The Harp of God: Proof Conclusive That Millions Now Living Will Never Die — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
The Harp of God: Proof Conclusive That Millions Now Living Will Never Die
John Stuart Mill · en
One of the divine attributes is justice. "Justice and judgment are the
habitation of thy throne." (Psalm 89:14) Divine wisdom devised the great
divine program or plan. Divine justice must perform its part in harmony
with the other divine attributes. God's law must be unchangeable. Being
unchangeable, his creatures can have absolute confidence and faith in
him, that he always does exactly as he says. A violation of Jehovah's
law must be followed by punishment in the exercise of justice. The
prerogative of justice is to see that the law is enforced. The
manifestation of justice magnifies the name and the dignity of Jehovah.
Without the manifestation of justice it would have been impossible for
Jehovah so fully to manifest his love toward man in providing for his
redemption and subsequent blessing. When one understands the office of
justice and why it was manifested, he rejoices. A failure to understand
and appreciate the divine attributes makes it impossible for one
properly to appreciate Jehovah's goodness and loving kindness to
mankind. Jehovah is too good to be unjust. He is too wise to make a
mistake; he is too loving to be unkind; and his power is always
exercised in such a way that ultimate good may result.
[40]The manifestation of justice is one of the strings upon the harp of
God; but we must see and appreciate it in order to understand the beauty
and harmony it brings when used in connection with the other springs.
[41]Good and evil are antagonistic principles or rules of action. Good
is the law or rule of action by which God is always governed. Evil
becomes active only when some creature of Jehovah violates his law. God
made man a free moral agent. He did not compel him to do or not to do
certain things. He told man that if he did certain things he would be
blessed; and that if he did other things contrary to divine law he would
suffer punishment; and the punishment prescribed was death. Mother Eve
was deceived by Satan, the devil, and thereby induced to violate the law
of God. Father Adam, seeing that his companion and helpmate had violated
the law and judging that she must die, preferred to join her in the
transgression and die with her. (1 Timothy 2:14) It will be of interest
here to examine the circumstances leading up to the violation of the law
of God and to see why his justice toward man was manifested in
sentencing him to death.