Sketches of the Christian life and public labors of William Miller : $b Gathered from his memoir by the late Sylvester Bliss, and from other sourcesWhite, James
Philosophy
Sketches of the Christian life and public labors of William Miller : $b Gathered from his memoir by the late Sylvester Bliss, and from other sources
White, James
Miller, William, 1782-1849
“Or, suppose that the professor was now in controversy with a Jew,—a
Sadducee,—and was under the necessity of proving the doctrine of the
resurrection by the Old Testament, would he not put into requisition this
very text, and prove by the same a resurrection unto eternal life? And,
if he did not believe such plain and positive proofs as these texts would
be, would he not consider him a poor, blinded Sadducee? Let us be careful
that our own mouths do not condemn us.
“If, then, these days can only end with the resurrection, it is
impossible that these Scriptures can apply to Antiochus. And, as the
rules which he has given us in his Hints are the same, in substance,
which I was forced to adopt more than twenty years ago, I cannot believe
that Antiochus Epiphanes is even hinted at from Daniel 11:14 to the end
of the 12th chapter. And, if the prophecy does not belong to Antiochus,
then he must acknowledge that the little horn can apply only to the papal
power; and must agree with nearly all Protestant writers that ‘time,
times, and a half,’ are, together with the other numbers in this chapter,
to be understood in a symbolical sense.
“In writing, he sometimes indulged in a colloquial style. In the
following he hints at an objection often urged against him, that he,
being a farmer, should not presume to teach. He says:—
“_As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son
of man._ They were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,
until Noah entered into the ark. Methinks I can almost see the scenes
of that day. See you not that elegant building yonder, near that ark
of gopher-wood? That building was reared at a great expense, by the
host, for the purpose of entertaining strangers who might come to visit
that ark, and to ridicule and laugh at that old, white-headed man you
see yonder pitching the ark. The host, you see, has become rich by the
great gain he has made, from the furnishing of the workmen, citizens
and strangers, with food and drink of the most costly kind. Look into
the dining hall of that establishment. See the table loaded with all
the delicate viands of the season. See those bottles filled with the
sparkling juice of the grape. See the host at his door, beckoning to each
passer-by to enter and regale himself. Hear the conversation between the
host and the stranger guest who has just entered his mansion.
“_Guest._ What great building is that in yonder field, on that eminence?
“_Host._ That is called Noah’s ark.
“_Guest._ But what use is he going to put it to? It seems to be built for
sailing. Surely the old man does not expect to sail on dry land.
“_Host._ Yes; you are right. The old man says the world is coming to an
end (Gen. 6:13), and he has prepared an ark to save himself and family;
for all flesh will be destroyed by water, as he says.
“_Guest._ But how does he know this?
“_Host._ He says God told him.
“_Guest._ What kind of a man is he? He must be a great fanatic, I am
thinking.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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