is com ing soo n.” But wait. wait. D ispensation spensation ali alists, the peo ple who who speak abo abo ut th e “rapture,” also believe that Christ is coming soon. In fact, many of them think He's coming sooner than Seventh-day Adventists do. Many dispensationalists teach that Ch rist rist could com e at any mom ent, rapturing rapturing autom ob ile drivers drivers and airl airliine p ilots o ut o f th eir eir vehicles, vehicles, and and so o n. 1 O ur p oint is that dispen dispen sation sation ali alists believe believe that Christ is is com ing soo n, very soon, yet they are not Adventists and do not want to be called Adventists. So th ere must be som ething speci special al about the n ame Adventist and and wh at it stand s for. And , yes, yes, the special special difference difference h as to do with with 1844. THE O RIGINAL MEANING MEANING OF  A D V E N T  AN D  A D V E N T I S T .

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The word advent  is

90 MAG MAG N IFICEN IFICEN T D ISAPP ISAPPO O INTMEN T based o n a Latin Latin word for arrival arrival or com ing. Most Seventh Seventh -day Adventists Adventists know this. But for most Protestant and Catholic Christians, Christ's advent is His  first  coming. Denominations that follow the church year celebrate Advent, or Advent season, during the four weeks leading up to Christmas. On Sundays during Advent they look at the Old Testament prophecies predicting the Messiah's birth. Depending on the ministers’ preferences, they may also refer to prophecies about His second advent, soon er or later later in in t he future. Thus it was that in the 1830s William Miller did not preach about Christ's Christ's advent advent at th e end o f the 2,300 days; days; he p reached abo ut H is secon secon d advent. As the Millerite movement swelled in size and activity in the early 1840s, its camp meetings and other big rallies were known as Second Advent meetings. The movement itself became known as the Second Advent movement. And William Miller's followers became known as Second Adventists. That's right! But “Second Adventists” Adventists” is is a mo uthful. And inasmuch as there were no Christians around called First Adventists, people naturally fell into the hab it o f abbreviati abbreviating ng th e name to Ad ventists. ventists. Today Seventh-day Adventists call their main denominational periodical the  A dventist R eview first app eared, in in O ctob er 1850, its its view . When it first full name was S econd A dvent half of th e dvent R eview view and S abbath H erald  rald . The first half name, “Second Advent Review,” indicated that the editor, James White, plann plann ed to review review the evidence evidence that G od had b een at work in in th e Second Second Advent m ovemen t of 1840-1844 1840-1844.. Note this carefully. Miller and his Second Adventists believed that the second advent would occur soon because of the fulfillment of the 2,300 days. Before the great disappointment, they believed that the second advent would occur at the actual ending of the 2,300 days in 1844. After the great disappointment, those who continued to believe that the 2,300 days ended in 1844 now believed that the second advent would occur soon because in in 1844, the final final judgm judgm ent began. The name “Seventh-day Adventist” was officially voted in Battle Creek  in 1860. You are now prepared to recognize that the “Adventist” part did not mean simply that the pioneers believed that Christ was coming soon. It meant that they believed Christ was coming soon in view of the  fulfill  fu lfillm m ent of the th e 2 ,3 0 0 days da ys. In our next chapter we want to see that even the “seventh-day” part of  the name is based on the 2,300 days. For now, I would like to enlarge a little on th e fact that 1844 is the clearest clearest sign sign t hat C hrist is is com ing soon so on .

1844 AND BEIN G “ADVEN TIST” 91 The reason 1844 is the clearest sign that Christ is coming soon is that in that year the final  jud gm en t began. Alm ost all Christians in all times an d places have associated the final judgment with the actual second coming. Tell them that the second coming is near, and they assume you mean that the final  jud gmen t is also near. But it is our privilege an d resp onsibility under th e first angel's message to tell people that the final judgment has already begun. And if the final judgmen t has already begun, we have surely reached th e end time! 1844 AS THE SUPREME SIGN OF THE SECOND COMING.

Yet we acknowledge that 1844 seems like a long time ago. How can it arouse people in the 990s to a sense that the second com ing is near ? We need a change of perspective. Instead of looking back to 1844 and finding it around 150 years in the past, let us go back to the beginning of  hum an h istory and view 1844 as almo st six tho usand years in the future. Let us stand beside Adam and E ve on a hilltop outside E den and help them look forward, through their tears, to the time when on the cross, Jesus would die for their sin. To discover the cross from Eden, we must scrutinize four thousand future years! Together we search the first two tho usand years and find o urselves barely past N oah 's floo d and th e life of  Abraham. About five hundred years after Abraham, we reach only as far as the Exodus. (We remember that five hundred years is more than twice the total age of the United States and more than three times the chro no logical distance b etween 1844 and the 1990s.) With Adam and Eve we continue to scan their future. Some five hundred years after the Exodus, we enjoy a sudden thrill as we watch David sling a stone at the giant Goliath. But we find it's still another five hundred years after David before we reach Daniel and the rise of  Babylon … followed by the rise and fall of Media-Persia … and of  G reece … and t he rise of Ro me. Sudd enly we burst into tears at th e sight of our dear Jesus hanging on the cross, fully four thousand years after Adam and E ve ate the forbidden fruit. In our imagination, we leave our first parents to m editate abo ut the cross with mixed emotions as we continue our quest for the second coming. We must search through yet another five hundred years, more or less, before we come to an event that today we consider ancient history, the fall of Rome (in A.D. 476) and then the beginning of the 1260 days 1844 IN PERSPECTIVE.

92 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T (in 538). We have nearly one thousand more years to go before we reach E urop e's discovery of Am erica (in 1492), and appro ximately anot her three hun dred years to th e D eclaration of In dep enden ce (in 1776). The day has grown late, and th e western 5l(y is aglow as finally, at lon g last, when we have nearly given up , a trium ph ant ch eer bursts th rougho ut lips. “There they are,” we cry, “the three angels! They're flying in the clouds of sunset!” Searching carefully beneath them, we discover a pillar of p rop hetic fulfillmen t en graved with th e golden n um bers “1844.” From the perspective of Eden at the beginning of earth's six thousand years, the remaining distance between 1844 and the 1990s is hardly discernible. These 150 years between 1844 and the 1990s represent only one-fortieth, 2.5 percent, of human history. More than 97 percent of  human history took place prior to 1844. Yes, we are indeed in the end time. The final judgment began only yesterday, as it were. Christ's second advent is com ing soon . But although 1844 is the clearest sign of the nearness of the second coming, it does not stand alone. Several other major prophetic signs were fulfilled during the decades leading up to 1844, and taken together th ey con tribute t o t he status of 1844 as the supreme sign of  the secon d com ing. Th e 1260-day pro ph ecy began in 538, during a m ajor ch ange in church and world history. It closed in 1798, during another major change in church and world history that included epochal developments like the American and French revolutions, the Industrial Revolution, and the glob al surge of E urop ean co lon ialism, vast co nsequen ces of wh ich remain to this day. The 1260 days deserved to be mentioned seven times in Daniel and Revelation (see Daniel 7:25; 12:4-7; Revelation 11:2,3; 12:6, 14; 13:5). Whole books could be written about them, and years ago I wrote one.2 Daniel 12:4-7 expressly indicates that the close of the 1260 days would mark the onset of the “time of the end.” The 1260 days ended in 1798. Thus 1798 stands along with 1844 as a colossal monument, a towering gatepo st, past which hu manity entered into the en d time. 1844 NO T ALON E.

Other prophetic fulfillments that add stature to 1844 are the classic “nature” signs – the Lisbon earthquake of  1755, the dark day and bloody moon of May 19, 1780, and the falling of  the stars on N ovem ber 13, 1833 – p redicted in Matthew 24:29,30 and Revelation 6:13. 1844 AND THE NATURE SIGNS.

1844 AND BEIN G “ADVEN TIST” 93 Sometimes overlooked today, these natural signs merit a revival of  interest. E ach was outstand ing in its own right, and together t hey came at the right time and in t he right p laces to fulfill Bible pro ph ecy. Consider the magnitude of the Lisbon earthquake. It shook millions of  square miles, from North Africa (where it leveled twin cities five hundred miles south of Lisbon) to Scandinavia (where it altered the water level of  lakes) to the cities of Eastern Europe (where it rang church bells). If  Lisbo n h ad been San F rancisco, this earthquake wou ld h ave destroyed Los Angeles as well as San Fran cisco and would h ave disturbed H udso n Bay in no rtheastern Canada! As recently as 1980, the widely respected seismologist G. A. Eiby, in chapter 11 of his E arthquak es,3 ranked the Lisbon earthquake as “the largest shock ever” and reckon ed th at it may well have reached an almo st incredible 9.0 on the Richter scale, seven times stronger than the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. In 1955, on the two hundredth anniversary of the Lisbon tremor, Sir Thomas Kendrick, director of the great British Museum, released a book 4 demonstrating that the terrifying Lisbon earthquake ended a long era of optimism and opened a period of gloom that led directly to the F rench Revolution, which, in its turn, o pen ed a n ew era in hum an d estiny. The dark day of May 19, 1780, has not been equaled in North America in the two hundred years that have since come and gone. The Leonid shower of November 13, 1833, gave birth to a new branch of astronomy. From the mid-Atlantic to California a maximum of sixty thousand meteors were seen falling every hour, many exploding noiselessly into subshowers of stars, as the vast shimmering spectacle sailed silently westward. Like the Lisbo n earth quake and t he famo us dark day, it to o h as no t b een m atched, in sp ite o f scientific expectation s that it would be. The 1966 shower, though perhaps as brilliant while it lasted, was much shorter in duration and was visible over a much smaller area, merely a portion of  the American south west. The location of the classic signs was h ighly sign ificant. They happ ened in Europe and America primarily, where people were studying the Bible and pondering the prophecies. A dark day on the Sahara Desert or a star shower over New Guinea would have said little in those days about the second coming of Christ to cannibal headhunters or Muslim nomads. Events need not be universal to deliver a global message. A few square miles at Hiroshima and Nagasaki were sufficient to announce the atomic age. A stable in Bethlehem ushered in the Christian era. Only a few

94 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T hu nd red p eop le saw Jesus after H is resurrection – but they told o thers. The nature signs happened at the right time. Jesus said t hat t he sun and moon would be darkened and the stars would fall “immediately after the tribulation of those days [the 1260 days]” (Matthew 24:29). And so they were. The last overt European persecution of Protestants is said to have occurred in 1762. The dark day came in 1780 and the star shower fiftythree years later, in 1833. Almost immediately, in 1844, Jesus traveled as Son of Man on the cloud s of heaven to the Ancient of D ays to inaugurate the final judgm ent. We have said nothing about more contemporary signs of Christ's coming, such as the amazing prominence of Pope John Paul II, the emergence of the United States as the world's only superpower after the Gulf War, evangelistic successes in Russia, and soaring crime rates in America. Whether the current exciting headlines mean that Christ is coming right away we cannot say with certainty. Unlike the other signs we have been speaking about, these specific developments do nor precisely fulfill specific prophecies. We have been warned that “we are not to live upon time excitement. … You will not be able to say that He will come in one, two, or five years, neither are you to put off His coming by stating that it may not be for ten or twenty years.”5 But when such current events are evaluated in the light of 1844 , they can surely be viewed as striking reminders that we are indeed in the end time and th at final events will be rapid o nes. 1844 AND CONTEMPORY SIGNS.

It is most important that we see clearly th e relationsh ip b etween 1844 and th e Sevent h-d ay Adven tist belief  in the nearness of the second coming. The year 1844 is the kingpin in a system of prophetic interpretation that, taken together, should affect our most vital personal decisions. We are going to take up some of these prophetic relationships and their implications in the next few chapters. For now, let us remind ourselves that 1844 signaled the time for the proclamation of the first angel's message (“the hour of his judgment has come”), activating the commission to proclaim the gospel in its judgmentho ur setting to the en tire world, “to every nation and tribe and ton gue and peo ple.” T his glob al com mission we have no t yet com pleted. 1844 AND STILL OTHER PROPHECIES.

Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal

1844 AND BEIN G “ADVEN TIST” 95 gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, "Fear G od and give h im glory, for th e ho ur of h is judgmen t has com e; and worship h im who made h eaven and earth, the sea and the foun tains of water.” If 1844 signaled the onset of the first angel's message, it also signaled the time for the second angel's message about the fall of Babylon and the time for the third angel's message about the mark of the beast and faithfilled com mand men t keeping. By letting us know that we are in the end time, 1844 (along with 1798) tells us that we are nearing the time for the final showdown on the Sabbath question foretold in Revelation 13. Seventh-d ay Advent ists have become so accustomed to seeing the United States in the prophecy of  Revelation 13 that it is easy for us to forget that the biblical reason we have for knowing that the fulfillment of Revelation 13 lies in the near future is the fulfillment of the 2,300 days in 1844, along with the fulfillment of th e 1260 days in 1798. It is because o f 1844 and th e way it triggered the t hree an gels' messages that we know that Sabbath and Sunday will, in fact, be the final issue, that the final crisis will take the form of the mark of the beast versus the seal of G od , and that th e seal of G od is Sabbath keeping in a life that em ulates the character of Christ. By introducing many related prophecies, 1844 cautions us against saying that Jesus might appear at any moment the way the dispensationalists do, just as it also cautions us not to put the second com ing far off into the future th e way the po stmillenn ialists do. We kn ow that Jesus is coming soon, for the final judgment has already begun. But we also know that Jesus isn't about to come at any moment, for several essential prophecies have yet to be fulfilled. The gospel of the kingdom is not yet preached to every nation and tribe and tongue and people. The Sabbath question has no t yet b ecom e a glob al issue. Th e Un ited States has not yet led world Protestantism into a concerted attack on Sabbath keepers. All these development may – and we sincerely hope will – take place in a relatively sho rt p eriod ; but th ey do have to h appen before Jesus can appear. Thus 1844 both encourages us with the knowledge that Jesus is coming soon and cautions us with the knowledge that He isn't coming today or tom orrow. “We are not to live upon time excitement. … You will not be able to

96 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T say that He will come in one, two, or five years, neither are you to put off  H is com ing b y stating th at it m ay no t b e for ten or twenty years.”6 Consider the value of viewing the second com ing as no t closer than five years bu t po ssibly no t m ore d istant th an ten years. Such a view dampens fanaticism and helps prevent repeated disappointments. True, viewing the second coming as several years off  rather th an a few mo nth s away can lead to carelessness and com plaisance, bu t it also can lead to a sense of p urp ose and respon sibility. If Christ is coming soon but not at once, young people should finish their education , bot h because they have time to finish it and because their education will be needed for world evangelism and for the final crisis. Couples should marry with the awareness that their marriages will need to endure beyond the honeymoon. Congregations should lay long-range plans for reaching their entire cities with the three angels' messages rather than launching one “final” project after another. Believers who are growing older should realize that it is not wise to expect the second coming as soon as they would like and that it is not wrong to plan financially for at least five to ten future years. O n t he o ther h and, if Jesus may well com e within five to ten years, how should we arrange our priorities? If within five or ten years we may be surrounded with the incomprehensible luxuries of heaven, can we not make cheerful sacrifices today? Should we not revive the old Seventh-day Adventist custom, when laying plans for the future, of adding the words, “If time lasts that long”? If the final judgment has already begun, can we not leave to Jesus the injustices we stiffer, knowing that Me will take care of them soon, leaving us free to get on with the business of doing good even to ou r enem ies? (See Rom ans 12:14-21.) Driving a long distance alone some years ago, I found my mind distracted by many thoughts. I asked God to help me concentrate on what the second com ing co uld m ean to specific peop le I knew. At on ce I began to see a paralyzed friend running and jumping. I pictured a lonely widow I knew, gleefully surrounded by her family. I imagined my own older sister, suffering then from an incurable disease, young and pretty again. My tho ughts went on and o n, from o ne relative and friend to ano ther. It was a  joyous time that I have since renewed in my mind, thinkin g of wh at the second com ing will mean to various p eop le. If the joys of the second coming are being delayed till the three angels' messages get preached to everyone in the world, should not Seventh-day 1844 AND PERSO N AL DE CISIO N S.

1844 AND BEIN G “ADVEN TIST” 97 Adventists become deeply involved, one way or another, in getting these messages preached? If Jesus is waiting with longing desire for the beauty of H is character to be sealed in H is peop le, sho uld no t every Seventh -day Advent ist beco me deeply roo ted in Jesus, so H is divine n ature can indeed flow into t hem? The Seventh-day Adventist brand of the second-coming hope is special, and rightly so, in light of the great disappointment of 1844. For the same reason the Seventh-day Adventist brand of Sabbath keeping is also sp ecial, and rightly so, as we shall see in o ur n ext ch apter.

1.  R aptu re is no t a bad wo rd in itself. It has an o ld -fashion ed m eaning, as when an army rescues and carries away its soldiers that an enemy has captured or as when Jesus will rescue and carry away His people from earth at the second coming. 2. C. Mervyn Mixwell, “An Exegetical and Historical Examination of the Beginning and Ending of the 1260 Years” (M.A. thesis, Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, 1951). 3. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1980. 4. T. D. Kendrick, T he L isbon E arthquak e (Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company [1955]). Dr. Daniel Augsburger of Andrews University confirms Kendrick's thesis on the basis of his own wide study of European literature of the period between the earthquake and the F rench Revolution. 5. Ellen C. White, S elected M essages, 1:189. 6. Ibid.

CHAPTER 8

1844 AND THE SABBATH In our previous chapter we saw that the name “Adventist” originally referred to a person who believed Christ was coming soon because of the  fulfillment of the 2,3 0 0 days. In this present chapter, I want to show you that the “seventh-day” part of our name is also rooted in the fulfillment of the 2,300 days. The distinctive significance that 1844 contributes to the Sabbath is a part of th e magnificence of th e great disappo intm ent. To get a helpful perspective, I would like you to let m e d igress a bit and take you to t he Reform ation of th e 1500s. Stay by, and you 'll soo n see th e reason. When Martin Luther started the Reformation in l517, one of the problems European Christians faced was a huge number of holy days. There may have been as many as 150 holy days in addition to the fiftytwo weekly Sundays. Many of them were named in honor of this or that saint and were presented as being even more holy than Sundays. No wonder the economy of Europe stagnated for centuries. No wonder, either, that ordinary people came to treat all “holy days” as merely “holidays.” Luther and his helpers reacted to this intolerable situation by declaring RERO RMATION HE RITAGE.

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100 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T no day holy! Yet people need to hear the Word and celebrate the Lord's Supp er, so Lu therans said th at Christians sho uld con tinue to attend ch urch on Sunday, though without regarding it as the Sabbath. Thus, although Luther opposed the multiplicity of Catholic holy days, he regrettably preserved the “h oliday” co ncept of Sund ay. H e was not on ly wrong about the day, he was also wrong about the way Sabbath sho uld b e observed. Much of what Luther taught was adopted by the official church in England, the Anglican Church. But soon Bible students in England began pointing out that the Church of England needed additional purification. Because of their noble desire to purify the official church, their enemies scorned th em as “Puritans.” The Puritans discarded the annual holy days that the Lutherans had discarded, but they retained the weekly Sunday, calling it “Sabbath” for the first time in Ch ristian history. Believing th at Sunday was the Sabb ath of  the fourth commandment, they taught that it should be kept holy from sundown to sundown. In lucid, scholarly volumes, they taught one another how to use the whole day for spiritual matters, attending thoughtfully to preaching on Sunday morning and Sunday evening, guarding their words and thoughts, instructing their children, and doing neighborly kindnesses to people in need. They distinguished the weekly Sabbath of the Ten Commandments from the annual ceremonial “sabbaths” listed in Leviticus 23. And they showed that the Sabbath is a “perpetual sign of the covenant” that God made with His people to sanctify th em (see Ezekiel 20:12, 20). So much did the Sabbath (really Sunday) mean to the Puritans that some of them left their homes in England, where they were persecuted, and fled first to Holland and later to America. Did you realize that the Pilgrim fathers who landed neat P lymo uth Rock in 1620 came to America at great personal risk and loss of life in order to find freedom to keep the Sabbath.?1 Although the Puritans still had the wrong day, they had gone a long distance to ward reestablishing the tight “way.” The English Puritans divided into two denominations, the Congregationalists and the Presbyterians, which grew very large in America. The American Congregationalists, in turn, gave birth to the Baptists. Each of  these major denominations originally taught the same theology of the Sabb ath and attem pted to keep it in th e same way. And what was the upshot of this?

1844 AN D TH E SABBATH 101 By the time the Seventh -day Advent ist den om ination arose in the 1860s, a large number of Americans already knew that the Ten Commandments require people to keep the seventh day holy, and a great many Americans were attempting to do so, though on the wron g day. Thus when Joseph Bates published his first tract on the Sabbath question in August 1846, he referred to the Sabbath right on the title page as “A Perpetual Sign” of the covenant. He knew that his readers already applied this term to Sunday. Bates's burden was to show them they were keeping th e wron g day. But how did Bates learn that his readers – and he h imself, until recently – h ad been wron g abo ut th e day? As most Seventh-day Adventists are aware, the new light came to him from Seventh D ay Baptists. Back in Britain, when the Puritans had been agitating for the holiness of the Sunday Sabbath, a very few people had discovered in their Bibles that they ought to be agitating instead for the Sabbath Sabbath. These seventh-day Sabbath keepers were soon known as Seventh Day Baptists. Among their leaders in the 1600s were Thomas Bampfield, who actually started up a Sabbath-keeping congregation among fellow prisoners while being persecuted in jail, and John James, who was falsely accused of  treason and brutally hanged, drawn, and quartered. By contrast, another Sabbath keeper in England, Dr. Peter Chamberlen, was honored by kings for his unique skill at difficult royal childbirths. 2 Seventh Day Baptists used virtually the same Bible arguments as the Puritans. The Sabbath, they said, was inaugurated at Creation, required by the Ten Commandments, observed by Jesus, given as a perpetual sign of the covenant, and was intended to be kept holy from sundown to sundown. The Seventh Day Baptists differed from the Puritans mainly in keeping the real Sabbath instead of Sunday. Seventh Day Baptists had both the right way of keeping the Sabbath and the right day. In the person of Stephen Mumford, they shipped the right way and the right day to America, where, disappointingly, the true Sabbath made only slow p rogress. William Miller was a Baptist; hence, he was a good Sabbath keeper – on Sunday. T. M. Preble, a Millerite Adventist, was a minister of the Free Will Baptists. Perhaps Preble got the true Sabbath from Frederick  Wheeler, who got it from the Seventh Day Baptist lady, Rachel Oaks. Or SEVENTH DAY BAPTIST HERITAGE.

102 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T perhaps h e got it from so me o ther Seventh D ay Baptist. But h e got it! And soon he was sitting down to write a book about the right day. This book  by T. M. Preble,  A T ract, S howing that the S eventh D ay S hould B e O bserved  as the S abbath, Instead of the F irst D ay, fell into the hands of former sea captain Joseph Bates. Through this book and his own Bible study, Bates, himself a devout observer of the wrong day in the right way, became a seventh-day Sabbath keeper. Soon after, he published a small book of his own to which we have already made reference, T he S eventh D ay S abbath,  A Perpetual S ign. The principal difference on the Sabbath question between the Puritans and the Seventh D ay Baptists was, as we have said, con fined to the cho ice of d ay, the tru e seventh day in place o f Sunday. But now please notice that the Seventh Day Baptists, who counted around 6,000 mem bers when they attracted the attention o f Adventists in the 1840s,3 have 60,000 members today. But Seventh-day Adventists, who had 3,500 members when their denomination was organized in 1863, have today grown to more than seven million members and are still growing. The difference – and it is a very substantial difference – lies in 1844, as Josep h Bates quickly recognized. Joseph Bates learned about the seventh-day Sabbath sometime in 1845 from reading the little book by T. M. Preble. Early the following year he read the  D ay-S tar  E xtra of February 7, 1846, that we spoke about in chapter 6 and became convinced that the sanctuary of D aniel 8:14 is th e on e in heaven. In the summer of 1846, Captain Bates wrote his first small book about the Sabbath, the one we've talked about already called T he S eventh D ay S abbath, A Perpetual Sign , showing which day of the week is the real Sabbath. It came out in August, on the thirtieth of which month James White and E llen H armon were married. H eretofore James and E llen h ad admired Captain Bates but had been puzzled by his emphasis on the Sabbath commandment.4 After they read h is bo ok an d restudied th e Bible, they became Sabb ath keepers too , prob ably in Septemb er. Now in this little book, Joseph Bates said mostly the same things that the Seventh Day Baptists were saying. But in one notable respect, his little book became the first of its kind ever, a true milestone in a brand new development of Sabbath understanding. On page 24 of his S eventh-day S abbath, A Perpetual S ign , Joseph Bates JOSEPH BATES AND THE SABBATH.

1844 AN D TH E SABBATH 103 referred to the three angels' messages. After pointing out what every Millerite Adventist had known, that the Millerites had preached the first angel's message abo ut t he judgmen t and the second angel's message abou t the fall of Babylon, Bates did what no one before him had ever done. He po inted out that a special time h ad no w com e for Sabb ath keeping because the time had come for the third angel's message. He didn't understand th is idea clearly quite yet, bu t it was there. Wh at idea? That th e Sabb ath h as a un ique timeliness in view of 1844. The idea was to become much clearer over the next couple of years as Bates and the Whites and other Adventist pioneers studied the Bible together. Bates became increasingly eager to visit the people who had published th e  D ay-S tar  Extra – O. R. L. Crosier, Hiram Edson, and F. B. Hahn. So sometime in the fall of 1846, he traveled out to western New York, taking with him his new light on the Sabbath. From Edson, Crosier, and Hahn, Captain Bates brought home a clearer understanding of the heavenly sanctuary. Full of new excitement, he got his printer to put out a second edition of  T he S eventh D ay Sabbath, A Perpetual S ign , but not before he had added two furth er epo chal pieces of n ew light. For one thing, on page 59, Bates proposed that keeping Sunday instead of the true Sabbath was a mark of the beast . This was the first time anyone had published this interpretation of the mark of the beast in the third angel's message. For another thing, in his new preface, he called attention to Revelation 11:19: “And the temple of God was opened in heaven , and there was seen in h is temp le the ark of his covenant  ” (KJV). As Bates and the o thers had loo ked at this text together in western N ew York, great new light h ad flashed into their minds. Th e ark of th e covenan t contains the Ten Commandments, including the fourth commandment. In the Old Testament, it was located in the most holy place, and in 1844 Jesus entered heaven's most holy place. Was it possible, they wondered – was it really possible – t hat th e new interest Bates and o thers were taking in the Sabbath question was a result of Christ's recent entrance into heaven's most holy place? If so, it would coincide remarkably with the sequence of the three angels: (1) judgment hour; (2) fall of Babylon; (3) faith-in-Christ co mm andm ent keeping. Bates, as I said, hurried home and got out that second edition, in the preface of which he ventured, cautiously, to reveal his excitement about Revelation 11:19: “And the temple of God was opened in heaven , and there was seen in h is temp le th e ark of his covenant .”

104 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Bates's caution about the relationship of the true Sabbath to Christ's new work in the heavenly sanctuary was removed within a couple of  mo nth s. O n March 6 in F airhaven, Massachusetts, and again o n April 3 in Topsham, Maine,5 newly married, newly Sabbath-keeping Ellen White had her first vision about the Sabbath. Appropriately, it was centered on Jesus in th e heavenly sanctu ary. She wrote out what she had seen, and Joseph Bates published it for her.6 She reported that an angel had carried her swiftly to heaven, where she saw Jesus waiting for her at a little model temple, evidently the same one that had been shown to Moses.7 Jesus took her t hro ugh th e ho ly place and into the most holy place and there, yes, He showed her two tablets of  stone with the Ten Commandments written on them. The first four comm andments o ccupied o ne o f the tablets and glowed b righter than the other six; but the fourth commandment glowed brighter than any of the others. It had a “halo of glory” around it. This surprised Ellen White, for though she and James had come to see that Captain Bates was right about the Sabbath, she hadn't thought it was this important. It was seeing the Sabbath in the presence of Jesus, in the most holy place with a halo of  glory aroun d it, that n ow m ade it seem so imp ortant. Mrs. White was deeply impressed that the Sabbath was the “great question” that would “unite God's dear waiting saints” and also separate them from unb elievers. Furth er, she was shown that b elievers were to “go out and pro claim the Sabbath mo re fully.”8 To “proclaim the Sabbath more fully” meant at least this – to proclaim it more fully than, anyone had pro claimed it b efore. Th us far, the Seventh D ay Baptists had pro claimed it as the true Sabbath, but they had not taught that its observance was vital, and they had sh own on ly spasmo dic zeal in winn ing p eop le to it. Th ey felt that the Sabbath was good to know about and, if you knew about it, was goo d to keep. Yet it wasn't exactly a life-and -death matter. But the vision had spoken of the Sabbath as the “great question” that would “unite God's dear waiting saints” and also separate them from unbelievers. Joseph Bates and the other believers quickly understood; or at least, they partly understood. The first angel's message had brought humanity to the judgment hour, 1844. The second angel had called attention to the fallen state of the popular Sunday-keeping churches. The third angel called attention to the commandments. Jesus was calling attention to the PROCLAIMING THE SABBATH MORE FULLY.

1844 AN D TH E SABBATH 105 Sabbath in a wholly new way since entering the most holy place and standing beside th e ark of th e covenant. Th e vision was perfectly in harm on y with wh at Bates had already found in the Bible. Immediately he stepped up his efforts to take the new light about the Sabbath to form er Millerites. But he ran into a stone wall! When he told friends from the Millerite days that the Sabbath was important because in 1844 Jesus entered the most holy place, they were unconvinced. They were glad to see Captain Bates, bu t as for 1844, they told h im it h ad all been a mistake. So Bates sat down to write another little book, this one with the fascinating title S econd A dvent W ay M ark s and H igh H eaps. By “high heaps” he had in mind the piles of stones that formed monuments to G od 's grace in O ld T estamen t times. By “way marks” h e m eant sign po sts. The force of the booklet was this: By reviewing the evidence – the way marks and high heaps – which once had convinced Millerite Adventists that God was truly fulfilling the 2,300 days in 1844 – Bates hoped to lay the groundwork for convincing them that because of 1844, the true Sabb ath had n ow beco me crucial. Near the end of the year Bates wrote what turned out to be his largest book –  A V indication of the S abbath . It had 116 pages and was the one that he was writing (in the well-known story) when his financial reserves were reduced t o a single coin, a York sh illing. It was pu blished in Janu ary 1848. No copy of this book was known to exist in recent times until Godfrey Anderson, sometime president of Loma Linda University, discovered a copy in the Boston Public Library. We now know just what message Joseph Bates and James and Ellen White were prepared to take to those famou s 1848 Sabbath C on ferences. Better designated as “Sabbath and Sanctuary Conferences,” we now know that they were like seminars.9 Bates came well prepared to teach about th e Sabbath o f the fourth comm andmen t. James White showed that the Sabbath is crucially important because of 1844. And Ellen White exhorted the p eop le to live in harmo ny with the new light. 10 Part o f the n ew light focused o n the seal of God and the mark of the beast. The third angel, who calls attention to faith-in-Christ commandment keeping, warns very urgently against receiving th e mark of th e beast. 11 But not everyone who has kept Sunday has received the mark of the beast. Bates and the Whites and most of the people who attended their SEAL OF GO D AN D MARK O F THE BEAST.

106 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T meetings had all found spiritual blessing in keeping Sunday. In 1849 Ellen White had a vision that specifically reassured her that the test  on the Sabbath question did not begin until Jesus passed from the holy place to the most holy place in 1844.12 Sunday keepers receive the mark of the beast only when they have a chance to know the truth and choose to disregard it. 13 And the seal of God? Revelation does not explicitly equate the seal of  God with the Sabbath. However, it does present the seal as the opposite of the mark and as something that is received by commandment k eepers. The seal includes true Sabbath observance as a part of commandment keeping, yet it m ust be even m ore th an Sabb ath o bservance, for th e peo ple who receive the seal in their foreheads are spoken of as having God's name (or character) in their foreheads (see Revelation 7:1-3; 14:1-5). Sabbath keeping is the seal of G od when it truly changes a person th rough and through. The seal of God is “a settling into the truth, both int ellectually and spiritually, so th ey cann ot be m oved .”14 We have seen that Ellen White began to keep th e Sabb ath (in Septem ber 1846) several mo nth s before receiving a vision abo ut it (in March 1847). We have also seen that in her first Sabb ath vision she was taken to the most holy place, where Jesus personally revealed its importance to her. God could have taken her to creation or Mt. Sinai. He could have called her attention merely to selected Bible texts and even left Jesus out. But God centered this first Sabbath vision on the heavenly sanctuary and on Jesus. The message is plain. God wanted His people to associate the Sabbath in a new way with Jesus and His new sanctuary ministry. In His new sanctuary ministry in the most holy place, Jesus is calling special attention to the Sabbath as a doctrine, yes, but even more so as an ou tliving o f H imself in d aily life. H e is very int erested in H is holy day, but He is even more interested in reproducing His own beautiful kind of  ho liness in a ho ly peo ple. We recall page 283 in T he D esire of A ges: “In order to keep the Sabbath ho ly, men m ust them selves be ho ly.” E llen Wh ite is here th inking about E xodu s 20:8 and E xodu s 22:31. She explains: “When the command was given to Israel, ‘Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,’ the Lord said also to them, ‘Ye shall be holy men unto Me.’ ” But ho w can we sinn ers becom e ho ly eno ugh to keep th e Sabb ath ho ly? Ezekiel 20:12 comes to our rescue. “I gave them my sabbaths, … that ELLEN WHITE AND THE SABBATH.

1844 AN D TH E SABBATH 107 they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.” Our passage in T he D esire of A ges explains that in order for people to be holy enough to keep the Sabbath holy, "through faith they must become partakers of the righteousness of Christ " (my italics). Page 469 in T he G reat C ontroversy takes up the theme: “The followers of  Christ are to become like Him, – by the grace of G od  to form characters in harmony with the principles of His holy law. This is Bible sanctification” (my italics). This kind of sanctification is important. True Sabbath keepers want to experience it. They don't make the day a holiday. They want to take advantage of every minute of it for worship, witnessing, and character develop men t, because they know th at time is runn ing ou t. But not all Seventh-day Adventists have realized the special difference that 1844 m akes to th e Sabb ath. In her early days, Ellen Wh ite learned o f a minister who was preaching the Sabbath without placing it in its end-time setting. He was preaching the Sabbath of Creation and Mt. Sinai but not the Sabbath of the judgment hour and the third angel's message, not the seal of God in contrast to the mark of the beast. Thus he was preaching it without  its true end-of-time urgency, its unique timeliness at this special po int in time. D eeply disappo inted with h is tame presentation, she wrote, Elder K knows not of what spirit he is. … As far as the Sabbath is concerned, he occupies the same position as the Seventh Day Baptists. Separate the Sabbath from the [three angels’] messages, and it loses its power; but when connected with the message of the third angel, a power attends it which convicts unbelievers and infidels, and brings them out with strength to stand, to live, grow, and flourish in th e Lord. 15 A well-informed Seventh-day Adventist is a person who believes that Ch rist is com ing soo n because of th e fulfillmen t of the 2,300 days and who keeps the seventh-day Sabbath because of the fulfillment of the 2,300 days. Such a person knows that because the 2,300 days ended in 1844, the time has come for the urgent warning of the third angel against the mark of the beast. The time has come for men and women of “every nation and tribe and tongue and people” to choose the Lord and to enter b y choice into a relation ship with Jesus so t hat th ey will become holy and can keep the Sabbath holy. To become “holy enough” 1844 AND THE SABBATH.

108 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T means to become, in the finest and most attractive sense, a person who resembles the loving, gracious, dependable ways of our heavenly Father Himself. The time to emphasize true, wholehearted Christ-like Sabbath keeping is now. Now!  N ow, because Jesus has already entered the most holy place to begin the final judgment.  N ow, because from the most holy place, Jesus is shedding onto the world the radiant glory of true Sabbath keeping in H is  fin al effort to develop a people with characters like His own and thus prepare them for the time of trouble just ahead and for the glorious eternity that fo llows.

1. Fo r a fascinating eyewitness accoun t o f th e lo yalty of the Pilgrim fathers to the Sunday Sabbath, see  M ourt's R elation: A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth . Applewoo d Boo ks of Camb ridge and Boston , Mass., puts o ut an edition . 2. T he S eventh D ay B aptists in E urope and A merica, 3 vols. (Plainfield, N.J.: The Seventh Day Baptist General Conference, 1910, 1972), 1:64-66,72-73,78-79. 3. Seventh D ay Baptists in E uro pe and America, 1:233n. 4. E llen G . White, L ife S k etches, 95. 5. Evidence that Ellen White saw the “halo of glory” vision twice is found by comparing her  L ift S k etches, 95 and 96 with 100-103, and is confirmed by an explicit statement by Joseph Bates at the end of the second giving of the vision as published und er the name  A V ision. See next footnote. 6.  A vision , 7April 1847. This publication was printed in “broadsheet” form, on one side only of a single sheet. Its date was the date when Ellen White wrote the letter. 7. Hebrews 8:5 says that God required Moses to make his earthly tabernacle according to the “pattern” God showed him on Mt. Sinai. The Greek word here translated “pattern” is the same word usually translated “type.” In other words, God showed Moses a type of the heavenly sanctuary rather than the actual sanctuary itself. In one of her earliest books, S piritual G ifts (Battle Creek, 1864), 4:5, Ellen White says that Moses was told to make the tabernacle according to the “miniature model” that God showed him. 8. Ellen G . White, E arly W ritings , 33. 9. Arthur L. White uses the new term “Sabbath and Sanctuary Conferences” as the title for chapter 9 of the first volume of his six-volume biography of Ellen G. White (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1985). The allnight prayer-and-study sessions often associated with these 1848 conferences (see Ellen G. White, S elected M essages, 1:206) now appear to have been conducted on other occasions, possibly in 1847.

1844 AN D TH E SABBATH 109 10. An early study calling attent ion to the “seminar” n ature of the 1848 Sabbath and Sanctuary Conferences was G ordo n O . Martinb orou gh, “The Beginnings of a Theology of the Sabbath among American Sabbatarian Adventists, 1842-1850” (M.A. thesis, Loma Linda University, 1976), especially chapter 6. 11. The mark of the beast is opposed to commandment keeping. The beast of  Revelation 13:1-10, which shares its mark with end-time people, is the same as the little horn of Daniel 7, which, according to prophecy, was to rise out of the Roman Empire, persecute God's people, and try to change God's laws. The Roman Church is noted for its severe persecution of heretics and for being the outstanding champion of Sunday and opponent of Sabbath in Christian history. Thus the characteristic mark of the beast appears to be Sunday keeping, or rather, coercive Sunday keeping after someone knows better. For an extended study, see C. Mervyn Maxwell, "The Mark of the Beast," in  D aniel and R evelation C omm ittee Series, Frank B. Holbrook, ed. (Silver Spring, Md.: Biblical Research Institute, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, 1992), 7:41-132. 12. Ellen G . White, E arly W ritings , 42, 43. 13. See Ellen G. White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 605. 14. The passage from which th is famo us clause is taken was written in 1902 and is found in the Ellen G. White Comments section of the S eventh-day A dventist   B ible C ommentary, 4:1161: “Just as soon as the people of God are sealed in their forehead – it is not any seal or mark that can be seen, but a settling into the truth, both intellectually and spiritually, so they cannot be moved – just as soon as God's people are sealed and prepared for the shaking, it will come. Indeed, it has begun already; the judgments of God are now upon the land, to give us warning, that we may kno w what is com ing”(MS 173, 1902). 15. Ellen C. White, T estimonies, 1:337.

CHAPTER 9

1844 AND BEING READY The material we are going to study in this chapter is among the most solemn but encouraging aspects of the meaning of 1844 and the magnificent disappo intm ent. Thus far we have made good use of Daniel 8:14 (the 2,300 days), Daniel 7:9-14 (the Son of man coming on clouds to the judgment scene), Leviticus 16 (the D ay of Ato nem ent), Luke 12:35-37 (waiting till the Lo rd returns from the wedding), and Revelation 14:6-12 (the three angels' messages). These texts were used heavily by Seventh-day Adventist pion eers. Th ey also m ade significant use of Malaehi 3:1-5. You will remember that near the end of chapter 6, “Investigative Judgment: A Seventh-day Adventists Invention?” I referred to a thoughtful paragraph from a letter by O. K. L. Crosier, Hiram Edson's friend, in the April 18, 1846, issue of the  D ay-S tar . Its spiritual emphasis was particularly attractive to Ellen White. It was based on 1 Corinthians 6, where Ch ristians ate called tem ples of G od , and on Malachi 3, which says that Christ was to come to His temple and cleanse the sons of Levi. Notice especially the final sentence in the quotation: Many seem not to have discovered that there is a literal and a

112 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T spiritual temple – the literal being the Sanctuary in New Jerusalem (literal city), and the spiritual the church – the literal occupied by Jesus Christ, our King and Priest, John 14:2. Heb. 8:2; 9:11; the spiritual by th e H oly G ho st. 1 Cor. 3:~ 7; 6:19. E ph . 2:20-22. Between these two there is a perfect concert of action, as Christ “prepares the  place” the Spirit does the people. When he came to his temple, the sanctuary, to cleanse it; the Spirit commenced the special cleansing o f th e p eop le. Mal. 3:1-3. The concept that the cleansing of the sanctuary involves a special cleansing of the people who worship at the sanctuary was taught in Leviticus 16, the D ay of Ato nem ent ch apter. “O n th is day shall aton emen t be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean befo re th e Lo rd” (verse 30). Malachi 3:1-5 offers a similar prom ise. I h ave italicized som e of t he p hrases that we'll be talking abo ut. Behold, I send my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. But who can endure the day of his com ing, and who can stand when h e appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like  fullers' soap ; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will  purify the sons of L evi an d refine th em like gold and silver, till they presen t right offerings to th e Lord . Then the o ffering o f Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in t he d ays of o ld an d as in fo rm er years. Th en I will draw near to you for  judgment . Many Bible commentators have assumed that this passage refers to Christ's first coming and the way He cleansed the Jerusalem temple of cattle, pigeons, and money-changers. But it cannot be a prophecy of Christ's coming to the Jerusalem temple, for it promises that He will purify the priests, the “sons of Levi,” to the point that they will offer acceptable sacrifices. Deplorably, when Jesus finished His work on earth, the opposition of the priests compelled Him to withdraw His Spirit from the Jerusalem temple and declare it “desolate” (Matthew 23:38). Seventh-day Adventist pioneers were right to observe that Malachi 3:15 describes Ch rist's coming to the mo st ho ly place of th e heavenly temp le NOT THE JERUSALEM TEMPLE.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 113 in 1844 and to His special work of purifying His end-time people who worship at that tem ple. Many years after the great event, T he G reat C ontroversy, looking back, observed that “the coming of Christ as our high priest to the most holy place, for the cleansing of the sanctuary, brought to view in Daniel 8:14; the coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days, as presented in Daniel 7:13; and the coming of the Lord to His temple,  foretold by  M alachi [my italics], are descriptions of the same event; and this is also represented by the coming of the Bridegroom to the marriage, described by Christ in the p arable of the t en virgins, of Matth ew 25.” T he G reat C ontroversy, page 424, is explicit. “This coming [of Christ to the 1844 judgment] is foretold … by the prophet Malachi: ‘The Lord, who m ye seek, shall sudd enly com e to H is temp le, even t he Messenger of  the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of h osts.’ Malachi 3:1. The co ming of t he Lo rd to H is temp le was sudd en, unexpected, to His people. They were not looking for Him there. They expected H im to com e to earth.” Now before we proceed any farther with the G reat C ontroversy commentary on Malachi 3:1-5, I invite you to prepare for a deeply spiritual surprise. Please try to remember everything you have heard about the spirituality of the best of the Millerite Adventists. We talked about their ardor and earnestness in chapter 4. Here is a further account from someone who passed through the experience as one of  them. BEAUTIFUL CHRISTIANS.

At th at time t here was faith that b rought answers to prayer – faith that had respect to the recompense of reward. Like showers of rain upon the thirsty earth, the Spirit of grace descended upon the earnest seekers. Th ose who expected soo n to stand face to face with their Redeemer felt a solemn joy that was unutterable. The softening, subduing power of the Holy Spirit melted the heart as His blessing was bestowed in rich measure up on the faithful, believing o nes. Carefully and solemnly those who received the message came up to the time when they hoped to meet their Lord. Every morning th ey felt t hat it was their first duty to secure the eviden ce of th eir acceptance with God. Their hearts were closely united, and they prayed much with and for one another. They often met together in secluded places to com m une with G od , and the vo ice of intercession

114 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T ascended to heaven from the fields and groves. Th e assurance of the Saviour's app roval was mo re necessary to th em than their daily foo d; and if a cloud darkened their minds, they did not rest until it was swept away. As they felt the witness of pardoning grace, they longed to b ehold H im whom their souls loved.1 Now are you prepared for our solemn surprise? Speaking expressly of these Adventist people who had accepted Miller's message and were so sincere and earnest in loo king for Jesus to return , T he G reat C ontroversy, page 424, says, “But the people were not yet ready to meet th eir Lord .” Th e Adventist peop le in 1844 were not yet ready to m eet their Lord! Yet they were beautiful people! They loved one another. They loved even th eir en emies. Th ey had t rue assurance in Christ, and t hey deserved to have assurance, for they repented, confessed, witnessed, sacrificed, studied, prayed, and praised; and they surely loved the Lord with all their hearts. We read a moment ago, “They longed to behold Him whom their souls loved.” Yet even they “were not yet ready to meet th eir Lord” ! Perhaps what T he G reat C ontroversy says next will help us understand. H ere it is: NOT YET BEADY.

There was still a work of preparation to be accomplished for them. Light was to be given, directing their minds to the temple of  God in heaven; and as they should by faith follow their High Priest in His ministration there, new duties would be revealed. Another message of warning and instruction was to b e given to the ch urch. Loo k at t ho se lines again. Th ey are encou raging. Alth ou gh they say that th e Millerite Advent ists need ed an add ition al work o f prep aration , th ey say that the preparation was to be accomplished “for” them. Light was to be “given.” God knew that they needed the additional preparation and was prepared to make it available to th em. But what specifically are we talking about? Read the passage again. As they studied Christ's new ministry in the most holy place, they were to be given “another message of warning and instruction” that would involve “new duties.” As Millerite Adventists they had proclaimed the first angel's message, about the arrival of judgment hour, and the second angel's message, about the fall of Babylon, but so far they had been entirely unaware of their duty to proclaim the third angel's message. Their added

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 115 work of preparation involved the discovery that they were to instruct people about the Sabbath and to warn them about the mark of the beast, the co nten t o f the th ird angel's message. The best of the Millerite Adventists were certainly ready for death. We know specifically of two of their most spiritual ministers, Levi Stockman, who died in the spring of 1844, and Charles Fitch, who died on Monday, October 14, eight days before he expected to see Jesus coming on the clouds. In December, in her first vision, young Sister Ellen was shown the future of these men after the resurrection. She saw them sitting under the tree of life. She learned that God had “laid [them] in the grave to save them.” 2 Yes, the best of the Millerite Adventists who died in Christ before October 22 died ready to be raised in the first resurrection. But they were “not yet ready to meet their Lord,” that is, to meet Him at the second coming, while they were still alive on earth. Why not? Stop and think. Won't those of us who live to see the second coming be required to go through the crisis over the mark of the beast? Won't we be required to live thro ugh th e time o f troub le? Were the Millerite Adventists ready for the time of trouble? Pathetically, challenged by the great disappointment, the faith of most of  them withered like pumpkin leaves at the first frost. We are warned that “the season of distress before us will require a faith that can endure weariness, delay, and h un ger.”3 Were they ready for th e crisis over th e mark o f the b east? Most of th em were devout Sunday keepers, and when they later heard about the Sabbath, they refused to accept it. Even Sister Ellen was a Sunday keeper (and a pig eater too.), and even she resisted the Sabbath for a while after she first heard ab out it. The Millerite Adventists loved Jesus and were spiritually alert. But we are reminded again that the seal of God, so unavoidably essential for victory in the final crisis, involves both intellectual and spiritual maturity. “It is not any seal or mark that can be seen,” wrote Ellen White, “but a settling into the truth, both intellectually and spiritually, so they cannot be moved.”4 Those who will live successfully through earth's final events and see Jesus at His coming will know what they believe,  feel what they believe, an d do what they believe. We're not talking about mere Sabbath READY BUT NOT READY.

116 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T observance but genuine spiritual Sabbath keeping that sanctifies and purifies a person th rough and thro ugh. We're talking abou t peo ple who actually “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). REFINER'S FIRE AND FULLERS' SOAP. Returning now to T he G reat  Controversy, pages 424, 425, we read, “Says the prophet [Malachi]: ‘Who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He app eareth?’ ” We may well ask, as I always do when I restudy this material, If those beautiful Millerite Adventists were not ready for the second coming, who will ever be ready? But wait! Still quoting Malachi 3, T he G reat C ontroversy continues, “ ‘For he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap.’ ” Fullers' soap is used to clean dirty wool, not destroy it; and a “refiner's” fire is one that makes a metal better, not worse. Is there, perhaps, a promise here, inten ded to en courage us? In deed th ere is! T he G reat C ontroversy cont inues th e quo tation from Malachi 3: “ ‘And H e shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of  Levi, and p urge them as gold and silver, that th ey may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteo usness.’ ” Remem ber th at the “ sons o f Levi” were the p riests, and in C hrist Jesus we are all priests, all children of Levi. First Peter 2:9 says, “You are a chosen race, a royal  priesthood , ” and Revelation 1:5, 6 reads, “T o h im who loves us … and made us a kingdom,  priests to his God and Father.” In Malachi 3, the purification of the p riests, the “so ns o f Levi,” is for us . In giving us the third angel's message, about the mark of the beast and faith-in-Jesus commandment keeping, and by calling our attention to the “testimony of Jesus,” which is the “spirit of prophecy,” God intends to cleanse and purify us, if only we will cooperate. It is a part of His special work of purification. T he G reat C ontroversy, page 425, continues: “T ho se who are living up on the earth when the intercession of Ch rist shall cease in the sanctuary above are to stand in the sight of a holy God witho ut a m ediator.” H ere is truly a challenge: “T o stand in th e sight o f a ho ly G od witho ut a mediator.” But let us not suppose it was made in order to frighten or threaten us. It is a simple statement off act. One of these days, inevitably, Jesus will come to the end of His work as High Priest. This news implies a WITHOUT A MEDIATOR.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 117 m arvelou s p ro mise. G od would no t think of leaving H is true followers without a mediator for sin as long as they needed one. The implication is as obvious as the cross itself that the time is coming when God's true followers will not need a med iator fo r sin anym ore. “God's ideal for His children is higher than the highest human thought can reach. ‘Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’ T his command is a promise. The p lan of redemp tion contemp lates our complete recovery from the power of Satan. Christ always separates the cont rite soul fl-nm sin. H e came to d estroy the wo rks of the d evil, and He has made provision that the Holy Spirit shall be imparted to every repentan t soul, to keep h im from sinn ing."5 To “live in the sight of a holy God without a mediator” is a promise; but it is not a playful promise. It is one of those deeply spiritual concerns that we referred to at th e beginn ing of t his chapter. Do we have any real idea what it means to live in the sight of a holy G od without a mediator for sin? O n May 14, 1851, Ellen White, married and in h er early twenties, had an experience that h elped h er und erstand what it m eans. “I saw the beauty and loveliness of Jesus,” she wrote later. “As I beheld His glory, the thought did not occur to me that I should ever be separated from His presence. I saw a light coming from the glory that encircled the Father, and as it approached near to me, my body trembled and shook like a leaf. I thought that if it should come near me I would be struck out of  existence, but the light passed me. Then could I have some sense of the great and terrible God with whom we have to do. I saw then what faint views some have of the holiness of God. … I also saw that many do not realize what they must be in order to live in the sight of the Lord without a high priest in th e sanctuary thro ugh th e time of tro uble.” She added, “Those who receive the seal of the living God and are pro tected in the time o f trouble must reflect th e image of Jesus fully.”6 H ere is beaut y! To be as graciou s a s Jesus, as kind as Jesus, as sensitive, as depend able, as genero us, as pro mp t to do the right th ing! Th is is every sincere C hristian's p rayer. “Be like Jesus, this my song, in t he ho me and in the th ron g; Be like Jesus all day long! I would be like Jesus.” 7 But remember, it's a promise. “He shall purify the sons of Levi,” and, if  we will, we are all “sons of Levi.” Does “without a mediator” mean that Christ's true followers will be left during the time of trouble to wrestle with THEY STILL HAVE JESUS!

118 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T tempt ation on their own? N o, n o! Jesus will still be their G uard and G uide and Stay, still their Lord an d K ing, still their H elper in t he time of sto rm . Does it mean that God's true followers will have to stand during the time of trouble without the aid of the Holy Spirit? On the contrary, they will be filled with the Holy Spirit. Before the time of trouble begins, the Holy Spirit will be poured out in its richness for the very purpose of  enabling th e saints t o m aintain th eir stand. 8 Jesus has promised His true followers, “ ‘I will never fail you nor forsake you.’ ” Hence we can confidently say, “ ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not b e afraid’ ”(H ebrews 13:5, 6). “At all times and in all places, in all sorro ws and in all affliction s, when the o utlook seems dark an d t he fut ure p erplexing, and we feel helpless and alone, the Comforter will be sent in answer to the prayer of faith. Circumstances may separate us from every earthly friend; but no circumstance, no distance, can separate us from the heavenly Comforter. Wherever we are, wherever we may go, He is always at our right hand to supp ort , sustain, uph old, and cheer.”9 We haven't completed T he G reat  Controversy com ment s o n Malachi 3:1-5. O ur p assage (424, 425) tells us still mo re about t he prep aration needed for th e time when Christ's intercession ceases. “Their robes must be spotless, their characters must be purified from sin by the blood of sprinkling. Through the grace of God and their own diligent effort they must be conquerors in the battle with evil.” D on't o verloo k that last sentence. “Through the grace of G od and th eir own diligent effort th ey mu st be co nquero rs in th e battle with evil.” Some people feel a sharp conflict between the words “and their own diligent effort” and the concept of “grace alone.” They worry that if we talk about “diligent effort,” we run the risk of attempting salvation by works. But what do you m ake of the coun sel? The passage doesn't mention “works,” either good or bad. It mentions “effort.” Now, don't we all face two basic obligations, (1) to meet the debt of our sins and (2) to develop Christ-like characters? The first obligation, to meet the debt of our sins, is infinite. Our sin debt is so absolutely beyond our ability to pay that our only course is to turn it entirely over to Jesus, in humble, grateful faith. But character development is something else, and we are talking here about growing into a character like the character of Jesus. If character GRACE

AND

DILIGENT

EFFORT.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 119 development is to take place at all, it is bound, by the very nature of it, to involve our doing something. At the very least we must make choices, sometimes hard choices, choices that involve obedience. To be valid and effective, our choices must unavoidably be made with our hands in Christ's han d; but they simp ly have to b e our cho ices, or they canno t result in ch aracter develop men t. Speaking to the students of Avondale College in Australia, in the long, narrow dining room that for a while was their only “church,” Sister White,10 sensing the presence of the Holy Spirit in unusual fullness, said, “The Lord does not propose to perform for us either the willing or the doing. This is our proper work. As soon as we earnestly enter upon the work, G od 's grace is given to work in us to will and to do , but never as a substitute for o ur effort. O ur souls are to be aroused to coop erate.” 11 Jesus taught us this. “ ‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” shall enter th e kingdo m o f heaven, but h e who do es the will of m y Fath er who is in heaven’ ” (Matthew 7:21). Hebrews 11 is rightly known as the faith chapter. Notice that by faith, N oah built an ark. By faith, Abrah am left h om e for a strange coun try. By faith, Abraham laid Isaac on the altar. By faith, Moses gave up his prestigious position in Egypt. In every case the heroes and heroines of  faith listed in Hebrews 11 obeyed  by faith. Hebrews 11:7 specifically says (are you ready for this?) that it was by  faithfully building the ark  that Noah “b ecame an h eir of t he righteo usness which co mes b y faith.” By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, took heed and constructed an ark for the saving of his household; by this he condemned the world and became an heir of  the righteousness which com es by faith. Let's be day-to-day practical. You pay tithe? You teach a Sabbath Schoo l class? You lead your fam ily in sundo wn wo rship? In do ing th ese things, you express gratitude for th e cross, and you pray earnestly for God's grace. But, tell me, who writes your tithe checks? Does an an gel do it, or do you? D oes the H oly Spirit take your p lace in fron t of  you r Sabb ath Schoo l class, or do you h ave to stand th ere and teach? D oes Jesus sit visibly in your living roo m for family worship? Who takes your car back to the repairman, asking him to do the job a third time because he hasn't done it right the first two times? Who represents the beautiful character of Jesus to your harried, embarrassed mechanic?

120 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T “By the grace of God, and their own diligent effort.” Yes, we do have apart to play, choices to m ake, cho osing to cling to Jesus for sup po rt and stepping out to d o th e right thing. We're approaching the end of the G reat C ontroversy comments on Malachi 3:1-5. “While the investigative judgment is going forward in h eaven, while th e sins o f p enitent b elievers are being remo ved from the sanctuary, there is to be a special work of purification, of putting away of sin, among God's people upon earth. This work is more clearly presen ted in th e [th ree angels'] messages of Revelation 14.” At the beginning of this chapter, we reminded ourselves of something that Leviticus 16:30 says about the high priest on the Day of Atonement: “F or o n th at day shall the p riest make an ato nem ent fo r  you , to cleanse  you , that  you may be clean fro m all you r sins b efore th e Lord .” We come now to the end of our selected passage, T he G reat C ontroversy, pages 424, 425. It has a happy ending. “When this work shall have been accomplished, the followers of Christ will be ready for His appearing. ‘Th en sh all the offering of Judah an d Jerusalem b e pleasant un to the Lo rd, as in the d ays of old, and as in fo rm er years.’ Malachi 3:4. Then t he ch urch which our Lord at His coming is to receive to Himself will be a ‘glorious chu rch, not h aving spo t, or wrinkle, or an y such thing.’ E ph esians 5:27.” READY AT LAST.

We have been looking at one o f the m ost spiritual implications of 1844 for today, the need and opportunity to develop a well-informed, well-matured spirituality that far transcends even the beautiful spirituality of the best of the Millerite Adventists. It seems appropriate to close our chapter with an earnest appeal written by Ellen White in 1851 that is as fresh an d urgent as if written to day: AN E ARN EST APPEAL.

I saw that many were neglecting the preparation so needful and were looking to the time of “refreshing” [Acts 3:19, 20] and the “latter rain” [Joel 2:28,29] to fit them to stand in the day of the Lord and to live in His sight. Oh, how many I saw in the time of trouble without a shelter! They had neglected the needful preparation; therefore they could not receive the refreshing that all must have to fit them to live in the sight of a holy God. … I saw that none could share the “refreshing” unless they obtain the victory over every besetm ent, o ver pride, selfishness, love o f th e world, and o ver every wron g word and action . We sho uld, therefore, be drawing nearer and 

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 121 nearer to the L ord  and be earnestly seeking that preparation necessary to enable us to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. Let all remem ber th at G od is ho ly and t hat n on e but ho ly beings can ever dwell in H is presen ce.12

This end-time call to deep, sweet, victorious Christ-likeness is a major part of the meaning of 1844, a major part of the magnificence that is implicit in th e great disapp ointm ent.

1. Ellen G . White, T he Great C ontroversy, 402,403. 2. Ellen G . White, E arly W ritings , 17. 3. Ellen G . White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 621. 4. Ellen G . White Com ment s in S eventh-day A dventist B ible C omm entay, 4:1161. 5. Ellen C. White, T he D esire of A ges, 311, my italics. 6. Ellen C. Wh ite, E arly W ritings , 70, 71. 7. S eventh-day A dventist H ymnal, no.311. 8. See, e.g., Joel 2:28; Ellen G. White, E arly W ritings , 85; and T estimonies, 1:353. 9. Ellen G . White, T he D esire of A ges, 669, 670. 10. In her teens Ellen White was known as Sister Ellen and Sister Harmon. After marriage, she was Mrs. White and Sister White. In her advanced years she was known affectionately as “Mother White.” Probably she was never known outside her family as Ellen White. 11. Ellen G . White, T estimonies to M inisters, 240. 12. Ellen G . White, E arly W ritings , 71, my italics.

CHAPTER 10

INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT: GOOD NEWS OR BAD NEWS? We have referred to the investigative judgment several times without studyi stu dyinn g it it in d etail. etail. But do we want to talk about the investigative judgment? If it's bad news, we'd rather forget it. it. If it's it's goo goo d n ews, ews, then O K . A moment of reflection will reveal that it must be both good news and bad n ews. ews. A friend of mine the other day thoughtfully misquoted Hebrews 9:27, which is supposed to say, “It is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment.” My friend quoted it assaying, “It is appointed for men to d ie on ce, and after th at – it's you you r decisi decision .” What he meant, of course, was that in the judgment, God's decision will be essentially our decision. After a manner of speaking, God in the  jud gm en t will “ initial” in itial” t h e d ecisio ec isionn s we h ave av e alrea alr eadd y m ade. ad e. Bu Butt d o we n eed ee d to worry about the heavenly documents that record our wrong decisions, pro vided vided we have m ade th e on e goo d d ecisi ecision on , to accept Jesus Jesus Christ Christ as our Saviour? In the famous parable of the two debtors, the man who owed his employer ten thousand talents was freely BAD NEWS FOR THE FORGIVEN DEBTOR.

1233 12

1244 MAG 12 MAG N IFICEN IFICEN T D ISA ISAPPO INTMEN T forgiven as soon as he showed that he was sorry. Unfortunately, no sooner had he left the office than he had a fellow employee, who owed him one hundred pence, thrown in jail. Seeing what happened, the other workers were greatly distressed and told their boss – who promptly summoned the forgiven debt d ebt or and said said t o him, “Yo u wicked servant! I forgave you all all that debt because you besought me; and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?” Jesus closed the story by saying, “In anger his lord delivered him to the jailers [actually, the torturers], till he should pay all his debt.” Then Jesus drew the lesson for us: “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive forgive you yourr broth br oth er from you r heart” (see (see Matthew 18:23-35) 18:23-35).. Jesus told this story to illustrate His answer to Peter's question about forgiveness. Peter asked if he should forgive a brother seven times but Jesus said said “seventy times times seven.” seven.” T hen H e told the story of th e two debt ors. Evidently God expects us to take His counsel seriously. When we ask  forgiveness for the ten thousand-talent sins we commit against Him, He forgives us freely. But if afterward we refuse to forgive anybody's one hu nd red-pen ny sins sins against against ourselves, ourselves, H e “ unfo rgives rgives”” us. In order to stay forgiven, we must remain forgivable; we must be forgiving. Our heavenly Father says so – for just as He is our Father, He is also the Father of the person we won't forgive. “So also my heavenly Fath er wil will do to every on e of you, if if you you do no t forgive forgive your your bro ther fro m your heart.” One purpose of the investigative judgment has to do with people who say they love Jesus but who don't love people. Such “Christians” wouldn't make very nice neighbors to live with through eternity. We need to take this seriously, for “not everyone that says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). This statement by Jesus about saying “Lord , Lord” can serve to rem ind us that several several times times in this boo k we have quoted from Daniel 7 about the judgment and the arrival of the Son of man on the clouds, but t hat in do ing so we have om itted verses 11 and and 12, which are app app rop riate riate to ou r present study. What do those two verses, Daniel 7:11 and 12, say to us? They say that in visi vision on D aniel aniel saw, saw, as as on e result result o f the judgmen t, that the b east east o n wh ich th e little horn grew was to be “slain” and “burned with fire.” “As I looked,” says Daniel, “the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given over BAD NEWS FOR THE LITTLE HORN.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 125 to b e burn ed with fire.” Obviously the investigative judgment was not good news for the beast that grew the little horn . Now the beast that grew the little horn was “Rome” in its Christian phase. We often speak of it as representing Roman Catholicism, that is, as representing Roman Catholicism at its worst without reference to the fine Cath olic h osp itals and social services. D aniel 7 is selective, sho wing the little horn persecuting God's people and attempting to change God's law. Very well, but don't forget that Roman Catholicism is Christian . It regards its highest earthly leader, the pope, as the highest earthly repre-sentative of Jesus Christ. Its most characteristic worship service, the mass, celebrates Christ's death. And a major purpose of its priesthood is to give people assurance in Christ's name that their confessed sins are forgiven. This system that is called the “little horn” in Daniel is the same as the leopard-bodied “beast” of Revelation 13 that shares with people the “mark of the beast”; and people who get the mark of the beast, the third angel says, will experience “God's wrath” and be “tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb” (Revelation 14:9-11, KJV). Let us n ot slip p ast this po int lightly. Celebration of Ch rist's death for our sins, assurance th at our sins are forgiven, claiming to be C hristian, and living in fellowship with a topmost Christian are not alone sufficient to make the investigative judgm ent good n ews. But didn't David think of judgment as good news? Didn't be plead with God, in Psalm 7:8 and several other places, “Judge me, O Lord” ? D avid would never h ave asked for judgmen t if  he h adn't b elieved it was goo d n ews. When D avid asked G od to jud ge him, K ing Saul was threatening his life, and David was responding with extraordinary loyalty and forgiveness. David's actions harmonized with his faith; his conscience was clear and deserved to be. H e knew G od would vindicate him. And when the b est time came, G od did vind icate him. But David didn't always think judgment was nice. We don't find him pleading with God to judge him immediately after he murdered Uriali and committed adultery with Bathsheba. And neither did Nathan the prophet com e to give him gospel assurance. Nathan the prophet came to David hoping that through repentance, JUDGMENT AND KING DAVID.

126 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T David would seek gospel assurance. But, as we all know, Nathan first talked about a grossly sinful landlord and then, pointing his finger at David, declared, “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:7). Does preaching judgment produce anxiety instead of assurance? Sometimes it goes. Anxiety was precisely what David needed at that moment. Producing anxiety is right if it leads to the kind of repentance we find David offering in Psalm 51. “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my Sin!” “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within m e” (Psalm 51:2,10). Preaching only judgment to people who have never heard the gospel can prod uce anxiety, discouragement, and legalism. But the first angel's message of Revelation 14:6, 7 is gospel and judgment joined together. “With an eternal gospel to proclaim … he said, … ‘The hour of his judgment has come.’ ” The third angel's message warns us that if, even as Christians, we continue to follow the ways of the beast, we will get the mark of the beast and suffer God's wrath. The “saints” are those only who through faith in Jesus cho ose loyally to o bserve all of G od 's com man dm ents (see Revelation 14:9-12). The three angels' messages constitute a unified judgment-hour message that deals definitely with behavior – commandment keeping – as well as with fearing God and having faith in Jesus. Evidently, both belief  and behavior must harmonize with God's will if Christians want the  jud gm en t to be good news. The gosp el is not a method fo r filling heaven with u nkind , insensitive, disloyal, selfish p eople. Well, is it? N o! It is a way of giving people a second chance, their past sins forgiven, so they can accept the Spirit's power to be born again and follow Christ's example and by His grace become kind, sensitive, loyal, generous, and nice “two-table” neighbors for everyone else to enjoy throughout eternity. (I'll explain “twotable” in chapt er 12.) In the Old Testament, the annual day of judgment was the same as the annual Day of Atonement, a fact that has much to teach us abo ut good news and bad n ews. In chapters 4 and 6 we looked at how Miller and Snow and Crosier and Edson and others recognized that the Day of Atonement type in the Old Testament was to be fulfilled in antitype in con nection with last-day events. Th e ministry that Jesus started in 1844 is the ant itype o f the O ld T estamen t D ay of Ato nem ent o utlined in Leviticus 16 and 23. TYPE AND ANTITYPE.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 127 So what can we learn about good news and bad news from Leviticus 16 and 23? Leviticus 16 outlines the day's activities for the high priest, most of  which need not concern us at this moment, having more to do with the priest than with the people. But one verse we must not overlook. Leviticus 16:30 says, “On this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse  you ; from all your sins you shall be clean before the Lord.” We looked at this pro mise in chapter 9. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest performed rituals that symbolically cleansed the earthly sanctuary from the defiling sins that had been accumulating in it all year since the previous Day of Atonement. But the high priest did not cleanse only the sanctuary. He also cleansed the people from the sins that had been defiling them. He cleansed them from “all” their sins, our verse says, meaning evidently from all their different kinds of sins, sins of omission as well as commission, serious and casual, inten tion al and un inten tion al. N ow th at's good news witho ut a doubt. But there were conditions. For one thing, the cleansing was only for the peo ple of G od . Peop le belonging to oth er tribes, close or far away, were no t cleansed from their sins on the Day of Atonement. This means that everyon e must accept Jesus as perso nal Saviou r. Ano ther co nd ition , even amo ng G od 's peo ple, was that th e cleansing was restricted to individuals who responded to the command to “afflict yourselves”(Leviticus 23:27). To afflict yourself means to search your soul in solemn repent ance and co nfession and to get busy making things right.1 The Lord said to Moses, “On the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of aton emen t; it shall be fo r you a time o f ho ly con vocation , and you shall afflict yourselves. … For whoever is not afflicted on this same day shall be cut off from his people. And whoever does any work on this same day, that person I will destroy from among his peop le” (Leviticus 23:26-29). On this day the high priest, at the risk of his life, entered the most holy place of the earthly sanctuary, where the presence of God was symbolized by an intensely bright light. There he sprinkled the blood of an animal on the mercy seat, located above the Ten Commandments, which the people had broken. The animal represented the life and death of Jesus. As the priest did this, the people outside were called on to feel the enormity of  their sinfulness and to present their hearts before the Lord with intense

128 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T earnestness, sincerely detesting their wrongful ways, apologizing to their neighbors for unkindnesses, and seeking the cleansing that God was eager to provide. The people who responded, who “afflicted” themselves, were cleansed from all their sins. G oo d n ews ind eed! But what about the people who chose not to afflict themselves? The same God who provided the Day of Atonement specifically said what would hap pen to such p eop le. He said, “I will destroy them .” We are surprised that anyone would be destroyed on a day of  atonement.  A tonement  is at-one-ment  and means “reconciliation.” The Day of  Atonement was a day for the removal of all the sins that separate us from God (see Isaiah 59:2) and from our fellow humans. How could it be a day of judgmen t? The Day of Atonement became a day of judgment for people who didn't care abo ut b eing recon ciled with G od and n eighbo r, who p referred to go on sinn ing. Fo r th em, th e day of recon ciliation became, by th eir o wn ch oice, a day of d estruction , of bad n ews. Whether the day was one of reconciliation (atonement) or condemnation (judgm ent) was up to each ind ividual. In a real sense, G od placed H is initials by each p erson 's own decision . The chapter on “Investigative Judgment” in T he G reat Controversy is based on the many parallels between the Day of Atonement type in the Old Testament and its antitype going on in heaven since 1844. For instance, as in the Bible type, so in the “great day of final atonem ent and investigative judgment the on ly cases considered are tho se of the professed peop le of G od.”2 Some of the good-news passages in this G reat C ontroversy chapter are deservedly famous. For instance, “The deepest interest manifested among men in the decisions of earthly tribunals but faintly represents the interest evinced in the heavenly courts when the names entered in the book of life com e up in review befo re the Judge of all the earth.”3 And again, “Jesus does not excuse their sins, but shows their penitence and faith, and, claiming for them forgiveness, He lifts His wounded hands befo re th e F ather an d the ho ly angels, saying: I kno w them by name. I h ave graven th em o n th e palms o f my hands.”4 Th e good news reaches a climax just befo re the close of pro bation: “Thus will be realized the complete fulfillment of the new-covenant promise: ‘I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.’ ‘In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of lsrael GOOD NEWS IN T H E G R E A T CO N T R O V E R S Y  .

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 129 shall be sou ght for, and t here shall be n on e; and t he sins o f Judah , and they shall no t b e fo un d’ (1ercmiah 31:34; 50:20).”5 As in the type, so also in the antitype, the people who afflict their souls experience the rem oval of all th eir sins. To this marvelous good news of forgiveness we can add additional good news about remembrance. That's right. Sins will be blotted out, but good deeds will be remembered. Malachi 3:16 talks about God's Book of  Remembrance. “A book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and thought on his name.” T he G reat C ontroversy comments appropriately, “There every temptation resisted, every evil overcome, every word of tender pity expressed, is faithfully chronicled. And every act of sacrifice, every suffering and sorrow endured for Christ's sake, is record ed.”6 This Book of Remembrance is evidently one of the “books” (Daniel 7:10) that are open and read during the investigative judgment. In the  R eview for November 22, 1898, Ellen White wrote, “In his teachings, Christ sought to imp ress men with the certainty of th e com ing judgmen t, and with its publicity. … It is to be held in the presence of other worlds, that the love, the integrity, the service, of man for God, may be honored to the highest degree. There will be no lack of glory and honor.” Here is part of  the m agnificence of th e great disapp ointm ent. Picture a family, newly taken to heaven at the second coming, now wandering wide-eyed around New Jerusalem, after the welcoming ceremon ies have been com pleted. While th e family memb ers are loo king at a particularly impressive home or garden or park or whatever, they suddenly notice a small group of angels looking at them . The angels come over and intro duce th emselves. Th en o ne o f the angels says, “Aren't you o ur Brot her So-and-so, who gave up buying a new home so you could have money eno ugh to spon sor a child th rough ch urch scho ol? Aren't you our Sister Soand -so, who used to help o lder ladies find what th ey wanted at bargain sales before you took what you wanted? And aren't you Jimmy So-and-so, who often volunteered to do the dishes when you saw that your mother was tired?” The family is pleased but embarrassed. They say, “Oh, but that was no thing. Loo k at what Jesus has don e for us. And an yway, who to ld you we did tho se little th ings?” The angels reply, “Jesus told us, when He came to your names in the investigative judgment. He told us a lot more besides. He seemed so proud of you. He said H e wanted us angels to kno w what you 'd do ne so we would

130 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T feel really goo d ab ou t welcoming you h ere. And we are glad you've come.” The judgment “is to be held in the presence of other worlds, that the love, the integrity, the service, of man for God, may be honored to the highest degree. Th ere will be n o lack of glory and ho no r.” If there is a wealth of good news in the investigative judgment about forgiveness and the Book of Remembrance, we must still be honest with ourselves and admit there is some potentially bad news as well: “God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret th ing, whether goo d o r evil,” says E cclesiastes 12:14. Not simply every deed and every secret thing! Every word  as well. Jesus Himself, our Judge, cautioned us in Matthew 12:36 that “in the day of   jud gm en t men will ren der account fo r every careless wo rd they utt er; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” And we cannot forget His warning about saying, “Lord, Lord ,” withou t actually doing th e will of H is Fath er (see Matthew 7:21). T he G reat C ontroversy is in harmony with Scripture when it says that every man ’s work passes in review befo re G od and is registered for faithfulness o r unfaithfulness. Opposite each name in the books of heaven is entered with terrible exactness every wro ng wo rd, every selfish act, every unfulfilled duty, and every secret sin, with every artful dissembling.”7 “Artful dissembling” is an old-fashioned way of saying “skillful dishonesty,” like painting over the rust on your old car and telling people when you try to sell it th at th ere isn't an y rust. The passage continues: “Heaven-sent warnings or reproofs neglected, wasted moments, unimproved opportunities, the influence exerted for good or for evil, with its far-reaching results, all are chronicled by the recording angel” (my emp hasis). Warnings and reproofs neglected. Doing our own thing heedless of our influence on others. Can things like these be forgiven? Yes; but only if we are seriou s, if we h ate th em, if we're in earn est, if we “ afflict” o urselves and by Ch rist's sanctifying grace make real changes. IMPORTANCE OF BEHAVIOR.

All who have truly repented of sin, and by faith claimed the blood of Christ as their atoning sacrifice, have had pardon entered against their names in the books of heaven; [This part of the sentence is wonderful; but it goes on:] as they have become partakers of the righteousness of Christ, and their characters are found to be in harmo ny with the law of God, their sins will be blotted out, and they

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? 131 themselves will be acco un ted wo rth y of et ernal life.8 Th ere is that ch aracter con cern again. Ch aracter is what we cho ose to be, con trasted with what we m erely want to be. By G od 's grace we can h ave our sins blotted out, provided we “afflict” ourselves; provided we are deeply com mitted to character develop men t. Let none deceive themselves with the belief that they can become holy while willfully violating one of God's requirements. The commission of a known sin silences the witnessing voice of the Spirit, and separates the soul from G od. 9 “Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, so that he does not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). The Day of Atonement (day of reconciliation) is a day for removing the sins that separate. But how can God forgive sins that we don't confess?  H ow can H e blot out sins that we choose to go on comm itting? Sins separate; they do no t “at-on e” us with o thers. What sins? You say you are not like the little horn. You don't persecute peo ple, and you h aven't tried to change G od 's law. N o; but then, maybe you n ever had a chance to be po pe. And maybe, in your own sphere you like to gossip, grossly undermining p eop le's reputations. Maybe you get easily angry with your sp ou se or children and in this way “persecute” them. Maybe – dare I suggest it? – you sometimes criticize people sharply who won't read books about 1844, like th is one. Or perhaps you keep the law about the Sabbath but change the law against adultery, making it seem all right for you to enjoy lustful videos. Or maybe you change the laws about honesty and cheat on your income tax. You haven't committed adultery and murder like David; but have you deeply enjoyed, been entertained by, adultery and murder hour after hour on you r silver screen? Sin need not keep any one of us out of heaven. The entire plan of  salvation is designed to take care of sins that could keep us out of heaven. But even one sin can keep us out. If we choose to cling to a single known sin, it will destroy us. IMPORTANCE OF ATTITUDE.

Sin has to do with attitude as well as with

132 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T behavior. Jesus summed up the law as supreme love to God and humanity (see Matthew 22:37-39), and love is ultimately an attitude. On this Day of  Atonement, if our attitude (love) is right, we'll do all we can to be at one with b oth G od and neighbor. If we choo se instead to ho ld on to any kind o f  known sin, we show that our attitude is wrong. Cherishing even a single sin reveals a perilou sly warped attitude. Th e ten t ho usand-talent d ebto r was sorry for h is sin against h is emp loyer, bu t he had a very bad attitude toward h is one h un dred-p enn y fellow worker. H e th ereby disqualified h imself from the happ y society of h eaven. The fact that the pre-advent judgment will keep out of heaven selfish people who would spoil the happiness of everyone else is bad news for selfish people but very good news for God's people. It is part of the magnificence of the great disappo intm ent. Mothers find it easy to forgive boys who steal a cookie from the cookie  jar; but wh at ab out the boy wh o grab s a co okie away from his little bro ther and do es it again, day after day? Can the mo ther fo rgive big broth er Bob by without first requiring him to apologize to little brother Billy and make things right? If Moth er do esn't require Bob by to apologize and make th ings right, what will Billy learn about his mother? And will their mother be prep aring either b oy for th e happ y society of h eaven? E ven o ne sinful hab it, one forgivable little sinful habit, cherished  against God or man, destroys us, makes us unfit for etern ity. It is a perilous thing to allow an unchristian trait to live in the heart. One cherished sin will, little by little, debase the character, bringing all its nobler powers into subjection to the evil desire. The removal of one safeguard from the conscience, the indulgence of one evil habit, one neglect of the high claims of duty, breaks down the defenses of the soul and opens the way for Satan to come in and lead us astray.10 The three angels' messages combine gospel, judgment, and commandmen t keeping. What G od h as joined together, let no o ne pu t asunder. The potential for joy and for sorrow in connection with heaven's Day of Atonement, day of judgment, is so immense that we owe it to ourselves as well as to our Saviour to pay earnest attention to H is loving appeals. “We are now living in the great day of atonement,” says a solemn DAY OF ATONEMENT APPEALS.

G O O D N EWS O R BAD NE WS? WS? 13 1333 passage in T he G reat reat C ontrove ntrovers rsyy.11 “In the typical service, while the high priest was making the atonement for Israel, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from among the people. In like manner, all who would have their names retained in the book of life should now, in the few remaining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin and true repentance. There must be deep, faithful searching of heart. The light, frivolous spirit indulged by so many professed Christians must be put away. There is earnest warfare before all who would subdue the evil tendencies that strive for the mastery. The work of preparation is an individual work. We are not saved in groups. The purity and devotion of  on e wil will not offset the want o f th ese quali qualities ties in in anot her.” H ow sad th at in in Bible Bible times times som e peo ple, thro ugh sheer neglect neglect chose to dep rive rive th emselves emselves of th e joys joys of at-one-m ent. H ow sad to think that in in th e last last days anyon e will will b e lo lo st because b ecause he or sh e doesn't care. The chapter in T he G reat reat C ontrove ntrovers rsyy that we've been following closes with 12 these words: “Watch ye therefore: … lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping.” Mark 13:35,36. Perilous is the condition of those who, growing weary of their watch, turn to the attractions of the world. While the man of business is absorbed in the pursuit of gain, while the pleasure lover is seeking indulgence, while the daughter of  fashion fashion is arranging arranging her ado ado rnm ents – it may be in that ho ur the Judge of all the earth will pronounce the sentence: “Thou art weighed weighed in the balances, balances, and art foun d wanting.” wanting.” D aniel aniel 5:27. 5:27. Let us, both you and me, reread the G reat reat C ontrove ontroversy rsy chapter on the investigative judgment from time to time. Maybe this coming Sabbath or even right right no w. Let us no t o verloo verloo k th e bad news. We may especia especiallly need it. And let us not o verloo verloo k any of th e good news either. either. Fo r 1844 1844 is is both bad news for those who do n't choo se to become Ch ristristlike and very good news for th ose who do .

1. See Ezekiel 33:15, 16, “If the wicked restores the pledge, gives back what he has taken by robbery, and walks in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of the sins that he has committed shall be remem bered against against h im.”

1344 MAG 13 MAG N IFICEN IFICEN T D ISA ISAPPO INTMEN T 2. Ellen Ellen G . White, T he G reat reat C ontrove ntroversy rsy, 480. 3. Ib id., 483, 483, 484. 4. Ib id., 484. 5. Ib id., 485. 6. Ib id., 481. 7. Ib id., 482. 8. See ibid., 485, my italics. 9. Ib id., 472. 10. E llen G . White, Patriarchs and Prophets, 452. 11. Ellen Ellen G . White, T he G reat reat C ontrove ntroversy rsy, 489, 490. 12. Ib id., 491.

CHAPTER 11

1844 AND WORSHIP It is time to look at the difference 1844 can make in the way we worship. D oes 1844 really say som eth ing abo ut wo rship? Yes, indeed ! The first angel's message, the one that deals with the arrival of the  jud gm en t hour in 1844, tells the wh ole wo rld to “worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the foun tains o f water” (Revelation 14:7). The third angel's message, the one that contrasts the mark of the beast with commandment keeping, also deals with worship. It warns the whole world that “if any one worships the beast and its image, … he also shall drink th e wine o f G od 's wrath” (Revelation 14:9, 10). Very well; but what really is worship? Literally, the word comes from “worth-ship” – our respo nse to anoth er person 's worth. So, how should we respond to G od's “worth,” His unlimited authority, His unspeakable purity, and His inco m preh ensible love? Humility suggests itself! Who are we, in the presence of such a Being? Disgust also suggests itself, disgust with our ugly impurities. But in view of God's unfathomable love, worship also suggests reaching out for WHAT IS WORSHIP?

137

138 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T forgiveness and a passionate longing to belong to such a wonderful Person and to do anything He m ight ask. The Bible describes a worship experience like this in the life of Isaiah the prophet, when he was young (see Isaiah 6). In vision Isaiah saw God on His throne surrounded by heavenly beings singing, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts” (Isaiah 6:3). At once Isaiah felt humbled and embarrassed. In his distress he cried, “Woe is me … for I am a man of  un clean lips” (verse 5). To his great relief, an an gel in th e vision came with a burn ing coal from the altar and touch ed h is lips, cleansing him. Ready now for anything God might ask, Isaiah heard a voice calling for a volunteer: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Isaiah immediately responded, “Here am I; send me.” Thereupon an angel gave him instructions so he might truly do what God wanted, warning him not to b e discouraged if peop le didn 't respo nd . Praise (by the angels). Humility (by Isaiah). Confession. Forgiveness. D edication . Attention to G od 's instructions. Worship! Worship is our response to what God is worth. It is humbling ourselves before God's authority, repenting in the presence of His purity,  praising Him for His goodness, dedicating ourselves obediently to His service, and listening carefully to learn h ow we can serve H im best. But we're not quite through. Because Isaiah didn't happen to ask God for anything on this famous occasion, we have overlooked the matter of  “praying for” things, or supplication. But in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus taught us to ask for things, even for so mundane but necessary a thing as ou r daily bread. But judgment is going on in the place where Jesus is our Mediator. To come to God asking for something while clinging to known sin would be mo ckery. To say, “Lord , Lord” – o r to sing, “Lord , Lord” – will no t get us into the kingdom unless we do the Father's will (see Matthew 7:21). To come to God even while repenting requires a mediator. “No one comes to the Father, but by me,” Jesus said in John 14:6. “The religious services, the prayers, the praise, the penitent confession of sin ascend from true believers as incense to the heavenly sanctuary, but passing through the corrupt channels of humanity, they are so defiled that unless purified by blood, they can never be of value with God. … All incense from earthly tabernacles must be moist with the cleansing drops of the blood of  Christ.”1 So worship is humility, confession, praise, supplication, dedication,

1844 AN D WO RSH IP 139 learning how to obey, and above all, obedience to Jesus. Worship is our respo nse to G od's “worth.” As we noted a moment ago, the three angels' messages contrast the worship of God with the worship of the beast, the entity represented by the little horn in Daniel 7, which is sentenced to destruction by the investigative judgment. Seventh-day Adventists learned lon g ago from the Bible that the beast symbolizes a fallen religion that combines many good things with many bad ones. The beast replaces one or more of God's commandments with decrees of its own. When con dition s are favorable, the beast even tries to enforce its wrongful decrees. The mark of the beast, the beast's essential character, is the coercive enforcement of a form of the Ten Commandments that consciously differs from God's original form. People who receive the mark of the beast knowingly, in the name of religion, disobey on e or mo re of G od's comm andments. They show that the beast is worth mo re to th em th an G od. In disobeying G od, they worship th e beast. On the other hand, God's true saints, according to the third angel's message, obey His commandments, clinging to the Lord, being “those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). These are the people who respond to the first angel's call to “worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the fountains of  waters.” T his means th at th ey remem ber to keep the Sabb ath ho ly, “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day” (Exodus 20:11). God is worth so much to them th at they obey Him at any cost to themselves. They worship God and give glory to H im. GOD WORSHIP, BEAST WORSHIP.

Worship is far more than celebration and praise, in spite of the popular emphasis on these features today. Worship involves praise, but at its root, worship is obedience. The distinction between worshiping God and worshiping the beast lies in our choice of  which entity we choo se to o bey. Seventh-day Adventists have lon g realized th at ob edience is the co re of  true worship. Educator W. W. Prescott, in his gloriously Christ-centered booklet Christ and the Sabbath , said a century ago (1893), “The highest form of worship is in obedience.” Similarly, Ellen White in 1911 observed that “ there is no oth er way of m anifesting reverence so p leasing to H im as by obedience to that which He has spoken." 2 On another occasion she WORSHIP AS OBEDIENCE.

140 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T said, “It is working together with Christ that is true worship. Prayers, exhortation, and talk are cheap fruits, which are frequently tied on; but fruits that are manifested in good works, in caring for the needy, the fatherless, and widows, are genuine fruits, and grow naturally upon a good tree." 3 Through its intimate relationship with the three angels' messages, 1844 teaches us that worship is far more than singing hymns, far more than anything we do in church. As a true response to God's worth, true worship can be nothing less than a lifestyle of praise, repentance, learning, and ob edience. Witho ut a b orn -again change in our basic attitudes, singing praise is actually repugnant to God! “Take away from me the noise of  you r so ngs; to the m elod y of you r harp s I will no t listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream” (Amos 5:23, 24). “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). We've been talking about worship as transformed lifestyle. Now we need to talk about worship as a meeting or a church service. So we ask if  1844 says anything abou t h ow to con duct a wo rship service. To answer the question of whether 1844 can t each us so meth ing abou t Seventh-day Adventist worship services, we really need to reflect on what sort of an organization Seventh-day Adventists are supp osed to con stitute. I think we know what kind of organization we are not  supposed to be. We are not supp osed to be a m ere social club. N or are we supposed to be a sort of en tertainm ent syndicate offering religiou s concerts. O ur p ion eers early recognized th at we constitute a church, but even so, they didn't see th emselves as con stituting a church in the o rdinary sense of  the term. They much preferred to think in terms of a movement . They saw themselves as a movement symbolized by those three angels of  Revelation 14:6-12, going somewhere, “flying in midheaven,” proclaiming a m essage. J. N. Loughborough, lifetime pioneer, titled his 1905 history T he G reat S econd A dvent M ovement . WA. Spicer, for eight years a beloved General Conference president, in 1929 put out his Certainties of the  A dvent M ovement . As late as 1968, the Review and Herald Publishing Association issued a revision of Emma Howell Cooper's T he G reat A dvent   M ovement . In the preface to his major work, Origin and Progress of  CHURCH AND/ OR MOVEMENT.

1844 AN D WO RSH IP 141 S eventh-day A dventists (1925), M. Ellsworth Olsen expressly stated that he was writing about a “religious movement rather than. … a denomination.” What is a movement? According to my W ebster's, whereas a church is “a body of religious believers,” a movement is “ an organized effort to  promote or attain an end [or goal],” such as the civil rights movement. The end, o r goal, of th e Seventh -day Adventist m ovem ent is the fulfillmen t o f  the th ree angels of Revelation 14:6-12, carrying their m essages int o all the world and producing, under God, men and women who actually keep God's commandments, including the commandments about the Sabbath and abo ut loving G od suprem ely and o ur n eighbo rs as ourselves. Membership in many denominations is achieved by infant baptism, before a person knows what is happening. Membership in a movement is always voluntary. Membership in many churches is nominal, requiring little if any commitment. Membership in a movement always implies commitment. Membership in some churches implies little more than participation in ceremon ies and attention to rout ine sermo ns. Membership in a religiou s mo vemen t imp lies active participation in the spreading of the movement's message, and this implies thoroughgoing instruction in the con tent an d m eaning of its message.

If Seventh-day Adventists are indeed a movement, we need to ask what kind of worship service is most appro priate for us. Isaiah's experience can help p rovide a basic pattern . A true worship service appropriately begins with a hymn of praise (like the angels' song “Holy, holy, holy,” in Isaiah's vision), lifting people's attention to God's power, holiness, and love. The hymn should be sung “with the spirit and. … with the mind,” as 1 Corinthians 14:15 teaches us. (I enjoy leading hymns, getting the organist and people to put life into them.) Their awareness of God reawakened, the people kneel reverently and confess, with Isaiah, “Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips.” Forgiven at once, like Isaiah, they accept forgiveness and do something that Isaiah isn't said to have done but that Jesus in the Lord's Prayer and Hebrews 4:16 invite us to do, “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace” to supplicate, to make petitions to the all-powerful, all-loving One. So far, the worship service in a movement is little different from a service appropriate for an ordinary thoughtful church. A significant WORSHIP SERVICE IN A MOVEMEN T.

142 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T difference, however, comes with the sermon. In his sermon, a minister in the Seventh-day Adventist movement teaches his people clearly and impellingly some particular facet of truth related to G od's special message  for the list days – the everlasting gospel plus the judgment plus the fall of  popular religions plus the danger of the mark of the beast plus faith-filled, Christ-centered commandment keeping. The minister preaches earnestly, as if the Seventh-day Adventist message mattered , for eternal life or eternal death. The minister should begin as if he knew he was bearing a message from God. He should make the essential truth as distinct as milepo sts, so th at peo ple cann ot fail to see them. 4 His burden is to teach the message so well that his people will actually do what th e Bible says and b e able to tell oth ers about it. In respon se, the peo ple dedicate themselves to remem ber what th eir pastor taught, to do it, and to share it. They also report on how God helped them make use of  last week's sermon. The greatest help that can be given our people is to teach them to work for God, and to depend on Him, not on the ministers. … Let church members, during the week, act their part faithfully, and on the Sabbath relate their experience. The meeting will then be as meat in due season, bringing to all present new life and fresh vigor.5 We have looked at the basics of a Seventh-day Adventist worship service; bu t th ere is mo re. Hebrews 10:24,25 says, “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all th e more as you see the D ay drawing near.” The “Day” referred to here is the great day, the day of Christ's second coming. In view of 1844, we know that this day is far nearer now than it was in P aul's day. So wh at are we to do as we “see th e D ay drawing near”? The Bible says we are not to forsake meeting together, even though other church members may be negligent (“as is the habit of some”). We are to m eet together faithfully. For wh at purp ose? To “stir up on e anoth er ENCOURAGING ONE ANOTHER.

1844 AN D WO RSH IP 143 to love and good works,” “encouraging one another,” or, as Elder Spicer used to say, “cheering the b rethren o n.”6 This instruction in Hebrews 10:24, 25 shows that even in New Testament times people were staying home from church and that even many of those who went to church needed encouragement. You have a role to fill here. D oes your ch urch seem cold? Warm it up! D oes it seem d ead? Pu t life into it! Do church members seem not to want you? Never mind! You didn't  join a club. You co mmitted yourself to a movemen t with a message. Yo u are as mu ch a m emb er of th e mo vement as anyone else. The Bible says to  you , “Stir up one another to love and good works,” “encouraging one another.” But you are timid. May the G od who made u s all different bless you and turn your timidity into a spiritual gift. Scan your congregation for some other timid soul, sitting alone. Gently, softly, smile and ask his name, or hers, and try to share cheer and courage in little ways at first. Sooner or later, your need for a friend will be m et by meeting that p erson's need for a friend . So part of our time on Sabbath should be devoted to sharing encou ragemen t. In form ally, this can be do ne as you arrive and leave; more formally, it can be done during Sabbath School, the announcement time, and after a short sermon. “The sermon should frequently be short, so that the p eop le m ay express their th anksgiving to G od .”7 “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Sharing encouragement is not optional. God calls us to it. Doing it is part of keeping God's commandments. Even more, sharing our testimony, when done through faith in Jesus and with a sense of to tal com mitmen t, is on e of G od 's ways to meet our need for self-control and victory! Revelation 12:11 says of the saints of all ages, “They have conquered him [the devil] by the blood of  the Lamb and by the word of their testimony , for they loved not their lives even un to d eath.” True Seventh-day Adventist worship focuses attention on God in His ho liness, love, and po wer, to which we respo nd with hum ility, confession , gratitude, supplication, attention to His end-time instruction, and especially obedience, a part of which obedience involves encouraging the peop le around u s. WORSHIP AND BABYLON.

In contrast to the true kind of worship service

144 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T that we have been talking about, the services in some denominations occupy much time with relatively superficial songs accompanied by rhythmic clapping and noisy music. Some of these churches offer an almost exclusive emphasis on meeting people's felt needs and on talking assurance and joy. They appeal to people's emotions more than to their reasoning powers. They announce, perform, and applaud musical nu mb ers as if the service were a con cert. Is it true that people today won't sing the grand hymns that have endured the test of time? One of the most popular religious songs today, in season , is “Silent N ight.” It was comp osed o n a Christm as Eve in 1818, more than 170 years ago. Perhaps the most popular hymn today is “Amazing Grace.” It was written in 1779, well over two hundred years ago. People young and old like to sing songs they know or are taught in a friend ly, enthu siastic m anner, no matter h ow o ld th e son gs are. The grade schoolers in the small congregation I belong to once sang “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee” to the tune of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony8 by mem ory and with evident relish.9 People who like to clap a lot in church often quote Psalm 47:1. H owever, there are more th an 140 oth er references to singers and singing in t he Bible. More than on e hu nd red and forty! O nly this one, Psalm 47:1, suggests that people might clap in connection with their music. Clapping was evidently very rare among ancient Jewish people. It is nowhere commended in the New Testament. We have no information that it will be practiced in heaven. We don't even know the way the ancient Jews clapped or wh at the clapping meant to them. The normal response to Scripture reading and words of praise in Bible times was “Amen.” Instruction to say Amen occurs several times in the Psalms (as in 41:13; 72:19; 89:52; 106:48). Deuteronomy 27 contains twelve injunctions to “let all the people say Amen.” And 1 Corinthians 14:16 reveals that saying Amen was practiced in the New Testament church. Second-century Christians used Amen. In chapter 65 of his  A pology, Justin Martyr told government authorities that “when he [the worship leader] has concluded the prayers and thanksgivings, all the people express th eir assent b y saying Am en.” Most impressive to me is the fact that Amen is the response of choice among those beings privileged to worship God face to face. At the conclusion of the magnificent universal anthem that John witnessed in

1844 AN D WO RSH IP 145 Revelation 5, the four living creature – the beings closest of all to G od   H im self  – responded reverently by saying Amen (see Revelation 5:14; com pare 19:4). Saying a reverent Amen means, “Yes, that is true,” or “May God make that pro mise com e true.” Amen is a confirmation of a message.  It is not a  form of applause. In my study of the Bible, I find no place for applause in a worship service. Applause is a secular response, and worship is spiritual. App lause en courages preachers and mu sicians to be ever m ore sup erficial and entertaining, whereas the hushed and reverent Amen encourages them to be ever mo re penetrating and spiritual. In som e places, the em otion al worship form s we have  just been discu ssin g have been bro ught into Seven th -d ay Ad ventist worship services. Is th is good or b ad? Whatever may be said about clapping, noisy music, and the choice of  songs, the most worrisome aspect of these program innovations to me is what is missing from them. All too often, what is missing, even when practiced in Seventh-day Adventist churches, is the three angels' messages. Missing also, in many instances, is a conviction that Seventh-day Adventism is a unique end-time movement with a unique end-time message. Missing is any amb ient sense th at th e final judgmen t is in session and that everyone everywhere, including everyone in the congregation, is obliged by God to keep the Sabbath, to keep it holy, all of it, from sundown to sundown, or be lost . Almost missing are calls for deep-seated repent ance o f po pular sins an d for o ngoing sanctification . Almo st m issing is the promise of total victory. Almost missing are attempts to stir people up by referring to their unfelt  needs. The sure result of attempting to bolster attendance by appealing primarily to em otions would b e destruction of the Seventh-day Adventist mo vement , for witho ut em ph asis on its end-time message, this mo vement has no right t o exist. WHAT IS MISSING?

Popular revivals are too often carried by appeals to the imagination , by exciting th e em otion s, by gratifying th e love for wh at is new and startling. Converts thus gained have little desire to listen to Bible truth, little interest in the testimony of prophets and apostles. Unless a religious service has something of a sensational character, it h as no attraction s for them . A m essage which appeals to

146 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T unimpassioned reason awakens no response. The plain warnings of  God's word, relating directly to their eternal interests, are unheeded.10 Adventist pioneers, who, under God, launched our movement by proclaiming its message, knew that artificially stimulated emotions have no rightful place in worship service. For example, in the days when William Miller preached the first angel's message, his preaching contrasted strikingly with that of most other revivalists. Most evangelistic preaching was flamboyant, teeming with graphic word pictures and emotional illustrations. But Miller and his leading associates presented cerebral messages combined with spiritual appeals that required careful analysis of complex Bible prophecies, thereby setting the format that Seventh-day Adventist evangelists have emulated ever since. Miller became deeply concerned when he heard a rumor that in some Millerite meetings people were shouting “Bless the Lord” and similar slogans. When Joshua V. Himes, Miller's administrative associate, rebuked people who were indulging in “bodily manifestations,” someone accused him of throwing cold water on the Holy Spirit. Himes replied that he would throw the Atlantic Ocean on such behavior before he wo uld let it con tinue.11 In chapter 4, we read about the “seventh month movement,” the eager response of the Millerite Adventists to the “true midnight cry” that Jesus was coming on the tenth day of the seventh month. Far from producing fanaticism, the message of Christ's soon return and the nearness of the  jud gm en t hour pro duced a rich quality of repen tance wh ich in its turn led to unspeakably sweet assurance. “Language cannot describe the solemnity of that hour,” wrote James White at the conclusion of the Exeter, New Hampshire, camp meeting when the new light was first presented. “The time for shouting, and display of talent in speak ing, singing and praying seemed to be past. The breth ren and sisters calmly con secrated th emselves and th eir all to the Lord and his cause, and with humble prayers and tears sought his pardon and h is favor.”12 Of another series of meetings shortly afterward in Orrington, Maine, Elder White wrote, “There was no more heard the irreverent shout of the  fanatic, nor the heartless prayer of the formalist . ” Instead, “sins were confessed with tears, and there was a general breaking down before God, and strong pleadings for pardon, and a fitness to meet the Lord at his OUR HERITAGE.

1844 AN D WO RSH IP 147 coming.” Before the meetings closed, hundreds testified with tears ofjoy that they had sought the Lord and found Him and had tasted the sweets of sins forgiven.13 Here is the way to joy and assurance! Believe the first angel's message! N ot by preaching th e gospel alon e b ut by preaching it in th e setting of th e  jud gm en t hour, the way G od co mmissioned us. Ten years after the great disappointment, that is, in 1854, some nonSabbath-keeping Adventists got excited over the mistaken idea that Christ was coming back within that year, 1854. He didn't come; and some time later, som e of these Adven tists accepted the Sabb ath – and b egan creating trouble. They wanted constantly to relive the emotional highs they had experienced back in th e 1854 expectancy. In 1863, Ellen White's attention was directed to these excitementhungry Seventh-day Adventists, and what she said about them is instru ctive for us tod ay: “Som e are no r satisfied with a meet ing un less they have a powerful and happy time. They work for this, and get up an excitement of feeling.”14 Disagreeing, she said, “The most profitable meetings for spiritual advancement are those which are characterized with solemnity and deep searching of h eart.”15 It is part of our heritage. True worship has always involved humility, confession, praise, supplication, dedication, and instruction. But since 1844, heightened emphasis on repentance, obedience, Sabbath keeping, and victorious, loving preparation to see God face to face has become essential. 1844 tells us that Jesus has moved into the most holy place to commence the final judgment, to vindicate His downtrodden saints of all ages, to teach the living about the Sabbath and holiness and Himself, and to call everyon e to repen t so th eir sins can be o vercom e and blotted o ut. Jesus is working for us; He is our Friend. But He isn't playing church, so it isn't good enough for us to play church. On this great day of  atonement, the joy of assurance is reserved for those who afflict their souls. Our lifestyle response should be faith-filled, Christ-centered, loving obedience. Our Sabbath-morning response should be regular church attendance, sharing encouragement, learning our duty, and showing reverence and repen tance as well as joy and peace. 1844, with its magnificent disappointment, has many implications for th e way we worsh ip. WORSHIP AND 1844.

148 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T 1 S elected M cssages, 2:344. 2. Ellen G . White, C ounsels to T eachers, 111. 3. Ellen G . White, T estimonies, 2:24. 4. Ellen G . White, G ospel W ork ers, 168. 5. Ellen G . White, T estimonies, 7:19. 6. See Godfrey Anderson, S picer: L eader W ith the C omm on T ouch (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1983), 56, 82, 83. 7. Ellen G . White, G ospel W ork ers, 171. 8. T he S eventh-day A dventist H ymnal, no.12. 9. T he Seventh-day A dventist H ymnal contains a three-column index of hymns that you ng peo ple are kno wn to enjoy singing! 10. Ellen G . White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 463. 11. See Francis D. Nichol, T he M idnight C ry, 308,309,481-484 (Miller's italics). 12. James White,  L ife I ncidents (Battle Creek, 1868), 166 (my italics). 13. Ibid., 167 (my italics). 14. Ellen G . White, T estimonies, 1:412. 15. Ibid.

CHAPTER 12

1844 AND BEING LIKE JESUS The Adventist movement grew out of William Miller's discovery that Jesus was his friend. “The Scriptures became my delight,” he wrote, “and in Jesus I found a friend .” The Millerite Adventist movement was a preparation to meet Jesus. The people “longed to behold Him whom their souls loved.”1 Because they loved Jesus and longed to see Him, they sought earnestly to pattern th eir lives after H is. As we start this chapter on “1844 and Being Like Jesus,” I cannot keep from telling you that for at least forty years I have cherished the following famous passage in C hrist's O bject L essons: Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of  Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly repro duced in H is peo ple, then H e will com e to claim them as His own.2 This passage used to be a favorite of virtually all the Seventh-day Adventists I knew. If you were an Adventist back, say, in the 1950s, I expect you also enjoyed it then. If you were indeed an Adventist in the 151

152 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T 1950s, you p robably still enjoy it. No one need be alarmed by the term  perfectly reproduced  It is not describing a fanatical perfection. It is certainly not defending that grossly false con cept of perfection ism that perversely excuses imm orality. N o, n o. It is talking abou t th e perfection of o ur d ear friend Jesus! It says, “Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of   H im self  in His church,” and goes on to say, “When the character of Christ  shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as H is own.” Be like Jesus, this my son g, In th e hom e and in the throng; Be like Jesus, all day long! I would be like Jesus. Can you t hink o f anything in th e entire universe that you wo uld rather be, all day long, than like Jesus? If you love Him – and I believe you do love H im – I kno w you want to be like H im. And Jesus wants us to b e like Him! “Jesus is waiting with longing desire, for the manifestation of Himself  in H is church.” I make no secret of it. I am enthusiastic in my desire, by Cod's mercy, to be part of that final generation that some Adventists talk about. If  everyone in it is going to be like Jesus, doesn't this mean that they are all going to be nice? Who wouldn't want to be part of a big bunch of nice people? Jesus was nice, wasn't He? He wasn't wimpy nice, to be sure. His was niceness with guts. He had the gift of  constructive confrontation. One night He dated tell an important man like Nicodemus that even he needed to be born again! He said it in such a way that Nicodemus came to love Him for it. Another time, Jesus had the honest courage to tell a group of leading ministers, to their faces in public, that they were hypocrites. But He told them with the voice of a man who was offering to be executed in their place before the week was out. Jesus did  niceness. H e spent time with peo ple, traveled d istances to help them, and went without things so He could be generous. Instead of  getting cross with awkward peo ple, H e was patient an d en couraged them . Jesus was polite, courteous, and thoughtful. He was kind. Completely WAYS IN WHICH JESIIS WAS NICE.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 153 honest. Prompt to do the right thing. Unafraid to stand up for others. Absolutely fair. At the same time, He was a true Sabbath keeper, for He was “two-tab le nice.” In chapter 10 I promised a definition of “two-table.” Here it is. It means adhering to both tables of the law, the first four commandments about obeying God written on one table (or tablet of stone) and on the other table the other six commandments about how to treat people. Jesus summarized the two tables as two core commandments when He said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind This is the great and first commandment. And a secon d is like it, You shall love you r neighbor as yourself O n th ese two commandments depend all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40). Som e peo ple who aren't religiou s pride them selves on being po lite and honest. Other people who are rude and discourteous pride themselves on being very religious. Neither is better than the other. The enemy of our souls doesn't mind which table of the law we emphasize, provided we neglect the other on e. Jesus was both courteous and religious. He was “two-table” nice. He hon ored b oth tables of the law, the one about loving G od with o ur heart, soul, and strength, and also the one about loving our neighbors as ourselves. Because God teaches us to love one another, Christ's total loyalty to His heavenly Father made Him completely unselfish. He was two-table nice. Good and nice. Even the onlooking angels, accustomed to having on e anot her b e good and nice for tho usands of years, were astonished at Christ's supern atural good ness and niceness. Jesus is waiting with longing desire for the reproduction of   H imself  in H is church! Please don't cheat yourself by saying it can't be done. Christ's character qualifications are listed as the “fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians 5:22, 23. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” These characteristics develop in people who are “born of … the Spirit” (1ohn 3:5). People who are born of the Spirit experience not merely an improvement on their old ways, marvelous as that would be, but also a transformation of nature (see Romans 12:2). “The Christian’s life is not a modification or improvement of t he old, but a transform ation of natu re. Th ere is a death to self and sin, and a new life altogether. This change can be brought about only by the

154 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T effectual working o f th e H oly Spirit.”3 You were born with a sinful nature. You know this. Now please don't hang o n to your sinful nature as if you were proud of it. G et a new nature! Get born from above, born of the Holy Spirit, who is as divine as God H imself. Becom e a partaker of t he d ivine n ature. In daily terms: When you and I are treating people wrong, it does little good to pray that we won't get irritated with them anymore or say mean things. What we n eed is to cho ose, by G od 's grace, to have an en tirely new attitude toward the people. We need a new birth on this point, a transformation of nature. When we find that we are selfishly indulging ourselves, it does only a little good to pray for self-control. What we need is, by God's grace, to receive an entirely new attitude toward our idol. We need anew birth on this point, a transformation of nature. If the Sabbath seems inconvenient or too long or dull, let us go to God and ask for a new attitude, a new birth in respect to Sabb ath keeping, a transformation o f nature. In the final analysis, choosing a new attitude by faith is the only way any of us can be among those triumphant saints who “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). H app ily, helping peo ple make th is cho ice is the special pro cedure th at th e Holy Spirit is dedicated to. The Spirit comes to us as the principal divine Agent in the process of sanctification, the process of becoming Christlike, of b ecom ing n ice, with guts. “Christ is waiting with longing desire for the reproduction of Himself  in His church.” Don't say He will have to wait forever! I know better. First John 3: says, “When he shall appear, we shall be like him”! It's a Bible prom ise. “It do es not yet app ear what we shall be, but we know t hat when h e appears we shall be like h im.” Our passage in C hrist's O bject L essons is also a promise. “When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will com e to claim them as H is own .” A few pages I used the term  fin al generation. It's a term that seemed to be used by all the Seventh-day Adventists I knew in my boyhood and in academy and college The final generation would be made up of the people in whom Christ's character was to be perfectly reproduced. In the 1960s the concept of a final generation began to fall out of fashion in some quarters, though it's coming back in again, I understand. The reason it was given up, as I 1844 AND THE FINAL GENEFATION.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 155 remember, was that some Bible teachers said that God would never require more of one generation in human history than of any other generation. We can all agree that in a very basic sense, G od will no t requ ire mo re of  the final generation than of any other. Christ's most basic standard in every generation has been that we love God with all our heart, mind, and strength and our neighbors as ourselves. We quoted the passage a couple pages ago. Such a standard is in one sense a limited one. It is limited to what our emotions, our mind, and our health are capable of. God does no t ask us to give H im the quantity of d evotion expressed, say, by the fou r living creatures of Revelation, who are able to praise Him without ceasing day and night (see Revelation 4:8); He knows that we need to sleep and eat and earn a living. So, yes, the basic standard of loyalty is a limited one. God takes into consideration our frailties. “He knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14). What He really wants in every generation is integrity, single-minded loyalty, honesty free of all hypocrisy. Precisely because this basic character requirement of honesty and integrity is related to our capability, it varies according to our time and place. Inevitably. G od does no t ask of us today what H e asked of N oahto spend 120 years building an ark. We aren't facing a worldwide flood, and we don 't live for 120 years. In our time and p lace, G od is asking us to prepare for the crisis facing our  generation, the unleashing of Satan in the most d ecept ive role he has ever filled. Remember Christ's warning that “everyone to whom much is given, of him will much be required” (Luke 12:48). Here is the integrity principle again, living honestly in harmony with our possibilities. In this case, it means living honestly in harmony with the amount of light we have. And how much light we do have! Several Bibles in many Seventh-day Adventist hom es – and, since 1844 , an un derstanding of fulfilled p rop hecy such as no generation has had before; and since 1844 , light on the Sabbath question such as no generation has had before this side of the cross; and since 1844 , the inspired writings of Ellen White, occupying several times as m any pages as the Bible itself. D oes G od require more o f the final generation than o f any other? No , not if you mean integrity, living honestly in harmony with all available light. But, yes, indeed, He does require more of us in the sense that we have received more light than any previous generation.

156 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T If you and I are to qualify for membership among the end-time saints who keep the commandments holding onto Jesus, then, yes, more is expected of us than t ho se who have lived before. Earlier I mentioned as part of our end-time light the inspired writings of Ellen White. Please do join me in looking at the ministry of Ellen White as one of the means Jesus has chosen to help us develop a character like Christ's and to kno w better wh at it m eans to b e ho ly, loyal, and nice in t he Ch rist-like sense. The saint s in th e third angel's message who “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” show up in Revelation 12:17 as the “remnant” who “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. “4 Revelation 19:10, as every well-informed Adventist knows, defines the “testimony of  Jesus” as the “sp irit of pro ph ecy.” The Spirit of Prophecy as manifested in these last days through Ellen White is the “testimony of Jesus.” It is a series of communications from Christ Himself, our High Priest in the most holy place, the One who is blotting out sins and revealing to the world the radiant glory of true Sabbath ob servance. It is no mere coincidence that Ellen White's first vision came in December 1844. It came right after the great disappointment and bore a communication about the disappointment. It taught, you remember, that the “midnight cry” about the tenth day of the seventh month was true light set up at the beginning of the final pathway that the saints would be traveling to the holy city. 5 Soon afterward, in February 1845, came the substantial “Bridegroom” vision that we have also looked at, showing Father and Son leaving the H oly Place to enter th e m ost h oly place in 1844.6 Two years later came th e “Halo of Glory” vision, showing Jesus in the most holy place holding up G od 's com man dm ents and calling special attention to the Sabb ath.7 The visions came because of 1844. The writings of Ellen White are a special end-time gift from Jesus, designed to show us what faith-in-Jesus commandment keeping is all about, what it means to be sanctified and to live and love like our Lord. They are a gift from our Friend, who traveled on the clouds of heaven to the judgment scene and is now engaged in making us like Himself in character so we will be able to pass earth's final test – and also so we can co mp lete the gosp el com mission . 1844 AND ELLEN C. WHITE.

1844 AN D G LOBAL MISSIO N .

Being like Jesus is vital to th e perfo rm ance o f 

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 157 our part in completing the gospel commission. Just before Jesus ascended to heaven, He commissioned His followers to take His message to the whole world. Matthew 28:18-20 contains the words “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, … teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.” Jesus intends His gospel commission to be carried out. In Matthew 24:14, He said to His disciples, “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the en d will com e.” “And then the end will come.” As soon as the job is finished, but not until, will the end come. This explains why the first angel of Revelation 14 is so insistent that in the judgment hour the “eternal gospel” be preached with a “loud voice” to “every nation and tribe and tongue and people.” We note that Jesus said it is the “gospel of the kingdom” that will be preached in all the world before the end comes. It is the true gospel, the gospel about the goodness of the King, about His willingness to forgive and His promise to animate us with loyalty to His royal rules. Iris the gospel of G od 's mercy in forgiving o ur sins and of G od 's grace in writing His law on our hearts and minds. It is the gospel of faith in Jesus and of  comm andment keeping – the gospel of com mandm ent keeping by faith in Jesus. It is the gosp el of th e th ree angels’ messages, preached in th e setting of earth’s judgmen t h our. The difference between the gospel of the kingdom in Matthew 24:14 and the eternal gospel in the first angel's message is only the urgency of  prophetic fulfillment, of the arrival of judgment hour, and of the time of  trou ble that is close at h and. In 1990 the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists announced a “global mission” to reach all the still-unreached peoples in the world. Th e G eneral Con ference was right to d o th is. We must coo perate in every suitable way. Within the dimensions of global mission we find numerous unreached persons living quite close to us – in our neighborhoods and in the places where we work. On the personal level, 1844 challenges us to represent Jesus by becoming like Him in order to win those nearest to us. Our quotation from C hrist’s O bject L essons con tinues with this in m ind : It is the privilege of every Christian, not only to look for but to

158 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:12, margin). Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the who le world would b e sown with the seed o f the gospel. Quickly the last great harvest would be ripened, and Christ would com e to gather th e precious grain.8 Individually, we can deprive ourselves of this “privilege of every Christian.” We may choose not to become fully like Jesus, or we may simply not make any focused choice. But if we choose to become like Jesus, our passage promises that we can indeed enjoy the privilege of  hastening Christ's coming. “Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world  [global mission] would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Q uick ly the last great harvest would be ripen ed, and Ch rist would com e to gather the p recious grain.” So 1844 means that we should seek to be like Jesus, not only because being like Jesus is the most beautiful thing we can experience, and not only so we can overcome all the end-time deceptions, but even more so, in order to attract the people around us to love Jesus and thereby help save their souls and hasten the second coming. Becoming like Jesus in the short time left to us before the second coming is one of the most magnificent implications of the great disappointment.

1. Ellen G . White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 403. 2. Ellen G . White, C hrist's O bject L essons , 69. 3. Ellen C. White, T he D esire of A ges, 172. 4. The KJV translation of Revelation 12:17, used here, is more faithful to the underlying Greek than some modern translations. For a discussion of the translation of Revelation 12:17 that shows the superiority of the King James Version in this instance, see G od Cares, 2:403-405. 5. Ellen C. White, E arly W ritings , 13-17; discussed in chapter 6 above. 6. Ibid., 54-56; discussed in chapter 6 above. 7. Ellen C. White,  L ife S k etches, 95,96,100-103; discussed in chapter 8 above. 8. Ellen G . White, C hrist's O bject L essons , 69.

CHAPTER 13

1844 AND LIFESTYLE We h ave seen that 1844 sho uld have a pervasive imp act on the way we think and act, in view of its status as the supreme sign of the second coming and because of its relationship to the judgment, the Day of  Atonement, and the three angels' messages. We still need to touch on a num ber o f oth er ways in wh ich 1844 should speak to us. In chapters 7 and 8 we looked at the relationship between 1844 and the name Seventh-day Adventist. But inasmuch as 1844 triggered the three angels' messages, we need to look at what th e second angel's message says about church mem bership. The first angel, who announced the 1844 arrival of judgment hour, was quickly followed by the second, with a message about the fall of Babylon. This second angel's message, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great” (Revelation 14:8), is related to an urgent invitation by Jesus in Revelation 18:4. After hearing yet another angel, in Revelation 18:2, repeat the announcement, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great,” Jesus says in Revelation 18:4, “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in h er p lagues.” Babylon, we know, is a symbol for all churches that reject the three 1844 AND CHURCH MEMBERSHIP.

161

162 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T angels' messages.1 In Revelation, there are many false churches, but only on e tru e church; and the on e true church at the end of time is comp osed of those who “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). They cherish the “testimony of Jesus,” which is the “spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 12:17; 19:10). Now if the time has come – and it has come – to proclaim the fall of  Babylon, the time has also come for Christ's true people to “come out of  her.” Th e time h as com e for everyon e who loves Jesus to join the o ne true church and come out of every other religious affiliation. Anyone who is in earnest about being like Jesus will want to belong to the one church that keeps H is comm andm ents and h as the benefit o f H is “testimo ny.” “There shall be one flock, one shepherd,” Jesus said in John 10:16, adding, in reference to His true sheep, “They will heed my voice.” The last opportunity for Christ's sheep to heed His voice and come out of the other flocks into the one flock is here now and is not likely to last much lon ger. Fo r every person no t n ow a Seventh -day Adventist, 1844 imp lies a change in church membership, no matter how difficult the change maybe or h ow rad ical th e lifestyle chan ge that m ay be invo lved. To every person no w a Seventh -day Adventist, 1844 calls for co ntinuing loyalty – even when we find “tares” (weeds) growing among the “wheat” (see Matthew 13). Didn't Jesus warn that the weeds would be there? Just as Christ has people still in Babylon, so there are still weeds among the remnant. Don't let the hypocrites discourage you! Let no one “seize your crown” (Revelation 3:11). Instead, let the “tares” redouble your determination not to be like them; for “all who will gather warmth from the coldness of others, courage from their defections, and loyalty from their treason , will trium ph with the th ird angel's message.”2 If in the end rime everyone is supposed to link up with Seventh-day Adventists, how important that people be able to see Jesus in us. How imp ortan t th at we live and love like Jesus, so we can m ake the Sabbath and Jesus seem attractive. Nowadays, few people see a relationship between a h ealth ful lifestyle and th e year 1844. But Seventh -day Adven tists who lived back in the 1860s, when Sister White received her main healthreform visions, saw the connection. In the  R eview and H erald  for August 7, 1866,3 Elder J. H. Waggoner said that the visions placed healthful living “o n a level with the great truths of th e third angel's message.” In the early 1860s, Seventh-day Adventist pioneers considered the 1844 AND HEALTHIUL LIVING.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 163 preaching of the three angels' messages so important that they gave little consideration to anything else. They worked so hard that by the mid1860s most o f them were mo re or less ill. To their amazement, th e vision s showed that guarding one's health is as important in its way as keeping the Sabbath. The visions placed healthful living on a level with the great truths of th e third angel's message. After describing the new health information as being on a level with the great truths of the third angel's message, Elder Waggoner explained what he meant. He saw health reform on a level with the third angel's message “as a means whereby a weak people may be made strong to overcome, and … fitted fo r translation .” The purpose our pioneers saw in healthful living was not to set a longevity statistic for the G uinness Book of W orld R ecords. Fresh air, sunshine, vegetarianism, and all the other good things were given to help people be healthy, not so they could increase their life expectancy, but so they could be overcomers and be fitted for translation and, in the mean time, be fitted fo r soul winn ing. “Whatever injures the health,” wrote Ellen White, “not only lessens physical vigor, but tends to weaken the mental and moral powers. Indulgence in any unhealthful practice makes it more difficult for one to discriminate between right and wrong, and hence more difficult to resist evil.” “The body is the only medium through which the mind and the soul are develop ed for the u pb uilding of character.”4 Said she o f h ealth reform ers, “Th ey seek to preserve every po wer in th e best po ssible con dition for highest service to G od an d m an.”5 Th e strange mo dern argumen t th at wine drinking is good because som e statistics hint that wine drinkers live a little longer than other people is completely irrelevant. Merely living a couple of extra years was never the purp ose o f health reform . Keep ing m ind s clear, develop ing characters, and winning souls are the purposes of health reform. Alcohol produces the opposite. “Through intemperance [which includes even small amounts of  wine drinking], Satan works to destroy the mental and moral powers that God gave to man as a priceless endowment. Thus it becomes impossible for m en to appreciate things of eternal worth .”6 Anyone wanting to develop a character like Christ's will want to keep the body as healthy as possible and the mind as clear as possible. Integrity, spiritual honesty, a longing to love God with all one's soul, mind, and  strength , will impel a Christian t o avoid all alcoh olic beverages. O f course!

164 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Second Corinthians 3:18 says that by beholding we become changed. The verse is speaking about being changed into Christ's likeness as we meditate on His goodness. On the one hand, numerous studies have shown that beholding violent and immoral movies, videos, and television changes people in the other direction.7 On the other hand, 1844 tells us that at this very moment Jesus is engaged in blotting out the sins of people who want them blotted out, is communicating to the world the radiance of true Sabbath holiness, and is bringing into judgment the intensely sinful activities portrayed as movie entertainment. How can Seventh-day Adventists who know that Jesus longs to see His beautiful character reproduced in them settle down and enjoy such disgusting things? Here is a Christ-centered, end-time basis for the Seventh-day Adventist standard about not going to the movies, whether going to the movies means a trip to a theater or to a video store or just int o the living ro om . It's a basis that m akes special sense in the light of 1844. Similarly, 1844 is a Christ-centered, end-time basis for the Seventhday Adventist standard of modesty in dress, including the avoidance of  body jewelry. This standard, once almost universally honored, seems irrelevant today to some believers in some places. But 1844 keeps it relevant. Since 1844, we have been living in the antitypical Day of  Atonement, a time for serious spiritual reflection, for “afflicting our souls,” for solid revival and reformation. It is true that in Bible times many women wore jewelry. In times of  revival and special spiritual growth, however, they took their jewelry off. When Jacob, at God's personal command, returned to Bethel in his old age to give thanks and renew his commitment, he asked his womenfolk  to remove their jewelry. “So they gave to Jacob … the rings that were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was near Shechem” (see Genesis 35:1-4). When the Israelites camped at Mt. Sinai began to realize their sinfulness in a new way, Moses instructed them to give evidence of their repentance by taking off their ornaments. “Therefore the people of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward” (Exodus 33:5, 6). Most notably, on the Day of Atonement, even the high priest left off h is elaborate rob es and wore instead garments of plain white linen (see Leviticus 16:4). 1844 AND LIFESTYLE STANDARDS.

We are now living in the great day of atonement. In the typical

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 165 service, while th e high p riest was making the ato nem ent for I srael, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from among the people. In like manner, all who would have their names retained in the book of life should now, in the few remaining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin and true repentance.8 “If you lower th e standard in o rder to secure pop ularity and an increase of numbers, and then make this increase a cause of rejoicing, you show great blindness,” Ellen White said once about the lowering of lifestyle standards at a Seventh-d ay Advent ist schoo l. If numbers were an evidence of success, Satan might claim the pre-eminence; for, in this world, his followers are largely in the majority. It is the degree of m oral power pervading th e college, th at is a test of its prosperity. It is the virtue, intelligence, and piety of the people composing our churches, not their numbers, that should be a source ofjoy.9 We h ave spoken of 1844 a s the clearest sign of the second coming. As the clearest sign of the second coming, 1844 is, along with the 1260 days and 1798, the clearest sign that the prophecies of Revelation 13:11-18 are about to be fulfilled. These are the prophecies about the lamb-horned beast of Revelation 13 – the United States in prophecy – and the decrees about buying and selling and about worsh iping th e beast and its image. N ow is the time to get ready for th at time. N ow is the time to co op erate with God in getting His seal implanted in our foreheads (see Revelation 7:1-3). The seal, as we know, is true Sabbath keeping as an expression of  full sanctification and Christ-likeness. It is both a spiritual and a knowledgeable seal. It represents a “settling into the truth, both intellectually and spiritually, so th ey cannot be m oved.”10 We desire the seal, for it symbolizes maturity in Christ-likeness. And we need the seal, because the upcoming “season of distress and anguish will require an effort of earnestness and determined faith that can endure delay and hunger, and will not fail under weakness, though severely tried. … Jacob 's earnest, persevering wrestling with th e angel, sho uld be an example for Christians. Jacob prevailed because he was persevering and 1844 AND THE TIME O F TROUBLE.

166 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T determined.” Take heart! “All who desire the blessing of God, as did Jacob, and will lay hold of the promises as he did, and be as earnest and persevering as he was, will succeed as he succeed ed.”11 In order to become settled into the truth intellectually and spiritually, end-time Sabbath keepers need to be avid studen ts of the Bible. “So closely will th e counterfeit resemb le the true th at it will be impossible to distinguish between them except by the Holy Scriptures.” 12 Im po ssible … ex cept . Think o f it! Do you believe this? Do you believe that your Bible is the Word of  God? Do you believe that your Bible, the copy you hold in your own hands from time to time, is, in fact, an absolutely essential weapon for the last days? If the study of such a book seems difficult, all you need may be regular practice at studying it. Or you may need guidance, in which case your pastor or a Bible-using Sabbath School teacher may help. But if you need a basic change of attitude toward the Bible, remember that the Holy Spirit is in the business of changing basic attitudes. Choose to ask for a “new birth” o n th is point, as you h ave on oth er points. We know that Jesus, the Person we most want to be like, knew His Bible and used it successfully against Satan. H e believed it was the Wo rd o f  God. “It is written,” He said. Long before He entered the wilderness of  temp tation , H e form ed th e hab it o f believing th e Bible and o beying it. The worst storm of deception is still future, but the winds of deception are already blowing. Thousands of Seventh-day Adventists have already been deceived into thinking they can choose regularly to stay away from church and still keep Sabbath. Thousands more, who go to church, are deceived into thinking they don't need to keep holy Friday night and Sabbath afternoon. Many thousands of Christians are deceived into thinking they can watch nasty stuff on their TV screens and still end up nice like Jesus. Thousands these days are being deceived into thinking that worship is singing fun songs rather than obedience to the Word of the Lord. As a principal epoch marker of the end time, 1844 warns us that the “last great delusion is soon to open before us, ” 13 and we sho uld p repare for it. 1844 AND STUDY HABITS.

If the last great delusion is soon to open before us, and if mastery of the Bible is essential preparation, what is 1844 AND CHRISTIAN EDUCATION.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 167 the responsibility of adult Seventh-day Adventists for the character education of young peo ple? Demographics indicate that when probation closes, half the world's population will be under twenty-five, mostly under age twenty. The thought of preparing Seventh-day Adventist teenagers and juniors for the final conflict when some three billion of their peers are lining up with the enemy is sobering. So is the thought of preparing vast numbers of young peo ple who h aven't yet becom e Sabb ath keepers. Movies and videos saturated with immorality and violence, mindconfusing drugs available at almost every street corner, and the so-called secular humanism that pervades public schools and enervates even many private schools are un -preparing young people for the realities that lie ahead. Youn g peop le are daily deluged with argum ents th at there are n o mo ral absolutes and no ultimate auth ority. Young people whom Christ calls to self-sacrifice are being told there is no higher goal than self-fulfillmen t. Young people whom Christ needs to win souls for Him are encouraged by their culture to accumu late things for th emselves. Young people who need to develop unequaled endurance are constantly titillated with instant gratification. 14 In an age of cynicism, materialism, and submission to peer pressure, 1844 calls young people to seek  from Jesus po wer to m ake right cho ices, to do the right thing at any cost, to “love not their lives even unto death” (Revelation 12:11), to resist peer pressure when the whole world appears to won der after th e beast (see Revelation 13:3). And 1844 calls young people to seek from Christ a sense ofvalues that places service to others ahead of “buying and selling” for themselves (see Revelation l3:17). By alerting us to the nearness of the end, 1844 calls young people to know thoroughly what they believe and also to express that belief in words. Th e reason s they must learn h ow to express their faith in wo rds are that the people of God, including the young ones, are to be channels of  truth to others (see Revelation 22:17), and they are to overcome Satan through the “word of th eir testimon y” (Revelation 12:11). But if 1844 means all these serious things to young people, it means that well-rooted adult believers are to nurture the youth with utmost commitment, making sure they are qualified for the future and showing them h ow to labo r for one anoth er and o thers.

168 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T Thus 1844 implies a unique system of Seventh-day Adventist education. Because youth often fumble and are even more often scolded, they need big doses of reassurance, of what theologians call “justification by faith.” We must remind them repeatedly that they are growing in Christ, not to Him. Many young people who seem frivolous or rebellious in public are earnest and sincere when you speak with them alone. Young people should be encouraged to claim as their own the famous promise, “If you give yourself to Him, and accept Him as your Saviour, then, sinful as your life may have been, for His sake you are accounted righteous. Christ's character stands in place of your character, and  you are accepted  before G od just as if you had not sinned .” 15 In the three angels' messages, God combines gospel,  jud gm en t, and co mman dmen t keep ing. Wh at G od has joined toget her, let no one put asunder. In this Day of Atonement judgment hour, the fourth commandment is invested with a splendid distinction, a halo of glory in the most holy place. Just knowing that it is holy isn't good enough; we are to k eep it holy. God's Sabbath commandment requires us to “remember the Sabbath day to keep it h oly” (E xod us 20:8). It is a lifestyle imp lication of 1844. We are to remember the Sabbath so we can be ready for it. “On Friday let the preparation for the Sabbath be completed. … Before the Sabbath begins, the mind as well as the body should be withdrawn from worldly business.” 16 We are to remember the Sabbath so we can be ready for it on time. “We sh ou ld jealously guard the ed ges of th e Sabb ath. Rememb er that every moment is consecrated, holy time.” We are to remember the Sabbath so we can start and close it with simple, pleasant periods of  worship, of family worship if we have a family. “Before the setting of the sun, let the members of the family assemble to read God's word, to sing and pr ay.” We are to remember the Sabbath because, in some respects, Sabbath keeping is an end in itself. It is obedience to our God. It is family time (the commandment mentions “you and your son and your daughter”), and it is resting time (“in it, you shall do no work”). But first and foremost and best of all, the Sabbath is holy time, saturated with the presence of the Holy One, our Saviour. We are to keep it holy, because ultimately Sabbath keeping is not an end itself. It is a means to an end, and the end is sanctification, the development of an attractive, Christ-like character SABBATH KEEPING.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 169 through intelligent, spiritual relationship with the One whose presence fills th e day. “I gave them m y sabb aths … th at they might know that I the Lord sanctify them” (Ezekiel 20:12). “In order to keep the Sabbath holy, men must themselves be holy. Through faith they must become partakers of  the righteousness ofChrist.” 17 “T he fo llowers of Ch rist are to b ecom e like Him, – by the grace of God to form characters in harmony with the principles o f H is holy law. Th is is Bible sanctification.”18 Finally, 1844 and the Sabbath remind us that the most essential lifestyle preparation for the times Thead is likeness to Jesus. 1844 AND LIKENESS TO CHRIST.

Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of  Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly repro duced in H is peo ple, then H e will com e to claim them as His own.19 The commandment keeping of the end-time saints includes the comm andmen ts written o n both tables of the law, love to G od at any cost, including Sabbath keeping even when times get tough, and love to neighbor at any cost; commandment keeping such as Jesus manifested, a marvelously attractive combination of goodness and niceness. He was “two-table nice,” loving G od as well as peop le. Seventh-day Adventists who are aware of 1844 meet their obligations, because they want Ch rist and H is end -time m ovemen t to loo k attractive to Christ's other sheep. They can be depended on. They treat people graciously. They don't complain unless they have to, and when they do, they complain as pleasantly as Jesus did when He said of His disciples in Gethsemane, “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41). When they are wronged, they give people a second chance to redeem th emselves; they “turn the o ther ch eek.” Think what Christ-likeness means in the family. Genuinely Christian spo uses ho no r and cherish each o ther in ad versity as well as in pro sperity, the way they promised to. Genuinely Christian husbands don't gripe, however much their wives may nag. Genuinely Christian wives don't nag, however much their husbands may gripe. Genuinely Christian fathers and mo thers d on 't snarl at th eir kids. G enuine Christians con sistently use a pleasant to ne o f voice. O h, who wouldn't want to be like Jesus if it were

170 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T possible? Remember, 1844 reminds us, through Revelation 14:12 and through th e Spirit of P roph ecy writings, that it is ind eed possible. Ultimately 1844 implies a complete transformation of our life-styles … and o f our lives, thro ugh a com plete transform ation of o ur hearts.

1. Babylon in Revelation is both the name of a woman and of a city. In the Bible, a morally pure woman symbolizes God's true church, and a morally impure woman symbolizes a false church. Likewise, the city New Jerusalem symbolizes all the people collectively who make up Christ's kingdom, and the city Babylon symbolizes the “kingdom” of all those who oppose Jesus. In Revelation 17, Babylon appears as a “mother of harlots,” that is, as a mother of other morally impure symbols representing all the false churches to which the false mother church has given b irth. 2. Ellen G . White, R eview and H erald , 8 June 1897. 3.  R eview and H erald , 7 August 1866,76,77. The immediate context is: “We do not profess,” Elder Waggoner wrote, “to be pioneers in the general principles of the health reform. … But we do claim that by the method of God's choice” – that is, through Ellen White's visions – “it [health reform] has been more clearly and powerfully unfolded, and is thereby producing an effect” – the general adoption of the principles by Seventh-day Adventists – “which we could not have looked for from any other means.” The visions, Elder Waggoner went on, have placed healthful living “on a level with the great truths of the third angel's message” as “the means whereby a weak people may be made strong to overcome, and … fitted fo r translation.” 4. Ellen C. White, T he M inistry of H ealing, 128,130. 5. Ib id., 319. 6. Ellen G . White, T he D esire of A ges, 122. 7. For one informative study on the effects of commercial entertainment television, see John Glass, “What You See Is What You Get” (D. Min. project, And rews Un iversity, 1992). 8. Ellen C. White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 489, 490. 9. Ellen C. White, C ounsel' t o Parents, T eachers, and S tudents, 94. 10. Ellen G. White Comments, S eventh-day A dventist B ible C omm entary, 4:1161, my italics. 11. Ellen G . White, T he S pirit of Prophecy, 1:124. 12. Ellen C. White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 593. 13. Ibid. 14. For several ideas in this section, see Beatrice S. Neall, T he Concept of  C haracter in the A pocalypse with I mplications for C haracter E ducation (Washington, D.C.: University Press of America, 1983), 166,167,198-207. 15. Ellen G . White, Steps to Christ , 62.

1844 AND BEIN G LIKE JE SUS 171 16. Ellen G . White, T estimonies, 6:355, 356. 17. Ellen G . White, T he D esire of A ges, 283. 18. Ellen G . White, T he G reat C ontroversy, 469. 19. Ellen G . White, C hrist's O bject L essons , 69.

CHAPTER 14

THE MEANING OF 1844 What m eaning do es 1844, with its magnificent d isappo intm ent, ho ld fo r peo ple in t he 1990s? I h op e th is question has b een at least p artially answered in th is bo ok. First, 1844 is tremendously significant because it marks the close of the 2,300 days of Daniel 8:14 – the moment when the Father moved His throne to a new place in heaven and Jesus, the Son of man, traveled magnificently on “th e cloud s of h eaven” to join H im there, as foreseen in D aniel 7:9-14. By marking th e close o f the 2,300 days, 1844 also m arks the o nset o f the end time and the grand commencement of both the final judgment and heaven's Day of Atonement. By doing these things, 1844 constitutes the cue for the preaching of the three angels' messages – messages that combine a renewed proclamation of the everlasting gospel with the startling announcement that the final judgment has already begun, Babylon has fallen, God's wrath is about to fall on the disobedient, and God's endtime saints will be found actually keeping all the commandments of God throu gh their vital faith in Jesus. Second, 1844 enlightens us by showing what Jesus is doing while we wait for Him – still interceding for us as much as ever (see Hebrews 7:25), 173

174 MAG N IFICEN T D ISAPPO INTMEN T but now also judging everyone who has ever believed in Him and cleansing living believers from all th eir sins. Third, 1844 shows us why we are Adventists, believing that He is coming soon, because the final judgment has already begun, but knowing that He is not coming right away, because a few prophecies are still unfulfilled. Fourth, 1844 gives us timely new reasons to keep the Sabbath, for in our day, Jesus has moved into the most holy place, where the “ark of His covenant” is kept, and that ark is shedding on the world the glowing radiance of the fourth com mandment. Even more important than the information that 1844 teaches us to believe is the lifestyle it calls us to live. For example, by calling attention to the three angels' messages, 1844 has much to say about how we are to witness to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people around the world, including the p eop le on our street and in ou r ho mes; so – Fifth, 1844 persuades us to live and love like Jesus at home, where we work, where we go sho pp ing, and even when we relax. As we seek to grow more like Jesus, we will attract more and more people to come to Jesus. If  we're tempted to think we don t want to be this good, 1844 prompts us to get a new attitude through the new birth so that by faith in Jesus, we can  join the peo ple who really keep G od's lovin g comman dmen ts. Sixth, 1844 shows us that time for winning others is growing short. It therefore adds urgency to our need to reflect Christ's character to those around us. That way, when the words “Come out of her, My people” strike home to them, many of them will enthusiastically choose to join the movement that we belong to . Seventh, because 1844 alerts us to the ongoing heavenly Day of  Aton ement, it reminds us to “afflict o ur souls” in repentance. It teaches us to avoid all entertainment and all bitterness that corrupt the soul and to make things right with those we have wronged. When we do these things, we will enter fully into that “special work of purification on earth” that is parallel to Christ's cleansing of th e heavenly sanctuary. Eighth, 1844 calls us to “come out” of every form of “Babylon” and become dedicated, active members of the Seventh-day Adventist remnant church. Ninth, 1844 reminds us to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy from sundo wn to sundo wn. It encou rages us to have family worship as the Sabbath begins and ends, to attend Sabbath School and church regularly, there to encourage fellow believers and to worship God intelligently. True