“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.” (Psalm 29:2, KJV)

Heaven’s throne reveals God’s holy, merciful reign; the living creatures call the community to worship, dependence on Christ, and practical love.

DOES THE THRONE STILL STAND?

When John passes through the open door of Revelation four, the first thing he sees is not a crisis on earth but a throne that has never been vacated: “And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.” (Revelation 4:2, KJV). Around that throne he finds a living, watching, worshiping court, and he describes its center in words that still stop a careful reader: “And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.” (Revelation 4:6, KJV). The scene does not end in silence, for those same creatures turn every waking moment into unbroken praise of the Holy One: “And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” (Revelation 4:8, KJV). Ellen G. White describes the moment when John’s lonely exile became a window into glory, “Then before his wondering vision were opened the glories of heaven.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 583, 1911) and she adds, “He was permitted to see the throne of God and, looking beyond the conflicts of earth, to behold the white-robed throng of the redeemed.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 583, 1911). That glimpse answers the question every frightened believer eventually asks in the dark, and Sr. White states the answer plainly: “The world is not without a ruler.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889). She continues with a sentence I need on my hardest days, “The program of coming events is in the hands of the Lord.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889) and she reminds us that the same was true for John on his island, “But the Lord’s hand was moving unseen in the darkness.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 581, 1911). The psalmists sang this truth long before Patmos, “O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.” (Psalm 96:9, KJV) and “The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.” (Psalm 97:1, KJV) and “The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved.” (Psalm 99:1, KJV) and the inspired pen draws its comfort out for anxious hearts: “He is the King, the Lord of hosts; He sitteth between the cherubim; and amid the strife and tumult of nations He guards His people still.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). The throne still stands, and every part of this study begins with that steady fact before it asks anything of us.

Yet John is not standing in a throne room only, for the furniture around him tells us that he has entered the heavenly sanctuary itself: “And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” (Revelation 4:5, KJV). The writer of Hebrews names that same place as the true tabernacle, where our High Priest now serves on our behalf: “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;” (Hebrews 8:1, KJV) and “A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.” (Hebrews 8:2, KJV). Moses was never left to design Israel’s sanctuary from his own imagination, because God gave the pattern along with the command: “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” (Exodus 25:8, KJV) and “According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.” (Exodus 25:9, KJV). The prophetic messenger explains why that pattern matters so much for our reading of John’s vision, “The holy places of the sanctuary in heaven are represented by the two apartments in the sanctuary on earth.” (The Great Controversy, p. 414, 1911) and “Moses made the earthly sanctuary after a pattern which was shown him.” (The Great Controversy, p. 415, 1911). In The Great Controversy we read a description of the earthly tent that makes its heavenly original seem almost too bright to imagine: “The matchless splendor of the earthly tabernacle reflected to human vision the glories of that heavenly temple where Christ our forerunner ministers for us before the throne of God.” (The Great Controversy, p. 414, 1911). Through inspired counsel we are told what stands at the heart of that temple and why every believer must study it: “In the temple in heaven, the dwelling place of God, His throne is established in righteousness and judgment.” (The Great Controversy, p. 415, 1911) and “All need a knowledge for themselves of the position and work of their great High Priest.” (The Great Controversy, p. 488, 1911). When the temple in heaven later opens in John’s vision, the ark comes into view, “And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” (Revelation 11:19, KJV) and Sr. White explains the figures that guard it: “The cherubim of the earthly sanctuary, looking reverently down upon the mercy seat, represent the interest with which the heavenly host contemplate the work of redemption.” (The Great Controversy, p. 415, 1911). We begin, then, inside a sanctuary, and every creature we meet in these chapters must be read in the light of that sacred room.

But a throne can still terrify us unless we know the character of the One who sits upon it, so John records what surrounds the seat: “And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.” (Revelation 4:3, KJV). Ezekiel saw the same arch of colored light beside the river Chebar, and its gentle beauty softened the blaze of everything around it: “As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.” (Ezekiel 1:28, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read a sentence that places this sign of mercy directly over the Saviour, “In heaven the semblance of a rainbow encircles the throne and overarches the head of Christ.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 107, 1890) and the prophetic messenger adds, “Heavenly beings were impelling these wheels, and, above all, upon the glorious sapphire throne, was the Eternal One; while round about the throne was the encircling rainbow, emblem of grace and love.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889). The rainbow first appeared over a drowned world as a pledge, and the God who gave it reigns from a throne that no flood can shake: “I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.” (Genesis 9:13, KJV) and “The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.” (Psalm 103:19, KJV). Sr. White ties that ancient sign to the security of every believer who trusts the One on the throne, “It is an assurance to us of strength and protection as long as the throne itself shall endure.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 493, 1898) and she explains why heaven never governs by terror alone: “Only by love is love awakened.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 22, 1898). The psalmist names the two pillars on which this throne rests, and The Desire of Ages shows that both grow from one root: “Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.” (Psalm 89:14, KJV) and “Justice is the foundation of His throne, and the fruit of His love.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 762, 1898). When Moses asked to see God’s glory, the Lord proclaimed His name, and the inspired pen says the same character guides heaven’s government: “And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,” (Exodus 34:6, KJV) and “It was an unfolding of the principles that from eternal ages have been the foundation of God’s throne.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 22, 1898). The throne is fearful only to the one who has never seen the rainbow, and I need to see both before I study the creatures beside it.

While the throne reveals God’s character, the crowd gathered around it reveals how closely heaven watches the affairs of this small world: “And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;” (Revelation 5:11, KJV). Daniel saw the same multitude in his night vision, and its numbers outrun every census that any earthly kingdom has ever taken: “A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.” (Daniel 7:10, KJV). Through inspired counsel we are told what this vast company will one day mean to ordinary believers who felt forgotten, “Then we shall know that the whole family of heaven was interested in the family here below, and that messengers from the throne of God attended our steps from day to day.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 240, 1898). The angels are not idle spectators, because Scripture describes them as servants sent out on errands of mercy to the weak: “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14, KJV) and “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” (Psalm 34:7, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes their temperament with a warmth that surprises anyone who imagined heaven as cold and distant, “The angels of glory find their joy in giving,—giving love and tireless watchcare to souls that are fallen and unholy.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898) and “Heavenly beings woo the hearts of men; they bring to this dark world light from the courts above; by gentle and patient ministry they move upon the human spirit, to bring the lost into a fellowship with Christ which is even closer than they themselves can know.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898). The prophetic messenger adds that this host stands ready to act for the faithful, “Myriads of glorified beings were ready at His word to overrule the power and policy of evil men, and bring good to His faithful ones.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889) and she lifts a weight from tired shoulders: “Finite men are not left to carry the burden of responsibility.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pp. 753, 754, 1889) and “We need to trust in God, believe in Him, and go forward.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). The psalmist calls these mighty servants to join the praise that fills the throne room, and I am invited to join them: “Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.” (Psalm 103:20, KJV) and “Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.” (Psalm 103:21, KJV). Heaven is crowded, attentive, and on our side, and that truth changes how we read every strange face and wing in the chapters ahead.

Yet the center of John’s vision is not an angel, an elder, or a living creature, because a wounded Lamb stands in the midst of them all: “And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.” (Revelation 5:6, KJV). The book of Hebrews explains what that Lamb is doing for us now, and its answer gives every trembling sinner a reason to stay: “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews 7:25, KJV). In The Great Controversy we read a sentence that keeps the cross and the sanctuary together in one saving work, “The intercession of Christ in man’s behalf in the sanctuary above is as essential to the plan of salvation as was His death upon the cross.” (The Great Controversy, p. 489, 1911) and “The sanctuary in heaven is the very center of Christ’s work in behalf of men.” (The Great Controversy, p. 488, 1911). Because our Advocate stands in that place, Scripture invites us to come near to the throne instead of hiding from its light: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16, KJV) and “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” (1 John 2:1, KJV). Sr. White speaks of that open approach with great tenderness for people who doubt their welcome, “Jesus has opened the way to the Father’s throne, and through His mediation the sincere desire of all who come to Him in faith may be presented before God.” (The Great Controversy, p. 489, 1911). The Desire of Ages assures us that the Saviour who shares heaven’s throne has not traded His sympathy for His glory: “Though now He has ascended to the presence of God, and shares the throne of the universe, Jesus has lost none of His compassionate nature.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 480, 1898) and “Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). Paul presses the point with a question that leaves no room for despair, and the prophetic messenger sounds the same note: “Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” (Romans 8:34, KJV) and “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.” (Hebrews 4:14, KJV) and “He who ruleth in the heavens is our Saviour.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). Every creature in this study will finally point back to that Lamb, and any reading that pushes Him to the edge has misread the scene.

But a vision of glory can crush a person before it comforts him, and John himself collapsed when he first saw the risen Christ: “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:” (Revelation 1:17, KJV). The hand that touched him belonged to the One who had already conquered the grave, and His words still steady the frightened: “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” (Revelation 1:18, KJV). The Acts of the Apostles tells us what followed that gentle touch on the shoulder of an old and weary exile, “John was strengthened to live in the presence of his glorified Lord.” (The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 582, 583, 1911) and it explains why the whole book was given to us: “This revelation was given for the guidance and comfort of the church throughout the Christian dispensation.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 583, 1911). Scripture calls us to a reverence that trembles without running away, and it pairs holy fear with real gladness: “Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.” (Psalm 2:11, KJV) and “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:” (Hebrews 12:28, KJV). Sr. White describes the right posture for every student who opens these chapters with a beating heart, “A sense of the power and wisdom of God, and of our inability to comprehend His greatness, should inspire us with humility, and we should open His word, as we would enter His presence, with holy awe.” (Steps to Christ, p. 110, 1892). Through inspired counsel we are told that this holy awe need not harden into dread for the honest seeker, “None need be in darkness in regard to what is coming upon the earth.” (The Great Controversy, p. 342, 1911) and “God is bending from His throne to hear the cry of the oppressed.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 356, 1898). Isaiah heard the same comfort spoken to a frightened nation, and the inspired pen echoes it for our own uncertain hour: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10, KJV) and “But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” (Isaiah 43:1, KJV) and “With the golden chain of His matchless love Christ has bound them to the throne of God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 679, 1898). We may approach these creatures with trembling, but we will not approach them alone, and that confidence makes honest study possible.

While Revelation opens the door, it never asks us to read it alone, because John’s living creatures echo visions that God gave long before: “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” (Isaiah 6:1, KJV). Ezekiel received his own vision far from the temple, beside a foreign river, in a season when exile seemed to have silenced heaven: “Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.” (Ezekiel 1:1, KJV). The prophetic messenger links these prophets together and shows that one lesson runs through all of their visions, “Ezekiel, the mourning exile prophet, in the land of the Chaldeans, was given a vision teaching the same lesson of faith in the mighty God of Israel.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889). Of Isaiah’s vision, which came in a season of national grief and royal loss, Sr. White writes these strengthening words, “He had seen the King, the Lord of hosts; he had heard the song of the seraphim, ‘The whole earth is full of His glory;’ and the prophet was nerved for the work before him.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889). Our study will also stop at the brook Jabbok, where Jacob met the Angel during a night that changed his name forever: “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.” (Genesis 32:24, KJV) and “And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.” (Genesis 32:28, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read why Jacob’s night belongs beside the great throne visions of the prophets, “Jacob’s experience during that night of wrestling and anguish represents the trial through which the people of God must pass just before Christ’s second coming.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 201, 1890) and “It was by self-surrender and confiding faith that Jacob gained what he had failed to gain by conflict in his own strength.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890). Paul reminds us that God spoke in many ways across the centuries, and the inspired pen adds that His word keeps opening to earnest readers: “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,” (Hebrews 1:1, KJV) and “Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;” (Hebrews 1:2, KJV) and “God intends that to the earnest seeker the truths of His word shall be ever unfolding.” (Education, pp. 170, 171, 1903) and “Its truths are addressed to those living in the last days of this earth’s history, as well as to those living in the days of John.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 584, 1911). Before we enter those scenes, however, we must face a danger that has misled many sincere readers of these very chapters.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WONDER GOES ASTRAY?

Curiosity about heaven is not a sin, yet it turns dangerous the moment it treats the silence of Scripture as an invitation to invent: “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.” (Deuteronomy 29:29, KJV). Solomon saw no shame in mystery, because he understood that the concealment of some things belongs to God’s own glory: “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.” (Proverbs 25:2, KJV). In The Ministry of Healing we read a gentle boundary line for everyone who loves to explore the deep places of Scripture, “The revelation of Himself that God has given in His word is for our study.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 429, 1905) and the counsel continues, “But beyond this we are not to penetrate.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 429, 1905). Zophar asked a question that every bold interpreter of prophetic symbols should hear before he starts to speak: “Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?” (Job 11:7, KJV). Sr. White answers with equal plainness, “No finite mind can fully comprehend the character or the works of the Infinite One.” (Education, p. 169, 1903) and she locates the problem in us rather than in God, “The limitation is not in His purpose, but in our capacity.” (Education, p. 171, 1903). Paul ended his deepest reasoning in worship rather than in pride, “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33, KJV) and the psalmist had long before confessed the same humility: “LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me.” (Psalm 131:1, KJV). Isaiah measures the distance between God’s thoughts and ours like the distance between earth and sky, and the inspired pen draws the lesson: “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9, KJV) and “To acknowledge that we cannot fully comprehend the great truths of the Bible is only to admit that the finite mind is inadequate to grasp the infinite; that man, with his limited, human knowledge, cannot understand the purposes of Omniscience.” (Steps to Christ, p. 108, 1892) and “Neither by searching the recesses of the earth nor in vain endeavors to penetrate the mysteries of God’s being, is wisdom found. It is found, rather, in humbly receiving the revelation that He has been pleased to give, and in conforming the life to His will.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 431, 1905). Holy curiosity knows where the map ends, and it rests there in worship instead of drawing imaginary roads into the dark.

Yet the boundary between the revealed and the secret was tested in Eden long before anyone argued about the faces of the living creatures: “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:17, KJV). The serpent opened his campaign with a question that sounded like innocent inquiry from a curious friend: “Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1, KJV). He then offered knowledge as though God were hoarding it, “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5, KJV) and Eve began to look at the forbidden tree with brand new eyes: “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” (Genesis 3:6, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read how the tempter still works on the same restless corner of the human heart, “He is constantly seeking to excite a spirit of irreverent curiosity, a restless, inquisitive desire to penetrate the secrets of divine wisdom and power.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 54, 55, 1890) and “In their efforts to search out what God has been pleased to withhold, multitudes overlook the truths which He has revealed, and which are essential to salvation.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 55, 1890). The prophetic messenger names the same bait in another place and shows how attractive it looked to our first parents, “Satan insinuated into the minds of our first parents a desire for a speculative knowledge, whereby he declared they would greatly improve their condition; but in order to gain this, they must take a course contrary to God’s holy will; for God would not lead them to the greatest heights.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 503, 1889). Paul feared that the same old method would work on believers in his own day, and John named the doors it still uses: “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” (2 Corinthians 11:3, KJV) and “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” (1 John 2:16, KJV). Through inspired counsel we are warned that Eve’s children share her hunger, “The sons and daughters of Adam are fully as inquisitive and presumptuous as was Eve in seeking forbidden knowledge.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 504, 1889) and Sr. White adds two short lines that settle it: “True knowledge is divine.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 503, 1889) and “Whatever contradicts God’s word, we may be sure proceeds from Satan.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 55, 1890). My curiosity is safe only when it stays obedient, and the creatures before the throne will show us what obedient wonder looks like.

But the danger did not end in Eden, because readers can repeat the serpent’s method when they load symbols with meanings the text never gave: “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.” (2 Peter 1:20, KJV). Peter admitted that some passages are hard, and he warned that unstable minds twist them to their own lasting harm: “As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.” (2 Peter 3:16, KJV). In The Great Controversy we read a sharp warning about teachers who prefer hidden meanings to the plain ones God supplied, “The truths most plainly revealed in the Bible have been involved in doubt and darkness by learned men, who, with a pretense of great wisdom, teach that the Scriptures have a mystical, a secret, spiritual meaning not apparent in the language employed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 598, 1911). The same chapter gives a simple guide for every student who meets a lion, a calf, or an eagle in prophecy, “The language of the Bible should be explained according to its obvious meaning, unless a symbol or figure is employed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). Agur guards that guide with a stern promise, and John closes the whole Bible with the same caution against additions: “Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.” (Proverbs 30:5, KJV) and “Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.” (Proverbs 30:6, KJV) and “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:” (Revelation 22:18, KJV). The Acts of the Apostles notes how easily a clever mind can build an elaborate structure out of borrowed verses, “Men having fanciful views may bring together passages of Scripture and put a human construction on them, but the acceptance of these views will not strengthen the church.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 52, 1911) and “Scriptural difficulties can never be mastered by the same methods that are employed in grappling with philosophical problems.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). Isaiah gives the test that settles every disputed reading, and the inspired pen applies that test to our own age: “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” (Isaiah 8:20, KJV) and “Human theories and speculations will never lead to an understanding of God’s word.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 110, 1900) and “The vague and fanciful interpretations of Scripture, and the many conflicting theories concerning religious faith, that are found in the Christian world are the work of our great adversary to confuse minds so that they shall not discern the truth.” (The Great Controversy, p. 520, 1911). When I meet the four faces, I must let the inspired writers define them before my imagination begins to decorate them.

While some readers say too much about prophecy, others say nothing at all, and their silence is not the humility it pretends to be: “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” (Revelation 1:3, KJV). Daniel was told to seal part of his book only until the time of the end, while John was told to leave his book open: “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” (Daniel 12:4, KJV) and “And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.” (Revelation 22:10, KJV). The Acts of the Apostles exposes the false modesty of the closed book and the teachers who promoted it, “Yet religious teachers have declared that it is a sealed book and its secrets cannot be explained.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 583, 1911) and “But God does not wish His people to regard the book thus.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 583, 1911). The very title of the last book of the Bible answers the objection, as the prophetic messenger reminds us with a smile: “The very name given to its inspired pages, ‘the Revelation,’ contradicts the statement that this is a sealed book.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 584, 1911) and “A revelation is something revealed.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 584, 1911). Jesus Himself sent His followers back to the prophet Daniel, and Amos says that God does nothing without revealing His secret: “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)” (Matthew 24:15, KJV) and “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7, KJV). In Education we read a sentence that should trouble every congregation that quietly skips the hard chapters of the Bible, “The idea that certain portions of the Bible cannot be understood has led to neglect of some of its most important truths.” (Education, p. 171, 1903). Paul insists that the whole of Scripture is profitable, and Sr. White applies that same confidence to the symbols of Revelation: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” (2 Timothy 3:16, KJV) and “Let none think, because they cannot explain the meaning of every symbol in the Revelation, that it is useless for them to search this book in an effort to know the meaning of the truth it contains.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 584, 1911). Neglect and speculation look like opposites, but both leave the believer without the comfort God placed in these chapters.

Yet the deepest root of both errors is pride, which wants either to master the sacred text or to dismiss it entirely: “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5, KJV) and “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.” (Proverbs 3:7, KJV). Paul warned the Corinthians that knowledge can inflate a person while love quietly builds him up from the inside: “Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.” (1 Corinthians 8:1, KJV) and “And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know.” (1 Corinthians 8:2, KJV). Steps to Christ describes the inner movement of that pride with uncomfortable precision for anyone who loves to study, “A certain pride is mingled with the consideration of Bible truth, so that men feel impatient and defeated if they cannot explain every portion of Scripture to their satisfaction.” (Steps to Christ, p. 108, 1892) and “It is too humiliating to them to acknowledge that they do not understand the inspired words.” (Steps to Christ, p. 108, 1892). The prophetic messenger adds a warning that reaches the trained scholar and the eager beginner alike, “All who trust to the boastful decisions of human reason and imagine that they can explain divine mysteries and arrive at truth unaided by the wisdom of God are entangled in the snare of Satan.” (The Great Controversy, p. 601, 1911). God resists the proud, James says, but He looks with favor on the trembling heart that Isaiah describes: “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” (James 4:6, KJV) and “For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.” (Isaiah 66:2, KJV). Through inspired counsel we are told how pride can hide even inside careful and sincere study, “Yet we are to beware of deifying reason, which is subject to the weakness and infirmity of humanity.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 109, 110, 1892) and “We must come with a humble and teachable spirit to obtain knowledge from the great I AM.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). In Christ’s Object Lessons we read what the proud reader finally loses when he insists on mastering the text, “By those who are wise in their own estimation, who are puffed up by the teaching of vain philosophy, the beauty and power and mystery of the plan of redemption are not perceived.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 104, 1900). The seraphim cover their faces before God, and pride in study is simply my refusal to cover mine.

But humility alone is not enough, because we need a Teacher who knows the mind of God from the inside: “But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:10, KJV) and “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:11, KJV). Jesus promised that same Teacher to His disciples, and the psalmist prayed for opened eyes before he opened the scroll: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 16:13, KJV) and “Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” (Psalm 119:18, KJV). Steps to Christ states the principle plainly for every reader who wants to understand the throne room, “We can attain to an understanding of God’s word only through the illumination of that Spirit by which the word was given.” (Steps to Christ, p. 109, 1892) and “If we would not have the Scriptures clouded to our understanding, so that the plainest truths shall not be comprehended, we must have the simplicity and faith of a little child, ready to learn, and beseeching the aid of the Holy Spirit.” (Steps to Christ, p. 110, 1892). The Great Controversy adds a habit of practice in one short sentence that I should keep on the first page of my Bible: “The Bible should never be studied without prayer.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). Sr. White also describes what happens when we skip that step and rush into the text on our own, “When the word of God is opened without reverence and without prayer; when the thoughts and affections are not fixed upon God, or in harmony with His will, the mind is clouded with doubts; and in the very study of the Bible, skepticism strengthens.” (Steps to Christ, p. 110, 1892). James promises wisdom to anyone who asks in faith, and the psalmist says that God’s word gives light the moment it enters: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5, KJV) and “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” (Psalm 119:130, KJV). Through inspired counsel we learn who stands beside us at the study table and what truly qualifies a reader, “It is the office of heavenly angels to prepare the heart so to comprehend God’s word that we shall be charmed with its beauty, admonished by its warnings, or animated and strengthened by its promises.” (The Great Controversy, p. 600, 1911) and “An understanding of Bible truth depends not so much on the power of intellect brought to the search as on the singleness of purpose, the earnest longing after righteousness.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). The creatures around the throne are full of eyes, and prayer is the way God opens mine to see what they see.

While prayer opens the eyes, obedience keeps them open, and Jesus tied real understanding directly to the surrendered will: “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” (John 7:17, KJV). James warns that hearing without doing is a quiet form of self-deception, and Jesus blesses those who keep what they hear: “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (James 1:22, KJV) and “But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.” (Luke 11:28, KJV). Steps to Christ names the hidden cause behind much doubt that wears the costume of honest questioning, “Disguise it as they may, the real cause of doubt and skepticism, in most cases, is the love of sin.” (Steps to Christ, p. 111, 1892) and “In order to arrive at truth, we must have a sincere desire to know the truth and a willingness of heart to obey it.” (Steps to Christ, p. 111, 1892). In The Great Controversy we read an explanation for confusion that has nothing to do with intelligence, “One reason why many theologians have no clearer understanding of God’s word is, they close their eyes to truths which they do not wish to practice.” (The Great Controversy, p. 599, 1911). The prophetic messenger then gives counsel that every restless questioner can begin to practice before the sun sets tonight, “Instead of questioning and caviling concerning that which you do not understand, give heed to the light that already shines upon you, and you will receive greater light.” (Steps to Christ, p. 111, 1892) and “By the grace of Christ, perform every duty that has been made plain to your understanding, and you will be enabled to understand and perform those of which you are now in doubt.” (Steps to Christ, p. 111, 1892). Solomon pictures this growth as dawn spreading into noon, and the psalmist ties true wisdom to the fear of the Lord: “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” (Proverbs 4:18, KJV) and “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.” (Psalm 111:10, KJV). Jesus promised to reveal Himself to the one who keeps His words, and Sr. White explains where that keeping begins: “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” (John 14:21, KJV) and “All true obedience comes from the heart.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898). I will understand more of the throne room when I obey more of what I already know, and God will not reverse that order for me.

But the mysteries that humble us today are not walls; they are invitations to a study that eternity itself will never finish: “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12, KJV). Paul prayed that believers would grasp a love whose dimensions outrun knowledge, and he named Christ as the treasury of all wisdom: “May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;” (Ephesians 3:18, KJV) and “And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.” (Ephesians 3:19, KJV) and “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3, KJV). Steps to Christ turns our limits into good news for anyone who fears that faith requires total understanding, “If it were possible for created beings to attain to a full understanding of God and His works, then, having reached this point, there would be for them no further discovery of truth, no growth in knowledge, no further development of mind or heart.” (Steps to Christ, p. 109, 1892) and the next line adds, “Let us thank God that it is not so.” (Steps to Christ, p. 109, 1892). In Education we read an image that belongs in every honest study of the throne room and its strange inhabitants, “As we contemplate the great things of God’s word, we look into a fountain that broadens and deepens beneath our gaze.” (Education, p. 171, 1903) and “It is impossible for any human mind to exhaust even one truth or promise of the Bible.” (Education, p. 171, 1903). The psalmist admitted that such knowledge was too wonderful for him, and Isaiah declares that God’s understanding has no floor: “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.” (Psalm 139:6, KJV) and “Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.” (Isaiah 40:28, KJV). The Great Controversy carries the thought forward into the life of the redeemed, where learning and worship never part ways, “As knowledge is progressive, so will love, reverence, and happiness increase.” (The Great Controversy, p. 678, 1911) and “The more men learn of God, the greater will be their admiration of His character.” (The Great Controversy, p. 678, 1911). The living creatures have watched the throne for ages and still cry holy, which tells me that their wonder has never run dry.

Yet wonder that never ripens into love remains incomplete, because the God behind the mysteries wants to be known and trusted: “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” (1 John 4:8, KJV). John learned this lesson at the Saviour’s side and repeated it as an old man to churches that needed it badly: “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.” (1 John 4:16, KJV). In The Ministry of Healing we read a sentence that frees every ordinary believer from the pressure to have all the answers, “We are as ignorant of God as little children; but, as little children, we may love and obey Him.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 429, 1905). Jesus set a small child at the center of His kingdom, and the psalmist calls each of us to stillness before God: “And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3, KJV) and “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains why God reveals Himself to us at all and how He chooses to win the heart, “To know God is to love Him; His character must be manifested in contrast to the character of Satan.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 22, 1898) and “The exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God’s government; He desires only the service of love; and love cannot be commanded; it cannot be won by force or authority.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 22, 1898). Steps to Christ promises a fitting end to every honest search through the hard places of Scripture, “And as we draw near to Jesus, and rejoice in the fullness of His love, our doubt and darkness will disappear in the light of His presence.” (Steps to Christ, p. 112, 1892) and Education adds, “The more we search the Bible, the deeper is our conviction that it is the word of the living God, and human reason bows before the majesty of divine revelation.” (Education, p. 170, 1903). The psalms join reverence and praise in one breath, and the inspired pen shows how mystery feeds faith: “God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.” (Psalm 89:7, KJV) and “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.” (Psalm 145:3, KJV) and “The very grandeur and mystery of the themes presented should inspire faith in it as the word of God.” (Steps to Christ, p. 107, 1892). With our curiosity humbled and our love awakened, we are ready to look closely at the four living creatures themselves.

WHO ARE THESE FOUR LIVING CREATURES?

When John passes through heaven’s open door, “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” (Revelation 4:1, KJV) and his eyes rest on four living figures who stand nearer to God than any other beings in the scene: “And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.” (Revelation 4:7, KJV). Scripture insists that every such being, however radiant, owes its existence to the Son of God and stands among His created servants: “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:” (Colossians 1:16, KJV) and “Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:” (Psalm 104:4, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read a portrait of those servants that matches the urgency of wings and the brightness of watching eyes, “Angels are God’s ministers, radiant with the light ever flowing from His presence and speeding on rapid wing to execute His will.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 34, 1890). The same book describes the gladness that filled heaven before sin, when every holy being found its happiness in God’s purpose, “It was the joy of the heavenly host to fulfill the purpose of their Creator.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890) and “They delighted in reflecting His glory and showing forth His praise.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890). Nehemiah heard this truth confessed in Jerusalem, and the psalmist summons every rank of heaven to join the same confession: “Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.” (Nehemiah 9:6, KJV) and “Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.” (Psalm 148:2, KJV). The Desire of Ages names the highest orders of that host on the day Christ returned to the throne after His victory, “There are cherubim and seraphim.” (The Desire of Ages, pp. 833, 834, 1898) and the prophetic messenger adds, “From the highest seraph to the humblest animate being, all are replenished from the Source of life.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 785, 1898). Through inspired counsel we learn that God intended even these exalted beings for something more intimate than service alone, “From eternal ages it was God’s purpose that every created being, from the bright and holy seraph to man, should be a temple for the indwelling of the Creator.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 161, 1898). Before we ask what their faces mean, we should see who they are: created servants whose whole glory is borrowed from the throne they surround.

Yet the King James word “beasts” can mislead a modern reader, because Daniel and John also use that word for the cruel powers of this world: “And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.” (Daniel 7:3, KJV) and “These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.” (Daniel 7:17, KJV). John saw such a power rise from the sea later in his book, and its crowns and blasphemies mark it as heaven’s enemy: “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.” (Revelation 13:1, KJV). The prophetic messenger explains how those other beasts are meant to be read and what they represent in prophecy, “The great kingdoms that have ruled the world were presented to the prophet Daniel as beasts of prey, rising when ‘the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.’” (The Great Controversy, pp. 439, 440, 1911) and “The four winds of heaven striving upon the great sea represent the terrible scenes of conquest and revolution by which kingdoms have attained to power.” (The Great Controversy, p. 440, 1911). In The Great Controversy we also read why every symbol must be handled with care rather than guessed at from its English label, “A correct interpretation of the symbols employed is necessary to an understanding of this message.” (The Great Controversy, p. 438, 1911). The creatures around the throne belong to a completely different order, since the Greek word John uses for them simply means living ones. Ezekiel’s own name for the beings he saw carries the same meaning, and John later shows them bowing beside the elders in worship: “Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.” (Ezekiel 1:5, KJV) and “And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.” (Revelation 19:4, KJV) and “Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.” (Psalm 150:6, KJV). The Desire of Ages reminds us where every living being draws its life, “All created beings live by the will and power of God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 785, 1898) and “They are dependent recipients of the life of God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 785, 1898) and Patriarchs and Prophets describes the harmony such dependence produced: “So long as all created beings acknowledged the allegiance of love, there was perfect harmony throughout the universe of God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 34, 35, 1890). The beasts of Daniel devour and dominate, while the living ones of Revelation receive and worship, and that contrast tells us how to read them.

But heaven has also seen a cherub who refused to stay in his place, and his story shows why the loyal creatures matter so much: “Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.” (Ezekiel 28:14, KJV) and “Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” (Ezekiel 28:15, KJV). The prophet traces the fall to a heart that admired its own brilliance, “Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.” (Ezekiel 28:17, KJV) and Isaiah records the ambition that grew from that admiration: “For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:” (Isaiah 14:13, KJV) and “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:14, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read where this mighty being once stood before sin entered his heart, “Lucifer, ‘son of the morning,’ was first of the covering cherubs, holy and undefiled.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890) and “Lucifer, the covering cherub, desired to be first in heaven.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898). Through inspired counsel we learn how the slow corruption began, and the lesson reaches every gifted person in every age, “Though all his glory was from God, this mighty angel came to regard it as pertaining to himself.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890). Sr. White names the root of that tragedy with a sentence I need to read whenever my own gifts are praised, “The high honors conferred upon Lucifer were not appreciated as God’s special gift, and therefore, called forth no gratitude to his Creator.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 37, 1890) and she shows the goal he finally chose: “Not content with his position, though honored above the heavenly host, he ventured to covet homage due alone to the Creator.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890). The same chapter describes the very worship he abandoned, when the holy host bowed before Christ, “The angels joyfully acknowledged the supremacy of Christ, and prostrating themselves before Him, poured out their love and adoration.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 36, 1890). John saw the final result of that choice, “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Revelation 12:9, KJV) and the four living creatures stand in the vision as the opposite of the fallen cherub in every way.

While one cherub fell, multitudes of heavenly beings stayed loyal, and Scripture calls their faithfulness a war that heaven won: “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,” (Revelation 12:7, KJV). They had sung at the birth of the world, and they still gather in numbers that make the holy mountain seem crowded: “When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:7, KJV) and “The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.” (Psalm 68:17, KJV) and “But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,” (Hebrews 12:22, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read how those loyal ones answered the rebellion with patience before they answered it with strength, “But angels who were loyal and true maintained the wisdom and justice of the divine decree and endeavored to reconcile this disaffected being to the will of God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 38, 1890) and “The loyal angels could see only terrible consequences from this dissension, and with earnest entreaty they counseled the disaffected ones to renounce their purpose and prove themselves loyal to God by fidelity to His government.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 39, 1890). The prophetic messenger records that they kept pleading even after their warnings had been scorned, “Still the loyal angels urged him and his sympathizers to submit to God; and they set before them the inevitable result should they refuse: He who had created them could overthrow their power and signally punish their rebellious daring.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 40, 1890). Sr. White also explains why God let the conflict run its course rather than ending it by force, “Since only the service of love can be acceptable to God, the allegiance of His creatures must rest upon a conviction of His justice and benevolence.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 42, 1890). John heard these faithful ones fall on their faces before the throne, and their worship rang with a sevenfold amen: “And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,” (Revelation 7:11, KJV) and “Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.” (Revelation 7:12, KJV). The Desire of Ages tells us what these unfallen beings will study forever beside us, “Both the redeemed and the unfallen beings will find in the cross of Christ their science and their song.” (The Desire of Ages, pp. 19, 20, 1898) and Patriarchs and Prophets records the sad choice of those who refused them: “But pride, love for their leader, and the desire for unrestricted freedom were permitted to bear sway, and the pleadings of divine love and mercy were finally rejected.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 41, 1890). The living creatures represent that loyal host, and their steady praise is the sound of a rebellion that never won them over.

Yet loyalty in heaven is never blind, because John says the living creatures are covered with eyes, and Scripture uses that picture for God’s own watchfulness: “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” (Proverbs 15:3, KJV) and “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” (2 Chronicles 16:9, KJV). Zechariah connected the eyes of the Lord with a small and discouraged building project, and the psalmist said those eyes rest gently on the hopeful: “For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.” (Zechariah 4:10, KJV) and “Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;” (Psalm 33:18, KJV). The Great Controversy shows that heaven’s attention reaches each believer by name and not only the church as a crowd, “A guardian angel is appointed to every follower of Christ.” (The Great Controversy, p. 512, 1911) and “These heavenly watchers shield the righteous from the power of the wicked one.” (The Great Controversy, pp. 512, 513, 1911). Sr. White adds a promise for days when evil seems wide awake and every friend seems to be asleep, “Thus God’s people, exposed to the deceptive power and unsleeping malice of the prince of darkness, and in conflict with all the forces of evil, are assured of the unceasing guardianship of heavenly angels.” (The Great Controversy, p. 513, 1911). The Ministry of Healing turns that same watchfulness toward the hidden labor that the world rarely notices, “Heavenly angels watch the care-worn mother, noting the burdens she carries day by day.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 377, 1905) and Christ’s Object Lessons adds a searching line: “Angels are watching with intense interest to see how man is dealing with his fellow men.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 149, 1900). The writer of Hebrews and the psalmist both remind us that nothing escapes the sight of God, not even the darkness: “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” (Hebrews 4:13, KJV) and “Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.” (Psalm 139:12, KJV). The Desire of Ages tells us where those watchful messengers go first when trouble gathers around a believer, “Angels are ever present where they are most needed, with those who have the hardest battle with self to fight, and whose surroundings are the most discouraging.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 440, 1898). Those many eyes comfort the struggling and warn the careless, and I need both messages in the same week.

But the creatures are also tireless, resting neither day nor night, and John uses the same words for the redeemed who serve before the throne: “Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.” (Revelation 7:15, KJV). Their sleepless worship mirrors the sleepless care of the God they serve, a care the psalmist celebrated on the road to Jerusalem: “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” (Psalm 121:4, KJV). The Desire of Ages applies that care to the infant Jesus in His greatest danger, “But He who never slumbers nor sleeps was watching over His beloved Son.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 65, 1898) and Patriarchs and Prophets describes heaven’s working habits: “The angels are diligent workers; they are the ministers of God to the children of men.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 50, 1890). Through inspired counsel we learn that their ceaseless motion connects heaven and earth like traffic on a busy road, “Angels are constantly ascending and descending this ladder of shining brightness, bearing the prayers of the needy and distressed to the Father above, and bringing blessing and hope, courage and help, to the children of men.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 153, 1911). The psalms invite God’s servants to join that night watch of praise, from sunrise to sunset and from morning into night: “Behold, bless ye the LORD, all ye servants of the LORD, which by night stand in the house of the LORD.” (Psalm 134:1, KJV) and “From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’s name is to be praised.” (Psalm 113:3, KJV) and “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:” (Psalm 92:1, KJV) and “To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,” (Psalm 92:2, KJV). Sr. White describes heaven as a life that never stops drawing near to God, “Heaven is a ceaseless approaching to God through Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 331, 1898) and she adds a short rebuke for my own distracted days: “We dwell too near the lowlands of earth.” (Steps to Christ, p. 102, 1892). The Desire of Ages even shows that heaven never grows tired of hearing the same beloved name praised, “Again is heard the challenge, ‘Who is this King of glory?’ for the angels never weary of hearing His name exalted.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 833, 1898). Their endless praise does not come from obligation, and it tells me that worship can become the most natural rhythm of a surrendered life.

While the eyes speak of watchfulness, the wings speak of readiness, and the golden cherubim on the ark showed Israel what those wings were for: “And the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubims be.” (Exodus 25:20, KJV). God used the image of wings for His own care when He carried Israel out of Egypt, and Isaiah promised wings to the weary who wait on Him: “Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.” (Exodus 19:4, KJV) and “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read a careful description of the cherubim that Moses placed on the cover of the sacred chest, “One wing of each angel was stretched forth on high, while the other was folded over the body (see Ezekiel 1:11) in token of reverence and humility.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 348, 1890) and “The position of the cherubim, with their faces turned toward each other, and looking reverently downward toward the ark, represented the reverence with which the heavenly host regard the law of God and their interest in the plan of redemption.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 348, 349, 1890). The same book explains what happened in the narrow space between those guarding wings, “Above the mercy seat was the Shekinah, the manifestation of the divine Presence; and from between the cherubim, God made known His will.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 349, 1890). The psalmist and Ruth both learned to hide under the wings of God when life left them exposed and afraid: “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” (Psalm 91:4, KJV) and “The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.” (Ruth 2:12, KJV). Malachi carried the picture further, promising healing wings on the Sun of righteousness, “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.” (Malachi 4:2, KJV) and the inspired pen notes the privilege that every ministering angel holds: “The angels appointed to minister to the children of God have at all times access to His presence.” (The Great Controversy, p. 513, 1911). Sr. White adds a reminder that the same God has ministers ready for every errand of mercy, “Angels are sent on missions of mercy to the children of God.” (The Great Controversy, p. 512, 1911) and “Cherubim and seraphim and angels that excel in strength—ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands—stand at His right hand, ‘all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.’” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 176, 1900). One wing lifted high and one folded low is the posture of a servant who is ready to move and humble enough to wait.

Yet the cherubim did not guard a treasure chest; they guarded the place where God met sinners, and the Lord said so plainly: “And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.” (Exodus 25:22, KJV). Asaph prayed to the God who dwells between them, and the first cherubim in Scripture stood at the gate of a lost garden: “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.” (Psalm 80:1, KJV) and “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:24, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains that even that barrier had a merciful purpose behind its flaming sword, “But after man’s fall, holy angels were immediately commissioned to guard the tree of life.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 60, 1890) and “At the cherubim-guarded gate of Paradise the divine glory was revealed.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 62, 1890). Peter says that the angels longed to understand the gospel, and Jesus says that heaven celebrates each sinner who comes home: “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.” (1 Peter 1:12, KJV) and “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” (Luke 15:10, KJV). The Desire of Ages gives that longing a setting as wide as the universe that makes our small planet suddenly important, “Our little world is the lesson book of the universe.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 19, 1898) and “God’s wonderful purpose of grace, the mystery of redeeming love, is the theme into which ‘angels desire to look,’ and it will be their study throughout endless ages.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 19, 1898). Christ’s Object Lessons describes how the highest creatures respond when one wandering soul turns back to God, “And when one is brought back to God, all heaven is made glad; seraphs and cherubs touch their golden harps, and sing praises to God and the Lamb for their mercy and loving-kindness to the children of men.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 197, 1900). Sr. White adds an image that should hurry my steps toward any friend who has wandered from the faith, “Angels are waiting to bear the tidings to heaven that another lost sinner has been found.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 237, 1900). Jesus assures us that heaven watches over the least of His little ones, “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10, KJV) and the cherubim teach us that heaven’s highest beings spend their attention on redemption.

But the clearest mark of these loyal creatures is that they never draw worship toward themselves, a lesson John learned the hard way: “And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.” (Revelation 22:8, KJV) and “Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.” (Revelation 22:9, KJV). He made the same mistake twice, and twice the heavenly messenger refused the honor and redirected it to God: “And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” (Revelation 19:10, KJV). Paul describes the alternative with painful accuracy, a world that worships creatures instead of their Creator, “Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” (Romans 1:25, KJV) and the psalmist gives the right response: “Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.” (Psalm 115:1, KJV) and “Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.” (1 Chronicles 29:11, KJV). In Patriarchs and Prophets we read the principle that governs every heavenly courtroom and every human heart, “Jehovah, the eternal, self-existent, uncreated One, Himself the Source and Sustainer of all, is alone entitled to supreme reverence and worship.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 305, 1890) and “Man is forbidden to give to any other object the first place in his affections or his service.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 305, 1890). Sr. White widens the warning so that it reaches beyond carved images to anything I quietly put first, “Whatever we cherish that tends to lessen our love for God or to interfere with the service due Him, of that do we make a god.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 305, 1890) and “The attempt to represent the Eternal One by material objects would lower man’s conception of God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 306, 1890). The prophetic messenger shows how the fallen cherub reversed this principle in his heart, “Instead of seeking to make God supreme in the affections and allegiance of all created beings, it was his endeavor to secure their service and loyalty to himself.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35, 1890) and she names the spirit that should fill every song of the redeemed instead: “Such was the spirit that pervaded Israel’s song of deliverance, and it is the spirit that should dwell in the hearts of all who love and fear God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 289, 1890). The living creatures point away from themselves, and any reading of them that makes them objects of devotion has missed their one clear message.

While the living creatures receive their life as a gift, Scripture says the same about us, and that truth reshapes every ordinary day: “For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.” (Acts 17:28, KJV) and “For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Romans 11:36, KJV). James traces every good gift back to the Father of lights, and John the Baptist confessed that nothing comes to us except from heaven: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (James 1:17, KJV) and “John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” (John 3:27, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains that the whole universe runs on this same pattern of receiving and giving back, “Looking unto Jesus we see that it is the glory of our God to give.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898) and “All things Christ received from God, but He took to give.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898). Sr. White then describes the great current that flows between the throne and every creature around it, “So in the heavenly courts, in His ministry for all created beings: through the beloved Son, the Father’s life flows out to all; through the Son it returns, in praise and joyous service, a tide of love, to the great Source of all.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898) and she names the one exception in the whole creation: “There is nothing, save the selfish heart of man, that lives unto itself.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 20, 1898). Through inspired counsel we learn how God restores that broken circuit in human beings, “Because of sin, humanity ceased to be a temple for God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 161, 1898) and “But by the incarnation of the Son of God, the purpose of Heaven is fulfilled.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 161, 1898). David sang under the shadow of God’s wings because he knew where his help came from, and he asked to be kept close: “Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.” (Psalm 63:7, KJV) and “Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,” (Psalm 17:8, KJV). The four living creatures are what a life looks like when it returns every gift to God, and their song now asks us to listen closely.

WHAT SONG NEVER STOPS AT THE THRONE?

The song of the living creatures begins with one word repeated three times, and Scripture has been preparing us for that word since the Red Sea: “Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” (Exodus 15:11, KJV). Hannah sang it at the tabernacle, and the victors on the sea of glass will sing it in the last scene of history: “There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.” (1 Samuel 2:2, KJV) and “Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.” (Revelation 15:4, KJV). Holiness is not one quality of God among many, because it describes the perfect purity that sets Him apart from every creature He has made. Isaiah says that this holy God lives in two places at once, and the psalmist says He makes His home in His people’s praises: “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” (Isaiah 57:15, KJV) and “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.” (Psalm 22:3, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains what Israel’s priests were meant to teach by their clothing, “Everything connected with the apparel and deportment of the priests was to be such as to impress the beholder with a sense of the holiness of God, the sacredness of His worship, and the purity required of those who came into His presence.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 351, 1890) and it calls every worshiper to the same meditation: “All should meditate upon His majesty, His purity and holiness, that the heart may be impressed with a sense of His exalted character; and His holy name should be uttered with reverence and solemnity.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 307, 1890). The Great Controversy shows what a true view of holiness produces in the people who receive it, “Those who experience the sanctification of the Bible will manifest a spirit of humility.” (The Great Controversy, p. 470, 1911) and “Like Moses, they have had a view of the awful majesty of holiness, and they see their own unworthiness in contrast with the purity and exalted perfection of the Infinite One.” (The Great Controversy, p. 470, 1911). Sr. White also explains how God first shows that holiness to sinners like me, and the tool He uses is His law, “Without the law, men have no just conception of the purity and holiness of God or of their own guilt and uncleanness.” (The Great Controversy, p. 468, 1911) and “They have no true conviction of sin and feel no need of repentance.” (The Great Controversy, p. 468, 1911). The psalmist calls the saints to remember that holiness with gratitude, “Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.” (Psalm 30:4, KJV) because the threefold cry is a confession of who God is before it is a demand on who we are.

Yet the holiness that the living creatures celebrate should change how we enter God’s presence, as Habakkuk and the psalmist both understood: “But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.” (Habakkuk 2:20, KJV) and “But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.” (Psalm 5:7, KJV). Solomon warned worshipers to guard their steps at the door of God’s house, “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.” (Ecclesiastes 5:1, KJV) and the psalmist calls us to kneel before our Maker: “O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.” (Psalm 95:6, KJV) and “Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.” (Psalm 99:5, KJV). In Prophets and Kings we read where true reverence begins, and it begins in the heart before it reaches the knees, “True reverence for God is inspired by a sense of His infinite greatness and a realization of His presence.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 48, 1917) and “The hour and place of prayer are sacred, because God is there.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 48, 1917). The same passage lifts our eyes to the living creatures themselves and draws a lesson for the way we speak, “Angels, when they speak that name, veil their faces.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 49, 1917) and “With what reverence, then, should we, who are fallen and sinful, take it upon our lips!” (Prophets and Kings, p. 49, 1917). Patriarchs and Prophets names the posture that fits every worshiper who comes near the holy God, “Humility and reverence should characterize the deportment of all who come into the presence of God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 252, 1890) and Education shows where that reverence is finally proven: “God has commanded nothing that is unessential, and there is no other way of manifesting reverence so pleasing to Him as obedience to that which He has spoken.” (Education, p. 244, 1903). The psalmist ties worship to the holy hill, “Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.” (Psalm 99:9, KJV) and the creatures teach that reverence is not stiffness but the quiet attention of a heart that knows who is present.

The creatures also praise Him as the One who was, and is, and is to come, the very title the Lord claims for Himself: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:8, KJV). Moses learned that eternal name at the burning bush, and the psalmist sang that God’s life reaches backward past the mountains: “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” (Exodus 3:14, KJV) and “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” (Psalm 90:2, KJV). Malachi drew a comfort from God’s unchanging nature that every failing believer needs, and Hebrews applies the same truth to Jesus: “For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.” (Malachi 3:6, KJV) and “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13:8, KJV). The Desire of Ages identifies the Speaker at the bush and shows that the eternal name belongs to our Saviour, “This was the pledge of Israel’s deliverance.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 24, 1898) and “So when He came ‘in the likeness of men,’ He declared Himself the I AM.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 24, 1898). Sr. White then turns that ancient name into personal promises for frightened people today, “I AM the assurance of every promise.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898) and “I AM; be not afraid.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). Through inspired counsel we learn what the eternal Christ offers to every sinner who trusts Him, “‘God with us’ is the surety of our deliverance from sin, the assurance of our power to obey the law of heaven.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). Sr. White adds a word about His sympathy that keeps His eternity from feeling cold or distant to us, “Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is acquainted with our trials, and sympathizes with our griefs.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 24, 1898). Paul offers a doxology to the King who never ages, “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:17, KJV) and the living creatures sing that same steadiness while every earthly kingdom rises and falls.

While the first part of the song confesses God’s holiness, the next verse shows the creatures giving Him glory, honour, and thanks: “And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,” (Revelation 4:9, KJV). David taught his own soul to join them, and he refused to let the blessings of God slip from his memory: “Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.” (Psalm 103:1, KJV) and “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:” (Psalm 103:2, KJV). Steps to Christ exposes a habit that quietly shrinks the worship of many sincere believers, “Our devotional exercises should not consist wholly in asking and receiving.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 102, 103, 1892) and “We do not pray any too much, but we are too sparing of giving thanks.” (Steps to Christ, p. 103, 1892). The same chapter promises that grateful praise lifts us into the company of those who stand around the throne, “The soul may ascend nearer heaven on the wings of praise.” (Steps to Christ, p. 104, 1892) and “God is worshiped with song and music in the courts above, and as we express our gratitude we are approximating to the worship of the heavenly hosts.” (Steps to Christ, p. 104, 1892). Patriarchs and Prophets names the greatest reason for that gratitude, and it is not a material blessing at all, “The daily blessings that we receive from the hand of God, and above all else the death of Jesus to bring happiness and heaven within our reach, should be a theme for constant gratitude.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 289, 1890) and “Let us learn the song of the angels now, that we may sing it when we join their shining ranks.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 289, 290, 1890). David vowed to bless the Lord at all times, and Hebrews calls our thanks a sacrifice we can offer every day: “I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” (Psalm 34:1, KJV) and “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” (Hebrews 13:15, KJV) and “Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” (Psalm 107:8, KJV). A grateful heart is already rehearsing heaven’s music, and a complaining heart is practicing a song it will never be asked to sing there.

But the living creatures do not sing alone, because their praise moves the twenty-four elders to fall down before the throne: “And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.” (Revelation 4:4, KJV) and “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,” (Revelation 4:10, KJV). The crowns they cast were gifts in the first place, and Paul asks a question that leaves no room for boasting: “For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7, KJV). Scripture promises crowns to the faithful, and it also warns us to hold them with open hands: “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:8, KJV) and “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” (1 Peter 5:4, KJV) and “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.” (Revelation 3:11, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains what such crowns represent in the kingdom of God, “The crown and the throne are the tokens of a condition attained; they are the tokens of self-conquest through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 549, 1898) and it tells us when we will finally grasp what they cost: “Never can the cost of our redemption be realized until the redeemed shall stand with the Redeemer before the throne of God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 131, 1898). Sr. White then describes the gesture that answers that cost, and every redeemed hand will make it, “Then we shall cast our crowns at His feet, and raise the song, ‘Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 131, 1898). In The Great Controversy we read how Adam himself will greet the Saviour in the restored garden, “Then he casts his glittering crown at the feet of Jesus and, falling upon His breast, embraces the Redeemer.” (The Great Controversy, p. 648, 1911) and “The family of Adam take up the strain and cast their crowns at the Saviour’s feet as they bow before Him in adoration.” (The Great Controversy, p. 648, 1911). The Desire of Ages describes how this tide of honor flows back to its Source and completes the circle, “And thus through Christ the circuit of beneficence is complete, representing the character of the great Giver, the law of life.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 21, 1898). Every crown in heaven ends up at the feet of Jesus, and I can begin laying mine down today in the small honors that come my way.

Yet the elders give a reason for their worship, and their reason is creation itself, the oldest testimony to God’s right to our praise: “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Revelation 4:11, KJV). The psalmist says the heavens were made by a word, and Isaiah invites us to look up at the stars and count their Maker’s care: “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.” (Psalm 33:6, KJV) and “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.” (Isaiah 40:26, KJV). John and the writer of Hebrews trace every created thing to the creative word of the Son: “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” (John 1:3, KJV) and “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” (Hebrews 11:3, KJV). In The Great Controversy we read the principle that stands behind the elders’ song and every true act of worship, “The duty to worship God is based upon the fact that He is the Creator and that to Him all other beings owe their existence.” (The Great Controversy, p. 436, 1911) and “And wherever, in the Bible, His claim to reverence and worship, above the gods of the heathen, is presented, there is cited the evidence of His creative power.” (The Great Controversy, pp. 436, 437, 1911). Patriarchs and Prophets turns our attention to the creation that surrounds us every day and speaks of its Maker, “Nature speaks to their senses, declaring that there is a living God, the Creator, the Supreme Ruler of all.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 48, 1890) and “The beauty that clothes the earth is a token of God’s love.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 48, 1890). The psalmist hears the sky preaching the same sermon day and night, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.” (Psalm 19:1, KJV) and Sr. White draws out its purpose: “We are thus led to adore the Creator and to have an intelligent trust in His word.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 116, 1890) and “Nature is the servant of her Creator.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 114, 1890). The elders do not worship a distant force; they worship the Maker of all things, and their song puts creation at the center of our praise.

While the elders sing of creation in heaven, the first angel of Revelation fourteen carries that same song to the earth in the last days: “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,” (Revelation 14:6, KJV) and “Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” (Revelation 14:7, KJV). Its words echo the fourth commandment, which grounds the Sabbath in the six days of creation: “For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” (Exodus 20:11, KJV). The Great Controversy explains why the first angel’s call cannot be separated from obedience to God’s holy law, “By the first angel, men are called upon to ‘fear God, and give glory to Him’ and to worship Him as the Creator of the heavens and the earth.” (The Great Controversy, p. 436, 1911) and “In order to do this, they must obey His law.” (The Great Controversy, p. 436, 1911) and “Without obedience to His commandments no worship can be pleasing to God.” (The Great Controversy, p. 436, 1911). Sr. White quotes the pioneer J. N. Andrews to show why the Sabbath belongs at the heart of this message, “The true ground of divine worship, not of that on the seventh day merely, but of all worship, is found in the distinction between the Creator and His creatures. This great fact can never become obsolete, and must never be forgotten.” (J. N. Andrews, History of the Sabbath, ch. 27, quoted in The Great Controversy, pp. 437, 438, 1911). She then draws out the purpose of that memorial in the plainest possible terms for every reader, “It was to keep this truth ever before the minds of men, that God instituted the Sabbath in Eden; and so long as the fact that He is our Creator continues to be a reason why we should worship Him, so long the Sabbath will continue as its sign and memorial.” (The Great Controversy, p. 438, 1911) and “Had the Sabbath been universally kept, man’s thoughts and affections would have been led to the Creator as the object of reverence and worship, and there would never have been an idolater, an atheist, or an infidel.” (The Great Controversy, p. 438, 1911). Patriarchs and Prophets describes what each Sabbath was meant to say from the very beginning, “Its observance was to be an act of grateful acknowledgment, on the part of all who should dwell upon the earth, that God was their Creator and their rightful Sovereign; that they were the work of His hands and the subjects of His authority.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 48, 1890). The psalmist and Isaiah join the call against every rival god, “For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.” (Psalm 96:5, KJV) and “For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.” (Isaiah 45:18, KJV) and “Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalm 100:3, KJV) and keeping the Sabbath lets me join the elders’ song one day each week.

But the elders end by saying that all things exist for God’s pleasure, and Isaiah gives the same answer to the oldest human question: “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” (Isaiah 43:7, KJV). David wondered why the Maker of the stars would notice a creature as small as man, and he praised the care in his own design: “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;” (Psalm 8:3, KJV) and “What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” (Psalm 8:4, KJV) and “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” (Psalm 139:14, KJV). In Education we read that this purpose was written into humanity from the very first morning in Eden, “When Adam came from the Creator’s hand, he bore, in his physical, mental, and spiritual nature, a likeness to his Maker.” (Education, p. 15, 1903) and “More and more fully would he have fulfilled the object of his creation, more and more fully have reflected the Creator’s glory.” (Education, p. 15, 1903). The same book describes the hunger that nothing else can satisfy once a person forgets what he was made for, “Man, created for fellowship with God, can only in such fellowship find his real life and development.” (Education, p. 124, 1903) and “Created to find in God his highest joy, he can find in nothing else that which can quiet the cravings of the heart, can satisfy the hunger and thirst of the soul.” (Education, pp. 124, 125, 1903). Sr. White explains that love was the reason behind both our creation and our rescue, “Love, the basis of creation and of redemption, is the basis of true education.” (Education, p. 16, 1903) and “It means that in the whole being—the body, the mind, as well as the soul—the image of God is to be restored.” (Education, p. 16, 1903). Paul and Solomon apply this purpose to the plainest parts of daily life, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31, KJV) and “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13, KJV) and I was made to delight the heart of God, not to earn His notice.

Yet the song that begins with four creatures does not stay small, for John hears it spread until every creature in the universe joins: “And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” (Revelation 5:13, KJV). The living creatures answer that great chorus with a single word, and the elders fall down in worship once again: “And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.” (Revelation 5:14, KJV). Paul saw the same scene from another angle, with every knee bowing and every tongue confessing the exalted Christ: “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:” (Philippians 2:9, KJV) and “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;” (Philippians 2:10, KJV) and “And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:11, KJV). In The Great Controversy we read how John heard that final anthem from his rocky island, “John, in the Revelation, looking forward to the eternal state, hears a universal anthem of praise undisturbed by one note of discord.” (The Great Controversy, p. 545, 1911). The Desire of Ages describes the joy that filled heaven when Christ first returned there in triumph, “Songs of triumph mingle with the music from angel harps, till heaven seems to overflow with joy and praise.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 835, 1898) and “Love has conquered.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 835, 1898) and “The lost is found.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 835, 1898). Sr. White then describes the moment when the whole creation finally joins the song of the four living creatures, “One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast creation.” (The Great Controversy, p. 678, 1911) and “From the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things, animate and inanimate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is love.” (The Great Controversy, p. 678, 1911). The psalmist gives the last word to the name that stands above all others, “Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven.” (Psalm 148:13, KJV) and the four voices that started the song will one day hear it sung by all things.

While that universal chorus lies ahead, the call to learn the song belongs to us now, and the psalmist says God supplies the music: “And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.” (Psalm 40:3, KJV). Paul and Silas sang it in a Philippian dungeon, and Paul urged every church to keep that melody alive: “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” (Acts 16:25, KJV) and “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;” (Ephesians 5:19, KJV) and “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” (Colossians 3:16, KJV). The Acts of the Apostles promises that our weak voices are never singing alone when we praise God in difficult places, “All the heavenly angels are at the service of the humble, believing people of God; and as the Lord’s army of workers here below sing their songs of praise, the choir above join with them in ascribing praise to God and to His Son.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 154, 1911). The pioneer William Miller described the hush of the early advent believers as they waited to join that choir, “There is no shouting: that, too, is reserved for the shout from heaven. The singers are silent: they are waiting to join the angelic hosts, the choir from heaven.” (William Miller, in S. Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, pp. 270, 271, quoted in The Great Controversy, p. 401, 1911). Steps to Christ reminds us that this waiting is not gloomy, because the One we worship is a friend, “It should be a pleasure to worship the Lord and to take part in His work.” (Steps to Christ, p. 103, 1892) and “He is their best friend; and when they worship Him, He expects to be with them, to bless and comfort them, filling their hearts with joy and love.” (Steps to Christ, p. 103, 1892). Sr. White also names the theme that keeps our song centered, “Christ and Him crucified should be the theme of contemplation, of conversation, and of our most joyful emotion.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 103, 104, 1892) and she says our song will grow louder as earth grows darker: “Amidst the deepening shadows of earth’s last great crisis, God’s light will shine brightest, and the song of hope and trust will be heard in clearest and loftiest strains.” (Education, p. 166, 1903). Education describes how Jesus Himself met His darkest hours on earth, and His method is still open to us, “With a song, Jesus in His earthly life met temptation.” (Education, p. 165, 1903). Isaiah gives us a line to begin with today, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2, KJV) and “I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.” (Psalm 104:33, KJV) and the next prophet we visit heard this song so clearly that it undid him.

WHEN HOLINESS DRAWS NEAR, WHO STANDS?

Isaiah’s vision is dated by a funeral, and the king who died had let his own strength carry him into the temple uninvited: “But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the LORD his God, and went into the temple of the LORD to burn incense upon the altar of incense.” (2 Chronicles 26:16, KJV). Uzziah had reigned well for decades, yet he tried to do a priest’s work at the altar, and he left the temple a leper: “And Uzziah the king was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a several house, being a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the LORD: and Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.” (2 Chronicles 26:21, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the sad end of that brilliant reign and the lesson it carries for every gifted leader, “Unto the day of his death, some years later, Uzziah remained a leper—a living example of the folly of departing from a plain ‘Thus saith the Lord.’” (Prophets and Kings, p. 304, 1917) and “Neither his exalted position nor his long life of service could be pleaded as an excuse for the presumptuous sin by which he marred the closing years of his reign, and brought upon himself the judgment of Heaven.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 304, 1917) and “God is no respecter of persons.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 304, 1917). The same chapter tells us when the young prophet received his call and how much rested on his shoulders, “The reign of Uzziah was drawing to a close, and Jotham was already bearing many of the burdens of state, when Isaiah, of the royal line, was called, while yet a young man, to the prophetic mission.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 305, 1917). The psalmist had already warned Israel not to lean too hard on any human throne, however long it seemed to last: “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.” (Psalm 146:3, KJV) and “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.” (Psalm 118:8, KJV) and “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.” (Psalm 118:9, KJV). Sr. White shows that the outward threats to Judah were real, but the inward ones were far worse, “But the dangers from without, overwhelming though they seemed, were not so serious as the dangers from within.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 305, 1917) and “It was the perversity of his people that brought to the Lord’s servant the greatest perplexity and the deepest depression.” (Prophets and Kings, pp. 305, 306, 1917). Into that uncertain year, Isaiah saw seraphim standing above a throne that no death could empty: “Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.” (Isaiah 6:2, KJV). When an earthly throne falls vacant, God often shows His servants the throne that has never been empty, and that sight steadies everything else.

Yet Isaiah did not enter the temple as a confident young preacher, because the moral condition of Judah had broken his heart: “Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!” (Isaiah 5:8, KJV) and “What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord GOD of hosts.” (Isaiah 3:15, KJV). The prophet saw a nation that had turned its back on the Holy One while keeping up the outward forms of religion: “Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.” (Isaiah 1:4, KJV) and “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the social decay that surrounded him and the way it pressed down on the few who stayed faithful, “Justice was perverted, and no pity was shown the poor.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 306, 1917) and “Iniquitous practices had become so prevalent among all classes that the few who remained true to God were often tempted to lose heart and to give way to discouragement and despair.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 306, 1917). Sr. White then describes the private struggle that came over the prophet before the vision opened, “As he realized his own inability to meet the situation and thought of the stubbornness and unbelief of the people for whom he was to labor, his task seemed hopeless.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917) and she places him at the very doorway of the sanctuary: “Such thoughts as these were crowding through Isaiah’s mind as he stood under the portico of the temple.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917). Asaph once carried the same confusion into the house of God and found that the sanctuary changed his whole view of things: “When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me;” (Psalm 73:16, KJV) and “Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.” (Psalm 73:17, KJV). The inspired pen describes the moment when the veil seemed to lift and the prophet saw past it, “Suddenly the gate and the inner veil of the temple seemed to be uplifted or withdrawn, and he was permitted to gaze within, upon the holy of holies, where even the prophet’s feet might not enter.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917) and “There rose up before him a vision of Jehovah sitting upon a throne high and lifted up, while the train of His glory filled the temple.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917). Isaiah’s discouragement did not keep him from the temple, and the temple is where God answered it.

But the first thing Isaiah heard inside that open sanctuary was not a word about Judah’s sins; it was the song of the seraphim: “And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” (Isaiah 6:3, KJV). Their voices shook the doorposts and filled the house with smoke, and the psalmist says every voice in God’s temple speaks of His glory: “And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.” (Isaiah 6:4, KJV) and “The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.” (Psalm 29:9, KJV). John later tells us whose glory Isaiah saw that day, and his answer points directly to Jesus Christ: “These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.” (John 12:41, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the scene with a vividness that lets us stand beside the trembling prophet in the temple court, “On each side of the throne hovered the seraphim, their faces veiled in adoration, as they ministered before their Maker and united in the solemn invocation, ‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory,’ until post and pillar and cedar gate seemed shaken with the sound, and the house was filled with their tribute of praise.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917). Sr. White names the effect this holiness had on the man who saw it, “As Isaiah beheld this revelation of the glory and majesty of his Lord, he was overwhelmed with a sense of the purity and holiness of God.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917) and Testimonies for the Church explains why it felt so dangerous: “Never before had Isaiah realized so fully the greatness of Jehovah or His perfect holiness; and he felt that in his human frailty and unworthiness he must perish in that divine presence.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 750, 1889). The seraphim announced a glory that would one day cover the earth, and Moses and Habakkuk heard the same promise: “But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.” (Numbers 14:21, KJV) and “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets reminds every worshiper who stands in that presence today, “These should remember that they are in His sight whom seraphim adore, before whom angels veil their faces.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 252, 1890) and The Desire of Ages says Isaiah’s experience is the pattern: “Thus it has been with all who have been granted a view of God’s greatness and majesty.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 246, 1898) and “Humanity, with its weakness and sin, was brought in contrast with the perfection of divinity, and he felt altogether deficient and unholy.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 246, 1898). Isaiah learned that the glory of Christ fills both the temple and the earth, and he could not stand in it without seeing himself.

While the seraphim sang of God’s holiness, Isaiah could only cry out about his own sin, and his words have become the confession of countless believers: “Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5, KJV). Job reached the same place after the whirlwind, “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.” (Job 42:5, KJV) and “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:6, KJV) and Peter and Daniel later fell before the same holiness: “When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (Luke 5:8, KJV) and “Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.” (Daniel 10:8, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the painful contrast that broke over Isaiah when he looked from the throne back to himself, “How sharp the contrast between the matchless perfection of his Creator, and the sinful course of those who, with himself, had long been numbered among the chosen people of Israel and Judah!” (Prophets and Kings, p. 307, 1917). The Desire of Ages gives the same experience to Peter, “The presence of divinity revealed his own unholiness.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 246, 1898) and The Great Controversy explains why the holiest people never boasted: “There can be no self-exaltation, no boastful claim to freedom from sin, on the part of those who walk in the shadow of Calvary’s cross.” (The Great Controversy, p. 471, 1911) and “Those who live nearest to Jesus discern most clearly the frailty and sinfulness of humanity, and their only hope is in the merit of a crucified and risen Saviour.” (The Great Controversy, p. 471, 1911). Christ’s Object Lessons states the principle that governs every true encounter with God, “The nearer we come to Jesus and the more clearly we discern the purity of His character, the more clearly we shall discern the exceeding sinfulness of sin and the less we shall feel like exalting ourselves.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 160, 1900). David also kept his own sin in plain view instead of hiding it from the God who already saw it: “For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.” (Psalm 51:3, KJV). Steps to Christ adds a word that explains why growing believers often feel worse before they feel better, “The closer you come to Jesus, the more faulty you will appear in your own eyes; for your vision will be clearer, and your imperfections will be seen in broad and distinct contrast to His perfect nature.” (Steps to Christ, p. 64, 1892). The cry of woe is not the end of Isaiah’s story, but it is the doorway through which every cleansing must pass.

Yet Isaiah’s confession was not vague, because he named his lips, and Scripture treats the tongue as a faithful index of the heart: “O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” (Matthew 12:34, KJV). James admits that every one of us stumbles in speech, and he calls the tongue a fire that no human can tame: “For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.” (James 3:2, KJV) and “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:8, KJV). Steps to Christ shows why Isaiah’s specific words matter so much for anyone who wants real forgiveness, “True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sins.” (Steps to Christ, p. 38, 1892) and “But all confession should be definite and to the point, acknowledging the very sins of which you are guilty.” (Steps to Christ, p. 38, 1892). The psalmist turned the same honesty into a prayer that guards the door of the mouth and purifies its words: “Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.” (Psalm 141:3, KJV) and “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons explains where such honest knowledge of ourselves comes from in the first place, “In one way only can a true knowledge of self be obtained.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 159, 1900) and “We must behold Christ.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 159, 1900). Sr. White then describes what happens when that look at Christ does its work in us, “When we contemplate His purity and excellence, we shall see our own weakness and poverty and defects as they really are.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 159, 1900) and “We shall see that if we are ever saved, it will not be through our own goodness, but through God’s infinite grace.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 159, 1900). Paul sets a standard for Christian speech that only a cleansed heart can meet, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” (Ephesians 4:29, KJV) and Isaiah teaches me to name my sin as plainly as God already sees it.

But God did not leave Isaiah in his woe, for a seraph flew to him with a burning coal taken from the altar: “Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:” (Isaiah 6:6, KJV) and “And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.” (Isaiah 6:7, KJV). That altar was the place where sacrifice and incense met, and on the Day of Atonement its coals went with the high priest behind the veil: “And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:” (Leviticus 16:12, KJV). Prophets and Kings tells us that heaven moved quickly to meet the prophet in his distress, “But a seraph was sent to relieve him of his distress and to fit him for his great mission.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 308, 1917). Steps to Christ assures every frightened sinner that the terms of this cleansing are not harsh or impossible, “The conditions of obtaining mercy of God are simple and just and reasonable.” (Steps to Christ, p. 37, 1892) and “The Lord does not require us to do some grievous thing in order that we may have the forgiveness of sin.” (Steps to Christ, p. 37, 1892). John gives the same promise in plain words, and David found it true after a long season of silence: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9, KJV) and “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.” (Psalm 32:5, KJV). Sr. White describes the kind of confession that reaches the heart of God, “The confession that is the outpouring of the inmost soul finds its way to the God of infinite pity.” (Steps to Christ, p. 38, 1892) and she shows what such cleansing produces in a messenger: “His testimony, from lips touched with a live coal from off the altar, is truth to the receptive heart, and works sanctification upon the character.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 142, 1898). Zechariah saw the same exchange when filthy garments were taken from the high priest, “And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.” (Zechariah 3:4, KJV) and the inspired pen describes a servant who has been touched in this way: “His lips are touched with a live coal from the altar, and he uplifts Jesus as the sinner’s only hope.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 329, 1911). The coal came from the altar of sacrifice, which tells me that my cleansing always comes from Christ’s offering and never from my own.

While the coal cleansed Isaiah’s lips, the voice of the Lord immediately gave those lips something to say: “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.” (Isaiah 6:8, KJV). Moses had once argued that his mouth was unfit, and God answered with a promise rather than a lecture: “And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” (Exodus 4:10, KJV) and “Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.” (Exodus 4:12, KJV). Jeremiah offered the same excuse, and the Lord touched his mouth just as the seraph had touched Isaiah’s: “Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” (Jeremiah 1:6, KJV) and “Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.” (Jeremiah 1:9, KJV). Prophets and Kings explains the honest fear that stood behind Isaiah’s readiness to go, “Standing, as it were, in the full light of the divine presence within the inner sanctuary, he realized that if left to his own imperfection and inefficiency, he would be utterly unable to accomplish the mission to which he had been called.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 308, 1917). The same book shows that Jeremiah’s call began in the same weakness, “In those happy years of preparation he little realized that he had been ordained from birth to be ‘a prophet unto the nations;’ and when the divine call came, he was overwhelmed with a sense of his unworthiness.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 407, 1917) and Sr. White turns Isaiah’s answer into a duty for every member: “Individually we are to stand in our lot, saying, ‘Here am I; send me.’” (Prophets and Kings, p. 222, 1917). The Desire of Ages records Christ’s gentle words to a man who felt too sinful to serve, “The Saviour answered, ‘Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 246, 1898) and it says God answers us the same way: “To every sincere prayer He answers, ‘Here am I.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 356, 1898). Paul reminds us that messengers must be sent before anyone can hear, “And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” (Romans 10:15, KJV) and Testimonies for the Church adds a warning to those who carry the message: “They need to have their lips touched with a live coal from off the altar, that they may pour forth the truth like men who are inspired.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 252, 1889). The order matters in Isaiah’s story, because cleansing comes first and sending follows, and God never reverses that sequence.

Yet the commission Isaiah received was one of the hardest in Scripture, because God warned him that many would hear without understanding: “And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.” (Isaiah 6:9, KJV) and “Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:10, KJV). Jesus quoted these same words to explain why crowds could hear His parables and still refuse to believe: “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” (Matthew 13:15, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the plain duty that came with that hard message, and the dread it awakened in the prophet, “The prophet’s duty was plain; he was to lift his voice in protest against the prevailing evils.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 308, 1917) and “But he dreaded to undertake the work without some assurance of hope.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 308, 1917). Isaiah’s question still rises from every faithful heart that labors long among people who will not listen: “Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate,” (Isaiah 6:11, KJV) and “And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.” (Isaiah 6:12, KJV). Sr. White describes how God answered that question by reshaping the prophet’s expectations instead of removing his burden, “His burden of soul in behalf of erring Judah was not to be borne in vain.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 308, 1917) and “Throughout his lifetime he must be a patient, courageous teacher—a prophet of hope as well as of doom.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 309, 1917). She also explains why God sometimes allows painful consequences to fall on a stubborn people, “The heavy judgments that were to befall the impenitent,—war, exile, oppression, the loss of power and prestige among the nations,—all these were to come in order that those who would recognize in them the hand of an offended God might be led to repent.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 309, 1917). Prophets and Kings adds a word about the kind of messenger God refuses to send to His people, “God’s plan is not to send messengers who will please and flatter sinners; He delivers no messages of peace to lull the unsanctified into carnal security.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 435, 1917). John records that the hardening Isaiah foresaw was still at work in Christ’s day, “He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.” (John 12:40, KJV) and I must keep speaking even when the harvest seems small.

But the vision did not end in darkness, because God promised that a holy seed would survive like the stump of a fallen oak: “But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof.” (Isaiah 6:13, KJV). Isaiah later wrote that this remnant would lean on the Holy One instead of on the powers that had wounded it: “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.” (Isaiah 10:20, KJV) and “The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.” (Isaiah 10:21, KJV). Paul applied the same promise to his own generation, and John saw a remnant in the last days that keeps God’s commandments: “Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved:” (Romans 9:27, KJV) and “Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.” (Romans 11:5, KJV) and “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Revelation 12:17, KJV). Prophets and Kings states the hope that sustained Isaiah through decades of rejection in a single short sentence, “A remnant should be saved.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 309, 1917) and “The divine purpose finally accomplished, the full fruitage of his efforts, and of the labors of all God’s faithful messengers, would appear.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 309, 1917). Sr. White describes how long the prophet carried that hope and how it grew rather than faded with time, “Throughout his long and arduous mission he carried with him the memory of this vision.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 310, 1917) and “For sixty years or more he stood before the children of Judah as a prophet of hope, waxing bolder and still bolder in his predictions of the future triumph of the church.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 310, 1917). The same chapter explains that even the coming exile had a merciful limit drawn around it, “The ten tribes of the northern kingdom were soon to be scattered among the nations and their cities left desolate; the destroying armies of hostile nations were to sweep over their land again and again; even Jerusalem was finally to fall, and Judah was to be carried away captive; yet the Promised Land was not to remain wholly forsaken forever.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 309, 1917). Isaiah also had to accept that his nation’s healing would be slow, “Yet the evils that had been multiplying for many generations could not be removed in his day.” (Prophets and Kings, pp. 308, 309, 1917) and the stump still sprouts wherever sinners are cleansed and sent.

While Isaiah’s vision humbled him, it also gave him a message about the character of God that his generation desperately needed: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.” (Isaiah 40:1, KJV) and “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” (Isaiah 40:11, KJV). Prophets and Kings explains the false picture of God that had darkened the minds of Isaiah’s countrymen, “In Isaiah’s day the spiritual understanding of mankind was dark through misapprehension of God.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 311, 1917) and “Long had Satan sought to lead men to look upon their Creator as the author of sin and suffering and death.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 311, 1917). Sr. White describes how that slander shaped the way people imagined God would treat them, “They regarded Him as watching to denounce and condemn, unwilling to receive the sinner so long as there was a legal excuse for not helping him.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 311, 1917) and “The law of love by which heaven is ruled had been misrepresented by the archdeceiver as a restriction upon men’s happiness, a burdensome yoke from which they should be glad to escape.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 311, 1917). Isaiah answered that lie with an invitation to reason together and with a promise of abundant pardon: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18, KJV) and “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” (Isaiah 55:7, KJV). He also foresaw a Child who would carry the government and bear names that no earthly king could claim: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6, KJV). Sr. White adds that Israel had no excuse for misjudging the Lord, “In losing sight of the true character of Jehovah, the Israelites were without excuse.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 311, 1917) and she shows how tenderly He had already led them: “‘My presence shall go with thee,’ was the promise given during the journey through the wilderness.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 312, 1917). Isaiah tells us that God shares the suffering of His people, “In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.” (Isaiah 63:9, KJV) and that truth sends us next to another prophet who met God in the middle of exile.

WHAT HOPE RISES BESIDE A FOREIGN RIVER?

Ezekiel received his first vision far from the temple, among captives in a foreign land, in the fifth year of a king’s exile: “In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity,” (Ezekiel 1:2, KJV) and “The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.” (Ezekiel 1:3, KJV). The psalmists describe the mood of those exiles with lines that still sound like grief itself: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.” (Psalm 137:1, KJV) and “We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.” (Psalm 137:2, KJV) and “How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a strange land?” (Psalm 137:4, KJV) and “My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?” (Psalm 42:3, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes the prophet’s state of mind when the heavens opened above him, “This vision was given to Ezekiel at a time when his mind was filled with gloomy forebodings.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pp. 751, 752, 1889) and “He saw the land of his fathers lying desolate.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889). Sr. White adds two sentences that let us feel the weight of his surroundings in a cruel and foreign empire, “The prophet himself was a stranger in a strange land, where boundless ambition and savage cruelty reigned supreme.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889) and “That which he saw and heard of human tyranny and wrong distressed his soul, and he mourned bitterly day and night.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889). Prophets and Kings explains why God raised up a prophet among the exiles rather than leaving them without a voice, “While Jeremiah continued to bear his testimony in the land of Judah, the prophet Ezekiel was raised up from among the captives in Babylon, to warn and to comfort the exiles, and also to confirm the word of the Lord that was being spoken through Jeremiah.” (Prophets and Kings, pp. 447, 448, 1917). The same book describes the threefold witness God sent in those dark years to Jerusalem, Babylon’s court, and the riverbank, “Through Jeremiah in Jerusalem, through Daniel in the court of Babylon, through Ezekiel on the banks of the Chebar, the Lord in mercy made clear His eternal purpose and gave assurance of His willingness to fulfill to His chosen people the promises recorded in the writings of Moses.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 464, 1917). The hand of the Lord rested on a priest who could no longer serve in the temple, and that detail tells me that exile never cancels a calling.

Yet God had not abandoned the exiles, and Jeremiah’s letter to them in Babylon reveals the heart behind their discipline: “And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.” (Jeremiah 29:7, KJV) and “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:11, KJV). The same letter promises that the seeking heart will find God even in a foreign city: “Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.” (Jeremiah 29:12, KJV) and “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13, KJV). Prophets and Kings shows that God was quietly working through the very events that seemed to prove Him absent, “Satan had seemingly triumphed in his efforts to destroy Israel; but the Lord was overruling the events of the present, and during the years that were to follow, His people were to have opportunity to redeem the past.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 474, 1917). The same book explains that the scattering of Judah carried a missionary purpose that the captives themselves did not yet see, “And not only were they themselves to learn the lesson of obedience and trust; in their places of exile they were also to impart to others a knowledge of the living God.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 372, 1917) and it adds a promise that held firm: “That which He had said He would do for those who should prove true to Him, He would surely bring to pass.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 464, 1917). Jeremiah found mercy fresh every morning in the ruins of Jerusalem, and his words became a song for every exile: “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.” (Lamentations 3:22, KJV) and “They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:23, KJV). The Desire of Ages applies the same comfort to every believer who walks through a season of loss, “Those who accept Christ as their personal Saviour are not left as orphans, to bear the trials of life alone.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 327, 1898) and “In all our afflictions He is afflicted.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 356, 1898). The same book reminds us that a believer may lose every outward support without losing God, “Though no miraculous deliverance was granted John, he was not forsaken.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 224, 1898). Exile was discipline, but it was never abandonment, and Ezekiel was about to see that truth blazing in the northern sky.

But the vision that came to Ezekiel did not begin gently; it began with a storm rolling in from the north: “And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.” (Ezekiel 1:4, KJV). God had spoken to Job from a whirlwind, and Nahum says the Lord makes His path through storm and cloud: “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,” (Job 38:1, KJV) and “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.” (Nahum 1:3, KJV). Testimonies for the Church explains what those wonderful symbols revealed to a man who felt surrounded by tyranny, “But the wonderful symbols presented before him beside the river Chebar revealed an overruling power mightier than that of earthly rulers.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889) and “Above the proud and cruel monarchs of Assyria and Babylon the God of mercy and truth was enthroned.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889). Moses and the writer of Hebrews both describe God as a consuming fire, and Ezekiel saw that fire infolding itself: “For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.” (Deuteronomy 4:24, KJV) and “For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes the storm on Galilee, “Terror and despair had seized their occupants; but the command of Jesus brought quiet to the scene of tumult.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 335, 1898) and it shows how such storms push us toward the very help we forget: “In their efforts to save themselves, they forgot Jesus; and it was only when, in despair of self-dependence, they turned to Him that He could give them help.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 336, 1898) and “When the tempests of temptation gather, and the fierce lightnings flash, and the waves sweep over us, we battle with the storm alone, forgetting that there is One who can help us.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 336, 1898). Education describes the deep comfort that lies inside such fearful visions of providence, “While the nations rejected God’s principles, and in this rejection wrought their own ruin, it was still manifest that the divine, overruling purpose was working through all their movements.” (Education, p. 177, 1903). Isaiah promises that fire and flood cannot destroy those whom God accompanies, “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” (Isaiah 43:2, KJV) and Ezekiel’s fire was a God who walks into the storm with His people.

While the storm drew near, Ezekiel saw living beings inside the fire, and he described them with careful attention: “And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.” (Ezekiel 1:6, KJV) and “And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass.” (Ezekiel 1:7, KJV). He noticed hands beneath their wings and a single direction in all their movement: “And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and they four had their faces and their wings.” (Ezekiel 1:8, KJV) and “Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward.” (Ezekiel 1:9, KJV). Testimonies for the Church explains what those hands beneath the wings were meant to teach God’s servants in every age, “This is to teach His servants that it is divine power that gives them success.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889) and “He will work with them if they will put away iniquity and become pure in heart and life.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). Ezekiel saw their wings stretched upward, and he saw the creatures shine like burning coals with lightning among them: “Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.” (Ezekiel 1:11, KJV) and “As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.” (Ezekiel 1:13, KJV). Sr. White interprets that brilliant motion as a picture of God’s work in the last days, “The bright light going among the living creatures with the swiftness of lightning represents the speed with which this work will finally go forward to completion.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889) and “He who slumbers not, who is continually at work for the accomplishment of His designs, can carry forward His great work harmoniously.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). The Acts of the Apostles describes what that straight-forward movement looks like in a human life, “But all who follow the Lamb in heaven must first have followed Him on earth, not fretfully or capriciously, but in trustful, loving, willing obedience, as the flock follows the shepherd.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 591, 1911). Christ’s Object Lessons adds a short call that fits the creatures who turned not as they went, “God calls for your willing obedience.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 117, 1900). Those straight feet and hidden hands tell me that faithful service moves in one direction and depends on a power it cannot see.

Yet the living creatures were not the center of Ezekiel’s vision, because above them stood a crystal firmament and a throne of sapphire: “And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature was as the colour of the terrible crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.” (Ezekiel 1:22, KJV) and “And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.” (Ezekiel 1:26, KJV). The noise of their wings sounded like the voice of the Almighty, and then a voice spoke from above them: “And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of an host: when they stood, they let down their wings.” (Ezekiel 1:24, KJV) and “And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings.” (Ezekiel 1:25, KJV). Ezekiel saw a human likeness on that throne, wrapped in fire and brightness, and Daniel later saw one like the Son of man: “And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.” (Ezekiel 1:27, KJV) and “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.” (Daniel 7:13, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows why the appearance of a man upon the throne is the heart of the gospel, “God has adopted human nature in the person of His Son, and has carried the same into the highest heaven.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898) and “It is the ‘Son of man’ who shares the throne of the universe.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). Sr. White describes the bond that this enthroned humanity creates between the believer and heaven, “In Christ the family of earth and the family of heaven are bound together.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898) and “Christ glorified is our brother.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). The same chapter turns the sapphire throne into a welcome for exiles, “Heaven is enshrined in humanity, and humanity is enfolded in the bosom of Infinite Love.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 26, 1898) and it explains how Christ reaches both ways at once: “By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity, He lays hold upon the throne of God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 24, 1898). An exile by the river saw a Man on the throne, and that Man still reigns over every place where God’s people feel far from home.

But Ezekiel could not stay on his feet before that glory, and he fell on his face until a voice raised him up: “And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.” (Ezekiel 2:1, KJV) and “And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me.” (Ezekiel 2:2, KJV). Daniel had the same experience when a hand touched him and a voice called him greatly beloved: “And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.” (Daniel 10:10, KJV) and “And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.” (Daniel 10:11, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes Ezekiel’s collapse and the message that followed it, “Overpowered by the terrible glory of the scene, Ezekiel fell upon his face, when a voice bade him arise and hear the word of the Lord.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889) and “Then there was given him a message of warning for Israel.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889). Ezekiel met that glory again on the plain, and Isaiah promises strength for exactly such moments of weakness: “Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river of Chebar: and I fell on my face.” (Ezekiel 3:23, KJV) and “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.” (Isaiah 40:29, KJV). The Desire of Ages gives counsel for every believer who has been flattened by a crisis and wonders whether to rise again, “We are not to give up in discouragement, but in every emergency we are to seek help from Him who has infinite resources at His command.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 369, 1898). The pioneer William Miller spoke in the same spirit after his own bitter disappointment had left him on his face, “My hope in the coming of Christ is as strong as ever. I have done only what, after years of solemn consideration, I felt it my solemn duty to do.” (William Miller, in S. Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, quoted in The Great Controversy, p. 407, 1911). The Desire of Ages exposes the enemy’s aim in every crushing disappointment, “He hopes to discourage the soul, and to break our hold on God.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 121, 1898) and it shows what Christ wants for us instead: “He would not have us intimidated and discouraged by the assaults of the serpent.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 123, 1898). Sr. White adds a word about the Saviour Himself, “Yet He did not fail nor become discouraged.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 89, 1898) and God still lifts fallen servants to their feet before He sends them out.

While Ezekiel stood, God handed him a difficult commission to a rebellious people who might never listen: “And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day.” (Ezekiel 2:3, KJV) and “And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.” (Ezekiel 2:7, KJV). Before he could speak, he had to eat the scroll, and he found its words as sweet as honey: “Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.” (Ezekiel 3:1, KJV) and “And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.” (Ezekiel 3:3, KJV). Prophets and Kings shows how Ezekiel confronted the false hopes that some in Babylon were spreading among the captives, “During the years that remained of Zedekiah’s reign, Ezekiel made very plain the folly of trusting to the false predictions of those who were causing the captives to hope for an early return to Jerusalem.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 448, 1917). The same book warns that such voices did not disappear with the ancient exile, and they still trouble the church, “To the end of time, men will arise to create confusion and rebellion among those who claim to be representatives of the true God.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 442, 1917) and “Those who prophesy lies will encourage men to look upon sin as a light thing.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 442, 1917). Jeremiah and the psalmist describe the same sweetness that Ezekiel tasted in God’s word: “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.” (Jeremiah 15:16, KJV) and “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103, KJV). Sr. White promises that God’s faithful messages will stand the test of time, “But as surely as the words of Jehovah through His prophet were vindicated anciently, so surely will the certainty of His messages be established today.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 442, 1917) and Education describes the nourishment that comes from eating the word: “We receive God’s word as food for the soul, through the same evidence by which we receive bread as food for the body.” (Education, p. 171, 1903) and “Bread supplies the need of our nature; we know by experience that it produces blood and bone and brain.” (Education, p. 172, 1903). A messenger who has not first eaten the word will have nothing to give, and Ezekiel’s mouth was filled before it was opened.

Yet before Ezekiel spoke a single word to the exiles, he sat among them in silence for seven days: “So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.” (Ezekiel 3:14, KJV) and “Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.” (Ezekiel 3:15, KJV). Job’s friends did the same thing, and for that week they were wiser than they ever were afterward: “So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.” (Job 2:13, KJV). Paul calls the church to that same sharing of grief, and he links it with the law of Christ: “Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.” (Romans 12:15, KJV) and “Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.” (Hebrews 13:3, KJV) and “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows that Jesus began His own ministry in the same way, by coming close before He corrected anyone, “Jesus began the work of reformation by coming into close sympathy with humanity.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 150, 1898) and “He drew the sympathy of all hearts by showing Himself capable of sympathizing with all.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 74, 1898). Sr. White describes the quiet, daily way that sympathy flowed from the Saviour to the weary people around Him, “He spoke a word of sympathy here and a word there, as He saw men weary, yet compelled to bear heavy burdens.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 90, 1898) and “His strong personal sympathy helped to win hearts.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 151, 1898). The same book gives every follower of Christ a ministry that begins with presence, “We are to minister to the despairing, and inspire hope in the hopeless.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 350, 1898) and it shows how safely the Saviour held what others confided: “He would not betray the secrets they poured into His sympathizing ear.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 92, 1898). Ezekiel sat where they sat before he said what God said, and I have rarely helped anyone whose grief I would not first share.

But sympathy did not cancel Ezekiel’s duty, because God made him a watchman who must warn even those who did not want to hear: “Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.” (Ezekiel 3:17, KJV) and “When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.” (Ezekiel 3:18, KJV). The Lord repeated that charge years later, and He revealed the heart that stood behind every warning: “So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.” (Ezekiel 33:7, KJV) and “Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11, KJV). Testimonies for the Church applies Ezekiel’s commission directly to those who carry God’s message today, “A solemn responsibility rests upon the watchmen.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 15, 1889) and “How careful should they be rightly to understand and explain the word of God.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 15, 1889). Sr. White adds that our accountability is greater than Ezekiel’s because our light is greater, “The responsibility of the watchmen of today is as much greater than in the days of the prophet as our light is clearer and our privileges and opportunities greater than theirs.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 16, 1889) and “It is the minister’s duty to warn every man, to teach every man, in all meekness and wisdom.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 16, 1889). Isaiah set watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem and told them never to fall silent, and he told them how to speak: “I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,” (Isaiah 62:6, KJV) and “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” (Isaiah 58:1, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes the voice of a faithful watchman in a time of compromise, “God’s watchmen will not cry, ‘Peace, peace,’ when God has not spoken peace.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 83, 1889) and she names the source of every true message: “God’s watchmen must not study how they shall please the people, nor listen to their words and utter them; but they must listen to hear what saith the Lord, what is His word for the people.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 252, 1889). The watchman warns because God takes no pleasure in death, and that tenderness must shape every warning I give.

While the exiles watched empires rise and fall around them, Ezekiel’s vision assured them that heaven still governs the kingdoms of men: “This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.” (Daniel 4:17, KJV) and “And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?” (Daniel 4:35, KJV). The psalmist and Daniel both confess that God sets up kings and removes them as He wills: “For the kingdom is the LORD’s: and he is the governor among the nations.” (Psalm 22:28, KJV) and “And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:” (Daniel 2:21, KJV). Education traces that same lesson across the whole sweep of human history, from Babylon to Rome, “Every nation that has come upon the stage of action has been permitted to occupy its place on the earth, that it might be seen whether it would fulfill the purpose of ‘the Watcher and the Holy One.’” (Education, p. 177, 1903) and “Prophecy has traced the rise and fall of the world’s great empires—Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome.” (Education, p. 177, 1903). Sr. White then brings that lesson down to every nation and every person living today, “To every nation and to every individual of today God has assigned a place in His great plan.” (Education, p. 178, 1903) and “All are by their own choice deciding their destiny, and God is overruling all for the accomplishment of His purposes.” (Education, p. 178, 1903). Isaiah heard God declare the end from the beginning, and Paul promised that all things work together for good to those who love Him: “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” (Isaiah 46:10, KJV) and “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, KJV). Education adds a promise for every exile who has watched plans collapse and prayers seem unanswered, “Where to us have appeared only confusion and disappointment, broken purposes and thwarted plans, will be seen a grand, overruling, victorious purpose, a divine harmony.” (Education, p. 305, 1903) and it points us forward to the end of the story: “All that prophecy has foretold as coming to pass, until the present time, has been traced on the pages of history, and we may be assured that all which is yet to come will be fulfilled in its order.” (Education, p. 178, 1903). The God who rode the storm into Chebar still reigns, and Ezekiel’s next vision will show what His holy fire does to a temple that forgets Him.

WHY DOES THE GLORY LEAVE THE TEMPLE?

Ezekiel’s second great vision carried him from the riverbank to Jerusalem, where a hand lifted him into the courts of the temple: “And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.” (Ezekiel 8:3, KJV). What he saw there shocked him, because the worst sins of the nation were happening in the very house of God: “He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations.” (Ezekiel 8:6, KJV) and “Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth.” (Ezekiel 8:12, KJV). Prophets and Kings describes the vision that unfolded before the exiled prophet’s eyes, “In the sixth year of the reign of Zedekiah, the Lord revealed to Ezekiel in vision some of the abominations that were being practiced in Jerusalem, and within the gate of the Lord’s house, and even in the inner court.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 448, 1917) and “There were still ‘greater abominations’ for the prophet to behold.” (Prophets and Kings, p. 448, 1917). At the temple door, twenty-five men stood with their backs to the sanctuary and worshiped the rising sun: “And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.” (Ezekiel 8:16, KJV). Testimonies for the Church names the danger that should make every privileged believer tremble today, “But that which causes me to tremble is the fact that those who have had the greatest light and privileges have become contaminated by the prevailing iniquity.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 209, 1889) and “Influenced by the unrighteous around them, many, even of those who profess the truth, have grown cold and are borne down by the strong current of evil.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 209, 1889). Sr. White exposes the lie that made those men bold in their secret chambers, where they thought no eye could see them, “The great Searcher of hearts knoweth every sin committed in secret by the workers of iniquity.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 211, 1889) and “These persons come to feel secure in their deceptions and, because of His long-suffering, say that the Lord seeth not, and then act as though He had forsaken the earth.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pp. 211, 212, 1889). The chronicler records how patiently God had warned them first, “And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:” (2 Chronicles 36:15, KJV) and “But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.” (2 Chronicles 36:16, KJV) and the temple can fill with worshipers whose faces are turned away from God.

Yet before any judgment fell, God sent a man clothed in linen to mark the faithful, and the glory moved to the threshold: “And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar.” (Ezekiel 9:2, KJV) and “And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side;” (Ezekiel 9:3, KJV). The mark went only on those who grieved over the sins around them, and John saw the same sealing before the final storm: “And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.” (Ezekiel 9:4, KJV) and “And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,” (Revelation 7:2, KJV) and “Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.” (Revelation 7:3, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes that faithful company in the hour when the church’s danger is greatest, “At the time when the danger and depression of the church are greatest, the little company who are standing in the light will be sighing and crying for the abominations that are done in the land.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 209, 1889) and “These sighing, crying ones had been holding forth the words of life; they had reproved, counseled, and entreated.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 210, 1889). Sr. White describes what sets them apart while others make excuses for the evil around them, “In the time when His wrath shall go forth in judgments, these humble, devoted followers of Christ will be distinguished from the rest of the world by their soul anguish, which is expressed in lamentation and weeping, reproofs and warnings.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 210, 1889) and she states the condition plainly: “The seal of God will be placed upon the foreheads of those only who sigh and cry for the abominations done in the land.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 212, 1889). The same chapter warns those who feel nothing at all about their own decline, “The class who do not feel grieved over their own spiritual declension, nor mourn over the sins of others, will be left without the seal of God.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 211, 1889) and it shows how that seal is formed: “By a life of holy endeavor and firm adherence to the right the children of God were sealing their destiny.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 213, 1889). John saw the sealed standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion, “And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.” (Revelation 14:1, KJV) and the mark in Ezekiel belongs to hearts that still break over sin.

But the most sobering words in Ezekiel nine are the four words that tell the destroying angels where to start: “Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.” (Ezekiel 9:6, KJV). Peter repeated that principle for the Christian church, and Amos explained why privilege brings greater accountability: “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17, KJV) and “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.” (Amos 3:2, KJV). Testimonies for the Church draws the lesson that every church officer and long-time member must hear, “Here we see that the church—the Lord’s sanctuary—was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 211, 1889) and “The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 211, 1889). Sr. White adds that no title or position can protect a person who stops guarding his own heart, “No superiority of rank, dignity, or worldly wisdom, no position in sacred office, will preserve men from sacrificing principle when left to their own deceitful hearts.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 212, 1889) and she notes the cost of empty religion: “But the glory of the Lord had departed from Israel; although many still continued the forms of religion, His power and presence were lacking.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 210, 1889). Jesus taught that much is required where much is given, and Malachi asks who can stand before the refiner: “But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” (Luke 12:48, KJV) and “But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:” (Malachi 3:2, KJV). Testimonies for the Church shows that God takes no pleasure in withdrawing from His people, “It is with reluctance that the Lord withdraws His presence from those who have been blessed with great light and who have felt the power of the word in ministering to others.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 212, 1889) and it places the decision in our own hands: “Our own course of action will determine whether we shall receive the seal of the living God or be cut down by the destroying weapons.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 212, 1889). Malachi promises a refining that purifies rather than destroys, “And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.” (Malachi 3:3, KJV) and judgment that begins at the sanctuary is a call for me to begin at my own heart.

While the faithful were being marked, the man in linen was sent between the cherubim to take coals of fire for the city: “And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight.” (Ezekiel 10:2, KJV) and “And it came to pass, that when he had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood beside the wheels.” (Ezekiel 10:6, KJV). A cherub placed the fire in his hands, and John later saw an angel cast the fire of the altar to the earth: “And one cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubims unto the fire that was between the cherubims, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed with linen: who took it, and went out.” (Ezekiel 10:7, KJV) and “And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.” (Revelation 8:5, KJV). Testimonies for the Church explains what this solemn scene means for the closing work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, “Jesus is about to leave the mercy seat of the heavenly sanctuary to put on garments of vengeance and pour out His wrath in judgments upon those who have not responded to the light God has given them.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pp. 207, 208, 1889) and “But there are limits even to the forbearance of God, and many are exceeding these boundaries.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 208, 1889). Sr. White describes how carefully and patiently God keeps His accounts with the nations, “With unerring accuracy the Infinite One still keeps an account with all nations.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 208, 1889) and “While His mercy is tendered with calls to repentance, this account will remain open; but when the figures reach a certain amount which God has fixed, the ministry of His wrath commences.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 208, 1889). Peter explains why judgment waits so long, and Hosea shows the heart that waits: “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9, KJV) and “How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee, Israel? how shall I make thee as Admah? how shall I set thee as Zeboim? mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled together.” (Hosea 11:8, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes that same patience in God’s dealings with an ancient people, “The compassionate Creator was willing to bear with their iniquity until the fourth generation.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 208, 1889) and it adds a sentence that holds both mercy and warning together: “Although loath to punish, nevertheless He will punish, and that speedily.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 209, 1889). Fire from God’s presence cleansed Isaiah’s lips and judged Jerusalem’s streets, and the difference lay in whether it met a confessing heart.

Yet in the middle of this judgment scene, Ezekiel finally learned the name of the beings he had seen by the river: “And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar.” (Ezekiel 10:15, KJV) and “This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims.” (Ezekiel 10:20, KJV). Above them he saw the same sapphire throne, and the sound of their wings carried the voice of the Almighty: “Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.” (Ezekiel 10:1, KJV) and “And the sound of the cherubims’ wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.” (Ezekiel 10:5, KJV). Israel had long known the Lord as the One who dwells between the cherubim, and Hezekiah prayed to Him by that name: “So the people sent to Shiloh, that they might bring from thence the ark of the covenant of the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth between the cherubims: and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.” (1 Samuel 4:4, KJV) and “And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.” (2 Kings 19:15, KJV). The Great Controversy describes the golden cherubim that covered the ark in the earthly sanctuary, “Above the ark, and forming the cover to the sacred chest, was the mercy seat, a magnificent piece of workmanship, surmounted by two cherubim, one at each end, and all wrought of solid gold.” (The Great Controversy, p. 412, 1911) and “In this apartment the divine presence was manifested in the cloud of glory between the cherubim.” (The Great Controversy, p. 412, 1911). The same book notes that cherubim were woven into the very fabric of the sanctuary that covered the worshipers, “Its walls consisted of upright boards heavily plated with gold and set in sockets of silver, while the roof was formed of a series of curtains, or coverings, the outer of skins, the innermost of fine linen beautifully wrought with figures of cherubim.” (The Great Controversy, p. 412, 1911). Patriarchs and Prophets describes the ark when it rested in the holy of holies, before the long years of Israel’s decline, “It was shadowed by the wings of the golden cherubim, and the unspeakable glory of the Shekinah, the visible symbol of the most high God, had rested over it in the holy of holies.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 584, 1890) and “God, who dwelt between the cherubim, had said of Jerusalem, ‘This is My rest’ (Psalm 132:14); and without divine authority neither priest nor king had a right to remove therefrom the symbol of His presence.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 732, 1890). The Ministry of Healing adds a detail about the veil before that inner room, a detail that guarded its holiness, “The veil inwrought with cherubim at its entrance was not to be lifted by any hand save one.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 437, 1905). Ezekiel’s living creatures were the cherubim of the sanctuary, and their presence tells us that everything in his vision concerns the place where God meets sinners.

But the cherubim did not stay still in this vision, because Ezekiel watched the glory rise from its place and move to the threshold: “Then the glory of the LORD went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the LORD’s glory.” (Ezekiel 10:4, KJV). Then the glory left the threshold, rested over the cherubim, and moved to the east gate of the temple: “Then the glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims.” (Ezekiel 10:18, KJV) and “And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD’s house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.” (Ezekiel 10:19, KJV). Israel had heard a cry like this once before, when the ark was captured and a dying mother named her son: “And she named the child I-chabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.” (1 Samuel 4:21, KJV) and “And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.” (1 Samuel 4:22, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets records that mother’s grief in words that still sound like a funeral bell, “She felt that the last hope of Israel was gone; and she named the child born in this hour of adversity, Ichabod, or ‘inglorious;’ with her dying breath mournfully repeating the words, ‘The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.’” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 585, 1890). The same book describes the larger vision of departing glory that Moses saw long before it happened, “He saw them, because of their sins, dispersed among the heathen, the glory departed from Israel, her beautiful city in ruins, and her people captives in strange lands.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 475, 1890). The Great Controversy describes the temple that Israel rebuilt after the exile and what it lacked, “No cloud of glory was seen to fill the newly erected sanctuary.” (The Great Controversy, p. 24, 1911) and “The Shekinah no longer abode between the cherubim in the most holy place; the ark, the mercy seat, and the tables of the testimony were not to be found therein.” (The Great Controversy, p. 24, 1911). Sr. White records the cry heard when Jerusalem fell to Rome centuries later, “Above the sound of battle, voices were heard shouting: ‘Ichabod!’—the glory is departed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 33, 1911) and Testimonies for the Church explains the loss: “They were once His faithful servants, favored with His presence and guidance; but they departed from Him and led others into error, and therefore are brought under the divine displeasure.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 212, 1889). Jesus spoke the same sentence over Herod’s temple, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.” (Matthew 23:38, KJV) and a building can keep its stones long after it has lost its glory.

While the glory left, it did not leave quickly, because Ezekiel saw it pause on the mountain east of the city: “Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.” (Ezekiel 11:22, KJV) and “And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.” (Ezekiel 11:23, KJV). Centuries later, Jesus stood on that same eastern mountain and wept over the same city: “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,” (Luke 19:41, KJV) and “Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” (Luke 19:42, KJV). The Desire of Ages draws the connection between the departing Shekinah and the weeping Saviour in one unforgettable sentence, “The holy Shekinah, in departing from the first temple, had stood upon the eastern mountain, as if loath to forsake the chosen city; so Christ stood upon Olivet, with yearning heart overlooking Jerusalem.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 829, 1898). The same book tells us what caused His tears, and it was not His own approaching death, “The tears of Jesus were not in anticipation of His own suffering.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 576, 1898) and “It was the sight of Jerusalem that pierced the heart of Jesus—Jerusalem that had rejected the Son of God and scorned His love, that refused to be convinced by His mighty miracles, and was about to take His life.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 576, 1898). Sr. White adds a question that echoes Hosea’s cry over Ephraim and reveals the heart of God, “He had come to save her; how could He give her up?” (The Desire of Ages, p. 576, 1898). Jesus later stood in the temple court and spoke words that reveal the heart behind every departure of glory: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matthew 23:37, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes that final lament with words that should silence anyone who thinks God leaves gladly, “This is the separation struggle.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 620, 1898) and “In the lamentation of Christ the very heart of God is pouring itself forth.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 620, 1898). Zechariah promises that the feet of the Lord will stand on that mountain again, “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.” (Zechariah 14:4, KJV) and the glory that lingered on Olivet will one day return there in triumph.

Yet even as the glory departed, God made a promise to the scattered exiles that no Babylonian wall could cancel: “Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.” (Ezekiel 11:16, KJV). He promised to give them a new heart, a new spirit, and the power to walk in His ways: “And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:” (Ezekiel 11:19, KJV) and “That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” (Ezekiel 11:20, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows that this promise is fulfilled every time a sinner turns to God in faith, “Every time a soul is converted, and learns to love God and keep His commandments, the promise of God is fulfilled, ‘A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 407, 1898). Steps to Christ explains how basic that new heart is to any hope of the kingdom, “The Saviour said, ‘Except a man be born from above,’ unless he shall receive a new heart, new desires, purposes, and motives, leading to a new life, ‘he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” (Steps to Christ, p. 18, 1892) and it gives a simple invitation: “Now go to Him, and ask that He will wash away your sins and give you a new heart.” (Steps to Christ, p. 49, 1892). Ezekiel repeated the promise later, adding that God’s own Spirit would live inside His people, and Jeremiah heard the same covenant: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26, KJV) and “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” (Ezekiel 36:27, KJV) and “But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33, KJV). Sr. White describes the power that enters when the heart is surrendered, “When the soul surrenders itself to Christ, a new power takes possession of the new heart.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 324, 1898) and she names the only One who can make the exchange: “He alone, for the selfish heart of sin, gives the new heart of love.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 254, 1900). Christ’s Object Lessons adds the simple fact that changes everything for a broken person, “A new heart is given him.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 163, 1900). The glory may leave a building, but God never stops offering to make His home in a surrendered heart.

But Ezekiel’s book does not end with an empty temple, because years later he saw the glory return by the same eastern gate: “And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.” (Ezekiel 43:2, KJV) and “And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.” (Ezekiel 43:4, KJV) and “So the spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house.” (Ezekiel 43:5, KJV). Haggai and Malachi promised that the Lord Himself would come to His temple with a greater glory than before: “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Haggai 2:9, KJV) and “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Malachi 3:1, KJV). John tells us how that promise came true, and it came true in a Person rather than a building: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes the moment the departed glory returned in the most unexpected form, “The Shekinah had departed from the sanctuary, but in the Child of Bethlehem was veiled the glory before which angels bow.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 52, 1898) and “It was He who in the pillar of cloud and of fire had been the guide of Israel.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 52, 1898). Christ’s Object Lessons reminds us where that glory had once rested, “In the tabernacle and the temple His glory dwelt in the holy shekinah above the mercy seat.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 288, 1900) and The Desire of Ages explains where it now wants to rest: “God dwells in humanity, and through saving grace the heart of man becomes again His temple.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 161, 1898). Sr. White describes the purpose of the old temple as a witness to that future, “God designed that the temple at Jerusalem should be a continual witness to the high destiny open to every soul.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 161, 1898) and she names the hope hidden in a newborn baby: “The name of that helpless little babe, inscribed in the roll of Israel, declaring Him our brother, was the hope of fallen humanity.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 52, 1898). The glory that left Ezekiel’s temple came back wrapped in human flesh, and it now seeks a home in every believer.

While the glory returned in Christ, the warning of Ezekiel ten still stands, because a church can keep the forms of worship without the Presence: “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” (2 Timothy 3:5, KJV). The church of Laodicea thought it needed nothing, yet Christ stood outside its door and knocked: “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:” (Revelation 3:17, KJV) and “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20, KJV). The Great Controversy explains why this condition suits the enemy so well, “It suits the policy of Satan that men should retain the forms of religion if but the spirit of vital godliness is lacking.” (The Great Controversy, p. 378, 1911) and it describes the church of the advent era in the same terms: “There was a boastful observance of the forms of religion, while the spirit of true humility, penitence, and faith—which alone could render the service acceptable to God—was lacking.” (The Great Controversy, p. 316, 1911). Paul reminds every believer that the true temple is now the body and the church, and Jesus called His own body a temple: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16, KJV) and “And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (2 Corinthians 6:16, KJV) and “But he spake of the temple of his body.” (John 2:21, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows that forms alone have never changed a single character, “The forms of religion which they observed could not transform the character.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 88, 1898) and “There is no safety for one who has merely a legal religion, a form of godliness.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 172, 1898). Steps to Christ and The Acts of the Apostles add two warnings that reach every faithful pew, “Many accept an intellectual religion, a form of godliness, when the heart is not cleansed.” (Steps to Christ, p. 35, 1892) and “To substitute external forms of religion for holiness of heart and life is still as pleasing to the unrenewed nature as it was in the days of these Jewish teachers.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 387, 1911). The pioneer William Miller gave a test for every kind of religious fervor, “The spirit that does not cause us to live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world, is not the Spirit of Christ.” (William Miller, in S. Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, pp. 236, 237, quoted in The Great Controversy, p. 397, 1911) and I must ask whether Christ is inside my worship or knocking outside it.

WHAT DO THE FOUR FACES TELL US?

Both Ezekiel and John describe four faces on the living creatures, and Ezekiel lists them twice with one small change: “As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.” (Ezekiel 1:10, KJV) and “And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.” (Ezekiel 10:14, KJV). He insists that the cherubim of chapter ten were the same beings he saw by the river, with the same faces and the same steady direction: “Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings.” (Ezekiel 10:21, KJV) and “And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves: they went every one straight forward.” (Ezekiel 10:22, KJV). Education gives the method that keeps our study of these faces safe from the guesswork we warned against earlier, “The Bible is its own expositor.” (Education, p. 190, 1903) and “Scripture is to be compared with scripture.” (Education, p. 190, 1903) and “The student should learn to view the word as a whole, and to see the relation of its parts.” (Education, p. 190, 1903). Jesus taught that all the Scriptures speak about Him, and He explained Himself from Moses and the prophets on the road to Emmaus: “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.” (John 5:39, KJV) and “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27, KJV). Steps to Christ applies that truth to every page we open, whether in Moses or in Revelation, “Yes, the whole Bible tells of Christ.” (Steps to Christ, p. 88, 1892) and “If you would become acquainted with the Saviour, study the Holy Scriptures.” (Steps to Christ, p. 88, 1892). The Acts of the Apostles reminds us that Revelation gathers the threads of every earlier book, “In the Revelation all the books of the Bible meet and end.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 585, 1911). The pioneer William Miller described what happened when he finally read the Bible this way, “The Saviour became to me the chiefest among ten thousand; and the Scriptures, which before were dark and contradictory, now became the lamp to my feet and light to my path.” (William Miller, in S. Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, pp. 65-67, quoted in The Great Controversy, p. 319, 1911). Neither prophet explains each face, so we will let other Scriptures speak about each image and keep our eyes on Christ.

Yet the first face is easy to follow through Scripture, because the lion appears again in Revelation as a title of Christ Himself: “And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.” (Revelation 5:5, KJV). Jacob first gave that image to Judah, the tribe from which the promised King would one day come: “Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?” (Genesis 49:9, KJV) and “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” (Genesis 49:10, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets traces that line from Jacob’s blessing to the Son of David, “The crowning blessings of the birthright were transferred to Judah.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 236, 1890) and “The lion, king of the forest, is a fitting symbol of this tribe, from which came David, and the Son of David, Shiloh, the true ‘Lion of the tribe of Judah,’ to whom all powers shall finally bow and all nations render homage.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 236, 1890). The Desire of Ages shows how God’s people longed for that Lion to act, even when His timing confused them, “And now from his dungeon he watched for the Lion of the tribe of Judah to cast down the pride of the oppressor, and to deliver the poor and him that cried.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 215, 1898). Christ’s Object Lessons describes the day when the Lion will open the books of judgment, “In all its vindictiveness this decision will appear before them in the day when this book is unsealed by the Lion of the tribe of Judah.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 294, 1900). The Desire of Ages describes the strength Christ brought into His battle with temptation, “He stood in the strength of perfect manhood, possessing the full vigor of mind and body.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 117, 1898) and it names Him as the One Jacob foresaw: “This was Shiloh, the peace giver.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 52, 1898). Solomon, Hosea, and Amos all use the lion to describe bold righteousness and the voice of God: “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.” (Proverbs 28:1, KJV) and “They shall walk after the LORD: he shall roar like a lion: when he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west.” (Hosea 11:10, KJV) and “The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?” (Amos 3:8, KJV). The lion’s face reminds me that Christ is not weak, and those who follow Him need not be timid.

But the Lion of Revelation five turns out to be a Lamb, and that surprise shapes how we read every face: “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7, KJV) and “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29, KJV). Christ had all the strength of a lion, yet He refused to use it to save Himself: “Thinkest thou that I can not now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53, KJV) and “No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” (John 10:18, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes how freely He accepted the humiliation that the Lion could have refused, “This was a voluntary sacrifice.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 22, 1898) and “But He chose to give back the scepter into the Father’s hands, and to step down from the throne of the universe, that He might bring light to the benighted, and life to the perishing.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 23, 1898). Sr. White explains how His humility unmasked the character of the enemy, “In stooping to take upon Himself humanity, Christ revealed a character the opposite of the character of Satan.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898) and she shows the depth of that humility: “As the high priest laid aside his gorgeous pontifical robes, and officiated in the white linen dress of the common priest, so Christ took the form of a servant, and offered sacrifice, Himself the priest, Himself the victim.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898). The same book describes the moment when John the Baptist first pointed to Him, “The Holy Spirit rested upon him, and with outstretched hand pointing to Jesus, he cried, ‘Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 112, 1898) and it notes the sad irony in the temple: “In the temple the morning and the evening sacrifice daily pointed to the Lamb of God; yet even here was no preparation to receive Him.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 44, 1898). Peter describes the Lamb’s response to insult, “Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:” (1 Peter 2:23, KJV) and Isaiah shows His gentleness with the weak: “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.” (Isaiah 42:3, KJV). Real strength in God’s kingdom looks like a Lion who chooses to become a Lamb for the sake of others.

While the lion speaks of royal strength, the ox or calf speaks of patient labor and of sacrifice, the two great uses of oxen in Israel: “If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD.” (Leviticus 1:3, KJV) and “And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.” (Leviticus 1:4, KJV). Jesus described His whole mission in those terms, and Isaiah saw Him carrying the burdens of others: “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45, KJV) and “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.” (Isaiah 53:4, KJV). The Ministry of Healing describes an old picture that captures the meaning of this face better than any long explanation, “There is a picture representing a bullock standing between a plow and an altar, with the inscription, ‘Ready for either,’ ready to toil in the furrow or to be offered on the altar of sacrifice.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 502, 1905) and “This is the position of the true child of God—willing to go where duty calls, to deny self, to sacrifice for the Redeemer’s cause.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 502, 1905). The same book describes the Saviour who wore that yoke before He asked us to share it, “Our Lord Jesus Christ came to this world as the unwearied servant of man’s necessity.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 17, 1905) and The Desire of Ages shows Him serving in the carpenter’s home: “He had been the Commander of heaven, and angels had delighted to fulfill His word; now He was a willing servant, a loving, obedient son.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 72, 1898). Sr. White describes one of the last scenes before the cross, when the Master knelt with a towel, “He had a full consciousness of His divinity; but He had laid aside His royal crown and kingly robes, and had taken the form of a servant.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 645, 1898) and “One of the last acts of His life on earth was to gird Himself as a servant, and perform a servant’s part.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 645, 1898). Jesus invites us under His yoke and serves among us, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matthew 11:29, KJV) and “For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth.” (Luke 22:27, KJV) and the ox tells me that service and sacrifice are the shape of Christ’s love.

Yet the third face is the face of a man, and it reminds us that our Saviour did not merely visit humanity but became human: “But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:” (Philippians 2:7, KJV) and “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:8, KJV). Hebrews explains why He had to share our flesh and blood, and why He had to be made like His brethren in all things: “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;” (Hebrews 2:14, KJV) and “Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” (Hebrews 2:17, KJV). The Desire of Ages measures the depth of that stoop with a sentence that should humble every proud heart, “It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man’s nature, even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 49, 1898) and “Like every child of Adam He accepted the results of the working of the great law of heredity.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 49, 1898). Sr. White explains the purpose behind that costly identification with our weakness, “For this He took upon Himself our nature, and passed through our experiences.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 24, 1898) and “He took our nature and overcame, that we through taking His nature might overcome.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 311, 1898). The same book adds that His humanity was not temporary, and that it made Him feel our grief, “In taking our nature, the Saviour has bound Himself to humanity by a tie that is never to be broken.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 25, 1898) and “Though He was the Son of God, yet He had taken human nature upon Him, and He was moved by human sorrow.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 533, 1898). Pilate unknowingly spoke a deep truth when he presented the beaten prisoner to the crowd, “Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man!” (John 19:5, KJV) and Paul names that same Man as our only Mediator: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” (1 Timothy 2:5, KJV). The human face tells me that my High Priest knows from the inside what it means to be weak, tired, and tempted.

But the fourth face belongs to an eagle, and Scripture uses that bird to picture God’s care and the soul’s rising toward Him: “As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:” (Deuteronomy 32:11, KJV) and “So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.” (Deuteronomy 32:12, KJV). Job marveled at the eagle’s high nest, and the psalmist promised that the Lord renews our youth like the eagle’s: “Doth the eagle mount up at thy command, and make her nest on high?” (Job 39:27, KJV) and “Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” (Psalm 103:5, KJV). Education tells the story of a mountain eagle trapped by a storm, and it applies that story to every discouraged believer, “The eagle of the Alps is sometimes beaten down by the tempest into the narrow defiles of the mountains.” (Education, p. 118, 1903) and “At length, with a note of triumph, she darts upward, and, piercing the clouds, is once more in the clear sunlight, with the darkness and tempest far beneath.” (Education, p. 118, 1903). Sr. White then turns from the bird to us, and she does not pretend that our storms are imaginary, “So we may be surrounded with difficulties, discouragement, and darkness.” (Education, p. 118, 1903) and “There is one, and but one, way of escape.” (Education, p. 118, 1903). The same passage names the direction of that escape and the power that carries us there, “The mists and fogs cling to the earth; beyond the clouds God’s light is shining.” (Education, p. 118, 1903) and “Into the sunlight of His presence we may rise on the wings of faith.” (Education, pp. 118, 119, 1903). David prayed to be led to the rock higher than himself, and Paul calls us to set our affection above: “From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” (Psalm 61:2, KJV) and “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2, KJV). The eagle’s face tells me that Christ lifts His people above the storm, and faith is the wing He gives us for the climb.

While each face shows one aspect of Christ, the living creatures carry all four faces at once, and that wholeness may be the deepest lesson of all: “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” (Luke 2:52, KJV). The fullness of God dwells in Christ, and the Spirit rested on Him with every gift a perfect ruler needs: “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” (Colossians 2:9, KJV) and “And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;” (Isaiah 11:2, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes the balance that marked His character even as a child in Nazareth, “Yet His character was beautiful in its symmetry.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 68, 1898) and it says that He developed what no other human being ever has: “But Christ, coming to the earth as man, lived a holy life, and developed a perfect character.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 762, 1898). Sr. White shows how the lion and the lamb met in Him without contradiction, even in His sternest moments of rebuke, “He fearlessly denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity, but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 353, 1898). Hebrews describes a High Priest who is both touched by our weakness and separate from our sin: “For we have not an high priest which can not be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15, KJV) and “For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;” (Hebrews 7:26, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons explains that this balanced character is not merely admired but offered, “Christ in His humanity wrought out a perfect character, and this character He offers to impart to us.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 311, 1900) and “All righteous attributes of character dwell in God as a perfect, harmonious whole, and every one who receives Christ as a personal Saviour is privileged to possess these attributes.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 330, 1900). The Desire of Ages adds that His strength is meant to grow in us by the same discipline, “The positiveness and energy, the solidity and strength of character, manifested in Christ are to be developed in us, through the same discipline that He endured.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 73, 1898). Isaiah foresaw a Man who would be a shelter in the storm, “And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.” (Isaiah 32:2, KJV) and I need His courage and His gentleness together, not one without the other.

Yet the four faces are not only a portrait to admire; they are a likeness God intends to reproduce in His people: “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 3:18, KJV) and “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29, KJV). John says we shall be like Him when we see Him, and that hope begins to purify us now: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2, KJV) and “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” (1 John 3:3, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons describes how eagerly the Saviour waits for that likeness to appear in His church, “Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 69, 1900) and “When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 69, 1900). The Desire of Ages explains how that change takes place in a disciple’s daily life as he keeps looking to Jesus, “By the transforming agency of His grace, the image of God is reproduced in the disciple; he becomes a new creature.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 391, 1898). The Great Controversy states the law of the soul that governs the whole process, “It is a law both of the intellectual and the spiritual nature that by beholding we become changed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 555, 1911) and The Ministry of Healing applies it: “But by beholding Jesus, talking of His love and perfection of character, we become changed into His image.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 492, 1905). Christ’s Object Lessons names the goal of the whole Christian life in a single sentence, “The object of the Christian life is fruit bearing—the reproduction of Christ’s character in the believer, that it may be reproduced in others.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 67, 1900). Paul calls this the renewing of the new man, and he labored until Christ was formed in his converts: “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:” (Colossians 3:10, KJV) and “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,” (Galatians 4:19, KJV). The faces around the throne are a preview of what grace wants to do with my own face.

But we must hold these comparisons with care, because the prophets never assigned a fixed meaning to every feature, and our knowledge is partial: “For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.” (1 Corinthians 13:9, KJV). What Scripture makes plain is that Christ is the image of the invisible God and the brightness of His glory: “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:” (Colossians 1:15, KJV) and “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;” (Hebrews 1:3, KJV). Education names the theme that every symbol in the Bible ultimately serves, “The central theme of the Bible, the theme about which every other in the whole book clusters, is the redemption plan, the restoration in the human soul of the image of God.” (Education, p. 125, 1903) and it promises a reward to the student who keeps that theme in view: “He who grasps this thought has before him an infinite field for study.” (Education, p. 126, 1903) and “He has the key that will unlock to him the whole treasure house of God’s word.” (Education, p. 126, 1903). Paul chose to know nothing among the Corinthians except Christ crucified, and he gloried only in the cross: “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2, KJV) and “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” (Galatians 6:14, KJV). The Great Controversy and The Desire of Ages keep that cross at the center of every faithful study, “The cross of Christ will be the science and the song of the redeemed through all eternity.” (The Great Controversy, p. 651, 1911) and “His sacrifice is the center of our hope.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 660, 1898). The Ministry of Healing adds a counsel for every teacher who handles these chapters, “Let the cross of Christ be made the science of all education, the center of all teaching and all study.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 460, 1905). Hebrews tells us to look to Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2, KJV) and any reading of the faces that leads us away from Him has gone too far.

While the faces point to Christ, they also call us to live in His likeness, with courage, service, humanity, and hope working together: “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9, KJV) and “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” (1 Corinthians 16:13, KJV). The lion calls me to courage, and Education describes the kind of people that courage produces, “The greatest want of the world is the want of men—men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.” (Education, p. 57, 1903). The ox calls me to serve, and Jesus left an example at a basin of water that no believer is exempt from following: “If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet.” (John 13:14, KJV) and “For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.” (John 13:15, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows how far that service reached, even to the man who was about to betray Him, “Judas, in choosing his position at table, had tried to place himself first, and Christ as a servant served him first.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 645, 1898) and it shows what the lowly service meant: “Christ had come to wash the heart from the stain of sin.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 646, 1898). The human face calls me to love my neighbor in the freedom of the gospel, and the eagle reminds me where my true citizenship lies: “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:13, KJV) and “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:” (Philippians 3:20, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains how this likeness grows in ordinary believers who keep their eyes on Him, “By beholding Christ, they became transformed in character.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 296, 1898) and “It is by beholding His love, by dwelling upon it, by drinking it in, that we are to become partakers of His nature.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 389, 1898). The same book adds a word for anyone who, like Peter, is too proud to let Christ serve him, “It is not humiliating to the Master to allow Him to work for our purification.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 646, 1898). The four faces finally ask whether my life looks anything like the Lord they surround, and the eyes and wheels of the vision will press that question further.

WHY DO THE WHEELS HAVE EYES?

Ezekiel’s eyes moved from the faces to the wheels, and what he saw beside each creature seemed at first to make no sense at all: “Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces.” (Ezekiel 1:15, KJV) and “The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.” (Ezekiel 1:16, KJV). Testimonies for the Church describes his first impression and the surprise that followed when the wheels began to move, “There were wheels within wheels in an arrangement so complicated that at first sight they appeared to Ezekiel to be all in confusion.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889) and “But when they moved, it was with beautiful exactness and in perfect harmony.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 751, 1889). Yet the prophet also noticed that the wheels never had to turn around, because they went straight in every direction they were sent: “When they went, they went upon their four sides: and they turned not when they went.” (Ezekiel 1:17, KJV). How can something that looks so tangled move with such order, and what is God teaching us by placing that puzzle beside His throne? Education answers by contrasting the way human historians read the past with the way the word of God reads it, “In the annals of human history the growth of nations, the rise and fall of empires, appear as dependent on the will and prowess of man.” (Education, p. 173, 1903) and “The shaping of events seems, to a great degree, to be determined by his power, ambition, or caprice.” (Education, p. 173, 1903) and “But in the word of God the curtain is drawn aside, and we behold, behind, above, and through all the play and counterplay of human interests and power and passions, the agencies of the all-merciful One, silently, patiently working out the counsels of His own will.” (Education, p. 173, 1903). The prophetic messenger gives the same comfort to anyone whose life feels like a knot of crossed purposes, “That which appears to finite minds entangled and complicated, the Lord’s hand can keep in perfect order.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). Isaiah heard that God’s thoughts are not ours, the psalmist said His footsteps are not known, and Paul asked who has known His mind: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.” (Isaiah 55:8, KJV) and “Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known.” (Psalm 77:19, KJV) and “For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?” (Romans 11:34, KJV). I may not see the pattern of the wheels in my own week, but I can trust the One who sees it from the throne above them.

Ezekiel saw something else under the wings that explains the whole order of the vision, and he mentions it more than once: “And there appeared in the cherubims the form of a man’s hand under their wings.” (Ezekiel 10:8, KJV). Education draws the lesson that the wheels were meant to teach every generation that watches empires rise and fall, “As the wheel like complications were under the guidance of the hand beneath the wings of the cherubim, so the complicated play of human events is under divine control.” (Education, p. 178, 1903) and “Amidst the strife and tumult of nations, He that sitteth above the cherubim still guides the affairs of the earth.” (Education, p. 178, 1903). Daniel learned that same truth in Babylon, where he blessed the God to whom all wisdom and might belong: “Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his:” (Daniel 2:20, KJV). But does this mean that rulers are puppets, or that nations carry no blame for the paths they choose to walk? Sr. White answers that every ruler holds a borrowed power, “The power exercised by every ruler on the earth is Heaven-imparted; and upon his use of the power thus bestowed, his success depends.” (Education, p. 174, 1903), and she adds that true strength is measured differently than the world expects, “Here it is shown that the strength of nations, as of individuals, is not found in the opportunities or facilities that appear to make them invincible; it is not found in their boasted greatness.” (Education, p. 175, 1903) and “It is measured by the fidelity with which they fulfill God’s purpose.” (Education, p. 175, 1903). Solomon wrote that the king’s heart is in the Lord’s hand, and Asaph sang that God puts down one and sets up another: “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.” (Proverbs 21:1, KJV) and “But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.” (Psalm 75:7, KJV). The Desire of Ages shows the hand at work in the greatest moment of history, when the world was made ready for its Redeemer, “Providence had directed the movements of nations, and the tide of human impulse and influence, until the world was ripe for the coming of the Deliverer.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 32, 1898). Paul told the Athenians that God sets the bounds of every nation so that people would seek Him, and that purpose still moves the wheels today: “And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;” (Acts 17:26, KJV) and “That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:” (Acts 17:27, KJV).

Ezekiel explains what made the wheels move, and the answer is neither the wheels themselves nor the creatures alone: “Whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went, thither was their spirit to go; and the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.” (Ezekiel 1:20, KJV) and “When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.” (Ezekiel 1:21, KJV). The inspired pen names that moving power plainly and shows why the vision could promise order in a disordered world, “The Spirit of God, revealed to him as moving and directing these wheels, brought harmony out of confusion; so the whole world was under His control.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 752, 1889). Yet the Spirit who steadies the wheels of history also works in quiet places, as Zechariah and Jesus both taught: “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6, KJV) and “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8, KJV). The Desire of Ages reminds us that the Spirit did not arrive for the first time at Pentecost, but has been at work since the fall, “Before this the Spirit had been in the world; from the very beginning of the work of redemption He had been moving upon men’s hearts.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 669, 1898). The same book explains how He reaches individual hearts through Scripture and moves our wills from within rather than by force, “It is by the Spirit of truth, working through the word of God, that Christ subdues His chosen people to Himself.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 671, 1898) and “Through the Spirit God works in His people ‘to will and to do of His good pleasure.’” (The Desire of Ages, p. 672, 1898) and “The Holy Spirit puts forth its highest energies to work in heart and mind.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 827, 1898). Why should I expect the Spirit to guide my small life when He has the movements of whole nations in His care? Paul answers that being led by the Spirit is the mark of God’s children, and Jesus promised power for witness to the ends of the earth: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” (Romans 8:14, KJV) and “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judæa, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8, KJV). Through inspired counsel we are told how the Spirit joins every part of God’s work, “It is His plan that every part of His work shall depend on every other part, as a wheel within a wheel, all acting in harmony.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 823, 1898), so my small wheel was never meant to roll alone.

Ezekiel noticed one more detail that makes the wheels feel alive, for their rims and even the creatures’ bodies were covered with eyes: “As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round about them four.” (Ezekiel 1:18, KJV) and “And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had.” (Ezekiel 10:12, KJV). John saw the same fullness of eyes around the throne, and the meaning is plain, because nothing in that realm moves blindly or by chance. Elihu and Jeremiah both confessed that no path and no hiding place escapes the eyes of the Lord: “For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.” (Job 34:21, KJV) and “For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes.” (Jeremiah 16:17, KJV). The prophetic messenger turns those eyes toward the church, where Christ walks among the lampstands and knows every congregation by heart, “He knows their true state.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 586, 1911) and “He observes their order, their piety, their devotion.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 586, 1911) and “With untiring wakefulness and unremitting vigilance, He watches to see whether the light of any of His sentinels is burning dim or going out.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 586, 1911). But are those eyes only searching for faults, or do they also look for the hurting and the faithful who feel forgotten? In The Desire of Ages we read that His gaze is personal and tender as well as searching and exact, “His eye sweeps over the multitude, taking in every individual.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 158, 1898) and “Not a sigh is breathed, not a pain felt, not a grief pierces the soul, but the throb vibrates to the Father’s heart.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 356, 1898). The psalmist sang that the Lord looks from heaven and sees every person who lives upon the earth: “The LORD looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.” (Psalm 33:13, KJV) and “From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.” (Psalm 33:14, KJV). The Great Controversy says those eyes already see the final crisis, “The eye of God, looking down the ages, was fixed upon the crisis which His people are to meet, when earthly powers shall be arrayed against them.” (The Great Controversy, p. 634, 1911), so I need not fear a day that God has already seen.

The eyes on the wheels remind me that nothing in my life is too small for God to notice, and Jesus said so with two common birds: “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.” (Matthew 10:29, KJV) and “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” (Matthew 10:30, KJV). The Desire of Ages takes that saying about sparrows and applies it to every believer who wonders whether heaven has noticed him, “The little brown sparrow is watched over by Providence.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 313, 1898) and “In the book of God’s providence, the volume of life, we are each given a page.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 313, 1898). Yet providence does not always look kind from where we stand, and the faithful have often suffered while the wicked seemed to prosper. Sr. White speaks honestly about that perplexity and refuses to let it become a reason for doubting the heart behind the wheels, “The mysterious providence which permits the righteous to suffer persecution at the hand of the wicked has been a cause of great perplexity to many who are weak in faith.” (The Great Controversy, p. 47, 1911) and “God has given us sufficient evidence of His love, and we are not to doubt His goodness because we cannot understand the workings of His providence.” (The Great Controversy, p. 47, 1911). Writing of John the Baptist in prison, the same pen admits that some providences are beyond our sight, “The mystery of this dark providence our human vision cannot penetrate; but it can never shake our confidence in God when we remember that John was but a sharer in the sufferings of Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 223, 1898). David knew that God keeps count of every wandering and stores every tear, and he heard the promise that the Lord would guide with His eye: “Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?” (Psalm 56:8, KJV) and “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” (Psalm 32:8, KJV). When I cannot trace His hand, can I still trust His eye and let that trust lift the weight I carry into each new day? Patriarchs and Prophets answers with a promise for anxious hearts, “Faith in God’s love and overruling providence lightens the burdens of anxiety and care.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 600, 1890), and Peter and David tell us where to lay those burdens: “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7, KJV) and “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” (Psalm 55:22, KJV).

The creatures also moved with a speed that left Ezekiel searching for words, and he compared their motion to a flash of lightning: “And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning.” (Ezekiel 1:14, KJV). The Great Controversy connects that verse with the angels who serve before the throne and carry its orders to the earth, “In the presence chamber of the King of kings they wait—‘angels, that excel in strength,’ ‘ministers of His, that do His pleasure,’ ‘hearkening unto the voice of His word.’” (The Great Controversy, pp. 511, 512, 1911) and “As God’s messengers they go forth, like ‘the appearance of a flash of lightning,’ (Ezekiel 1:14), so dazzling their glory, and so swift their flight.” (The Great Controversy, p. 512, 1911). David pictured the Lord Himself riding upon a cherub and flying upon the wings of the wind: “And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.” (Psalm 18:10, KJV). Daniel felt that swiftness in his own experience, for while he was still praying, Gabriel arrived with an answer: “Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.” (Daniel 9:21, KJV). But do those wings ever reach the ordinary places where we live, or do they belong only to prophets and kings? The Desire of Ages says that every gift from heaven travels along this road and that common people are still its destination, “And it is through Christ, by the ministration of His heavenly messengers, that every blessing comes from God to us.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 143, 1898) and “Humanity is still as much the object of heaven’s solicitude as when common men of common occupations met angels at noonday, and talked with the heavenly messengers in the vineyards and the fields.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 48, 1898). Testimonies for the Church sees the angels’ busy ministry as a sign of the guiding hand, “The tireless vigilance of the heavenly messengers, and their unceasing employment in their ministry in connection with the beings of earth, show us how God’s hand is guiding the wheel within a wheel.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889), and The Great Controversy reminds us how near that unseen world stands, “The connection of the visible with the invisible world, the ministration of angels of God, and the agency of evil spirits, are plainly revealed in the Scriptures, and inseparably interwoven with human history.” (The Great Controversy, p. 511, 1911). The psalmist promises that angels keep our ways, and the Gospels show them serving Jesus after His long fast and temptation: “For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” (Psalm 91:11, KJV) and “They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.” (Psalm 91:12, KJV) and “Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.” (Matthew 4:11, KJV).

Twice Ezekiel says that the creatures went straight forward wherever they were directed, without turning aside as they moved: “And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went; and they turned not when they went.” (Ezekiel 1:12, KJV) and “When they went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went.” (Ezekiel 10:11, KJV). Their obedience did not need to stop and reconsider, because their will was already joined to the will of the One on the throne. Christ’s Object Lessons sees the same ready obedience in the weather and the seasons that God sends across the fields, “Cloud and sunshine, dew and rain, wind and storm, all are under the supervision of God, and yield implicit obedience to His command.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 81, 1900). Yet the clearest picture of that straight path is the Son, whose obedience bent low enough to serve the very men who argued about greatness, “While they were contending for the highest place, He to whom every knee shall bow, He whom the angels of glory count it honor to serve, bowed down to wash the feet of those who called Him Lord.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 649, 1898). Am I as quick to follow when the Spirit points ahead, or do I keep turning to look at what I am leaving behind? Jesus warned against looking back from the plow, and Paul pressed forward toward the mark without dwelling on what was past: “And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62, KJV) and “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,” (Philippians 3:13, KJV) and “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets uses a soldier’s word for that readiness and asks a searching question of us all, “God’s servants should be minutemen, ever ready to move as fast as His providence opens the way.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 423, 1890) and “Who is ready at the call of Providence to renounce cherished plans and familiar associations?” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 127, 1890). The prophetic messenger promises that heaven moves alongside those who obey, “Ministering angels unite in service with every truehearted son and daughter of God.” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 174, 1905) and “Angels from the heavenly courts stand by all who do God’s service in ministering to their fellow men.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 388, 1900), and Solomon tells us to keep our eyes fixed ahead: “Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.” (Proverbs 4:25, KJV).

Ezekiel saw that the wheels and the creatures never moved apart, for when one rose from the earth, the other rose with it: “And when the living creatures went, the wheels went by them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.” (Ezekiel 1:19, KJV) and “When they stood, these stood; and when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also: for the spirit of the living creature was in them.” (Ezekiel 10:17, KJV). Heaven and earth are not two separate stories in this vision, as Patriarchs and Prophets shows in describing the Creator’s daily care, “The hand of God guides the planets and keeps them in position in their orderly march through the heavens.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 115, 1890) and “His word controls the elements; He covers the heavens with clouds and prepares rain for the earth.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 115, 1890). Testimonies for the Church draws that lesson from all three prophets who saw the throne, “In the visions given to Isaiah, to Ezekiel, and to John we see how closely heaven is connected with the events taking place upon the earth and how great is the care of God for those who are loyal to Him.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889) and “The Majesty of heaven has the destiny of nations, as well as the concerns of His church, in His own charge.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889). Yet the connection runs both ways, for Jesus taught that even one repentant sinner on earth brings joy to heaven: “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” (Luke 15:7, KJV). How should it change my day to know that heaven watches my small choices with the same care it gives to the rise of nations? The Acts of the Apostles uses another image from the same throne room, the stars that Christ holds in His right hand, “This assures us that no church faithful to its trust need fear coming to nought, for not a star that has the protection of Omnipotence can be plucked out of the hand of Christ.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 586, 1911) and “He guides and directs their movements.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 586, 1911). Jesus said His sheep are kept by His hand and by the Father’s hand together, and none can pluck them out: “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” (John 10:28, KJV) and “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” (John 10:29, KJV). Paul wrote that our life is hidden with Christ in God, and Ezekiel’s linked wheels show the same safety in motion: “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:3, KJV).

The wheels also teach us to read history as a chain whose links God has already named, and Daniel told a proud king exactly that: “But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;” (Daniel 2:28, KJV) and “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” (Daniel 2:44, KJV). In Education we read that the chain stretches from the first page of history to the last and shows our own place along it, “The history which the great I AM has marked out in His word, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, from eternity in the past to eternity in the future, tells us where we are today in the procession of the ages, and what may be expected in the time to come.” (Education, p. 178, 1903). The same book warns that the measuring did not end with Babylon, because every nation and every person stands under it today, “Today men and nations are being measured by the plummet in the hand of Him who makes no mistake.” (Education, p. 178, 1903). The pioneer William Miller felt bound by conscience to study these prophetic periods instead of setting them aside, “I therefore felt that in endeavoring to comprehend what God had in His mercy seen fit to reveal to us, I had no right to pass over the prophetic periods.” (William Miller, in S. Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, p. 75, quoted in The Great Controversy, p. 324, 1911). Yet prophecy is never given merely to satisfy curiosity, but to wake us up, as Peter and Jesus both made clear: “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:” (2 Peter 1:19, KJV) and “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Luke 21:28, KJV). Testimonies for the Church sounds that wake-up call in short, urgent words that leave no room for a sleepy church, “We are standing on the threshold of great and solemn events.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889) and “Prophecy is fast fulfilling.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889) and “The Lord is at the door.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 753, 1889). The Desire of Ages assures us that God’s calendar is never late and never hurried, “But like the stars in the vast circuit of their appointed path, God’s purposes know no haste and no delay.” (The Desire of Ages, pp. 31, 32, 1898), and Habakkuk said the same about the vision’s appointed time: “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Habakkuk 2:3, KJV). When I see these signs, I do not need to read the news with fear, because Jesus said they mean His coming is near, even at the doors: “So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.” (Matthew 24:33, KJV).

Ezekiel’s wheels do not stay by the river Chebar, because the inspired pen sees them again on the day Christ gathers His people home, “On each side of the cloudy chariot are wings, and beneath it are living wheels; and as the chariot rolls upward, the wheels cry, ‘Holy,’ and the wings, as they move, cry, ‘Holy,’ and the retinue of angels cry, ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty.’” (The Great Controversy, p. 645, 1911) and “And the redeemed shout, ‘Alleluia!’ as the chariot moves onward toward the New Jerusalem.” (The Great Controversy, p. 645, 1911). Paul describes that same meeting in the air, and he wrote it so that grieving believers would comfort one another: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:” (1 Thessalonians 4:16, KJV) and “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:17, KJV) and “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:18, KJV). But between the riverbank and that chariot lies the road we walk now, with its trials, its furnace fires, and its unanswered questions. Testimonies for the Church describes the risen Saviour who oversees every step of that road and keeps the heat of each trial in check, “He measures every trial.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889) and “He watches the furnace fire that must test every soul.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). The same pen promises that no plot against God’s people can move faster than the hand that turns the wheels, “He can devise ways and means to thwart the purposes of wicked men, and He will bring to confusion the counsels of them that plot mischief against His people.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889) and “When the strongholds of kings shall be overthrown, when the arrows of God’s wrath shall strike through the hearts of His enemies, His people will be safe in His hands.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 754, 1889). Isaiah promised perfect peace to the mind that stays on God, and David told us to commit our way to Him: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” (Isaiah 26:3, KJV) and “Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” (Psalm 37:5, KJV). Paul asked who can stand against us if God is for us, and I hear in his question the same assurance that Ezekiel saw in the wheels: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31, KJV). The wheels have shown us how God guides history, but the next scene shows what He paid to redeem the people He guides.

WHO SINGS THE NEW SONG OF THE LAMB?

John’s vision does not end with the song of creation in chapter four, because a new scene opens in the right hand of the One on the throne: “And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.” (Revelation 5:1, KJV) and “And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?” (Revelation 5:2, KJV). The question rang through heaven and earth alike, and no one in either realm, or even under the earth, could answer it: “And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.” (Revelation 5:3, KJV). John wept much at the silence that followed, and his tears tell us that something far greater than curiosity hung on that scroll: “And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.” (Revelation 5:4, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons links that book with the record of human choices, saying that the Jewish leaders’ decision against Christ was written there, “Their decision was registered in the book which John saw in the hand of Him that sat upon the throne, the book which no man could open.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 294, 1900). Yet why could no one open it, when heaven is full of mighty angels who excel in strength and stand before God day and night? Patriarchs and Prophets explains that both the counsels of God and the rescue of man belonged to Christ alone, “Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 36, 1890) and “None but Christ could redeem fallen man from the curse of the law and bring him again into harmony with Heaven.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 63, 1890). Steps to Christ adds the reason, and The Desire of Ages applies it to my heart and to every burdened heart, “None but the Son of God could accomplish our redemption; for only He who was in the bosom of the Father could declare Him.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892) and “None but Christ can fashion anew the character that has been ruined by sin.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 38, 1898) and “All are weighed down with burdens that only Christ can remove.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 328, 1898). The psalmist knew no human ransom could save a brother, and Isaiah saw that God’s own arm had to bring salvation: “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:” (Psalm 49:7, KJV) and “And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.” (Isaiah 59:16, KJV).

An elder told John to stop weeping because the Lion of Judah had prevailed, yet when John turned, he saw a Lamb that had been slain. The Lamb then did what no one else could do, and He took the book from the hand of the One on the throne: “And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.” (Revelation 5:7, KJV). The Acts of the Apostles explains why heaven shows Him as both a Lion and a Lamb in the same breath, “These symbols represent the union of omnipotent power and self-sacrificing love.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 589, 1911) and “The Lion of Judah, so terrible to the rejectors of His grace, will be the Lamb of God to the obedient and faithful.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 589, 1911). The same passage shows that the power to judge and the power to save come from the same arm, “The pillar of fire that speaks terror and wrath to the transgressor of God’s law is a token of light and mercy and deliverance to those who have kept His commandments.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 589, 1911) and “The arm strong to smite the rebellious will be strong to deliver the loyal.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 589, 1911). John the Baptist pointed to Him as the Lamb of God, and Isaiah had long before said that His wounds would bring our healing: “And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36, KJV) and “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5, KJV). But what does it mean for me that the One who holds the book still bears the marks of the sacrifice? The Great Controversy answers that His wounds now speak for me in the sanctuary above, pleading where my own words fail, “His intercession is that of a pierced and broken body, of a spotless life.” (The Great Controversy, p. 416, 1911) and “The wounded hands, the pierced side, the marred feet, plead for fallen man, whose redemption was purchased at such infinite cost.” (The Great Controversy, p. 416, 1911). Peter reminds us that we were bought with the precious blood of a spotless Lamb, and Hebrews says He entered the holy place once for all: “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;” (1 Peter 1:18, KJV) and “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:” (1 Peter 1:19, KJV) and “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (Hebrews 9:12, KJV).

When the Lamb took the book, the creatures and elders fell before Him with harps and golden vials full of odours: “And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.” (Revelation 5:8, KJV). John later saw an angel at the golden altar offering much incense with the prayers of all saints before the throne: “And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” (Revelation 8:3, KJV) and “And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.” (Revelation 8:4, KJV). David asked that his prayer be set before God as incense, and Luke records a multitude praying outside at the hour of incense: “Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” (Psalm 141:2, KJV) and “And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.” (Luke 1:10, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains what the incense meant in the earthly sanctuary and why our prayers need it so much, “The incense, ascending with the prayers of Israel, represents the merits and intercession of Christ, His perfect righteousness, which through faith is imputed to His people, and which can alone make the worship of sinful beings acceptable to God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 353, 1890). The same book shows how the worshipers’ prayers rose with the incense, “Thus their petitions ascended with the cloud of incense, while faith laid hold upon the merits of the promised Saviour prefigured by the atoning sacrifice.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 353, 1890), and it tells us where to aim our prayers today, “As in that typical service the priest looked by faith to the mercy seat which he could not see, so the people of God are now to direct their prayers to Christ, their great High Priest, who, unseen by human vision, is pleading in their behalf in the sanctuary above.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 353, 1890). Yet how often do I treat prayer as a duty to finish rather than a fragrance that Christ Himself carries before the throne? The Desire of Ages answers with a present-tense promise, “He is today standing at the altar of incense, presenting before God the prayers of those who desire His help.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 568, 1898), and Steps to Christ tells what prayer truly is, “Prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend.” (Steps to Christ, p. 93, 1892) and “Prayer does not bring God down to us, but brings us up to Him.” (Steps to Christ, p. 93, 1892). Paul adds that when we do not know how to pray, the Spirit Himself helps our weakness, so no honest prayer is lost: “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26, KJV).

Then the creatures and the elders sang a new song, and its words tell us why the Lamb alone is worthy to open the book: “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;” (Revelation 5:9, KJV). The song moves from the cross to the crown, for the redeemed are made kings and priests who shall reign on the earth: “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:10, KJV). The Great Controversy hears that same theme on the lips of the saved when Jesus crowns them at the gates of the city, “Rapture unutterable thrills every heart, and each voice is raised in grateful praise: ‘Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.’” (The Great Controversy, p. 646, 1911). It also shows that the promised reign begins in the thousand years that John describes later in his book, “At this time the righteous reign as kings and priests unto God.” (The Great Controversy, p. 661, 1911) and “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6, KJV). But why is the song called new, when the praise of God has filled heaven since the morning stars sang together? The inspired pen answers that redemption is a theme no human or angelic mind will ever exhaust, “In this life we can only begin to understand the wonderful theme of redemption.” (The Great Controversy, p. 651, 1911) and “The plan of redemption will not be fully understood, even when the ransomed see as they are seen and know as they are known; but through the eternal ages new truth will continually unfold to the wondering and delighted mind.” (The Great Controversy, p. 651, 1911). That is why the song stays new for the saved, and the same book shows the one center around which every verse will turn, “In Christ glorified they will behold Christ crucified.” (The Great Controversy, p. 651, 1911) and “It will be seen that He who is infinite in wisdom could devise no plan for our salvation except the sacrifice of His Son.” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911). The psalmists and Isaiah called God’s people to sing a new song, and I want my voice to be practicing it already: “O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.” (Psalm 96:1, KJV) and “Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.” (Psalm 33:3, KJV) and “Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.” (Isaiah 42:10, KJV).

The new song names the people the Lamb bought, and they come from every kindred, tongue, people, and nation without exception. John later saw that multitude too large to number, and Peter learned that God accepts the reverent in every nation: “After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;” (Revelation 7:9, KJV) and “Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:” (Acts 10:34, KJV) and “But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.” (Acts 10:35, KJV). The Great Controversy describes the hidden and humble places from which many of those singers come, “The heirs of God have come from garrets, from hovels, from dungeons, from scaffolds, from mountains, from deserts, from the caves of the earth, from the caverns of the sea.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911) and “Now the decisions of earth are reversed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911). Yet if the song is so wide, why did God choose one nation, and does He still call a small and faithful people today? Education answers that the invitation is wide because the purpose of God has always been wide, “God declares that whosoever will may come ‘into the bond of the covenant.’” (Education, p. 174, 1903) and “In the creation it was His purpose that the earth be inhabited by beings whose existence should be a blessing to themselves and to one another, and an honor to their Creator.” (Education, p. 174, 1903). The Acts of the Apostles says that God’s people remain small among the millions, yet never weak, “In comparison with the millions of the world, God’s people will be, as they have ever been, a little flock; but if they stand for the truth as revealed in His word, God will be their refuge.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 590, 1911) and “God is always a majority.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 590, 1911). Paul wrote that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, and Isaiah called God’s house a house of prayer for all people: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28, KJV) and “Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.” (Isaiah 56:7, KJV). We cannot sing that song while we look down on any race or class, because the Lamb paid the same price for each one: “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:20, KJV).

In the King James wording, the elders and the creatures sing that the Lamb has redeemed us, and their song speaks from experience. Bible students have long asked whether these singers stand for the redeemed themselves or for heavenly beings who join the praise of the saved. Scripture does not settle every detail, but it does tell us that Christ led a company of captives with Him when He ascended: “Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.” (Psalm 68:18, KJV) and “And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,” (Matthew 27:52, KJV) and “And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.” (Matthew 27:53, KJV) and “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” (Ephesians 4:8, KJV). The Desire of Ages describes that company in the Saviour’s triumphal return to heaven, “As He ascended, He led the way, and the multitude of captives set free at His resurrection followed.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 833, 1898) and “He points to the tokens of His triumph; He presents to God the wave sheaf, those raised with Him as representatives of that great multitude who shall come forth from the grave at His second coming.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898). Yet whoever the singers are, the song belongs most fully to forgiven sinners, and the prophetic messenger shows whose joy it is, “With unutterable love, Jesus welcomes His faithful ones to the joy of their Lord.” (The Great Controversy, pp. 646, 647, 1911) and “The Saviour’s joy is in seeing, in the kingdom of glory, the souls that have been saved by His agony and humiliation.” (The Great Controversy, p. 647, 1911). The Great Controversy explains why the redeemed will sing in a way no unfallen being can, “A sense of the infinite sacrifice made for its cure humbles them in their own sight and fills their hearts with gratitude and praise which those who have never fallen cannot appreciate.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911) and “They love much because they have been forgiven much.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911). Do I sing like someone who has been forgiven much, or like someone who thinks he needed only a little help? Jesus said that the one forgiven much loves much, and Paul called himself the chief of sinners: “Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” (Luke 7:47, KJV) and “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” (1 Timothy 1:15, KJV).

Then the circle widened, and John heard a host of angels add their voices to the song around the throne: “Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.” (Revelation 5:12, KJV). The Desire of Ages places a similar scene at the moment Christ returned to heaven after His resurrection, “Then the portals of the city of God are opened wide, and the angelic throng sweep through the gates amid a burst of rapturous music.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 833, 1898) and “With joy unutterable, rulers and principalities and powers acknowledge the supremacy of the Prince of life.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898). But before He accepted their worship, Jesus first presented His finished work to the Father, fulfilling Isaiah’s ancient word: “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:11, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains the covenant He had kept and the verdict heaven then gave about Him and His people, “Before the foundations of the earth were laid, the Father and the Son had united in a covenant to redeem man if he should be overcome by Satan.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898) and “This pledge Christ has fulfilled.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898) and “The voice of God is heard proclaiming that justice is satisfied.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898) and “Before the heavenly angels and the representatives of unfallen worlds, they are declared justified.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 834, 1898). Why should angels who never sinned rejoice so loudly over a salvation they never needed for themselves? Paul answers that the church displays God’s wisdom to the powers in heaven, and that the cross makes peace for all things in earth and heaven: “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,” (Ephesians 3:10, KJV) and “And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.” (Colossians 1:20, KJV). Hebrews calls on all the angels to worship the Son, and John later heard a great multitude cry out like mighty thunderings: “And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.” (Hebrews 1:6, KJV) and “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” (Revelation 19:6, KJV). When I join the angels in saying that the Lamb is worthy, I confess that my salvation rests on His work and not on mine.

Later John heard harpers on Mount Zion singing a new song that only one company could learn: “And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:” (Revelation 14:2, KJV) and “And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.” (Revelation 14:3, KJV). He saw the same victors standing on a sea of glass and singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb: “And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” (Revelation 15:2, KJV) and “And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.” (Revelation 15:3, KJV). The Great Controversy explains why that song cannot be borrowed or memorized by someone who has not lived its story, “It is the song of Moses and the Lamb—a song of deliverance.” (The Great Controversy, p. 649, 1911) and “None but the hundred and forty-four thousand can learn that song; for it is the song of their experience—an experience such as no other company have ever had.” (The Great Controversy, p. 649, 1911). Moses first sang beside another sea, after God had opened a road through the waters and closed them on Pharaoh’s army: “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.” (Exodus 15:1, KJV) and “The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” (Exodus 15:2, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets draws a line from that first shore of deliverance to the hearts of God’s people in every age, “That song does not belong to the Jewish people alone.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 289, 1890) and “It points forward to the destruction of all the foes of righteousness and the final victory of the Israel of God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 289, 1890). But can a song of deliverance be learned anywhere except in the places where we actually need to be delivered? The Great Controversy answers that God’s chosen have always learned this song in hard and narrow schools, “In all ages the Saviour’s chosen have been educated and disciplined in the school of trial.” (The Great Controversy, p. 649, 1911). Patriarchs and Prophets reminds us that our own rescue is even greater, “In freeing our souls from the bondage of sin, God has wrought for us a deliverance greater than that of the Hebrews at the Red Sea.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 289, 1890), so every trial I face can become a lesson in that song.

If the song is learned on earth, then my ordinary days are the practice room where the music of heaven begins in me. James and Peter both teach that tested faith produces something precious that will shine when Jesus appears: “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;” (James 1:2, KJV) and “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” (James 1:3, KJV) and “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” (1 Peter 1:7, KJV). The Great Controversy describes the paths along which the singers walked before they reached the sea of glass, “They walked in narrow paths on earth; they were purified in the furnace of affliction.” (The Great Controversy, p. 649, 1911) and “For Jesus’ sake they endured opposition, hatred, calumny.” (The Great Controversy, p. 649, 1911). Yet the school of trial is not meant to make us bitter, because every narrow path ends in the presence of the Lamb we love. Paul wrote that tribulation works patience and hope, and the psalmist promised that those who sow in tears shall reap in joy: “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;” (Romans 5:3, KJV) and “And patience, experience; and experience, hope:” (Romans 5:4, KJV) and “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.” (Psalm 126:5, KJV). What song am I practicing when no one hears me, in the kitchen, on the road, or awake at night with a worry I cannot fix? The Acts of the Apostles describes the inner life of those who will one day stand with the Lamb on Mount Zion, “In this world their minds were consecrated to God; they served Him with the intellect and with the heart; and now He can place His name ‘in their foreheads.’” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 591, 1911) and “The vision of the prophet pictures them as standing on Mount Zion, girt for holy service, clothed in white linen, which is the righteousness of the saints.” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 591, 1911). We learn their song together whenever we bring our tears to the Lamb, because The Great Controversy shows how the lesson ends, “The days of pain and weeping are forever ended.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911) and “The King of glory has wiped the tears from all faces; every cause of grief has been removed.” (The Great Controversy, p. 650, 1911).

The song of the Lamb gathers every vision we have studied into one center, because the cross explains the throne itself. The Great Controversy says this in plain words that answer the fear Isaiah felt in the temple and Ezekiel felt by the river, “The mystery of the cross explains all other mysteries.” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911) and “In the light that streams from Calvary the attributes of God which had filled us with fear and awe appear beautiful and attractive.” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911). The same passage shows what the cross reveals about the One who sits on the throne, “Mercy, tenderness, and parental love are seen to blend with holiness, justice, and power.” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911) and “While we behold the majesty of His throne, high and lifted up, we see His character in its gracious manifestations, and comprehend, as never before, the significance of that endearing title, ‘Our Father.’” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911). Paul preached the cross as the power of God, and he said God proved His love while we were still sinners: “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18, KJV) and “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, KJV). Yet the cross is not only a doctrine to admire, because it calls each of us to meet God personally and to be changed. The inspired pen describes the wonder that will never fade and the joy that Christ counts as His reward for the cross, “That the Maker of all worlds, the Arbiter of all destinies, should lay aside His glory and humiliate Himself from love to man will ever excite the wonder and adoration of the universe.” (The Great Controversy, p. 651, 1911) and “The compensation for this sacrifice is the joy of peopling the earth with ransomed beings, holy, happy, and immortal.” (The Great Controversy, p. 652, 1911). John saw the end of the story, where God dwells with His people and they see His face: “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” (Revelation 21:3, KJV) and “And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.” (Revelation 22:4, KJV). Long before John, a fleeing man saw a ladder joining earth and heaven, and years later he wept and wrestled until he was blessed: “And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.” (Genesis 28:12, KJV) and “Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Beth-el, and there he spake with us;” (Hosea 12:4, KJV).

WHO WRESTLES WITH JACOB AT JABBOK?

Before Jacob ever reached the river Jabbok, he slept on a stone in the wilderness and saw the God of the throne speak to a frightened runaway: “And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;” (Genesis 28:13, KJV) and “And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:15, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets describes the state of the young man who lay down that night, “He felt that he was an outcast, and he knew that all this trouble had been brought upon him by his own wrong course.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 183, 1890). Yet heaven did not wait for Jacob to improve himself or prove his sorrow before it answered him in the dark, “But God did not forsake Jacob.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 183, 1890) and “The Lord compassionately revealed just what Jacob needed—a Saviour.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 183, 1890). He woke up trembling and amazed, and he named the place the house of God and the gate of heaven: “And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” (Genesis 28:16, KJV) and “And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:17, KJV) and “And he called the name of that place Beth-el: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.” (Genesis 28:19, KJV). What was that ladder, and why did angels climb it in both directions, much as the creatures in Ezekiel ran and returned? The prophetic messenger gives the answer that Jesus Himself confirmed to Nathanael, “The ladder represents Jesus, the appointed medium of communication.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 184, 1890) and “Had He not with His own merits bridged the gulf that sin had made, the ministering angels could have held no communion with fallen man.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 184, 1890) and “Christ connects man in his weakness and helplessness with the source of infinite power.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 184, 1890). Jesus promised that His followers would see heaven opened and angels ascending and descending upon the Son of man: “And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” (John 1:51, KJV). The throne we have studied first came down to a stone pillow, and I can be sure it still comes down to the lonely and the guilty.

Twenty years later Jacob turned toward home, and once again the angels of God met him on the road: “And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.” (Genesis 32:1, KJV) and “And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.” (Genesis 32:2, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets tells us what that sight meant to a man whose conscience had never stopped accusing him, “His sin in the deception of his father was ever before him.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 195, 1890) and “As he traveled southward from Mount Gilead, two hosts of heavenly angels seemed to encompass him behind and before, advancing with his company, as if for their protection.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 195, 1890). But the comfort of Mahanaim did not remove the danger, because news came that Esau was coming with four hundred men, and Jacob was greatly afraid: “Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;” (Genesis 32:7, KJV). Sr. White describes the trap that seemed to close around him on every side of that lonely camp, “It appeared certain that he was coming to seek revenge.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 196, 1890) and “He could not go back, and he feared to advance.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 196, 1890). Jacob then prayed one of the most honest prayers in Scripture, confessing that he did not deserve the least of God’s mercies: “And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:” (Genesis 32:9, KJV) and “I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.” (Genesis 32:10, KJV) and “Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.” (Genesis 32:11, KJV). Why did a man surrounded by angel camps still feel so afraid, and why do I so often feel the same way? The same book shows that Jacob knew his deepest need was not more soldiers or gifts but God Himself, “He had decided to spend the night in prayer, and he desired to be alone with God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 196, 1890) and “God could soften the heart of Esau.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 196, 1890). Fear can drive me away from God, or it can drive me to Him, and Jacob chose to stay alone by the river.

Jacob sent his family across the ford that night and stayed behind on the dark bank of the river: “And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.” (Genesis 32:22, KJV) and “And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.” (Genesis 32:23, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains which part of his danger hurt him most as he knelt alone in that wild place, “Bitterest of all was the thought that it was his own sin which had brought this peril upon the innocent.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Then the prayer meeting became a struggle that neither man would quit, as the inspired pen describes, “Suddenly a strong hand was laid upon him.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “In the darkness the two struggled for the mastery.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Yet the hardest battle that night was not with the stranger’s arms but with Jacob’s own guilty memory, “While he was thus battling for his life, the sense of his guilt pressed upon his soul; his sins rose up before him, to shut him out from God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “But in his terrible extremity he remembered God’s promises, and his whole heart went out in entreaty for His mercy.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). David knew that same weight when he cried that his sins had gone over his head like a flood: “For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.” (Psalm 38:4, KJV). How can anyone stand before a holy God if He keeps a full and exact account of every wrong we have done? The psalmist answers that forgiveness is found with God, so that He may be feared and not fled from: “If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?” (Psalm 130:3, KJV) and “But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.” (Psalm 130:4, KJV). The struggle ended with a single touch, “The struggle continued until near the break of day, when the stranger placed his finger upon Jacob’s thigh, and he was crippled instantly.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890), and the One who wounded him was about to bless him: “And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.” (Genesis 32:25, KJV).

With one touch the wrestler showed a power Jacob could never match, and Jacob suddenly understood who held him. Patriarchs and Prophets names the stranger plainly and explains why Jacob’s desperate strength could not overcome Him, “The patriarch now discerned the character of his antagonist.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “He knew that he had been in conflict with a heavenly messenger, and this was why his almost superhuman effort had not gained the victory.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “It was Christ, ‘the Angel of the covenant,’ who had revealed Himself to Jacob.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Hosea links that night with Jacob’s whole life, from the womb to Bethel, and he names the Lord of hosts as the one who met him: “He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God:” (Hosea 12:3, KJV) and “Even the LORD God of hosts; the LORD is his memorial.” (Hosea 12:5, KJV). Long afterward the dying patriarch spoke of the Angel who had redeemed him from all evil: “The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” (Genesis 48:16, KJV). Moses also heard God promise an Angel who would lead Israel and carry the divine name: “Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.” (Exodus 23:20, KJV) and “Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.” (Exodus 23:21, KJV). Yet the most surprising part of this story is not the wound but the grip that would not let go, “The patriarch was now disabled and suffering the keenest pain, but he would not loosen his hold.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “All penitent and broken, he clung to the Angel; ‘he wept, and made supplication’ (Hosea 12:4), pleading for a blessing.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “He must have the assurance that his sin was pardoned.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Jacob refused to let go until he received a blessing, even though the day was breaking: “And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.” (Genesis 32:26, KJV). Ezekiel saw the likeness of a man upon the throne, and Jacob felt the arms of that same Lord in the darkness by the river.

Jacob did not win by strength, because his strength had just been broken, yet something else in him grew stronger, “His determination grew stronger, his faith more earnest and persevering, until the very last.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Patriarchs and Prophets explains the difference between holy boldness and dangerous pride in prayer, “Had this been a boastful, presumptuous confidence, Jacob would have been instantly destroyed; but his was the assurance of one who confesses his own unworthiness, yet trusts the faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). The same book shows how a crippled sinner could prevail with the Majesty of heaven, “Through humiliation, repentance, and self-surrender, this sinful, erring mortal prevailed with the Majesty of heaven.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890) and “He had fastened his trembling grasp upon the promises of God, and the heart of Infinite Love could not turn away the sinner’s plea.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 197, 1890). Paul learned the same lesson when Christ told him that divine strength is made perfect in weakness: “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, KJV) and “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:10, KJV). But why did Jacob need such a painful night when he had already received the promise at Bethel? Through inspired counsel we are told that the old habit of grasping and scheming had to die that night, “He had not trusted God’s promises, but had sought by his own efforts to bring about that which God would have accomplished in His own time and way.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 197, 198, 1890) and “As an evidence that he had been forgiven, his name was changed from one that was a reminder of his sin, to one that commemorated his victory.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890). The Lord is near to the broken heart, and He lifts up those who humble themselves before Him: “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” (Psalm 34:18, KJV) and “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” (Psalm 51:17, KJV) and “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” (James 4:10, KJV). When God blessed Jacob there, the blessing came to a man who could no longer walk without leaning: “And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.” (Genesis 32:29, KJV).

Jacob named the place Peniel, because he had seen God face to face and his life had been spared: “And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” (Genesis 32:30, KJV) and “And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.” (Genesis 32:31, KJV). That name surprises us after the seraphim, who cover their faces before the throne, and after God’s warning to Moses: “And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” (Exodus 33:20, KJV). Yet Jacob saw the face of God in a veiled form, as Paul says we now see His glory in the face of Jesus Christ: “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:6, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets describes the change that came over the man who limped away from the river at dawn, “Jacob had received the blessing for which his soul had longed.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890) and “His sin as a supplanter and deceiver had been pardoned.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890) and “The crisis in his life was past.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890) and “Doubt, perplexity, and remorse had embittered his existence, but now all was changed; and sweet was the peace of reconciliation with God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890). Does God still change the names of those who cling to Him, or was that gift only for one patriarch? Isaiah and John both promise a new name to God’s people, and the overcomer receives it from the Lord Himself: “And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name.” (Isaiah 62:2, KJV) and “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” (Revelation 2:17, KJV). The Great Controversy shows where that promise ends, “For each there is a crown, bearing his own ‘new name’ (Revelation 2:17), and the inscription, ‘Holiness to the Lord.’” (The Great Controversy, p. 646, 1911), and the same book shows the face that every overcomer will see, “Throughout the unnumbered host of the redeemed every glance is fixed upon Him, every eye beholds His glory whose ‘visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men.’” (The Great Controversy, p. 646, 1911). I may carry a limp from my own night of struggle, but I can also carry the new name that Christ gives at sunrise.

The morning after Peniel, Jacob limped forward to meet the brother he had wronged so long ago: “And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.” (Genesis 33:3, KJV) and “And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.” (Genesis 33:4, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains that God had been working on both sides of the river that same night, “While Jacob was wrestling with the Angel, another heavenly messenger was sent to Esau.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890) and “God, who had forgiven his sin, could move the heart of Esau also to accept his humiliation and repentance.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890). The same book describes the weak and limping man who walked toward four hundred armed soldiers, “Leaning upon his staff, the patriarch went forward to meet the band of soldiers.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890). Then Jacob said something that ties the riverbank to the reunion, because Esau’s forgiving face reminded him of the face of God: “And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.” (Genesis 33:10, KJV). Yet would Esau have melted if Jacob had come proud and strong, still trusting his gifts and his own plans? The prophetic messenger sees a deeper power at work in that meeting than gifts or clever words, “As they looked upon the scene, even the hearts of Esau’s rude soldiers were touched.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890) and “Though they beheld the patriarch’s infirmity, they little thought that this his weakness had been made his strength.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890). Jesus taught that reconciliation with a brother comes before our gifts at the altar, and Paul urges peace with all: “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;” (Matthew 5:23, KJV) and “Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.” (Matthew 5:24, KJV) and “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.” (Romans 12:18, KJV). Jacob no longer feared his brother, “Jacob no longer feared to meet his brother.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 198, 1890), and we too can face those we have wronged once we have met God.

Jacob’s night was not only his own story, because Jeremiah used his name for a time of trouble at the end: “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.” (Jeremiah 30:7, KJV). Daniel saw the same hour coming when Michael stands up and God’s people are delivered: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” (Daniel 12:1, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains when that time begins and how it echoes the night at Jabbok, “When Christ shall cease His work as mediator in man’s behalf, then this time of trouble will begin.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 201, 1890) and “As Jacob was threatened with death by his angry brother, so the people of God will be in peril from the wicked who are seeking to destroy them.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 201, 1890) and “And as the patriarch wrestled all night for deliverance from the hand of Esau, so the righteous will cry to God day and night for deliverance from the enemies that surround them.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 201, 1890). John heard the final word that closes every case, and Jesus promised to keep the faithful in the hour of temptation: “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” (Revelation 22:11, KJV) and “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.” (Revelation 3:10, KJV). But how will God’s people hold on when their prayers seem to bring no immediate answer? The same book describes the battle in their minds and the faith that refuses to let go, “Satan will endeavor to terrify them with the thought that their cases are hopeless; that their sins have been too great to receive pardon.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890) and “Their faith will not fail because their prayers are not immediately answered.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890) and “They will lay hold of the strength of God, as Jacob laid hold of the Angel, and the language of their souls will be, ‘I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me.’” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890). Jesus promised that God will avenge His elect who cry to Him day and night, though He seems to wait: “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?” (Luke 18:7, KJV) and “I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8, KJV).

Jacob could cling to the Angel with confidence because he had already confessed the sin that had driven him from home. Patriarchs and Prophets draws a sober lesson from that order of confession first and deliverance after, “Had not Jacob previously repented of his sin in obtaining the birthright by fraud, God could not have heard his prayer and mercifully preserved his life.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890) and “But while they have a deep sense of their unworthiness, they will have no concealed wrongs to reveal.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890) and “Their sins will have been blotted out by the atoning blood of Christ, and they cannot bring them to remembrance.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890). Yet Satan works hard to persuade us that small hidden sins do not matter, as the same book warns, “Satan leads many to believe that God will overlook their unfaithfulness in the minor affairs of life; but the Lord shows in His dealing with Jacob that He can in no wise sanction or tolerate evil.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890) and “All who endeavor to excuse or conceal their sins, and permit them to remain upon the books of heaven, unconfessed and unforgiven, will be overcome by Satan.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 202, 1890). Solomon warned that covering sin brings no prosperity, while Peter promised times of refreshing to those who repent: “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13, KJV) and “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” (Acts 3:19, KJV). Is there anything I am still hiding that I would not want to face in that final night of trouble? Sr. White offers hope to everyone who has fallen badly and then come back to God with a broken heart, “Yet Jacob’s history is an assurance that God will not cast off those who have been betrayed into sin, but who have returned unto Him with true repentance.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 202, 203, 1890). David called the forgiven man blessed, and Micah promised that God will cast our sins into the depths of the sea: “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.” (Psalm 32:1, KJV) and “Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.” (Psalm 32:2, KJV) and “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:19, KJV) and “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.” (Isaiah 44:22, KJV).

Jacob’s night by the river is the school where God still teaches His people the art of prevailing prayer. Patriarchs and Prophets names the qualities Jacob showed and the season when we must learn them, “Jacob prevailed because he was persevering and determined.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890) and “His experience testifies to the power of importunate prayer.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890) and “It is now that we are to learn this lesson of prevailing prayer, of unyielding faith.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890). Jesus told a parable so that we would always pray and not faint, and Paul urged us to continue in prayer: “And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;” (Luke 18:1, KJV) and “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;” (Colossians 4:2, KJV). Yet the world measures victory by talent, money, and influence, and we are tempted to measure our churches the same way. The inspired pen turns that worldly measure upside down and shows where real victories are won, “The greatest victories to the church of Christ or to the individual Christian are not those that are gained by talent or education, by wealth or the favor of men.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890) and “They are those victories that are gained in the audience chamber with God, when earnest, agonizing faith lays hold upon the mighty arm of power.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890). Isaiah mourned that no one stirred himself to take hold of God, and James says the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much: “And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.” (Isaiah 64:7, KJV) and “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16, KJV). Will I be one who takes hold of God, as Jacob did, or one who sleeps while the night of trouble comes? The promise stands for every seeker, “But all who will lay hold of God’s promises as did Jacob, and be as earnest and persevering as he was, will succeed as he succeeded.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 203, 1890), because God rewards those who seek Him and opens to those who knock: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6, KJV) and “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:” (Matthew 7:7, KJV).

HOW FAR DOES THE LOVE OF GOD REACH?

Jacob discovered at the river that the One who wrestled with him was not his enemy, and that discovery leads us to the heart of God. John wrote that God showed His love by sending His Son, and that we love Him only because He first loved us: “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.” (1 John 4:9, KJV) and “We love him, because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:19, KJV). Steps to Christ begins its study of that love in the ordinary world around us, among buds and grass, “‘God is love’ is written upon every opening bud, upon every spire of springing grass.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892). Yet nature alone cannot tell the whole story, so the same book turns to God’s own words about Himself, “The word of God reveals His character.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892) and “He Himself has declared His infinite love and pity.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892). When God passed before Moses, He proclaimed mercy and forgiveness, though He would by no means clear the guilty: “Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:7, KJV). Steps to Christ reminds us that this goodness is the glory Moses asked to see, “This is His glory.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892), and Jeremiah heard God speak of an everlasting love: “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” (Jeremiah 31:3, KJV). Why do so many people still picture God as cold and distant, when His tender mercies are over all His works? Sr. White admits that every earthly picture falls short, “God has bound our hearts to Him by unnumbered tokens in heaven and in earth.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892) and “Yet these but imperfectly represent His love.” (Steps to Christ, p. 10, 1892), yet the psalmists still celebrate His goodness over all His works and the shelter of His wings: “The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” (Psalm 145:9, KJV) and “How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.” (Psalm 36:7, KJV).

The first lie in Eden was a lie about God’s character, and the serpent told Eve that God’s warning of death was not true: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:” (Genesis 3:4, KJV). Jesus called the devil a liar from the beginning, and Paul says he still blinds the minds of those who do not believe: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” (John 8:44, KJV) and “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” (2 Corinthians 4:4, KJV). Steps to Christ describes the dark and false portrait that Satan painted of the Creator, “Satan led men to conceive of God as a being whose chief attribute is stern justice,— one who is a severe judge, a harsh, exacting creditor.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 10, 11, 1892) and “He pictured the Creator as a being who is watching with jealous eye to discern the errors and mistakes of men, that He may visit judgments upon them.” (Steps to Christ, p. 11, 1892). Have I ever believed that portrait, even while I sang hymns about God’s goodness in church on the Sabbath? The same book explains why the Son of God came down to live among us as one of us, “It was to remove this dark shadow, by revealing to the world the infinite love of God, that Jesus came to live among men.” (Steps to Christ, p. 11, 1892) and “The Son of God came from heaven to make manifest the Father.” (Steps to Christ, p. 11, 1892). John says the Son has declared the Father, and Jesus told Philip that seeing Him meant seeing the Father: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” (John 1:18, KJV) and “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?” (John 14:9, KJV). Jesus also said that no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom He reveals Him: “All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whom soever the Son will reveal him.” (Matthew 11:27, KJV). The prophetic messenger draws the only fair lesson we can take from watching the life of Jesus, “Such is the character of Christ as revealed in His life.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892) and “This is the character of God.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892).

If we want to know how God treats people, we must watch how Jesus treated the crowds, the sick, and the children. Peter said that Jesus went about doing good, and Matthew saw Him moved with compassion for the scattered crowds: “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” (Acts 10:38, KJV) and “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36, KJV). Steps to Christ shows how that compassion shaped every part of His ministry among ordinary people, “Love, mercy, and compassion were revealed in every act of His life; His heart went out in tender sympathy to the children of men.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 11, 12, 1892) and “The poorest and humblest were not afraid to approach Him.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892). Jesus told His disciples to let the little children come, and then He took them in His arms and blessed them: “But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:14, KJV) and “And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.” (Mark 10:16, KJV). Yet His tenderness never meant softness about sin, as the same book makes clear, “Jesus did not suppress one word of truth, but He uttered it always in love.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892) and “He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892) and “He denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity; but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892). How do my words to others compare, especially when I am correcting someone I think is wrong? Sr. White gives the reason for His patience with every person, “Every soul was precious in His eyes.” (Steps to Christ, p. 12, 1892), and He still invites the weary and announces liberty to the bruised: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28, KJV) and “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,” (Luke 4:18, KJV).

The love of God is measured most clearly at the cross, where Jesus cried out as One forsaken: “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46, KJV). Steps to Christ explains what truly broke His heart in that hour, more than the nails or the thorns, “He who had been one with God, felt in His soul the awful separation that sin makes between God and man.” (Steps to Christ, p. 13, 1892) and “It was the burden of sin, the sense of its terrible enormity, of its separation of the soul from God—it was this that broke the heart of the Son of God.” (Steps to Christ, p. 13, 1892). Isaiah saw that the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all, and Paul says He was made sin for us: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6, KJV) and “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21, KJV). But did the cross change the Father’s heart toward us, as though the Son had to persuade an unwilling God? The same book answers that question with great force and leaves no room for doubt, “But this great sacrifice was not made in order to create in the Father’s heart a love for man, not to make Him willing to save.” (Steps to Christ, p. 13, 1892) and “The Father loves us, not because of the great propitiation, but He provided the propitiation because He loves us.” (Steps to Christ, p. 13, 1892). Paul wrote that God was in Christ reconciling the world, and that He spared not His own Son for us: “To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5:19, KJV) and “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32, KJV). The prophetic messenger shows that the Father was not a distant judge at Calvary, “God suffered with His Son.” (Steps to Christ, p. 13, 1892) and “In the agony of Gethsemane, the death of Calvary, the heart of Infinite Love paid the price of our redemption.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 13, 14, 1892). John says love is this, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son for us: “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10, KJV).

The gift of the Son did not end when Jesus rose and returned to the throne John saw in heaven. Steps to Christ explains why no lesser gift could ever reveal the Father’s heart to us, “Only He who knew the height and depth of the love of God could make it manifest.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892) and “Nothing less than the infinite sacrifice made by Christ in behalf of fallen man could express the Father’s love to lost humanity.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892). Jesus said the Father loved Him because He laid down His life, and Hebrews says He calls us brethren: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.” (John 10:17, KJV) and “For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,” (Hebrews 2:11, KJV). Yet the wonder goes further than the cross, because the Son kept our nature even after the grave, as the same book shows, “He gave Him to the fallen race.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892) and “Christ was to identify Himself with the interests and needs of humanity.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892) and “He who was one with God has linked Himself with the children of men by ties that are never to be broken.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892). Hebrews says He took on Him the seed of Abraham so that He could help those who are tempted: “For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.” (Hebrews 2:16, KJV) and “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.” (Hebrews 2:18, KJV). John saw Him in the midst of the lampstands, still in our form and still one like unto the Son of man: “And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.” (Revelation 1:13, KJV). The likeness of a man on Ezekiel’s throne is our Brother forever, as the same book declares, “Jesus is ‘not ashamed to call them brethren’ (Hebrews 2:11); He is our Sacrifice, our Advocate, our Brother, bearing our human form before the Father’s throne, and through eternal ages one with the race He has redeemed—the Son of man.” (Steps to Christ, p. 14, 1892). What could ever separate me from a love that has bound itself to my human nature for all eternity: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” (Romans 8:35, KJV)?

John was so moved by the Father’s love that he called us to behold what manner of love makes us sons of God: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.” (1 John 3:1, KJV). He also wrote that all who receive Christ are given power to become the sons of God: “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” (John 1:12, KJV). Steps to Christ draws out what that adoption means for people who once belonged to the enemy, “What a value this places upon man!” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892) and “Through faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ the sons of Adam may become the sons of God.” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892) and “By assuming human nature, Christ elevates humanity.” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892). Paul says the Spirit of adoption teaches us to cry Abba, Father, and bears witness that we are God’s children: “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15, KJV) and “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:” (Romans 8:16, KJV). Yet do I live like a child of the King, or like a servant who is never sure he will be allowed to stay? The same book says the price paid for me should change how I see my own future in Christ, “The price paid for our redemption, the infinite sacrifice of our heavenly Father in giving His Son to die for us, should give us exalted conceptions of what we may become through Christ.” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892). Paul told the Galatians that we are no longer servants but sons, and heirs of God through Christ: “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” (Galatians 4:6, KJV) and “Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.” (Galatians 4:7, KJV). Through inspired counsel we are told that such love humbles us even as it lifts us, “Such love is without a parallel.” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892) and “The thought has a subduing power upon the soul and brings the mind into captivity to the will of God.” (Steps to Christ, p. 15, 1892).

Jesus told the story of a shepherd who left ninety-nine sheep to search for one that was lost: “What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?” (Luke 15:4, KJV) and “And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.” (Luke 15:5, KJV) and “And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.” (Luke 15:6, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons applies that story to every soul who has wandered from God, “As the shepherd loves his sheep, and cannot rest if even one be missing, so, in an infinitely higher degree, does God love every outcast soul.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 187, 1900) and “So if there had been but one lost soul, Christ would have died for that one.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 187, 1900). Ezekiel, who saw the throne, also heard God promise to seek His scattered sheep and bind up the broken: “As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.” (Ezekiel 34:12, KJV) and “I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” (Ezekiel 34:16, KJV). Yet a lost sheep cannot even find its own way home again, as the same book explains, “So with the soul that has wandered away from God; he is as helpless as the lost sheep, and unless divine love had come to his rescue he could never find his way to God.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 187, 1900). What does the shepherd do when he finally finds the one that caused him so much trouble? Christ’s Object Lessons answers with a picture of tender joy instead of anger or blame, “Then he does not scold it because it has caused him so much trouble.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 188, 1900) and “In his joy he takes the trembling creature upon his shoulders; if it is bruised and wounded, he gathers it in his arms, pressing it close to his bosom, that the warmth of his own heart may give it life.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 188, 1900). The same book corrects the old idea that we must earn God’s love first, “We do not repent in order that God may love us, but He reveals to us His love in order that we may repent.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 189, 1900), so I can pray with the psalmist: “I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments.” (Psalm 119:176, KJV).

The parable of the lost sheep reaches beyond one wandering person to our whole fallen planet. Christ’s Object Lessons widens the picture to the scale of the worlds around the throne, “By the lost sheep Christ represents not only the individual sinner but the one world that has apostatized and has been ruined by sin.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 190, 1900) and “This world is but an atom in the vast dominions over which God presides, yet this little fallen world—the one lost sheep—is more precious in His sight than are the ninety and nine that went not astray from the fold.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 190, 1900). Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost, because God desires all men to be saved: “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10, KJV) and “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:4, KJV). The same book shows what the beloved Commander of heaven left behind to come down here, “Christ, the loved Commander in the heavenly courts, stooped from His high estate, laid aside the glory that He had with the Father, in order to save the one lost world.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, pp. 190, 191, 1900) and “God gave Himself in His Son that He might have the joy of receiving back the sheep that was lost.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 191, 1900). But does God rejoice only when the lost are found, or does He also grieve while they are gone? Isaiah says a mother may forget her child, but God has graven His people on the palms of His hands: “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.” (Isaiah 49:15, KJV) and “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” (Isaiah 49:16, KJV). When a wanderer comes home, the prophetic messenger says that the joy reaches the throne itself, “So when a wanderer is found by the great Shepherd of the sheep, heaven and earth unite in thanksgiving and rejoicing.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 189, 1900) and “That in which all heaven delights is the restoration of God’s own image in the souls whom He has made.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 190, 1900). Zephaniah adds that God Himself rejoices over His people with singing, as a father pities his children: “The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17, KJV) and “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.” (Psalm 103:13, KJV).

Jesus also told of a son who wasted everything and then decided to go home and confess his sin: “I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,” (Luke 15:18, KJV). Yet the father did not wait at the door with folded arms, because he ran to meet the boy while he was still far away: “And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.” (Luke 15:20, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons lingers over that moment on the road with great tenderness, “But while he is yet ‘a great way off’ the father discerns his form.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 203, 1900) and “Love is of quick sight.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 203, 1900) and “Not even the degradation of the years of sin can conceal the son from the father’s eyes.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 203, 1900). The father called for the best robe and a ring, and the house filled with joy because the dead son was alive: “But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:” (Luke 15:22, KJV) and “For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.” (Luke 15:24, KJV). How different the father looked to the son once he had felt that embrace, and how different God looks to me once I have known His love! The same book explains that difference and shows how love changes the way we see God, “But he whose eyes have been opened by the love of Christ will behold God as full of compassion.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 204, 1900) and “He does not appear as a tyrannical, relentless being, but as a father longing to embrace his repenting son.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 204, 1900). Hosea heard God speak of drawing His people with bands of love, and Jeremiah heard His heart yearn for Ephraim: “I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat unto them.” (Hosea 11:4, KJV) and “Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD.” (Jeremiah 31:20, KJV). In the parable there is no list of past failures read aloud at the feast, “The son feels that the past is forgiven and forgotten, blotted out forever.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 204, 1900), and the same welcome waits for us.

The love of God does not wait for us to make the first move, because He moved first at the cross: “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” (Romans 5:10, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons says the same thing to every discouraged heart that feels too far gone, “God has made the first advance.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 189, 1900) and “While you were in rebellion against Him, He went forth to seek you.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 189, 1900). Yet Satan whispers that we must clean ourselves up before we come, and the same book exposes that trap, “Do not listen to the enemy’s suggestion to stay away from Christ until you have made yourself better; until you are good enough to come to God.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 205, 1900) and “If you wait until then, you will never come.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 205, 1900). Jesus promised that He will never cast out anyone who comes to Him, and the Spirit and the bride say, Come: “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” (John 6:37, KJV) and “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” (Revelation 22:17, KJV). What is the smallest step I can take toward Him today, and will I take it before the sun goes down? The inspired pen promises that even one small step toward God is met with open arms, “If you take even one step toward Him in repentance, He will hasten to enfold you in His arms of infinite love.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 206, 1900) and “The very first reaching out of the heart after God is known to Him.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 206, 1900). James says that God draws near to those who draw near to Him, and John says perfect love casts out fear: “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” (James 4:8, KJV) and “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18, KJV). Love like this calls for a whole response, and Moses names it in the command that our next section will explore: “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5, KJV).

WHAT DOES THE THRONE ASK OF ME?

The love we have just traced does not leave us as spectators, because Moses called Israel to answer it with undivided hearts: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:” (Deuteronomy 6:4, KJV) and “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:” (Deuteronomy 6:6, KJV). He asked what the Lord requires, and the answer was fear, love, service, and obedience offered with all the heart and soul: “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,” (Deuteronomy 10:12, KJV) and “To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?” (Deuteronomy 10:13, KJV). Steps to Christ explains why nothing less than the whole heart will ever do for God, “The whole heart must be yielded to God, or the change can never be wrought in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892) and “God desires to heal us, to set us free.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892) and “But since this requires an entire transformation, a renewing of our whole nature, we must yield ourselves wholly to Him.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892). Yet surrender is never easy for proud hearts, and the same book does not pretend that it is, “The warfare against self is the greatest battle that was ever fought.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892) and “The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can be renewed in holiness.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892). Is there a corner of my life that I have fenced off from God, hoping He will be satisfied with the rest? Sr. White answers that divided loyalty is no loyalty at all in the kingdom of heaven, “We cannot be half the Lord’s and half the world’s.” (Steps to Christ, p. 44, 1892). Jesus repeated the call to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and Paul urges us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.” (Mark 12:30, KJV) and “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1, KJV). The creatures before the throne give God everything they are, and Jacob learned at Jabbok that God asks the same of me.

The worship of heaven is never forced, and that truth sets God’s throne apart from every earthly tyrant who demands praise. Steps to Christ describes the kind of government that God has chosen to keep over His creatures, “The government of God is not, as Satan would make it appear, founded upon a blind submission, an unreasoning control.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892) and “It appeals to the intellect and the conscience.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892). Joshua set the choice before Israel, and the psalmist foresaw a people who would offer themselves willingly in the day of God’s power: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15, KJV) and “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.” (Psalm 110:3, KJV). The same book explains why God refuses to drive us like cattle toward a duty we do not love, “God does not force the will of His creatures.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892) and “He cannot accept an homage that is not willingly and intelligently given.” (Steps to Christ, p. 43, 1892). But what if I want to give myself to God and still feel too weak to follow through on my promises? Steps to Christ gives a practical answer that every struggling believer needs to hear, “You cannot change your heart, you cannot of yourself give to God its affections; but you can choose to serve Him.” (Steps to Christ, p. 47, 1892) and “You can give Him your will; He will then work in you to will and to do according to His good pleasure.” (Steps to Christ, p. 47, 1892). Paul says it is God who works in us both to will and to do, and Isaiah promises good to the willing and obedient: “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13, KJV) and “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:” (Isaiah 1:19, KJV). David told Solomon to serve God with a willing mind, and he himself could say that he delighted to do God’s will: “And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.” (1 Chronicles 28:9, KJV) and “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8, KJV).

Obedience that grows out of fear alone soon grows tired, but obedience that grows out of love keeps singing. Jesus tied the two together, and John says that His commandments are not grievous to those who love Him: “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15, KJV) and “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” (1 John 5:3, KJV). Steps to Christ describes the difference love makes in a believer’s daily duties, “When Christ dwells in the heart, the soul will be so filled with His love, with the joy of communion with Him, that it will cleave to Him; and in the contemplation of Him, self will be forgotten.” (Steps to Christ, pp. 44, 45, 1892) and “Love to Christ will be the spring of action.” (Steps to Christ, p. 45, 1892). Yet some believers keep asking how little they can give and still be counted faithful, as the same book warns, “Those who feel the constraining love of God, do not ask how little may be given to meet the requirements of God; they do not ask for the lowest standard, but aim at perfect conformity to the will of their Redeemer.” (Steps to Christ, p. 45, 1892) and “A profession of Christ without this deep love is mere talk, dry formality, and heavy drudgery.” (Steps to Christ, p. 45, 1892). Paul said the love of Christ constrains us, and the psalmist confessed how much he loved God’s law: “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:” (2 Corinthians 5:14, KJV) and “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.” (Psalm 119:97, KJV). Does my obedience feel like drudgery, or does it feel like the natural way a grateful heart says thank you? The Desire of Ages shows how love transforms the will itself until duty becomes delight, “He saves men, not in sin, but from sin; and those who love Him will show their love by obedience.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898) and “The will, refined and sanctified, will find its highest delight in doing His service.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898). Jesus kept His Father’s commandments and abode in His love, and the psalmist says he delighted in the commandments he loved: “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 15:10, KJV) and “And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved.” (Psalm 119:47, KJV).

Isaiah, Ezekiel, and John all fell down before the throne, and their reverence teaches us how to enter God’s house today. Jacob called a stony field the gate of heaven, and Testimonies for the Church uses the same words for our places of worship, “To the humble, believing soul, the house of God on earth is the gate of heaven.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 491, 1889) and “From the sacredness which was attached to the earthly sanctuary, Christians may learn how they should regard the place where the Lord meets with His people.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 491, 1889). God told Israel to reverence His sanctuary, and He told Moses to remove his shoes on holy ground: “Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 19:30, KJV) and “And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:5, KJV). Yet we live in an age that treats sacred things as ordinary, and Sr. White saw that danger clearly, “The precious, the sacred, things which connect us with God are fast losing their hold upon our minds and hearts, and are being brought down to the level of common things.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 491, 1889). The psalmists said that holiness becomes God’s house and that His name is holy and reverend: “Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever.” (Psalm 93:5, KJV) and “He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.” (Psalm 111:9, KJV). Do I enter worship as if I were walking into the throne room that John saw, or as if I were stepping into a hall? The same book reminds us who else is present when we gather to sing and pray, “They should remember that heavenly messengers are in the house.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 492, 1889) and “If when the people come into the house of worship, they have genuine reverence for the Lord and bear in mind that they are in His presence, there will be a sweet eloquence in silence.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 492, 1889) and “All the service should be conducted with solemnity and awe, as if in the visible presence of the Master of assemblies.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 493, 1889). David loved the place where God’s honor dwells, and he would rather keep its door than live in the tents of wickedness: “LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.” (Psalm 26:8, KJV) and “For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.” (Psalm 84:10, KJV).

The song of the living creatures praises God as Creator, and the Sabbath keeps that praise alive on earth each week. God rested on the seventh day and blessed and sanctified it, long before there was any Jew or any Sinai: “And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” (Genesis 2:2, KJV) and “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.” (Genesis 2:3, KJV). The Desire of Ages traces that day back to the morning of creation, before sin had entered, “The Sabbath was hallowed at the creation.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 281, 1898) and “It was a memorial of the work of creation, and thus a sign of God’s power and His love.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 281, 1898). The fourth commandment calls us to remember that day and to rest from our work with our whole household: “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 20:8, KJV) and “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:” (Exodus 20:9, KJV) and “But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:” (Exodus 20:10, KJV). Yet many believers wonder what the Sabbath has to do with Jesus, as though it belonged only to the old covenant. The same book answers that the Sabbath points straight to the Son who made all things, “And since the Sabbath is a memorial of the work of creation, it is a token of the love and power of Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 281, 1898) and “The Sabbath calls our thoughts to nature, and brings us into communion with the Creator.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 281, 1898). Through inspired counsel we are told that the day was meant for the whole human family and for all time, “The Sabbath was not for Israel merely, but for the world.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898) and “So long as the heavens and the earth endure, the Sabbath will continue as a sign of the Creator’s power.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898). God gave the Sabbath as a sign that He is the One who sanctifies His people, and I keep it as a weekly visit to His throne: “Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.” (Ezekiel 20:12, KJV).

The Sabbath is not a mere schedule of hours and restrictions, because God calls it a sign of a relationship with Him: “And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God.” (Ezekiel 20:20, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains that a holy day calls for holy people who belong to God, “But in order to keep the Sabbath holy, men must themselves be holy.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898) and “Through faith they must become partakers of the righteousness of Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898). Isaiah promised delight in the Lord to those who call the Sabbath a delight instead of seeking their own pleasure: “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:” (Isaiah 58:13, KJV) and “Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” (Isaiah 58:14, KJV). But why has the Sabbath been so fiercely attacked, both by open enemies and by those who loaded it with burdens? The same book answers that Satan hates the Sabbath because of the One whom it honors, “Satan was seeking to exalt himself and to draw men away from Christ, and he worked to pervert the Sabbath, because it is the sign of the power of Christ.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898) and “The rabbis virtually represented God as giving laws which it was impossible for men to obey.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 284, 1898) and “It was the work of Christ to clear away these misconceptions.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 284, 1898). Jesus taught that the Sabbath was made for man, and Isaiah saw all flesh coming to worship from one Sabbath to another: “And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:” (Mark 2:27, KJV) and “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.” (Isaiah 66:22, KJV) and “And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.” (Isaiah 66:23, KJV). The prophetic messenger looks ahead to that restored world, “And when Eden shall bloom on earth again, God’s holy rest day will be honored by all beneath the sun.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 283, 1898), and I want to begin honoring it now with a glad heart.

When Jacob woke at Bethel, he made a vow that shows another side of our duty to God: “And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,” (Genesis 28:20, KJV) and “And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:22, KJV). Patriarchs and Prophets explains that his vow was not a bargain but a grateful response, “Jacob was not here seeking to make terms with God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 187, 1890) and “So does every blessing bestowed upon us call for a response to the Author of all our mercies.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 187, 1890). The psalmist asked what he could render to the Lord, and Malachi told Israel to bring the whole tithe into the storehouse: “What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12, KJV) and “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Malachi 3:10, KJV). Yet stewardship reaches far beyond money and tithes, as the same book makes clear, “Our time, our talents, our property, should be sacredly devoted to Him who has given us these blessings in trust.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 187, 1890) and “As we are continually receiving the blessings of God, so we are to be continually giving.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 188, 1890). David confessed that everything comes from God, and that we only give Him what is already His own: “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.” (1 Chronicles 29:14, KJV). Am I giving God the first and best of my time and means, or only what is left over after my own plans are funded? Sr. White points to the cross as the true measure of all our giving and serving, “From the cross of Calvary, Christ calls for an unreserved consecration.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 188, 1890) and “All that we have, all that we are, should be devoted to God.” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 188, 1890). Solomon told us to honor the Lord with our substance and with the firstfruits of all our increase: “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:” (Proverbs 3:9, KJV).

Duty to God is not a riddle that we must solve alone, because He promises to guide those who ask Him: “The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.” (Psalm 25:9, KJV) and “Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.” (Psalm 143:10, KJV). The Desire of Ages assures us that God’s guidance is personal and not only for leaders, “The Lord will teach us our duty just as willingly as He will teach somebody else.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898) and “If we come to Him in faith, He will speak His mysteries to us personally.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898). Solomon promised that God directs the paths of those who acknowledge Him, and Isaiah heard a voice behind us saying, This is the way: “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:6, KJV) and “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21, KJV). Yet guidance is given to those who have already decided to obey, as the same book explains, “Those who decide to do nothing in any line that will displease God, will know, after presenting their case before Him, just what course to pursue.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898) and “Power for obedience, for service, will be imparted to them, as Christ has promised.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668, 1898). What would change in my week if I settled in advance that I will do nothing that displeases God? Steps to Christ promises strength to the one who makes that choice and keeps making it, “By yielding up your will to Christ, you ally yourself with the power that is above all principalities and powers.” (Steps to Christ, p. 48, 1892) and “You will have strength from above to hold you steadfast, and thus through constant surrender to God you will be enabled to live the new life, even the life of faith.” (Steps to Christ, p. 48, 1892). Micah summed up God’s requirements in justice, mercy, and humility, and Paul calls us to prove His good will: “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Micah 6:8, KJV) and “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2, KJV).

WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR AFTER THE VISION?

Every vision of the throne in Scripture sent the prophet back to people, and our study must do the same. A lawyer once asked Jesus how to inherit eternal life, and then he tried to narrow the circle of his duty: “And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25, KJV) and “But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?” (Luke 10:29, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons explains how Jesus answered that narrowing question, “This question Christ answered in the parable of the good Samaritan.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900) and “He showed that our neighbor does not mean merely one of the church or faith to which we belong.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900) and “It has no reference to race, color, or class distinction.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900). Moses had already told Israel to love the stranger as themselves, because they had been strangers in Egypt: “But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.” (Leviticus 19:34, KJV). Yet how wide is the circle, and does it include the people who annoy me, oppose me, or simply never cross my mind? The same book draws the circle as wide as the love of God for His creatures, “Our neighbor is every person who needs our help.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900) and “Our neighbor is every soul who is wounded and bruised by the adversary.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900) and “Our neighbor is every one who is the property of God.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 376, 1900). John warns that no one can love the unseen God while hating the brother he can see: “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” (1 John 4:20, KJV) and “And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” (1 John 4:21, KJV). Paul adds that we should do good to all men, especially to the household of faith, as we have opportunity: “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” (Galatians 6:10, KJV).

Jesus told of a traveler who was robbed and left half dead on the road down to Jericho: “And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.” (Luke 10:30, KJV). A priest and then a Levite came by, saw the man, and passed by on the other side: “And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.” (Luke 10:31, KJV) and “And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.” (Luke 10:32, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons describes the excuse that quietly formed in the Levite’s mind, “He was convicted of what he ought to do, but it was not an agreeable duty.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 379, 1900) and “He persuaded himself that the case was no concern of his, and he too ‘passed by on the other side.’” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 379, 1900). Then a Samaritan came, the very man the listeners expected to be the villain, and he was moved with compassion: “But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,” (Luke 10:33, KJV) and “And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.” (Luke 10:34, KJV) and “And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.” (Luke 10:35, KJV). The same book notes how he treated the stranger, “With gentleness and kindness he ministered to the wounded man.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 379, 1900), and it explains what that kindness revealed about his heart, “The priest and the Levite both professed piety, but the Samaritan showed that he was truly converted.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 380, 1900) and “It was no more agreeable for him to do the work than for the priest and the Levite, but in spirit and works he proved himself to be in harmony with God.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 380, 1900). How many times have I passed by on the other side because helping was inconvenient, costly, or simply unpleasant? Sr. White turns the story into a plain instruction for each of us, “Show the same tender kindness to those in need.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 380, 1900), and I cannot claim to know the throne while I avoid the road.

Jesus ended the parable by asking the lawyer which man proved to be a neighbor, and then He told him to go and do likewise: “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?” (Luke 10:36, KJV) and “And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.” (Luke 10:37, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons reveals who the Samaritan stands for in the story Jesus told, “This Samaritan represents Christ.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 381, 1900) and “Our Saviour manifested for us a love that the love of man can never equal.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, pp. 381, 382, 1900). We were the man in the ditch, robbed by sin and left without strength, and Christ did not pass us by. The same book describes that rescue with deep feeling and great detail for every reader, “When we were bruised and dying, He had pity upon us.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 382, 1900) and “He did not pass us by on the other side, and leave us, helpless and hopeless, to perish.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 382, 1900) and “He did not remain in His holy, happy home, where He was beloved by all the heavenly host.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 382, 1900). Isaiah foretold the One anointed to bind up the brokenhearted, and the psalmist says He heals their wounds: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;” (Isaiah 61:1, KJV) and “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3, KJV). Yet if Christ has bound up my wounds, can I look at a hurting neighbor and feel nothing at all? The prophetic messenger shows how fully Christ made our trouble and our ruin His own concern, “He beheld our sore need, He undertook our case, and identified His interests with those of humanity.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 382, 1900). Ezekiel heard God say to Israel lying in its blood, Live, and Paul says Christ became poor so that we might be rich: “And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live.” (Ezekiel 16:6, KJV) and “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9, KJV).

Love for God and love for people are not two separate duties, because they flow from the same source. Christ’s Object Lessons states this connection in words that every believer should remember, “Love is the basis of godliness.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900) and “Whatever the profession, no man has pure love to God unless he has unselfish love for his brother.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900). John says that love is of God, and that if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another: “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.” (1 John 4:7, KJV) and “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” (1 John 4:11, KJV). But how can I love people who are hard to love, when my own heart is cold and easily offended? The same book answers that we cannot manufacture this love by effort or willpower, “But we can never come into possession of this spirit by trying to love others.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900) and “What is needed is the love of Christ in the heart.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900). Then the inspired pen ties this duty straight back to the throne we have been studying, “We cannot come in touch with divinity without coming in touch with humanity; for in Him who sits upon the throne of the universe, divinity and humanity are combined.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900) and “Connected with Christ, we are connected with our fellow men by the golden links of the chain of love.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900). Jesus gave a new commandment and said that the world would know His disciples by their love: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” (John 13:34, KJV) and “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:35, KJV). John adds that God dwells in us when we love one another, and Peter calls us to love fervently with a pure heart: “No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.” (1 John 4:12, KJV) and “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:” (1 Peter 1:22, KJV).

A church can sing about the throne every Sabbath and still leave its neighbors hungry, and James saw that danger clearly: “If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,” (James 2:15, KJV) and “And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?” (James 2:16, KJV) and “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” (James 2:17, KJV). Christ’s Object Lessons warns that we can believe every truth and still fail our neighbor, “We may claim to be followers of Christ, we may claim to believe every truth in the word of God; but this will do our neighbor no good unless our belief is carried into our daily life.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 383, 1900) and “A right example will do more to benefit the world than all our profession.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 383, 1900). John asks how the love of God can dwell in one who shuts his heart against a brother in need: “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?” (1 John 3:17, KJV) and “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:18, KJV). Yet the remedy is not more guilt but more of Christ, because the same book defines true religion as His life in ours, “Gospel religion is Christ in the life—a living, active principle.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900) and “It is the grace of Christ revealed in character and wrought out in good works.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 384, 1900). Is there someone near me who needs bread, a visit, or a kind word more than they need another sermon? The prophetic messenger names the side that Christ always takes in this broken world, “His cause is the cause of the oppressed and the poor.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 383, 1900) and “Thus the character is marred, and the religion of Christ misrepresented.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 382, 1900). Isaiah describes the fast God chooses, which is to share bread with the hungry and to cover the naked: “Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?” (Isaiah 58:7, KJV).

Jesus described a day when the Son of man will sit on the throne of His glory with all nations gathered before Him: “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:” (Matthew 25:31, KJV). The Desire of Ages explains the single question that will divide them on that day, “And He represented its decision as turning upon one point.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 637, 1898) and “When the nations are gathered before Him, there will be but two classes, and their eternal destiny will be determined by what they have done or have neglected to do for Him in the person of the poor and the suffering.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 637, 1898). The King will welcome those who fed Him, clothed Him, and visited Him, though they never knew they were serving Him: “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:” (Matthew 25:34, KJV) and “For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:” (Matthew 25:35, KJV) and “Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” (Matthew 25:36, KJV). Yet the most surprising part of the scene is that the faithful are surprised, as the same book notes, “But those whom Christ commends know not that they have been ministering unto Him.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 637, 1898). Jesus said that whatever we do for the least of His brethren, we do for Him, and whatever we refuse them, we refuse Him: “And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:40, KJV) and “Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.” (Matthew 25:45, KJV). How would I treat the stranger at my door if I believed, really believed, that Christ stood in his place? The prophetic messenger explains why Christ takes every act of kindness so personally, “He identifies Himself with every child of humanity.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 638, 1898) and “He is the Son of man, and thus a brother to every son and daughter of Adam.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 638, 1898) and “The fallen, the erring, and the sinful, Christ’s love embraces; and every deed of kindness done to uplift a fallen soul, every act of mercy, is accepted as done to Him.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 638, 1898). The throne of glory that judges the nations is the same throne that Ezekiel saw, and its question is about love.

The song we studied before the throne has a quiet echo in the homes and streets where kindness is shown. The Desire of Ages makes that connection in some of the most beautiful words of the whole book, “As you open your door to Christ’s needy and suffering ones, you are welcoming unseen angels.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898) and “They come with praises upon their lips, and an answering strain is heard in heaven.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898) and “Every deed of mercy makes music there.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898). Hebrews reminds us that some have entertained angels unawares, and that God does not forget the love we show His people: “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for there by some have entertained angels unawares.” (Hebrews 13:2, KJV) and “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” (Hebrews 6:10, KJV). Solomon says that kindness to the poor is a loan to the Lord, and Jesus promised a reward for a cup of cold water: “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” (Proverbs 19:17, KJV) and “And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.” (Matthew 10:42, KJV). Yet it is easy to think that small acts do not matter when the world’s needs seem so vast and overwhelming. The same book answers that no person and no deed escapes the notice of heaven, “Not one is neglected or passed by.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898) and “You invite the companionship of heavenly beings.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898) and “The Father from His throne numbers the unselfish workers among His most precious treasures.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 639, 1898). David says the Lord delivers the one who considers the poor, and Isaiah says such a life will rise like light in darkness: “Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.” (Psalm 41:1, KJV) and “And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:” (Isaiah 58:10, KJV). When I serve my neighbor in Christ’s name, I am adding my small note to the song that never stops around the throne.

Many people dream of visiting the Holy Land so they can walk where Jesus walked, but the inspired pen offers a nearer road, “But we need not go to Nazareth, to Capernaum, or to Bethany, in order to walk in the steps of Jesus.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898) and “We shall find His footprints beside the sickbed, in the hovels of poverty, in the crowded alleys of the great city, and in every place where there are human hearts in need of consolation.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898). Peter says that Christ left us an example to follow in His steps, and John says we ought to walk as He walked: “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:” (1 Peter 2:21, KJV) and “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” (1 John 2:6, KJV). The Desire of Ages insists that no believer is left without a part to play in His work, “In doing as Jesus did when on earth, we shall walk in His steps.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898) and “All may find something to do.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898). Jesus gave the measure for every kindness when He told us to do for others what we would want done for us: “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12, KJV). Yet what if my church is small and poor, with few gifts and little influence in the town where God has placed us? The same book gives a hopeful answer to every little company, “A company of believers may be poor, uneducated, and unknown; yet in Christ they may do a work in the home, the neighborhood, the church, and even in ‘the regions beyond,’ whose results shall be as far-reaching as eternity.” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898), and it asks a searching question, “Were our condition and theirs to be reversed, what would we desire them to do for us?” (The Desire of Ages, p. 640, 1898). Paul tells us not to grow weary in well doing, Solomon tells us to work with all our might, and Jesus said it is more blessed to give: “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Galatians 6:9, KJV) and “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10, KJV) and “I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35, KJV).

We began in a throne room where creatures full of eyes cry holy, and we end on ordinary streets where Christ still walks among the needy. Christ’s Object Lessons joins those two places, heaven and the street, in a single thought, “The glory of heaven is in lifting up the fallen, comforting the distressed.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 386, 1900) and “And wherever Christ abides in human hearts, He will be revealed in the same way.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 386, 1900). The same book shows that love becomes natural when Christ lives within us by His Spirit, “It will be as natural for us to minister to the needy and suffering as it was for Christ to go about doing good.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 385, 1900) and “Wherever there is an impulse of love and sympathy, wherever the heart reaches out to bless and uplift others, there is revealed the working of God’s Holy Spirit.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 385, 1900). David prayed that the whole earth would be filled with God’s glory, and Isaiah saw it covered with His knowledge as the waters cover the sea: “And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.” (Psalm 72:19, KJV) and “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9, KJV). Yet the work is not finished until every barrier falls and every wanderer is invited home, as the prophetic messenger reminds us, “All men are of one family by creation, and all are one through redemption.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 386, 1900) and “It places them within reach of the throne of God, the throne encircled by the rainbow of promise.” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 386, 1900). John heard the One on the throne promise to wipe away all tears and make all things new: “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Revelation 21:4, KJV) and “And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:5, KJV). Will I join the song now, in worship, in obedience, and in mercy, so that I may sing it forever before the throne? We answer with John, Come, Lord Jesus, and we trust the One who is able to keep us from falling: “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20, KJV) and “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,” (Jude 1:24, KJV).

“Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.” (Revelation 5:12, KJV).

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SELF REFLECTION

How can I, in my personal devotional life, delve deeper into these prophetic truths, allowing them to shape my character and priorities?

How can we adapt these complex themes to be understandable and relevant to diverse audiences, from seasoned church members to new seekers or those from different faith traditions, without compromising theological accuracy?

What are the most common misconceptions about these topics in my community, and how can I gently but effectively correct them using Scripture and the writings of Sr. White?

In what practical ways can our local congregations and individual members become more vibrant beacons of truth and hope, living out the reality of Christ’s soon return and God’s ultimate victory over evil?