Illustration as to as to how the Weight of Evidence Formula is so Crucial to Correct Interpretation

 

 

 

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Ellen White was so correct when she gave instructions reDTding the weight of evidence formula. I have stated the importance of that formula many times. The following post by DTZ. will illustrate just how important it is. When every word is considered, Ellen White interprets herself and one cannot be in error if he/she will consider the meaning of every word. Here is the formula:

 

Weight of Evidence Formula: "1. Every word must have its proper bearing on the subject presented in the Bible 2. All Scripture is necessary, and may be understood by diligent application and study 3. Nothing revealed in Scripture can or will be hid from those who ask in faith, not wavering 4. To understand doctrine, bring all the scriptures together on the subject you wish to know, then let every word have its proper influence and if you can form your theory without a contradiction, you cannot be in error 5. Scripture must be its own expositor, [interpreter] since it is a rule of itself. If I depend on a teacher to expound to me, and he should guess at its meaning, or desire to have it so on account of his sectarian creed, or to be thought wise, then his guessing, desire, creed, or wisdom is my rule, and not the Bible." E.G. White, Second Advent Review and Herald, 11-25-84, pr. 24.

 

 

----- Original Message -----

From: DT

To: Adventist-fm@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, June 12, 2011 9:39 AM

Subject: Re: [Adventist-fm] Amazing Similarities between Israel and SDA's says Welch

 

 

The Lord is soon to come. There must be a refining, winnowing process in every church, for there are among us wicked men who do not love the truth or honor God.--RH March 19, 1895.  {LDE 173.3} 

The great issue so near at hand [enforcement of Sunday laws] will weed out those whom God has not appointed and He will have a pure, true, sanctified ministry prepared for the latter rain.--3SM 385 (1886).  {LDE 179.2} 

The shaking of God blows away multitudes like dry leaves.--4T 89 (1876).  {LDE 180.1} 

Chaff like a cloud will be borne away on the wind, even from places where we see only floors of rich wheat.--5T 81 (1882).  {LDE 180.2} 

The church may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall. It remains, while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out--the chaff separated from the precious wheat. This is a terrible ordeal, but nevertheless it must take place.--2SM 380 (1886).  {LDE 180.5}
 
     As the storm approaches, a large class who have professed faith in the third angel's message, but have not been sanctified through obedience to the truth, abandon their position and join the ranks of the opposition.--GC 608 (1911).  {LDE 180.6} 


Proof the bad leave the Church! But of course the false prophet says that to read what Ellen White clearly says is an erroneous misinterpretation-- funny why do you need Ron Beaulieu to interpret Ellen White for us?


DT

 

Ron responds: I am not going to interpret these verses for you as DTsays I do. I am going to show you how crucial it is to follow the weight of evidence formula and let every word have its proper bearing and influence.  A very key word in “the church appears as about to fall” statement is Zion. It says sinners in Zion will be sifted out.

It is of serious importance that we understand how the Bible interprets the word Zion. So that is our first task.

 

Isaiah Chapter 62

 

1 For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.

2 And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name.

3 Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.

4 Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.

5 For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.

6 I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,

7 And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

8 The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:

9 But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.

10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.

11 Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

12 And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.

 

·       In verses 1-5, we find that Zion is married. She is the bride of Jesus Christ, the church triumphant.

·       Zion gets a new name—New Jerusalem, Revelation 3:10-12. (Philadelphia)

·       Zion has sons and daughters—Verses 5 and 11 respectively.

·       Zion prepares the way of the people—she casts up the highway and gathers out the stones; she lifts up a standard for the people. (True Reformers which we will prove below).

 

"Characteristics of True Reformers.--Here are given the characteristics of those who shall be reformers, who will bear the banner of the third angel's message, those who avow themselves God's commandment-keeping people, and who honor God, and are earnestly engaged, in the sight of all the universe, in building up the old waste places. Who is it that calls them, The repairers of the breach, The restorers of paths to dwell in? It is God. Their names are registered [written--Heb. 12:22, 23] in heaven as reformers, restorers, as raising the foundations of many generations." E. G. White, SDA Bible Commentary, Vol. 4, 1151.

 

Now let’s investigate more evidence about Zion from the Bible and Ellen White, so as to further identify Zion as the bride, the church triumphant, and not the church militant.

 

"To Meet the Bridegroom"

[This chapter is based on Matt. 25:1-13.]

Christ with His disciples is seated upon the Mount of Olives. The sun has set behind the mountains, and the heavens are curtained with the shades of evening. In full view is a dwelling house lighted up brilliantly as if for some festive scene. The light streams from the openings, and an expectant company wait around, indicating that a marriage procession is soon to appear. In many parts of the East, wedding festivities are held in the evening. The bridegroom goes forth to meet his bride and bring her to his home. By torchlight the bridal party proceed from her father's house to his own, where a feast is provided for the invited guests. In the scene upon which Christ looks, a company are awaiting the appearance of the bridal party, intending to join the procession.

 

Lingering near the bride's house are ten young women robed in white. Each carries a lighted lamp and a small flagon for oil. All are anxiously watching for the appearance

 

Page 406

of the bridegroom. But there is a delay. Hour after hour passes; the watchers become weary and fall asleep. At midnight the cry is heard, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him." The sleepers, suddenly awaking, spring to their feet. They see the procession moving on, bright with torches and glad with music. They hear the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride. The ten maidens seize their lamps and begin to trim them, in haste to go forth. But five have neglected to fill their flasks with oil. They did not anticipate so long a delay, and they have not prepared for the emergency. In distress they appeal to their wiser companions saying, "Give us of your oil; for our lamps are going out." (Margin.) But the waiting five, with their freshly trimmed lamps, have emptied their flagons. They have no oil to spare, and they answer, "Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves."

While they went to buy, the procession moved on, and left them behind. The five with lighted lamps joined the throng and entered the house with the bridal train, and the door was shut. When the foolish virgins reached the banqueting hall, they received an unexpected denial. The master of the feast declared, "I know you not." They were left standing without, in the empty street, in the blackness of the night.

As Christ sat looking upon the party that waited for the bridegroom, He told His disciples the story of the ten virgins, by their experience illustrating the experience of the church that shall live just before His second coming.

The two classes of watchers represent the two classes who profess to be waiting for their Lord. They are called virgins because they profess a pure faith. By the lamps is represented the word of God. The psalmist says, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto may path." Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 405-406.

 

Questions and Statements to Ponder:

 

·       By torchlight the Bridegroom leads the bride from her father’s home to the bridegroom’s home.

·       Where is the bride’s home? It is Jerusalem. (In our case spiritual Jerusalem).

·       Where is the bridegroom’s home? Answer: In the heavenly Sanctuary where the bride enters by faith. “They hated those who loved His appearing and shut them out of the churches. Those who rejected the first message could not be benefited by the second; neither were they benefited by the midnight cry, which was to prepare them to enter with Jesus by faith into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary. And by rejecting the two former messages, they have so darkened their understanding that they can see no light in the third angel’s message which shows the way into the most holy place.” Early Writings, pp. 260, 261.

·       The Philadelphia bride of Christ in 1844, was Ellen White and the reformers who were a group of fifty faithful souls (out of estimates as high as 120,000 professing souls before the disappointment) on the morning of October 22, 1844.

 

Zion (Sion) in Hebrews 12:22-25:  22But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

 23To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

 24And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

 25See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:

·       Zion is the firstborn, the firstfruits, the 144,000 barley bride. She is not wheat. The wise virgins, her sons and daughters, are wheat. The firstfruits early crop in Israel was barley.

·       The bride is awakened first by God. Then His voice with the voice of the bride, awakens the 10 virgins.

The bride is not the guests—the ten virgins, and the ten virgins are not the bride, to wit:

·       "The marriage represents the reception by Christ of His kingdom. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which is the capital and representative of the kingdom, is called 'the bride, the Lamb's wife.' Said the angel to John: 'Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.' 'He carried me away in the spirit,' says the prophet, 'and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.' Revelation 21:9, 10. Clearly, then, the bride represents the Holy City, and the virgins that go out to meet the bridegroom are a symbol of the church [militant]. In the Revelation the people of God are said to be the guests at the marriage supper. Revelation 19:9. If guests, they cannot be represented also as the bride...He will receive the New Jerusalem, the capital of His kingdom, 'prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.'" E. G. White, The Great Controversy,  426, 427.

·       The apostate new movement SDA church is claiming to be Zion, the bride of Christ, when she is merely a candidate for being either the wise and/or foolish virgins.

·       The bride is awakened and called by God to be True Reformers, who are the watchmen on the walls of Zion and Jerusalem.

·       The bride is the firstfruits, firstborn, and without guile—blameless, Revelation 14:1-4.

·       The voice of God and the voice of the bride awakens the 10 virgins with the Midnight Cry, just as they did in 1844.

·       Then there is a tarrying time during which the 10 virgins slumber and slept. Matthew 25 says they all slept.

 1Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

 2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.

 3They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with    them:

 4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

 5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

 6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Matthew 25:1-5.

·       The bride of all generations never sleeps day nor night. She is the faithful watchmen on the walls of Zion.

·       Are the watchmen on the walls of the SDA church faithful watchmen?  In 1844, the SDA church was called to be a chosen Zion bride for Christ. She was supposed to maintain faithful watchmen on the walls of that Zion. Let’s see if that church ends up as having faithful watchmen on its walls.  

"Jesus sends HIS PEOPLE a message of warning to prepare them for his coming. To the prophet John was made known the closing work in the great plan of man's redemption. He beheld an angel flying 'in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him for the hour of his Judgment is come and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters [Rev. 14:6, 7.].

The angel represented in prophecy as delivering this message,  symbolizes a class of faithful men, who, obedient to the promptings of God's Spirit and the teachings of his word, proclaim this warning to the inhabitants of earth. This message was not to be committed to the religious leaders of the people. They had failed to preserve their connection with God, and had REFUSED THE LIGHT FROM HEAVEN therefore they WERE NOT of the number described by the apostle Paul: 'But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day we are not of the night nor of darkness' [1 Thess. 5:4, 5]. 

The [once] watchmen upon the [once] walls of Zion should be the first to catch the tidings of the Saviour's advent, the first to lift their voices to proclaim him near, the first to warn the people to prepare for his coming. But they were at ease, dreaming of peace and safety, while the people were asleep in their sins. Jesus saw HIS CHURCH, like the barren fig-tree, covered with pretentious leaves, yet destitute of precious fruit. There was a boastful observance of the forms of religion, while the spirit of true humility, penitence and faith--which alone could render the service acceptable to God--was lacking. Instead of the graces of the Spirit, there were manifested pride, formalism, vainglory, selfishness, oppression. A BACKSLIDING CHURCH closed their eyes to the signs of the times. God did nor forsake them, or suffer his faithfulness to fail but they departed from him, and SEPARATED THEMSELVES from his love. As they REFUSED TO COMPLY WITH THE CONDITIONS, his promises were NOT FULFILLED to them."  E.G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy,  vol. 4, pp. 199-200 [The 1884 edition of The Great Controversy, 199, 200].

 

And that friends, is why a literal fulfillment of Ezekiel 9 begins at His Sanctuary, HIS CHURCH: 

 

"Study the 9th chapter of Ezekiel. These words will be literally fulfilled yet the time is passing, and the people are asleep. They refuse to humble their souls and to be converted. Not a great while longer will the Lord bear with the people who have such great and important truths revealed to them, but who refuse to bring these truths into their individual experience. The time is short. God is calling will YOU hear? Will YOU receive His message? Will YOU be converted before it is too late? Soon, very soon, every case will be decided for eternity. Letter 106, 1909, pp. 2, 3, 5, 7. (To "The churches in Oakland and Berkeley, September 26, 1909.)" E. G. White Manuscript Releases Volume One, p. 260.

 

“The time will soon come when the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 will be fulfilled; that prophecy should be carefully studied, for it will be fulfilled to the very letter.”— Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, p. 1303.

 

“The time will soon come when the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 will be fulfilled; that prophecy should be carefully studied, for it will be fulfilled to the very letter.”— Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, p. 1303.

 

The Signs of the Times, February 12, 1880:  “The desolation of Jerusalem stands as a solemn warning before the eyes of modern Israel.” 

 

“The desolation of Jerusalem in the days of Jeremiah is a solemn warning to modern Israel, that the counsels and admonitions given them through chosen instrumentalities cannot be disreDTded with impunity.”  Prophets and Kings, 416. 

 

The professing Seventh-day Adventist church today should be Zion, True Jerusalem, the church triumphant. It should not have fallen into lukewarm Laodiceanism, only then to fall into cold, abominable apostasy, for which abominations we are to sigh and cry as a condition for being sealed by Jesus, the Man in Linen.

 

The church that appears as about to fall but does not, is further defined by Ellen White in The Great Controversy, page 616, as the church triumphant when at the final death decree it is surrounded by Satan’s army and Jesus intervenes. Ellen White compares that church with Jacob’s experience when Jacob's company, unarmed and defenseless, seemed about to fall helpless victims of violence and slaughter. That, my friend, is when the church triumphant appears as about to fall, but does not! While the apostate church militant, apostate Zion and Jerusalem, does fall in a literal Ezekiel 9 destruction after the order of A.D. 70. Notice:

 

“The people of God will then be plunged into those scenes of affliction and distress described by the prophet as the time of Jacob's trouble. "Thus saith the Lord: We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. . . . All faces are turned into paleness. Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it." Jeremiah 30:5-7.

Jacob's night of anguish, when he wrestled in prayer for deliverance from the hand of Esau (Genesis 32:24-30), represents the experience of God's people in the time of trouble. Because of the deception practiced to secure his father's blessing, intended for Esau, Jacob had fled for his life, alarmed by his brother's deadly threats. After remaining for many years an exile, he had set out, at God's command, to return with his wives and children, his flocks and herds, to his native country. On reaching the borders of the land, he was filled with terror by the tidings of Esau's approach at the head of a band of warriors, doubtless bent upon revenge. Jacob's company, unarmed and defenseless, seemed about to fall helpless victims of violence and slaughter. And to the burden of anxiety and fear was added the crushing weight of self-reproach, for it was his own sin that had brought this danger. His only hope was in the mercy of God; his only defense must be prayer. Yet he leaves nothing undone on his own part to atone for the wrong to his brother and to avert the threatened danger. So should the followers of Christ, as they approach the time of trouble, make every exertion to place themselves in a proper light before the people, to disarm prejudice, and to avert the danger which threatens liberty of conscience.

Having sent his family away, that they may not witness his distress, Jacob remains alone to intercede with God. He

617

confesses his sin and gratefully acknowledges the mercy of God toward him while with deep humiliation he pleads the covenant made with his fathers and the promises to himself in the night vision at Bethel and in the land of his exile. The crisis in his life has come; everything is at stake. In the darkness and solitude he continues praying and humbling himself before God. Suddenly a hand is laid upon his shoulder. He thinks that an enemy is seeking his life, and with all the energy of despair he wrestles with his assailant. As the day begins to break, the stranger puts forth his superhuman power; at his touch the strong man seems paralyzed, and he falls, a helpless, weeping suppliant, upon the neck of his mysterious antagonist. Jacob knows now that it is the Angel of the covenant with whom he has been in conflict. Though disabled and suffering the keenest pain, he does not relinquish his purpose. Long has he endured perplexity, remorse, and trouble for his sin; now he must have the assurance that it is pardoned. The divine visitant seems about to depart; but Jacob clings to Him, pleading for a blessing. The Angel urges, "Let Me go, for the day breaketh;" but the patriarch exclaims, "I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me." What confidence, what firmness and perseverance, are here displayed! Had this been a boastful, presumptuous claim, Jacob would have been instantly destroyed; but his was the assurance of one who confesses his weakness and unworthiness, yet trusts the mercy of a covenant-keeping God.” The Great Controversy, p. 616.

So you can see that all DT’s quoted Ellen White statements, demand another meaning in light of what happens to the apostate SDA new movement that has removed God, 1SM 204-205. Let’s look at each statement. 

 

The Lord is soon to come. There must be a refining, winnowing process in every church, for there are among us wicked men who do not love the truth or honor God.--RH March 19, 1895.  {LDE 173.3}

 

Ron’s response: There is indeed going to be a refining, winnowing process in every denominational church in the land. For in all churches everywhere there are wicked men who do not love the truth or honor God and the faithful will be called out of all fallen churches, including the SDA church militant, after which Ezekiel 9 slaughter begins at its sanctuaries around the world.

 

Begin at My Sanctuary -- "Here we see that the church--the Lord's sanctuary--was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God. The ancient men [leaders], those to whom God had given great light and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust. They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God's power as in former days. Times have changed. These words strengthen their unbelief, and they say: The Lord will not do good, neither will He do evil. He is too merciful to visit His people in judgment. Thus 'Peace and safety" is the cry from men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God's people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. These dumb dogs that would not bark are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children all perish together." E. G. White, Testimonies, Vol. 5, 211.   
The great issue so near at hand [enforcement of Sunday laws] will weed out those whom God has not appointed and He will have a pure, true, sanctified ministry prepared for the latter rain.--3SM 385 (1886).  {LDE 179.2} 

Ron’s response: If the bad were weeded out of the apostate church, Ezekiel 9 destruction would not begin at the church--the Lord's sanctuary.

The shaking of God blows away multitudes like dry leaves.--4T 89 (1876).  {LDE 180.1} 

 

Ron’s response: The chaff is blown away from and by true Zion, the church triumphant, the church of the True Reformers, just as was the case with the disciples and their True Jerusalem, True Zion home churches. Remember: Ellen White said that sinners are shaken from Zion. Zion gives the shaking message that blows away multitudes like dry leaves, while the apostate SDA church militant goes along with Babylon’s Sunday law, to wit:

 

"The Lord has a controversy with His professed people in these last days. In this controversy men in responsible positions will take a course directly opposite to that pursued by Nehemiah.  They will not only ignore and despise the Sabbath themselves, but they will try to keep it from others by burying it beneath the rubbish of custom and tradition.  In churches and in large gatherings in the open air, ministers will urge upon the people the necessity of keeping the first day of the week.  There are calamities on sea and land: and these calamities will increase, one disaster following close upon another; and the little band of conscientious Sabbath-keepers will be pointed out as the ones who are bringing the wrath of God upon the world by their disreDTd of Sunday."  E.G. White, Review and Herald, March 18, 1884.

Chaff like a cloud will be borne away on the wind, even from places where we see only floors of rich wheat.--5T 81 (1882).  {LDE 180.2} 

The church may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall. It remains, while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out--the chaff separated from the precious wheat. This is a terrible ordeal, but nevertheless it must take place.--2SM 380 (1886).  {LDE 180.5}

 

Ron’s response: Chaff will be blown out of Zion by members of Zion just as the disciples separated the wheat from the chaff in the apostate Temple of Israel. I have shown from all the weight of evidence just which church appears as about to fall, but does not. That would be the true SDA church triumphant which is surrounded by the enemy at the final death decree but is delivered by the coming of Jesus.
 
     As the storm approaches, a large class who have professed faith in the third angel's message, but have not been sanctified through obedience to the truth, abandon their position and join the ranks of the opposition.--GC 608 (1911).  {LDE 180.6} 

Ron’s response: We have seen proof that the SDA new movement will abandon their position and instruct their members to keep Sunday. That apostate new movement has been instructing Russian parents to send their children to school on Sabbath for many decades now. Alf Lohne, a high place General Conference official in his day, tells all about this in his book on Russia. So we can no longer refer to that church as God’s commandment-KEEPING people.

If Ezekiel 9 is literal, as Ellen White prophesied, then its end-time fulfillment BEGINNING AT HIS SANCTUARY, HIS CHURCH, must involve a real actual church, just as it did in the historic fulfillment in the destruction of the Jewish Temple in A.D. 70, after which the Romans proceeded to destroy Jerusalem.

The words of Jesus to His disciples prophesying the destruction of the Temple were twofold (GC, p. 25). They prophesied the destruction of the Temple and the destruction of Jerusalem city proper symbolizing the destruction of the world at the end-time, but it all BEGAN AT HIS SANCTUARY, HIS CHURCH, THE TEMPLE. And so it must be in any future LITERAL FULFILLMENT.

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Ezekiel Chapter 10 is most instructive in the fact that the bad are removed by and from the church triumphant:

 

Ezekiel 20

 

 1And it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to enquire of the LORD, and sat before me.

 2Then came the word of the LORD unto me, saying,

 3Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Are ye come to enquire of me? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you.

 4Wilt thou judge them, son of man, wilt thou judge them? cause them to know the abominations of their fathers:

 5And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up mine hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up mine hand unto them, saying, I am the LORD your God;

 6In the day that I lifted up mine hand unto them, to bring them forth of the land of Egypt into a land that I had espied for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands:

 7Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

 8But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.

 9But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing them forth out of the land of Egypt.

 10Wherefore I caused them to go forth out of the land of Egypt, and brought them into the wilderness.

 11And I gave them my statutes, and shewed them my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them.

 12Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.

 13But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them.

 14But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, in whose sight I brought them out.

 15Yet also I lifted up my hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands;

 16Because they despised my judgments, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols.

 17Nevertheless mine eye spared them from destroying them, neither did I make an end of them in the wilderness.

 18But I said unto their children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the statutes of your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols:

 19I am the LORD your God; walk in my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them;

 20And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God.

 21Notwithstanding the children rebelled against me: they walked not in my statutes, neither kept my judgments to do them, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; they polluted my sabbaths: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the wilderness.

 22Nevertheless I withdrew mine hand, and wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted in the sight of the heathen, in whose sight I brought them forth.

 23I lifted up mine hand unto them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the heathen, and disperse them through the countries;

 24Because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, and had polluted my sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols.

 25Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live;

 26And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the LORD.

 27Therefore, son of man, speak unto the house of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Yet in this your fathers have blasphemed me, in that they have committed a trespass against me.

 28For when I had brought them into the land, for the which I lifted up mine hand to give it to them, then they saw every high hill, and all the thick trees, and they offered there their sacrifices, and there they presented the provocation of their offering: there also they made their sweet savour, and poured out there their drink offerings.

 29Then I said unto them, What is the high place whereunto ye go? And the name whereof is called Bamah unto this day.

 30Wherefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Are ye polluted after the manner of your fathers? and commit ye whoredom after their abominations?

 31For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you.

 32And that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all, that ye say, We will be as the heathen, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone.

 33As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you:

 34And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out.

 35And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face.

 36Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD.

 37And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant:

 38And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

 

Ron’s Commentary: This is exactly what happened when Jesus came and the disciples formed home churches. The disciples were first prepared by John the Baptist out in the wilderness. That was God CALLING and preparing His bride (Desire of Ages, 179). Then when Jesus came, He “gathered out” those (the disciples) who would give the gospel to the world. They in turn gathered out the faithful Christians, and thus the rebels were purged from the church triumphant—the bride of Christ—the disciples. So it will be and is now taking place with the bride of Jesus Christ—the true SDA church triumphant. This is just as Ellen White said: Sinners will be shaken out of Zion, not the once church militant that is now the Synagogue of Satan. Why is the once church militant no longer even a church? Because it “removed God,” (1SM 205), and only the presence of Christ can constitute a church, The Upward Look, 315.

 

 39As for you, O house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD; Go ye, serve ye every one his idols, and hereafter also, if ye will not hearken unto me: but pollute ye my holy name no more with your gifts, and with your idols.

 40For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, serve me: there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the firstfruits of your oblations, with all your holy things.

 41I will accept you with your sweet savour, when I bring you out from the people, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have been scattered; and I will be sanctified in you before the heathen.

 42And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall bring you into the land of Israel, into the country for the which I lifted up mine hand to give it to your fathers.

 43And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye have been defiled; and ye shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that ye have committed.

 44And ye shall know that I am the LORD when I have wrought with you for my name's sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.

 45Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

 46Son of man, set thy face toward the south, and drop thy word toward the south, and prophesy against the forest of the south field;

 47And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.

 48And all flesh shall see that I the LORD have kindled it: it shall not be quenched.

 49Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! they say of me, Doth he not speak parables?

 

rwb