Here's a table showing the historical nature of the book of Revelation that I've been putting together for my own personal study. It is still currently under construction. This is not the only such chart in existence and it is far from perfect. There is much not covered under these topics from the book of Revelation. I am not saying that there are not dual or multiple fulfillments. I am not saying that this is the exact fulfillment for all the brethren for all time. I'm studying to find the answers that are biblical, historical and satisfying to sanctified reason. It's a study, not a conclusion. I'm sharing it so others might hopefully derive some benefit from it and perhaps share back with improvements so feel free to offer suggestions.
While I am not saying each chronological period is exact, I'm also not saying that they are not - possibly - exact chronological matches when it comes to the seven stages, seals, trumpets and parables of our Lord. I'll be adding more as we go along including more web links. updated as a time allows and as Revelation unfolds... D.v...
|
THE SEVEN SEALS of
REVELATION
 Revelation 5 1 And I saw, upon the
right hand of him that was sitting upon the throne, a
scroll; written within, and on the back, sealed up
with seven seals.
2 And I saw a mighty messenger, proclaiming with a loud voice-Who is worthy to open the scroll, and to unloose the seals thereof? 3 And, no one, was able, in heaven, or on earth, or under the earth, to open the scroll, or, to look thereon. 4 And, I, began to weep much, because, no one, worthy, was found, to open the scroll, or, to look thereon. 5 And, one of the elders, saith unto me-Do not weep! Lo! the lion that is of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, hath overcome, to open the scroll and the seven seals thereof. “Then came the opening of the seals: the disclosing of one after another of the various features connected with the divine purpose. Each seal as it was loosed permitted the scroll as a whole to open a little wider, and a little wider, thus permitting “the mystery of God” to be a little more clearly discerned. And so God’s people down through this “secret of the Lord;” — the divine plan. But not until the last seal was broken, did the scroll fly wide open, permitting the “mystery of God” to be fully disclosed; as it is written: “In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” — Rev. 5:1; 10:7. R2209:1 Verse 1 the "scroll" is God's "Divine Plan of the Ages" sealed within the Bible. In Rev. 5:1 God’s Word is represented by a book (scroll), written on the inside and outside and sealed with seven seals. The things written on the outside represent the easy and simple things of the Bible, like histories, most of its precepts and exhortations and some of its doctrine, while those written on the inside sealed by seven seals represent the secret features of the Bible, none of which can be understood until in due time Jesus opens the secreting seals and expounds the thing therein to the elect people of God (Rev. 5:9). The scroll is a forceful representation of the Divine Plan originally existing only in the mind of God, and which could not be made known to men until some one was found worthy to open the seals and display it to view. But “no one in heaven nor in earth was able to open the scroll, neither to look thereon,” until one came whom the Revelator describes as “The lion [strong one] of the Tribe of Judah, the root of David,” of whom the testimony is given - “Thou art worthy to take the scroll and to open the seals thereof, for thou wast slain and has redeemed to God by the blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made them unto our God a kingdom and priesthood; and they shall reign on the earth.” (Rev.5:1-5,9,10) "The Divine Scroll" Epiphany Bible Students |
THE SEVEN STAGES
of the CHURCH Ephesus 29 AD to 69 AD Smyrna 69 AD to 313 AD Pergamos 313 AD to 799 AD Thyatira 799 AD to 1309 AD Sardis 1309 AD to 1479 AD Philadelphia 1479 AD to 1874 AD Laodicea 1874 AD to ... Revelation 1:4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from him who is and who was and who is to come; and from the seven Spirits that are before his throne; 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. 20 the mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks are seven churches. JESUS CHRIST — THE FIRST AND THE LAST REVELATION 1:1-8, 17-20 THE MESSAGE OF THE RISEN CHRIST — THE APOSTLE JOHN REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FEET-MEMBERS OF THE BODY OF CHRIST — IN A TRANCE HE SAW A SERIES OF VISIONS OF THE LEADING EVENTS OF THE GOSPEL AGE, THE SEVEN STAGES OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE GOSPEL CHURCH AND THE SETTING UP OF THE MESSIANIC KINGDOM — A SYMBOLICAL PICTURE OF OUR GLORIFIED LORD — THE WORD LIKENED TO A TWO-EDGED SWORD. “It will be noticed that the messages to the various Churches are addressed to these stars, messengers, angels, as though our Lord would have us understand that the appropriate message for each appropriate epoch in the Church's experience would be sent by the Lord through a particular star, or messenger, whom He would especially commission as His representative. Our Lord Himself is represented by the great light of the sun; and His special messengers in the Church throughout the entire period of the Gospel Age are consistently enough represented as stars. November 15, 1916 Tower R5991-5992 The Bible is it's own interpreter and Jesus gives us the answer key showing us the symbolic nature of this book. Jesus is clearly identified as the first one who died and lived again. His message is to the seven churches of John's day and given through the "star members" of each of the 7 stages or time periods of our 2000 years of church history. rcb |
THE SEVEN TRUMPETS
Rev. 8:2 And I saw the seven messengers which, before God, do stand; and there were given unto them seven trumpets... 6 And, the seven messengers who had the seven trumpets, prepared themselves, that they might sound." "...we, in common with almost all expositors, recognize that the seven trumpets of Revelation are symbolical and not literal – indeed that this entire book is a book of symbols, and that so far it has been symbolically fulfilled. Christian people in general understand that five of these trumpets have already "sounded" and are in the past; – we would say six. It is admitted that those that have already "sounded" have not been literal blasts of a bugle on the air, but divine decrees and their fulfilments; and we esteem that it is reasonable to expect that the seventh trumpet will be similar in this respect to the preceding six." Z1902APR.asp#Z117:3 "In Num. 10:8 it is stated that “the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow with the trumpets”; and it is worthy of note that in each of the seven epochs of the Gospel‑Age Church it was the priests ‑ the leaders in the Church, the Star Members – who began to blow the trumpets. In the first epoch (the church of Ephesus) it was the Lord and the Apostles, and they were quickly joined by the lesser lights in the Church as they embarked on their march toward the Heavenly Canaan. And this same condition prevailed with each Star Member during the Age. When Luther began to trumpet “Justification by faith” (early in the Philadelphia ‑ sixth ‑ epoch), he was soon joined by many capable brethren." epiphany bible students /the-gospel-age-trumpets "Jesus is the lion of Judah, also the lamb who does the unsealing. The Bible is being unsealed. Jesus gradually does this through 7 stages of church history using his most loyal followers, many who are the blowers of the seven trumpets and not limited to seven, but with seven main characters and an "eighth principal man", the key figure of which is also the seventh angel who pours out the vials or bowls that unleash the plagues upon the erroneous Babylon system, and thereby begin to reverse the curse. This way over time, Jesus has successfully routed the enemy who is Satan." rcb THE TRUMPETS Each of these appears to coincide in its period with the corresponding “seal” period and church epoch of the preceding chapters. The last three of these periods introduced by the sounding — or beginning to sound — of the fifth, sixth, and seventh trumpets are associated with, or bring, the three “woes” (Rev. 8:13). Rev. 9:12; 11:14 indicate that they do not overlap. "Notes on the Book of Revelation" Ludlow Loomis |
THE SEVEN BOWLS of
WRATH
Rev. 16:1 And I heard a voice great out of the temple, saying to the seven messengers: Go you forth and do you pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of the God into the earth. For a good overall summary of the plagues we recommend R497 "The Seven Last Plagues" We
use Wilson's Emphatic Diaglott translation in this
column. We
believe "Studies in the Scriptures" by Charles Taze
Russell constituted the vials of Revelation.
Note on Time: These "bowls" or "vials" are not poured out until the 7th seal chronologically speaking. However each plague once delivered during that later time starting in 1874 would begin it's work of destruction of the false system, to reverse the effects of each of the original errors introduced during each successive stage of Church history. We place the "bowls" in a parallel column here, even though they were not poured out chronologically at the same time as the seals, stages, trumpets and parables of our Lord were occurring. Only in their effects against the original adverse conditions described by our Lord for each separate Church period are we making the comparison, again however not a chronological comparison which the other columns do show. rcb The six volumes of the Studies in the Scriptures were published consecutively: The Divine Plan of the Ages, 1886; The Time is at Hand, 1889; Thy Kingdom Come, 1891; The Battle of Armageddon, 1897; The Atonement Between God and Man, 1899; and The New Creation, 1900. These volumes are six of the seven vials of Revelation 16. The seventh volume – The Finished Mystery – was published after Pastor Russell’s death. This Seventh Volume contains many quotations from Pastor Russell, but it also includes many other writings, mostly by two persons, which contain much error. While it is the Seventh Volume that is the seventh vial of Revelation 16, it is in vile condition. The Society excommunicated brethren who refused to accept the errors in that book, but later commanded their devotees not to read it. The Society has written another book also named The Finished Mystery. It may be this book is forbidden to be read by their devotees now. No. 437 "A Prophet Unto The Nations" Epiphany Bible Students |
THE SEVEN PARABLES
OF OUR LORD
Matt 13:1 "On that day, Jesus, going out of the house, was sitting near the sea: 2 and there were gathered unto him, large multitudes, so that, he, into a boat, entered, and was sitting, and, all the multitude, on the beach was standing. 3 And he spake unto them many things, in parables, saying: Lo! the sower went forth to sow..." In parables – Really word-pictures of the Kingdom. No one of these parables represents the complete view of the subject, but merely one phase of it. R2633:3 Giving prophetically the Church's experiences from various standpoints – from the time the work of selection began until the time when that work will be completed. R2276:3 Parables which illustrate truths can only be seen as illustrations as the truths they illustrate become manifest. R1742:4 These parables, seven in all, refer not to the non-professing world, but to two classes in the Church. R580:3, 263:6 Each of our Lord's parables are predictions that match the seven seals and stages of the Church. See "The Parables of Our Lord" P.L. Read 1918 rcb In the Paul Mezera book "The Divine Plan and It's Chronology" which confirms Pastor Russell's chronology, there are charts and timelines made of circles that ultimately make up the "eyes" and "wings" depicted in divine symbolism. We point to this work as further corroboration that we are looking at several distinct periods of Bible chronology. See Rev. 4:8 rcb |
|
First Seal
White Horse
Rev. 6:1 And I
saw, when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and
I heard one of the four living creatures saying, as
with a voice of thunder-Go! [Rotherham] 2 And I saw, and lo a horse white, and the one sitting on him having a bow; and was given to him a crown, and he came out conquering, and that he might conquer. white horse= pure doctrine "the faith once delivered to the saints" Jude 1:3 "given to him"
Horse
= doctrine
The
White Horse scene is the time period of Jesus and
the Apostles during the first advent. These are the
rider, who "GO" on their mission - the gradual
unsealing of the Bible... White = pure The 24 elders represent the Bible while the voices from the throne represent differing aspects of God's divine character attributes of Justice, Love, Wisdom and Power. Notes: Rotherham says "GO" not "COME" as though the voice is NOT telling John to "look" or "come and see" but rather the voice, which always represents an aspect of God's character, is the one ordering the horse and/ or it's rider to "GO"... The message did it's "conquering" by christianity becoming a popular faith in the first century, then His long career of conquering would continue thru the acts of his disciples and He will "conquer" still more at His promised second advent during the seventh or Laodicean period. Note: While not wanting to create a document of confusion with too many differing viewpoints, some comments deserve mentioning where the Truth is not absolutely clear, this one from Bro. Loomis suggesting the rider is the Nicolatianes deserves mentioning. As to whether or not it effects any ultimate conclusions remains to be seen. rcb "The conqueror on the first horse (Rev. 6:1, 2), to whom a crown was given before he conquered, could not represent the overcomers such as those in Rev. 2:10, nor their Lord, whose kingdom was not of this world. (John 18:36) He seems rather to be a counterfeit of the riders in Psalm 45:3-5, Rev. 19:11, who do represent our Lord. We have thus a picture rather of the Nicolaitans — conquerors of the people. (Rev. 2:6, compare 1 Cor. 4:8; 1 Peter 5:3; Acts 20:29, 30) Ludlow Loomis "Notes on The Book of Revelation" |
1st Stage
Ephesus
29 AD to 69 AD First Messenger "Stars"
Rev. 2: 1 Unto the messenger
of the assembly, in Ephesus, write:-These things,
saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right
hand, he that walketh in the midst of the seven lamps
of gold:
2 I know thy works, and thy toil, and endurance, and that thou canst not bear bad men, and thou hast tried them who were affirming themselves to be apostles, and they were not, and hast found them false; 3 And thou hast, endurance, and hast borne for the sake of my name, and hast not grown weary. 4 Nevertheless, I have against thee, that, thy first love, thou hast left. 5 Remember, therefore, whence thou hast fallen, and repent, and do, thy first works; otherwise, I come unto thee, and will remove thy lamp out of its place, except thou repent. 6 But, this, thou hast, that thou hatest the works of the Nicolaitanes, which, I also, hate. 7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. Unto him that overcometh -I will give, unto him, to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. THE CONGREGATION IN EPHESUS – (Ephesus meaning "first, desirable" – a fitting name for this epoch), this first era being from 29 to 69 AD, with St. Paul as the Principal Man, the "angel" or "star" including all twelve of the Apostles as explained above. It should be noted, too, that although this epoch embraced forty years, the twelve stars officiated in the "church which is His body" for only 36½ years. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" As is often said, the Christian church is like a boat at sea, fine until the "Sea" class gets in the boat. This is the time when false Christian leaders came in. Paul said "the mystery of iniquity doth already work." 2 Thess 2:7 "Nicolatians" [a root word is "Nike"] = power graspers, those who wish to become leaders. They illicitly "lord it over" the Lord's true people. rcb |
1st Trumpet
Rev. 8: 7 And, the first,
sounded; and there came to be hail and fire mingled
with blood, and it was cast unto the earth; and, the
third of the earth, was burned up, and, the third of
the trees, was burned up, and, all green herbage, was
burned up.
"...the first three trumpets are called the woe trumpets." R3992:4 The events under the first six trumpets refer to humanity's doings, while the seventh refers specially to the Lord's work, and covers the "Day of the Lord." (1 Thes. 5:2) B148 "The first sounded" The trumpet is the first Gospel message given by Jesus and the Apostles to the world. John 3:16 "Hail"=Great Truths destructive to the social order. "Fire"=Destruction, however in this case it could mean the holy spirit, in which case "mingled with blood" is symbolic for the message of the Ransom sacrifice of our Lord and the consecration of His followers even unto death, the "blood" as a symbol for life offered through the Ransom of Christ Jesus given sacrificially as our Passover lamb, also a symbol of sacrificial death by consecration or actual sacrifice through martyrdom. The message "cast unto the earth" = the effect it had on society. The phrase "mingled with blood" may also mean loss of national vitality as the Roman government was threatened by the new Christianity then rising. see Louisville New Albany Revelation Notes rcb The result of this first trumpet message of Jesus and the Apostles was to divide the known world. Jesus poured scriptures on the heads of the Pharisees in a symbolic "hail" and the "fire" destroyed national Jewish polity. This was "mingled with blood" when many Jews lost their lives under Roman rule in AD 70. "third of the earth" = one of the three sections of society: Christian, Roman and Jewish society which is the third of the earth that "burned up" at the end of Jewish national polity. "Trees" are deeply rooted people of faith - the consecrated. It may be a reference to the Jews. "All green herbage" may refer to the new converts who abandoned their faith, a class inferred or indicated in the parable of those who grew on rocky ground and were choked by thorns. In our Parables column to the right you can observe how closely our trumpet picture matches the first parable with damage to the "trees" and "green herbage" after what had been planted by Jesus as the Sower. rcb.] |
1st Bowl of Wrath
Rev. 16:1
And I heard a voice great out of the temple, saying to
the seven messengers: Go you forth and do you pour out
the seven bowls of the wrath of the God into the
earth.
2 And went forth the first, and poured out the bowl of himself on the land; and was an ulcer bad and evil on the men those having the mark of the wild-beast, and those doing reverence of the image of him. [diaglott] The first bowl is the first volume of "Studies in the Scriptures" by Charles Taze Russell. rcb “And the first went, and poured out his bowl on the earth (organized Society), and there came an evil and malignant ulcer on those men having the mark of the beast, and on those worshiping his image.” Volume One was published in 1886, and truly it proved to be a “malignant ulcer” to antitypical Saul and his henchmen; it was a “hot penny”: they could not hold it, and they were afraid to drop it. The stewardship doctrine of Restitution, with which Volume One is replete, made material for a “plan of the ages,” the likes of which had not been known since the days of the Apostles; and it placed Restitution and eternal torment at opposite ends of the measure. It did indeed “spoil the vines” for many a hell‑fire evangelist! Also, Chapter 14 – The Kingdom of God – made a shambles of the teaching that we now have Christendom – Christ’s Kingdom; and it showed the present order to be a far, far cry from “Thy will be done on earth.” Our Lord’s Return, The Permission of Evil, The Day of Judgment, etc., etc., all combined to make this “bowl” a “malignant ulcer” – “a savor of death unto death” to many members of antitypical Saul. This is pointedly typified in Ex. 4:9: “The water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.” “The water” in this text is the Truth as contained in the Bible – so excellently presented in Volume One – The Divine Plan of the Ages. The “dry land” typified the withered and sere condition of society as it existed at the time of the book’s appearance. And the “blood” represented the faulty reasoning of Christendom’s religious leaders, who branded the book as error – bloody, repulsive, abhorrent, death‑dealing – whereas, it actually contained the water of life uplifting, life‑giving, to all who were “of the Truth.” It should be noted that at that time many preachers were describing the animal sacrifices of the Law as bloody and barbaric – because they could not see the grand antitype of the “better sacrifices” (Heb. 9:23) that were offered during this Gospel Age by “the Church which is His Body.” (Eph. 1: 22,23) No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students When we compare the results of the bowls with the conditions described by our Lord plaguing each church period we see certain similarities. The first stage saw bad men taking leadership. Those following them had "the mark of the beast" already in the Apostles day. It is association with and support for the false religious system that would grow into the Papacy. "Thou gavest them blood to drink" is an apt punishment for those false Christians of the "sea" class supporting those seeking leadership as Nicolatians. The first volume "The Divine Plan of the Ages" was truly an ulcer for those serving their images as they could not refute Pastor Russell. rcb |
1st
PARABLE
The Sower Matt 13: 3 And he spake unto them many things, in parables, saying: Lo! the sower went forth to sow,- 4 and, as he sowed, some, indeed, fell by the pathway, and, the birds, came, and devoured it; 5 And, some, fell on the rocky places, where it had not much earth,-and, straightway, it sprang up, because if had no depth of earth; 6 and, the sun arising, it was scorched, and, because it had no root, it withered away; 7 And, some, fell upon the thorns, and the thorns came up, and choked it; 8 But, some, fell upon the good ground, and did yield fruit,-this, indeed a hundred fold, and, that, sixty, and, the other, thirty. 9 He that hath ears, let him hear. GOOD SEED FOR GOOD GROUND FROM a boat our Lord taught a most wonderful lesson respecting the method used by the Almighty in the selection of the "little flock," whom he invites to be members with Christ Jesus in the administration of his Millennial Kingdom. The Kingdom message or invitation is the "seed" which is under consideration in the above parable, which, under favorable conditions, germinates and brings forth the required fruitage of character-development. Our Lord was the great Sower of this good seed of the Kingdom, and after him came the Apostles. Since then he has used all of his faithful people more or less in this seed-sowing. The fact that most of the "seed" of the Divine message seems wasted is no proof that the message is not good and desirable. This parable shows that the real fault lies in the soil – in the heart. If all hearts were right the message or seed would bring forth much fruit everywhere. This matches the conditions of the first stage and the first seal as Jesus and the Apostles supplied the good seed of the Word, as Jesus interprets this by giving a class on the symbolism. Here worldly people are those who lack character or depth to grow roots of faith. "Thorns" are earthly cares that got in the way of the message. "Birds" can be people or fallen angels who take away the message with erroneous attacks on the Truth. Those of better character are "on good ground" and were more productive. We suggest the "hundred fold" increase is spirit birth to the divine nature, 100 being a divine number, 60 standing for the Great Company class (Rev. 7:14) and 30 indicating the Youthful Worthies. We note how in the first trumpet the damage is to the "trees" and "green herbage" which may refer to Christians both established and new, grown up by the seeds of faith in Christ dispensed in the first century and as the parable of the sower details. rcb |
|
2nd SEAL
Red
Horse
Rev. 6:3 And, when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature, saying-Go! 4 And there went forth another, a red horse,-and, unto him that was sitting thereon, it was given, unto him, to take away peace from the earth, and that, one another, they should slay; and there was given unto him a great sword. [Rotherham] Red
Horse= Doctrine of the Ransom "One
sitting on him" = the star members including Apostle
John as the principal star. "was
given him"
This was the most violent time under pagan Rome when Titus destroyed the temple. Although commentaries don't mention it pagan Rome persecuted the Jews to near annihilation. There were other Masada's that were reported to have occurred, fulfilling the red horse "kill each other" as regarded the Jews. Spiritually it was fulfilled as well, with the advent of controversialism and rampant anathemas and excommunications, thus fulfilling the "kill each other", the "sword" being the then known Word of God. Certainly there was no peace for Jewish society, and Jesus words can equally be applied to them as well as Christian society, which was under persecution equally during this inhospitable period of pagan rule.
The beginning of the rule of cardinals and bishops
makes red and apt choice for their attire later in
Catholicism. But here, the very existence of this
new religion took peace from the societal earth,
forcing the persecution which only failed to
repress the new faith, hence the next stage of
cooperation of Church and state. The great
sword strictly speaking can be interpreted as the
next mouthpiece of the Word of God, since the
church of this dark period was still the only
source of gospel light to be found, and that only
among the saintly few. rcb See
the following article refuting replacement
theology: Again when we are
not certain we are open to other views on who
the riders are on these horses. Bro. Bob
Jones sent us his large Revelation study which
says: |
2nd Stage
Smyrna
69 AD
to 313 AD
Second
Messenger "Stars"
Rev. 2: 8 And, unto the
messenger of the assembly, in Smyrna, write:-These
things, saith the first and the last, who became dead,
and lived:
9 I know thy tribulation, and destitution, nevertheless, thou art, rich, and the profane speech from among them who affirm that they themselves are, Jews, and they are not, but a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear the things which thou art about to suffer. Lo! the adversary is about to cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried, and may have tribulation ten days. Become thou faithful until death, and I will give thee the crown of life. 11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. He that overcometh, shall in nowise be injured by reason of the second death. THE CONGREGATION IN SMYRNA – (Smyrna meaning "bitter," in allusion to the bitter and excruciating persecutions of the Pagan Roman Empire into the early part of the fourth century) continued from 69 to 313, the Principal Man being St. John. Here it is well to remember that John is the only one of the "stars" who was a "star" in two different epochs of the Gospel-Age Church, although he was the "principal man" in the second epoch only. He is presumed to have lived until about 100 AD... J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" The Lord Jesus is here in the book of Revelation addressing the second phase, the Smyrna phase, of the Church. He tells the brethren that the Roman empire, which He here calls the devil, would cast some of them into prison – would greatly restrain them in their work and persecute them most fiendishly and most outrageously; for the Smyrna Church and the Philadelphia Church were the two most persecuted by violence of any of the seven churches of the Gospel Age. Their tribulation of ten symbolic days was especially the ten years’ persecution they endured under Diocletian. The Lord exhorted them to be faithful unto death in spite of those terrible persecutions and He would give them a crown of life – immortality, the Divine nature. J Hoefle The Kingdom of God - part 1 This Babylonish union incited the leaders in civil and religious position to annihilate any leaders that might arise to oppose this contagion. Previous to 313 AD the Roman government had acted individually to rid itself of the Christians, the last pronounced effort of its kind being under Emperor Diocletian from 303 to 313 – the final years of the Smyrna period of the church. Smyrna means ‘bitter,’ and it fittingly describes the experiences of the church during that time. “The devil shall cast some of you into prison... and ye shall have tribulation ten (symbolic) days” (Rev. 2:10) – ten literal years from 303 to 313. J Hoefle A Magnificent Type |
2nd Trumpet
Rev. 8:8 And, the second
messenger, sounded; and, as it were a great mountain
burning with fire, was cast into the sea; and the
third of the sea became blood,
9 and the third of the creatures which were in the sea, which had life, died, the third of the ships, was destroyed. "mountain" = government the
government of pagan Rome fell in a time of the
restless "sea" a time of great social unrest saw the
end of pagan Rome, the "third" that is effected. In
the first stage we saw the Jewish "third" effected.
The world was in three segments - Roman "Christian",
Jews and Heathen. Here the Jewish third is decimated
during this time period. rcb
Rev. 8:8, 9 pictures the result of the missionary effort begun during the second, or pagan, persecution period of the church. Compare B285. As a result of the missionary efforts begun then, the barbarians were converted to at least a nominal form of Christianity. Since waters would not burn, this death to their former condition is shown by blood--shed blood being symbolic of death" Ludlow Loomis |
2nd Bowl of Wrath
Rev. 16: 3 And the second messenger
poured out the bowl of himself into the sea; and it
became blood as of a dead one, and every soul of life
died in the sea.The second “bowl,” “The Time is at Hand,” made its appearance in 1889...And the time features were indeed a powerful refutation of those who were loudly proclaiming “no man knoweth the day nor the hour” and those who were lustily singing, “When my work on earth is ended, and time shall Be no more.” The second “bowl” demonstrated the correct translation of Rev. 10:6 to be, “The time shall be no longer delayed”; that is, the “time is at hand” for God, through the Christ, to carry out His promise of Restitution – that time had arrived for the Blessing of all the families of the earth. No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students The second bowl is the book "The Time is at Hand" volume two of Studies in the Scriptures by Pastor Russell. This book was published during the time just after the close of the general gospel age call for high calling purposes, thus ending the spiritual hopes of the "sea" class - the nominal class of Christians at that time. rcb Here we see again the similar language used in both the bowls and the trumpets, for when the trumpets originally sounded a third or section of population was dramatically effected. In the pouring out of the bowl we see the reciprocation upon the illicit church state system and it's die hard followers. rcb |
2nd PARABLE
The Tares Matthew 13:24 Another parable, put he before them, saying-The kingdom of the heavens hath become like a man sowing good seed in his field; 25 and, while men were sleeping, his enemy came, and sowed over darnel, in among the wheat,-and away he went. 26 And, when the blade shot up, and brought forth, fruit, then, appeared, the darnel also. 27 And the servants of the householder, coming near, said to him,-Sir! was it not, good seed, thou didst sow in thy field? Whence then hath it, darnel? 28 And he said unto them-An enemy, hath, done this. And they say, unto him-Wilt thou, then, that we go and collect it? 29 And, he, saith-Nay! lest, at any time, while collecting the darnel, ye uproot, along with it, the wheat: 30 Suffer both to grow together until the harvest, and at, harvest time, I will say unto the reapers,- Collect ye first, the darnel, and bind it into bundles, with a view to the burning it up; but, the wheat, be gathering it into my barn. 34 All these things, spake Jesus in parables, unto the multitudes, and, without a parable, was he speaking, nothing, unto them: 35 that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken through the prophet, saying-I will open, in parables, my mouth, I will bring up things hidden from the foundation! 36 Then, dismissing the multitudes, he went into the house, and his disciples came near to him, saying- Make quite plain to us the parable of the darnel of the field. 37 And, he, answering, said-He that soweth the good seed, is the Son of Man; 38 And, the field, is the world, and, the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom,-and, the darnel seeds, are the sons of the evil one; 39 And, the enemy that sowed them, is the adversary, and, the harvest, is, the conclusion of an age, and, the reapers, are, messengers. 40 Just, therefore, as collected is the darnel, and, with fire is burned, so, will it be in the conclusion of the age:- 41 The Son of Man will send forth his messengers, and they will collect, out of his kingdom, all the causes of stumbling, and the doers of lawlessness, 42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire: there, will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then, the righteous, will shine forth as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father. He that hath ears, let him hear! The embryo Kingdom during the entire Gospel age. R5048:3, 3769:3 "Another parable" – These parables are related to each other, but should not be confounded. The first prepares the way for the other. The first deals with the individual; the second with the church collectively. R97:1, 4*; NS626:2 To show some of the difficulties which interfere with the best hearers, the best hearts, some with the best seed. R3769:3 Kingdom of heaven – Practically every parable which our Lord uttered was given to teach something respecting the character of the Kingdom. NS627:2 A man – The Lord Jesus. R3769:3, 5048:6 Sowed good seed – The Gospel of the Kingdom from the Word of God, "He brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel." (2 Tim. 1:10) R3769:3, 5048:6 Seeds of truth, the promises, which, springing up in the hearts of his disciples, transformed them to newness of life. R2634:1 "Which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord." (Heb. 2:3) R3769:3 Christ and the Apostles sowed the good seed, meanwhile gathering the ripe wheat of the Jewish nation. R5018:3 Same sower man, casting good seed, but "while men were sleeping" = as the Apostles died - the enemy came = "mystery of iniquity doth already work" "Nicolatianism" [see Frey notes] Any attempt to organize became unauthorized and grew beyond the size of it's intent, ultimatley become "tare systems" to be bound together for destruction in the ecumenical movement at the end of the age. rcb |
|
3rd Seal
Black Horse
Rev. 6:5 And, when he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature, saying-Go! And I saw, and lo! a black horse, and he that was sitting thereon holding a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And I heard as a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying-A quart of wheat for, a denary, and three quarts of barley, for a denary,-and, the oil and the wine, do not wrong. Since Horses are doctrines this is the new teaching for the new fourth century and beyond. Since black is the combination of all colors at once we suggest this is the time when the Roman Church began it's big tent approach accepting every kind of religious convert, changing the doctrine to cater to the masses. Once pure white but now too dark to see the original white - the doctrine of Christ - setting the stage for the papal inquisition. Black is the opposite of white so this was certainly a time when the light of the true gospel of Christ had all but gone out. "Scales" or "Balance" = The suggestion is that this was the time when "church" direction was now to be based on economics. The
oil and wine represent holy spirit and doctrine.
rcbThere is a book written by my own mom called "The Chasm Between Christianity and the Bible" - Now she's not a known author, but in this book of rhymes, she says: "The first Church was pure, Jesus doctrines are sure- A conqueror whose horse is white. Each new age shows a horse on a descending course: Paganism, apostasy, night. Rev. 6:4-8 rcb The war in 1914 was the culmination of developed evils during the Gospel Age. St. Paul had predicted that there would be a “falling away” (2 Thes. 2:3), that it was already working in his day (2 Thes. 2:7). It really had developed in a pronounced way by about 315 A.D., when it was considered proper to unite the Church with the Roman Empire, which union quickly developed a debasing and secularizing spirit in teaching and practice. In Revelation 17-19 this union is blamed for all the false doctrines and secular spirit that gradually engulfed the church as a nauseating flood, embracing as it did the theoretical and practical elements of heathen religions – under Christian names. The revelator styled this combination as Babylon (confusion), which indeed it was. A Magnificent Type Epiphany Bible Students |
3rd Stage
Pergamos
313 AD to
799 AD
Third Messenger "Stars"
Rev. 2:12 And, unto the
messenger of the assembly, in Pergamum, write:-These
things, saith he that hath the sharp, two-edged sword:
13 I know where thou dwellest, where, the throne of Satan, is; and thou art holding fast my name, and didst not deny my faith, even in the days of Antipas, my witness, my faithful one, who was killed near you, where, Satan, dwelleth. 14 Nevertheless, I have against thee, a few things,-that thou hast there, such as hold fast the teaching of Balaam,-who went on to teach Balak to throw a cause of stumbling before the sons of Israel, to eat idol-sacrifices and to commit lewdness: 15 thus, even, thou, hast such as hold fast the teaching of the Nicolaitanes, in like manner. 16 Repent, therefore, otherwise, I come unto thee speedily,-and will fight against them, with the sword of my mouth. 17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. Unto him that overcometh, I will give, unto him, of the hidden manna, and I will give unto him a white stone, and, upon the stone, a new name written, which, no one, knoweth, save he that receiveth it. THE CONGREGATION IN PERGAMOS – (Pergamos meaning "earthly elevation," having reference to that period in which the Papacy became greatly elevated as it united with Pagan Rome to form "The Holy Roman Empire") continued from 313 to 799, the principal Man being –ARIUS, who was presbyter at Alexander from AD313. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" Verse 12: Jesus is still weilding the sharp two edged sword - the word of God - especially during this time when the Bible would become codified into 66 books, Arius fighting the good fight of faith against the Trinity that ultimately won out. rcb verse 13: Antipas – Anti [against] papas [father or the pope]; one who protests against the pope. The true followers of the Master denounced the attempt to disobey the direct command of Jesus, "Call no man Father." Matt 23:9 R5993:2 The spirit of the Nicolataines increases, the beast rises into the Papacy, ready to crown Charlemagne in an official illicit union of church and state. The dragon or civil power under the auspices of Rome comes forth. The white stone is a symbol of Christ given to individuals, the manna is the truth they would be supplied with along the way, the "new name" - the character of Christ that will belong to the devout overcomers... rcb |
3rd Trumpet
Rev. 8:10 And, the third
messenger, sounded; and there fell, out of heaven, a
great star, burning as a torch, and it fell upon the
third of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters.
11 And, the name of the star, is called Wormwood; and the third of the waters became wormwood, and many of the men died of the waters, because they were made bitter. This is the rise of the papacy. The star that fell out of heaven, wormwood, is the pope, the rivers and waters are the truth and it's supporters. The teachings became perverted so now spiritual life in Christ was near impossible due to the now complete obscuring of the doctrine of Christ - the white horse. See column one Seal comments. rcb |
3rd Bowl
of Wrath
Rev. 16:4
And the third poured out the bowl of himself into the
rivers and into the fountains of the waters; and it
became blood.
5 And I heard the messenger of the waters saying: Righteous art thou, the one existing and who was, the bountiful one, because these things thou hast judged; 6 because blood of holy ones and of prophets they poured out, and blood to them thou gavest to drink; worthy they are. 7 And I heard the altar saying: Yes, O Lord the God the almighty, true and righteous the judgments of thee. The angel of the waters – Pastor Russell, the Messenger of the Truth (waters). Again we can see in comparing the trumpets and the bowls some similar things, water in this instance. The papacy resulted from the bitter waters of polluted truth. It's demise is from the pure Truth (waters) given in due time. Pastor Russell's third volume "Thy Kingdom Come" added to the ulcers of Rome's adherents as their true history was laid bare, with Napolean delivering the blow to end papal sovereignty over the nations, the release of this book surely turned her waters of truth into the deathly reality of actual historic facts. It also pointed out God's promises of "The Restoration of Israel", since the blood of both "saints" and "prophets" were poured out, truly the promise of their return will be blood upon their own papal heads, for them to "drink" or be forced to accept the facts of their own infamous careers. In verse 7 the voice from the alter is an allusion to Pastor Russell's chapter 10 "God's Stone Witness" about the Great Pyramid in Gizeh being an altar in the midst of and on the border of the land Isaiah 19:19-20 This book, "Thy Kingdom Come" volume 3 in the Studies in the Scriptures series and constitutes the third bowl. rcb It should be noted, too, that Volume 3 contained a moderate explanation of the Great Pyramid of Giza, showing from the prophetic statement of Isa. 19:19‑22 that the “altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt” was indeed “a sign and a witness” to the great Plan of the Ages as contained in the Bible. Thus the pertinence of v. 7: “I heard another (angel) out of the altar” – in “the midst of the land of Egypt.” This truth, too, has been completely rejected by some, and distorted by others since Brother Russell’s death. No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students |
3rd PARABLE
Mustard Seed
Matt 13:31 Another parable, put he before them, saying-The kingdom of the heavens is like unto, a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; 32 which, indeed, is, less, than all seeds, but, when grown, is greater than garden-plants, and becometh a tree,-so that the birds of heaven come, and lodge among its branches. As a mustard seed is very small, yet produces a large bush, so that the fowls of the air may lodge in its branches, so this illustrates how the gospel of the Kingdom would, from a small beginning, attain to a considerable size. Its size would not be great among the trees, but great among bushes or herbage. Thus the message of Christ received at first only by the poor and the few of Israel, has finally grown to such important dimensions that the fowls like to gather in its branches. But let us remember that the fowls, according to our Lord's interpretation of a previous parable, represent the servants of the Wicked One. So then the teaching of this parable would lead us to conclude that the Church of Christ, at one time, was so unimportant in the world that it was a shame and a dishonor to belong to it, but that ultimately it would become honorable and great and the Adversary's servants would have pleasure in its shade. This development the Scriptures represent as being Babylon, declaring that, as a whole, with the various branches and denominations, the nominal Church of Christ is [R4636 : page 205] Babylonish. Hearken to the Lord's words; "She has become the hold of every foul spirit and the cage of every unclean and hateful bird." This period of time is the immense growth of the roman church to cover the full roman empire beginning with 313 AD Constantine followed by the fall of the western empire in 476 AD then 539 AD Justinian and the desolating abomination...and leading right up to Charlemagne 800 AD The fouls or birds of heaven are the fallen ones, both men and angels, who take control of the hierarchy of this gigantic system of branches. rcb |
|
4th Seal
Livid Horse
Rev. 6:7 And, when he opened
the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth
living creature, saying-Go!
8 And I saw, and lo! a livid horse,-and he that was sitting thereupon had for a name, Death, and, Hades, was following with him; and there was given unto them authority over the fourth of the earth, to slay with sword, and with famine, and with death, and by the wild beasts of the earth.[Rotherham] The Holy Roman Empire is born, "hades" = purgatory Papal Dark Ages. Now Catholics 1/4 earth's population and/ or land areas... The evil time of the Crusades and the Inquisition. The horse is now sickly green [will eventually become earth worship - rcb] [Bro. Bob Jone's Rev. Study suggests "green" is the doctrine of "Justification by Faith" - a faint green glow of improvement emerging during this time period. This would presumeably lead to white horse conditions of Rev 19 rcb] The one sitting on him - "Death" is the Pope. "the unseen" or "hades" is a symbol for the doctrine of purgatory. The "holy" Roman Empire had control over the Christian world which was "the fourth part of the earth" [society]. Jews, Mohammedans and Heathen making up the other 3 parts. To "kill with sword" refers to the controversies over doctrine and a time when Christians killed other Christians both literally and figuratively, pronouncing one another heretics. The Waldenses were killed by the thousands for example. To kill "with famine" describes an era when the Word of God was hidden by the Papacy. "Not a famine for bread nor a thirst for water but of the hearing and the doing of the Word of God." To kill "with death" is symbolic for being excommunicated. To kill "with the wild beasts of the earth" is symbolically describes how the papacy used earthly governments to control heresies. rcb The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Christian Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these military expeditions are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were intended to conquer Jerusalem and its surrounding area from Muslim rule. Beginning with the First Crusade, which resulted in the conquest of Jerusalem in 1099, dozens of military campaigns were organised, providing a focal point of European history for centuries. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crusades |
4th Stage
Thyatira
799 AD to
1309 AD
Fourth
Messenger "Stars"
19 I know thy works, and thy love, and faith, and ministry, and endurance,-and that, thy last works, are more than the first. 20 Nevertheless, I have against thee, that thou sufferest the woman Jezebel, she who calleth herself a prophetess, and is teaching and leading astray my own servants to commit lewdness and to eat idol sacrifices; 21 and I gave her time, that she might repent, and she willeth not to repent out of her lewdness. 22 Lo! I cast her into a bed, and them who are committing adultery with her, into great tribulation,- except they repent out of her works; 23 and, her children, will I slay with death;-and all the assemblies shall get to know, that, I, am he that searcheth reins and hearts, and will give unto you, each one, according to your works. 24 But, unto you, I say,-the rest who are in Thyatira, as many as have not this teaching, such as have not come to know the deep things of Satan, as they say, I do not cast upon you any other burden; 25 nevertheless, what ye have, hold fast, till I shall have come. 26 And, he that overcometh, and keepeth throughout my works, I will, give unto him, authority over the nations; 27 and he shall shepherd them with a sceptre of iron,-as, vessels of earthenware, are dashed in pieces:- as, I also, have received from my Father. 28 And I will give unto him the morning star. 29 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. THE CONGREGATION IN THYATIRA – (Thyatira meaning "the sweet perfume of a sacrifice" in allusion to the elevating sacrifices of the true church during the drunken revelings of the apostate Roman Church) continued from 799 to 1309. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars Notes: Verse 18 "eyes like flame of fire" Christ perception of all "trying reins and hearts"-their true motives. "feet like glowing copper" = copper is a symbol for the human nature. This is indicating Christ's having walked this earth = "polished copper" "glowing" from the fiery trials during this time. Verse 19 is about Christ's footstep followers who suffered these persecutions. they displayed "works" "love" "faith" "ministry" and "endurance" in this severe time. "The Crusades" started around 1095 AD, later the medieval Inquisition started around 1184, causing the last works of the Thyatira church to be greater than their first as their sufferings increased. By verses 20-23 the false Church is now called "Jezebel" to distinguish this time as when the "Holy Roman Empire" engaged in "adultery" by mixing her false religious toxins together along with her illicit state governance for the persecuting of the saints. The nations cooperating with her are promised a table of woe at "The Great Tribulation" which would begin in 1914, when the non repentant nations involved would lose their subsequently born generations through war, famine and pestilence and other plagues during their "judgement day" as He that "searcheth reigns and hearts" began taking control over earth's affairs. The overcomers in verses 26 and 27 are ultimately given control over the nations and given the spiritual nature as shown in verse 28 which infers Job's description of the time when the morning stars - God's angelic creation - "shouted for joy" while assisting the Logos in the work of Creation. What a shout they shall make in the future, we hope to hear some day. rcb Job 38:6 Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the corner-stone thereof, 7When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy? |
4th Trumpet
Rev. 8:12 And, the fourth
messenger, sounded; and the third of the sun was
smitten, and the third of the moon, and the third of
the stars,-in order that the third of them might be
darkened, and the day might not shine for the third of
it, and the night, in like manner.
13 And I saw, and I heard one eagle, flying in mid-heaven, saying with a loud voice-Woe! woe! woe! unto them that are dwelling upon the earth, by reason of the remaining voices of the trumpet, of the three messengers who are about to sound. "a third of" = [from wikipedia] - The Inquisition, as a church-court, had no jurisdiction over Muslims and Jews as such.[10] Generally, the Inquisition was concerned only with the heretical behaviour of Catholic adherents or converts.[11] The darkest period of Church history, obscuring the light of the sun = the true Gospel, the light of the moon = the Mosaic Covenant. A third of the stars = Christian lights that fell into darkness from their misdeeds during this time. rcb Verse 13 says "one eagle". Since numbers are literal we should establish a single individual as wiser than the others at this time who was able to pronounce the upcoming three woes. Was it Claudius, Waldo or other? rcb |
4th Bowl
of Wrath
Rev. 16:8 And the fourth
poured out the bowl of himself on the sun; and was
given to him to burn the men in fire.
9 And were burned the men heat great, and blasphemed the name of the God of that having authority over plagues these; and not they reformed to give to him glory. The fourth bowl appeared in 1897; and it certainly affirmed its title, “The Battle of Armageddon,” in that “power was given to scorch men with fire.” It pointed out the prevalent sins among rulers, clergy, aristocracy and labor; and was a true fulfilment of Jesus’ words in John 16‑8‑11: “When the Holy Spirit is come, it will reprove the world of sin (the wrongs they are committing), of righteousness (point out the right way to do), and of judgment” (warn them of the coming judgment, which in this instance was in its initial phase to be the “battle of the great day of God Almighty”). But, “as it was in the days of Noah,” they neither heeded nor wanted to hear that message – “repented not to give God glory." It should be noted that the “fourth bowl” described events that are happening today as though the book were written this year; whereas, it was written 78 years ago. The forecasts of that book are in part a fulfilment of Dan. 5:25‑29 – the much‑quoted “handwriting on the wall.” It explained that the statement, “The kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians” (v. 28) indicated that Christendom would be divided into two hostile camps: a conservative camp, consisting of church, state and capital, and a radical camp, consisting of trade unionists, socialists, communists, anarchists and nihilists. At the time the book was written these antagonistic factions had only a faint beginning, which developed to some degree up to 1914; but it was the outbreak of the war in 1914 that caused a clear cleavage between them, as typified by Elijah smiting Jordan (type of Christendom and the curse) – when the waters (peoples) of that river developed into two distinct warring factions. The terse substance of Volume 4 – “The Battle of‑Armageddon” – gave 1914 as the end of “the times of the Gentiles” (Luke 21: 24); Great Babylon’s judgement and downfall; the overthrow of Satan’s empire, to be followed by God’s kingdom on earth. All of these things were set forth in precise detail and accuracy – so much that, when the great events began to transpire in 1914, it directed the world’s attention to Brother Russell as the outstanding interpreter and Bible lecturer of his time, the greatest religious teacher in Christendom. And in the Fall of 1917 the czarist regime in Russia was overthrown, it being one of the strongest and most absolute monarchies that had ever existed in all human history. There the text began to be fulfilled, “the mountains (strong autocratic governments) carried into the midst of the sea (the lawless elements of society).” This feature of prophecy has now been carried to a completion; the last autocracy being Ethiopia, which was toppled in 1974. No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students This is an ideal setup for Pastor Russell's fourth volume of Scripture Studies titled "The Battle of Armageddon", where the author takes Babylon to task for their tremendous war preparations expenditures. The nations chose not to reform from their militaristic ways and instead "repented not" and began World War I in 1914. This volume was "poured on the sun" in the sense that the Roman Church was the oracle of God's Word during this time and it brought a scathing or rather scorching indictment. Notice "mankind" is merely "scorched" not burned nor destroyed - with the warning to Christendom which this volume indeed was. rcb |
4th PARABLE
Leaven in
the Meal
Matt 13:33 Another parable,
spake he unto them:-The kingdom of the heavens is
like, unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three
measures of flour until, the whole, was leavened.
The three measures of meal are faith, hope and love. "LEAVEN HIDDEN IN THE MEAL" "The parable of the "leaven" (v. 33) illustrates the process by which, as was foretold, the Church would get into the wrong condition. As a woman would take her batch of flour for baking and put leaven (yeast) in it and the result would be that the mass would become leavened, so it would be with the Church of Christ; the food of the entire household would become leavened or corrupted. Every portion would become more or less vitiated with the leaven of false doctrines which would permeate the entire mass. Thus today nearly every doctrine inculcated by Jesus and his Apostles has become more or less perverted or twisted by the errors of the dark ages." R4636 |
|
5th Seal
[no horse]
Rev. 6:9 And, when he opened
the fifth seal, I saw, beneath the altar, the souls of
them who had been slain because of the word of God and
because of the witness which they held. 10 And they cried out with a loud voice, saying-How long, O Sovereign, the Holy and True, dost thou not vindicate and avenge our blood from them that dwell upon the earth? 11 And there was given to them, each one, a white robe, and it was bidden them, that they should rest yet a little while-until the number should be made full of their fellow-servants also, and their brethren, who were about to be slain as even, they. [Rotherham] This is a picture of consecration as well as a depiction of our Lord's ransom [John 3:16] these are not necessarily literally killed. saying
"how long" could introduce the chronology aspect of
the Bible
"judge and avenge" where protestantism pointed out the destiny of the antichrist system as shown in the Bible that would ultimately punish "those dwelling on the earth" or those in positions of society. "White robe" is justification by faith. "Rest a little while" indicates a further period of waiting for glorification as the full number of the elect church. rcb |
5th Stage
Sardis 1309 AD to 1479 AD Fifth Messenger "Stars"
Rev. 3: 1 And, unto the
messenger of the assembly, in Sardis, write:-These
things, saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God,
and the seven stars: I know thy works,-that, a name,
thou hast, that thou art living, and art, dead.
2 Become thou watchful, and strengthen the things that remain, that were about to die; for I have not found thy works fulfilled before my God. 3 Remember, therefore, how thou hast received, and didst hear, and keep it and repent. If then thou shall not watch, I will have come as a thief, and in nowise shalt thou get to know, during what sort of hour, I will have come upon thee. 4 Nevertheless, thou hast a few names, in Sardis, which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white, because they are, worthy. 5 He that overcometh, shall, thus, array himself in white garments, and in nowise will I blot out his name, from the book of life; and I will confess his name before my Father, and before his messengers. 6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. THE CONGREGATTON IN SARDIS – (Sardis meaning "that which remains" in reference to the brief period just before the Reformation by Sects) continued from 1309 to 1479, the Principal Man being Marsiglio, who officiated from 1309 to 1343. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" ...seven angels to the seven churches," each of which had a 'principal man' (a 'prince')--with two 'principal men' (or 'princes') in the Laodicean, or seventh epoch. The 'principal man' during the sounding of the fifth trumpet was Marsiglio, whose specific ministry was from 1309 to 1328 A.D, His ministry was climaxed in 1324 by the appearance of his book "The Defender of the Peace"--a work which aimed at the papal evils of that time. ..." J. Hoefle "BROTHERS FROM EVERY VIEWPOINT" |
5th Trumpet
Rev. 9:1 And, the fifth
messenger, sounded; and I saw a star, out of heaven,
fallen unto the earth, and there was given unto him
the key of the shaft of the abyss.
2 And he opened the shaft of the abyss; and there came up a smoke out of the shaft, as the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened, by reason of the smoke of the shaft. 3 And, out of the smoke, came forth, locusts, upon the earth; and there was given unto them licence, as the scorpions of the earth have licence. 4 And it was bidden them that they should not injure the herbage of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree,-but only the men who have not the seal of God upon their foreheads. 5 And it was given unto them, that they should not slay them, but that they should be tormented five months; and, the torture of them, was as of a scorpion's torture, whensoever it smiteth a man. 6 And, in those days, shall men seek death, and in nowise shall find it, and shall covet to die, and death fleeth from them. 7 And, the likenesses of the locusts, were like unto horses prepared for battle; and, upon their heads, as it were crowns, like unto gold, and, their faces, were as the faces of men, 8 and, they had hair, as the hair of women, and, their teeth, were, as of lions, 9 and they had breastplates as breastplates of iron, and, the sound of their wings, was as the sound of chariots of many horses, running into battle; 10 and they have tails like unto scorpions, and stings, and, in their tails, is their licence to injure men five months. 11 They have over them, as king, the messenger of the abyss, whose name, in Hebrew, is Abaddon "=Destroyer", and, in the Greek, he hath for name, Destroyer. 12 The first, Woe, hath passed away, lo! there come, yet, two, Woes, after these things. The air – The Greek word here is used symbolically to represent government or controlling power over the earth. R152:6 Rev. 9:1-2 A false star is referred to here who fell - the pope. His having the key to the abyss is his ability to speak ex cathedra any and all things false = the black smoke of confusion that is the papal decretals and decrees. The true saints were thrust into a furnace of affliction during these Crusades and Inquisitions, during which time the light of the true gospel was hard to see. rcb Rev. 9:3 "We offer the true
interpretation of the "locusts" of Rev, 9:3 as
describing the diabolic teaching of indulgences (a
devastating 'pest' in every respect) which
flourished during the symbolic five months --150
symbolic days, actually 150 years -of Rev.
9:5. The practice of indulgences appeared during
the Crusades--innocently enough promising
'indulgence' to all who offered their service in
the crusading armies attempting to wrest the Holy
Land from the "Terrible Turks." In time the
teaching was developed as an aid to fill the empty
coffers of the greedy money loving popes of
that time...
...seven angels to the seven churches," each of which had a 'principal man' (a 'prince')--with two 'principal men' (or 'princes') in the Laodicean, or seventh epoch. The 'principal man' during the sounding of the fifth trumpet was Marsiglio, whose specific ministry was from 1309 to 1328 A.D, His ministry was climaxed in 1324 by the appearance of his book "The Defender of the Peace"--a work which aimed at the papal evils of that time. ... If we add 150 years to 1328, we come to l478, when we find John Wessel just beginning his ministry as the 'principal man' sounding the sixth trumpet. This trumpet continued to sound for 391 years (See Rev. 9:15), until 1870 when That Servant began to sound the seventh trumpet....John Wessel saw this clearly enough (although we doubt he understood the correct interpretation of Rev. 9). That faithful mouthpiece of the Lord is rated by history as "the most renowned scholar of his time--a man of rare erudition--a reformer before the Reformation." He aligned himself with the anti-papal party and protested the growing paganizing of the Papacy, contending that "Sin can be forgiven by none but God." That battle cry of the sixth angel was hurled forth by Martin Luther as a mighty thunder; and, supplemented by others of his day, forced the Great Reform Council of Trent to declare an end to the abuse of indulgences in the year 1562. Thus, the sting of the locusts began to subside in 1478 through the exposures of Wessel and others just 'five months' (l50 literal years) after the death of Marsiglio--and was completely nullified by 1562." "...when we consider the time setting when the antitypical locusts of Rev. 9:3 made their appearance. It occurred when "the fifth angel sounded" (Rev. 9: 1). The "trumpet" of the fifth angel had already completed its work by the year l479-" J. Hoefle "BROTHERS FROM EVERY VIEWPOINT" Rev. 9:4 Grass – People. 1 Pet. 1:24 The Earth – Organized society Green thing = converts? According to the Tischendorf Notes "neither any green thing" is not found in the Sinaitic MS. Seal of God – Present Truth. Not Present (2023) Truth but Present (Wycliffe's day) Truth. In their foreheads – Their intellects. Rev. 9:5 slay=not always literal - Romans 8:36 Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Rev. 9:6 death = political death as nations under tyrannous restraint sought national reformation but were thwarted. See CTR HG77:6 Rev. 9:7 Locusts = Indulgences Horses=doctrines "as it were crowns" meaning not really crowns "like unto gold" "Gold" = divine nature. They were imposters not authorized by the true God but a false church. Rev. 9:8 "Hair"= long professions, explanations "Women" = churches. These are false doctrinal teaching using their "teeth as lions" meaning verbal arguments with authority. Rev. 9:9 "breastplates of iron" = authorized by Rome [corroborates the iron legs of Nebuchadnezzar's statue in Daniel.] This is a counter to the "breastplate of righteousness" in Eph. 6:14 which comes through Christ alone. Rev. 9:10 Scorpions tails = the torturous after effects of these events. Rev. 9:11 Abaddon is the Pope. Rev. 9:12 This was the first "woe trumpet." rcb |
5th Bowl
of Wrath
Rev. 16:10 And the fifth
poured out the bowl of him on the throne of the
wild-beast. And became the kingdom of him darkened;
and they bit the tongues of themselves because of the
anguish,
11 and they blasphemed the God of the heaven because of the pains of themselves and because of the ulcers of themselves; and not they reformed from the works of themselves. In 1899 came the fifth “bowl” – that “poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness (great portions of the beast’s teachings were proven to be error, superstition and tradition – the “precepts of men”); and they gnawed their tongues for pain” (v. 10). It should not cause much argument when we declare that Volume 5 was Brother Russell’s masterpiece. His analysis of the Holy Spirit, of Life Everlasting and Immortality, of the Trinity, the Soul, of Sheol ‑ Hades ‑ Gehenna, left his opponents “speechless.” Of a truth, “they gnawed their tongues for pain.” So clear and convincing were the presentations of the fifth “bowl” that many segments of the secular press gave it unstinted praise; although antitypical Saul and the lesser lights “repented not” (v. 11) No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students Brother Russell's 5th Volume "The Atonement Between God and Man" included an unassailable treatise against the doctrine of the trinity, the chief of the creeds being the throne of the beast. This put the lie to Romanism who had no answers ("naw their tongues") against Pastor Russell's Scriptural treatise on the subject. By refusing to accept the falsehood of the trinity, they in a sense "blaspheme God" because in the doctrine of the trinity they keep insisting that Jesus is "God" meaning equal to the Heavenly Father, when it is the Most High God who "anoints" the Son Jesus, (the greater always anoints the lesser. Jesus said "My Father is greater than I" John 14:28) rcb |
5th PARABLE
Hidden
Treasure
Matt 13:44 The kingdom of the
heavens is like unto, a treasure hid in the field,
which a man, finding, hid,- and, by reason of his joy,
withdraweth and selleth whatsoever he hath, and buyeth
that field.
TREASURE HID IN A FIELD The desirability of obtaining joint-heirship with Christ in his Millennial Kingdom, is pictured in the parable of "the treasure hidden in the field." The finder, realizing its value, desired it for himself and had such faith in it that he disposed of all of his property in order to buy that field, which he believed to contain the precious treasure. Only those who will appreciate the Gospel message will gain its glorious promises. If we love the present life with its joys and prospects, its hopes and ambitions, then we will labor for these, but if we intelligently hear and, by faith, believe the Gospel offer of this age of a share with Christ in his Millennial Kingdom, then in proportion to our faith and appreciation will be our self-sacrificing zeal to attain that prize. Whoever believes the message of the Kingdom will find his faith an inspiration, indeed a necessary inspiration, to the attainment of the prize, for it will cost all that he has of earthly blessings; and unless he has faith that he will find the prize, he will surely be unwilling to sacrifice all he has for it. The field belongs to God. He has put the treasure there. He offers it for sale to any willing to pay the price. The buyer is the Lord and those who accept his invitation to join with him in the sacrifice of their earthly interests that they may be sharers with him in his heavenly glories – in the work of the Millennial Age, to unearth all that treasure in the blessing of the world of mankind. R4636 The Lord's followers are to reckon that no sacrifice is too great to attain the blessing; indeed, the Kingdom can be attained at no less cost than the surrender of all their earthly hopes and aims. HG439:1 Present Truth. Not Present (2023) Truth but Present (Wycliffe's day) Truth. |
|
6th Seal
Rev. 6:12 And I saw, when he
opened the sixth seal, that a, great earthquake, took
place; and, the sun, became black as sackcloth of
hair, and, the full moon, became as blood,
13 and, the stars of heaven, fell to the earth, as, a fig-tree, sheddeth her winter figs, when, by a great wind, it is shaken, 14 and, the heaven, was withdrawn, as a scroll rolling itself up, and, every mountain and island, out of their places, were shaken. 15 And, the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rulers of thousands, and the rich, and the mighty, and every bondman and freeman, hid themselves within the caves and within the rocks of the mountains; 16 and they say, unto the mountains and unto the rocks-Fall upon us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the anger of the Lamb; 17 Because the great day of their anger is come, and who is able to stand? [Rotherham] Rev. 6:12 The French Revolution is the earthquake. It's barbarism turned the teaching of religion black with darkness of papacy's professions (hair) which coincidentally created a villainous character out of world Jewry, to whom their schemes always attach blood libels and their subsequent persecutions and pogroms. rcb Symbolically, the creeds (the moon of the papal heavens) have become repugnant, though still hypocritically professed. Symbolically, also the light of the Mosaic Law (the moon of the true heavens) has been made to appear evil by the claims of the clergy that the typical sacrifices were bloody and barbaric.— D590, 592 The first world war was the start of the tribulations as shown by Br Russell. It would have led to the full establishment of the Kingdom was it not for God delaying it a little longer until some more events were to occur as shown in chapter 7. According to Bible chronology and the book of Daniel chapter 12, the time of the end started soon after the French revolution in 1799 and during which time knowledge started to increase. Whilst biblical knowledge was also increasing among faithful Christians, the worldly knowledge was overtaking it causing a spiritual darkness that was shaking up religious institutions as shown in Rev 6:12-14 When WWI started in Europe, in the centre of Babylon’s and her daughters, it seemed that Br Russell was right and the predicted end was coming. In order to avoid this predicted end to occur, those nations turned to the mountains for help. One was the US and it got involved with its allies in 1917, the war was won by the allies and the inevitable have gotten delayed. That was what God had intended unbeknown to Br Russell who had passed away by then. Frederick Delon "Revelation Chapter 6:12 through 7:3" Rev. 6:13 Here the untimely figs and fig tree are not natural Israel as depicted in Volume 7 "The Finished Mystery" even though it is an inviting solution. If we are to be consistent however, then we are again referring to Christians as the symbolic "synagogue of Satan who are affirming themselves to be, Jews, and are not,- but say what is false". So here we add the commentary from mostholyfaith.com "We should notice that it is as a fig tree casts her untimely figs. Natural Israel (the fig tree) should have been ripe for harvest at the time of the first advent. But instead of supplying the full number of the body of Christ, they proved unworthy and their untimely (unripe) figs (fruitage) were cast out. – Just so in the harvest of the Gospel Age for nominal spiritual Israel." Remaining question, is it to be (paraphrasing)"as a fig tree sheddeth her figs" or could it be instead "while the fig tree sheddeth her figs"? In which case it can refer to premature Zionist hopes? However since Zionism really ignited with Herzl in the late 1800's I still believe this is a metaphor for the fact that during this period just prior to Jesus' return, it resembled the same thing that occurred with natural Israel at His first advent, they were simply unripe - unprepared to receive Him. rcb Rev. 6:14 Catholicism and Protestantism begin to unite in 1846 with the Ecumenical movement. As their confusion increases, Catholicism and Protestantism roll together for self-protection. D258; R5349:4 They believe that in union there is strength. R1947:6 The extremes of the ecclesiastical heavens, Catholic and Protestant, will be drawn together. R4698:6 Rev. 6:15, figuratively describes that time of falling of kingdoms when every mountain (kingdom) and island shall be moved. The kings and chief ones as well as bondmen will recognize in this trouble that "The great day of his wrath is come," and will seek to be covered and protected by the great mountains (kingdoms) of earth, and to be hid in the great rocks of this world (secret societies). But they shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's anger, for all the kingdoms of the world shall be thrown down, and instead of these mountains (kingdoms) "the kingdom of the Lord becomes a great mountain, and fills the whole earth." Daniel 2:35,45. R409 And the kings of the earth.— The aristocracy And the great men.— The clergy. (Rev. 18:23, comment.) Rendered "nobles" in Mark 6:21. See Job. 12:2; Isa. 9:15. [And the rich men,] and the chief captains, AND THE RICH MEN.— The high military officers. Rendered "high captains" in Mark 6:21. The magnates and financiers. And the mighty men.— The labor organizers. And every bondman.— Member of a labor organization. And every free man.— Other worker (if not a bond-slave of Christ). "The Finished Mystery" 122 Hid themselves in the dens.— See Isa. 2:19-21. And in the rocks of the mountains.— "As the trouble increases, men will seek, but in vain, for protection in the great rocks and fortresses of society (Free Masonry, Odd Fellowship, and Trades Unions, Guilds, Trusts, and all societies secular and ecclesiastical), and in the mountains (governments) of earth."— B139; Jer. 3:23; Hos. 10:8. Revelation
6:16
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us. -"The Greek word epi, here used, is generally translated on, but has also the significance of over (Rev. 5:10) and about, and is so translated many times in the common version. The thought is that of protection, not of destruction. The common view of this passage, that it teaches that wicked men will get faith enough to pray for literal mountains to fall, is absurd. The real fulfillment is already beginning: the great, the rich, and no less the poor, are seeking to the mountains and rocks and caves for shelter from the darkening storm of trouble which all see is gathering."— B139; Hos. 10:8; Hab. 3:6. “The heavens (the present religious systems) shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.” (Isa. 34:4) The end of all this is graphically set forth in Rev. 6:14: “The heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain (powerful absolute monarchies) and island (republics and lenient governments) were moved out of their places” – of which we have seen so much since the collapse of the powerful Czarist regime in Russia in 1917. J Hoefle 163 Retrospect-and-prospect Day of his wrath – "The seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God." Rev. 15:1 Rev. 6:17 Because Satan knew that Jesus' Kingdom was about to come, and helped his schemers and planners, demons with corporations to somehow avoid (if it were possible) Christ's "Day of Wrath" "Day of Judgement"= 1914 Today we find the large demonic plan had it's beginnings in the days of Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan et. al. For MORE on this please see the Revelation 13 study by Martin Reuter and Roman Wigienka. rcb |
6th Stage
Philadelphia 1479 AD to 1874 AD Sixth
Messenger "Stars"
8 I know thy works,-lo! I have set before thee an open door, as to which, no one, can shut it,-that thou hast, a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. 9 Lo! I give them of the synagogue of Satan, who are affirming themselves to be, Jews, and are not,- but say what is false,-lo! I will cause them, that they shall have come, and shall bow down before thy feet, and shall get to know that, I, loved thee. 10 Because thou didst keep my word of endurance, I also, will keep thee out of the hour of trial, which is about to come upon the whole habitable world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. 11 I come quickly: hold fast that which thou hast, that, no one, take thy crown. 12 He that overcometh, I will make, him, a pillar in the sanctuary of my God, and, outside, shall he in nowise go forth any more; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God, and I will write upon him my new name. 13 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. THE CONGREGATION IN PHILADELPHIA – (Philadelphia meaning "love of a brother," indicating the strong brotherly love that prevailed especially among persecuted Protestants during this epoch) continued from 1479 to 1874. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" Rev. 3:7,8 Joint heirship comes to light the time when the door is still open to the high calling. Rev. 3:9 "Synagoge of Satan" is those who claimed to be Christians and are not. This was a key feature of this time period. At the end of the time period it was brother Russell who maintained that "the Ransom" was the determining doctrine as to who was a true Christian or not. Rev. 3:10 "The dark night in which no man can work" John 9:4 = 1914" rcb Rev. 3:11 Invisibly in 1874 "Behold I come as a thief" Rev. 16:15 Rev. 3:12-13 Special rewards of the little flock, the firstborns. "Write upon" their characters = stamped with the character of Christ. rcb of interest: 1914
-360 =1554 AD
1914 is (was to be) the day of vengeance. rcb It will be of little consequence then that the ecclesiastical heavens (the religious powers, Papal and Protestant) will [D552] have rolled together as a scroll. (Isa. 34:4; Rev. 6:14) The combined religious power of Christendom will be utterly futile against the rising tide of anarchy when the dread crisis is reached. Before that great army "all the host of heaven [the church nominal] shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll [the two great bodies which constitute the ecclesiastical heavens; viz., Papacy and Protestantism, as the two distinct ends of the scroll are even now rapidly approaching each other, rolling together, as we have shown]; and all their host shall fall down [fall off, drop out; not all at once, but gradually, yet rapidly] as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree" (Isa. 34:4); and finally these "heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements [of which they are composed] shall melt with fervent heat." 2 Pet. 3:12 D551 |
6th Trumpet
Rev. 9:13 And, the sixth messenger, sounded; and I heard one voice, from among the horns of the altar of gold which is before God, 14 saying unto the sixth messenger, who was holding the trumpet-Loose the four messengers, who are bound at the great river Euphrates. 15 And the four messengers were loosed, who had been prepared for the hour, and day, and month, and year, that they should slay the third of men. 16 And, the number of the armies of the horsemen, was twice ten thousand times ten thousand-I heard the number of them. 17 And, thus, saw I the horses in the vision,-and them who were sitting upon them, having breastplates as of fire and hyacinth and brimstone;-and, the heads of the horses, were as heads of lions, and, out of their mouths, come forth fire and smoke and brimstone: 18 by these three plagues, were slain, the third part of mankind, by reason of the fire and the smoke and the brimstone, that proceedeth out of their mouths; 19 for, the licence of the horses, is, in their mouth, and in their tails, for, their tails, are like unto serpents, having heads, and, with them, they injure. 20 And, the rest of mankind who were not slain by these plagues, repented not of the works of their hands,-that they should not do homage unto the demons, nor unto the idols of gold and of silver and of copper and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; 21 Neither repented they of their murders, or of their sorceries, or of their lewdnesses, or of their thefts. "An hour, and a day – 391 years, 15 days" CT Russell HG78:1 Rev. 9:13 The golden altar – This is the golden or incense altar in the holy. mhf.com v. 9:14 This is the voice of the prayers of the saints (past martyrs) telling the angel (present martyrs) to allow the judgement of Babylon to begin. Crying out a second time - parenthetical to Rev. 6:10 "And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? rcb Another thought based on a New Albany class study guess, is that it is four individuals who were laboring within the Catholic Church, each speaking out at their appointed time. rcb The return of our Lord is represented by the angel coming down from heaven at the close of the sixth trumpet period (Rev. 10:1) and setting his foot upon (assuming control of) the land and sea (classes) — the organized, civilized, stable elements and the restless, lawless, communistic, and anarchistic phases, respectively. The latter’s being under his right foot may indicate his use of this group as his “great army.” (Joel 2:11) This scene recalls Dan. 12:1, where Michael stands up in another picture of this. This event is followed almost immediately, in 1878, by the close of the 360-year “chronos” — translated “time” in Rev. 10:6 Ludlow Loomis In R1094:2 Br. Russell mentions four reformers (not necessarily as an application of this text) as being: Knox, Melanchthon, Zwingli, Calvin. mhf.com hour=15 days day =1 year month=30 years year=360 years slay= consecrate third=that went over to protestantism men=christians The true application of Rev. 9:15 requires exactly 391 years and 15 days as the period of the prophecy's fulfillment. PSL Johnson PT1940 To slay – Not torment merely, but death, political death. CTR HG77:6 Euphrates – The people supporting the system of Babylon. Q720:4 Rev. 9:16 Two hundred thousand thousand – 200 million. - OBSERVATION: This was the population of Christendom around the time of the French Revolution. mhf.com This indicates that 200,000,000 would be involved in Bible study in the years from 1799 til 1874 when our Lord Jesus returned. Bro. Bob Jones "The Revelation Decoded and Explained" Rev. 9:17 "horses" are doctrines. "breastplate" of "fire...brimstone" = destructive to the Papacy. "Jacinth" is hard, protective and beautiful - the Bible Truth. "heads of lions" meaning spoke with authority as the "mouth" [or "mouthpieces" I Pet 4:11] of God. rcb Rev. 9:17 alternative: this refers to the eternal torment doctrine threatened by the adherents of protestantism. Bob Jones "The Revelation Decoded and Explained" Rev. 9:18 Many Catholic converts resulted from this, "killed" by the clear arguments of Scripture. rcb Rev. 9:19 The serpent tail inflicted harm, but the lion head brought death. Direct confrontation with the head was soon considered by antagonists to be inadvisable and to be avoided at all cost. The tail of a horse usually contains numerous strands of long, somewhat wiry hair. The tails in the vision were thicker than normal, resembling a snake with its head presumably at the bottom end of the tail. A free translation of this portion of the text might be rendered in two ways: (a) Each horse had one serpent tail; therefore, the several horses had several tails (one apiece). Or (b) each horse had a cluster of snakes for a tail; therefore, the several horses had several (multi-serpent) tails. The last interpretation is contextually superior. 240 Seven Seals and Seven Trumpets The lion head of the horse represents early Reformation doctrine, such as that proclaimed by Luther and his contemporary associates.22 The work began as a loud protest against religious tyranny in doctrine and practice. But as time progressed—symbolized by the hind or latter part of the horse with its tail—a notable change took place: That which before had been a single wide breach in the world of Catholicism now became splintered into several other denominational sects, each with its own head or spokesman. The lionlike roar and teeth of the one head of each horse were supplanted by the sinister quietness and the softer hissing tongues of a multitudinous serpent-headed tail. The lion head of each horse, though an exceedingly dreadful antagonist, was easier to identify and confront face to face than the less outspoken—but more numerous—subtle, evasive, and nonetheless deadly foes later to arise. Thus Papacy viewed the horse-doctrines under the sixth trumpet. In this light Papacy has, from time to time, surveyed the progress and the effect of the Reformation. Frank Shallieu "The Keys of Revelation" Rev. 9:20-21 "the rest of the men" = those spiritual leaders remaining faithful to the papacy |
6th Bowl
of Wrath
Rev. 16:12 And the sixth
poured out the bowl of himself on the river the great
Euphrates; and was dried up the water of it, so that
might be prepared the way of the kings of those from
risings of a sun.
13 And I saw out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the wild-beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet spirits three unclean as frogs; 14 (they are for spirits of demons working signs;) which go forth to the kings of the habitable whole, to gather together them for the war of the day of that of the great of the God of the almighty. 15 (Lo, I come as a thief; blessed the one watching, and keeping the garments of himself, so that not naked he may walk, and they may see the shame of him.) 16 And he gathered together them into the place that being called in Hebrew Armageddon. Then came the sixth “bowl” early in this century, which contained much less of controversial writings than the previous five had done. In fact, its title – “The New Creation” – is well in keeping with verse 12 – “that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared”; its purpose was to instruct the true church (kings of the east) in every good word and work. It was the “law,” the better way, to every one who is “of the truth.” And any one who knows and faithfully abides by the teachings of Volume Six can be assured of the best of present possibilities – “a good and honest heart.” No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students Another match between trumpets and bowls with the focus on the river Euphrates. rcb Euphrates – The people supporting the system of Babylon. Q720:4 Continuing with our view that the 7 bowls or bowls of wrath are the Studies in the Scriptures series by Pastor C.T. Russell, it is a beautiful comparison here since volume 6 "The New Creation" was specifically designed to help the footstep followers of the feet class, those at the end of the Gospel age, to become actual kings and priests, so this book was so "that the way might be prepared, of the kings who were from the rising of the sun"=the gradual revealing of the sun of righteousness at His second advent. After this book was published, public support for papacy lessened over time, drying up her symbolic Euphrates river of followers and subsequent revenues. rcb Rev. 16:13-14 "Dragon"=civil power of Rome The dragon – Civil government, especially that which once constituted civil Rome. R510:4; OV271:4 "Beast"=a mixture of religion with state = Roman Catholic Church The beast – Papacy. R510:4 "False Prophet" = united protestantism. Three – The harmonious teaching in which these can all unite is the dogmas of "the divine right of kings," "the authority of the clergy," and the claim that mankind is bound to submit to these and be controlled by them. R510:4[R510:4] [and "divine right of aristocracy"] Rev. 16:14 The spirits of devils – Doctrines of devils--the devil's theory relative to present evil governments. R510:5[R510:9] The spirit of revolution and anarchism in the world is generating a boiling, seething, condition of affairs. Q769:3 Working miracles – Working signs. R510:5 Spiritualism has not yet reached the climax of its power. Its powers are to increase wonderfully. R266:4 Unto the kings – Not only kings, but princes, generals, also those termed financial kings and merchant princes, and the great one among religious teachers. R510:6 To gather them – The croaking of the frog spirits, or doctrines, will gather the kings and princes, financial, political, religious and industrial into one great army. OV274:6; SM235:3 Ecclesiastical kings and princes will be gathered in solid phalanx--Protestant and Catholic. Political kings, financial kings and merchant princes will join the same side. OV274:4; SM233:3 The nations of the earth are already gathered together, associated by the modern methods of communication--cables, wireless telegraphs, railways and steamship lines. Q769:3 The gathering of the armies is plainly visible from the standpoint of God's Word. B101 They do not realize, however, that they are coming to Armageddon. OV274:4 To the battle – The general conflict between priest and people, rulers and ruled, capital and labor. R377:6 Organized capital on the one hand and organized labor on the other are the two forces arrayed against each other in deadly conflict. Q849:T In proportion as men have aided error and wrong, they have been battling against the new Ruler; and in proportion as their tongues, pens and hands were used to support the right and truth on any subject, they have been fighting on the Lord's side. B141 Prophecy requires an evidently larger number of wealthy Hebrews to be in Israel before the Armageddon crisis. "Jacob's trouble" in the Holy Land will come at the very close of Armageddon. OV276:5; SM239:2 This battle is the seventh plague, and is a result of the six plagues which precede it. R377:3 To war, the conflict between right and wrong. R510:6 The Millennium is preceded by the most terrible judgments on the nations; but, in consequence of these judgments, the people are turned to a pure worship. HG18:5 Typified by Gideon's battle. NS240:6 Rev. 16:15 Our Lord's thief like presence promised to be upcoming = 1874 "keep his garments" = keeping faith in Jesus, our robe of righteousness. rcb Rev. 16:16 God will be represented by the great Messiah. He will be on the side of the masses. "At that time shall Michael stand up"--assume authority. (Dan. 12:1) SM236:3 Gathered them together – The turmoil of speech and the conflict between classes are hurrying us toward the vortex of the great Armageddon. R5448:6 Warring political factions, militant suffragettes, socialists, nihilists, anarchists, labor organizations, capitalistic combinations, the ecclesiastical system, all in opposition to each and all; are rushing headlong to Armageddon. Q769:2 Armageddon – Symbolizing the great controversy between truth and error, right and wrong, God and mammon. Dii Armageddon means mount of destruction; and this describes what will be the result of their doctrine. R510:6; Dii, xiii; OV268:2; 275:2; Q769:2; SM236:3 The Scriptures abound with allusions to Armageddon. Our Lord calls it "great tribulation." (Matt. 24:21); Daniel describes it as "a time of trouble." (Dan. 12:1) OV269:2 V. 16 "Armageddon" see HERE for MORE CTR comments: |
6th PARABLE
Pearl of Great Price Matt 13:45 Again, the kingdom
of the heavens is, like, unto, a merchant, seeking
beautiful pearls,-
46 and, finding one very precious pearl, departing, he at once sold all things, whatsoever he had, and bought it. THE PEARL OF
GREAT VALUE
Pearls were much more in vogue in ancient times than now. Pearl buyers traded in these gems and carried them to the market, where they were highly estimated. The parable represents one of these pearl merchants as coming across the finest pearl he had ever seen. He considered it so priceless that he was quite rejoiced to sell or trade all of his other pearls and property that he might become the owner of that pearl. This parable represents the Gospel offer of a share with Christ in his Kingdom as being superior to all other propositions of the world. The honor of the world, of name and fame, position and wealth, are indeed desirable; as the Scriptures say, "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches"; but when our eyes behold "the pearl of great price," the Kingdom offer of joint-heirship with our Lord Jesus in his heavenly glory and the association with him in his work of blessing all the families of the earth, we realize that this is a priceless thing, worth more by far than all the honors and dignities and pleasures of the world. Those worthy to buy this pearl will gladly exchange all earthly things therefor – even their good name, and this will be necessary, as the Master forewarned them, saying, "they shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake; rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets who were before you." [R4637 : page 205] (Matthew 5:11,12). He that is not willing to have the Kingdom at such a cost is not worthy of the Kingdom. The Apostle has said, "Through much tribulation must we enter the Kingdom" (Acts 14:22); and only those who willingly endure such tribulations for righteousness' sake – for the sake of the truth, in obedience to the Heavenly calling – are overcomers. And only to the "overcomers" has the Lord given "the exceeding great and precious promises." "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne." – Rev. 3:21. Pearl= the Kingdom offer of joint-heirshipR4636 Again – This parable illustrates the process by which his Kingdom is obtainable. R4535:6 Seeking – Seeking imperishable values of not frittering away life and its opportunities; seeking for the best things, and most valuable things, temporal or spiritual. NS514:2 Goodly pearls – In ancient times the pearl occupied the chief place among the jewels of personal adornment. NS511:1 Those qualities and rewards, even of an earthly kind, which would be enduring. NS514:5 All the other pearls--of being a great doctor, a great artist, a great musician, a model house-keeper, or something else--are trifling and insignificant in comparison with this great Pearl. Q428:4; SM681:2 Luther's "Justification By Faith" keynote doctrine of the reformation. rcb |
|
7th Seal
Rev. 8:1 And when he opened
the seal the seventh, was silence in the heaven about
half an hour.
2 And I saw the seven messengers which, before God, do stand; and there were given unto them seven trumpets. 3 And, another messenger, came, and took his stand at the altar, having a censer of gold: and there was given unto him much incense, that he might give it unto the prayers of all the saints, upon the altar of gold that is before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense went up, with the prayers of the saints, out of the hand of the messenger before God. 5 And the messenger at once took the censer, and filled it from the fire of the altar, and cast unto the earth; and there came to be thunderings, and voices, and lightnings, and an earthquake. TBA: CTR commentary here... Here we can commend the remarks that form the conclusion of bro. Ludlow Loomis in his "Notes on Revelation" "Chapters 2 and 3, in the messages to the seven successive stages of the church, Chapters 6 - 8:1, the opening of the seals, and the seven trumpets in Chapters 8 - 11 show the early church and the falling away and eventually the destruction of the old order and establishment of the everlasting kingdom of righteousness. The falling away and destruction of the old order are likewise elaborated in chapters 12 - 20. Chapters 20 - 22 show the establishment of the kingdom of righteousness. Thus, though most of its visions deal with the period of the Gospel age followed by the Millennium, there is a similarity of contrast to the whole Bible narrative which starts with creation, as expressed in A56:2, showing the fall of man, which follows the account of his creation in perfection in the first three chapters of Genesis, and the restoration to everlasting righteousness and life in the last three chapters of the Bible, which are, of course, the last three chapters of Revelation itself. A56: This we do find: One plan, spirit, aim and purpose pervades the entire book. Its opening pages record the creation and fall of man; its closing pages tell of man’s recovery from that fall; and its intervening pages show the successive steps of the plan of God for the accomplishment of this purpose. The harmony, yet contrast, of the first three and the last three chapters of the Bible is striking. The one describes the first creation, the other the renewed or restored creation, with sin and its penal-curse removed; the one shows Satan and evil entering the world to deceive and destroy, the other shows his work undone, the destroyed ones restored, evil extinguished and Satan destroyed; the one shows the dominion lost by Adam, the other shows it restored and forever established by Christ, and God’s will done in earth as in heaven; the one shows sin the producing cause of degradation, shame and death, the other shows the reward of righteousness to be glory, honor and life. The importance of this book is increasing as we approach the end of the harvest period. The signs of approaching fulfilment of its closing features — the siftings among the Lord’s followers, many of whom are off guard while drinking of the water of truth (Cf. Judges 7:4- 7; the approach of a semblance of peace among the Gentiles (Jer. 6:14; 1 Thes. 5:3) and soon perhaps even in Israel too (Ezekiel 38:8, 11); Yet the unrest among the Peoples and the approaching union of churches (Rev. 13:15-17) — alert the watchers, although some would prefer to close their eyes and ears to these things and write them off as fulfilled or perhaps put them into the indefinite future. Ludlow Loomis in his "Notes on Revelation" |
7th Stage
Laodicea 1874-
Rev. 3:14 And, unto the
messenger of the assembly, in Laodicea, write:-These
things, saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness
the beginning of the creation of God:star members
15 I know thy works;-that neither, cold, art thou, nor hot: I would that, cold, thou hadst been, or hot. 16 Thus, because, lukewarm, thou art, and neither hot nor cold, I am about to vomit thee out of my mouth. 17 Because thou sayest, Rich, am I, and have become enriched, and, of nothing, have I need, and knowest not that, thou, art the wretched one, and pitiable, and destitute, and blind, and naked, 18 I counsel thee to buy of me, gold refined by fire, that thou mayest become rich,-and white raiment, that thou mayest array thyself, and, the shame of thy nakedness, may not be made manifest,-and eye-salve, to anoint thine eyes, that thou mayest see. 19 I, as many as I tenderly love, I convict and put under discipline: be zealous, therefore, and repent. 20 Lo! I am standing at the door, and knocking; if anyone shall hearken unto my voice, and open the door, I will come in unto him, and will sup with him, and, he, with, me. 21 He that overcometh, I will give, unto him, to take his seat with me in my throne, as, I also, overcame, and took my seat with my Father in his throne. 22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what, the Spirit, is saying unto the assemblies. And unto the angel – The appropriate message for each appropriate time or epoch in the Church's experience would be sent by the Lord through a particular star or messenger whom he would particularly commission as his representative. R3570:4, 2826:6 The number of Scriptures which speak of the Gospel Church after being cast off from God's favor, and of her rapid decline and fall are somewhat wonderful. In Rev. 3:14 to 21, the whole picture is vividly presented. The Lord is addressing the last phase of the Church, the seventh. [We in common, with nearly all expositors of the Apocalypse, understand the seven Churches here addressed to represent seven phases or conditions of the entire nominal Church, from the days of the apostles to the end of the Gospel age, in the order mentioned.] To this seventh Church, Jesus says: "I know thy works," [the works are greater far than the faith] "that thou art neither cold nor hot; so, then, because thou art lukewarm I will spew thee out of My mouth." What a description this is of the present condition of her, whom God calls "Babylon" – confusion – mixture – lukewarm. Babylon says she is "rich, increased in goods and has need of nothing;" that she is in a more prosperous condition than ever before, and she boasts of fine churches, high steeples, eloquent preachers, wealthy members, splendid music, large salaries and worldly popularity, and knows not that she is "poor and miserable and blind," (stumbling over present truths) and remembers not that her worldly popularity is an evidence of her disfavor with the Bridegroom. "For the friendship of the world is enmity against God." She is therefore given up, as was the fleshly house – she is "spewed out of His mouth." She has been His mouthpiece, and through her He has spoken to the world, but it shall be so no longer. "The voice of the Bridegroom and the Bride shall be heard no more at all in thee." Rev. 18:23... R177:1 The church in the end of the Gospel age. R4870:2, 5651:5 This message is sent particularly to those who profess Christ's name, but deny the truth which he himself here presents. R5993:5 "the beginning of the creation of God"- Jehovah's Logos, his Only Begotten Son. R2408:5, 3861:5 The one first created. HG272:3 He was both the first created and the first or highest in rank of the angels. As Archangel, he was pre-eminent over all and the life-giver to "all creation." R1063:6*, 1060:4, 417:6, 164:2 He has been the agent of Jehovah in all that has since been done. R369:5 The only being directly created by Jehovah. R5748:1, 1060:4 The Lord became the "only begotten son of God" at the time of his creation. Q746:3 THE CONGREGATION IN LAODICEA – (Laodicea meaning "justice for the people," in allusion to the rebellion of the masses against the classes, which speedily leads up to Armageddon). This period began technically in 1874, still continues, and contained only two "stars" – Brother Russell and Brother Johnson, the same being also the seventh and eighth principal men of Micah 5:5. J Hoefle "The Seven Stars" |
7th Trumpet
Rev. 10:7 but, in the days of
the sounding of the seventh messenger, as soon as he
is about to blow his trumpet, then shall have been
completed the sacred secret of God as he told the
good-news unto his own servants the prophets.
Rev. 11:15 And the seventh messenger sounded, and were voices great in the heaven, saying: Became the kingdom of the world, of the Lord of us and of the Anointed of him, and he will reign for the age of the ages. 16 And the twenty-four elders those in presence of the God sitting on the thrones of themselves, fell on the faces of themselves, and worshipped the God, 17 saying: We give thanks to thee, O Lord the God the almighty, the one existing and who was, because thou hast taken the power of thee the great, and reigned. 18 And the nations were angry, and came the wrath of thee, and the season of the dead ones, to be judged and to give the reward to the bond-servants of thee the prophets and to the holy ones and to those fearing the name of thee the small ones and the great ones, and to destroy those destroying the earth. 19 And was opened the temple of the God in the heaven, and was seen the ark of the covenant of the Lord in the temple of him; and were lightnings and voices and thunders and an earthquake and hail great. The seventh trumpet covers the entire period of the Millennial reign of Christ, as indicated by the events which are to transpire under it. (Rev. 11:15, 18) B149 Be finished – When the Church is exalted, the mystery both of the Church and God's plan will be finished. R194:4; A87 Mystery is used in the same sense as the word church. Thus the true and false churches are called, "The mystery of God," and "The mystery of iniquity." (Col. 1:27; 2 Thes. 2:7) R368:6 Not until the days of the voice or sounding of the seventh trumpet--in the end or close of this Gospel age and the dawn of the Millennial age. R4452:5, 368:3; CR361:4; OV6:T Not until the last seal was broken, did the scroll fly wide open, permitting the "mystery of God" to be fully disclosed. (Rev. 5:1) R2209:1, 2156:4 The due time for revealing to the Church the divine plan respecting its participation with Christ in the blessing of all the families of the earth--"meat in due season." R2490:2 This is the very time of the completion of the bride. Now there is a little flock of 144,000 as of September 16, 1916. rcb For our Pastor it was only six weeks later he passed beyond the veil October 31, 1916, "just as he is about to blow - then - shall have been completed - what we think refers to the church as the mystery finally revealed. rcb |
7th Bowl
of Wrath
Rev. 16:17 And the seventh
poured out the bowl of himself on the air; and came
forth a voice great from the temple of the heaven,
from the throne, saying: It has been done.
18 And were lightnings and voices and thunders, and an earthquake was great, such not was from of which the men were on the earth, so great an earthquake so great. 19 And was the city the great into three parts, and the cities of the nations feel; and Babylon the great was remembered before the God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the wrath of the anger of himself; 20 and every island fled away, and mountains not were found, 21 and hail great as if weighing a talent comes down out of the heaven on the men; and blasphemed the men the God on account of the plague of the hail, because great is the plague of her exceedingly. Rev. 17:1 And came one of the seven messengers of those having the seven bowls, and spoke with me, saying: Come hither, I will show to thee the judgment of the harlot the great, of that sitting on the waters the many; 2 with whom committed fornication the kings of the earth, and were made drunk those inhabiting the earth with the wine of the fornication of her. 3 And he carried away me into a desert in spirit; and I saw a woman sitting on a wild beast scarlet, being full of names of blasphemy, having heads seven and horns ten. 4 And the woman was having clothed purple and scarlet, and having been gilded with gold and a stone precious and pearls having golden a cup in the hand of herself being full of abomination, and the uncleannesses of the fornication of herself, 5 and on the forehead of herself a name having been written: Mystery: Babylon the great, the mother of the harlots and of the abominations of the earth. 6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the holy ones, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. And I wondered, having seen her a wonder great. [Wilson's Emphatic Diaglott] The seventh vial – titled “The Finished Mystery” – did not appear until 1917; and, as Brother Johnson so aptly stated, it appeared in a vile condition. It had been produced by uncleansed Levites – a “rush” production, at the urging of That Evil Servant in this haste to “eat and drink with the drunken” (Levites drunken with error). However, as the seventh “bowl” (its controversial features), there was not too much fault to be found with it, the reason for this being that the “bowl” portions of “The Finished Mystery” were almost completely paraphrase or exact quotation from the Star Member. It was the injection of their own ideas into what should have been a priestly production that brought those uncleansed Levites eventually to Atlanta Federal Penitentiary. They had run ahead of the Lord to publish the seventh vial; had published it in a vile condition; and the Lord rewarded them “according to their works” – by reducing them to durance vile (prison). In fact, the expression in verse 6 regarding Vol. 3 is also emphatically pertinent here: “Thou gavest them also blood to drink (revulsive error); they deserve it.” (Rev. 16:6, Dia.) It would seem in order here to declare that the “seventh bowl” not only plagued Big Babylon, but is also produced a severe contagion right in the backyard of those who had Published it: ecclesias in many quarters were split right down the middle over the book; it was made a test of fellowship near and far, It was not enough just to keep quiet if you did not believe all of it; you must openly espouse it. At that time we ourselves were ejected from the colporteur work because we did not offer it for sale, although we were offering the other six volumes to the public. No. 351 "In Memoriam" Epiphany Bible Students |
7th PARABLE
The Drag Net Matt 13:47 Again, the kingdom
of the heavens is like unto, a large drag-net, cast
into the sea and gathering of every kind,-
48 which, when it was filled, they dragged up on the beach, and, sitting down, collected the good into vessels, but, the worthless, forth they cast. 49 So, will it be in the conclusion of the age: The messengers will come forth, and separate the wicked from among the righteous; 50 and will cast them into the furnace of fire: there, will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. This parable is applicable to the close of the Gospel age. C213 Is like unto – Not like a net; but the embryo Kingdom resembles a fishing experience with a net. R5048:2 A net – The Gospel message. R4637:1 Representing the nominal church of this present time. HG438:6 That was cast – First cast at Pentecost, and from then to the present harvest time it has been gathering in all sorts of fish, together constituting the great nominal Gospel church. R1716:1, 920:1 Into the sea – The world. C214 And gathered – "I will make you fishers of men." (Matt. 4:19) C214; R5555:2 Of every kind – Real Christians, half-deceived and deluded Christians, and multitudes of hypocrites. C214 They – The fishermen, the Lord's people. C214; R5555:1 Drew to shore – Withdrew the invitation to a place in the Kingdom. C214 Sat down – Not to dive again into the sea, either with net or hook and line, to gather more fish. R920:2 And gathered – Separated, divided. C214; D600 "Come out of her, my people." (Rev. 18:4) D601 The catching and the sorting are two parts of the one grand work of making ready a people prepared for the Lord, corresponding to the works of the sower and the reaper. R1716:4 Into vessels – The special work of harvest is the gathering of the good fish into safety, rather than to catch more fish. R1716:4 Cast the bad away – As unsuitable for a place in the Kingdom. C214; R5555:1, 2, 4637:1 Corresponds with the tares of Matt. 13:30. The unsuitable fish in the net are all church members. The unprofessing world are not represented in the parable at all. R5048:5 End of the world – The end of this age, a sifting and separating time. R4637:1; C214 "The harvest is the end of the age." (Matt. 13:39) C214 When the Lord shall have gathered the foreordained number of the elect Church. R5048:4 The wicked – But some of the true children of God will also be rejected and get into the wailing and gnashing of teeth condition because they have assimilated with the worldly-minded. R920:5 [R1000] Furnace of fire – The great time of trouble. R5048:5[R5048:5], 4637:1[4637:1] Gnashing of teeth – "Gnawing their tongues in pain." (Rev. 16:10) R920:5 [R1000] Symbolically expressing the vexation and anger of those in whom the truth only awakens a spirit of opposition and hatred. R920:4 [R1000] See comments on Matt. 13:42 |
| Rev. 8:8 And, the voice which I
had heard out of heaven, I again heard talking with me;
and saying-Go take the opened scroll, that is in the
hand of the messenger who is standing upon the sea and
upon the land. 9 And I went away unto the messenger, asking him to give me the little scroll; and he saith unto me- Take it, and eat it up; and it shall embitter thy belly, but, in thy mouth, shall be sweet as honey. 10 And I took the little scroll out of the hand of the messenger, and did eat it up; and it was, in my mouth, as honey, sweet, and, when I had eaten it, embittered was my belly. 11 And they say unto me-It behoveth thee again to prophesy against peoples and nations and tongues, and many kings. |
More on 7 bowls of wrath "A VOICE OUT OF THE TEMPLE" The caption for this treatise is taken from Rev. 16:1, the real thought of which would be better expressed by “A voice out of the Tabernacle.” To substantiate this conclusion it becomes necessary first of all to offer an analysis of Brother Russell’s Stewardship Doctrine, which we believe to be: A correct understanding of the Atonement as portrayed in Leviticus 16, the central teaching of which is Restitution. It should be noted that those Star Members who received special stewardship doctrines received them early in their ministry; quite often those doctrines were the cause of their leaving the religious group with whom they had been associated; and it was the teaching that provided stimulus throughout their entire ministry. For instance, Martin Luther was motivated by Romans 5:1 to break with the Catholic Church, because this text was a direct contradiction of the Catholic belief in justification by works, as opposed to St. Paul’s clear statement that it is justification by faith that brings “peace with God.” Luther’s primary objection, of course, was the sale of indulgences, the elimination of which he believed would at least start a cleansing of the Roman system; but it soon became clear to him – after his expulsion from that Church – that it was simply a surface malady, fed and encouraged by justification by works. Thus, his “justification by faith” almost automatically and very quickly became the antithesis of indulgences and their underlying evils. While the doctrine of Restitution was not directly responsible for Bro. Russell’s leaving his “orthodox” surroundings, it was indeed indirectly responsible for his doing so. His very vitals rebelled at the teaching of eternal torment for the unsaved world; and this revulsion – much the same as Luther’s experiences with indulgences in turn drove him toward the proper explanation, which he received when the Atonement Day ritual was made clear to him in type and antitype. That the doctrine of Restitution sparked Brother Russell’s entire ministry after receiving this Truth surely none will dispute. It is probable he never delivered a public discourse thereafter in which Restitution did not have a large and prominent place. And those who witnessed the Photo Drama will recall the oft–repeated expressions: “India needs Restitution; China needs Restitution,” etc., etc. We know, too, that his favorite Scripture was John 3:16, 17, the mainspring of which is also Restitution – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” And early in his ministry he urged the Pilgrims and the Bethel speakers to stress Restitution in their public discourses, as he himself also did. To avoid argument, it should be here stated that Brother Russell taught all the stewardship doctrines of the past, in addition to Restitution, although he had to remove many a rough spot from those doctrines – taints, impurities and distortions that had been attached to them by the crown–lost leaders of the past. When the Harvest arrived, the time also arrived to restore “the faith once delivered to the Saints” (Jude 3), so that the “Harp of God” would once more be attuned to its pristine harmonious melody. This Brother Russell accomplished with all the skill of the master artisan! OCTOBER 1, 1968 NO. 160: "A VOICE OUT OF THE TEMPLE" by Epiphany Bible Students |
8th PARABLE
Matt 13:51 Have ye understood
all these things? They say unto him, Yea!The Householder 52 And, he, said unto them-Wherefore, every scribe, discipled unto the kingdom of the heavens, is like unto a householder, who putteth forth out of his treasure, things new and old. |
No comments:
Post a Comment