LOSING THE BIBLE TO FIND IT (_continued_)
The method of finding God's Word in the Scriptures illustrated.
1. The Psalms
For richness of spiritual content, for loftiness of expression, and for
intimacy of communion with God, no other book in the world equals the
Psalms. All devout souls have found the fullest expression of their
inmost being in these inspired hymns. Like all true poetry the Psalms
deal with the timeless. Eternal truths and deathless passions flow
through these beautiful, rhythmic lines like a majestic river. The world
is infinitely richer for the Psalms. And though they often reveal
mistaken ideas in astronomy, yet religiously and poetically the Psalms
contain the finest possible conceptions of the material universe. Even
the imprecatory utterances are not wholly immoral, nor altogether
contrary to the teachings of Jesus; for when they were deserved, He said
things dreadfully severe. But when a Psalmist goes so far as to say of
his enemy, "Neither let there be any to have pity on his fatherless
children," or "Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little
ones against the rock," he clearly manifests an evil spirit; a spirit
that is at once contrary to his own religion, and utterly condemned by
Jesus. However, when we consider the ruthless exploitation to which
Israel was so long exposed, it is most remarkable that the Psalms
contain so little of this evil note. Whoever approaches the Psalms in
the spirit of the Master will find them fat with spiritual meat.
Notwithstanding all, it is an indisputable fact that the best Christian
hymns are superior to the poorest Hebrew Psalms. Take for example Dr.
Gladden's hymn:
"O Master, let me walk with Thee
In lowly paths of service free;
Tell me Thy secret, help me bear
The strain of toil, the fret of care.
"Help me the slow of heart to move
By some clear, winning word of love;
Teach me the wayward feet to stay,
And guide them in the homeward way.
"Teach me Thy patience; still with Thee
In closer, dearer company,
In work that keeps faith sweet and strong,
In trust that triumphs over wrong,
"In hope that sends a shining ray
Far down the future's broadening way,
In peace that only Thou canst give,
With Thee, O Master, let me live."
Now, if any one should say that this hymn is inferior to the poorest
Psalm, he would simply reveal a biased mind. And yet, a hundred Dr.
Gladdens could not have produced the book of Psalms. The Psalms were not
made to order but, like his hymn, grew out of peculiar experiences. The
Hebrew Psalms were lived out, and suffered out, through the life of a
people that had looked with straining eyes from many a Mount Pisgah, and
had lifted a pitiful cry from many a valley of Hinnom. Such experiences
get to the heart of things; they offer the great prophetic opportunity
for the noble souls through whom God determines the destiny of a people.
What oratorical genius could _invent_ a Gettysburg speech? The necessary
conditions for such a pronouncement were four years of national anguish,
a soil watered by the blood of her noblest sons, and a president bowed
down with grief. Then, and only then, could a Mr. Lincoln rise in the
midst of our hallowed dead and, all unconsciously, speak words immortal.
In the long ago, our western prairies lifted by mighty volcanic forces
were shattered, and twisted, and left with great frowning peaks and deep
yawning chasms. As a result, great pockets of gold were deposited in
their bosom for the enrichment of the world. In like manner, Israel
passed through great national upheavals that resulted in many a precious
deposit. And among these deposits were the Psalms that have never ceased
to enrich human experience.
What the earth's crust is to the student of nature's forces, that the
Scriptures are to the student of spiritual forces.
2. The Prophets in general
If we now turn to the books of the prophets, we shall find a new type of
Scripture. These spiritual giants were preeminently men of their own
times, with a message for all times.
Before the first of the prophets now under consideration appeared,
Israel had already passed through many centuries of deep and varied
experience. First the Northern and then the Southern Kingdom became
grossly idolatrous and wretchedly corrupt. Their ideals had degenerated
into a mere cult, and their social institutions into a rigid system of
oppression. Through dishonesty, oppression, and irreligion, the national
life had so weakened that its destruction was imminent from inward decay
and outward attack. Israel was clearly missing her destiny by forsaking
God, oppressing the poor, and by trampling underfoot her most sacred
ideals. She was inviting the judgments of God by truly meriting them.
Out of this deepening gloom, the lightning of God's wrath and the
thunder of His purpose awakened certain sensitive souls to be prophets
and seers in Israel. The realization of the nation's crime and danger
transformed these prophets into the most fearless reformers the world
had ever seen. As couriers with an important message from God, they went
in hot haste to a rebellious and foolish people. Because of the real and
immediate danger these preachers were exceedingly intense. To save the
day, they strove valiantly. If they were to be successful in their
mission, both vision and oratorical gift were necessary qualifications.
Their keen knowledge of Israel's _present_ made her future inevitable
unless she repented of her sins. The prophets were not sent to proclaim
any new religious truths in particular, but to be preachers and
reformers of the highest order.
Now, how different all this is from what I used to think.
I once supposed that a prophecy was a pure miracle, a case in which God
told the prophet, without any insight on the prophet's part, just what
the future would be. It did not occur to me that the prophet had the
slightest means of knowing the future which he predicted, except as God
miraculously informed him. I also thought that God told the prophets
what should be, so that, when it came to pass, it would prove the
existence of God and the truth of revealed religion. To my
understanding, prophecy was divine fortune-telling, designed to convince
religious sceptics of a later day, rather than preaching, designed to
save the sinners of that day. I did not realize that the predictions
were concerning events inevitable, for the most part, to any one not
blinded by sin or ignorance. Nor did I realize that most of their
thrilling prophecies were made with the hope of bringing the people to
repentance,--in which happy event the predictions would not come true.
A Hebrew prophet rarely used an if. That was understood. He always hoped
that his predictions of evil would not come true, because of the
_emphatic_ manner in which he declared they would. All orientals
understood this, and it would greatly enhance the worth of Scriptures
if we understood it equally well.
Too often, however, the evil prophecies did come to pass, because sinful
Israel refused to hear. And for the same reason predictions of good
often failed. Like true preachers and reformers, the prophets dealt
largely in warnings and encouragements; hoping, thereby, to lead the
people back to Him who loved them with an ever-lasting love.
"Do you think this war is a fulfillment of Bible prophecy?" Yes, this
war and every other war is a fulfillment of Bible prophecies. Any
prophecy that is true to fundamental principles, and true to human
nature, goes right on being fulfilled over and over again. The dark
prophecies recorded in the Scriptures will never cease being fulfilled
until men no longer sin against God and one another. And when men cease
sinning against God and their neighbors, the Bible prophecies of _good_
will be repeatedly fulfilled throughout all the expanding growth of
society. But the fanatical uses made of Bible prophecy in our day, by
some well-meaning people, are enough to make angels weep.
The great prophets had their hearts wide open toward the God they
adored, toward the nation they loved, and toward the times they feared.
They were tremendously inspired of God, and regarded their lives of no
account if only they could bring Israel back to God and save her from
her enemies without, and her foes within. They were statesmen, seers,
and lovers of God and men. Their souls burned with an unquenchable
fire. They were the greatest preachers that the world has ever seen. To
learn the historical setting is to enhance the value of their sermons
many fold. And to study the prophet's method of impressing truth upon
the oriental mind is a marvelous lesson in the art of persuasion. In
their effort to save Israel, the prophets partly succeeded and partly
failed. But their messages will live forever, and in this they succeeded
beyond all precedent. They were firebrands to punish sin, and torches to
enlighten the world.
Their messages were simple:
God is infinitely great and good. He loves you with a boundless passion,
and pities you with an infinite compassion. But you have trampled on His
mercies, you have spurned His approaches, you have jilted Him as a
lover, and you show only contempt for His word. You tread down His poor,
you rob widows and orphans, you take bribes, you pervert justice, you
wallow in vice, you pamper yourselves with stolen delicacies, you mingle
freely with the heathen, you copy their vices, you worship their vile
gods, and make the land a stench. As a result, Israel languisheth: her
poor cry for bread, her young men fall into the vices of their fathers,
law and order are forgotten, and a loathsome decay is eating the very
heart out of the nation.
Your enemies are quick to see your nakedness and your weakness. Already,
they are planning to move against you. And Jehovah is so weary and
discouraged with you that He has about decided to use your mighty
enemies as a scourge. He loves you so much that He must save you, at
least a remnant of you, even if He has to use your cruel enemies to
bring you back to your senses. Anyone who looks can see what is about to
happen. If he listens he can hear the tramping of horses' feet and the
rumbling of chariot wheels.
In true oriental imagery, these majestic prophets appealed to Israel's
fear and pride and honor. There was no human passion overlooked, and no
fundamental fact forgotten. They scolded, and wooed. They promised
abundant good, or abundant evil. Their fund of _illustrations_ was
inexhaustible and, for the most part, exceedingly effective with the
people of their day; and many of their illustrations are still
unsurpassed for beauty and power. Nevertheless, they sometimes allowed
their imagination to run riot while devising, or adapting imagery that
would attract the attention, and arouse the hopes and the fears of their
hearers. A notable instance is that of the captive Ezekiel, when he
tries to portray the glory and majesty of Jehovah by means of a
monstrous flying machine.
While Ezekiel's motive was good, his method was crude. He pictured a
great cloud flashing fire as it rolled out of the north with a stormy
wind. In the fiery cloud were living creatures, and each one had four
faces and four wings. They also had calves' feet that sparkled like
brass. Besides having human hands under their wings these strange
objects had a man's face, a lion's face, an eagle's face, and the face
of an ox. Their general appearance was that of burning coals and flaming
torches. Connected, somehow, with the cloud and these monstrous
creatures were wheels resembling precious stones, and wheels within
wheels. And the rims of the wheels were covered with eyes. The movement
of this startling apparition was direct, and very terrible; the noise of
its wings was like great waters and the voice of the Almighty. Above
this flying wonder was a canopy, and above the canopy a throne, from
whence there proceeded a voice. Then he saw, as it were, glowing metal
and the appearance of a rainbow. This appalling chariot of Jehovah, and
the awful majesty of God, threw Ezekiel upon his face. Then Jehovah said
unto Ezekiel, "Son of man, stand upon thy feet and I will speak with
thee."
Now, we may be sure that the majesty of Jehovah is not less, but
infinitely greater than this flying wonder. His glory, however, is
decidedly different from this vision. Reverence and awe for the Almighty
are sorely needed in every generation, and the effort to inspire them is
a most worthy aim. There is no denying but this illustration is an awful
picture; one that would thoroughly stupefy a child. But what should we
think of a minister to-day who began his sermon with a similar
description of the majesty and glory of God? However useful such imagery
may have been to exiles in Babylonia more than two thousand years ago,
it would be positively harmful to a modern congregation.
Though this vision of Ezekiel is crude and very extreme, even for an
ancient prophet of Israel, yet we have people to-day who invest these
wheels, and eyes, and heads with symbolic meanings to bolster up a
monstrous religion that is contrary to pretty much everything that Jesus
taught. Out of the books of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation, some well
meaning but untaught souls can invent fifty-seven varieties of religion.
But they can learn neither the lesson nor the danger of an undisciplined
imagination.
3. Jonah
As I am simply giving a bird's-eye view of the Scriptures, and the
method of approaching them, possibly a few words should be said
concerning Jonah.
As a great missionary book for a people who were very unmissionary in
spirit, Jonah is unique. It breathes the spirit of Christian missions in
this twentieth century.
The friends of the Bible have unwittingly made this great book a jest
and a byword by their wretched interpretation of it. Even as a little
boy, I used to feel ashamed of certain portions of Jonah when read at
family prayers. For, as I understood it, there was something about the
story uncanny and unreal. I knew that some people scoffed at the fish
story. But that did not trouble me because I believed in miracles, and
was much pleased that God did not let poor Jonah drown. It was the
unnaturalness of Jonah himself that troubled me. And when it came to his
experience with the gourd, I almost lost faith. When Jonah felt so angry
and sorry that he wanted to die because a worm bit the gourd, my common
sense revolted completely. I meditated over this incident a long time,
and finally concluded that no little boy was ever such a fool as that. I
had felt faint in the hot sun many times myself and had seen chinch bugs
eat up whole fields of wheat, and yet I did not want to die. That a big
man, and prophet of God, could give way to such hysterical feelings over
a withering gourd was more than I could believe. This incident was a
much greater shock to my faith than the fish story. Though I felt very
wicked for doubting the Bible, yet I was heartily glad that a certain
sceptical neighbor was not present to hear it, for I knew he would make
fun of such a story. What a pity it is that a little boy should be
compelled to experience such feelings about the Bible at family prayers,
when a little rational explanation would make this book charming to him
beyond expression.
Though the book of Jonah is written in a curious oriental style that no
man of to-day would wish to imitate, yet its spirit, purpose, and
subject matter would be very difficult to surpass. As a parable, it is
true to the general history of Israel and to the spirit of Christian
missions. It contains the vision of a missionary statesman, and was
meant to sting Israel to the quick for her bigotry and hardness of
heart.
Very briefly stated, it is something like this:
The whining and almost contemptible prophet Jonah is Israel itself.
Jonah is a caricature of Israel, and that is what made him seem unreal
to me. Israel wanted the heathen killed, and not converted. And though
she did not dare to disobey God outright, yet she gave God the slip at
the first corner and embarked on the sea of politics. For a long time
Israel had been as anxious to get into politics and form international
relations as she had been determined not to be a missionary nation to
her despised neighbors. So in this parable, Israel had not been long on
the sea of politics when a great storm arose,--it is ever so. And, as
usual in politics, someone is thrown overboard. The great fish that
swallowed Jonah was Assyria. Therefore it is not strange that Israel
offered a long and beautiful prayer in that kind of a fish's belly.
Proud Israel, God's darling, in exile for her rebellion against Jehovah,
could do no otherwise than offer up a prayer.
"Out of the belly of Sheol cried I,
And thou heardest my voice.
For thou didst cast me into the depth, in the heart of the seas,
And the flood was round about me;
All thy waves and thy billows passed over me.
And I said I am cast out before thine eyes;
Yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.
The waters compassed me about, even to the soul;
The weeds were wrapped about my head.
"And Jehovah spake unto the fish, (Assyria) and it vomited out Jonah
upon the dry land." And Israel returned from captivity. Israel still
showed an aversion for missionary work after her exile, but when God
said "Go" a second time, Israel went. That is, she went in the parable.
It is clear, from the sarcasm of the story, that Jonah enjoyed his
message when he began crying, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be
overthrown." The parable reveals the faith of the author. He wished to
convey the idea that the wicked heathen would repent more quickly than
Israel if they had a herald to proclaim God's truth. Of course, a
prophecy of destruction would not come true if the heathen repented. So
God decided not to do what He said He would.
"But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry." When Jonah, the
typical Israelite, saw that his preaching had converted the heathen he
was so mad that he wanted to die. I knew how kind-hearted you were
toward repentant sinners, and that is the reason I tried to run off the
first time. Now, God, just kill me; "for it is better for me to die than
to live." Is this history? Yes, it is history in stinging sarcasm. How
the Israelites must have writhed under such a portrayal of their
faithless and godless hearts. But the author knew that it would take
more than this to break their stubborn wills. So he proceeds with a few
more sledge-hammer blows.
"And Jehovah said, Doest thou well to be angry?" Now this gave Jonah a
little hope that God might kill his despised neighbors even if they had
bitterly repented and turned to the Lord for forgiveness. Accordingly,
Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side where he could see
and gloat over the destruction of his converts, in case the Lord did
intend to destroy them after all. In the meantime, Jonah made himself
just as comfortable as possible by constructing a booth where he could
sit in the shade. And our satirist causes God to add a little touch of
comfort by causing a gourd "to come up over" His darling, "Jonah, that
it might be a shade over his head, to deliver him from his evil case."
Now, the contemptible Jonah had no business being there in the sun; he
should have been at home helping his wife, if he had nothing else to do.
But better still, he should have been in Nineveh rejoicing with the
converts who had been redeemed from destruction by his preaching.
Note the fine sarcasm of our author, "So Jonah was exceedingly glad of
the gourd."
However, when the gourd was smitten by a worm, and the sultry wind blew,
and the sun shone hot upon his head, our mean little Jonah again asked
God to kill him. Now Jonah, "Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd?"
"Yes, I do well to be angry even unto death." Were ever such words of
irony spoken! O Israel, you are smitten with grief because of your poor
little gourds, but don't you think you might have a little pity for all
those innocent people who were so untaught morally that they did not
know their right hand from their left?
It would be well for us to remember that we, as well as ancient Israel,
fret and fume over a lot of little nothings. Little griefs and little
deprivations vex us sorely. But while our brothers and sisters over much
of the earth go naked and starved and diseased, we feel no pity. We are
very tender-hearted over little things, we are deeply moved over some
fictitious story; but for the appalling tragedies of dark continents and
exploited peoples, our hearts are flint.
Obviously, Israel understood only too well the biting sarcasm and bitter
irony of Jonah's ringing satire. If the author of this parable could
know that a generation has since risen, with so little historical and
literary acumen as to believe that Jonah is literal history, I think his
body would turn over in its grave. If he knew that he had set people to
wrangling over the question of whether a fish could swallow a man,
instead of sending them out as missionaries to all the Ninevehs of the
earth, he would feel sorry that he ever wrote the book.
When intelligently understood, there is no other literature extant that
makes such a strong moral and religious appeal for social justice and
political righteousness as the prophets. The writings of the great
prophets of Israel constitute a practical _sociology_, founded on the
Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man; a sociology so enriched by
a wealth of historical materials as to make it a treasure-house for all
workers in social betterment.
To save the ordinary Bible reader from confusion, I have purposely
avoided all questions of origin and composite character, along with many
other interesting and useful facts concerning the Scriptures. This
simple approach to the Scriptures is for the purpose of helping the
average person to find the soul of the Bible. For it is the soul of the
Bible, and not its incidental features, that enriches the soul of the
reader.
4. The New Testament in general
In the New, as well as in the Old Testament, the letter kills while the
spirit makes alive.
As the historical and literary methods of study have imparted a new
beauty and a new significance to the messages of the Old Testament, the
same methods will, in like manner, affect the messages of the New
Testament.
The personal Christ is the _soul_ of the New Testament. In Jesus,
righteousness is more than a decalogue or a catalogue to be followed; it
is a character to be possessed. In Jesus, God is more than a Divinity to
be obeyed; the Infinite Will is an indwelling Spirit,--the soul of man's
soul. While the Old Testament never recognizes God as dwelling in man,
the New Testament takes the God of Israel and the righteousness of
Israel and places them in human life; not as a theory, but as personal
experience. This is the old righteousness and the old religion made new.
When we say that Jesus is the soul of the New Testament, we have no
reference to perplexing questions about how He came or how He went. We
mean that the God-filled Jesus is the soul of all the New Testament
teachings. The pure, strong Son of God is the lodestone of the Gospels
and the Epistles. It is He that draws honest souls into divine
fellowship with the Father and His family. To see the character of Jesus
in its most lovely aspects, and to feel His love that heals and
transforms, is to receive the very best that the New Testament has to
give.
The perplexing questions of psychology, of tradition, of manuscripts,
and of miracles are interesting enough for those who are equipped to
study them; but all these are much less than the one essential thing. To
know Him, and to feel the power that He can exercise over all that are
attached to Him in love and service, is life eternal. Granting that the
miracles are true, yet it is infinitely more difficult to be certain of
the truth of a miracle than it is to be certain of the truth of the
Christian religion. The Christian religion may be tested at first hand.
We can taste and see that the Lord is good. By keeping company with
Jesus, and walking in His foot-steps, we are able to decide for
ourselves whether we care for Him and His way of living. Though one were
in utter doubt concerning everything else, if he saw in Jesus something
so much to be desired that he was willing to forsake all and follow Him,
he would find himself in loving fellowship with the Father. "Whosoever
will, let him come." And, "Whosoever cometh unto me, I will in no wise
cast out." Though in doubt about every question of scholarship, the one
who personally tests the life and teachings of Jesus from day to day is
able to answer, "One thing I know, whereas I was blind, now I see." To
find one's self sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right
mind, after living among the tombs as one mad for wealth or pleasure or
popularity, is the last word in religion.
Having thus blazed the straight path to God, let me urge it upon my
readers that they take up the broader and deeper study of the New
Testament literature as they have opportunity. For, in so doing they
will broaden and deepen their lives, and better fit themselves to live
in society as those who helpfully and intelligently serve.
But some may say, "How are we to know that our religion is true unless
we have some ancient, miraculous proof!"
My answer is that in nothing does God so much delight, as in making
Himself known to those who intelligently receive Him in pure hearts.
When God is _here_, even if it were possible, we do not need to prove
His existence; we simply need to get acquainted with Him. Miracles may
have been necessary in times past; if so, they served their purpose when
they were needed. Since it is harder to verify an ancient miracle than
it is to verify the presence of God in our own hearts, we cling to the
greater certainty without being too dogmatic concerning the wonders
reported in a primitive age. If one believes in miracles, no one can
prove that he is wrong. If he is so constituted that he cannot believe
in them, God will not turn him away if he follows the Master with his
whole heart. If any one desires a richer assurance of God and His
forgiveness, let him be a more intelligent and a better Christian; let
him make a larger investment of himself in the service of God. I have
nothing to say against miracles; but I should like to testify that it
has been possible to lead many to Christ by getting them to become His
disciples first, and then letting them have plenty of time to settle the
question of miracles as best they were able.
Though I bring an indictment against myself, I must say, what we most
need is a ministry with Apostolic faith and fervor. We need St. Pauls
and St. Johns. We need leaders who can make God real and sin hateful.
5. The book of Revelation
Seeing that so many good Christians are perplexed by the apocalypses, we
shall close this chapter with a brief study of the book of Revelation.
The mystery that once shrouded the book of Revelation is gone. As
Professor Porter says, "The historical method has, it is not too much to
say, broken the seals. To the historical student these apocalypses have
become, in their general character and chief messages, among the best
instead of quite the least understood books of the canon. And their
importance has grown with their understanding."
The book of Revelation throws more light on the past than on the future.
It has to do largely with a crisis in the early Christian Church, and
not with the end of the world and the "constitution of the unseen
universe."
The probable date of the book is about ninety-three A. D. The great
Christian leaders were gone, the heathen elements were entering the
Church with their traditions and rites, and the Roman government was
setting up emperor worship to strengthen the loyalty of diverse
populations. The mandate that all should enter the temples of the
emperor and worship him as divine was particularly hard on Jews and
Christians who refused to worship any but the one true God. The
persecutions that followed a refusal to worship the emperor, with all
the other devitalizing influences mentioned, threatened the very
existence of the Christian Church.
It was to meet this crisis that the book of Revelation was written. And
this accounts for the poetical and visionary style adopted by the
author. Strong language was needed; something that would quicken the
imagination and revive the fainting hearts of those who were growing
cold and indifferent. Dynamite was needed. No gentle utterance would
suffice. The writer realizes the awful conflict that is about to ensue
between the gentle Lamb and His humble followers on the one side, and
the great dragon, Rome, and his vile cohorts on the other. Somehow, the
Christians must be convinced that the Lamb will finally triumph over the
beast, or all is lost. After the sweet, simple letters of admonition and
praise to the Churches, in which he pictures Christ among the
candlesticks, the task of reassuring the persecuted followers of Jesus
must somehow be achieved. So he goes to his task as a fireman goes to
the work of saving a building that is on fire. Ordinary means will
utterly fail. He first looks to the heavens, and then to the most
striking imagery of the Old Testament, and never refuses a striking
figure from any source that promises to serve his purpose. He gathers
from far and near anything that will startle and encourage. As the winds
drive the clouds until their blackness terrifies, so he gives free rein
to his own imagination while marshaling his material. He commands the
heavenly trumpeters, and brings forth appalling horsemen riding in the
heavens. He sees one-third of the sun, moon, and stars, smitten after
the blast of a heavenly trumpet. He sees an angel open a pit from which
belches forth smoke that darkens the whole heavens. Out of the smoke
come forth locusts that look like horses prepared for war. They have
golden crowns on their heads, and men's faces, and women's hair, and
lion's teeth, and breastplates of iron. Their wings sound like chariots
and many horses rushing to war. And they have scorpions' tails with
stings, to sting the men that have not the seal of God on their
foreheads. He assures the poor sufferers that sealed mysteries, and
distresses, and woes await them; but that Christ shall be able to solve
all mysteries, and that he will command all powers in heaven and earth
to fight on their side until the old dragon, whose earthly embodiment is
Rome, shall be cast into the sulphurous pit and sealed. Finally, in the
most beautiful and poetical fashion he declares that the battle shall be
won, the clash of arms and the blare of trumpets shall cease, heaven and
earth shall be cleared of their fierce combatants, and in that happy and
peaceful hour the reward of the faithful shall appear. Heaven shall
descend on a new earth that is redeemed. The Lamb and His bride, the
faithful Church, shall again be united. And this new heaven on earth
shall be inexpressibly beautiful; the architecture shall be symmetrical,
and richly adorned. The gates of the city shall be pearls, and the
streets gold. The city shall not, as the old Jerusalem, be built of
common stone; even the foundations shall be adorned with jasper, and
sapphire, and chalcedony, and emerald, and sardonyx, and sardius, and
chrysolite, and beryl, and topaz, and chrysoprase, the jacinth, and
amethyst. There shall be a river, and trees bearing fruit for food and
leaves for healing. All these things the writer assures them shall soon
come to pass. In the great day of victory throngs of people shall be
there, arrayed in white; all, both the living and the dead, who have
washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, shall
be present. They shall be invited to the marriage of the Lamb, and to
the wonderful feast that will follow.
We are justified in believing that this poetical and highly imaginative
portrayal of the conflict was very effective with the humble,
illiterate, and sorely persecuted people who constituted the Christian
Church at that time. They revived from their coldness, they turned their
backs upon the insidious temptations and allurements of the heathen
world, and went in armies to the martyr's death. Rome was conquered, but
not in the way the author expected. Rome was conquered by being made
Christian, at least nominally and politically. The histories that
record the conflict between the Christians and Rome are not less
blood-curdling than the book of Revelation. The conflict was frightful,
only it was in terms of blood, and fire, and dungeon. If the ingenious
and infernal methods of torture, invented by Rome, present a picture
difficult to read, what must the reality have been to bear? We should
never cease to thank God that these humble Christians were nerved for
the conflict. The modern world owes these martyrs a debt of gratitude as
high as the heavens and as deep as the seas. When we consider the
people, the times, and the crisis, the book of Revelation was a means
well suited to a noble end. Who can look upon such a scene, and witness
such heroism, and read such desperate utterances rising out of the
conflict as are recorded by the author of Revelation without wishing to
be a better man, and a more loyal follower of the one who still stands
among the candlesticks,--His Churches. Sabatier has wisely said,
"Apocalypses do not reveal to us the secrets of the divine providence,
but do reveal the optimistic believing nature of the soul."
During the recent war, many portions of our country were burnt over with
the fanaticism that has sprung from a false and unhistorical
interpretation of Revelation and other apocalyptic writings.
The following extract from Professor Porter's book, "Daniel and
Revelation," is of special interest:
"The more theoretical or theological messages of the apocalypses it is
evidently impossible for us to accept in any literal way as a message
for our day. That which they claimed to do, namely, to unveil the
heavenly world and the future age, they really did not do. We cannot
accept their descriptions of heaven, of God's throne, or of the angels,
their names and functions, as a revelation of hidden realities. They are
at most figurative and imaginative representations or symbols of faith
in God and a spiritual realm. We are interested in these things only, on
the one side, for the imperishable faith and hope behind them, and on
the other for their place in the history of human speculation and
fancy.... Although we cannot receive their theoretical message, yet
their practical message for their own time is a true message for all
like times, and in a measure for all times alike. Religious faith in
times of a dominating, aggressive, or insinuating worldliness needs to
maintain itself by the assurance of the real dominion of the unseen
world over the world of sense, and by the hope of some approaching
manifestation of God, some open demonstration of the rule of justice and
goodness. The apocalyptical temper is needed when religion is assailed
and in danger; and in all times the religious life needs to maintain its
purity and strength by some sort of protest against the world, some
defiance of ruling ideals and customs, some faith in realities above
those of sense, and in truths contrary to appearances. The greater
apocalypses were inspired by a living faith in the ideal and an eager
expectation of its coming into reality; and faith in ideals which the
world contradicts is too rare and precious a thing to be despised
because its form is strange."