Contents of the Golden Age

—........-                      _a<^r_tP_         ...                     ..          |6M

Labor and Economics

A Considerate Company........

The Poorest Class Not Overpaid ....

Associated Manufacturers and Child Labor

Social and Educational

Drops op Ink ......

Britain’s Prison Population Baseball Has its Uses . . .

The Criminal Type . . .

Conditions in Russian Prisons

Finance—Commerce—Transportation Radio Lighting of Airports...........

Airplane Landed by Parachute • ........

Political—Domestic and Foreign

Jury Fixing at Washington.........

War Warning by Lloyd George........

Disarmament and Hypocrisy.........

Science and Invention

Number of Broadcasting Stations.....

' Travel and Miscellany

Meats from the Arctic.........

The Wonders of Mammoth Cave ......

Lions Naturally Friendly to Man.....

Religion and Philosophy

Armageddon ........

Expectation of the Jews . . .

Christian Business Men in China The Drama of the Ages . . . What About the Heathen?—Part 1 Dr. Bevan and Dr. Barnes . . The Reward of Wickedness . . Bible Questions and Answers . Little Studies for Little People

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Armageddon.

[Broadcast from Station WBBR, New York, by Judge Rutherford.]

jN MANY places in the Scriptures is found the expression: “The great and terrible day If the Lord.” In 2 Peter 3:10-12 it is stated that the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the earth shall be destroyed’. Many have erroneously thought that this means the literal globe on which the people live. Such is not true, however. In the same connection the Scriptures state that ‘then there shall be established a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness’. Heaven means the invisible part of

Organized world powers. Earth has reference to |he visible part of the organization on earth, fche literal earth will never be destroyed.

Efe                                                                            •                  •                               •

I The great climax mentioned in the Scriptures |s also spoken of as, “The battle of the great day fcf God Almighty.” Jesus, referring to the same Kiing said that ‘it will be a time of trouble such Bis the world has never known, and there shall fcever be another.’ That time will mark the deliverance of the people from all oppression. Daniel 12:1 declares: “and at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which stand-leth 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: tad at that time thy people shall be delivered, jevery one that shall be found written in the hook.” 'Jehovah is God

u

TjUT why should there come a great trouble on earth more terrible than man has ever be-

fore known ? Briefly call to mind what has transpired during the past six thousand years. Satan the enemy was created perfect, beautiful and glorious; and God highly honored him by clothing him with power and authority, appointing him as the overlord of man and making him a flight-bearer. He betrayed that trust and confidence

i

fidence, became guilty of treason, the most heinous of all crimes, and since then has been leading the way in all wickedness. During all the ages Satan has reproached God and mocked him, that he might turn the minds of men away from their only Benefactor and true Friend. (Proverbs 17:17) He introduced hypocrisy among the people that they might mock God. (Genesis 4:26, margin) Teaching the people to ignore and repudiate God, Satan caused them to build a tower of Babel and induced them to believe that they could save themselves. There God gave the people a lesson, and a very severe one; but they did not heed it.—Genesis 11:1-4.

Call to mind 'again that when God’s people were domiciled in Egypt Pharaoh, as the Devil’s representative, oppressed them; and when God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh of God’s command he defiantly said: “Who is the Lord God that I should obey” him ? Then God went down to them to make for Himself a name. (2 Samuel 7:23) To this end the Lord slew the Egyptians and miraculously delivered His own people, carrying them safely through the sea. “Nevertheless, he saved them for his name’s sake,... He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.”—Psalm 106: 8,9.

Call to mind further that when the Assyrian ruler, Sennacherib, reproached God, blasphemed His holy name, presumptuously assumed to be greater than Jehovah God and defied the Lord and His people, God sent His angel and slew the Assyrian army in one night.—2 Kings 19: 35-37.

But the nations of earth have failed to take heed to these things and to learn a lesson therefrom. Their religious teachers not only have failed to teach them the meaning of such lessons but have actually spurned the Bible. Arrogance, hauteur, contemptuousness, presumptuousness

and blasphemy against God have in this present day reached the superlative degree. Hypocrisy has matured and gone to seed. Of all the re

proaches that have been brought upon God’s holy name, of all the insolence and vainglory on the part of men and religious systems, of all the presumptuous sins committed against God by men or organizations, those in times past pale into insignificance when compared with those of

the present time.

Modern wickedness is made worse because

evil-doers perform their evil deeds in the name of the Lord. A great religious system, steeped in wickedness and crime, is headed by one man; and it is claimed for his office that he is the vice

gerent of Christ on earth and that he possesses power equal to that of Jehovah God. The clergy of this system fraudulently represent to the people that their loved ones who have died are now consciously suffering in purgatory because of the wrath of God, and these clergy claim to be able by their prayers and upon a sufficient consideration to relieve the suffering ones from purgatorial fires. Thus under false pretenses they receive money from the people and turn the minds of the people away from the true and loving, God. This system is spoken of in the Scriptures as “the great harlot”.

The offspring of this impure religious system, the daughter, likewise claims to represent God; yet she, too, defames His holy name by teaching that He is tormenting millions of unfortunate souls in a lake of eternal fire. The clergy of these religious systems hypocritically call themselves by the name of the Lord and pose before the people as God’s representatives, while at the same time they deny the Word of God and repudiate the blood of Jesus Christ given for man’s redemptive price. These religious systems have illicit relationship with the commercial and political powers of the world; and the Lord Himself denounces the one as the mother of harlots and the other as the daughter, both of equal unchastity and unrighteousness.

The shepherds and leaders, speaking for these hypocritical religious systems, presumptuously and insolently say: “I sit a queen, ... I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” (Revelation 18:7; 3:17) and now when the wicked world which has oppressed the people has come to an end, and when the nation of righteousness is born; when the Lord is present

ent and beginning His reign, for which 1 taught His disciples to pray and which which these clergy have hypocritically repeated; ai when the evidence clearly proving these facts brought to their attention, these self-satisfied ecclesiastics not only turn deaf ears thereto, b persecute the humble followers of Jesus will dare call attention to the message of truth. I stead of heed the words of the Lord and teaching the people that His kingdom is their hop these ecclesiastics blatantly, irreverently an presumptuously unite with the profiteers an professional politicians in setting up a League of Nations to keep the people under the contr of Satan the enemy, and then blasphemously declare that such a League of Nations is “the political expression of God’s kingdom on earth¹ They have not only defamed the name of God but have pushed the Lord aside and have » themselves up in His place, and claim that thei wisdom is superior to His and a safe and amp guide for the people to follow.

If it was necessary in times past for God t exhibit His power against the Devil’s organizi tion, in order to preserve His name in the mint of the people and to save them from going ini complete infidelity, the reason for so doing no has increased a thousandfold. Hence He sai * to these babbling, discourteous, swaggering e clesiastics and to the principal of their flock their allies: “Be still, and know that I am God The time has come for the arrogance of men before God to cease. “and the loftiness of ma shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of me shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall h exalted in that day.”—Isaiah 2:17.

God will now make for Himself a name in the earth that the people shall never forget. B warns the nations of earth, and particularly the clergy and the principal of their flock; but the refuse to heed the warning. “They know no neither will they understand: they walk on in darkness: all.the foundations of the earth ai ■■ out of course.”—Psalm 82:5.

Gathering for Battle

John, because of his faithfulness as a witnes of God, was banished to the Isle of Patmos

There the- Lord rewarded him by giving him visions pertaining to His great plan. Among other things John had a visiofi of the great ad terrible day of God Almighty. He saw tu

throngs hurrying on for the great battle of that

day, and he wrote: “and I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the 'dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and ^f out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they t are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which I go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the j whole world, to gather them to the battle of that f great day of God Almighty. . . . and he gath-I ered them together into a place called in the 1 Hebrew tongue Armageddon.”—Revelation 16: ‘ 13,14,16. iH

1 ‘'Dragon” here mentioned is one of the names I of the enemy, the Devil; and it particularly ap-' plies to him and his organization, visible and ■ invisible, when bent upon the destruction of the ? seed of promise, the true followers of Jesus j Christ. (Revelation 12:17) Satan’s organiza-1 tion, visible and invisible, is the real foe of the faithful, as it is written: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the ' darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”—Ephesians 6:12.

“Beast” in the above text is used symbolically. Wherever thus used in the Scriptures this symbol refers to Satan’s visible or earthly organization. Since the days of Nebuchadnezzar all world j powers have been under the dominion and con-£ trol of Satan the enemy. (2 Corinthians 4: 3, 4) ; These world powers have governed the people by military rule, and their rule has been beastly, : unrighteous and ungodly. The Devil has made it so. This symbolical beast, therefore, fitly describes the world powers under the dominion of the evil one.

There are three elements that go to make up b-

the world powers or “beast”, to wit, the commercial, political and ecclesiastical. Satan has always had the money powers as the great bul-¹ wark of his organization; and he uses the reli-i gious element as a camouflage, to keep the peo-' pie in ignorance of his wicked course. When the

Lord designates anything under a symbol, that ■ designation, name or symbol implies much. The

Lord designates these world powers as “beasts”, j and such they are.

P “False prophet” means the high ecclesiastics, ( those who speak by pretended authority and in ; the name of the Lord. A true prophet is one who C Speaks by divine authority and in the name of f the Lord. Those who speak in the name of the Lord without authority, and who speak lies, an false prophets. “Then the Lord said unto me The prophets prophesy lies in my name; I sen them not, neither have I commanded them neither spake unto them: they prophesy unt< you a false vision and divination, and a things of nought, and the deceit of their heart.” (Jere miah 14:14) “How long shall this be in th< heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea they are prophets of the deceit of their owi heart; which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams, which they tell ever; man to his neighbour, as their fathers have for gotten my name for Baal.”—Jeremiah 23: 26, 27

When a religious system claims to represent the Lord but allies itself with the Devil’s organization, it is a hypocritical religious system and forms a part of the false prophet class. One or more such systems, allied with other parts of the Devil’s organization and prophesying false hoods, therefore constitute the false prophet o Revelation 16:13. The same false prophet clas: forms a part of the beast, because allied with tin world powers under the supervision of Satai the Devil. The term “false prophet”, therefore within the meaning of this text, may be proper!; defined as the religious systems of the nation: called Christian, which are allied with the commercial and political powers in ruling the people of the earth.

Spirits are invisible and intangible; hence tin “unclean spirits like frogs” symbolize messages declarations or proclamations, rather than tangi ble things. A frog is a kind of animal that has i big mouth, assumes much wisdom, looks wise bluffs a great deal, swells up and makes mud noise. It is noticed that the Revelator here says three unclean spirits like frogs. This, therefore would signify a trio of declarations, principles rules or proclamations which are boastful, arro gant and claim much. These messages come out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast and tin false prophet. They assume to be messages of wisdom. They are boastful and are proclaimed with much braggadocio and great noise.'

The “Dragon” the Devil and his organization by its efforts to destroy the seed of promise boastfully says: ‘God is a liar and His Won unreliable. Ignore Him, and away with thosi who advocate His cause!’

The “beast”, the Devil’s organization visible made up of the commercial, political and eccle

f

iBjastical factors, are saying, ‘The earth is for [man, and man for the earth. We have the only ‘established forms of government that are prop-। er, and we make the earth a fit place in which to [live. Who is Jehovah that we should heed Him? ■ (Our wealth and our power is our god.’

The “false prophet”, the religious prophet for I the Devil’s organization, with pious face and [flowing garments says: ‘We are ordained from Heaven to teach the people; we are the spiritual [guardians for the people; we preach that which lis orthodox; nothing else should be heard; we must unite the nations in one great compact and thereby establish the rule divine. This arrangement of ours is the political expression of God’s kingdom on earth!’

All of these declarations are false, hence unclean. It is Satan the enemy, and his organization that proclaim these false messages. Satan is responsible for them all. These false teachings are the real reasons why the nations of the •world are being gathered to the great battle of Armageddon. and why is this so ? The answer is that each one of these messages and their messengers defame God’s holy name, and their purpose is to turn the minds of the people away from God. They are driving the people and their rulers into infidelity. and now Jehovah, according to His Word, will make a demonstration of His power so clearly and unequivocally that the people may be convinced of their ungodly course and may understand that Jehovah is God. That is the reason why God brought the great flood, threw down the Tower of Babel, destroyed the army of Sennacherib the Assyrian king, and swallowed up the Egyptians; and it is also the reason why He is now going to bring another great trouble upon the world. The former calamities were but shadows of the one now impending. The gathering is to the great day of God Almighty. It is “the great and terrible day of the Lord” (Joel 2:31), when God will make for Himself a name. In this great and final conflict the peoples of every nation, kindred and tongue will learn that Jehovah is the all-powerful, allwise and just God.

I-

Battle Array

THERE are divers opinions among men as to the Devil’s organization. Many deny the existence of the Devil, hence deny that there is such a thing as the Devil’s organization. These are blinded by the enemy and know not the Word of God. Others claim to believe that there is a Devil; but they look upon him as an invisible imp who goes about to amuse himself with petty wickedness, and think that he cando nothing of any particular consequence to men and nations. Still others believe there is a Devil, but claim that he is now bound and think that he cando nothing more. These are likewise blinded by his influence. Others believe that there is a Devil, but consider his organization of such little moment that it will easily be turned over by all socialists, laborites or anarchists.

To have some conception of what the terrible and final trouble will be, what will constitute the battle of Armageddon, we must have some conception of the extent and power of Satan’s organization. Satan the enemy is in possession of practically all the material wealth of the earth, which he controls through the commercial wing of his organization. He controls and operates every world power or government on earth through the political wing of his organization. He manages and controls practically all the religious systems of the earth through the ecclesiastical wing of his organization.

All these elements that go to make up the visible part of Satan’s organization are being gathered together and assembled for the great battle of Armageddon. The formation of the army is in progress and is nearing completion. Looking at the armies of the nations, assembled preparatory for “the great day of God Almighty”, which are mobilizing as the Devil’s organization, we see in the forefront the so-called Christian nations, under the leadership of the clergy, the shepherds of the flocks, and supported by the principal of their flocks. They all call themselves by the name Christian; but, as the prophet truly says, each one eats his own bread and wears his own apparel (meaning that he follows his own doctrines and clothes himself with his own salvation garments). Truly this is the time referred to by the prophet when he said: “and in that day seven women [symbolic of all eccle-siasticism, the so-called Christian systems, always pictured by a woman] shall take hold of one man [the name of Christ Jesus], saying [hypocritically], We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.”—Isa. 4:1.

Like certain ostriches that hide their heads in

IJ1XUAKY 25, 1923

file sand when pursued by a foe and make them-s lelves believe that they are safe, so these eccle-> fiastical leaders confess to themselves that they i are safe, that they need only to be called by the h

I name of Christ, while they continue to play with the Devil’s fire. They blind themselves to the

I real situation by putting sand into their own ' eyes as well as into the eyes of their fellow men. f One division of the enemy’s army, approximately three hundred ninety-five millions, call

I themselves Christian Catholics; and one hun? ’dred seventy millions call themselves Christian rProtestants. The principal ones of these flocks I are profiteers, financiers, rulers and politicians, ■ men of influence. In the assembly of the nations . for Armageddon these take their place to the I strains of martial music, with banners flying and I the clanging of accoutrements of war. . The • Scriptures indicate that the so-called Christian ? nations compose chiefly the army of the Devil; ■ but probably the heathen nations, with their own commercial, political and ecclesiastical elements, also play a part in the coming conflict. The prophet of the Lord declares that all nations shall be assembled against Jerusalem to battle.—Zechariah 14:2.

The total population of the nations of the the earth is approximately 1,748,000,000. Almost all of these are on the enemy’s side; or, rather, are under the control of the enemy, even though many of them are there by reason of coercion ' or fear, or because they are blind. No wonder ’ the leading factors stand afar off and say: What iis like unto this great city (organization)!— Revelation 18:18.

' Jerusalem is a name applied to the people of I God who are consecrated to Him. A great num-I ber of these are held in bondage to the various \ eclesiastical systems or are otherwise blinded I by the enemy, and are fearful to take their stand i boldly on the side of the Lord. The name Zion i applies more particularly to that smaller num-f ber of the Jerusalem class who are not merely [ consecrated but who are fully devoted to the i Lord and His cause because of love for Him and f an appreciation of their privileges. These are ^'designated the overcoming class. Of the over-f coining class, who have the promise of being for-j ever with the Lord, there will be only one hun-

£

: dred forty-four thousand; and doubtless the i                                                                                                                                    *

!■ major portion of these have already passed into

| glory, while the minority remain on the earth,

waiting for the consummation of their hopes. Ofi these it is probable that there are no more than fifty thousand, maybe less, who are faithfully and joyfully bearing witness to God’s holy name. These are “the remnant” against which Satan the enemy makes war, and he attempts to destroy them because they keep the commandments of God and have the witness of Jesus Christ.—Revelation 12:17.

As the enemy and his hosts view the little company who are faithfully bearing witness to the name of God, and hear what these witnesses say, they laugh them to scorn. The clergy, the false prophets, make extravagant claims for their organizations and point the finger of dis-

gust toward those who now proclaim the name of God and His incoming kingdom. So small are the numbers who appear to be on the Lord’s side, and so extravagant are the claims made by

the false prophets of the enemy’s camp, that all except the very elect of God will be deceived to some extent. (Matthew 24:24) The false prophets will tell the people that the present institu

tions will stand eternally, and that they and their allies have been commissioned to establish

God’s kingdom on earth; and this they are now doing.

But the elect, “the remnant of her seed,” will not be at all deceived by the extravagant claims, the threats, persecutions, the brandishing of arms or any exhibition of Satan’s power. They will remember that Goliath, the representative of Satan the enemy, defied the army of the Lord and fell at the hands of the lad David, who was there a type of the Lord Jesus Christ.—1 Samuel 17:48,49.

This “little flock” will call to mind how the Assyrian king Sennacherib stood before the walls of Jerusalem, arrogantly claiming to be greater than Jehovah God, defying Jehovah and blaspheming His holy name, and how the angel of the Lord swept away his army in one night. —2 Kings 19:35.

This little company of faithful Christians will remember how Pharaoh, the visible representative of Satan the enemy, pursued the people of God with his army and would have crushed them, but that the Lord utterly destroyed Pharaoh and his army in the sea.—Exod. 14: 27-29.

This little company of faithful Christians will also call to mind how Jehoshaphat, a representative of the Lord, was beset by the armies of

Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, corresponding to the three elements composing Satan’s organization at the present time; and how the Lord put His hand over his own people and shielded them, while He drove the enemy’s army into destruction. .

Why did God cause these things to be recorded in His Word? The evident purpose was and is to show how He can make himself a name when He so desires, and to encourage and strengthen the faith of His people and cause them to trust Him implicitly in the time of great peril. To such He has said: “O love the Lord, all ye his saints: for the Lord preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer.”—Psalm 31:23.

On one side of the valley of decision, and in the valley, stands the tremendous army of Satan the enemy, defying God, uttering cries of derision, and threatening to feed the fowls of the air upon the flesh of those who have come out against them to declare the name of the Lord. On the other side of the valley, and high up the mountainside facing to the east, stands the little company of faithful servants of the Lord, small in number and weak in individual power; yet they never for one moment quail before the enemy. They are smiling; they are happy; yea, they are even joyful; and together they lift up their voices in song, saying: Jehovah is God; Christ 'Jesus is King; the kingdom of heaven is at hand; the day of deliverance has come! Jehovah God is saying to them: ‘Ye are my witnesses, . . . that I am God. I, even I am the Lord; and beside me there is no saviour.’—Isa. 43:12,11.

The Contrast

THE contrast between the numbers in the enemy’s visible army and the apparent numbers in the army of the Lord is so great that only a very few are able to see that the enemy’s organization will be destroyed. It seems quite apparent that for the special encouragement of the faithful Christians now on earth God long ago caused to be recorded the following picture relating to the present time.

Jehoshaphat was a faithful king of Israel and Jehoshaphat represented the Lord. Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir entered into a conspiracy against Jehoshaphat and the people of Jerusalem. They came up to assault Jerusalem. Jehoshaphat prayed to God. His prayer is a pathetic one, and fitly pictures the utter helplessness of men and the complete dependence of the Christian upon Jehovah. While Jehoshaphat prayed, the Lord sent him a message, to wit: “Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat; Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel. Ye shall not need to fight in this battle; set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them; for the Lord will be with you. . . . And when’he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went'out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever. And when they

•                                                                                                                    ' >                                                               ^f j

began to sing and to praise, the Lord set am-bushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, which were come against Judah; ‘and they were smitten.”—2 Chronicles 20:15-17, 21, 22.

I I

The Fight

THE history of sixty centuries is behind us. Upon every page of it appear the marks of Satan, the enemy. In all that time he has reproached God, defied Him and turned the people away from Him. God has permitted it that He may from time to time thereby teach the people a lesson. He has promised that the time will come when He will put an end to this fraudulent deception of the people, and that He will open the eyes of the people and deliver them.

The hour has arrived when God will send forth His beloved Son as Field Marshal, to lead the fight against the nations of earth composing the Devil’s organization. It is God’s fight; but He acts through His beloved Son, whom He has placed upon the throne and who is the priest of the Most High God. (Psalm 110:2,4) In this great conflict Jehovah is the right hand support of His beloved Son. He delights in Him because He is His faithful servant. (Isaiah 42:1) To Him He says: “Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever. Gird thy sword

upon thy thigh, 0 most Mighty, with thy glory

and thy majesty. And in thy majesty ride pros

perously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.”—Psalm 45:2-4.

In times past the prophets of God were granted visions of the preparation for the great battle and the going into action. Habakkuk saw the Devil's organization assembled and, to the nations composing that organization who practise the devil religion through worship of images, he says: “What profiteth the graven image, that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols? Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach 1 Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.”—Habakkuk

2:18,19.

Then the prophet calls the attention of the people to the purpose of the great war. He says: “But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.”—Hab. 2:20.

Jeremiah was given a vision of the day of God’s wrath, and he wrote: “But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting King: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, ; and the nations shall not be able to abide his ? indignation.” (Jeremiah 10:10) “Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on ■ high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. !A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth: : for the Lord hath a controversy with the na! tions; he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the f Lord.”—Jeremiah 25: 30,31.

, Joel saw the army assembled in the valley of judgment, and he expressed this prophecy: “Put j ye in the sickle; for the harvest is ripe: come, : get you down; for the press is full, the fats over-i flow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, ?■

_; multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day • of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The ¹ sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the | stars shall withdraw their shining. The Lord 1 also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice | from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth

shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion.”—Joel 3:13-17.

Micah had a vision of the great and terrible dayr of God, and he prophesied for the benefit of the people now living on earth as follows: “The word of the Lord that came to Micah the Moras-thite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.”—Micah 1:1, 2.

The Prophet Isaiah had a vision of this day; and he speaks of the Lord Jesus, the active Agent of Jehovah, the Priest of the Most High, the Field Marshal, coming forth to make war .upon the Devil’s organization, and says: “Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat ?” And the reponse to the prophet is: “For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.”—Isaiah 63:1, 2, 4.

Suddenly there bursts forth a great flame of light and fire from the right hand of the little company who are singing praises to God. The trumpets are pealing out their terrible strains, the thunders are rolling, the mountains are quaking and trembling, and a voice is calling from the habitation of Zion. It is the God of heaven moving into battle. The great and terrible day of the Lord has come! So terrible was the vision and so great was the effect upon the ancient prophet, that he cried out: “0 Lord, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.”—Habakkuk 3:2.

The mighty Warrior halts; and with feet planted upon the clouds of fire, “He stood and

army of the enemy, the nations of the earth assembled against God. The prophet then says: “I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; and the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.” (Habakkuk 3:6,7) Cushan means black face;

while Midian means brawling, contentious, strife-breeding, fighting ones. The latter term well describes the leaders in the ecclesiastical systems, the false prophets who have blasphemed God’s holy name and stirred up strife against God’s faithful witnesses and persecuted those who tell the truth. Now they tremble at the sight of the Lord and, as the Prophet Joel says, “all faces gather blackness.” The assembled nations see the approaching majesty and greatness of the Lord, and their faces turn black as they tremble for fear.

Then the mighty Leader of the army of the Lord unsheaths his sword and brings into action his ^instruments of destruction. “Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet.” (Habakkuk 3:5) At the approach of these the shepherds and the principal of their flocks smite together their knees for fear; and, being unable to give battle against any other, in blind fear they turn to battle against each other.

On comes the conquering Hero, the Word of God, who for centuries has waited for this very blessed hour. (Hebrews 10:12,13) “His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; ... he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood.” (Revelation 19:12,13) But behold His apparel; it is glorious, even though covered with blood. He is treading out the winepress; He is crushing the wicked vine of the earth. At His approach the mountains tremble, and the great deep utters its terrible voice and lifts up its hands to the heaven. The sun and the moon stand still in their orbits, and all the stars of the high heaven are shouting VICTORY I With righteous indignation and anger the mighty Conqueror marches through the earth to thresh the nations that have defamed Jehovah’s holy name. He drives asunder the nations, and their kingdoms are scattered and their high places brought low.

The saints do not engage in the actual combat. This is the fight of God Almighty; and the fight is led by His beloved Son, the Priest of whom prophet recorded concerning this hour: “The Lord [Jehovah] at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. He shall judge among the nations, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the head over many countries.” (Psalm 110:5,6) He is also fighting for the salvation of the people, that they might be delivered from the oppressor; and He is fighting for the anointed of God, that they may be vindicated for their faithful witness to the name of Jehovah.

That wicked ruling system designated by the title “beast” and made up of profiteers, politicians and clergy, is taken. That wicked system of religion which has hypocritically paraded in the name of the Lord, and known as the “false prophet”, is also taken; and these are cast into the burning flames of everlasting destruction. (Revelation 19: 20) These wicked systems fall, never to rise again. Then the Lord seizes the enemy himself, the Dragon, that old Serpent, the Devil and Satan, and binds him and casts him into the bottomless pit that he may deceive the nations no more.—Revelation 20: 2, 3.

Thus is Satan’s empire swept from the earth to oblivion. The name of Jehovah God is vindicated. But all human words attempting to describe this great and terrible day of the Lord are beggarly. Let us read the words which God caused His holy prophet long ago to record, describing His majestic and victorious march against the stronghold of Satan and his organization :

“A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth. 0 Lord, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: 0 Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy. God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. And his brightness was as the light; he had horns comi ng out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power: Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet. He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations: and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting.

“I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction: and the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. Was the Lord displeased against the rivers? was thine anger against the rivers? was thy wrath against the sea, that thou didst ride upon thine horses and thy chariots of salvation? Thy bow was made quite naked, according to the oaths of

the tribes, even thy word, Selah. Thou didst cleave the earth with rivers. The mountains saw thee, and they trembled : the overflowing of the water passed by: the deep uttered his voice, I and lifted up his hands on high. The sun and I moon stood still in their habitation: at the light * of thine arrows they went, and at the shining of thy glittering spear. Thou didst march through the land in indignation, thou didst thresh the | nations in anger.

‘Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people, even for salvation with thine anointed;

thou woundedst the head out of the house of the !■

> wicked, by discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah. Thou didst strike through with his staves the head of his villages; they came | out as a whirlwind to scatter me: their rejoicing | was as to devour the poor secretly. Thou didst A

i walk through the sea with thine horses, through

the heap of great waters. When I heard, my

belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice:

rottenness entered into my bones, and I tre:

bled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble: when he cometh up unto the people, he will invade them with his troops.”—Hab. 3:1-16.

In this great battle no Christian will strike a blow. The reason they do not is because Jehovah has said: “For the battle is not yours but j God’s.” To them the Lord said further: “And I J have put my words in thy mouth, and I have i covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I i                                                                                                                                                                                                  '

■ may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations . of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.” (Isaiah 51:16) The hand of the Lord

is over His little ones; and they that trust Him . implicitly and will prove faithful to Him are free from harm and will continue to sing His i praises until the end.

' A description of this final battle is referred to again, in Revelation, as a war between the ■, beast and the Lamb, in which the Lamb, Christ i Jesus, is victorious, because He fights the battle i on the side of Jehovah. “These shall make war t                 - -      TT1T

with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome • them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of ; kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.”—Revelation 17:14. ।.

Let no one deceive himself into thinking that i the battle of Armageddon is a mere fight be-I-.¹

tween men, or that it is only a picture. The the battle of God Almighty, in which He will clear the earth of the wicked system that Satan has used to blind the people for all these centuries. Satan has already been ousted from heaven; he has been cast into the earth; and now he is making a desperate attempt to destroy those who witness for God, and to blind all others and turn them away from God. But with the end of Armageddon, when his systems have been cast into utter destruction and when he is in restraint, then will come to pass the fulfilment of the prophetic utterance long ago written concerning the Devil: “Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations !”—Isaiah 14:11,12.

Another illustration of Armageddon is given in the battle fought by Gideon against the great multitude of Midian. The Midianites were the enemies of God’s people. A great multitude of these were camped in a valley. Gideon, who is a type of Christ Jesus, was directed to put them to flight. What his followers did, well illustrates what the Christian’s part will be in the great and final conflict.

___ h

When it came to the time of going into action Gideon had only three hundred men. These he divided into three companies, and put into each man’s hand a trumpet with an empty pitcher and a lamp within that pitcher. His orders were that these should be stationed in three different sides of the camp of the Midianites, and that they should watch Gideon; and that when Gideon should give the command each one must blow his trumpet, break the pitcher which he held in his hand, and hold high his light, and Shout: “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon.*

When this was done the Midianites in their fear fell upon each other and slew one another, and the army of the Midianites perished. (Judges 7:16-20) Even so the Scriptures teach that in these closing days of the age of wickedness and the time of the incoming of the Lord’s kingdom it is the duty and the privilege of those who are really consecrated to the Lord to lift high the light of truth and sing the praises of Jehovah

God, proclaiming the message that He is God

Scriptures make it clear that it is real. It is and that Jesus Christ is the King of kings.

Drops of Ink

Tornado Damage to Churches

CHURCH buildings in St. Louis were damaged to the extent of $900,000 in the tornado which recently swept through the heart of that city. The explanation of these losses to their flocks must provide interesting employment for the pastors of some of these congregations.

End of the Giant Firecracker

THE end of the giant firecracker, which has done such a vast amount of damage to boys, is foreseen in a decision in the Jersey courts that store-keepers who sell these are liable to the parents for the damages which they cause to their children. It is a sensible rule.

Meats from, the Arctic

SINCE the introduction of domesticated reindeer into Alaska in 1892, the herds have 'doubled every three years. It is estimated that the Arctic grasslands can support a hundred million reindeer and five hundred million muskox, with a total annual meat production of fifty-five billion pounds of meat.

Decreased Crime in New York

CRIME in New York and Brooklyn has decreased from thirty to sixty percent since the Baumes law went into effect making life imprisonment mandatory for fourth offenders. The law sometimes works hardships but its general effects seem to be for the good of the people as a whole.

Britain's Prison Population

OUT of every 100,000 members of the Salvation Army in Britain two are in prison; of the Congregationalists, 3; Baptists, 9; Methodists, 10; Presbyterians, 46; Jews, 116; Anglicans, 118; Roman Catholics, 247. This was the ratio in the year 1906, published by Hugh M. Stuttfield in his work on "Priestcraft”.

The Largest Chart

THE largest chart is in England. It contains 30,000 sections, and, of course, is a chart of the heavens. The chart weighs two tons and makes a pile thirty feet high. Only 6,000 stars are visible to the naked eye, but 15,000,000 are show n on the sheets of the chart which have thus far been prepared.

Radio Lighting of Airports

ONE of the latest adaptations of radio, or rather one of the latest discoveries in radio, is the knowledge that an airplane can be used to turn on the lights of the airport toward which it is headed. The sound of the motor may be so amplified and utilized as to throw on the necessary switches.

Unknown Soldier Business Overworked

THE laying of tributes on the grave of they -k unknown soldier in Paris has been carried! to such lengths by persons who were bent on! thus securing free advertising that the French people are becoming weary of the whole thing.! And what honest person can blame them? The thing has been overdone.                      ;

Electric Welding of Water Mains

HERETOFORE when a water-main split, it was necessary to uncover the pipe, remove; and replace it. Now the pipe need not be removed. A force of electric welders tackles the! pipe from the inside; and if sufficiently large for! workmen to enter, even in cramped positions,] the welding can be done for one-tenth of the pre-! vious cost and in less time.                     i

The Evil That We Do Lives Afterwards ]

A CERTAIN wise man once said that the evil ■ that we do lives after us, but the good;

is 6ft interred with our bones. Henry Ford,] after printing columns and columns of slanders! about the Jews, finally repented, apologized and] is now lauding the Jews as an able, dependable people. Meantime he is trying to stop in Europe the republication of the untrue and unjust charges against them which he was responsible for having published on this side of the ocean,

Catholics in Ohio Penitentiary

THE large population of Catholics in the Ohio State penitentiary at Columbus has chipped in and paid for a magnificent shrine in honor of Saint Teresa. The shrine is twelve feet wide and five feet high. The statue of the saint is finished in gold decorations which are said to be very rich, but there were so many convicts to share in the expense that it did not make any very great burden on any one person.

Effect of the Baumes Law

IN TT-TE sixteen months that the Baumes law has been in effect forty-nine habitual criminals have entered Sing Sing prison to serve life terms. Apparently the only hope that any of these men will ever have a chance to regain their manhood and mingle again with their fellows lies in the establishment of the Lord’s kingdom. Now these men are mentally sick, but perhaps not more so than the Daugherty-Doheny-Fall-Sinclair crowd.

Fort Worth’s New Trading-Stamp Scheme

4.

FORT WORTH has a new trading-stamp scheme, entitling cash purchasers of cigars, tobacco and other merchandise to trading stamps which are redeemable at two percent of their face value. But these trading stamps are not redeemable by the persons to whom they are issued. They are redeemable only by the pastor of the congregation of the church or other organization named by the collector of the stamps. The thing will not work. It is contrary to human nature.

Conditions in Russian Prisons

AN INVESTIGATOR of Russian prisons says, “I found conditions good so far as human relations go, but very bad physically. The twelve prisons I visited were crowded and unsanitary. But the relations with the keepers were friendly: most wardens were former political prisoners themselves; there is usually work for all; "wages are paid; the food is fair, and cooperative stores sell extras; education and recreation are organized by the prisoners themselves; and, most amazing of all, every well-behaved prisoner gets two weeks’ vacation with pay, and peasants get two months to harvest their crops. Very few fail to come back.”

Human Brain Can Not Keep Pace

fPHE human brain is unable to keep the pace of modern civilization. On January 1, 1922, there were in state institutions for the feebleminded, and epileptics, a total of 39,596. Five years later, January 1, 1927, there were in the same institutions 52,043. The increases in the intervening years were progressive, showing a steady tendency toward the break-down of the human mind. ■■

Winter Sports All the Year

"V 7 IE NN A is converting a large disused rail-’ way station into a playground where winter sports can be enjoyed the year around. Artificial snow will be used, the invention of an Englishman. It will stand almost any temperature, and is said to possess all the qualities which are required of real snow in winter sport, except that it is not cold; and it can be washed and used again.

The Wonders of Mammoth Cave

TV/TAMMOTH Cave, Kentucky, is on five differ-ent levels and has passageways and chambers extending a total of 150 miles. Numerous other caves have been recently found in the same district, some of them of rare beauty and of great size. The walls of these caves are of limestone which has been left when the softer earth was washed away. All of these great caves have their underground streams, which at length find their way mostly into the Green River.

Lambasting the Scholars

THE Manchester Guardian thinks that scholarship which thinks only along national lines is poor scholarship. It says: “Nothing so terribly illustrated the failure of civilization in 1914 as the spectacle of scholars in both camps constraining truth for the purposes of national honor and glory.” How strange that “what passes for historical, economic and scientific truth within one great seat of learning should be ridiculed in another institution equally imposing, impartial and erudite, merely because the two universities happen to be situated in territories whose governments have taken to quarreling. Efforts to nationalize truth and to entail property in knowledge are fortunately doomed to failure.”

£71

'Associated Manufacturers and Child Labor

O THEIR lasting credit be it said that the National Association of Manufacturers has come out with a program demanding a medical examination of working children, a minimum sixth grade educational requirement, continuation schools, a 48-hour week and no work after 9 p. m. Only six states in the United States are now measuring up to this standard: New York, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Oregon.

Sick Cows in Rhode Island

REPORTER in the Providence Journal tells us that in Rhode Island when a cow gets so sick that its death is imminent, the custom in that commonwealth is to race with it to the slaughter-house to give the butcher a chance to cut its throat before it dies. Somehow news like this takes the edge off a person’s appetite for the cheapest meats. Wonder what the veter-inaries in other states know about the disposition made of very sick cows.

In the Methodist Church at Nampa

IN THE Methodist Church at Nampa, Idaho, McDonald Birch gave an evening entertainment on Magic which it was advertised, among other things, would include spirit slate-writings, table-floating, spirit manifestations and even ectoplasms. We did not see the show, but if it is what it seems to be it is the very same line of activities for which the Israelites were told that they might invade the land of Canaan and put its inhabitants to death. It seems to have been demonism pure and. simple.

War Warning by Lloyd George

IN A speech at Queen’s Hall, London, Lloyd

George, who understands the condition of Europe as well as any living man, recently said: “If you take the Allied countries in Europe today their armies, inclusive of reserves, number in the aggregate well over ten millions of men. They have weapons infinitely more formidable and destructive than those with which they were equipped in 1914. Another war is inevitable, a more terrible war than has ever been experienced in the history of this world (the fate of the world depends on that) unless you can induce the nations of the world to trust in law and justice, and not to force.”

Lions Naturally Friendly to Man

Mr. Patterson, head of the National Cash

Register Company, is back from a trip to Africa where, on one occasion, he made a 200-foot film of twenty-five lions in their natural state, playing about him on all sides, some of them coming within twenty feet of him. These lions have a natural love for man and never turn against him until they find he is in a fallen- state and not to be trusted.

Studies in Human Hair

TUDIES in human hair have revealed that the natural hair of man is either straight or wavy. Among New Caledonians the infants are born with light-colored and straight or slightly waved hair; and it is not until the child is about six years of age that the hair turns dark and becomes kinky. This conclusion, that kinky hair is not normal, is said to be borne out by a study of the natives of the New Hebrides and the Negroes of the United States.

Nebraska's Desert Being Reclaimed

"^TEBRASKA’S desert is being reclaimed. In

’ the northwestern part of this great state, there are ten million acres of sandhills, until now valueless. Now ten thousand acres of this waste have been planted with pine trees, which, in some places, are thirty feet high and growing splendidly. Planting on a very large scale will now be undertaken at once, and the complete recovery of this vast area is confidently anticipated.

The Poorest Class Not Overpaid

TJROF. Irving Fisher, of Yale University, takes the wind out of the sails of those who have been boasting about huge American profits by saying: ‘•'The poorest class alone, comprising 76,000,000 people (65 percent of the total) receive about 38.6 per cent of the national income, or $34,740,000,000—less than $460 per person. With only an estimated $117 of income per family above the minimum of comforts and necessities during a year that is often called the most prosperous ever known, this majority of the American people cannot yet be said to be in danger of having any too much income. Those ‘                                                                                                                                                                                                             I

in the lower income groups must surely be hard put to it to make ends meet.”

Soaked In In Fifty Years

THE business men of Sharon, Pa., inserted an advertisement in the Sharon News Telegraph, urging people to attend church. The interesting thing about this is that the first paragraph of the advertisement contains some truths which, after fifty years of constant hammering, seem to be gradually finding their way into some minds. The advertisement was headed “The Soul”, and its first paragraph reads:

“Man became a living soul”—Genesis 2: 7.

Man does not have a soul; man is a soul. The soul is not something separate and. apart from a man, to be cared for and nursed with a view to its future bliss. The soul of a man is himself, his personality; what strengthens his will, kindles his feelings, and develops his mind, cultivates his soul.

Expectation of the Jews

Samuel J. "Williams, of Columbus, recently returned from the Holy Land, writes for the United Press some of the interesting expectations of the 150,000 Jews now in Palestine. He says:

A new Messiah who will become King of the Jewish nation and whose appearance will put to an end the next world war is predicted by the orthodox Jews of Palestine.

They declare that He will be a superman and that His kingdom will be a great center from which will radiate peace and brotherhood extending thruout the entire world.

The revelation of the Messiah will be preceded by the rebuilding of the temple, they say, adding that this will cause the enmity of many nations, especially those of the Moslem world. The last world war will focus itself in

Palestine, and at the critical moment when all appears lost the Messiah, coming from heaven, will gain a decisive victory, according to the predictions. It is said He will immediately be proclaimed King, the first King of the Jewish nation in twenty centuries.

Interesting Celestial Phenomena

Str Napier Shaw, former head of the British

Meteorological Office or "Weather Bureau, calls attention to the fact that for the past eighteen months the sky has been a very pale blue, a loss in blueness which can be measured. The loss is due to something like a fog, but a fog so thin that it does not prevent one from seeing sun, moon or stars.

This strange whiteness is not always present, but contains patches of the former blueness. At the same time, it is frequently noted that streaks and spirals of cloud are visible, pointing in a strange variety of directions and indicating a remarkable diversity of wind currents in the upper air.

On September 7 observers all over southern Ireland and southern England saw a blue flash of light, traveling in a horizontal plane at high speed, comparatively close to the earth. This flash occurred on a bright day and was plainly visible despite the shining of the sun.

The Meeting at Cheswick

REFERRING to the Sacco-Venzetti meeting at Cheswick, Pennsylvania, The Arbitrator gives the following summary of the account, taken from the New Republic:

When the speaker began to address a meeting of 1,500 people in an orchard hired for the occasion, a state trooper said, “There will be no meeting today.” “Why can't we have a meeting?” asked a man in the crowd. “Is this what you call liberty?” Another raised an American flag and called out: “We fought in the war and we have a right to meet under this flag. It gives us liberty.” A state trooper grabbed the flag and, pointing to his cartridges, said, “This is your liberty. I am your liberty.” Then the troopers rode down the crowds, using clubs, revolvers and tear bombs, until over 200 people were injured, many of them women. The troopers entered homes and beat men there, arresting twenty-one union miners who are now held on bail of $500 to $5,000 for “unlawful assembly, rioting and inciting to riot.” One trooper was killed by a man defending himself.

Christian Business Men in China

ILLUSTRATING the curious kind of courtesy shown by supposedly Christian business men in China, Senator Hiram W. Bingham of Connecticut, tells of entering a bank in Shanghai with a graduate of Yale University, whom he had known years before, and whose wife was a graduate of one of the leading American women’s colleges, but the man was a Chinese. He stepped up to the paying teller of the International Banking Corporation, but made the mistake of coming to the white window. In language too vile to print this educated man, with a check for $1,800 in his hands to meet his week’s payroll, was ordered to take his place among the other Chinese at the yellow window. And then we'

we all wonder -why the Chinese do not love us ?

Christians. Suppose white customers of a Chinese institution in America received such treatment, what do you think would happen in a little while to the institution and everybody in it? Ask

The Drama of the Ages *

[Radiocast from Station WBBR, New York, by W. E. Van Amburgh.]

FOR the past six thousand years this earth has been the stage for one of the most exciting dramas ever enacted, with men and angels as actors. What transpired during the ages before the entrance of man upon the scene is a matter of very meager record. What will follow the act now on the stage is of intense interest to every one of us.

Two great moral forces, right and wrong, have been active in the world ever since the days of Eden. Wrong has held the ascendency, and apparently right has been unable to cope with it. Why should this be ? No moral force can function without a personality. There must, therefore, be powerful personalities back of these forces. Man has apparently been but a pawn' and always the one to suffer, with no definite hope for the future. If he is ever liberated, it must be by some power far superior to his own.

The Bible gives the only solution. The Prophet Isaiah, 40:25,26,15 says, “To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. 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. Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.” In Psalm 37:10 we read: “For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be; yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be [found]. But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”

The prophet of Jehovah thus places the righteous and the wicked in direct contrast and declares that the wicked shall cease to exist, and the righteous live for ever. With sinners annihilated, sin itself must cease and peace result. Christ also said, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.”

God has held the power to annihilate sinners at any time, but for a wise purpose He has restrained Himself until an appointed time. Thus it follows that the reign of sin has only been by God’s sufferance, and only for a limited time.

In 1 Corinthians 8:6 the Apostle says, “There is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, . . . and one Lord Jesus Christ by whom

are all things.” In Col. 1:15,16 he further explains, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are on earth, visible and invisible.” All creatures, in heaven and on earth, came directly from Jehovah by the hand of Christ. As they are holy and sinless, it must be conceded that before they had brought forth angels or men sin was unknown. When, then, did sin begin ? It was with the beginning of sin that the great Drama of the Ages began.             .

The Principal Actors

T) EFORE man was created myriads of angelic beings had been brought forth and heaven was well populated. Jehovah is often called the Lord of hosts. Among these angelic hosts were some specially noted for their beauty, wisdom and great power. Doubtless all the angels of heaven were active in the work of creation throughout the universe, under the personal direction of Jehovah and His Son. Happy and joyful were they all.

When Adam and Eve were brought forth the angels shouted for joy, and the sons of God sang in their enthusiasm. (Job 38:7) Paradise had been prepared for their home, and Adam and Eve in their beauty of perfection were divinely fitted to their appointment as king and queen of earth. Sin was unknown on earth as well as in heaven. Peace and happiness reigned throughout God’s universe. Jehovah God was Sovereign of the universe; man in His image was sovereign of the earth.

The Beginning of Sin -*■ ^x openly transgressed God’s law, though he was not really the first sinner. There was another who influenced his action. The Bible identifies the other one as Lucifer, one of the most glorious and exalted angels in heaven, who used a serpent as a medium between himself and Adam and Eve. The Prophet Isaiah, in the 14th chapter, thus refers to him: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning ! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 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,... I will ascend above the heights of the clouds: I. will be like the Most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to oblivion, to the sides of the pit.” I And the Prophet Ezekiel, in chapter 28, adds: j'Thus saith Jehovah God: “Thou sealest up the Lum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God. ... Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou was created, till iniquity was found in thee.... I Thou hast sinned. . . . Thine heart was lifted |up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted I thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: . . . I never shalt thou be any more.”

I The child in the home is the recipient of hun-I iireds of blessings, but knows little of his fath-| er’s daily problems or ability. How could he ? I So men and angels had been recipients of num-[ berless favors from God, yet none of them fully i understood Him. If He permitted Lucifer to ; take his own course it would demonstrate to all the devilish effects of sin and what a hell it ; would make on earth. God could follow this with a manifestation of His ability to meet every

I emergency by completely overthrowing Satan and establishing a government based upon the : perfect blending of justice, power, love and wisdom. This would take time, but it would enable

Il all intelligent creatures to judge of God’s true character, that they might worship Him in spirit and in truth. Angels were created to live in hea-’

1 ven as spirit beings. Man was created to live on. 1 earth and instructed to bring forth and fill it with i his offspring. Although under the sentence of > death, man has brought forth abundantly. While [ thus propagating sufficiently to fill the earth man i has suffered terribly, and has unconsciously been ! acting an important part in the great drama of ! the ages. His experiences have been valuable ; to himself and they will be object lessons in the ; ages to come.

1 b                                                                                                                                                                                      ,

A-

1 Act 1—Place, Paradise r ■                                                                      r

F

ENTER Adam and Eve, perfect, beautiful, graceful and dignified, in the image and . likeness of God, as king and queen of earth. Nai ture is in its happiest mood to welcome the royal : pair. A thousand varieties of gorgeous flowers ’ are bowing in the gentle breeze and offering ■ their incense of delightful perfume; the trees i are rustling their leaves, and some have daintily r

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festooned themselves with viny laces; the myriads of birds in their variegated colors are flitting from tree to tree and seem like so many prisms scattering rainbow colors everywhere, meantime chorusing a grand • welcome to their approaching sovereigns. Yea, the beasts of the field sense the presence of a master and stand at attention to await his bidding. The rippling stream and sparkling fountains add their part, and Paradise is aglow with happy excitement. The fruit trees offer their gifts of perfect fruit, and the Tree of Life is there of which the man and his wife may partake and live for ever. The first coronation recorded on earth, arranged by Jehovah, amid the glories of Edenic perfection was a royal occasion, with the angels of God in attendance.

Enter also Lucifer, a son of the morning of creation, perfect in his beauty, godlike in his stature and dignity, noted for his wisdom and beauty, just recently appointed by Jehovah as special guardian, instructor and covering cherub of Adam and Eve. No wonder the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy.

The fellowship between Lucifer and Adam and Eve is sweet as they hold communion together each evening, in the cool of the day. Perfect life amid perfect surroundings, with not a cloud in sight, is an experience beyond our comprehension at present. The prospect of a world filled with their sons and daughters, as beautiful and perfect as themselves, basking in the sunshine of God’s smile for ever, was a vision glorious to meditate upon.

Act II—The Beginning of Sin

DIJT look! Of all the perfidious acts recorded A-* in history! Behold Lucifer, the beautiful, the wise, one of the first angels created, the trusted representative of Jehovah, conceives a plot to turn the love and worship of Adam and Eve to himself that they might worship him. For what? That he might outshine his fellow angels, and be exalted as a god.

Lucifer proceeds to carry his plan into execution, and uses a serpent to hide his perfidiousness. He deceives Eve, and through her reaches out to induce Adam to follow her into transgression. Adam realizes his danger, but he is in a great strait. He must choose between his love for his beautiful wife and his obedience to God.

C7e

Selfishly he decides to go with his wife, deliberately disobeys God, and becomes a criminal. Conscience at once sets up a commotion, and they run to hide themselves, while Lucifer, the greater rascal, smiles at the first success of his plan, thinking himself undetected, hiding behind the serpent.

Act III—Paradise Lost

NTER the Lord God, calling for Adam and

Eve. Shamefacedly they come forth, ac-' knowledging their guilt. The law of Justice must be enforced. It demands the death of the transgressor. Adam must die. He is expelled from his royal residence and denied access to the perfect fruit therein and to the Tree of Life. He may live as long as he can subsist on the imperfect food and conditions outside of Eden. Within the thousand-year day demanded by the law he dies. He is still dead.

Outwardly Jehovah paid no attention to Lucifer, as though He might not have known that Lucifer was the chief transgressor. As Jehovah did not immediately punish Lucifer, as He had Adam, apparently many of the angels reasoned that possibly God was not able to do so. At any rate many of them joined in Lucifer’s rebellion. God gave them plenty of time. Every angel in heaven was thus put to severe test, for the powers of sin were in full action and mighty personalities behind them.

Lucifer was permitted to do much as he pleased, and operating through his fellow rebels, he went to great lengths of iniquity and lawlessness and abused man almost without limit. The experience of man under Lucifer, the god of this world, has been terrible, a pitiful spectacle and an object lesson to men and angels. Lucifer and his companions became devils, and exhibited the results of sin in themselves and the hellish conditions their rulership brings forth. The world is becoming aghast at the results.

Act IV—Time 4000 Years Later

NTER Christ the Soil of God, coming to earth as a Redeemer for Adam and his chil

dren. Jehovah sets in action the mightiest moral power of the universe, viz., Love, and backs it by His own personality. God could not, and did not desire to, revoke His own law, but He could and did arrange a plan to uphold and honor His law, and at the same time permit Him

mOOXLTK, X. It

to offer freedom to Adam and all his offspring, An illustration will assist to see this point Two boys grew up together. They were bright and fond of each other. Both graduated from college with honors. One became a judge. The other took a course which led to dishonesty and crime. The criminal was arrested and brought to trial. Again the two friends faced each others one a judge, one a criminal. It was noised about the court-room that the judge and the criminal were old friends, and that the prisoner would get off easy.

The prisoner was found guilty. The judge represented the majesty of the law. What should he do? If he permitted personal friendship to affect his decision, it would set a precedent for others to hold the law in light esteem. He ordered the prisoner to stand. There was a hush in the room. The judge read the law and the penalty for transgression. The jury had found the prisoner guilty, and it was his duty to uphold the law. He then sentenced the prisoner to they full penalty, a heavy fine or confinement in jail.! Had the judge no mercy for his old friend ? Ap-! parently not a bit. Had he lost all love for hind Apparently so. The prisoner had not the wherewith to pay his fine, and must go to jail.

While the people were still wondering, the judge laid aside his robe of office, stepped down from his official bench, and paid the fine in full himself. He then turned to his friend and offered him his freedom. The people were astonished. Here was a manifestation of strict justice and personal love combined, the like of which they had never seen. If the judge had expected to pay the fine, why did he not impose a lighter sentence? No! There was the law, and no one should accuse him of disrespect for it. By paying it himself he had upheld the law and yet demonstrated that he loved his friend. When the fine was paid, it was still necessary for the condemned man to exercise faith in his friend and accept the gift of liberty so lovingly offered him.

Adam had been found guilty and was sentenced the full penalty, death. There was no one to take his place. But Jehovah, the great Judge, still loved him, and arranged with Christ to pay the penalty and taste death for Adam. As Christ said, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” The apostle expresses it in Rom. 3:26, “That he

[God] might be just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus.” Thus did Jehovah beautifully combine Justice and Love. Now God can liberate Adam and his children whenever He so desires.

To set Adam and his children free from the tomb and to provide homes and sustenance for them all will need much preparation. Deserts must be turned into fruitful fields; houses must

.be provided, clothing prepared, and arrangements made to care for them all, as there are some 20,000,000,000 of Adam’s children now in the grave. Arrangements must be made for their education, both in the Word of God and in the laws of natural science, that they may know God and His arrangements that man shall again be king of earth. Preparations are already under way for the next act. The workers are on the stage, rushing about with feverish activity as though under the impulse of some mighty, mysterious unseen energy. God has, so to speak, thrown the switch and turned on the tremendous

quivers as though by the vibrations of gigantic motors.

Act V—Preparing to Restore Paradise

TIME, about 1874 A. D. Enter first a number of men preaching the Second Advent of Christ and calling upon men to repent and turn to God. Great revivals spring up all over the land and hundreds of thousands profess faith in God and His Word.

These are followed by a corps of men of scientific minds searching into the secrets of nature and they soon bring forth machines by the thousands to multiply the production of manufacturing plants and lessen the cost of production and lighten the burden of physical labor. Homes are made more attractive and comfortable. Education is more easily obtained and the

common people begin to wake up to some of the enjoyments in life. Another corps of scientists astonish the onlookers by the marvels of electricity and set to work to decorate the stage with

the wonders thereof. Night is turned into day. Telephones annihilate distance so that people mav talk across a continent with the ease of talking in the same room. Radios carry the voice of one speaker to an entire continent. Television

bends the rays of light and causes them to penetrate walls of iron and stone.

Still other scientists are searching for the secrets of life and health and increasing the average span of life. Others are building chariots, automobiles, that go like the wind over the great net-work of highways throughout the land. Never was known such running to and fro upon the earth. Antiquated nations which have been asleep for centuries are arousing to activity. The excitement and strain is felt everywhere. Nature itself is experiencing spasms as if preparing for the birth of a new world, as evidenced by the increasing number and violence of earthquakes, cyclones, floods and storms. Man is becoming fearful as to what the outcome will be.

Never before in the world’s history were known such opportunities for acquiring sudden wealth and power. The prizes are dazzling. Honesty and conscience are thrown to the winds. The greatest armies the world has ever known strive for four years to annihilate each other, and the whole course of the social and business world is thrown out of order. Suddenly, in 1918, there comes a lull in the terrible slaughter. Then follows conference after conference in an endeavor to patch up a world peace. But mutual distrust, deceit and dishonesty are poor ingredients for peace and safety. Each nation hastens preparation for a still greater war, which the Bible foretells will be so terrible that if God were not to put forth His restraining power no human beings would be left alive.—Matthew 24:21, 22.

Act VI—Earth’s New Princes

UPON the stage are those who have lived through the terrible ordeal of the battle of Armageddon, comparatively few, so far as relative numbers of earth’s previous population is concerned, yet millions in the aggregate. They are the “millions now living who will never die”. They are all lovers of righteousness and haters of iniquity. God has miraculously preserved them because of their honesty of heart and desire to serve Him in sincerity and in truth.

The first work is to clear away the awful debris of the battle of Armageddon. With the knowledge of modern appliances it does not take many years. They are also aided by the power of Jehovah. He even provides special leaders, men of renown, who have been proved by him, and upon whom He pours out His spirit of wisdom and ability. Who are they? The names of many of them are recorded in God’s Word. Abel,

Noah, Seth, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel are mentioned by name, and the apostle says, in the 11 chapter of Hebrews, that there are many others. They are awakened from death, as human beings, and appointed by Jehovah as Princes in all the earth. They will have charge of the special work of preparing for the return of the billions now sleeping in the grave, whom Jesus bought, and whom He promised to bring forth to life again.

Above and over all will be Christ and His bride, as spirit beings with the divine nature, invisible to human sight. Changes in earthly conditions follow so rapidly that they appear to be miracles. Indeed, they are miracles; for the power of man could not accomplish them. During the battle of Armageddon the earth gave birth to new atmospheric conditions. Health instead of disease is the order of the day. The deserts begin to bring forth abundantly and blossom as the rose. The earth is being rapidly transformed into Paradise, made ready to welcome and support the billions soon to be called from their graves. Christ has purchased Adam and all his children, and has promised that all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and come forth. In the 9th chapter of Matthew is the account of the awakening of Jairus’ daughter from death; in the 7th chapter of Luke, that of the awakening of the son of the widow of Nain.

In the 11th chapter of John is the record of the bringing forth of Lazarus from the tomb and restoring him to his family. These are but illustrations of how literally and really He will awaken all our loved ones who have fallen asleep.

Think for a moment of the power and wisdom

needed to bring forth all the billions who have lived and died and to return to each one his or

her own personality, that they may remember themselves, their friends and all the lessons they learned-during this life. Think of the joy of the family reunions of loved ones so long separated. To some it will bring great sorrow and distress as the murderers and tyrants meet their former victims face to face, and all the now-hidden treachery shall be exposed, as explained in Ezekiel 16:52-63.

That will be a power

Such as earth has never known, When Christ brings back our loved ones, And gives to each his own.

Act VII—Paradise in Sight

HUME—In the near future. Nature is again J- in her happy mood. Storms, floods, earthquakes and wars are no more. Peace and quietness reign undisturbed. The flowers and birds are in their gayest dress, and the orchards are. filled with perfect fruit and the fields are groaning with the weight of their yield. The preparations have been nearly completed, and all are in joyful expectancy, for soon they will be welcoming the first to be awakened from the dead. The returning ones will not be crippled and sick as were so many survivors of the World War. They will be full of health and joy as though just awakening from a refreshing sleep.

What! Can we believe our own eyes? Here are some already. Where from? They look happy but puzzled as though not just sure of their surroundings, but quickly their eyes recognize some of the waiting ones, and oh, such joy! Such reunions cannot be described. Fathers and mothers rushing to embrace again their children; brothers and sisters lovingly holding each other, and looking into each other’s eyes, exclaiming, “Is it really true that you are actually here?” 'T knew you were coming, but I just want to hold you and look at you and assure myself that it is no dream. Oh! We’ve so many surprises for you, too.”

Then follow the joyful visits as the returned ones catch up on the news of what transpired after they fell asleep. Though they had been dead but a few years the changes are so great they seem to be in another world. They soon realize that the long-promised kingdom of God has actually been established and its influence and power is felt everywhere. There is no sickness nor signs of sorrow. No one is fearful or afraid of impending trouble. There are no soldiers, policemen, doctors nor hospitals. There, are no poor nor infirm. Every one has a beautiful home of his own, and no rent, taxes or insurance to pay. Every one has plenty of work and a sure and steady income; and, above all, every one seems to realize that God has taken His great power and brought about the blessing* promised. All are anxious to worship Jehovah in sincerity and truth from grateful hearts. Singing is heard everywhere. Almost every one is hurrying preparations for more to return, for all know that not one redeemed one is to be left in the grave. They are fulfilling the prophecy of

Isaiah 35:10: “And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs, and everlasting joy upon their heads: They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”

The grand work continues until another prophecy has been fulfilled, “0 death, where is thy sting? 0 grave, where is thy victory?” and still another, ‘The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and they shall all know him, from the least unto the greatest/ And still another, “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.”

If there be some who will not conform to God’s glorious law of love they will be cut off in the second death and, together with Lucifer and all his wilful assistants, annihilated. God will have a clean earth, and man shall again live in Paradise and partake of the tree of life and live for ever.

Then will end the great Drama of the Ages, which shall have taken 7000 years to play. Every intelligent creature in the universe will have a greater knowledge of Jehovah God and will appreciate His Justice, Love, Wisdom and Power, and sing:

“How grand the consummation, with death and hell destroyed;

No traitor left to darken the Eden then enjoyed;

With not a note discordant, that universal song

Shall through eternal cycles Jehovah’s praise prolong.

That will be an anthem such as earth has never known, When the hallelujah chorus rings before the great white throne.”

What About the Heathen?—Part 1

(A Trialogue In. Seven Parts. By O. J. Woodworth* Radiocast from Station WBBR, New York.)

Cast of debaters: John, a good boy, a church member, very conservative. Thomas, a soldier of fortune, widely-traveled and widely-read man, Paul, an up-to-date Bible Student, a cousin of the other two, a visitor.

The scene is located by a fireside on Staten Island.

i John: Thomas, it seems good to have you home ■'

«. once more, even if it is only for a short time.

s Thomas: Thank you, John. It is always nice i to be home; and yet when I am here for a while 1 seem to get the wanderlust burning in my veins and have to go forth again to explore some part of this wonderful earth of ours that I have never . seen before. It seems particularly nice that we could have Paul with us here this evening. I have some questions that I want to ask you two boys, and they won’t be easy ones, either.

Paul: Go ahead, Tom; that will suit me fine, and the harder the questions the better I like it.

John: I agree, but don’t make the questions too hard. I know you, and I know just about what you have in mind. You are going to bring up that question about the heathen again. Isn’t that true ?

Thomas: Well, yes; I admit that that is what I was going to inquire about; and I cannot think of anything more interesting, for I have seen the heathen, millions of them, and it makes a fellow think and wonder why they were created and what is to become of them.

Paul: Do you care if I turn questioner, just for this evening, so as to bring out some of the salient points? Then some other time we can bring up every question you have in mind and I assure you that they can all be answered.

John: I am not so sure about that. I have heard some of Tom’s questions before.

Thomas: Well now, boys, I am perfectly willing to answer any questions I can, and we have a good library here, and I think that with what the two of you know we ought to be able to get at the salient facts without much trouble. Suppose you go ahead, Paul.

Paul: To begin with, what is the population of the world now supposed to be?

Thomas: The last figures I had on this there were estimated to be something over sixteen hundred million people now living.

Paul: How many of them were supposed to be Christians, including all kinds and varieties?

Thomas: About 566,000,000, or slightly over one-third of the total. That is one of the very questions I was intending to ask you.

Paul: How many of these 566,000,000 are supposed to be Protestants, including all kinds 1

Thomas: About 171,000,000; that is only one out of every three professing Christians, and only one out of ten of earth’s inhabitants. I was going to ask you that one, too.

Paul: What proportion of the Protestant population are church members?

Thomas: That is a sticker. Suppose you look that up for me, John.

John: I have some figures right here, in the "World Almanac”. It seems from these that there are 66,000,000 Protestants in North America, 26,000,000 of whom are church members in the United States.

Paul: Making due allowances for Protestants in Canada and other portions of North America, it is clear that the total Protestant church members are less than half of the total number of supposed Protestants. Isn’t that true?

Thomas: It certainly is, and that means that of the total population of the earth much less than five percent are Protestant church members. You are getting at the very thing I wish to discuss. I want to know what is going to become of all the rest.

Paul: Now let us not get into a hurry. The reason why this heathen question is so obscured is that people have been in too much of a hurry in their discussions of it. Let us get the facts first.

John: If there is anything in the world that would make a person wish to hurry it is the knowledge that only five percent of the people of the world are Protestant church members, and therefore that the other ninety-five per cent of the world’s population are on the road to hell.

Paul: Nevertheless, we do not need to hurry the discussion, and we will not even ask how many of the church members in any church are true Christians. In the first place it would not 'do us any good to ask the question, for nobody is qualified to answer; but a glance at the news of the day, which shows that almost all desperate criminals are members of some church or other, Catholic or Protestant, should enable us to see that the number of true Christians is very small. In fact, very few people today have the wish to be saints or would say that they have that wish.

Thomas: Now you are talking, and what yoi are saying is the plain truth; but let us get on with the questions. What I want to know about is what is going to become of the heathen.

Paul: Yes, I know, Tom. You are restless on this subject too, but for a reason different from John’s. You think the whole outlook is hopeless. Isn’t that about true?

Thomas: You took the very words out of my mouth, and if you and John had seen as much of heathendom as I have you would feel the same as I do. But go on with your questions.

Paul: All right, Cousin Tom. We will take up this matter of the number of the heathen and what they believe, somewhat in detail. According to your statement that the total population of the earth is slightly over sixteen hundred millions and that less than six hundred millions are Christians in any sense of the word, that leaves over a billion that are not Christians at all. Where do these non-Christians principally live?

John: I will answer that. Europe and North and South America are practically solidly Christian; while the rest of the world, Asia and Africa, are practically solidly heathen. That is why the Christians need to hasten with their great task of bringing them salvation.

Paul: Just a minute now, John. Before we start the task of converting them let us find out just what the task is. You have the statistics there in front of you. Of the one thousand millions of heathens or non-Christians, how many live in Africa ?

John: Over a hundred million are there now. The figures show 180,000,000 heathen living in Africa and Oceania, of whom at least 105,000,000, or a population equal to that of the United States, are set down as animists. What is an animist, Tom?

Thomas: An animist, to put it bluntly, is a devil-worshiper, a believer in demons and little else. Or, we might say an animist is a spiritist. The one is the same as the other.

Paul: That is correct. More than a hundred millions in Africa and Oceania are without any knowledge of God whatever. As the Apostle Paul expresses it, they are “without God and without hope in the world”. Now, how about the nine hundred millions of Asia? What.are their principal beliefs?

John: One-third of these, or three hundred millions, are Confucianists. That is a population in itself greater than the combined populations of North America, South America and [Africa. If that does not show that we ought to hasten to them with the gospel, whht could?

Paul: We will get to that phase of the matter in due time. What is the religion of the Con-fucianists, Tom?

Thomas: We could hardly call Confucianism a religion. It is a sort of graduated system of superstition. The common people worship their own ancestors, the magistrates worship the demons, and the ruler alone is supposed to worship God. Confucianism has great respect for forms and ceremonies; it rather doubts a future existence, yet thinks there may be something in it. It concerns itself mainly with the moral relations of rulers and subjects, parents and children, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, and mutual friends. It may be said to be the framework upon which the Chinese civilization of the past was built.

Paul .‘Very well. Now, John, how many Buddhists are there supposed to be ?

John: There are 135,000,000 Buddhists, and that number alone is greater than the total population of all North America.

Paul: What do the Buddhists believe, Tom?

Thomas: Buddhism believes in transmigration of souls, numerous heavens, 136 hells, and ultimate annihilation as the chief hope of humanity. It is based upon the thought that life is sorrow, and that the only path out of life and therefore out of sorrow is the conquest of desire. Like Roman Catholicism it makes celibacy and poverty to be virtues, and its prayer mills resemble the strings of beads which Catholics are expected to perpetually pull around their necks. The two systems are strangely related; the one seems to be a western adaptation of the other, but the western system holds priestcraft in much higher esteem than the eastern. Both are supposed to believe in temperance, justice, honesty, truth, etc. In fact, all the world acknowledges these principles as right.

Paul: I understand that Buddhism is an offshoot of Brahmanism, or Hinduism. How many of these are there, John ?

John: There are 210,000,000 of these, or about the same in number as the total population of North and South America and Oceania.

Paul: What do they believe,-Tom?

anism, with its three-headed

god, Siva-Vishnu-Brahm, is the religion of caste* self-inflicted torture, transmigration of souls* widow-burning, infanticide, suicide and reverence for priestcraft. The highest hope of the Brahmans is that they may ultimately be absorbed into Brahm, their chief god, who is now and will for ever remain fast asleep. Like Buddhism it is a hopeless religion, a horrible, horrible picture.

John: I agree with you. I once heard Bishop Foster describe heathendom, and it made such an impression on me that when I later saw the description in print I committed it to memory. The Bishop said :

Put now into the picture the moral shading of no god, no hope: these miserable millions, living like beasts in this world and anticipating nothing better for the world to come. Put into the picture the remembrance that they are beings who have the same humanity that we have, that are in this case: that there are no hearts among all these millions that do not have human cravings, and that might not be purified and ennobled: that these lands, under the doom of such wretchedness, might equal, and many of them even surpass, the land in which we dwell, had they what we could give them. Paint a starless sky, hang your picture with night, drape the mountains with, long, far-reaching vistas of darkness, hang the curtains deep along every shore and landscape, darken all th* past, let the future be draped in deeper and yet deeper night, fill the awful gloom with hungry, sad-faced and sorrow-driven women and children—that is the heathen world.”

The thing that I am interested in is what is going to happen to all these people.

Paul: We are all interested in that, Cousin John, but the best thing to do with a problem is to examine it first. There is no use trying to solve a problem if unfamiliar with its terms. How many Mohammedans are there?

John: There are 219, 000,000 Mohammedans, or another great body of people approximately equal in number to the total population of North and South America and Oceania.

Paul: What do the Mohammedans believe, Cousin Tom?

Thomas: The Moslem religion is a sort of hash of Christianity, Judaism, idolatry and superstition. The Moslem must pray five times a day, fast, give alms and must go to Mecca once during his life, either personally or by substitute. He believes in conquering the world by carnal weapons, and believes in a heaven of carnal delights. Predestination is a marked feature of the belief. The Moslem believes that

after death, until the resurrection, his spirit fingers near the place where the dust of his body reposes. The Moslem believes in Jesus, but merely as one of the prophets, not as the savior of the world.

Paul: In other words, then, they are not Christians, because not recognizing the truth expressed by the Apostle Peter when he said, •There is none other name under heaven given amongst men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) Is that correct, Cousin Tom?

Thomas: Yes; we would have to admit that that is true.

John: I also admit it, and we maintain missions among the Mohammedans with the object of bringing them salvation. They need Christ as their savior as much as do the pure heathen.

Paul: And now, Cousin John, is it not a fact that Protestants also maintain missions in various Catholics countries, and even in the city of Rome itself, and that both Catholics and Protestants maintain missions among the Jews? And 'does not that prove that both Catholics and Protestants recognize that the Jews need to accept Christ as their savior in order to be saved ? 'And does not it also prove that Protestants really believe that Catholics are unsaved if they continue as such?

John: Yes; I am forced to admit that that is the natural conclusion to draw from the facts stated. We would not pay for the maintenance of missions we. did not think necessary.

Thomas: Well, I think we have laid the foundation now for some pretty good questions. What I want to know is, what has become of the generation of the heathen which has just passed away, one billion of them, or, if you include the Catholics and Jews, fourteen hundred million of them. You do not need to go any farther back. ’Just tell me what has become of them, and then I can tell for myself what has become of all the previous generations. Come now, John, what do you say?

John: I think the Baptist Examiner has it right that the heathen are damned. I have the dipping here in my note book. It says: "The idea of a probation in this life does imply the possibility of salvation, but the possibility may never be realized. As a matter of fact, we believe that, for the vast majority of the heathen, the possibility never is realized, and we never

yet heard of an orthodox theologian who held any other belief than this."

Thomas: Would you care to go a step further and say that you believe what Calvin taught? He believed that the heathen were not elected to be saved, but that God foreordained and predestinated them to be lost, to go to hell, and that they are there now, writhing in agony, where they will ever remain without hope.

John: Now, Tom, you know I do not like the way you put that question.

Thomas: What is wrong with it?

John: I don’t know that I can answer you. I told you at the outset not to make your questions too hard. All I know is that the heathen are on the road to hell and I want to do what I can to help them. Surely that is right.

Thomas: It surely does show a good spirit, but it does not answer my question. Paul, what do you think has become of the heathen?

Paul: do not need to do any thinking on the subject, for I say in all sincerity and in all humility that I know what has become of them; and before we get through with this talk both of you will know what has become of them. The riddle will be completely solved. But just at the present I think best not to answer you directly, for there are numerous factors entering into this that still need to be discussed.

Thomas: I thought we had the foundation all laid. We discovered that the whole world is grossly, preponderately and stupendously heathen in every sense of the word. What more could you want? All I want to know is what has become of the generation that has just passed away. Answer that and the whole question answers itself.

Paul: Don’t be impatient, Cousin Tom. We will come to that in due time, but in the meantime I want to get some more facts. I know you are both quite familiar with the Bible and so I am going to ask you both a few questions, Bible questions. Will that be all right ?

John and Thomas: Sure! Go ahead!

Paul: Very well. You have both read the epistle to the Hebrews, the eleventh chapter, where it speaks in turn of the faith of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthae, David, Samuel and all the prophets. Have you ever noticed in this connection that it

I

! says of these that they pleased God, and then adds, “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” ?

Thomas: The words sound familiar. I believe

it does read that way.

John: Yes, that is the way it reads; and that proves that the heathen are not saved without faith, and therefore we should aim to convert them so that they may be saved.

Thomas: But does it not also prove that Calvin was right and that all the heathen of the past generation have gone to hell and that they are there now, writhing in the strangling fumes of burning sulphur?

Paul: Just a minute now, boys. You agreed to let me ask you some Bible questions. All I asked you was if you were familiar with the apostle’s famous faith chapter, the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, and you said you were. So far, so good. Now I want to ask you another.

Thomas: All right, Cousin Paul,Iwillbegood. I admit that that interruption was my fault.

Paul: Do you both agree that the heathen are without faith such as the apostle describes, that for the most part they do not know or believe that God is or exists and that they are not diligently seeking Him? What is the decision?

John: There is but one answer to that question. They have not the faith, and without it they can not please God.

Thomas: I agree that the passage shows that the heathen do not have the faith and, what is more, the facts as I know them show conclusively that they do not have it. They could not have it, in the very nature of the case. They live in the most colossal ignorance imaginable, ignorance on every subject, and especially on the subject of religion.

Paul: Very well. Now for a general expression on the subject. We have settled it that Hebrews 11: 6 teaches that without faith it is im-

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possible to please God, and the heathen do not have that faith and therefore can not please

Him. Let us now get something more specific. I fell sure you are both familiar "with the fourteenth chapter of John’s gospel. Do you remember that in the sixth verse of that chapter Jesus said to Peter, “I am the way, and the truth, and

the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but

by me” 1

John: That is just the way it reads, and that means that as the heathen know nothing about Jesus they are not saved. That shows plainly where our duty rests. We owe it to them to save them.

Thomas: Yes; I have heard that passage read many times, and I know that the heathen, for the most part, know absolutely nothing about Jesus and are theref ore unsaved, according to His statement. «

Paul: You boys are deciding things too fast. Just now I am merely asking you if you are familiar with certain texts. It will be time enough later to decide what these texts imply with reference to the heathen, when we have all the evidence in hand. Thus far we have proven that faith in God is essential and that even then it must be exercised through the worthy name of Jesus. But I must add a few more questions. Do you remember that both Peter and John, when brought before the high priest and his kinsmen, said to them concerning Jesus, “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” ?—Acts 4:11,12.

John: Yes; I remember that it is so written. There is absolutely no hope for the heathen except faith in God; this faith must be exercised in and through Jesus Christ His Son; and there is no other name, Confucius, Buddha, Brahm, Mohammed or Mary, that can be of the slightest avail. Without the preaching of the Christian religion the heathen are hopelessly lost.

Paul: Not so fast, Cousin John. Do not be too sure of their fate. *

Thomas: Well I I must say that it looks like a hopeless proposition to me, hopeless from every point of view, hopeless for the heathen without the Christian religion, and hopeless too that they will ever get it.

Paul: You boys are too impatient. Thus far we are only laying a reasonable'and proper foundation for the study of this great question. Let me go on with my questions. Do you remember that in John 6:44 the Lord Jesus himself said, __     __ I

“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him” ? and do you both agree that the heathen of the last generation were not drawn by the Father?

John and Thomas: Yes; we can not fail to agree to that.

Paul: Do you remember that in the next verse Jesus said, “Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me" ? and do you agree that these heathen of the past generation had neither heard nor learned nor come in God’s appointed way?

John and Thomas: Yes, we agree; we can not do otherwise.

Paul: Do you also remember that the Apostle Paul, writing to the Romans, in chapter ten, verses thirteen and fourteen, said, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard ?” and three verses further down says, “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”? And do you agree that the generation of the heathen that has gone had neither heard the Word of God, nor believed the message which they did not hear, nor called upon the God that they did not know and that was not preached to them?

John: Yes; I agree to all that. By your own arguments you have shown that faith in God is necessary in order to please God, that Jesus is

the only way to salvation, that there is salvation in no other name, that no one can come to Jesus for His saving power unless the Father draw him, that every one who comes must call upon the name of the Lord to be saved, and that they can not call unless they have heard the gospel. It is all only too clear. The heathen are hopelessly lost.

Thomas: That is the way it looks to me; it looks as if you had proved that point and had tried to prove it.

Paul: Now, boys, you are jumping at conclusions again. All that I proved from the Scriptures should be accepted, because it is the truth. But this whole question as to what has become of the heathen of past generations hinges completely on another question which we have not even discussed. That question is WHERE ARE THE DEAD? Until you know where the dead are, of course you do not know where the heathen are. Surely you must agree to the reason- , ableness of that statement. Suppose we drop ; this question for to-night, and the next time I get down to the Island we will go further into this matter of the fate of the heathen. In the meantime, why not get Judge Rutherford’s book on I Where Are the Dead? and read it? It makes ^! ■I this whole subject plain as day. Get it and read it. I did.

ENGLISH churchmen are falling over them-selves in their efforts to precede one another in discarding Holy Writ. From the London Christian World Pulpit of September 22 we glean the statement of one of the editors, Reverend John Bevan: “This doctrine that Jesus 'paid the price’, 'bought’ us, may have served some purpose in earlier days, but the only purpose it serves now is to show what others thought the Father’s will for Jesus amounted to.”

Is that so? Well! Then, how about Jesus’own statement, “The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many”?—Matthew 20:28.

When it comes to Dr. Barnes’ sermon preached in Westminster Abbey, Sunday, September 25, we prefer to cite a few extracts and let them speak for themselves to those who have even the smallest knowledge of the Word of God. Every one of the statements which follow is a lie:

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The stories of the creation of Adam and Eve, of their ; primal innocence and of their fall, have become for us j folklore.                                                             j

Man is not a being who has fallen from an ideal state j of perfect innocence: he is an animal slowly gaining j spiritual understanding and with the gain rising far j above his distant ancestors.                                j

Christ knew that there was much evil in the world j which God made—evil for which, therefore, God must ; be ultimately responsible.                                  |

Only the expert can bridge even the last gap between j the low mental life of the ape and the moral self-con- ; sciousness of civilized man. But as the expert exhibits \ successive links of the evolutionary chain he shows the -J results of God’s creation—a process which still continues. ■

J-                                                                                                                     ' I

the end of which no man can foresee, the purpose of < r which we can only understand by joining faith to reason, j

Certainly a time will come when this earth will no longer support life, and, if there be no life beyond the grave, a philosopher from another planet would then conclude that in truth God had made all men for nought.

The Reward of Wickedness *

[A juvenile Bible story radiocast from Station WOBD, Chicago, by O. D. Nicholson.]

P TO the present time we have considered in an individual manner only a few of I Israel’s kings. With the breaking up of the nation of Israel into two separate groups, after , the death of King Solomon, their troubles were increased for the reason that from this time onward they had two kings. One king was reigning over the ten tribes and the other over the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, and the two kingdoms spent a good portion of their time fighting each other.

The people of Judah were fortunate in having a number of good kings whose influence was of great value to them. Among these was King Asa. A number of incidents in the reign of King Asa are worthy of our consideration. At xme time an Ethiopian army of a million men came out to fight against Asa and his army, which numbered only about half as many. Asa went out and set the battle in array and then prayed unto the Lord his God, saying, “Lord, it is nothing with thee to help with many, or with those that have no power. Help us, 0 Lord, our God; for we rest on thee.” The Lord heard the prayer and smote the Ethiopians before them.

One of the mistakes Asa made was that of entering into a league with the king of Syria and calling upon him to war against the ten tribes of Israel. Failing to receive from this mistake the lesson which the Lord sent him through the prophet,- another experience was given him by Jehovah. He was overtaken by a bad disease; but instead of recognizing it as a punishment from the Lord for his sins, he sought help from the physicians, who were only men; and he failed completely to learn the lesson which had been sent him from Jehovah. As a result, he died of his disease. F

The next good king of Judah was Jehoshaphat, the son of Asa. Jehoshaphat was reigning in Judah at the same time that King Ahab, the wicked king of whom we studied in the previous lesson, was reigning in Israel over the ten tribes that withdrew from Judah under the reign of Solomon’s son, Rehoboam. Jehoshaphat must have known of Ahab’s wicked character, but apparently he wanted to keep up friendly relations with his kinsmen; so he went down tq Samaria to visit Ahab. While he was there the wicked king invited him to make a league with him to

join their forces in fighting some of their common enemies. Ahab was killed and Jehoshaphat, who went with him to battle, would have been killed also had he not cried unto the Lord for help. '                 .

When Jehoshaphat found that his host had been killed, he returned to his home at Jerusalem ; and on the way he met Jehu, a good prophet of the Lord, who said to him, “Shouldest thou help the ungodly and love them that hate the Lord? Therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord.” Jehoshaphat knew this was a rebuke to him from Jehovah; so he immediately increased his activities in connection with teaching the people the law, placing judges over the people, charging them to judge not for man but forlhe Lord and to do it with a perfect heart.

Soon after Jehoshaphat returned to Jerusalem, some of the nations became very courageous and assembled a great multitude of soldiers against the kingdom of Judah and started out to overcome and to spoil it. When Jehoshaphat heard of their coming, he was greatly afraid and immediately laid the matter before the Lord in prayer and arranged a fast throughout all Judah, requested that every person in the nation pray to God for help.

The prophet of the Lord then instructed them to go down the following morning to meet the mighty multitude with the assurance that it would not be necessary for them to fight, nor even to lift a hand in defense, because the Lord would deliver them from their enemies. So Jehoshaphat appointed to march before the army a large number of singers who at the appointed time were to lift their voices in songs of praise and thanksgiving to God. And when the soldiers of the enemy heard the song of praise they rose up against each other to slay and destroy one another. When the soldiers of Judah looked out over the valley they saw thousands of dead bodies fallen to the earth and none of the enemy had escaped.

The last king of Judah was Zedekiah, to whom the Lord spoke through His prophet, “And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: ... I will overturn it, overturn, overturn it: and

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it shall not be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.” .(Ezekiel 21: 5-7) This was another way of saying that there would be no more kings of David’s line until the great Messiah should come.

The overthrow of Jerusalem took place 606 years before Christ came to earth; and while the Hebrew people have continued to exist as a people, yet from that time till recently they have not had a nation of their own, nor a place they could call their native homeland, but have been scattered throughout the civilized world.

Bible Questions and Answers

[Radiocast from Station WBBR, New York, by Victor F. Schmidt]

UE ST I ON: What is the hope for the savage hereafter, when he has not been taught the gospel?

Answer: The hope of the savage is this: He will come forth from the tomb in the kingdom, be given the opportunity to 'know the truth, thereafter be placed on trial for the first time, and if obedient he will have the privilege of living on earth for ever. Many have been led into error by the presumption that all people are on trial at present for life or death; that is not the truth according to the Bible. Only a few individuals who now understand the truth according to the Bible are on trial; these are on trial for a heavenly existence; these are prospective rulers in the kingdom to be fully established. They will reign with Christ Jesus. After the ruling class of the kingdom will have been selected, then the world of mankind in general, including all the heathen, will be awakened from the tombs in the resurrection and be placed on trial for an earthly existence as the subjects in the kingdom. In Acts 24:15 we read, “There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust.” In 1 Timothy 2: 3,4, we read, “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and come unto the knowledge of the truth.” Jesus repeatedly said that the heathen would be placed on trial or judgment in the kingdom, and not now. In Mark 6:11 we read, “Verily I say unto you; It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Go-morrha [who were heathen people and had not heard of the truth] in the day of judgment, than for that city [where the truth has been proclaimed and the message has been rejected].” That mankind if obedient will be given everlasting life upon the earth there can be no doubt according to the Bible. In Psalm 37: 29 we read, “The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.” In Isaiah 60:21 we read,

“Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever.” This hope for the heathen is supported by the harmonious theme of the entire Bible.

Question: What is the explanation of Malachi 4:1, which states: “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch”?

Answer: Fire, in the Bible, is a symbol of destruction. This describes the great day of the Lord, when the wicked systems, practices, and things which have really oppressed the people will be destroyed in the great time of trouble. If the persons refuse to be separated from these things which God will destroy, in time those inseparably connected with evil will also be destroyed, utterly annihilated. The fire will consume that which is evil. It refers to the great and fiery time of trouble through which we are now passing. This time of trouble will be followed by a great blessing of the people in the kingdom. In Zephaniah 3:8, 9 we read that if the wicked forsake his evil ways he, too, will be blessed. See also Ezekiel 18: 21, 22. *

Question: What did Jesus mean by the words in John 14:2, “I go to prepare a place for you”?

Answer: Jesus meant that He was about to ascend to heaven and present the merit of His sacrifice to the heavenly Father so that His church might have access to the fellowship with God and a station in God’s organization. In Hebrews 9: 24 we read, “Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us [the church]."

Little Studies for Little People

*

(Study Thirty-Two)

• 268. Certainly, the real Christian. Although he seems to be having a hard time just now, he is really having lots of fun, because he knows of the promise made to him and others like him by Christ Jesus, which speaks of the great reward; also because he knows of the plan of God, and that soon, very soon, the false Christians-will be made to see Jehovah’s beauty, and will be brought to shame and feel sorry for their wicked ways.                                “

• 269. That is what makes the real Christian so happy, and that is why he can sing, even though he seems to be having lots of trouble: "Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God: for it is pleasant, and praise is comely.”

The New World

• 270. When father Adam disobeyed God six thousand years ago, the right to life was taken away from everyone in the" world. We learned how that right was restored to us, by the wonderful gift of God’s own dear Son, Jesus, who came down from His bright shining place in heaven, and died as a man for our sake.

• 271. People have died before, and ever since, the time of Christ; but the time is coming when they will not die any more. Not only that, but those who have died will come back. They will be given life again.

• 272. They have been in a very deep sleep for thousands of years; but God is so powerful that He can wake them up and give them new, healthy

which to decide whether he wants to live for *  it-

ever or not. Now I am sure you want to live on and on, for ever, do you not? Just think! Never to grow old or feeble, but always be big and strong, and able to go anywhere you want to, wdth nothing to hurt or hinder you, and no danger of getting sick on the way!

• 276. During this thousand-year day, everyone will have chance to see the glory of God's work, and how much more blessed it is to serve Him than to listen to the false teachers. Many of the false teachers themselves will see their wickedness, and cry to God to forgive them.

• 277. And because God is so merciful and kind, He will forgive them, if they show they are truly sorry by repenting, or turning away from the old things, and following in the footsteps of Jesus.

• ■ Questions on Study Thirty-Two.

• 268. What makes the true Christian happy now, right in the midst of his troubles? Does he know what is going to happen to the false Christians ?

• 269. Do you ever feel like singing all the time? What makes you feel that way? Does a true Christian always feel that way, in his heart ?

• 270. What right did we all lose when father Adam disobeyed God so long ago ? By what wonderful arrangement will that right be restored to us ?

• 271. Will the time ever come when people will cease to die? Will the time ever come when those who are now dead will come back to life ?

bodies instead of the old, wornout, sick ones they had when they died.

• 273. This will shortly come to pass just as soon as the “old world”, with its sickness and wars and false teachings and all its other evils, has been fully destroyed. It is being destroyed swiftly. In a few years there will be none on the earth who will not believe in the Lord and hearken to His commands. The Lord is here, and is setting up His kingdom !

• 274. Then will people shout for joy the whole i day long, and raise their voices in praise of the | great, all-powerful, loving Jehovah God and His i Son, the Christ, by whom they have received the I chance to live for ever.

r 275. God has appointed a day, a thousand-I, year day, to give everyone plenty of time in I

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SEVEN VOLUME TITLES

The Divine Plan of the Ages The Time is at Hand Thy Kingdom Come The Battle of Armageddon Atonement—God and Man The New Creation The Pinished Mystery

384 PAGES, 17 COLOR , PLATES, CLOTH-BOUND

DELIVERANCE Vivid description of the divine plan outlining the progressive steps against evil. Showing the final overthrow of the Devil and all of his wicked institutions.