This may suffice to show that the great Apostle of the Gentiles never meant his letter to the Romans nor any other letter to close the channels of revelation.
Let us remind ourselves of one more fact. The writers of the New Testament themselves state that they had notwrittenall that was necessary for instruction. In writing to the Corinthians about the partaking of the Lord's supper Paul gives some general directions, but concludes by saying: "The rest will I set in order when I come" (I Cor. xi, 34). Now, what instructions or arrangements are here left out? We do not know. But we see that the written word was not meant to convey all that was necessary to know. The same expression we find in the second letter of John. "Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you, and speak face to face" (II John, 12). See also (III John, 13). Who can then say that we in the books of the Bible have all that written which God ever intended to convey to mankind, and that revelation has ceased? The idea is in direct contrast to the word of the apostles.
It is instructive to notice how theologians have been compelledto turn their own reasons upside down, and to stretch the various passages of Scripture on their learned racks in order to make them fit for all occasions. Luther's explanation of our Lord's prayer is a curious instance. "Daily bread" means, according to that noted reformer, not only what you eat and drink, but "bread" means also a house and a wife, obedient children, good neighbors and "other such things." Whether in "daily bread" was included the beer-keg that Luther received among his wedding presents, the reformer does not state, but in the "other such things" is room for a considerable quantity of "bread." Of course, that kind of exegesis fills everything into the Bible. By it anything can be got of anything or of nothing, but God never put it there. Man did it, and, by so doing, proved himself to be on the wrong track, to say the least.
In order to gain a sound understanding of the word of God, the various books must be read as Mr. Locke says the Epistles ought to be read. He requires you to read through one epistle at a sitting, and observe its drift and aim. "If," says he, "the first reading gave some light, the second gave me more; and so I persisted on reading constantly the whole epistle over at once, till I came to have a general view of the writer's purpose, the chief branches of his discourse, the arguments he used, and the disposition of the whole. This, I confess, is not to be obtained by one or two hasty readings; it must be repeated again and again, with a close attention to the tenor of the discourse, and a perfect neglect of the divisions into chapters and verses." If this plan be adopted, and the books of the Bible be read with a humble, prayerful heart, a heart in unison with the authors that wrote, the true meaning of the word will be grasped.
And the clearer this true meaning becomes, the more it will appear that nothing short of continued communication with God can satisfy the heart. For it is the very purpose of the written word of God to lead men to seek this communication with God, to guide, in other words, the straying child to its loving father.
Without entering into a more minute examination of the remaining epistles, we will proceed to consider some of the prophecies of the Gospel dispensation.
Prominent among these prophecies are those which predict the establishment of a new dispensation in the last days.Our Savior calls it "the regeneration," and says that in that dispensation "the Son of man shall sit on the throne of His glory," and the Twelve "shall sit upon twelve thrones" (Matt. xix, 28).
Peter says that Christ is to be in heaven until this new dispensation, "the times of the restitution of all things" comes (Acts iii, 21).
Jude quotes a prophecy delivered by Enoch about this dispensation: "Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his Saints to execute judgment upon all." (Jude 14, 15).
Paul (II Thess. ii.) is very clear and minute concerning the events that had to transpire between his own time and the dispensation of the last days. (1) A "falling away"—a general apostacy was to take place first, and (2) "that man of sin, the son of perdition, be revealed." It is further pointed out that the power of apostacy was already, at the time of the writing of Paul, secretly at work, only there was something that hindered this power from appearing openly. But as soon as this obstacle (the Roman imperial power) had been removed, the "man of sin," i.e., the embodiment of the spirit of apostacy, would boldly appear, and, this "man of sin" would hold his sway over the world until destroyed by the "brightness of the coming" of the Lord (v. 8). And this apostate power is further described as one opposing and exalting himself above every other authority, or "god," both on earth and in heaven. He is "lawless" and "sitteth in the temple," that is, he is a "Christian" not an infidel power; his coming is the work of Satan, and is accompanied by "powers, signs and lying wonders," deceiving all that would not believe the truth. Among the doctrines that should be advanced by this apostate power is noted particularly as a departure from the faith, "doctrines of devils," also a prohibition of marriage, which was a revival of heathenism (see I Timothy, iv, 1-5), all of which was fulfilled to the letter in the evolution from Christianism to Romanism. Nothing can be clearer, from these prophecies of Paul than this: Shortly after his own time, a period of apostacy would follow, during which all kinds of lies were to be promulgated in the name of God. But this period of apostacy would again be followed by a new dispensation of truth and light, the coming of the Son of God in glory.
John was the last of the apostles. He lived to see the spirit of apostacy still more developed than did Paul. In speaking of it he says that "many anti-Christs" had already come (I John ii, 18, 19; iv, 3). To him it was given to see, inhis apocalyptic visions, the calamities that crushed the Roman empire, thus making way for the "man of sin," or the "little horn" of Daniel or the anti-Christ, namely the great church of the world with her pontifical "image" in Rome. He was permitted to see the subjugation and flight to the wilderness of the Church of Christ and the subsequent darkness that followed. But he also, like the former seers and prophets of the Lord, was permitted to behold in the future the first rays of the new dispensation, the millennial kingdom, to be established, never to be overthrown.
Let us pause for one moment and reflect. If the word of God is sure, this fact is surely established, that the reign of anti-Christ shall be followed by a new, glorious dispensation, the millennial reign of the Son of God. There is scarcely an event in the Scriptures more frequently predicted than this. All the previous dispensations of God are only preparations for this the last and most glorious of all, at the commencement of which the hosts of heaven join the Saints below in shouting, "Hosannah! Hosannah! Hosannah! The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. xi, 15).
But it has before been proved that God never established a new dispensation without renewing revelations. During the Adamic dispensation, which continued while man was yet without sin, God revealed himself. So also during the patriarchal dispensation. God taught man how to offer sacrifices and to conduct worship. The Mosaic dispensation was established through revelation continued through centuries until four hundred years before Christ. The New Testament dispensation or Gospel dispensation was wonderfully rich in revelations, until the Priesthood was taken away "unto God" (Rev. vii, 5); and now, can we believe that revelation then and there ceased? Shall the last dispensation, the most glorious of all, the millennial reign of Christ, be established without revelation, only through the wisdom of man, which, by the way, is foolishness to God? No! Such a view is madness. It may be sound, worldly theology. But it is not the word of God. All the prophecies that have been fulfilled so far, have in that fulfillment been accompanied by divine revelation.
Those prophecies that remain to be fulfilled will as surely be accompanied by revelations. When Christ first came, His coming was heralded by angels, and by the Spirit of God operating on men; His ministry was followed by revelationson the mount, in Gethsemane, and the Spirit was poured out upon His followers. And yet, at His first coming, He appeared in humility, despised by men in general. What will not His second coming, judging from this, bring with it? Surely revelationscannotcease as long as God has promised to send His Son in glory to visit this earth and its inhabitants. Preparationsonthe earth are necessary for such an event, preparations that no man can make without the aid of divine revelations.
During the ages past God has tried the human race in every respect. The patriarchal dispensation ended in a corruption which even the deluge could not check. The Mosaic dispensation ended in the rejection and the dispersion of the covenant people. The Gospel dispensation ended in the apostacy of the apostolic churches and the reign of anti-Christ. But God is prepared to gain the victory yet. He promised in the end of time to establish that kingdom which shall stand forever, never to be overthrown, and hence the necessity of continuous revelation.
In considering the question whether the Bible is sufficient for the guidance of men to salvation, it becomes a matter of great importance to ascertain whether the language employed by the sacred writers is sufficiently clear to be understood, in all main points at least. If the Spirit of God, in directing the composition of the books of the Bible, intended to make these books a code of divine laws whereby further revelation should be rendered superfluous, we may reasonably expect to find in the Bible clear language conveying the ideas in a manner to be easily understood by the earnest reader. We may expect to find no ambiguity, no indistinctness.
Human laws are written with the greatest possible care. Lawmakers aim at clearness, seeing that this is indispensable when laws are made for the guidance of the citizen. Yet with all possible care in framing laws, it has been found that no law ever was framed, however carefully worded, that could not be construed in more than one way. Hence the necessity of a supreme court to which all cases can be appealed, the meaning of any disputed paragraph of the lay authoritatively given. No human law would ever be a complete guidance for the citizens without such a supreme court.
Now, the question is simply this: Is the Bible clear enough so that it undoubtedly can be understood in only one way? If it be, then there may not be any need for the "supreme court" of divine revelation to appeal to in order to ascertain its meaning, since this is in no instance doubtful. But if the Bible is not clear enough; if it is so worded that, in many instances, the same passage may be understood in more than one way, then further revelation is necessary in order to settle these points. If every passage of the Bible does not convey only one meaning and this unmistakably; if many passages can be, and have been, construed in various ways, and if divine revelation be abolished then we are exactly in this position: We have a code of laws and a collection of doctrines; but for the right understanding of those laws and doctrines we are entirely at the mercy of the sagacity or the stupidity of the (theological) lawyers with whom we happen to be connected. There is, then, no appeal, no authority, no certainty.
Let us honestly consider some of the facts in the case, without shrinking from the inevitable conclusion.
First, we are met by the sad fact that mankind has not yet been able to decide exactly how many and which of the ancient books really belong to the Bible. The Protestant churches now accept sixty-five books in all, viz., thirty-eight in the Old Testament and twenty-seven in the New. But Luther was not quite certain about the canonicity of all of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. The Revelation of John was always suspicious to him, because he did not understand it, and the Epistle of James, he thought, was more fit to be burned than to be read. As to the books of the Old Testament, a much later and better informed critic, Michaelis, has proposed to exclude the two books of Chronicles from the canon, while others have had their grave doubts concerning the Song of Songs. But the Catholic church, so far from being disposed to diminish the number of books, has added all those which by Protestants have been called apocryphal. The whole apocryphal collection was by the Council of Trent, 1545, declared to be holy Scripture, and the council did so with some antiquity in support of the decision, too. For the book of Baruch is quoted as canonical by Origen, Athanasius, Cyril, and Ephihanius. Tobith, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus and the Maccabees are quoted as canonical by the great Augustine. Whether, then, the Bible should consist of seventy-nine books (including the fourteen apocrypha) or of sixty-five, or only sixty-one, excluding the two Chroniclesand James and the Revelation, is yet a question awaiting its final decision. And it would seem but reasonable not to abolish the immediate revelations from God until this problem has been satisfactorily solved.
Secondly, accepting any of the above mentioned books as canonical, a great difficulty presents itself in determining the precise text. What the first authors wrote is in some cases impossible to determine. Let it be remembered that our present Bibles, with their divisions of charters and verses, are by no means exactly such as the first authors left them. Much is the work of uninspired men. The original manuscripts were copied in numerous editions, and it was always possible in copying to drop a letter, to misspell a word, to leave out a word, etc. Translations and paraphrases have been made. These were not always correct in every particular. In the case of the Old Testament the original authors did not write the vowels, but only the consonants. It was the work of later men to insert all the vowels, but whether these later men in all instances, or even in most, inserted the right vowels is another open question. At all events, if it were possible to prove that all the consonants of the Old Testament are identical with those written by the original authors, and therefore inspired, yet all the vowels, which are added many years afterwards by uninspired men, cannot be proved to be of divine origin or such as God originally intended them to be.
A few instances may be quoted to illustrate the nature of such easily recognized changes as the sacred text has suffered. In Jonah 1, 9, the prophet says: "I am a Hebrew," where the original reading probably was (as the Septuagint has it): "I am a servant of Jehovah." The difference is betweenIvri, Hebrew, andIvdi, the servant of Jehovah. In I Peter ii, 3, it will always be dubious whether the correct reading is: "If ye have tasted that the Lord isgracious," or "that the Lord isChrist." The fact is that both these words were sometimes written with the lettersChs, standing for bothChristosandChrestos, gracious. In Genesis i, 8, the words: "God saw that it was good" is wanting at the end of the second day's creation, but it is found in verse 10, in the middle of the third day's work, indicating a transposition. Sometimes verses have been added by later copyists. Such variations amount to many thousands in all, leaving the present text very far from satisfactory in its details.
Theologians, in admitting this, as they are compelled to do by the facts, generally smooth the disagreeable impression over with the assurance that none of all these variations inthe text affect the meaning in the least degree. "The most inaccurate text ever written," they say, "leaves the truths of Scripture substantially unchanged." But this is evidently said more for the sake of the effect than for the sake of truth. For the theologians themselves—particularly the Protestants—alwaysinsist on the very letter of the text. The little words "this is" were sufficient in the quibble between Luther and Calvin to cut the Protestantic party in two halves, each wishing to roast the other in hell. Yes, the theologians build doctrines not only on words but onformsof words, discriminating between the meaning of the same words when used in this form or the other. In a text where words are so important, it is ridiculous to say that many thousand variations are of no importance. And besides, since we know there are many thousand variations, how do we know that there are not many thousand more which have not yet been detected?
This question must be solved before we are prepared to admit that the Bible is a sufficient guide, and has done away with the necessity of further revelation.
But we will pass by the difficulties thus far pointed out. We will suppose that we have settled beyond doubt the number of books to be accepted as canonical. We will suppose that the original text has been preserved, and that the translations thereof in our vernacular tongues are correct. All this we suppose, for the sake of the argument, and yet we will find the greatest difficulty still exists—that of understanding the sacred volume correctly. Indeed, this difficulty is so great that probably not one single man now living can understand it all, and those that understand part of it right do so by the aid of the Spirit of God.
Some of the difficulties in understanding even the translations of the Bible may now be pointed out.
It is admitted that the words used in the Scriptures are sometimes to be used in a figurative sense and sometimes in a literal sense. What words are, in each case, to be understood strictly literally and what figuratively must be left to the judgment of the reader. And from this fact numerous errors have arisen.
People have sometimes allegorized where no allegory was intended, as Origen in reading that Abraham in his old age married Keturah. Now, he says, the word Keturah means "sweet odor;" and "sweet odor" refers to the fragrance of righteousness: Hence he concludes that Abraham in his old age became very pious or righteous, and that this fact is meant when Moses states that the patriarch married Keturah.Equally absurd is the followinga laSwedenborg: "Adam represents the intellect and Eve the feeling. That Adam and Eve begat sons and daughters means, therefore, that the union between intellect and feeling is what produces knowledge in man." These instances are extremely absurd and the errors of this kind of interpretation are easily perceived. But sometimes the errors are not so palpable, although equally absurd. As for instance, when it is contended that the "kingdom" of Christ means a religion and not a real kingdom, or that "the first resurrection" means a revival of the principles for which the martyrs were killed. In such cases the errors are great, and hundreds of Bible readers commit just such errors, in many instances without even knowing it.
Then, sometimes words that are really used figuratively are understood literally. You will see pictures, occasionally, where Lazarus is enjoying his heavenly bliss by sitting in the lap ("the bosom") of Father Abraham, the artist having misunderstood the figurative expression used by our Lord.
This kind of error is more easily committed in reading the prophetical portions of the Bible. The prophets borrow words denoting natural objects in order to represent what is spiritual and abstract. Their books are hieroglyphical, although they do not draw their hieroglyphic pictures, as did the Egyptian priests, but describe them in words. Hence the great difficulty in interpreting prophecy. It is not less difficult than to interpret many ancient Egyptian records. The prophets, for instance, talk of a "horn" and mean a "crown" or a "kingdom." "Beast" is a usurping tyrannical power. "Key" stands for lawful authority. "Virgins" are faithful worshippers, not defiled by idolatry.
Generally it must be borne in mind that every word should be understood as it was commonly understood at the time the Bible was written. Much minute inquiry, in fact more than most people are prepared to give, is needed in order to avoid errors arising from a violation of this rule.
Sometimes a knowledge of Hebrew and Greek is absolutely necessary for the right understanding of a passage. In I Kings ii, 8, 9, David is made to say concerning Simei: "Hold him not guiltless, * * but his hoary head bring down with blood to the grave." This is, of course, a contradiction. And, besides, David had sworn not to kill Simei. It seems therefore as if one of the last acts of David was to break his oath and his royal word. But a knowledge of Hebrew idioms clears this up; for the word "not" refers to both clauses: "Hold him not guiltless, * * but bring not hishoary head down with blood." That is the meaning, and Solomon understood it so. "The end of the world" spoken of in Matt. xxiv, 3 a Greek scholar will discover to be not the end of the physical world (telos tou kosmou) but the termination of the then existing economy; for the words aresynteleia tou aionos. The interpretation of the whole prophecy of our Lord hangs upon this one word. Matthew (xii, 40) makes Christ say: "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly," whereas the fact is, that there is not, and probably never was, a whale in the Mediterranean. The Hebrew has "a great fish" (Jonah i, 17) which the translator of the Septuagint made into a whale, and the misleading quotation slipped into the New Testament from the Septuagint.
Sometimes people put a mystical sense into the most plain expressions. Christ says: "But one thing is needful" (Luke x, 42) and many an edifying sermon has been preached upon this one "needful thing," and much curiosity has been needlessly excited to know what that one needful thing is that in itself is necessary and sufficient to salvation. People have been so eager to make a mystery that they have forgotten the fact that Christ for the time does not refer to salvation at all, but is speaking of a much more trivial subject, yet not less interesting or noteworthy. Christ has called on His friends, Lazarus, Martha and Maria. The two ladies are both anxious to entertain Him to the best of their ability. But Martha seems to have had an idea that lots of things were necessary in order to make a comfortable meal. In order to be ready in a hurry Martha wanted her sister to help her, upon which the Savior politely remarks that "only one thing is needful." There was no cause for so much serving. He would not enter their house as a stranger for whom they would have to prepare so many extra dishes. He would come as their friend and be entertained as such. This would give both sisters time to sit down and listen to His instructions, which after all was the "good part" of the entertainment. Stripping this narrative of the mysteries of theologians and letting common sense be common sense, we have a beautiful incident at once pleasing and instructive.
Sometimes the reader will be misled by the numbers of the Bible, because he does not know how they originally were used. "Ten" sometimes stands for "several." In Gen. xxxi, 7, Jacob says that Laban had changed his wages "ten times," meaning of course "several times." Perhaps the division of the Roman Empire into "ten" as predicted by Daniel ought to be understood in the same way, since so far no one hasbeen able exactly to tell in what "ten" (the word taken literally) kingdoms that empire on its downfall was divided. If understood to mean "several" kingdoms, there is no difficulty. "Forty," in the same way, often means "many." "Seven" and "seventy" denote a large and complete number, although uncertain to the speaker.
Sometimes a knowledge of history is required for the right understanding of passages. (Acts ix, 31): "The churches had rest throughout all Judea and Galilee" has sometimes been understood to have been the consequence of the conversion of Paul, whereas the real cause of this temporary rest was that at this time Caligula attempted to raise a statue of himself in the "Holy of holies" in the temple. The consternation which this caused among the bloodthirsty Jews made them for a time forget the Christian churches.
Nor less important is a knowledge of ancient chonology, geography, of botany, of mineralogy, zoology, and archaeology in its various branches. But we cannot here multiply instances.
To understand the Bible, even the plainist translation, all these things are necessary as helps, and yet, without the Spirit of God to lead into all truth, not all of these helps are sufficient; so numerous and so vast are the difficulties to be encountered in ascertaining the true meaning of the Bible.
Nor need we be surprised at this. The various books are written in the remote antiquity. Language changes like all that is human. Words do not remain stationary in their significations. Every word has its own history, and antique literature always requires a knowledge of the history of the words. The authors of the Bible write each from his own standpoint. Some are lawyers, as Moses. Others are humble shepherds, as Anos. Some are learned men, as Paul and Luke. Others are uneducated fisherman, as Peter and John. Some are statesmen like Daniel. Others follow more lowly occupations of life, as Jeremiah. Some write poetry, others history, others letters and others visions. Some write in the deserts of Arabia, some by the banks of the rivers in Babylon, some in the palace in Jerusalem, some in prisons in Rome. Each has his own peculiarity of style, and to understand it all, you would have to be conversant with almost every branch of human learning. It is no figure of speech when Locke says that theology is the direction of all knowledge to its true end, or when Parley P. Pratt says: "It is the science of all other sciences and useful arts, being in fact, the very fountain from which they emanate. It includes philosophy,astronomy, history, mathematics, geography, languages, the science of letters, and blends the knowledge of all matters of fact in every branch of art or research" (Key to Theology, p.2).
Seeing now that such requirements are made upon us in order to understand the Bible, and that lack of knowledge necessarily involve misunderstanding of many of the sacred passages, we ask every reasonable being, Can it be supposed that the Bible ever was intended to be a substitute for immediate divine revelation? If it were intended for this purpose it has signally failed in its purpose; and if the Bible alone be intended to be the guide to heaven, it is to be feared that a majority of people will be led to hell for the simple reason that they never had an opportunity of mastering the difficulties attending their attempts at understanding what the Bible doctrines really are.
If further proofs for the necessity of continuous revelation were needed, the deplorable state of the Christian world, where "each goes his own way," furnishes those proofs in abundance.
The object God had in view in giving to His people men through whom He could reveal His plans and purposes was to "perfect the Saints" and preserve "unity of faith" (Eph. iv, 11-14). As long as the church had apostles and prophets, there was no necessity for the churches breaking up into factions or sects. Differences could arise, and did arise, but when referred to the inspired men, God, through His Holy Spirit always settled the difficulties, preserving the unity.
Some instances, illustrating this, have been recorded for our information.
In the church at Jerusalem, as the members increased, a feeling of jealousy grew up between the different nationalities. The "Grecians" thought that their widows did not receive a fair portion of the alms daily distributed among the poor, the "Hebrews" keeping all for their widows. Among the Jews the "Grecians," that is to say, such Jews that were not born in Palestine, were held in contempt like everything that originated outside the confines of the Holy Land. It was thought that the Jewish converts to Christianity had retained this feeling, and so neglected their foreign brethren. Now, here was a secret power of evil at work, strong enough to break the first church up into factions. For evil grows, ifnot conquered, and what at first appears like a cloud, the size of a man's hand, develops into a terrible storm with thunder and lightning. Small as the matter appeared to be, it was an attempt at destroying the unity of the Church of Christ. But the church was equal to this occasion. Its foundations were solid and its guardians awake. The whole matter was laid before the apostles, and these found the proper remedy. "Look ye out among you," they said to the church members, "seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business." The people, on hearing this wise counsel, made their choice, and the apostles set the chosen apart for this office. And it may be noted as a characteristic feature of God's way of managing elections, in contrast to the farcical proceedings of the iniquitous world, that the seven men elected on this occasion were all "Grecians," judging from their names. The majority, prompted by the love of God, gave to the minority—the complaining party—the whole control of the distribution. The church was saved from the spirit of destruction. Unity was preserved. But it took inspired men to solve the difficulty in this way, so contrary to all rules, recognized among men (see Acts, vi, 1-8).
The next instance is a difference concerning doctrine.
As soon as the Gospel principles spread and were embraced by the Gentiles, a struggle necessarily followed between the Jewish and the Gentile element. Both had much to give up and much to learn from each other, before a complete unity could be secured. In this struggle, various questions were brought up for discussion, and amongst others this:
Ought not a Gentile convert to first be circumcised and promise to keep the law, before he was baptized and incorporated in the church? Many Jewish converts held that this was necessary. For to them the entrance to the church ought to be through the Mosaic dispensation, to Gentiles as it had been to Jews. But the Gentiles considered this an unnecessary circuitous road to the church, holding that the acceptance of Christ and his ordinances was all that should be required. Here was a difficult question to decide, and the principle involved was one of vital importance to the whole Christian community. The danger of a split was great, but the church had inspired leaders, men who communed with God. To them the question was referred. And they decided it, not only according to the Scriptures but according to the revelation given for the occasion. "It seemed good," they say, "to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greaterburden than these necessary things; that ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood and from things strangled, and from fornication; from which if ye keep yourselves ye shall do well." (Acts xv, 28, 29.) Here is a decision arrived at under the direct influence of the Holy Ghost, and one that brought unity into the churches and joy among the various Gentile branches.
Thus we see exemplified the object of continuous revelation, and the necessity of it. Without it unity cannot be preserved. "That ye may be one" as Christ is one with His Father, is, however, the very essence of Christianity, the mark on which it can be distinguished from the "world," which is all strife and contention. Destroy the unity, and Christianity is gone, or, since unity is impossible without continuous revelation, abandon such revelation, and Christianty is no more.
It is noticeable that the Christian churches, as long as the inspired men were among them and they listened to their words, kept clear of all schisms.So long, we say, but no longer. For soon men arose who thought themselves too wise to listen to the counsel of inspired men. And such imposed upon themselves upon the church with big words and subtle sophistry, thus drawing many away from the path of righteousness. This was the work of the spirit of anti-Christ, and the result was schisms, sects. But still the spirit of revelation lingered among the churches, uniting the honest everywhere in the love of God and of one another, until after a long struggle amid persecution from the outside and rebellion from the inside, the Spirit of revelation was withdrawn. "The child was taken up to the throne of God." (Rev. xii, 5). The light gave way to darkness.
Not that the Christian churches became annihilated, not that the doctrines preached by Christ or, what is the same, the Christian theology at once vanished. No! It was all there, but wrapped in darkness.
Suppose yourself on a ship trying to make for the harbor on a dark, stormy night. There are the lights along the shore, according to whose guiding rays alone you can steer your course. But suppose all these lights are suddenly extinguished. You can see no more where to go. All your calculations are in vain. Those rays of lights from the lighthouses were just as necessary for your safety as are your maps and your compass. Something analogous to this happened to the world, or, rather to the Christian churches. The guiding light of continuous revelation was extinguished andthe ship left in darkness. At what precise time this took place we do not presume to say. But it is certain that the time of revelation did not extend much beyond the age of the apostles. The church was still there for years, but the lighthouses were not shining.
What followed? The most pitiable confusion. The leaders of the church, no longer guided by inspiration, were unable to preserve love and unity. Factions became numerous and each faction leader claimed the supreme authority for himself. Contests for power ensued, accompanied by scandalous scenes. The church was abandoned, each faction constructing their own raft and each steering their own course, occasionally trying to sink other rafts as these by wind and current were driven out. This was the result of the withdrawal of divine revelation.
People were in total darkness. They split on the most trivial questions as well as over the more important ones. What are we to think when we read the "history of the church" and find that "Christians" are trying to find out whether Christ was a real man or only an apparition! Or whereto had truth gone, when, after long struggles about the doctrine of the Godhead, it was finally decided, as the standard of orthodoxy, that: "Incomprehensible is the Father, incomprehensible is the Son, and incomprehensible is the Holy Ghost; yet not three incomprehensibles, but one." (Symbol Athan.)? Christ says: "This is eternal life, that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." (John, xvii, 3); Paul prays that he may know Christ and the power of His resurrection. (Philippians, vi, 7-10); and John says that we by keeping God's commandments, know that we "know" Him. (I John ii, 3), but the Church, as soon as the Spirit of revelation withdrew, declared that she was in darkness. God, she said, is incomprehensible. The contrast is so conspicuous that only a blind man can help seeing it.
This spirit of darkness still enwraps the whole "Christian" world. The work of dissolution has been going on all the time, and is still going on. The "Christians" stand against each other like enemies on a battlefield. Nobody knows where to seek or to find truth. Has the Roman Catholic church the truth? or the Coptic? or the Armenian? or the Reformed church? or the church of England? or Luther's faction? or Methodists? or Baptists? or Presbyterians? or Irvingians or Adventists? or Universalists? or Quakers? Which has the truth? Which faction is the Church of Christ?
Paul says that factions are the result of a "carnal" condition. "For whereas there is among you envyings and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?" (I Cor. iii, 3.) The "Christian" world to-day, the Apostle then declares to be a "carnal" christendom. But to be carnally minded, we further learn (Rom. viii, 6, 7), is "death," and "enmity against God." The Christian world to-day is therefore in a state of "death" and "enmity against God." The word of God has pronounced His judgment, and all as a consequence of their having despised and rejected continuous revelation from God.
This suggests the remedy to be applied: Divine revelation.
God has promised, in the last days, "And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions * * * * and it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call" (Joel ii, 28-33). And this promise God will fulfill. Revelations are necessary for the deliverance of His people in these last days, and God is faithful.
Already the light of revelation has broken through the dark clouds of medieval errors. The prophets of God have again spoken, revealingGod'sway of salvation. Will the "Christian" world believe? Or will they, like the Jews formerly, reject the light of revelation, to their own damnation?
One objection, and only one, needs to be answered before we close this part of our investigation. It has been said that God prohibits people from adding anything to the Bible, since John the Revelator says: "If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book" (Rev. xxii, 18). The prohibition is given for any "man" to add anything of his own to the book of Revelation, or to the word of God. And woe to the man who is preposterous enough to add his own productions to the sacred compositions of God! But neither this passage nor any other passage in the Bible states that God would never any more reveal anything. God does not prohibit himself from adding whatever He thinks necessary.
In fact, God has added to the volume of the New Testament since the book of Revelation was written. The Gospel of John, and, in all probability, the three epistles of John, were all written after the book of Revelation. The latestdate assigned to the Revelation is 96 A. D., while others (and more probably) give it the date of 67 or 68. The three epistles were written 68 and the gospel 97, so that there is no possibility for thinking that God did not intend to add anything to the existing records.
The Gospel of John is the last book of the New Testament. And in this very book we have the comforting promise of Christ recorded: "He (the Spirit) shall glorify Me: for he shall receive of Mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father has are Mine: therefore, said I, that he shall take of Mine, and shall show it unto you" (John xvi, 14, 15). Here is a promise of continuous revelation.
Having seen, now, that continuous revelation is necessary for the guidance of men unto eternal salvation, and also that God through his ancient prophets has promised to manifest Himself preparatory to the foundation of the kingdom of the Son of God upon the earth, it becomes necessary to enquire into the evidences that present themselves of the truth of the claims of Joseph Smith, the Prophet. Did God speak through him, or, was he an enthusiast, an impostor? This question concerns every human being.
With a voice like that of the angel whom John saw in his visions on Patmos, Joseph proclaims in the name of the Lord:
"Hearken, O, ye people of My Church, saith the voice of Him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men, yea, verily I say, hearken ye people from afar, and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together. For verilythe voice of the Lord is unto all men"(Doc. and Cov. sec. i, 1, 2).
For centuries past the world had cherished the thought that the voice of the Lord should no more be heard, when suddenly, thunderlike, a messenger appeared, heralding from one end of heaven to mother the above quoted intelligence. God has spoken.
To the chosen seed these were, indeed, tidings of great joy, but the world at large, influenced, as the Jews formerly were, by priests and rabbis, denounced the messenger as a bold imposter. He offered the strongest proof a man ever can offer as a demonstration of the truth of his message; he gave his life, sealing his testimony with his blood. Yet a sceptical world refused to believe, refused, to a large extent, even to investigate.
What was, then, the nature of his message? That the day of the Lord is at hand; that the inhabitants of the earth must repent of their sins and false doctrines, and turn unto God; that those who would obey should be made happy in the kingdom of the Son of God, but on all disobedient souls fearful judgments would speedily fall. To prepare for the coming of Christ was the message sent from God to man through His servant, the Prophet Joseph. That was the nature of the message.
It will be perceived that this is in full harmony with the sacred writ, and its very nature should be a sufficient proof of its divine origin. If it harmonizes with the Bible, how can it be false? How can those who believe the one reject the other? Is not that the very same contradiction as that of which the Jews were guilty who believed the sacred writings of the Old Testament at the same time they rejected Christ? Clearly, when the Bible is first proved to be true, everything that is in perfect harmony with the Bible must be true, too. In such relation to the Bible stands the divine message of which we are speaking.
This is a subject that must not be treated lightly. The highest interests are here at stake—interests dearer than life itself, which lasts but a moment. If God has spoken to this generation, woe, woe, woe unto those who wilfully shut their ears and harden their hearts against the word of God! The antediluvian world was drowned by a flood because the people did not heed the warning voice. The cities of the plain were wrapped in flames and buried in a sulphurous tomb because they rejected the message of God. Jerusalem fell because she did not know the time of her visitation. And how can the present world escape a similar fate under similar circumstances?
With these lessons of past ages before us, let every honest soul investigate the evidences of the truth of this message of the latter days. An honest investigation is the very least that can be demanded for a subject of this vast importance.
The attention of theological students who are familiar with the evidences of the truth of Christianity is particularly called to the line of thought here offered, as it is proposed to show that the message delivered by Joseph Smith is supported by the same evidence as the message delivered by former prophets or apostles. Christianity and "Mormonism" must stand or fall together. If the evidence here presented is sufficient for the one, it is sufficient for both.
The books of the Old Testament abound with predictions foretelling the work of Christ on earth. It is distinctly predicted that a deliverer should come, "the seed of woman;" he should spring out of the people of Abraham; a new covenant would be made; the deliverer would be despised, put to death, and yet reign for ever and ever. Such wonderful predictions run like a string through the Old Testament, and are always pointed to as an evidence of the truth of Christianity. This is what is sometimes called retrospective evidence. Christ himself points to these predictions as such evidence. "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter His glory? Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself." (Luke xxiv, 26, 27. Compare John v, 46, 47.)
But the same prophets foretell with equal clearness the grand work in which the Latter-day Saints are now engaged, as will appear on investigation of the following passages.
Isaiah has many remarkable predictions, some of which were fulfilled shortly after their delivery. Syria and Israel, for instance, were to be conquered by Assyria, before the infant son of the prophet could say "my father" (Isaiah viii, 4). The glory of Kedar was to fail in one year (xxi, 6), that of Moab in three years (xvi, 14), that of Ephraim in sixty-five years (vii, 8), that of Tyre in seventy years (xxiii, 15). Other predictions relate to more distant times. Thus that portion of his book which is contained in chapter xl to lxiv embraces the whole period from the Babylonian captivity to the end of the Christian dispensation.
In this portion of the book the prophet predicts the deliverance of the Jews by Cyrus (xliv, 28; xlv, 1-5, xlvii); the return to Judea (xliv, 28), the coming, suffering and glory of the Messiah, the downfall of idolatry, the rejection of Christ by the Jews, and their consequent rejection by God; also their final conversion and recovery (lii, 3; lxii; lxv).
Speaking of this last event, the final gathering of the Jews—an event which is about to be fulfilled in our own time—the prophet (chapter lv) says that there should be a people or a nation, previously unknown to the Jews, who should be willing to join the Jews in their worship of God Almighty. "Behold, thou shalt call a people which thou didst not know; and a people which did not know thee shall run to thee for the sake of Jehovah, thy God, and for the sake of the Holy One in Israel, for he hath glorified thee."
Could language more clearly convey that at the time of the final restoration of the Jews there should exist another people, too, who would share with the Jews the glory in store for them? In the next chapter (lxvi, 6-8) this other people is more clearly described: "And the sons of the stranger who follow Jehovah in order to serve Him, and to love Jehovah's name * * * those I will bring to My holy mountain, and they shall rejoice in My house." These predictions are very clear, and it is a literal fulfillment thereof that the Saints are called out of all nations of the earth so that they may form that one nation here spoken of, and the latter part of Isaiah's predictions are as literally verified as that part which relates to former events.
Among the predictions of the prophet Micah we notice the invasion of Shalmaneser (i, 6-8), and Sennacherib (i, 9-16), the dispersion of Israel (v, 7-8) the destruction of Jerusalem (iii, 12). He also foretells the gathering of Israel and the exaltation of Christ over all nations. Speaking of the gathering of Israel, he says that a forerunner should first come, and this forerunner is described as a people with a leader at their head and Jehovah as their guide, alluding to Israel in the wilderness, where Moses was their prophet, Jehovah going before them. Thus saith Micah ii, 12, 13: "Certainly I will gather thee, Jacob, and bring together the rest of Israel. * * The forerunner (or rather the one who 'breaks' the way) goes before them; * * * the prince goes before them and Jehovah leads." In chapter iv. the prophet more fully describes what should happen before the gathering of Jacob: "At the end of the days the mountain of the house of Jehovah shall be established upon the top of the mountains, * * and the nations shall run thereto. * * * In the same days said Jehovah, shall I gather the remnant." Read chapter iv, 1-10 carefully. It predicts unmistakably that at the time of the final delivery of the Jews there should exist a people gathered among the mountains in order to serve the Lord, a people endowed with wisdom to exercise judgment in the affairs of the nations of the world, and yet be a peaceful, agricultural people, who had thrown away their swords for peaceful occupations. This prediction is as clear as any ever given concerning Christ and His work, and it is fulfilled in the gatherings of the Saints. If prophetic evidence is required, God has given it to us.
Let us turn to Jeremiah, who flourished a hundred years later.
The chronological arrangement of the predictions of this prophet, as has been already remarked, is not very plain, but passages relating to the first salvation of Israel are easily recognized. Chapter iii, 15-18, are among these. Here the prophet in words that cannot be mistaken says that the house of Judah shall go to the house of Israel, and "they shall come together from the land of the north to the land which I have given your fathers."
That this prediction does not relate to the deliverance from Babylon is evident from the fact that the prophet says: "the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel." The house of Israel must then already be gathered, or else the house of Judah could not go with them. At the return from Babylon Judah took the lead, and the Israelites who returned had to come to Judah. Judah took the lead. Here is a deliverance and return predicted in which Israel takes the lead. Israel must consequently be gathered as well as Judah and previous to Judah. Compare this with the message delivered through Joseph the Prophet, and the evidence is both strong and conclusive.
No less clear is Daniel. In his second chapter, this great prophet predicts coming events with the clearness of history. Four kingdoms are described: The Babylonian, under the dynasty of Nebuchadnezzar; the Medo-Persian, the Grecian and the Roman. The last named is divided into ten, all of which in their composition carry the seed of their dissolution. Iron (political power) and clay (man-invented religion) mixed together, was their inheritance from Rome, and the cause of their weakness. But in the days of these ten kingdoms the kingdom of heaven is founded, a stone cut out without hands of man yet of miraculous origin; mighty as a mountain, and finally, superior to the finest metals, the most splendid earthly thrones.
That this prediction was not fulfilled at the time of Christ is clear from two facts: First, that Christ came before the dissolution of the Roman empire; and, secondly, that Christ did not found a kingdom at all when He was here. Only by the most lamentable perversion of Scripture can this passage be made to apply to the first coming of Christ. It must apply to His second coming or have no meaning at all. But to His second coming it applies. Then His kingdom will fill all the earth, but the stone must first roll, and, while so doing, grow until it becomes fit to perform the work assigned to it.
In chapter seven the prophet treats of the same subject.The four kingdoms are represented by four beasts, and the ten kingdoms by ten horns; three of the horns or kingdoms are subdued by a little horn, the papal, anti-Christian power, which exercises its tyrannical reign, and overcomes the Saints for a period of one thousand two hundred and sixty years. Here, too, the time is fully defined, showing beyond the possibility of doubt that the restoration of the Kingdom of God belongs to this century, counting from the appearance of the little horn, the papal power.
Thus the ancient prophets have spoken of the time in which we live, and their predictions are irrefutable evidence of the truth of the message accepted by the Latter-day Saints.
Let us add one more testimony. John, the great prophet of the New Testament, while on Patmos, has a vision in which the Turkish conquest is shown (chapter ix). Four angels, bound in the great river Euphrates, are let loose to spread war and desolation upon the earth for a period of about four hundred years (Rev. ix, 15). Their great numbers are described, their armors, their national colors, their power to hurt an idolatrous "Christian" world, tormenting those who had abandoned the worship of God for the worship of Saints and images. After this (chapter x) a messenger appears with a little book, signifying that the Spirit of prophecy should again be manifested before "many people, and nations, and tongues and kings" (Rev. x, 1-11). How very clear is this prediction as to the great event of our time. In reading the vision we feel that John saw the youthful Prophet Joseph with the little book in his hand, and heard his mighty voice declaring that the fulness of times had come. "And the angel (or messenger) which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth (embracing both hemispheres) lifted up his hands to heaven and swore by him that liveth for ever and ever * * * * that there shall be time no longer, but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel * * * * the mystery of God should be finished" (x, 5-7). Is not this the very essence of the message delivered by Joseph the Prophet?
With such frequency and with such clearness the Spirit of prophecy in all past ages foretells the work in which the Latter-day Saints are now engaged. If Christ can point to predictions as an evidence of His divine mission; if Christians can point to prophecy as an evidence of the truth of Christianity, why are not these predictions, these prophecies, equally infallible evidence of the truth of the divine mission of Joseph Smith? How one can be accepted and the other rejected I fail to see.
Our Lord refers more than once to prophecies delivered by Himself as evidence of His divine mission: "And now I have told you before it came to pass, that when it is come to pass ye might believe." (John xiv, 29.) This kind of evidence has been called prospective. When we read, for instance, the prophecy of our Lord announcing the destruction of Jerusalem, compare the prediction with the description of the fearful event given by Joseph, and see how literally everything was fulfilled, we can understand what strong evidence the prophecy is of the divine mission of the Lord. Jerusalem, Babylon, Nineveh are all witnesses of the truth of the word of God, and their testimony is unanimously accepted by everyone who is able to trace the finger of God. The conclusion is this, that when a man foretells an event which no human wisdom could foresee, the occurrence of such an event is a sure proof that God spoke through that man. So God Himself reasons: "Who hath declared this from ancient times? Have not I, the Lord?" (Isaiah, xlv, 20-22.)
If we apply this rule to the message delivered through Joseph Smith, we unavoidably reach the same conclusion. We are forced by the most plain logic to acknowledge his divine mission.
The following is offered for consideration: In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants many predictions are given concerning the Saints, some of which have already been fulfilled, while others are still awaiting fulfillment.
In 1830, when the Church was still in her earliest infancy, it was predicted: "Zion shall rejoice upon the hills and flourish before the final salvation of Israel" (Doctrine and Covenants, sec xxxv, 24, 25). This remarkable prediction is often repeated, and finally, in the year 1838, at Far West, Missouri, it is again announced: "Therefore, will I not make solitary places to bud and to blossom, and to bring forth in abundance, said the Lord? Is there not room enough upon the mountains?" (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. cxvii, 7, 8.)
From the very foundation of the Church the Spirit of God, through the prophet, thus announces in no uncertain way that Zion, the Saints, should move to "the hills," "the mountains," "the solitary places," and there be prosperous, "blossom" gloriously. It must be remembered that these predictions were delivered at a time when no human wisdom could foresee such an event. When the Church was founded in 1830, there was no possibility—speaking from a mere humanpoint of view—of foreseeing her removal to the hills, much less that she would be removed and prosper in the "hills." Nor is there in the whole history of mankind anything analogous to this exodus of the Church. The probability, speaking from a human point of view, when the Church was founded, was either that she would be favored by the world and remain where she was, or that she would be crushed on the spot by an immense hostility. Either of these two occurrences might have been considered probable at the time; but none of them was predicted. The Church should blossom in the hills. Has not this prediction, delivered half a century ago, been remarkably fulfilled? Who can travel through the valleys of the mountains to-day, among fragrant gardens and orchards, and notice the friendly, peaceful homes that everywhere smile upon the stranger, or observe the condition of the Saints, without seeing that the predictions have come literally true? Zion now blossoms in the mountains.
The fulfillment of these predictions has not been brought about by man, otherwise than in this way that ungodly men, without their own knowledge, were the instruments. The Saints were driven from place to place. They went not with acalculationto fulfill prophecy, but because they could not help themselves. In the same way the Jews and the Romans fulfilled the predictions of our Lord.
Anyone who will honestly consider these facts will see that the events prominent in the history of the Latter-day Saints indelibly mark Joseph Smith as a prophet of God.
Other predictions delivered by Joseph the Prophet concern the nations of the earth. In 1832 the following prediction was given: "For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and man shall fall upon the ground, and shall not be able to stand. And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea, heaving themselves beyond their bounds. And all things shall be in commotion; and, surely, men's hearts shall fail them; for fear shall come upon all men." (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. lxxvii, lxxxix, xci).
True, this prediction has not yet in all its details been fulfilled; still, the events of the last ten years fully indicate that the time is drawing near when the "testimony of thunders" shall roll over the earth. I refer to numerous calamities which the last years have witnessed. Earthquakes, floods,storms, fires, conflagrations, wars, anarchy have filled the newspapers with horrible reading matter. We need only remember the earthquake in Charleston, the overflow of the Yellow River in China, the conflagration of several theatres, the riots in Chicago. So noted have these years been for calamities of every description that astrologers have pointed out that they were caused by certain planets which, during the past years, have had a peculiar position in relation to each other and to the earth. Be this as it may, the fact remains that we live in a time of visitation—a visitation already foretold by Joseph the Prophet. Here, again, we see his words verified, and he himself vindicated as a prophet of God.
Another prediction, the fulfillment of which is written in letters of blood on the pages of the history of the American nation, cannot be contradicted. In 1832 God declared through Joseph Smith: "Behold the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States shall call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves, and thus war shall be poured out upon all nations." (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. lxxxvii, 3). Concerning this war, it was foretold that it should terminate in "death and misery to many, many souls." Also the place where the first shot was to be fired was foretold: "Verily, thus saith the Lord, concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina." (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. lxxxvii, 1; cxxx, 12, 13.)
These minute predictions were given at a time when people generally did not believe it possible for the United States to engage in a war with each other. Those acquainted with the sentiments that prevailed in America at that time, all agree in this. Nay, even when the report reached the Northern States that their Southern brethren had actually commenced the tragedy, it was hard for the Northern States to believe it. There was no possibility at the time of Joseph for human sagacity to foresee this war. Yet the despised prophet predicted it with a clearness not surpassed by Isaiah or Daniel.
Did it come true? Did the war break out in South Carolina? Was the slave question thecasus belli? Did the Southern States apply to other nations for help? Every particular came true, and the world knows it, even if it fails to acknowledge that all had been predicted years before it happened.
It would be a reasonable supposition that the literal fulfillment of a prediction like this should be proof enough of the divine mission of the prophet. Or, what is required of a true prophet? Is not that enough that his predictions are proved to be true? In the case of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, John, nothing more is required. When we see that their predictions have come true we grant that they were true prophets. Must we, then, reverse every rule of logic in the case of Joseph Smith? Must we say his predictions have been fulfilled;ergohe was afalseprophet? The absurdity of this is too great to need refutation.
We know that an objection has been raised that the prediction of the war did not come true in every particular—that the war was confined to the United States, and was not poured out upon all nations.
To this objection we answer that, in one sense, it was poured out upon all nations. The population of the United States consists, as is well known, of people from almost every nation under the sun, and England, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, all were represented in the armies of that war. All contributed to the death list in that long and fearful combat. How much misery, how much sorrow, how many tears did that war cause far beyond the borders of the great republic, when aged mothers and fathers, and sisters and brothers in the old countries received the intelligence that a son or a brother was wounded or dead? If we will consider this in all its consequences we will soon find that the expression, "War shall be poured out upon all nations" is no idle figure of speech. It is a stern fact. Thousands beyond the rolling waves of the ocean drank the bitter cup filled with the curse of that war. Understood in this way, the prediction is literally fulfilled in all its details.
But it must also be remembered that we have not yet reached the last scene of the drama. It is a grave question with some clear-seeing politicians to-day whether the slave question has yet reached its final solution. If it has not, we may yet see the prediction in question fulfilled in every particular.
The prediction itself plainly states that some time would elapse between the fulfillment of its various parts. Verse 3, D&C 87, foretells that the war should be caused by the division of the United States into two great parties, and that the Southern States should call upon Great Britain; "and thus war should be poured out upon all nations." Then verse 4explains that this should be continued "aftermany days," thereby that the slaves (the negroes) should rise up, and also the remnant (the Indians), and new wars, new bloodshed take place. The prophecy thus clearly marks two divisions, the events of which are separated from each other by a period ofmanydays, or years; for days in the prophetic language are always understood to mean years. Thus the prediction itself is plain. It foretells the so-called War of the Rebellion, its subsequent result as well as its causes. It further intimates that the question out of which it arose should be settled for many years, but that again the flames of war should be kindled and spread wider than before. The first part of this prediction has been fulfilled. The second belongs to the future.
Having thus removed the objection made to the prediction, it may not be out of place to show that this way of putting close together, in prophetical sentences, events which are in time far separated from each other, is common to prophetical writers. In this respect the Prophet Joseph resembles the ancient prophets, a fact which ought not to be the ground of objection.
Isaiah, speaking of the mission of Christ (chapter lxi, 1-3), says: "The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is upon me * * to proclaim the year of acceptance of Jehovah and the day of vengeance of our God." Christ, in reading and expounding this text in Nazareth, reads to the middle of the verse, closes the books and exclaims: "To-day this scripture is fulfilled in your ears." (Luke iv, 21.) Indeed, with the coming of Christ the year of acceptance of Jehovah had come. The first part of the verse was fulfilled, but the second portion—the day of vengeance—was not yet. Thousands of years lie between the first part of this verse and the second.
So the Prophet Joel, in his second chapter, verses 28-32, foretells in one sentence the wonders of the day of Pentecost (compares Acts ii, 16-21) and the great day of Jehovah, when no one can escape the judgments to come except those who take their refuge upon Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, events which are separated from each other by thousands of years.
The objection to the prediction of Joseph Smith is therefore no objection at all, unless the ancient prophets must be rejected on the same ground. On the contrary, an honest investigation leads to the discovery that the very language of prophecy as delivered by the Prophet of this dispensation is in harmony with ancient prophecies, that they flow from one and the same source—the Spirit of God.
With "direct evidence," theologians mean such evidence as is supplied by the miracles of the Lord and his servants.
It is true that miracles are often appealed to as evidence of the divine mission of Christ. Nicodemus says: "No man can do these miracles that thou doest except God be with him" (John iii, 2). Christ Himself supports this view. "I have greater witness than that of John; for the work which the Father has given me to finish, the same works that I do bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me" (John v, 36). "Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very works' sake" (John xiv, 11). Also: "But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins (He says to the sick of palsy), I say unto thee, 'Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way unto thine house'" (Mark ii, 10, 11). Here, clearly, miracles are furnished as evidence of Christ's divine mission.
But it must be remembered that the performance of miracles is not always a proof of divine authority. The Egyptian magicians worked several miracles, it seems, in the sight of Pharaoh, thereby turning his heart awayfromGod. The disciples of the Pharisees at the time of Christ also performed miracles. They charged Christ with the crime of being connected with the powers of darkness, and that He by such aid cast out demons; to which charge Christ with holy indignation, replies: "If I cast out demons with the aid of Beelzebub, by whom doyour childrencast out demons?" So that miracles were by no means something which Christ claimed as his exclusive prerogative. It has also been clearly foretold that anti-Christ should claim miraculous powers and thereby deceive many. "His coming is after the workings of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders" (II Thess. ii, 9). "And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast" (Rev. xiii, 13, 14). From these passages it is clear that caution is needed in accepting this kind of evidence. Miracles may be evidence of the presence of God or the presence of anti-Christ.
Nor is the performance of miracles always necessary to prove divine authority. A man may be sent from God in order to fulfill a very important mission without having toprove this by miracles. Thus John the Baptist had a very important mission. He came to "prepare the way" for the appearance of Christ, yet it is not known that he proved his mission by miracles.
It is true that Christ and His Apostles after Him worked many striking miracles, even the raising of the dead, but these miracles were, after all, not so frequent as has sometimes been imagined. Those men of God did not touch everything with supernatural power, healing every sick person they saw, raising every dead one, changing the common day occurrences of life into scenes matching the stories of the "Arabian Nights." Not at all. Their miracles were comparatively scarce; they were exceptional occurrences. Thus when Paul was incarcerated in Rome, the cold prison walls forming but a poor shelter for his body during the winter, and his resources probably being exhausted, he asked Timothy kindly to bring with him the cloak which Paul had forgotten at Troas, at the house of one of the brethren, called Carpus. (II Tim., iv, 13). The passage is as prosaic as it could possibly be, and has nothing supernatural about it. Still more, in the same chapter we hear Paul diligently plead with Timothy to come to Rome to him, for he was now alone. All except Luke had forsaken him, and among other misfortunes was this—that he had had to leave Trophimus sick at Miletum. "Erastus abode at Corinth, but Trophimus have I left at Miletum, sick" (II Tim. iv, 20). Sick? Why did not the great Apostle cure him instead of leaving him sick? If the Apostles had been such miracle-makers as modern fancy has represented them to be, an occurrence of this nature would have been impossible. But this is not the only one recorded. Timothy, one of Paul's converts and fellow laborers, is always spoken of in terms of high praise, and he is a noble instance of eminent gifts and grace in one young in years. This favorite of the apostle was sick, however, and in his letter Paul therefor exhorts him to be careful about his health: "Drink no longer water but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities" (I Tim. v, 23). Let those who have overestimated the frequency of miracles at the time of the first Christian churches, consider this passage well, and they will be likely to see their mistake. Here was a prominent man of the church, himself possessing great spiritual gifts, constantly suffering from "infirmities." Here is the great "Apostle of the Gentiles," whose power always was great, advising that prominent man to use a little medicine.Why did he not promise him a miracle? Why? That we do not know, but this we do know, that miracles were never by God strewn round, "plenty as black berries."
Anyone who will study the miracles of our Lord and his apostles, will find that they were always performed for the glory of God, and conveyed a lesson necessary and appropriate. Although individuals were thereby benefited, yet this was not the only or ultimate aim. Christ, for instance, heals with a touch a man whom the law had pronounced unclean, and whom no Jew would touch. He shows by His miracles that he is the Lord over disease, over demons, over physical nature, over brute creatures, in order that we may have confidence in Him in all things. We see him forgiving sins, answering prayers, direct (Mat. ix, 20-22), intercessory (23-26), united (27-31), and even unuttered (32-33). The same characteristics may be observed in the miracles of the apostles. They were never performed for selfish purposes, nor for the gratification of curiosity, never for the sake of show. The epistles explain that miraculous gifts, including prophecy, were given to confirm the truth of the Gospel, promote its rapid dissemination, and edify the churches.
Such miracles, then, are from God, and may be relied upon as evidence of the truth of those revelations which they are intended to prove.
Two questions now become appropriate in our investigation: Did miraculous manifestations follow the message of Joseph the Prophet, and, if so, were these miraculous manifestations of such a nature as to warrant the conclusion that he had his power from God? Let us see.
In the year 1830 the Lord declared through His prophet: "And it shall come to pass that there shall be a great work in the land, even among the Gentiles * * * for I am God and mine arm is not shortened; and I will show miracles, signs and wonders, unto all those who believe on my name; and who shall ask it in my name in faith they shall cast out devils (demons); they I shall heal the sick; they shall cause the blind to receive their sight, the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak, and the lame to walk. The time speedily cometh when great things are to be shown forth unto the children of men" (Doctrine and Covenants, sec. xxxv 7-10.) Here we have an unmistakably clear promise that miracles should attend the message of our Prophet; and this promise is repeated at other times. But was this promise also kept? Were those "great things" shown unto the children of men? Or was the promise a false one?