When the Savior made His appearance in the flesh there were many religious denominations extant, some of which professed a firm belief in the Bible--the Old Testament--and notwithstanding the ancient prophets plainly foretold the birth and ministry of the Savior, the religious element bitterly opposed Him and denounced new revelation, as manifested through the Redeemer. This peculiar perversity of the human family has been displayed prominently whenever the Almighty has introduced a new dispensation of the Gospel. The Lord, fully understanding the result of such bitter persecution, said to His apostles: "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you; and ye shall be hated of all nations for my namesake." (Matt. xxiv:9.) The vile treatment to which the ancient apostles were subjected and the martyrdom of many of them, is known to all acquainted with the history of those inspired men; and scriptural evidence as to their having been informed thereof in advance is quite abundant. The Savior says in Mark, thirteenth chapter, ninth verse: "But take heed to yourselves; for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten; and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them." Another witness to this testimony of our Savior has also left us the following: "And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death." It is a remarkable fact that, in every age of the world when the Lord has committed a dispensation of the Gospel to men upon the earth, the heavenly message has been rejected by the great majority of the human family, and the envy and hatred of many have been such as to instigate measures of violence against the humble servants of the Lord. Especially is this true when applied to the professedly religious element, and more directly to those who aim to be public instructors of the people. Notice the action taken by the Pharisees, Sadducees and other religious classes regarding the ancient Saints; while the devotees of these sects were divided on points of doctrine and disagreed upon the writings of the prophets, they combined their efforts to overthrow the Lord's chosen people. The Savior, indicating the class who would imbrue their hands in the blood of the prophets, said: "These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. They shall put you out of the synagogues; yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God's service." (John xvi:1, 2.) This could not apply to the atheistic world, for it denies the existence of God. It could not mean the infidel class, for while they may not deny the existence of a Supreme Being, they disavow all forms of worship. The Savior's prediction was directed to the religious world, and from the facts of the case, it seems especially applicable to that portion of it which claimed to believe in