THE RESPONSIBILITIES AND privileges of the firstborn in Israel are a very marked feature in the scriptures. They are singled out for our attention in many places and given significant prominence as an important type. These duties, which in the fulfillment of the type involve the generations that will be raised in the coming age, are quite considerable and suggest that we who are called to qualify as the antitype of this firstborn figure take our responsibilities very seriously.

According to the law, the firstborn had the right of being priest and king, that is of interceding for and ruling over their younger brethren; on him devolved the duty of Goel or Kinsman-redeemer, to redeem a brother who had become poor and sold himself to a stranger; to avenge his blood, to raise up seed to the dead, and to redeem the inheritance. To sustain these duties God gave the firstborn a double portion. These facts can be collectively gleaned from Ex 13:2 24:5 Nu 3:12,13 8:16 De 21:17; and 1Ch 5:1,2.

Moreover an unusual transaction took place respecting the firstborn. We find it in Nu 3:45 where the Levites were taken in their place. By so instituting the whole of the complex sacred service in this unusual way into the sole charge of the firstborn, the Lord made this one of the most important figures in the Old Testament.

Firstborn from the Dead

However a most important and fundamental factor in the firstborn figure has to be understood before any one may enter into it. Christ does not fulfill the role of the firstborn as firstborn of every creature, but as "firstborn from the dead."

"He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead."—Col 1:18

This quotation establishes the fact precisely. No less importantly it also shows that all who would enter into Christ as firstborn, must likewise be born from the dead. It also implies that the nature of the firstborn portion would have its own particular significance.

This is an important matter. We have seen that firstborns in Israel had important responsibilities to carry out, which was the point of the double portion. There was just no use in being invested with this responsibility and not being provided with the wherewithal to fulfill the duty. It therefore follows that the particular nature of this inheritance, and the assurance that it is a present possession, must be a matter of the greatest importance to the whole "Household of Faith."In the words of the apostle Peter, 1

"Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure."—2Pe 1:10

The apostle John assures us of our standing as firstborns.

"Now are we the sons of God and... we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is."—1Jo 3:2

Glorious as this promise is, nowhere does the apostle suggest that the inheritance will be conferred irrespective of our faithfulness. Rather he warns, "little children keep yourself from idols."

Baptized into Christ’s Death

The plain fact is that even when baptized into Christ and being led by the spirit we still remain firstborn of the creature. Our status as firstborn from the dead can only be realized when we become truly baptized into his death. Only when our consecration death into Christ is realized, do our present actions constitute a resurrected walk in Christ of the firstborn from the dead, with the assurance that we are in possession of the double portion.

I don’t want to over-stress the negative aspect of what is a most beautiful figure, but we cannot pass over those unhappy examples of failure in the scripture that illustrate the importance of this matter to our calling as firstborn. They are numerous and of a most salutary nature:

* Adam, although a direct creation and not born in the usual sense of the word was certainly the head of his family. His was a signal failure.

* Cain failed as the line for the promised seed.

* Ishmael, being the son of the bondwoman, failed as the child of promise.

* Esau failed as the inheritor of the blessing.

* Reuben failed as the [progenitor] to the royal line.

* Saul failed as the anointed of God.

* Israel failed as the firstborn nation.

* The elder brother of the prodigal failed in love. These illustrate the fundamental difference between the firstborn of the creature and the firstborn from the dead. Adam as the firstborn of every creature to his posterity ever fails in all his children. Christ, the second Adam, firstborn out of death, succeeds gloriously at every step of his work.

The comparison in this light is quite remarkable and absolutely fundamental to our understanding of the firstborn type. The firstborn of the creature never entertains the idea of dying. However noble he might be, there will always be a strong element of self-serving. His service as firstborn to his brother in need will always be partial, at best. On the other hand those born from the dead have made a total surrender of self and will always give unreservedly and at full cost for the needs of others.

Our walk then in this present life as firstborns is initially prospective, dependent for its success on total immersion into Christ’s death, consciously looking to him that he may raise us to live the firstborn life in him. The apostle Paul’s words are precise:

"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."—Ro 6:4

The sole objective of our present walk is to make the transfer from our earnest desire and sincere efforts, to fulfill the firstborn duties with their ingrained tendency to serve the self that causes us to fail, and pass into that perfectly submissive will of our Lord who never thought of the cost but continually gave and gave of himself. Happily the apostle’s words not only tell us what we have to do, but also provide the key as to its successful accomplishment.

Raised by God’s Glory

The verse we have quoted contain a most unusual expression. It tells us that Christ was raised by "the glory

of God."Why not the power of God? That would be more exact. Of course the apostle has chosen his words precisely for he wants us to understand that he is talking of divine life. Now that is fine until we come back to the words "even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Does the apostle really mean a resurrection life lived by this power? This is very difficult to accept, and our experience of failure confirms our doubts. Paul however understands the nature of this problem, and gives us his insight into it in his epistle to the Philippians. Writing to this church after a life-time of the deepest consecration and self-sacrifice, he calmly and candidly tells them that he is still not dead to self. His words on this matter are found in Php 3:7-17 but we particularly quote from verse 10 onwards:

"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended."

One could not find a more comprehensive admission of coming short. But Paul continues:

"This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

So what then is the apostle’s advice? Verse 17: "Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample."Paul, and others walking in the same way, had found the key and we are told to "mark"or pay attention to their course of action and to follow it. So let’s do so. Let us go carefully over this passage and mark every step of Paul’s progress in Christ that led him to the key to the problem. Paul has shown how in the past he had learned to count all the things of this life as worthless and even to accept their loss. But now in verses 12 and 13 he shows that even this does not constitute being conformed to Christ’s death. He must press on from this, forgetting these gains in self-denial, to "those things which are before."

Christ’s Resurrection Work

What crucial difference can attend future events that can bring the desired attainment in Christ? Is Paul simply saying that we just have to keep on in the same way faithful to the end? Surely there must be some new factor. There certainly is, but not in the experiences. It is in the resurrection work of Christ, for Paul has turned the whole concept of death and resurrection on its head.

In verse 10 the apostle does not say that he wishes to be conformed to Christ’s death so that he may know or possess the resurrection power, which is the logical order. Just the opposite. Realizing that he has failed to "apprehend that for which he was apprehended of Christ"he has come to see that this true death and burial into Christ can only be realized by the resurrection power itself, can only be attained if brought under the potent overshadowing of the same mighty divine creative spirit that raised up Christ on that resurrection morning, not just to life, but to divine life.

We know that Paul after realizing his need of this final divine aid received its ultimate seal, the seal that belongs to the overcomer of Re 7:3. He writes to Timothy:

"For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.... Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto ALL them also that love his appearing."—2Ti 4:6-8

The Earnest and Seal

This is the consummation of the work of the Spirit. But it is given first only as an earnest, a seal, but only a seal that we have been "apprehended of Christ"not that we have "apprehended."Gradually it opens up the word and gives us opportunities to enter into the fullness of Christ. If we are faithful to its leading, it will even bring us to accept the loss of all things, which is the best that the firstborn creature will ever attain. At this point we are ready to accept with the great apostle, our complete inability to enter any further into the baptism of Christ’s death. It is here that we know our need of his resurrection power.

Sealed with the knowledge of the mighty working of the spirit, Paul was led into that final submission that knows nothing of self-pleasing and into the inheritance of the true firstborn of the spirit.

This wonderful inheritance of the firstborn is illustrated in many types and examples for it is fundamental to the work of the new creation. Milk of the word precedes strong meat. The leading of the spirit is followed with the filling of the spirit. The baptism of John is superseded by that of Christ. The small rain and the great rain of Job 37:6, and the early and latter rains mentioned several times in scripture, likewise all show this. And of course the many firstborn types center on this truth.

Ruth and Boaz

Now of all the figures of the firstborn from the dead that the scriptures afford us, the most perfect of all is found in the Book of Ruth. It is with the delightful imagery of this book that we will close. In this beautiful little book we are instructed in the law of firstborn in all its detail. Its chief character is Boaz through whom our dear Lord himself is perfectly portrayed as the true firstborn kinsmanredeemer. Ruth the Moabitess fills every particular of the true believer, faithfully demonstrating for us every step that the believer needs to take in the firstborn walk.

In returning with Naomi, Ruth demonstrates the Gentile’s faith in the covenant relationship that God had established through Abraham. She also marks the first step of faith of every believer, and from then on as she enters into the land of Israel, she marks out the steps that we must take if we are to enter into the firstborn privileges. At the same time by this walk of faith in the God of Israel and love towards Naomi, she makes it possible for Boaz to find her and fulfill his kinsman’s duties.

This gives us exactly the information we need. We see every duty we must perform, and, much more importantly, we see where these duties should end and, for our fuller instruction in spiritual things, that part which is exclusively the Lord’s.

Boaz was not in the field that day but came to his house from Bethlehem. If Ruth had gone home and not "tarried a little in the house,"he would not have seen her. Hearing of her kindness to Naomi, the wife of his kinsman, he determines to bless her.

This is a crucial point also in our walk before the Lord as we glean in his harvest field. As we study his word and put into practice those covenant principles, what is it that catches his attention and marks us out for his special care? It is not sacrifice. It is the spirit of sacrifice that carries us beyond its letter. This is not always easy for us to detect, but there are simple tests that we may apply which will reveal to us our true standing in this matter.

The True Spirit of Sacrifice

How do we react when we find that we have been treated unfairly? Do we stifle the complaint? Yes, one hopes so. For instance, when waiting in line, do we find we resent someone pushing in before us but contain the impulse to retaliate? This is certainly sacrifice, but is it the spirit of the Lord? Or do we go a little bit further and make the incident an opportunity to witness to that true spirit of sacrifice that was the Lord’s, blessing those who curse, suggesting, for instance, that if their need is so urgent that we would be glad to let them go before us. This is just a trivial example, of course, but exactly what would mark us out as a "Moabitess."

Noting then the "damsel,"Boaz makes inquiry of all the good that she had done to Naomi and begins to specially bless her. That first day gleaning in the field of Boaz she had been blessed in an "earnest"or foretaste of the riches of Boaz. Now this blessing is added to. She may now drink from the supply of water set aside for the reapers, she may eat with them at their table, and Boaz himself reaches out a "morsel of parched corn"with his own hand. But more especially he ensures that the reapers let fall handfuls from the sheaves as they reap.

This deeper aspect of the firstborn life is also perfectly mirrored in this beautiful little type. Ruth had really shown in all that she had done for Naomi that true spirit of sacrifice, but we have to note that this had not, and never could, restore the heritage of Elimelech, Naomi’s husband. They were still poor, the inheritance was not theirs. This is a fundamental truth of the utmost importance to the prospective firstborn. It did not lie within Ruth’s power to obtain the blessed rest.

But there is a way in which we may be led to this rest and it is revealed to us in this wonderful Word, our antitypical Naomi:

"Then Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee."—Ru 3:1

And then Naomi gives us exact and precise instructions as to how our rest in Christ can be achieved.

"Now is not Boaz of our kindred... Behold, he winnoweth barley tonight in the threshingfloor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.... And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down. And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman. And he said... my daughter fear not I will do to thee all that thou requirest."—Ru 3:2-11

Of the washing, anointing, and changing of garment we have no need to speak. These are familiar figures. But the instruction to us not to make ourselves known to our antitypical Boaz until he had finished the harvesting of the barley is a little obscure even though we are aware of the significances of the barley and wheat harvests.

Christ the Firstfruits

The understanding of this most significant figure lies with the more familiar type of the firstfruits of the harvests. Christ is the firstfruit from the dead, as we read in 1Co 15:20. "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."Christ’s offering was symbolized by the firstfruit offering of the barley harvest at Passover time, the Church’s offering by the wheat harvest at the time of Pentecost.

The account in Ruth has already confirmed that both harvests were reaped, so the fact that we see Boaz still winnowing barley indicates that this was the final work of bringing in the first harvest. Naomi’s instructions were quite plain: Ruth was to wait until this was done and that Boaz had both eaten and drunk and had lain down to rest. When she so does, she finds him "at the end of the heap of corn,"the work all done.

In all of this, so far, it is clear that Ruth’s love toward Naomi and her God, her giving up of all things because of this love, her industrious labors in the harvest field, and especially her sweet character in respect to the house of Boaz, had been instrumental in bringing her to this point. But this was as far as she could go. The real source of blessing lay with the silent figure of Boaz.

This figure of Boaz at rest after the completion of his work is the entire basis of the firstborn inheritance. We have drawn it specifically to notice already but with the evidence of the type before us, we can now mark it out with certainty. We know, of course, that the Lord as the Logos in his office of firstborn of every creature with all the power invested in him, could not effect our change to new creatures. What is less obvious but implicit in the figures of scripture is that as firstborn of every creature he could not effect our prospective death to self either.

He could become flesh and die for us and purchase the lost possession, but without the winnowing experiences by which even his faith was tested, he could not have been heir of the "firstborn from the dead"inheritance.

"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings."—He 2:10

From the day she had made the momentous decision to leave all and follow Naomi, Ruth had listened to and carefully followed all the instructions of her mother-in-law. May the Lord grant that we have been as diligent. If we are serious about entering the "rest"that remains to the "people of God,"Naomi’s final instructions to Ruth should be of the utmost interest to us:

"And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do."—Ru 3:4

We have marked the place were he waits to bless us, at the end of the heap of barley. We wait to be blessed with Ruth when Boaz fills her "vail"with a measure of his harvest. But first we have the enigmatic instructions of our antitypical Naomi, to uncover the feet of the sleeping Boaz and lie quietly down.

It goes without saying that we need to understand the figure if we are to fulfill the reality. Happily the understanding comes easily to hand, for we have an abundance of scriptures—our Naomi of course—which brings this to us.

The Place of Blessedness

A concordance quickly reveals that the feet of Jesus is the place of blessing. References too numerous to mention here show supplicants at his feet make petition for help. This should not particularly surprise us. This was undoubtedly a customary form of supplication where the petitioner was in great need. The great difference with the petitioners at Jesus’ feet of course was that they were the recipients of miracles.

This uncovering of the feet of Jesus reveals a wealth of spiritual teaching but we only need the one, of the many citations, which brings out the significance of Boaz lying "at the end of the heap of corn."This is found in Mt 28:9, the occasion where the women who had been to the tomb were hurrying back to tell the disciples that the body of Jesus had been removed:

"And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him."

I have no certain idea why the women acted so. We have seen that kneeling at the feet of Jesus would not be an extraordinary thing in itself and it would be feasible to understand them grasping him by the feet while so doing. The thing that is really unique about this incident is that of all the many people that fell, knelt and worshipped at, or washed, anointed or kissed our dear Lord’s feet, these were the only ones who touched the feet of the risen Lord. This incident stands entirely on its own. All before had certainly received of the power of the spirit, miracles of health in mind and body. More than this: even life from the dead. But all this work passed away. Lazarus returned eventually to the dust. All that they had received was by the firstborn of every creature. The women kneeling and worshipping had taken hold of the feet of the firstborn from the dead.

Thanks to the wonderful typical teaching of the Word, we have been able to mark the place where our Lord rested after entering into the blessing of his finished work. Today as we have meditated together on the instructions of Naomi, we have found the place where he lies at the end of the heap of barley. We have uncovered his feet, and here we are now resting quietly like Ruth in the silence of the midnight darkness at the feet of the true firstborn from the dead. We wait for him to wake for we know that Naomi has told us that when he does, he will tell us what we must do to obtain our inheritance.

What he will say to you, dear brethren, in the silence of your heart, I cannot say. This is as far as the written word can take us.

The Lesson for Us

We have shared together the passing inheritance of the firstborn creature. We pass on from "those things which are behind,"as did Paul, and now "reaching forth unto those things which are before"as the apostle also directed, we can note his words elsewhere spoken on this matter to the Ephesian church:

"If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus."—Eph 4:21

What we have here then is a most wonderful and detailed description of the step that we should take as prospective firstborns. By it we may discern exactly at what stage of the race for the prize we have attained and see before us every step that still needs to be taken.

Have we left all to come into the covenant relationship of the people of God? Yes, but even here there will have been some like Orpah who first said yes and then went back. Have we gleaned in the field of the Word? Why yes, certainly, and undoubtedly returned to our Naomi to learn that it is the field of Boaz and to learn something of our firstborn inheritance. More difficult to affirm unequivocally is that we have continued a little in the house of Boaz, doing good to those who despitefully use us, returning good for evil, and even more, actually overcoming evil with good—not just learning the Word of the Lord, but putting it into practice and living his life, abiding in his house.

This is what brings the "Moabite damsel"to the attention of Boaz who then sees how really serious she is in her care of Naomi. We know this is an important part in our walk in Christ. Only as he sees us putting his Word into practice is he able to bless us further. But perhaps this is so also, and we find new refreshing insights into his will for us, portions of his Word guiding us in difficult experiences. Perhaps we can see very special providences in some trial, his hand, as it were, putting forth the "morsel of parched corn,"bread of life touched by the fire of experience.

All this, and the deepening understanding of the Word thrown down by the reapers at his command, is the growing witness of the spirit, but it is still only an earnest, not the final sealing. This is not measured out to us until we come down to the threshingfloor to see through the eyes of a "Moabitish damsel"her beloved, winnowing through the night.

Only as Christ sees us putting his Word into practice is he able to bless us further.

"It Is Finished"

Boaz never rests, the flail falls relentlessly, the golden store of grains fills the threshingfloor. "Wounded, bruised for iniquities: chastised for our peace, beaten,"falsely accused, "spat upon, mocked."Never murmuring Boaz toils until, as the last grain falls to the threshing floor, we hear his words, "It is finished."

We must wait patiently in "hope"with her if we are to receive a measure of the divine store of the love of Christ.

"Patience [brings] experience; and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given unto us."—Ro 5:4,5

"Then he said, Bring the vail that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley.... And when she came to her mother-in-law, she told her all that the man had done to her. And she said, these six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law."—Ru 3:15-17

Naomi recognizes the sign. It is the seal of the overcomer, the second sealing, if you like, of the spirit. It is still an earnest of the reality in heaven, but a complete sealing, given to us while still in the flesh, a complete confirmation which all those who "love his appearing"recognize. But we are still in the flesh for the store in our veil of faith is just six

measures. We must attend still to the voice of Naomi. "Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall"(verse 18). But Naomi recognizes the seal, "for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day."

THE TITLE OF OUR DISCOURSE is "Jehovah, the Almighty One."This title is expressed in French in four words. It is one way among many to describe our God. Alternatively we could say "Our Heavenly Father,"which would describe God in a different and complementary way.

Notice that we’ve used these words in our opening remarks: Jehovah, Almighty, God, Heavenly Father. These are words or phrases which express the everlastingness, the power, and the heavenly nature of God. But have we in these words found a satisfying title? We don’t think so.

Actually we have not mentioned an important qualifying term: Creator. To be even more complete it would be fitting to use other adjectives to express the qualities, the attributes, or the powers of God. It seems, therefore, that these words do not express in an appropriate way the divinity, the power, and the wisdom of God. They give us merely an idea that is general and incomplete.

Who is God? How should He be called? We are going to attempt to represent for ourselves who this unique being is, the one who is the origin of everything. We are going to search in the scriptures for images, as figurative as possible, to illustrate this subject. We will develop this topic in four distinct ways:

We will discuss the exceptional work of creation which reveals the power of God. We will determine the

names that are given to God and what they mean. We will cite the principal modifiers that the Bible uses and see how they apply to God. Then we will see what the Bible says of God, who He is, and how communication with God takes place since it by nature an impossibility with man.

The Work of Creation

We begin with our first point: the work of creation. Let’s read some texts in Genesis, Psalms, and Isaiah that refer to creation.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."—Ge 1:1

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun."—Ps 19:1-4

"For thus saith Jehovah* that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am Jehovah, and there is none else."—Isa 45:18

We extract a fundamental idea from these three texts: the one and only God is the architect of creation, which is an image of His glory. How can we picture creation? Men have tried using art to represent it. How have painters portrayed it? The most common image is a hand out of which gushes forth a multitude of things.

This portrayal is far from reality because God does not have a hand and Hecannot be compared to a magician.

In reality mankind encounters great difficulty in trying to portray this immense work. How can we possibly imagine it using human perception? As a clap of thunder? A Cataclysm? A blinding flash? Surely as none of these. How could our senses possibly perceive that which came before our creation? All these things were before us and we are the product of them. Just as a little chick cannot imagine what its development was like prior to hatching, so mankind is incapable of understanding the process which brought him to his intelligent and living state. Creation was an immense work which can be summed up by the first six days described in Genesis.

* First Day: light and darkness.

* Second Day: the appearance of the sky by the separation of the waters that were above and below the firmament.

* Third day: The appearance of the sea, by the separation of the dry land from the waters, and the vegetation.

* Fourth Day: the great lights (sun and moon) and the stars.

* Fifth Day: sea creatures, birds.

* Sixth Day: beasts of the field, then man. How did these events transpire? We understand them much better ever since recent scientific discoveries have succeeded in separating the phases of the process starting with the formation of matter to an elaboration of systems more and more complex.

The book of Genesis begins with these words (Ge 1:2): "The earth was only emptiness and chaos"(Zadoc Kahn). Researcher Hubert Reeves says in some of his recent writings, "In the beginning particles of matter are isolated and independent in a chaotic mixture."This disorganized matter is subsequently structured to form a stable system.

What are the heavens and the earth? Astrophysicists have identified nearby stars surrounding us as belonging to the Milky Way which contains 100-billion stars. The stars are similar to our sun which, as we know, determines the gravitational equilibrium of our solar system.

How can we comprehend the infinite power of God? One might consider the size of the heavenly objects that He has created. Our sun has a mass 330,000 times that of the earth. There are hundreds of billions other stars some of which greatly exceed its size. These enormous whirling masses composed of billions of suns are called galaxies. A billion galaxies containing billions of suns can be observed in the universe. These numbers and the immensity that they depict boggle the mind. God, who is the grand architect of the universe, truly has an unfathomable power.

We have just called to mind the formation of matter and the stupendous immensity of the universe. What would happen if we were to take a voyage in the opposite direction toward the infinitely small, toward those things microscopic, even unobservable with powerful microscopes? We know that a molecule is a combination of atoms. Scientists thought that the atom was the smallest particle of matter that could be isolated.

What have they been able to show since then? That the atom is made up of particles so small that 30 billion billion billion of them could be found in each human body. This microscopic scale is just the opposite of the overwhelming galaxies.

We see that creation viewed either from the infinitely large or the infinitely small presents an immense complexity with rigorous methods of functioning. Once again vocabulary is at a loss to express the great intelligence and wisdom of the creator of all these things. In all the areas of physics and biology we see that everything is marvelously organized!

What is man? He is a living being created by the Supreme Being. Our brain is made with matter that was in the crucible of creation; our body received the breath of life from the Creator. We have faith that all this existed. We can only imagine it, and this is only one of the aspects of the power of God.

Various Names Attributed to God

What name could we, who know Jehovah, give to Him? What name could possibly encompass all His attributes?

First let us see how God speaks of Himself: He is the unique one, the first and the last, the Redeemer. He is forever. Those who believe in Him are His witnesses. Let us read this in three texts from the prophet Isaiah.

"Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me."—Isa 43:10 "Thus saith Jehovah the King of Israel, and his redeemer Jehovah of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God."—Isa 44:6 "I am Jehovah, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me."—Isa 45:5

When God made Himself known to Moses, how did He identify Himself? In Ex 3:14 we read, "I am that I am."This is a curious form of the present tense repeated twice. It seems to indicate that the past and the future do not apply to God. "This is my name forever; this is my memorial unto all generations."

The Hebrew translation of the name Jehovah is YHVH which permits two possible pronunciations:

In the book of Exodus in the Old Testament God is called Adonai which means Lord and Master. In Ps 110:1 this same name is used when addressing Jesus: "Jehovah said unto my Lord..."In the New Testament the equivalent of Adonai is Kurios which can have reference to either the Father or the Son. The context enlightens the reader.

We read in Joh 1:3 that all things were made by the Word or Logos. This suggests that Jehovah put all power into the hand of the Logos so that he could bring about all things according to His plan and counsel.

The servants of God knew Him under the name Elohim. This name could be given to pagan gods which is why it was often preceded by El and a descriptive word. For example, El- Shaddai, which means Almighty God.

Jehovah calls himself by this name in Ge 17:1, "I am El-Shaddai; walk before me and be thou perfect."He is also called by this name in Ge 28:3, "[May] El-Shaddai bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people."This name is found in the relationship between God and the patriarchs.

Several texts express the everlastingness and authority of God. He can be called Father, King of kings, or Lord of lords.

"Unto the king eternal, immortal, invisible."—1Ti 1:17 "The King of kings and Lord of lords."—1Ti 6:15

In the Old Testament God is called the Father of Israel. In De 32:6 we read, "Is not he thy father that hath... made thee, and established thee?"

Who is His son in this text? It is Israel, as we read in Ex 4:22, "And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith Jehovah, Israel is my son, even my firstborn."And in De 14:1, "Ye are the children of Jehovah your God."

Let us turn to the New Testament to find a deeper meaning of the relationship between the son, who is Christ, and the Father to whom he shows complete submission. Jesus speaks of "my"Father and "your"Father.

"Go to my brethren andsay unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father; and to my God and your God."—Joh 20:17

God is called Father. He is really is a patient and compassionate father as we see in 2Pe 3:9,

"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish."

He is a generous father:

"That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge."—1Co 1:5

And so we have seen that glorious names such as King of kings or simple names such as Father have been applied to God under various circumstances. In each one of these circums tance s, glory, authori t y or compassion were successively exercised by God, and well characterize His universal nature. Let us now consider some titles the Bible gives to God.

Titles of God in the Bible

How can we give an appropriate name to God? His superiority is such that it is necessary to add descriptive titles. Among those that are associated with the name of God we find the Hebrew term YAHVEH-ELO- HIM in Ge 2:4, which means "Almighty Eternal."

His power manifests itself in the highest genius of thought, planning, and implementation: the power of thought to create, to plan the time cycles for the rehabilitation of man, and finally the implementation which involves man. This power on behalf of His creation, man, permits God to offer everyone choices without imposing them, thus permitting the exercise of free will.

EL-OLAM means "God of eternity."The modifier "eternity"brings out the same meaning as the name Jehovah which we have already considered.

EL-HAI means "Living God,"or "God is"(the verb is in the present tense). He said of Himself, "I am."He will forever exist which is brought out by the words "living"and "eternity."He has always been and will always be. The past and future tenses are not necessary for Him; the present suffices to express that He has always existed and will never cease to be.

The last title that we will mention from Hebrew is EL-GANA which means "Jealous God."This form of jealousy which applies to God cannot be compared to the jealousy that exists among men. God is jealous because he cannot be compared to another, and none other than He can receive praise and glory. In Ex 34:14 we read, "Jehovah whose name is Jealous."This shows that God is jealous in the sense of not tolerating that man should imagine there might be any other God. In fact, if he turns to other gods, man becomes idolatrous, no longer worshipping

And finally, in Ps 119:137, "Righteous art thou, O Jehovah, and upright are thy judgments."And Ps 111:7,8, "All his commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness."

And so God is repeatedly described by the unalterableness of His judgments. Actually there are in the judgments of God, a fairness, a severity, and a balance that escape human comprehension.

The things of God are not improvised. They are prescribed. There is a specific time for everything. At the appointed time the patriarchs, the judges, the kings, the prophets, and the apostles accomplished the mission given to them.

The name of God can, on occasion, be associated with a common noun to form a compound name dedicated to a place, a building, or an altar.

In each particular case when they were erected, a particular name was given to these monuments that expressed one of God’s qualities, that enticed one to become associated with His name, or that simply mentioned one of His attributes.

Up to this point we have seen how the name of God is described and qualified. Let us now examine how God is spoken of in the scriptures.

What Is Said About God

God is a Spirit—he is, therefore, physically inaccessible to man.

"God is a Spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."—Joh 4:24

God is immortal and invisible.

"Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever!"—1Ti 1:17

It is not possible to see Him face to face. We have confirmation of this in Ex 33:20, "And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me and live."Faithful ones like Moses who did see Him, glimpsed only His majesty after He passed by.

"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place."

The superiority of God is incomparable. He is Lord of lords, God of gods, King of nations, as we read in De 10:17, "For Jehovah your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty."

"Now I know that Jehovah is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them."—Ex 18:11 "Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Jehovah; thou art great, and thy name is greatinmight.Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? For to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee."—Jer 10:6,7

His majesty is formidable:

"Out of the north a golden light cometh [Rotherham]: with God is terrible majesty. Men do therefore fear him: he respecteth not any that are wise of heart."—Job 37:22,24

His glory is like a devouring fire.

"And the sight of the glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire on the top of the mount."—Ex 24:17

Extraordinary phenomena accompanied the presence of God.

"All the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking."—Ex 20:18

At this spectacle, the people trembled and stood afar off, as we read next:

"But let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not."

But God’s intention in these manifestations was not to frighten the people. He wanted to communicate His precepts to them.

The wisdom of God is great, his knowledge is perfect. Joseph, when he interpreted the dream of Pharaoh, and Daniel, when he explained the dreams of King Nebuchadnezzar, stated very clearly that they were inspired by the Most High. We remember the wise men and magicians who were consulted in vain. Pharaoh said to Joseph in Ge 41:15,

"I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace."

And Daniel said to the king who was troubled by his dreams:

"But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days."—Da 2:28

God makes Himself known unto the righteous, unto those who have faith in Him. "The secret of Jehovah is with them that fear him."—Ps 25:14

We see in conclusion, dear brethren, that God dealt and communicated with specific individuals who were worthy to receive His messages because they reverenced His name. His power always manifested itself through mighty and impressive events, and His interventions manifested His power, justice, wisdom, and love. Everything proceeds from these fundamental attributes and never deviates from them.

We titled this discourse "Jehovah, the Almighty One"and we see in conclusion that qualifiers, attributes, and manifestations of His power can be added to this name to better represent who He is.

We have seen that He is the creator of all things. For millennia men have studied the complexity of the systems that God created, yet they still cannot understand all their workings.

When He gave the breath of life to His creatures, and in particular to man, God already planned a future when man would experience all the blessings He had in reservation for him after the reign of sin and death. When God intervenes, it will be at the appointed time, without surprise, after having announced the event to those who have hearing ears.

Let us trust always in Jehovah, the Almighty One, for He is our salvation. Jehovah, the Almighty One, is our salvation.

BELOVED BRETHREN FROM everywhere; I am glad that in these times we are able to participate at this International Convention, something which seemed impossible to me ten years ago. Then we rejoiced by faith just at the thought that the blessed time will come when, together with our Lord, we will meet all who have had the faith of Abraham.

"We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you. Since we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints. For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you."—Col 1:3-6

Early and Later Rains

In Ps 84:6 the psalmist speaks about another rain which represents the blessings of Pentecost that came upon the Church after the offering of the sacrifice for sin for her (the Church) while the later rain represents the showers of the Millennial blessings. Then mankind will be able to receive the rain of blessings because all that has hindered it from reaching their hearts will be swept away.

In the Gospel Age the Lord’s people have received drops of blessings and truth, but the provisions for the future age will be abundant and universal. Joel says:

"And it will come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters."—Joe 3:18

He is trying to teach us that in the Millennial Age the truth will be available to everyone.

Resurrection of the Dead

Since so many people have died without being enlightened, they must first be awakened from the sleep of death. In this way Moses’ prophecy in Ps 90:3 by which God speaks to those who are in the grave will be fulfilled: "Return, ye children of men."

The resurrection of Lazarus described in John chapter 11 is a proof of the Lord’s power. It is to us a witness of that power which will resurrect all mankind. Mankind will gather to learn the truth as told by the prophet Micah:

The divine government established in Israel under the Ancient Worthies—earth’s representatives of the Messianic Kingdom—will be the center of divine favor. Mankind will see that only by learning "of his ways"under the New Covenant made with Israel will they receive the desired blessings. Speaking about these Ancient Worthies Bro. Russell says:

Speaking about the connection between the heavenly and the earthly phase of the kingdom, the psalmist says:

"Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven."—Ps 85:10,11

Learn the Truth, Speak it in Love

In this prophecy the earth represents organized human society which will learn the truth, speak the truth, and speak it in love. "Righteousness"[the heavenly phase of the Kingdom] will smile from above upon them until "righteousness and peace"have kissed each other. The effect will be a trial for mankind. Some will be glad to accept the Lord as their pastor and will come into the Lord’s favor; the Lord will gladly give them everlasting life. Others under these same favorable conditions who manifest the foolish "goat"spirit will be separated gradually to a position of our Lord’s disfavor.

Referring to those who will not submit to the law of the Kingdom the prophet Zechariah says:

"And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain."—Zec 14:17

In this prophecy the word "rain"also is symbolic. It represents the divine blessings which will be withheld from those families who will not be in harmony with the Lord.

God’s Law and Plan for Man

Thus we see that by the changes which God appointed, He has provided all that is necessary for His creatures, and He does so in a natural way. At the same time we know that he who will rule is he who changed the water into wine and with seven loaves fed "four thousand men, beside women and children."—Mt 15:38

The Symbolic Mount of Olives

In Zechariah (14:4) we read, "the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley."Bro. Russell says in reference to this prophecy:

"The two halves of the mount of Olives signify the two parts of the Kingdom of God, distinctly separated according to a divine order or arrangement. The separation indicates no opposition between the two parts of the Kingdom. It is, on the contrary, for the purpose of producing the ‘Valley of Blessing’ between—to which all who desire divine aid may flee and find succor under the blessed protection of both the heavenly and the earthly phases of the Kingdom."—Volume 4, page 652.

We can assume that after they have reached perfection there won’t be accidents or catastrophes. Speaking about this time Bro. Russell says:

"Close your eyes for a moment to the scenes of misery and woe, degradation and sorrow that yet prevail on account of sin, and picture before your mental vision the glory of the perfect earth. Not a stain of sin mars the harmony and peace of a perfect society; not a bitter thought, not an unkind look or word; love, welling up from every heart, meets a kindred response in every other heart, and benevolence marks every act.... Think of all the pictures of comparative health and beauty of human form and feature that you have ever seen, and know that perfect humanity will be of still surpassing loveliness."—Volume 1, pages 191,192.

This is the kingdom which was and is prayed for by all of God’s children. Just as Jehovah, in His glory and honor, is first in their minds while praying, so their next thought should be the promised glorious kingdom which will bless mankind.

This is the kingdom which the Church now has the privilege to tell about and of which those faithful who are still on earth make up a part. Oh blessed little flock, how blessed a part you have. Be strong, don’t be afraid, walk as representatives of the glorious King. The prophet Isaiah speaks about you saying:

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!"—Isa 52:7

While the dead in Christ are already resurrected and glorified together with the Lord, the "feet"members of the body of Christ here on earth reflect a measure of the sublime glory of those beyond the vail.

The faces of these messengers radiate with this heavenly joy that fills their hearts when they fellowship one with another, with the Lord, and when they proclaim the glad tidings to all the nations (mountains) that the reign of Emmanuel has begun. The prophet Malachi also speaks about you:

"They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels."—Mal 3:17

As an encouragement to the last members of the body of Christ who walk the narrow way of today’s wilderness, the apostle Paul under the influence of the Holy Spirit wrote:

"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God; and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together."—Ro 8:16,17

A Crown of Glory

The "loving kindnesses"from the holy promises belong to our Lord, but the elect of the Gospel Age are invited to receive them together with him who was made David’s King.

The Lord assures his people that the faithful will have the indescribable pleasure and blessing to share with the Lord Jesus in all the glories and beauty of God’s creation, for

"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."—Joh 14:21

Then every creature will come and worship and glorify him because he will be the Lord of lords and the King of kings, and every tongue shall wit-

ness that he is the Christ, a witness that will be to the glory of God the Father. As the Prophet Isaiah says:

"Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word in gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear."—Isa 45:22,23

Times of Refreshing

Seeing by faith these wonderful things for the kingdom class and the blessings which will come upon them in the future, who can still restrain themselves from not marching forward with joy and courage saying to Zion even now, "Thy God reigneth!"

In closing I leave you with Ps 20:1-4,

"The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion; remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah. Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfill all thy counsel."

Amen

"And he [John] will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah."—Lu 1:17

BRO. DAVID STEIN SPOKE OF the "spirit and power of Elijah"as it applied to Elijah and the Elijah class. There were many great prophets in Israel, but none was greater than John. We are told in Mt 11:9, "Why then did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you more than a prophet."How could John be more than a prophet?

(1) He was the Prophet of the Most High to prepare the way for Jesus.

(2) He was an extension of the Elijah type, because the "spirit and power of Elijah"would be upon him.

John’s mission was to introduce Jesus. In Daniel we learn that Gabriel introduced the prophecy concerning Messiah the Prince. Gabriel is used whenever it would not be proper for the Logos to introduce a prophecy or announcement pertaining to Christ.

John Was the Son of a Priest

Because John was the son of a priest, he would be entitled to special schooling. He could have become a doctor of the law with all the honors of that priestly office. However, God had a different plan for John. In Lu 1:80 we read: "And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness till the day of his manifestation to Israel."So when the rabbis asked Zechariah about what rabbinical school John was to attend, they must have been surprised to learn John would spend his days in the wilderness.

The Pharisees had no trouble rationalizing the differences between John and Jesus. In Mt 11:18,19 we read: "John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He has a demon; the son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!"So it was that they dismissed the testimony of both John and Jesus. How wrong some can be while thinking they are right!

John’s Ministry Begins with a Millennial Age Prophecy

John begins his ministry preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins according to Isa 40:3-5, a Millennial age prophecy:

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God."—Lu 3:4-6

In this prophecy John becomes an extension of the Elijah type. It is the Church who in effect continues what John literally began. The church preaches restitution, when every valley shall be filled and when the mountains will be brought low. It will be then that all flesh shall see the salvation of God. We see John cast in a larger role, representing the Elijah class of this Gospel age.

"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit that befits repentance, and do not presume to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

Water baptism would not wash away their sins. John’s words exposed their guilt before the nation. It was either repent and bear fruits of true repentance or the axe was going to be laid to the tree and cast into the fire. This is what the Elijah class was to do as stated by Malachi, and hence we see John as an extension of the Elijah type.

Is John Elijah?

John had denounced them earlier, they therefore sent from Jerusalem to ask John, Who art thou? And he confessed... I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elijah? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that Prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophetIsaiah....And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Isaiah, neither that Prophet?"—Joh 1:19-25

Does anyone have trouble understanding John’s answer—"I am not"—regarding whether he was Elijah? So it is settled: John is not Elijah! Right? Wrong!

John is not the true Elijah that was to come before the great and terrible day of the Lord with which the Gospel age ends. John is not actually the Church in the flesh or the fulfillment of the Elijah type in any way. However, John was Elijah in a very special sense. We believe John was a type or picture that applies during the period of Jesus’ second advent. Jesus teaches clearly that we must study John if we would fully understand the Elijah type at the end of the age.

John therefore represents a class at the time of the Lord’s return who continue in the "spirit and power of Elijah"even as Elijah manifested his powers in an earlier time by praying and shutting the windows of heaven from rain or dew, and praying again and bringing rain. Elijah’s power did not disappear as the day of his departure came. It was maintained. John provides a close-up view of the true Church in the last days.

John’s Life Pictures the Church’s Closing Experiences

Elijah was taken by God in a whirlwind to heaven before Jezebel was destroyed. In the Elijah type Jezebel did not order his death. By contrast, John is put to death by the plotting of Herodias, the dancing of Salome, and the reticent actions of Herod who in his drunken state was tricked into ordering John’s death. There is a difference in these two pictures. With John as a type of the "John Class"we see:

* Philip, the first husband of Herodias, pictured the pre-1914 kings. Their daughter, Salome, pictured Protestantism born and reared before 1914.

* Antipas Herod takes his brother Philip’s wife, Herodias. This second marriage pictures the Catholic church in union with the political and financial kings in power after 1914.

* John the Baptist pictures the true Church of God who at the very end stands as a monument of reproof to the unholy union of church and state. While Herod does not like John, he fears he is a prophet of God and is only willing to place him in an aboveground prison where others can see he is not mistreated. Herod realizes it does not make much sense to kill God’s prophets. However, after John denounces their marriage, Herodias is distraught and cannot rest until John is put to death. She sees John as a threat to her regal status. His stinging rebuke of her marriage must have caused the nation to agree with John. The people believed John was a prophet of God and they did not like this union nor the mean spirit of Herodias.

Herodias was not offended while John was preaching repentance to the nation, nor even when he called the scribes and Pharisees a "brood of vipers."It is not the general teaching of the harvest message by the "John Class"that brings on their death. It is when John stands in the way of Herodias’ illicit union that she becomes livid with rage and cannot rest until she secures his death. John’s message must have created a climate that made Herodias have nightmares and sleepless nights about the possibility of being deposed. She pleaded with Herod to have John imprisoned and put to death. We read in Mr 6:19,20:

"Herodias had a grudge against him [John] and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe [in prison]."

So there was much tension in Herod’s household. Although Herod didn’t like John, he feared him. This was the same Herod who would not kill Jesus, but sent him back to Pilate.

Herodias was the one who felt threatened, not Herod. Herod did not fear anything John might do—except if he started riots. However, John was a preacher of repentance, not of political activism. Herod could live with that. Herodias was tormented in mind and heart even while John was in prison. She felt somehow that John was causing her to appear as a witch in Israel instead of the regal lady she hoped to be. Her adulterous marriage was not well received in the nation and she felt the cold and icy reception of the people. Her lust for blood was running high and her evil mind would stop at nothing.

Why Was Elijah Taken to Heaven While John Is Beheaded?

Bro. Stein has reviewed Elijah’s life and death. Why is there a difference between Elijah and John? Although the spirit and power of Elijah is on John, we notice John does not have a mantle with the awesome power of Elijah. Jezebel is not the one to kill Elijah. Herodias is the prime power behind John’s death. We think these two types of the Church’s last days on earth show the position of true Church from two different standpoints—God’s and man’s.

Elijah, after using his mantle, is taken to heaven in a whirlwind by God. It is a majestic and beautiful exit from this world and shows how God moves to take His people home. But in the John type, the evil woman Herodias (the Catholic church) takes his life. God does not intervene. Even Jesus did not visit John before his death. Why? Jesus loved John. Because Jesus and John were both popular with the common people, Jesus feared if he visited John in prison, it might cause a riot. Jesus was constrained by circumstances. We believe this shows how Jesus will not at the end show any special favor to the "John Class."

When the imprisoned John sent his disciples to Jesus, they asked, "Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them."—Mt 11:3-6

The lesson seems to be that the works of the harvest time will be the only assurance given to the John Class. There will be no special manifestations of favor by the Master for the last members departing this world. Bro. Russell said:

"John’s work at the first advent foreshadowed the closing work of the Church at the second advent. These, the feet of Christ in the flesh—the feet of Elijah—announce the kingdom."—Volume 2, p. 253

John seems to die a lonely and forsaken person, just as Jesus died. The last members may feel a certain loneliness, and appear almost forsaken, being left to fall before their enemies. That is why we need to see the experiences of both Elijah and John to get the full picture. From God’s standpoint the last members of the Church are being taken to heaven in a majestic exit by a whirlwind and fiery chariot. But from man’s vantage point, the last members of the Church fall before Herodias, Salome and Herod combined."We believe John’s death is shown in Re 16:13-16.

"And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet."

In Re 16 we see panic among the religious systems, especially the Catholic church. She is compelled to utter frog-like teachings, along with the dragon and the false prophet. A frog is not wise nor powerful, but it puffs itself to look bigger and stronger than it is. So these three allied forces—the civil power, the Catholic Church and Protestantism—will utter their last croaks. Their message purports to avoid Armageddon, but in fact it is overruled by God to bring the nations to Armageddon where the last plague will destroy them. Then Babylon will be divided into three parts—made-up of

Christ vs. Antichrist

The whole story of Revelation tells of a fierce struggle between the true Christ and the antichrist. It shows the rise of the antichrist systems and how the true Church was in constant conflict with these Satanic forces. Thank God, as the story ends, we find the antichrist defeated; the "leopard like beast"of Catholicism and the "false prophet"of Protestantism are cast alive into the lake of fire. Satan is thrown into the "bottomless pit."They are overcome by the greater power of the King of kings and Lord of lords. We must never lose the vision of the Church triumphant. We shall triumph gloriously over the powers of darkness even though we may fall ignominiously before Herodias’ cruel plotting. It will be victory through death. We are receiving a "kingdom that cannot be moved."

Hallelujah!

WE COUNT IT A RICH blessing to be here today. We bring the love and greetings of the Oakland County Bible Students in Michigan with whom we are associated.

Most of you will recognize "A Man Clothed in Linen"as a reference to the ninth chapter of Ezekiel. In chapter eight Ezekiel receives a vision of all the various abominations of idolatry being practiced by the Israelites in Jerusalem and even within the temple precincts. God was thoroughly disgusted with Israel’s idolatry so He declared that in His fury trouble would come upon Israel and He would not hear their cries. This literally occurred in 606 BC when the Babylonian armies conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the temple. Antitypically we believe this vision applies to the period of the 1800s and represents Christendom. Four prophetic dates reached their fulfillment in that period:

* The 1290 years of Da 12:11 ended in 1829 with William Miller and a rekindled interest in the Lord’s second advent.

* The 2300 years of Da 8:14 ended in 1846 with the formation of the Evangelical Alliance and the cleansed sanctuary class which was found outside of it.

* The 1335 years of Da 12:12 ended in 1874 with the blessings associated with the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

* The 1845 years of Israel’s disfavor ended in 1878 with the "Berlin Congress of Nations,"resulting in the Jewish people

being granted much greater privileges in Israel than they had had for centuries. (See Volume 2, p. 218, and Volume 3, p. 260.) These dates are further corroborated by the time parallels of the Jewish and Gospel ages.

Bibles poured out in a flood in the 1800s. The Lord returned and knowledge increased. There had been no greater time since the first advent for spiritual growth. Yet how hardly would the Son of Man find faith in the earth when he returned. We can see by the small numbers gathered here, and by the spiritual loss in Christendom, that something has robbed the average Christian of his true faith in the Word of God. How did this happen?

That brings us to the ninth chapter of Ezekiel. That chapter tells us what was to transpire before the city received the Lord’s fury. Let us read Eze 9:1-7:

"He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side. And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: slayutterly oldand young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house. And he said unto them, defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city."

A great separating work was here described. A mark was placed on the foreheads of certain ones; others were slain or destroyed. Both works took place simultaneously.

Verse 2 says six men came from the way of the higher gate, "they that have charge over the city."The "charge over the city"denotes authority. Six had destroying weapons and one was clothed in linen. These seven men are those who had authority over Christendom in the sense that they came from the way of the higher gate, from the way of higher learning. They were teachers in Christendom. The Hebrew says they faced toward the north. Jehovah is pictured as residing in the north. They looked northward as they came into the court area and gathered around the brazen altar. We think this means that Jehovah, at the appointed time, allowed seven to be gathered together who would have authority over Christendom as teachers and who would come forth to spread their teachings. These teachings would either slay the one class, or would mark or spare the other.

They were gathered around the brazen altar in the court. That altar pictures the ransom sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. We suggest that the teachings of these seven surround, or concern the ransom sacrifice.

Verse 3 says that "the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house."This suggests the Shekinah glory which dwelt between the cherubim and pictures the presence of the Lord leaving the inner sanctuary and coming to the threshold, to the door facing the court where the seven were circled about the altar. This glory might well represent the return of the Lord Jesus from the heavenly courts where he had been retained during the Gospel Age. From his return to earth’s atmosphere he began the harvest work. The harvest was indeed a time of separating. There is the gathering of the wheat and there is the gathering, bundling, and burning of the tares. Our Lord supervises that work. Re 14:14,15 picture him as a reaper returning with a crown upon his head and the sickle of truth in his hand.

"And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath."

We think Eze 9:3 refers to his specific selection. The effect of present truth from his pen has "set a mark,"has separated a specific set of people from the masses of Christendom.

We think that the word "men"is used to show a mature Christian. It does not mean males as such for the body of Christ is made up of both males and females. The word shows that the strong, the mature element of Christianity would accept the meat in due season and be favorably marked and spared from the destroying weapons that follow. When the gross errors of the dark ages were shown to them, they would cry and sigh over those abominable things. They would rejoice upon hearing the truth of the word of God, that our God is a God of love, justice, and wisdom.

Cleansing the Sanctuary

Consider the year 1846 when the cleansing of the sanctuary occurred. That was when the image of the beast of Re 13:14 came into existence with the formation of the Evangelical Alliance. Some 400 people representing different denominations gathered together in London and accepted a platform of ten doctrinal points upon which they agreed. Those who did not concur with those ten doctrinal points were to be considered outside orthodox Christianity. Three of the ten doctrines were the immortality of the soul, the Trinity, and the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. We know that those who disagreed with that doctrinal platform of error were really the ones whom the Lord considered a part of the cleansed sanctuary class. They had a favorable "mark"in their foreheads. They appreciated God’s beautiful plan and that Jesus Christ, as a ransom sacrifice, was the very foundation of that plan. They "sighed and cried"for the abominations.

Bro. Russell was born in 1852 and was taught to believe all the usual "dark age"doctrines of the nominal churches. As a teenager he had his faith in the Bible shaken by an infidel friend who raise good questions that stumbled him. He saw that those erroneous creeds could not be harmonized with the Bible. When he was 20 the Lord led him to a humble gathering of Adventists, described by him as "in a dusty, dingy, basement hall."These Adventists were able to harmonize, to a certain extent, the prophecies of the Old Testament with the testimony of Jesus and the apostles in the New Testament and this rekindled his faith in the Bible. So Bro. Russell set aside the creeds and studied the Bible, with a handful of other students, and with his mind unshackled. It was at this time that he saw the harmony of the Bible as never before. By 1872 he understood the ransom and restitution blessings for all as well as the concept of the two salvations—heavenly and earthly. He was immersed in 1874. From 1878 through 1881 Bro. Russell found himself caught up in a fierce maelstrom of doctrinal controversy regarding the ransom. This is the picture we have in Eze 9:2 of the brazen altar around which seven men were gathered. Here was a seething caldron of controversy involving some of the very ones with whom he had studied and cooperated. In 1879 Bro. Russell started

Zion’s Watch Tower as a defense for the ransom and announcement of the Lord’s presence. He wrote Tabernacle Shadows in 1881 to defend the understanding of Jesus Christ as a ransom sacrifice. He defined Jesus’ sin offering experiences and also how the church could share in those experiences by following in the Master’s footsteps. These two great publications defended the ransom doctrine.

It was the due time for these things to be understood. Bro. Russell was the one who was called forth. If it hadn’t been him, it would have been another. But it was him, and we’re thankful it was. He placed a "mark"through these teachings. He said that if it didn’t square with the ransom, it was error. How few in Christendom applied this simple, wonderful formula.

In the 1958 book entitled Where Else But Pittsburgh, a Mr. Swetnam records that Bro. Russell traveled over a million miles, delivered more than 30,000 sermons, and wrote over 50,000 book pages. At one time his newspaper sermons appeared twice weekly in 1200 newspapers and reached over 15 million readers. One of his opponents said that Bro. Russell’s sermons had more readers than all the priests and preachers combined. What a wonderful work by the man with the writer’s inkhorn.

We’d like to emphasize that it was the teachings, the message, that did this work, that set the mark. That is why we can still be marked even though the man himself is no longer with us. The instrument that did the marking was that message.

The Six Destroyers

After instructions were given to the linen-clothed man with the writer’s inkhorn, the Lord turned to the other six and said, "Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: slay utterly all [who do not have that mark]."The young, the old, and the children picture those who are weaker. It depicts those in Christendom, such as the tares and the underdeveloped wheat class, who are weak in faith. They were not like those who cried and sighed for the abominations. These, when they heard the harvest message, the truth, remained weak. They could not rouse themselves out of their stupor; they were not spiritually minded at all. So they were slain.

What was destroyed? We don’t consider it as literal death. Rather it shows the destruction of faith in the ransom of Christ. It was faith that was destroyed by the work of the six.

Since we interpret one as being a man and the teachings he used to set a mark, the other six also represent the teachings of men. But these teachings had a slaying effect. Although undoubtedly directed by Satan, these are man’s teachings. Here is one suggestion about who might be represented by these six.

1. Charles Darwin

wrote the Origin of the Species and proposed the evolution theory. The evolution theory teaches that we can determine the origins of life. It counterdicts the scriptural teachings of creation and the entire Word of God.

2. Robert Ingersoll

came to be known as the great agnostic. He was a popular orator who attempted to expose "problems"with the Bible, in the light of the dark-age creeds. He personally produced much skepticism in the Word of God.

3. Sigmund Freud

popularized a therapeutic practice called "Psychoanalysis."His 1913 book entitled The Future of an Illusion said "religion is a universal, obsessional neurosis of mankind. God, in short, is a creation of man."Because he believed science can take the place of religion and faith, he taught that mankind does not need a Redeemer.

4. Karl Marx

was an atheist who was the chief theorist of socialism and communism. His work Das Kapital was published in a series of volumes beginning in 1867 and laid the foundation for radical socialism. He taught that religion must be annihilated in theory and in practice because the ultimate salvation for man would be the communist revolution!

Through these four "higher critics,"Satan was furiously attacking the Word of God, and he used perverted science and false education to do it. The masses of Christendom, in their spiritual lethargy, didn’t understand that they were being overwhelmed and their faith destroyed.

5. Mary Baker Eddy

founded Christian Science. In 1875 she published Science and Health, with a Key to the Scriptures. She taught that sin, death, pain and sickness were simply imagined. "All is

life; there is no death."This was the claim of the serpent in the Garden of Eden suggesting the false idea of the immortality of man. Bro. Russell has well said, "Christian Scientists are neither Christians nor Scientists."

6. Madam Blavatsky

was a Russian occultist who in 1875 started the Theosophical Society. She taught that all of us are immortal and we don’t really die. The Theosophical Society is the forerunner of the New Age Movement that is so popular today. Their spirit mediums are called "channelers"because they channel the communication from the fallen angels to their fellow man.

The handout we have prepared is a rare example of a secular source who acknowledges Bro. Russell’s role as a defender of the word of God. There are further references from Bro. Russell’s writings on this sheet for your consideration.*

The first four of these six represent "Higher Criticism"in the form of socalled "education and science."The last two represent Spiritism which attracts by a claimed secret inner power. These attracted the weak Christians and destroyed their faith by these teachings. It was the Lord who permitted these tests just as he allowed Satan to use the serpent in the Garden of Eden to manifest disobedience in Adam and Eve. This is the thought in 2Th 2:8-12 (quoted with some corrections from the original Greek):

"And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his presence: whose presence is accompanied by the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be preserved. And for this cause God shall send

* This is reproduced on the next page.

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Source: YEAR: Mid- Century Edition: 1900- 1950, p. 33, Baldwin W. Ward, editor. Published in Los Angeles by Year, Inc., 1950. (This represents an outsider’s view of Brother Russell’s ministry.)

For selected readings from the pen of Brother Russell see:

Evolution, Higher Criticism, Theosophy, Christian Science, Spiritism and other theories denying the Ransom (Volume 4, p. 66)

Most violent opposers of Truth—Evolution, Theosophy, Spiritism, Christian Science, Romanists, Protestants, Universalists (Volume 6, p. 629)

"Now in the Harvest, the Adversary is furiously attacking the Truth and turning everything scientific and educational into a weapon of destruction."(Volume 6, p. 658)

Also see Volume 4, p. 388; Volume 3, p. 167; Volume 6, p. 640; Reprint 2450, 5800, and 4613.

A HALF CENTURY OF CRUSADE ended when Mary Baker Eddy died in 1910. Her doctrine, that health is supplied by applying the preachings and healings of Christ, had spread throughout the world. The mother church was First Church of Christ, Scientist, of Boston.

FUNDAMENTALIST, SCIENTIST, ATHEIST engaged in a bitter feud. Bestselling author and evangelist, (c)Pastorª Charles Russell (left) preached against the evolution theory of Charles Darwin (center) and atheism of Robert Ingersoll (right).

SOCIAL CHRISTIANITY tempered the times. Dan Beard of the Boy Scouts, YMCA’s John Mott, and William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, brought Christian organizations world attention. Gen. Booth died in 1912.

MODERNISM TESTS RELIGION

A crisis in religion swept over Christian countries at the beginning of the century. Blown about by the night winds of science, speculations of liberal scholars, and the conscience of many clergymen, the crisis of (c)Modernismª touched every church and left its mark.

Modernists questioned the Scriptures and renounced ancient creeds. For them, Darwinian science and modern knowledge disproved the Bible. From Rome came papal decrees charging heresy, hushing this storm within the Catholic church. Fundamentalists took shelter in new formed churches: The Pillar of Fire, Nazarene, Pentecostal, the Assemblies of God, the Firebaptized Holiness Church, Seventhday Adventists. Liberals turned Unitarian and Humanist, and radicals became agnostics.

But the controversy had inspired many evangelists, and their burning zeal to convert sinners helped swell U. S. church membership from the 36,000,000 of 1900 to 52,000,000 in 1914. Immigration had increased Catholic ranks 62% but Protestants still outnumbered them 3 to 1.

The new movements weakened the importance of sectarian creeds and the Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, and others unified. Thirtythree churches formed the Federal Council of Churches of Christ (1908).

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them strong delusions, that they might and should believe a lie: that they all might be judged unworthy who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

Sifting and Testing by God

The Lord sifts and tests his professed children at the time of harvest, at the time when the Lord returns, at his parousia, presence. That presence would reveal the wicked Satan, the Papacy, and all his false systems, to those who have an ear to hear. But of course Satan would be doubly active with lying signs and wonders which would accompany the Lord’s presence. God allows Satan to offset the proper influence of the truth by distorting it with false teachings. In fact, this text says God sends these. He allows Satan to perform these lying wonders and miracles to sift and test those who do not have the proper faith in the Word of God and who will not receive the harvest message. The ones who are sifted do not love righteousness nor the truth. This is why the Lord said to the six, "Go out and smite."They used false teachings. The Lord wants to sift those who were not faithful, those who did not have the mark of a mature Christian in their forehead. There was a separation between those who had faith in the ransom and those whose faith could be shaken by the false teachings of these six.

After talking about the slaying of the young and the old, the women and the children, the end of verse six says, "begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house."These are those who are weak in faith—past their prime of life. They were supposed to be the teachers of the Word of God, yet remarkably it was the clergy class who were the first ones to advocate these various errors. In the late 1800s as the people were being enlightened from the doctrines of the dark ages, the clergy tried to adopt new teachings to keep their flock in their various denominational "sheep folds."Thus their true faith in the ransom was slain, destroyed.

Verse seven says, "Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain."The court shows those who should be believers in the ransom as represented by the brazen altar. Instead it is by this altar that a great slaughter takes place. Not only were the clergy the first to be slain, but those who professed to be Christians were also slain and it defiled Christendom. This continues to our day. The blind lead the blind, and both fall and are falling into the ditch. Verses 8-11 of Exekiel 9 read:

"And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord God! wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem? Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The Lord hath forsaken the earth, and the Lord seeth not. And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head. And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me."

The Time of Harvest

This is not a time for reformation. It is the time of harvest. The wheat are to be gathered, the separation takes place, and the systems are destroyed. Christendom will be utterly destroyed. The Lord will have no pity; He will not spare it. The "house of Israel"in this prophecy represents Catholicism. Judah represents federated Protestantism. These are the two religious parts mentioned in Re 16:13 as the beast and the false prophet which are aligned with state government, and which will be destroyed.

The land is full of blood, the blood guilt of Christendom. It is caused by the teaching of God-dishonoring doctrines such as evolution, spiritism, and in some instances even reincarnation. The clergy act as though they don’t believe the Lord cares. They lack belief in the reality that the Lord is present and will soon pour out his judgments. In verse 11 the man clothed with linen says, "I have done as thou hast commanded me,"a phrase which shows that the message will assist in sealing the 144,000. Then follows Eze 10:2,

"He spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in my sight.""And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city."—Eze 9:7

Scattering Coals of Fire

We would liken the scattering of these coals of fire over the city as being the same as the seven last plagues that come upon Babylon, Christendom, to destroy her, after the separating work of wheat and tares has taken place. In Volume 3,

Thy Kingdom Come, page 135, in the "Work of Harvest"chapter, two of the summaries read, "The Casting off, Gradual Fall and Final Destruction of Babylon—The Sealing of the Servants of God, before the Plagues Come Upon Babylon."On page 166 Bro. Russell writes: "Thus the classes are to be marked and separated before the plagues come upon rejected, cast off Babylon."These coals of fire bring to mind the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the fiery judgments of the Lord of those perverse cities. It also brings to mind Re 18:8 where it says that the harlot, the city (mystic Babylon, Christendom) shall be utterly burned with fire. This is the effect that the pouring out of the seven last plagues will have upon Christendom. But it doesn’t come until after the separation has taken place.

We think there is something about the man in linen who gets these coals of fire that is worthy of note. The seven last plagues are hard, revealing truths that are contained in the harvest message that will be poured out upon Babylon in such a way, and at just the right time, when the social, economic, and religious environment is ripe so that people will recognize how iniquitous these systems have been, so that the discontented masses of people will rise up and pull these systems down. Re 18:20,21:

"Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her. And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all."

We think that’s the relationship the man clothed with linen has with these coals of fire which shall eventually destroy the city.

It is important to appreciate the agents the Lord uses. He used human prophets to guide and direct Israel. He used human apostles to establish the church. He used human agents as the seven messengers. In Re 1 those messengers were in his right hand. If the Lord holds these seven in his right hand, he has confidence in them. They are his messengers, they carry his message.

"Therefore, be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing."—Mt 24:44-46

The meat in due season is the truth needed to protect and strengthen the faith of the saints during the Lord’s parousia from the errors of infidelity, evolution, higher criticism, false doctrines, spiritism, occultism, materialism, and all lying wonders and deceptions. These truths are supplied to us by our returned Lord through his appointed servant, or human agent, the wise and faithful servant, Pastor Charles Taze Russell. Let us continue to appreciate how and where we can "sup"with our Lord in the most satisfying and nutritious way—in the Word of God, using the provided keys, the writings from the man clothed in linen with the writer’s inkhorn by his side.

May the Lord overrule anything said amiss.

I AM VERY HAPPY TO HAVE THIS wonderful privilege of meeting brethren from many countries and learning wonderful lessons from our heavenly Father’s plan. I appreciate the concern of the brethren throughout the world for the brethren in Romania, by organizing this convention in our vicinity so we can attend it in as large a number as possible. I bring the greetings of the brethren in Romania and especially of those in Ruginoasa, the ecclesia to which I belong, and also of the area called the Valley of Almas.

The Meaning of Justice

According to dictionaries, justice is a moral and judicial principle which requires respect for everyone’s rights, to not depart from the truth and from reason; to be just, true, reasonable.

Man was created perfect, in the image and likeness of his Creator. When subjected to a test of obedience, he fell. Divine justice could not rightfully forgive a sinner, so it sentenced him to death. God could not have a relationship with a sinner either directly or indirectly, except through a mediator, and only after justice was satisfied. Therefore, through Jesus’ sacrifice, God provided for the salvation of sinners from the penalty of death, reconciled them with Himself, and gave the gift of everlasting life.

This is wonderfully represented in the Most Holy by the two cherubim on the Mercy Seat, which represent power and love. They look downward, to justice, until it is satisfied; then they fly to restore and bless mankind.

God justly requires His creatures to practice righteousness. But man’s great fall from the image of his Creator, and the ruin caused by sin in its many forms, measurably hinders man from practicing righteousness. Even though in some people’s character righteous principles have remained to a significant degree, yet unfavorable present circumstances under the reign of the prince of darkness do not permit them to properly manifest them.

In spite of unfavorable circumstances, there were people throughout the ages that proved they loved righteousness by their way of living. And God loved and approved of them. To one of these God manifested His friendship, sharing with him His thoughts, saying:

"Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him."—Ge 18:17-19

"[Moses] when seeing one of them [i.e., a Jew] suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed."—Ac 7:24

Likewise Moses gave justice to the daughters of Jethro. When "the shepherds came and drove them away... Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock."Afterward their father asked,

"How is it that you come so soon today? And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock."—Ex 2:17-19

It is written of David,

"And David reigned over all Israel, and David executed judgment and justice unto all his people."—2Sa 8:15

The Meaning of Righteous

The word "righteous"means without deviation, without secrets. Daniel, a man greatly beloved of God, was without deviation and without secrets.

"Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God."—Da 6:4,5

God through Moses gave the Law to the people of Israel, a Law which was right and perfect. But even though the people committed themselves to keeping it, they could not. This proved the inability of imperfect man to live up to the divine standard. They were reproved many times through the prophets who told them they were trespassing justice.

"None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth; they trust in vanity, and speak lies.... The way of peace they know not, and there is no judgment in their goings."—Isa 59:4,8

God admonished them to lead a righteous life by saying:

"Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassions every man to his brother.... But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder and stopped their ears that they should not hear."—Zec 7:9,11

God would not listen when they called, but He...

"scattered them with a whirlwind among allthe nationswhomthey knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through, nor returned; for they laid the pleasant land desolate."—Zec 7:14

Although some of the noble people of the past were commended for striving to live righteously, nevertheless perfect righteousness was manifested only in our Lord Jesus. The apostle Peter says,

"Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God."—1Pe 3:18

"stood and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold."—Lu 19:8