Revelation 13
p 565 -- VERSE 11
And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns
like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 12 And he exerciseth all
the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which
dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from
heaven on the earth in the sight of men, 14 And deceiveth
them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power
to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that
they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by the sword, and
did live. 15 And he had power to give life unto the image
of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as
many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 16
And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond,
to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17
And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of
the beast, or the number of his name.
(Excerpt Daniel and
Revelation - by Uriah Smith 1897)
10. Great Wonders. - In that part
of the prediction which sets forth the work of the two-horned beast, we read
that "he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven
on the earth in the sight of men." In this specification we have still
further proof that the United States is the government represented by the
two-horned beast. That we are living in an age of wonders, none deny. (See on
Dan. 12:4, remarks on the wonderful achievements of the present age, and double
page of vignettes illustrating some of the leading triumphs of scientific and
inventive skill.)
But this prophecy is
not fulfilled in the great advancement in knowledge, the discoveries and
inventions, so notable at the
p 584 -- present
time; for the wonders to which the prophet had reference are evidently wrought
for the purpose of deceiving the people, as we read in verse 14: "And
deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he
had power to do in the sight of the beast."
This identifies the
two-horned beast with the false prophet of Rev. 19:20; for this false prophet
is the power that works miracles before the beast, "with which he deceived
them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image,"
- the identical work of the two-horned beast.
We can now ascertain
by what means the miracles in question are wrought; for Rev. 16:13, 14 speaks
of spirits of devils working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the
earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of the great day of God
Almighty; and these miracle-working spirits go forth out of the months of
certain powers, one of which is this very false prophet, or two-horned beast.
The Saviour,
predicting events to occur just before his second coming, says, "For there
shall arise false christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and
wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."
Here, again, are
wonders foretold, wrought for the purpose of deception, so powerful that, were
it possible, even the very elect would be deceived by them.
Thus we have a
prophecy (and there are many others) setting forth the development, in the last
days, of a wonder-working power, manifested to a startling and unprecedented
degree in the interest of falsehood and error. The earthly government with
which it was to be especially connected is that represented by the two-horned
beast, or false prophet. The agency lying back of the outward manifestations
was to be Satanic, the spirit of devils. The prophecy calls for such a work as
this in America at the present time. Do we behold anything like it? Read the
answer in the lamentation of the prophet: "Woe to the inhabiters of the
earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath,
because be knoweth that he hath but a short time." Stand aghast, O earth;
tremble, ye people, but be not deceived!
p 585 -- The huge
specter of evil confronts us, as the prophet declared. Satan is loosed. From
the depth of Tartarus myriads of demons swarm over the land. The prince of
darkness manifests himself as never before, and throwing over his work a
would-be heavenly garb, he calls it - Spiritualism.
(1)
Does Spiritualism, then, bear these marks of Satanic agency?
a. The
spirits which communicate claim to be the spirits of our departed friends. But
the Bible, in the most explicit terms, assures us that the dead are wholly
inactive and unconscious till the resurrection; that the dead know not anything
(Eccl. 9:5); that every operation of the mind has ceased (Ps. 146:4); that
every emotion of the heart is suspended (Eccl. 9:6); and that there is neither
work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, where they lie. Eccl.
9:10. Whatever intelligence, therefore, comes to us professing to be one of our
dead friends, comes claiming to be what, from the word of God, we know he is
not. But angels of God do not lie; therefore these are not the good angels.
Spirits of devils will lie; this is their work; and these are the credentials
which at the very outset they hand us.
b. The
doctrines which they teach are also directly contrary to the Bible. They deny
God. They deny Christ. They deny the atonement. They deny the Bible. They deny
the existence of sin, and all distinction between right and wrong. They deny
the sacredness of the marriage covenant; and, interspersing their utterances
with blasphemies against God and his Son, and everything that is lovely, and
good, and pure, they give the freest license to every propensity to sin, and to
every carnal and fleshly lust. Tell us not that these things, openly taught
under the garb of religion, and backed up by supernatural sights and sounds,
are anything less than Satan's masterpiece.
(2)
Spiritualism answers accurately to the prophecy in the exhibition of
great signs and wonders. Among its many
p 586 --
achievements, these may be mentioned: Various articles have been transported
from place to place by spirits alone; beautiful music has been produced
independent of human agency, with and without the aid of visible instruments;
many well-attested cases of healing have been presented; persons have been
carried through the air by the spirits in the presence of many others; tables
have been suspended in the air with several persons upon them; and, finally,
spirits have presented themselves in bodily form, and talked with an audible
voice.
(3)
Spiritualism answers to the prophecy in that it had its origin in the
United States, thus connecting its wonders with the work of the two-horned
beast. Commencing in Hydesville, N. Y., in the family of Mr. John D. Fox, in
the latter part of March, 1848, it spread with incredible rapidity through all
the world. A letter to the writer from a leading Spiritualist publisher,
December, 1895, claims five million believers in the United States, and fifty
million throughout the world. Of those who have become its devotees, Judge
Edmonds said, as long ago as l853: -
"Besides the
undistinguished multitude, there are many now of high standing and talent
ranked among them, - doctors, lawyers, and clergymen in great numbers, a
Protestant bishop, the learned and reverend president of a college, judges of
our higher courts, members of Congress, foreign ambassadors, and ex-members of
the United States Senate."
The foregoing
statement was written many years ago; and from that time to this the work of
the spirits has been steadily progressing, and spreading among all classes of
people.
One reason why it is
now difficult to estimate the number of those who might properly be denominated
Spiritualists, is that the more prominent and respectable of the adherents of
this movement are drawing under cover the obnoxious and immoral features of the
system, heretofore so prominent, and assuming a Christian garb. By this move
they bring themselves and a multitude of church-members upon common ground,
where there is no distinction between them in fact, though there still may be
in name; the latter still remaining with their various denominations.
p 587 -- A little
work by Hudson Tuttle, What Is Spiritualism? p. 6, gives a list of twenty-two
emperors, queens, princes, and members of the nobility, who have through
Spiritualism sought counsel in their affairs, or favored and supported its
claims. It is thus preparing to fulfil Rev. 16:14, and gather the nations to
the battle of' the great day.
*******
Again- MANY years
later - 100 and some years since the
book (Daniel and Revelation by Uriah Smith)
in its original form was published (1897)- we know things have only
gotten worse and worse. Spiritualism is
the NORM now. Spiritualism is accepted by the masses. Those who do not believe
the dead are automatically alive in spirit form after death are the FEW.
Christians worldwide hold to this LIE and they cling to it as TRUTH refusing to
believe otherwise. I was once told that if the majority believe this to be true
it can't be wrong! What
deception!!!!! If anything we should
question the validity of all the MAJORITY believe to be true, remember FEW are
going down that narrow path! I truly believe, and yes, I could be wrong and I
pray if I am that God reveals His truth to me, I truly believe that when a
group of people who hold the same beliefs as being theirs is wrong on a single
point and they cling to that point refusing to allow truth in, then they've
corrupted the entire group. That one lie held tight and cherished as truth
poisons every real truth. This is where
many are going to cry out to Jesus that they did many wonderful things in His
name and He in turn is going to tell them to get away from Him, that He never
knew them! The denial of ANY truth
revealed is the acceptance of lies and the accepting of lies is the accepting
of Satan, the father of lies.
Great signs and
wonders. All but the VERY ELECT will be DECEIVED! This knowledge alone should
cause us to study to know and follow nothing but the truth!
Please! We don't
want to be among the deceived! Bless us Lord, help us as we study to know, to
understand, to keep the words of this Book. We need YOU to keep us, we cannot
keep ourselves! Help us, we throw
ourselves upon YOUR mercy! Save us from ourselves, from Satan! Save us!
Please.
In the name of Your
Only Begotten Son, JESUS CHRIST, our Lord and Savior, now and forever!!!!!!!
AMEN!
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