Saturday, August 17, 2019

Heavenly Things Purified.


    (Continued…)

    In the prophecy of Daniel are three chains of prophetic symbols, each giving information whereby we may know when the end is near.

    In chapter 2 is the image seen by Nebuchadnezzar in his dream, which gives a brief history of the great kingdoms of the world from the time of Babylon to the dividing or breaking up of the Roman Empire. In chapter 7 is a series of consisting of wild beasts, which covers exactly the same ground as that of chapter 2, but supplementing that chapter with later events, reaching down to the very close of the eighteenth century. The same symbols are presented in Rev. 13, with still later events, reaching down to the last message, and the advent of the Lord. Compare Rev. 13:11-18 with chapter 14:9-14.

    Rev 13:11  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. 
    Rev 13:12  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. 
    Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, 
    Rev 13:14  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 a sword, and did live. 
    Rev 13:15  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. 
    Rev 13:16  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: 
    Rev 13:17  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. 
    Rev 13:18  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. 

    Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 
    Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 
    Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 
    Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. 
    Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. 
    Rev 14:14  And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. 

    By studying these prophecies, and the history of the nations which shows the progress of their fulfillment, we may learn definitely where we are in the chain of events which reaches down to the coming of the Lord. True, we cannot tell how long it will take to complete the fulfillment; we cannot learn from the prophecies the time of the Lord’s coming; but we may learn from these, and also from other scriptures, when “he is near, even at the doors,” as Jesus himself has given assurance in his own words. Matt. 24. Another series of symbols is given in the 8th chapter of Daniel, and to this we must give more particular attention. It relates more particularly to our subject than do the others, and the interpretation is given in plain and unmistakable terms. The first symbol is a ram having two horns; this was explained by Gabriel to mean the kingdom of the Medes and Persians. Verse 20. The ram was succeeded by a he-goat, having a notable horn between his eyes. When that was broken four horns came up for it, and these in turn were succeeded by a little horn which “waxed exceeding great.” It

    The Atonement - 144

    became stronger than all the kingdoms which preceded it. And of this Gabriel said: “And the rough goat is the king [kingdom] of Grecia, and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king [Alexander]. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.” Grecia was divided into four kingdoms upon the death of Alexander. But a power came up, small in its beginning, which conquered the world and held all in its iron grasp. The Persian and Grecian Empires appear before us, great by sudden conquest. Not so with Rome. She gradually became exceeding great by successive conquests. It was this power that “magnified himself even to the prince of the host” of heaven; verses 10-12; or stood up against the Prince of princes. Verse 25. Daniel said he heard one holy one ask another how long this vision should be, even “to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot.” The answer is made to Daniel in these words: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Now it has been seen, by Lev. 16, that the cleansing of the sanctuary, and making the atonement, mean precisely the same thing; for the atonement was made by the high priest sprinkling the blood upon the mercy-seat and altar, and cleansing them from the sins of the people. Hence, this expression of Dan. 8:14 is equivalent to saying, “Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the atonement be made.” And again, to understand this time is to understand the fulfillment of the message of Rev. 14:6, 7, “the hour of his judgment is come,” for the Judgment sits when the Atonement is made. Thus we see that the time was appointed and announced for making the Atonement. This is in conformity to the type, where the tenth day of the seventh month was set apart to that work. While this text stands as a part of that “scripture” which is “profitable for instruction,” it is both interesting and profitable to inquire where these two thousand and three hundred days terminate. But to understand this, we must trace the connection between chapters 8 and 9 of Daniel; for chapter 9 is in part explanatory of chapter 8, the explanation of the time (2300 days) being given in the latter, not in the former. Note the following points:—

    - 145 - J. H. Waggoner

    1. Gabriel was commanded to make Daniel understand the vision.
    2. He explained in chapter 8 the symbols of the kingdoms represented   therein.
    3. He did not explain the time of verse 14.
    4. Daniel said he did not understand the vision, which, of course, refers to that part not explained —the time.
    5. In chapter 9, Gabriel said he had come to give him understanding, and commanded him to “consider the vision.”
    6. No vision had been mentioned since chapter 8, which shows that Gabriel had reference to the same vision which, he was commanded to make him understand in that chapter.
    7. In chapter 9, he commenced instructing Daniel on time, the only thing in the “vision” not hitherto explained.
    8. He said, Seventy weeks are determined (Heb. literally cut off) upon thy people.
    9. The seventy weeks commence with the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, B. C. 457. See Ezra 7.
    10. The seventy weeks are evidently “cutoff” from the 2300 days, the only period given in the vision. Therefore the time of the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem must be the commencement of the 2300 days. And if the seventy weeks are not cut off from the 2300 days, that is, if the seventy weeks do not mark the beginning of those days, then no explanation of the days was given, and Gabriel never did what he was commanded to do.

    But such a supposition will not be urged. Therefore, we must admit that in Dan. 9 we have a clue to the 2300 days of Dan. 8, and to understand the seventy weeks of Dan. 9, is also to understand the 2300 days of Dan. 8, the two periods commencing together. In regard to the nature of these “days” no argument can be needed. The “seventy weeks” of Dan. 9, marking the manifestation of the Messiah, which took place at the time of his baptism, see Matt. 3:16, 17; John 1:32-34; Mark 1:14, 15, were not weeks of days, but weeks of years.

    Mat 3:16  And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 
    Mat 3:17  And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 

    Joh 1:32  And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 
    Joh 1:33  And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 
    Joh 1:34  And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God. 

    Mar 1:14  Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 
    Mar 1:15  And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. 

    To deny this were to unsettle one of the clearest evidences in favor of the Messiahship of Jesus of Nazareth. But as the seventy weeks are part of the 2300 days of the vision of Dan. 8,

    The Atonement - 146

    those “days” were not solar days of twenty-four hours, but year-days, “each day for a year,” according to a well-known method of counting time. Eze. 4:6. As the Messiah was to be cut off, and cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease in the midst of the last week of the seventy, which was in A. D. 31, and the time that the apostles turned to the Gentiles marks the close of that period, which was in A. D. 34, it is easy to see that the 2300 days would extend 1810 years beyond that time, or to A.D.1844.

    And as the angel said the sanctuary should be cleansed at the end of that period, this must refer, not to the typical sanctuary which was destroyed by the Romans in A. D. 70, but to the antitypical “sanctuary and true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.” Heb. 8:1, 2.

    Some are ready to object to this view, that the heavenly sanctuary where our High Priest officiates cannot need cleansing—that there is nothing impure in Heaven. The zeal of such to vindicate the honor of heavenly things is parallel with that of Peter, who rebuked the Lord for speaking of his ignominious death; he thought a victor’s crown only was becoming his Master. But God has a plan appointed, and the death of his Son was in that plan; and the mistaken zeal of his servants must not be suffered to interfere with it. In that plan is also the Atonement which God’s now exalted Son as priest makes in the sanctuary in Heaven; and it has been sufficiently shown that the Atonement is made by cleansing the sanctuary. That this expression of the angel refers to the heavenly, and not to the earthly, sanctuary, may be proved by several considerations. The following we think is conclusive on this point.

    1. The sanctuary was not cleansed from any impurity of its own, nor from any defilement from use, as ordinary habitations are cleansed, but from sin. Therefore it was cleansed by blood. By referring further to Lev. 16, it will be seen, and will be noticed hereafter, that the design was to take away the sins from the presence of God, and remove them from the throne of judgment. But Paul declares in Heb. 10:4, that “it is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take away sin;” but that was all the blood the priests had to offer in the worldly sanctuary; therefore, as that blood would

    - 147 - J. H. Waggoner

    not remove sin, it follows that the earthly sanctuary was never cleansed at all, except in figure, and never could have been had it remained and the priests still officiated therein till the end of the 2300 days. Nevertheless, the necessity existed; for the people were actual sinners, and needed to have their sins remitted or blotted out.

    2. The sanctuary, as before noticed, was defiled by the sins of the people, though the people never came in contact with it. The high priest stood as their representative; he bore their judgment. Ex. 28:30. And as he alone went into the most holy place, it follows that it was defiled by his bearing their sins.

    Now it is plainly stated that Christ bears our sins—they were laid upon him—he is our representative before his Father. And it seems evident that one of the following positions is true: That Christ has taken the sins of his people, or his people have their sins yet upon them. It will be admitted that the former is true; that as the representative and substitute of his saints, he takes their sins. But if he takes them, where does he take them? Certainly where he is. Now it is by virtue of his priesthood that he bears the judgment of the people; but his priesthood is in the heavenly sanctuary. Heb.8:1-4.

    Heb 8:1  Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; 
    Heb 8:2  A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. 
    Heb 8:3  For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 
    Heb 8:4  For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

    There, according to the type, is where our sins are taken. To show this is the object of the type.

    3. That the heavenly sanctuary is cleansed, is proved by direct declarations of the New Testament. Paul, in writing to the Hebrews respecting the types and their fulfillment in the priesthood of the Son of God, says: “It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the Heavens should be purified with these [i.e., with the blood of calves and goats]; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.” Heb. 9:23.

    Accordingly he says that Christ entered into the holy places, into Heaven itself, “by his own blood.” Verse 12.This is the better sacrifice, or blood, by which the heavenly things are purified or cleansed.

    (To be continued)

    (Excerpt from-) THE ATONEMENT PART SECOND:
    THE ATONEMENT AS REVEALED IN THE BIBLE
      (1884)

    BY   ELDER J. H. WAGGONER


No comments: