EGW WritingsNumbers 14

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Ms 11, 1903

18LtMs, Ms 11, 1903, par. 7

God had showed His people what He would be to them and what He would do for them. He had destroyed their enemies before them. Nevertheless, when the spies returned from their search, they came with hearts filled with unbelief. They enlarged upon the difficulties and dangers before the Israelites should they undertake the conquest of Canaan. They saw that the cities were walled and very great, and the people who dwelt there were strong, and it would be impossible to conquer them. “And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.” [Numbers 14:1.] They gave way to cruel, wicked unbelief and cried and murmured and found fault. They accused not only Moses, but God Himself, of deception in promising them a land which they are not able to possess, and they went so far as to appoint a captain to lead them back to the land of their suffering and bondage, from which they had been delivered by the strong arm of Omnipotence.

18LtMs, Ms 11, 1903, par. 8

In their rebellion the people exclaimed, “Would God we had died in the wilderness.” [Verse 2.] Their prayer was granted. God declared that for forty years Israel was to wander in the wilderness, and that there all who had left Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, would die.

Conflict and Courage

Why Wait? April 11

CC 107.1

Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. Numbers 13:30.

CC 107.2

It was Caleb’s faith in God that gave him courage; that ... enabled him to stand boldly and unflinchingly in defense of the right. From the same exalted source, the mighty General of the armies of heaven, every true soldier of the cross of Christ must receive strength and courage to overcome obstacles that often seem insurmountable.... Those who would do their duty must be ever ready to speak the words that God gives them, and not the words of doubt, discouragement, and despair....

CC 107.3

While the doubting ones talk of impossibilities, while they tremble at the thought of high walls and strong giants, let the faithful Calebs, who have “another spirit,” come to the front. The truth of God, which bringeth salvation, will go forth to the people if ministers and professed believers will not hedge up its way, as did the unfaithful spies....

CC 107.4

Human agencies are to be employed in this work. Zeal and energy must be intensified; talents that are rusting from inaction must be pressed into service. The voice that would say, “Wait; do not allow yourself to have burdens imposed upon you,” is the voice of the cowardly spies. We want Calebs now who will press to the front—chieftains in Israel who with courageous words will make a strong report in favor of immediate action. When the selfish, ease-loving, panic-stricken people, fearing tall giants and inaccessible walls, clamor for retreat, let the voice of the Calebs be heard, even though the cowardly ones stand with stones in their hands, ready to beat them down for their faithful testimony.15Testimonies for the Church 5:378-383.

CC 107.5

It is when the unbelieving cast contempt upon the Word of God that the faithful Calebs are called for. It is then that they will stand firm at the post of duty, without parade, and without swerving because of reproach. The unbelieving spies stood ready to destroy Caleb. He saw the stones in the hands of those who had brought a false report, but this did not deter him; he had a message, and he would bear it. The same spirit will be manifested today by those who are true to God.16Selected Messages 2:369.

The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1

The Spirit of Prophecy

1SP 7.3

The manifestation of the spirit of prophecy was designed for all dispensations. The sacred record nowhere restricts it to any particular period of time, from the fall to the final restitution. The Bible recognizes its manifestation alike inthe patriarchal age, in the Jewish age, and in the Christian age. Through this medium God communed with holy men of old. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied; and so extensive was the range of his prophetic vision, and so minute, that he could look down over long ages, and describe the coming of the Lord, and the execution of the last judgment upon the ungodly. Jude, Verses 14, 15.

Manuscript Releases, vol. 15 [Nos. 1136-1185]

MR No. 1179—The Evil of Rebellion

15MR 290.1

What effect did this report upon the congregation? “And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would God we had died in this wilderness. And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt” [Numbers 14:1-4]. Let all read carefully the fourteenth chapter of Numbers, and let them understand that men can make false reports as did these who had been sent on an errand which concerned the movements of more than a million people.

15MR 290.2

“And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: and they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones” [verses 6-10].

15MR 291.1

But there is always a defense provided for those who have borne witness for the truth. What was it that saved the lives of Joshua and Caleb? “And the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke Me? and how long will it be ere they believe Me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they” [verses 10-12].

15MR 292.1

[Verses 13-19, quoted.] O Moses, thou man of mighty faith, privileged to plead in behalf of rebellious Israel in such wise and understanding words! Thou wouldest not receive inducing promises even from God, that He should let Israel alone to be destroyed, and His name be dishonored among the heathen nations. The promise of great honor Moses would not accept. And what saith the Lord? [Verses 20-24, quoted.]

15MR 292.2

And what about the men who had caused the Israelites to murmur? [Verses 26-34, quoted.]

15MR 292.3

The Lord promised the children of Israel: “Ye shall see the altering of my purpose” [Numbers 14:34]. Thus we see that the Lord’s promises are upon condition of obedience. He says, “Ye shall do My judgments, and keep Mine ordinances, to walk therein; I am the Lord your God. Ye shall therefore keep My statutes, and My judgments; which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the Lord” [Leviticus 18:4, 5]. Read the first chapter of Deuteronomy carefully, and see why the Lord refused to bring the adults of the army that left Egypt into the promised land. Also Deuteronomy 28.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Ms 10, 1903

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 7

“And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!” [Numbers 14:1, 2.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 9

After the children of Israel had begun to murmur, they began to question God’s wisdom. “Wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey?” they said. “Were it not better for us to return to Egypt?” [Verse 3.] So weak was their confidence in God, notwithstanding the miracles He had wrought in their behalf!

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 10

As the complaints of the people arose on every side, Caleb and Joshua attempted to quiet the tumult. “The land, which we passed through to search it is an exceeding good land,” they cried. “If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us; their defense is departed from them, and they are bread for us: fear them not.” [Verses 7-9.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 11

“But all the congregation bade stone them with stones.” They stood with stones in their hands, ready to throw at Caleb and Joshua as they stood in defense of the truth declaring that the Lord was with them and that with His strength they could go up and possess the land. In a few minutes these faithful men would have been killed. But “the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.” God was watching their plottings, and He delivered His servants from their hands. “And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke Me? and how long will it be ere they believe Me, for all the signs which I have showed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and make of thee a greater nation, and mightier than they.” [Verses 10-12.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 14

“And now I beseech Thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as Thou hast spoken, saying”—and then he repeated the Lord’s own words; and this it is our privilege also to do. We can cite His promises. “According as Thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation. Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people, according unto the greatness of Thy mercy, and as Thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now. And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word; but as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Because all those men which have seen My glory, and My miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted Me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to My voice; surely, they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked Me see it. ... Tomorrow turn ye you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.” [Verses 13-23, 25.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 20

“And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel which they murmur against me.” [Verses 26, 27.] Those who today murmur against God’s appointed agencies, weakening the confidence of the people in them, are doing the same work that the children of Israel did. The Lord hears every murmuring word. He hears every word that detracts from the influence of those whom He is using to proclaim the truth that is to prepare a people to stand in the last days.

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 21

“How long shall I bear with this evil congregation? ... Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do unto you: your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old, and upward, which have murmured against Me, doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware unto you to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.” [Verses 27-30.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 22

“And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know My breach of promise. I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against Me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the Lord. But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still. And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.” [Verses 33-39.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 26

God told the people that for forty years they were to wander in the wilderness. But they were determined to enter Canaan. “Lo, we be here,” they said, “and will go up unto the place which the Lord hath promised; for we have sinned.” [Numbers 14:40.]

18LtMs, Ms 10, 1903, par. 27

“And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword; because ye turned away from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you. But they presumed to go up to the hill top; nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites, which dwelt in that hill, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah.” [Verses 41-45.]

Patriarchs and Prophets

Chapter 34—The Twelve Spies

PP 387.1

Eleven days after leaving Mount Horeb the Hebrew host encamped at Kadesh, in the wilderness of Paran, which was not far from the borders of the Promised Land. Here it was proposed by the people that spies be sent up to survey the country. The matter was presented before the Lord by Moses, and permission was granted, with the direction that one of the rulers of each tribe should be selected for this purpose. The men were chosen as had been directed, and Moses bade them go and see the country, what it was, its situation and natural advantages; and the people that dwelt therein, whether they were strong or weak, few or many; also to observe the nature of the soil and its productiveness and to bring of the fruit of the land.

PP 387.2

They went, and surveyed the whole land, entering at the southern border and proceeding to the northern extremity. They returned after an absence of forty days. The people of Israel were cherishing high hopes and were waiting in eager expectancy. The news of the spies’ return was carried from tribe to tribe and was hailed with rejoicing. The people rushed out to meet the messengers, who had safely escaped the dangers of their perilous undertaking. The spies brought specimens of the fruit, showing the fertility of the soil. It was in the time of ripe grapes, and they brought a cluster of grapes so large that it was carried between two men. They also brought of the figs and pomegranates which grew there in abundance.

PP 387.3

The people rejoiced that they were to come into possession of so goodly a land, and they listened intently as the report was brought to Moses, that not a word should escape them. “We came unto the land whither thou sentest us,” the spies began, “and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.” The people were enthusiastic; they would eagerly obey the voice of the Lord, and go up at once to possess the land. But after describing the beauty and fertility of the land, all but two of the spies enlarged upon the difficulties and dangers that lay before the Israelites should they undertake the conquest of Canaan. They enumerated the powerful nations located in various parts of the country, and said that the cities were walled and very great, and the people who dwelt therein were strong, and it would be impossible to conquer them. They also stated that they had seen giants, the sons of Anak, there, and it was useless to think of possessing the land.

PP 388.1

Now the scene changed. Hope and courage gave place to cowardly despair, as the spies uttered the sentiments of their unbelieving hearts, which were filled with discouragement prompted by Satan. Their unbelief cast a gloomy shadow over the congregation, and the mighty power of God, so often manifested in behalf of the chosen nation, was forgotten. The people did not wait to reflect; they did not reason that He who had brought them thus far would certainly give them the land; they did not call to mind how wonderfully God had delivered them from their oppressors, cutting a path through the sea and destroying the pursuing hosts of Pharaoh. They left God out of the question, and acted as though they must depend solely on the power of arms.

PP 388.2

In their unbelief they limited the power of God and distrusted the hand that had hitherto safely guided them. And they repeated their former error of murmuring against Moses and Aaron. “This, then, is the end of our high hopes,” they said. “This is the land we have traveled all the way from Egypt to possess.” They accused their leaders of deceiving the people and bringing trouble upon Israel.

PP 388.3

The people were desperate in their disappointment and despair. A wail of agony arose and mingled with the confused murmur of voices. Caleb comprehended the situation, and, bold to stand in defense of the word of God, he did all in his power to counteract the evil influence of his unfaithful associates. For an instant the people were stilled to listen to his words of hope and courage respecting the goodly land. He did not contradict what had already been said; the walls were high and the Canaanites strong. But God had promised the land to Israel. “Let us go up at once and possess it,” urged Caleb; “for we are well able to overcome it.”

PP 388.4

But the ten, interrupting him, pictured the obstacles in darker colors than at first. “We be not able to go up against the people,“ they declared; “for they are stronger than we.... All the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”

PP 389.1

These men, having entered upon a wrong course, stubbornly set themselves against Caleb and Joshua, against Moses, and against God. Every advance step rendered them the more determined. They were resolved to discourage all effort to gain possession of Canaan. They distorted the truth in order to sustain their baleful influence. It “is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof,” they said. This was not only an evil report, but it was also a lying one. It was inconsistent with itself. The spies had declared the country to be fruitful and prosperous, and the people of giant stature, all of which would be impossible if the climate were so unhealthful that the land could be said to “eat up the inhabitants.” But when men yield their hearts to unbelief they place themselves under the control of Satan, and none can tell to what lengths he will lead them.

PP 389.2

“And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.” Revolt and open mutiny quickly followed; for Satan had full sway, and the people seemed bereft of reason. They cursed Moses and Aaron, forgetting that God hearkened to their wicked speeches, and that, enshrouded in the cloudy pillar, the Angel of His presence was witnessing their terrible outburst of wrath. In bitterness they cried out, “Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!” Then their feelings rose against God: “Wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” Thus they accused not only Moses, but God Himself, of deception, in promising them a land which they were not able to possess. And they went so far as to appoint a captain to lead them back to the land of their suffering and bondage, from which they had been delivered by the strong arm of Omnipotence.

PP 389.3

In humiliation and distress “Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel,” not knowing what to do to turn them from their rash and passionate purpose. Caleb and Joshua attempted to quiet the tumult. With their garments rent in token of grief and indignation, they rushed in among the people, and their ringing voices were heard above the tempest of lamentation and rebellious grief: “The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.”

PP 390.1

The Canaanites had filled up the measure of their iniquity, and the Lord would no longer bear with them. His protection being removed, they would be an easy prey. By the covenant of God the land was ensured to Israel. But the false report of the unfaithful spies was accepted, and through it the whole congregation were deluded. The traitors had done their work. If only the two men had brought the evil report, and all the ten had encouraged them to possess the land in the name of the Lord, they would still have taken the advice of the two in preference to the ten, because of their wicked unbelief. But there were only two advocating the right, while ten were on the side of rebellion.

PP 390.2

The unfaithful spies were loud in denunciation of Caleb and Joshua, and the cry was raised to stone them. The insane mob seized missiles with which to slay those faithful men. They rushed forward with yells of madness, when suddenly the stones dropped from their hands, a hush fell upon them, and they shook with fear. God had interposed to check their murderous design. The glory of His presence, like a flaming light, illuminated the tabernacle. All the people beheld the signal of the Lord. A mightier one than they had revealed Himself, and none dared continue their resistance. The spies who brought the evil report crouched terror-stricken, and with bated breath sought their tents.

PP 390.3

Moses now arose and entered the tabernacle. The Lord declared to him, “I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation.” But again Moses pleaded for his people. He could not consent to have them destroyed, and he himself made a mightier nation. Appealing to the mercy of God, he said: “I beseech Thee, let the power of my Lord be great according as Thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy.... Pardon, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Thy mercy, and as Thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

PP 391.1

The Lord promised to spare Israel from immediate destruction; but because of their unbelief and cowardice He could not manifest His power to subdue their enemies. Therefore in His mercy He bade them, as the only safe course, to turn back toward the Red Sea.

PP 391.2

In their rebellion the people had exclaimed, “Would God we had died in this wilderness!” Now this prayer was to be granted. The Lord declared: “As ye have spoken in Mine ears, so will I do to you: your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness, and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward.... But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.” And of Caleb He said, “My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed Me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.” As the spies had spent forty days in their journey, so the hosts of Israel were to wander in the wilderness forty years.

PP 391.3

When Moses made known to the people the divine decision, their rage was changed to mourning. They knew that their punishment was just. The ten unfaithful spies, divinely smitten by the plague, perished before the eyes of all Israel; and in their fate the people read their own doom.

PP 391.4

Now they seemed sincerely to repent of their sinful conduct; but they sorrowed because of the result of their evil course rather than from a sense of their ingratitude and disobedience. When they found that the Lord did not relent in His decree, their self-will again arose, and they declared that they would not return into the wilderness. In commanding them to retire from the land of their enemies, God tested their apparent submission and proved that it was not real. They knew that they had deeply sinned in allowing their rash feelings to control them and in seeking to slay the spies who had urged them to obey God; but they were only terrified to find that they had made a fearful mistake, the consequences of which would prove disastrous to themselves. Their hearts were unchanged, and they only needed an excuse to occasion a similar outbreak. This presented itself when Moses, by the authority of God, commanded them to go back into the wilderness.

PP 392.1

The decree that Israel was not to enter Canaan for forty years was a bitter disappointment to Moses and Aaron, Caleb and Joshua; yet without a murmur they accepted the divine decision. But those who had been complaining of God’s dealings with them, and declaring that they would return to Egypt, wept and mourned greatly when the blessings which they had despised were taken from them. They had complained at nothing, and now God gave them cause to weep. Had they mourned for their sin when it was faithfully laid before them, this sentence would not have been pronounced; but they mourned for the judgment; their sorrow was not repentance, and could not secure a reversing of their sentence.

PP 392.2

The night was spent in lamentation, but with the morning came a hope. They resolved to redeem their cowardice. When God had bidden them go up and take the land, they had refused; and now when He directed them to retreat they were equally rebellious. They determined to seize upon the land and possess it; it might be that God would accept their work and change His purpose toward them.

PP 392.3

God had made it their privilege and their duty to enter the land at the time of His appointment, but through their willful neglect that permission had been withdrawn. Satan had gained his object in preventing them from entering Canaan; and now he urged them on to do the very thing, in the face of the divine prohibition, which they had refused to do when God required it. Thus the great deceiver gained the victory by leading them to rebellion the second time. They had distrusted the power of God to work with their efforts in gaining possession of Canaan; yet now they presumed upon their own strength to accomplish the work independent of divine aid. “We have sinned against the Lord,” they cried; “we will go up and fight, according to all that the Lord our God commanded us.” Deuteronomy 1:41. So terribly blinded had they become by transgression. The Lord had never commanded them to “go up and fight.” It was not His purpose that they should gain the land by warfare, but by strict obedience to His commands.

PP 392.4

Though their hearts were unchanged, the people had been brought to confess the sinfulness and folly of their rebellion at the report of the spies. They now saw the value of the blessing which they had so rashly cast away. They confessed that it was their own unbelief which had shut them out from Canaan. “We have sinned,” they said, acknowledging that the fault was in themselves, and not in God, whom they had so wickedly charged with failing to fulfill His promises to them. Though their confession did not spring from true repentance, it served to vindicate the justice of God in His dealings with them.

PP 393.1

The Lord still works in a similar manner to glorify His name by bringing men to acknowledge His justice. When those who profess to love Him complain of His providence, despise His promises, and, yielding to temptation, unite with evil angels to defeat the purposes of God, the Lord often so overrules circumstances as to bring these persons where, though they may have no real repentance, they will be convinced of their sin and will be constrained to acknowledge the wickedness of their course and the justice and goodness of God in His dealings with them. It is thus that God sets counteragencies at work to make manifest the works of darkness. And though the spirit which prompted to the evil course is not radically changed, confessions are made that vindicate the honor of God and justify His faithful reprovers, who have been opposed and misrepresented. Thus it will be when the wrath of God shall be finally poured out. When “the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all,” He will also “convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds.” Jude 14, 15. Every sinner will be brought to see and acknowledge the justice of his condemnation.

PP 393.2

Regardless of the divine sentence, the Israelites prepared to undertake the conquest of Canaan. Equipped with armor and weapons of war, they were, in their own estimation, fully prepared for conflict; but they were sadly deficient in the sight of God and His sorrowful servants. When, nearly forty years later, the Lord directed Israel to go up and take Jericho, He promised to go with them. The ark containing His law was borne before their armies. His appointed leaders were to direct their movements, under the divine supervision. With such guidance, no harm could come to them. But now, contrary to the command of God and the solemn prohibition of their leaders, without the ark, and without Moses, they went out to meet the armies of the enemy.

PP 393.3

The trumpet sounded an alarm, and Moses hastened after them with the warning, “Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword.”

PP 394.1

The Canaanites had heard of the mysterious power that seemed to be guarding this people and of the wonders wrought in their behalf, and they now summoned a strong force to repel the invaders. The attacking army had no leader. No prayer was offered that God would give them the victory. They set forth with the desperate purpose to reverse their fate or to die in battle. Though untrained in war, they were a vast multitude of armed men, and they hoped by a sudden and fierce assault to bear down all opposition. They presumptuously challenged the foe that had not dared to attack them.

PP 394.2

The Canaanites had stationed themselves upon a rocky tableland reached only by difficult passes and a steep and dangerous ascent. The immense numbers of the Hebrews could only render their defeat more terrible. They slowly threaded the mountain paths, exposed to the deadly missiles of their enemies above. Massive rocks came thundering down, marking their path with the blood of the slain. Those who reached the summit, exhausted with their ascent, were fiercely repulsed, and driven back with great loss. The field of carnage was strewn with the bodies of the dead. The army of Israel was utterly defeated. Destruction and death was the result of that rebellious experiment.

PP 394.3

Forced to submission at last, the survivors “returned, and wept before the Lord;” but “the Lord would not hearken” to their voice. Deuteronomy 1:45. By their signal victory the enemies of Israel, who had before awaited with trembling the approach of that mighty host, were inspired with confidence to resist them. All the reports they had heard concerning the marvelous things that God had wrought for His people, they now regarded as false, and they felt that there was no cause for fear. That first defeat of Israel, by inspiring the Canaanites with courage and resolution, had greatly increased the difficulties of the conquest. Nothing remained for Israel but to fall back from the face of their victorious foes, into the wilderness, knowing that here must be the grave of a whole generation.

Selected Messages Book 3

Chapter 13—The Testimonies for the Church

3SM 95.1

Condensation of First Ten Testimony Pamphlets Republished in 1864—During the last nine years, from 1855 to 1864, I have written ten small pamphlets, entitled, Testimony for the Church, which have been published and circulated among Seventh-day Adventists. The first edition of most of these pamphlets being exhausted, and there being an increasing demand for them, it has been thought best to re-print them, as given in the following pages, omitting local and personal matters, and giving those portions only which are of practical and general interest and importance. Most of Testimony No. 4 may be found in the second volume of Spiritual Gifts, hence, it is omitted in this volume. [By popular demand the first ten were reprinted, in 1874, in full in book form, together with a reprinting of Numbers 11-20.—Compilers.]—Spiritual Gifts 4b:ii.

The Story of Redemption

Chapter 20—The Spies and Their Report

SR 158.1

The Lord commanded Moses to send men to search the land of Canaan, which He would give unto the children of Israel. A ruler of each tribe was to be selected for this purpose. They went and, after forty days, returned from their search, and came before Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of Israel, and showed them the fruit of the land. All agreed that it was a good land, and they exhibited the rich fruit which they had brought as evidence. One cluster of grapes was so large that two men carried it between them on a staff. They also brought of the figs and the pomegranates, which grew there in abundance.

SR 158.2

After they had spoken of the fertility of the land, all but two spoke very discouragingly of their being able to possess it. They said that the people were very strong that dwelt in the land, and the cities were surrounded with great and high walls; and, more than all this, they saw the children of the giant Anak there. They then described how the people were situated around Canaan, and the impossibility of their ever being able to possess it.

SR 158.3

As the people listened to this report they gave vent to their disappointment with bitter reproaches and wailing. They did not wait and reflect and reason that God, who had brought them out thus far, would certainly give them the land. But they yielded to discouragement at once. They limited the power of the Holy One and trusted not in God, who had hitherto led them. They reproached Moses and murmuringly said to one another, This, then, is the end of all our hopes. This is the land that we have been traveling from Egypt to obtain.

SR 159.1

Caleb and Joshua sought to obtain a hearing, but the people were so excited that they could not command themselves to listen to these two men. After they were calmed a little, Caleb ventured to speak. He said to the people, “Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.” But the men that went up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.” And they continued to repeat their evil report, and declared that all the men were of great stature. “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

SR 159.2

“And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.”

SR 160.1

The Israelites not only gave vent to their complaints against Moses but accused God Himself of dealing deceitfully with them by promising them a land which they were unable to possess. Their rebellious spirit here rose so high that, forgetful of the strong arm of Omnipotence which had brought them out of the land of Egypt and had thus far conducted them by a series of miracles, they resolved to choose a commander to lead them back to Egypt, where they had been slaves and had suffered so many hardships. They actually appointed them a captain, thus discarding Moses, their patient, suffering leader; and they murmured bitterly against God.

SR 160.2

Moses and Aaron fell upon their faces before the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of the congregation, to implore the mercy of God in favor of a rebellious people. But their distress and grief were too great for utterance. They remained upon their faces in utter silence. Caleb and Joshua rent their clothes as an expression of the greatest sorrow. “And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.”

SR 160.3

“Their defence is departed from them.” That is, the Canaanites had filled up the measure of their iniquity, and the divine protection was withdrawn from them, and they felt perfectly secure and were unprepared for battle; and, by the covenant of God, the land is ensured to us. Instead of these words having the designed effect upon the people, they increased their determined rebellion. They became in a rage and cried out with a loud and angry cry that Caleb and Joshua should be stoned, which would have been done had not the Lord interposed by a most signal display of His terrible glory in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.

SR 161.1

Moses went into the tabernacle to converse with God. “And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke Me? and how long will it be ere they believe Me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. And Moses said unto the Lord, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for Thou broughtest up this people in Thy might from among them;) and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that Thou Lord art among this people, that Thou Lord art seen face to face, and that Thy cloud standeth over them, and that Thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. Now if Thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of Thee will speak, saying, Because the Lord was not able to bring this people unto the land which He sware unto them, therefore He hath slain them in the wilderness.”

SR 161.2

Moses again refuses to have Israel destroyed and himself made a mightier nation than was Israel. This favored servant of God manifests his love for Israel and shows his zeal for the glory of his Maker and the honor of his people: As Thou hast forgiven this people from Egypt even until now, Thou hast been long-suffering and merciful hitherto toward this ungrateful people; however unworthy they may be, Thy mercy is the same. He pleads, Wilt Thou not, therefore, spare them this once, and add this one more instance of divine patience to the many Thou hast already given?

SR 162.1

“And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word: but as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Because all those men which have seen My glory, and My miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted Me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to My voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked Me see it: but My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed Me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.”

SR 162.2

The Lord bade the Hebrews return and go into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea. They were very near the good land, but, by their wicked rebellion, they forfeited the protection of God. Had they received the report of Caleb and Joshua, and gone immediately up, God would have given them the land of Canaan. But they were unbelieving and showed such an insolent spirit against God that they brought upon themselves the denunciation that they should never enter the Promised Land. It was in pity and mercy that God sent them back by the Red Sea, for the Amalekites and Canaanites, while they were delaying and murmuring, heard of the spies and prepared themselves to make war with the children of Israel.

SR 163.1

“And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against Me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against Me.” The Lord told Moses and Aaron to say to the people that He would do to them as they had spoken. They had said, “Would God we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!” Now God would take them at their word. He told His servants to say to them that they should fall in the wilderness, from twenty years old and upward, because of their rebellion and murmurings against the Lord. Only Caleb and Joshua should go unto the land of Canaan. “But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.”

SR 163.2

The Lord declared that the children of the Hebrews should wander in the wilderness forty years, reckoning from the time they left Egypt, because of the rebellion of their parents, until the parents should all die. Thus should they bear and suffer the consequence of their iniquity forty years, according to the number of days they were searching the land, a day for a year. “And ye shall know My breach of promise.” They should fully realize that it was the punishment for their idolatry and rebellious murmurings which had obliged the Lord to change His purpose concerning them. Caleb and Joshua were promised a reward in preference to all the host of Israel, because the latter had forfeited all claim to God’s favor and protection.

The Review and Herald

October 3, 1893

RH October 3, 1893, par. 6

Shall not these lessons be of profit to those who are tempted to criticise, think evil of, speak evil of, and judge and condemn those whom God is leading and favoring? And how much worse it is to criticise and give judgment against the church that God has chosen to magnify his name and vindicate his honor, than to speak simply against an individual member. (Read carefully the history of the spies in Numbers 13 and 14.) A ruler from each of the twelve tribes of Israel was chosen to go up and spy out the land into which they were to come. Forty days were consumed in fulfilling their charge. God sent them into the land for a special purpose, but the spies brought back an evil report, full of unbelief and complaint. Before the congregation they exaggerated the difficulties to be met. But Caleb’s clear, ringing voice was heard before Moses and the people, saying, “Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.” The exaggerated report of the unfaithful spies filled the people with discouragement, and they gave up in the abandonment of despair, and the leaven of murmuring spread throughout the camp of Israel. And they said one to another:

From Eternity Past

Chapter 34—Twelve Spies Survey Canaan

EP 270.1

The Hebrew host encamped at Kadesh, in the wilderness of Paran, which was not far from the borders of the Promised Land. Here it was proposed by the people that spies be sent up to survey the country. The matter was presented before the Lord by Moses, and permission was granted. The men were chosen and Moses bade them go and see the country and the people, whether they were strong or weak, few or many; also to observe the soil and its productiveness and to bring of the fruit of the land.

EP 270.2

They went, and surveyed the whole land, and returned after forty days. The news of the spies’ return was hailed with rejoicing. The people rushed out to meet the messengers, who had safely escaped the dangers of their perilous undertaking. The spies brought specimens of the fruit, showing the fertility of the soil. They brought a cluster of grapes so large that it was carried between two men. They also brought of the figs and pomegranates, which grew in abundance.

EP 270.3

The people listened intently as the report was brought to Moses. “We came unto the land whither thou sentest us,” the spies began, “and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.” The people were enthusiastic; they would eagerly obey the voice of the Lord and go up at once to possess the land.

EP 270.4

But all but two of the spies enlarged upon the dangers and uttered the sentiments of their unbelieving hearts, which were filled with discouragement prompted by Satan. Their unbelief cast a gloomy shadow over the congregation. The mighty power of God, so often manifested in behalf of the chosen nation, was forgotten. The people did not call to mind how wonderfully God had delivered them from their oppressors, cutting a path through the sea and destroying the pursuing hosts of Pharaoh. They left God out of the question, as though they must depend solely on the power of arms.

EP 271.1

In their unbelief they repeated their former error of murmuring against Moses and Aaron. “This, then, is the end of all our high hopes,” they said. They accused their leaders of deceiving the people and bringing trouble upon Israel.

EP 271.2

A wail of agony arose, mingled with the confused murmur of voices. Bold to stand in defense of the word of God, Caleb did all in his power to counteract the evil influence of his unfaithful associates. He did not contradict what had been said; the walls were high and the Canaanites strong. But God had promised the land to Israel. “Let us go up at once and possess it,” urged Caleb, “for we are well able to overcome it.”

EP 271.3

But the ten, interrupting him, pictured the obstacles. “We be not able to go up against the people,” they declared; “for they are stronger then we... . All the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”

EP 271.4

These men, having entered upon a wrong course, stubbornly set themselves against Caleb and Joshua, against Moses, and against God. They distorted the truth in order to sustain their baleful influence. “It is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof,” they said. This was not only an evil report; it was a lying one. The spies had declared the country to be fruitful, and the people of giant stature, which would be impossible if the climate were so unhealthful that the land could be said to “eat up the inhabitants.”

EP 272.1

Revolt and open mutiny quickly followed. The people seemed bereft of reason. They cursed Moses and Aaron, forgetting that enshrouded in the cloudy pillar, the Angel of His presence was witnessing their terrible outburst of wrath. Then their feelings rose against God: “Wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” Thus they accused not only Moses but God Himself, of deception, in promising them a land they were not able to possess.

EP 272.2

Caleb and Joshua attempted to quiet the tumult. They rushed in among the people, and their ringing voices were heard above the tempest of rebellious grief: “If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them and the Lord is with us: fear them not.”

EP 272.3

By the covenant of God, the land was ensured to Israel. But the false report of the unfaithful spies was accepted. The whole congregation were deluded. The traitors had done their work. If only the two men had brought the evil report and all the ten had encouraged them to possess the land in the name of the Lord, they would still have taken the advice of the two in preference to the ten, because of their wicked unbelief.

EP 272.4

The cry was raised to stone Caleb and Joshua. The insane mob rushed forward with yells of madness, when suddenly the stones dropped from their hands, and they shook with fear. God interposed. The glory of His presence, like a flaming light, illuminated the tabernacle. None dared continue their resistance. The spies who brought the evil report crouched terror-stricken and sought their tents.

EP 272.5

Moses now arose and entered the tabernacle. The Lord declared to him, “I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation.” But again Moses pleaded for his people. “I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as Thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy... . Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of Thy mercy, and as Thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

EP 273.1

The Lord promised to spare Israel from immediate destruction; but because of their unbelief and cowardice He could not manifest His power to subdue their enemies. Therefore in His mercy He bade them turn back toward the Red Sea.

EP 273.2

In their rebellion the people had exclaimed, “Would God we had died in this wilderness!” Now this prayer was to be granted: “As ye have spoken in Mine ears, so will I do to you: your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward... . But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.” And of Caleb He said, “My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed Me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.” As the spies had spent forty days in their journey, so the hosts of Israel were to wander in the wilderness forty years.

EP 273.3

When Moses made known to the people the divine decision, they knew that their punishment was just. The ten unfaithful spies, divinely smitten by the plague, perished before the eyes of all Israel; and in their fate the people read their own doom.

EP 273.4

Now they seemed sincerely to repent; but they sorrowed because of the result of their evil course rather than from a sense of their ingratitude and disobedience. When they found that the Lord did not relent in His decree, their self-will again arose and they declared that they would not return into the wilderness. God tested their apparent submission and proved it was not real. Their hearts were unchanged, and they only needed an excuse to occasion a similar outbreak. Had they mourned for their sin when it was faithfully laid before them this sentence would not have been pronounced; but they mourned for the judgment. Their sorrow was not repentance and could not secure a reversing of their sentence.

EP 274.1

That night was spent in lamentation, but with the morning they resolved to redeem their cowardice. When God had bidden them go up and take the land, they had refused; and now when He directed them to retreat, they were equally rebellious.

EP 274.3

“We have sinned,” they confessed, acknowledging that the fault was in themselves and not in God, whom they had wickedly charged with failing to fulfill His promises. Though their confession did not spring from true repentance, it served to vindicate the justice of God.

EP 274.4

The Lord still works in a similar manner to glorify His name by bringing men to acknowledge His justice. God sets counteragencies at work to make manifest the works of darkness. Though the spirit which prompted to evil is not radically changed, confessions are made that vindicate the honor of God and justify His faithful reprovers who have been opposed and misrepresented. Thus it will be when the wrath of God shall be finally poured out. Every sinner will be brought to see and acknowledge the justice of his condemnation.

EP 275.1

Regardless of the divine sentence, the Israelites prepared to undertake the conquest of Canaan. They were, in their own estimation, fully prepared for conflict. Contrary to the command of God and the solemn prohibition of their leaders, they went out to meet the armies of the enemy.

EP 275.2

Moses hastened after them with the warning, “Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.”

EP 275.3

The Canaanites had heard of the mysterious power that seemed to be guarding this people, and they now summoned a strong force to repel the invaders. The attacking army had no leader. No prayer was offered that God would give them the victory. Though untrained in war, they hoped by a fierce assault to bear down all opposition. They presumptuously challenged the foe that had not dared to attack them.

EP 275.4

The Canaanites had stationed themselves upon a rocky tableland reached only by a steep and dangerous ascent. The immense numbers of the Hebrews could only render their defeat more terrible. Massive rocks came thundering down, marking their path with the blood of the slain. Those who reached the summit, exhausted with their ascent, were fiercely repulsed and driven back with great loss. The army of Israel was utterly defeated.

EP 275.5

The enemies of Israel, who had awaited with trembling the approach of that mighty host, were inspired with confidence to resist them. All the reports they had heard concerning the marvelous things that God had wrought for His people, they now regarded as false; there was no cause for fear. That first defeat of Israel, by inspiring the Canaanites with courage and resolution, had greatly increased the difficulties of the conquest.

EP 276.1

Nothing remained for Israel but to fall back from the face of their victorious foes, into the wilderness, knowing that here must be the grave of a whole generation.

From Eternity Past

An Example of False Repentance

EP 274.2

God had made it their privilege and duty to enter the land at the time of His appointment, but through their willful neglect that permission had been withdrawn. Satan now urged them on to do the very thing in the face of divine prohibition which they had refused to do when God required it, leading them to rebel the second time. “We have sinned against the Lord,” they cried. “We will go up and fight, according to all that the Lord our God commanded us.” Deuteronomy 1:41. So terribly blinded had they become! The Lord had never commanded them to “go up and fight.” It was not His purpose that they should gain the land by warfare, but by strict obedience to His commands.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 106, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 11

What effect did this report have upon the congregation? “And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried: and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” [Numbers 14:1-4.] Let all read carefully the fourteenth chapter of Numbers, and let them understand that men can make false reports as did these who had been sent on an errand which concerned the movements of more than a million of people.

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 12

“And Joshua the sun of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes; and they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us; fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones.” [Verses 6-10.]

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 14

But there is always a defense provided for those who have borne witness for the truth. What was it that saved the lives of Joshua and Caleb? “And the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? And how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation, and mightier than they.” [Verses 10-12.]

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 16

The Lord had worked wondrously for them, yet they were ever ready to turn away from them and follow the suggestions of Satan. But they were passing the boundary of God’s forbearance and patience. He declared, “I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.” [Verse 12.]

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 18

“And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken saying, The Lord is longsuffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. Pardon, I beseech, thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people from Egypt even until now.” [Verses 13-19.]

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 19

O Moses, thou man of mighty faith, privileged to plead in behalf of rebellious Israel in such wise and understanding words! Thou wouldst not receive inducing promises even from God, that He should let Israel alone to be destroyed and His name be dishonored among the heathen nations. The promise of great honor Moses would not accept. And what saith the Lord? “And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word. But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Because all those men that have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked them see it. But my servant Caleb, because he hath another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereunto he went; and his seed shall possess it.” [Verses 20-24.]

12LtMs, Lt 106, 1897, par. 20

And what about the men who had caused the Israelites to murmur? “And the Lord spake unto Moses and to Aaron saying, ... Say unto them, As truly as I live saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you; your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me, doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said would be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. But as for you, your carcasses, they shall fall in the wilderness. And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.” [Verses 26, 28-34.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Lt 100, 1899

14LtMs, Lt 100, 1899, par. 2

When the children of Israel were encamped on the other side of the Jordan, “the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children the children of Israel.” [Numbers 13:1, 2.] Read this history, contained in the thirteenth and fourteenth chapters of Numbers. When the evil report brought back by the spies was received, God was displeased, and declared His determination concerning the people. For forty years they were to wander in the wilderness. After He had said this, the people decided to go up. But the favorable time had passed. The news of their coming had been circulated, and their enemies were prepared to resist them. And Moses said, “Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.” [Numbers 14:42.] But they presumptuously went to the hilltop to be defeated by their enemies.

Manuscript Releases, vol. 13 [Nos. 1000-1080]

Lessons From Israel

13MR 186.1

They had reached the river Jordan, and spies were sent to view the land of Canaan. Under the working of [Satan] the wily foe, ten of these brought back an evil report, and when the people heard it, “they murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt” [Numbers 14:2-4]. For this rebellion and perversity the Lord declared that for 40 years they were to wander in the wilderness.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 91, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 91, 1899, par. 25

They had reached the river Jordan, and spies were sent to view the land of Canaan. Under the working of the wily foe, ten of these brought back an evil report, and when the people heard it, “they murmured against Moses and against Aaron and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” [Numbers 14:2-4.] For this rebellion and perversity the Lord declared that for 40 years they were to wander in the wilderness.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Lt 39, 1899

14LtMs, Lt 39, 1899, par. 4

This report created the sin of apostasy. “All the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron.” Their disappointment was so great that they said, “Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!” They had their wish. God took them at their word. “Wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land,” they said, “to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” [Numbers 14:2-4.]

14LtMs, Lt 39, 1899, par. 5

Cut to the heart by this rebellion, Moses and Aaron fell upon their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel, and rent their clothes with horror as they heard the voices of apostasy and rebellion. Caleb and Joshua pressed themselves forward, and again the clear, ringing voice of Caleb was heard: “The land which we passed through to search it is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us in to this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones.” Their voices would soon have been hushed in death had not the Lord interposed. “The glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation.” [Verses 7-10.] This was a manifestation that the children of Israel well knew could not be resisted. This was an authority they were bound to obey.

14LtMs, Lt 39, 1899, par. 7

This history was recorded for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Here is seen a determination to disregard the will of God. In their unbelief the people refused to go up to take the land. When they found that because of unbelief they must wander in the wilderness for another forty years, they said, We will go up now. But Moses told them they had no permission to go up. If they had gone when the Lord said, Go, the armies of the Lord’s host would have gone with them, but because of their rebellion and delay the Lord refused to give them victory. But the people said, We will go up; we will not wander in this wilderness any longer. And Moses said, “Go not up, for the Lord is not among you, that ye be not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword; because ye are turned away from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you. But they presumed to go up unto the hilltop: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah.” [Verses 42-45.]

14LtMs, Lt 39, 1899, par. 13

The Lord has given His people great light and precious instruction. What sorrow, what shame, what agony of soul, has been felt by God’s faithful servants who have stood as did Joshua and Caleb to hear Israel cast off their leader, and choose one of their rebellious number to lead them back to Egypt. In their complaints the Israelites blasphemed God. God had signified that the defense of the land of Canaan had departed, and that now was the opportune time for them to enter it. Caleb declared the truth for that and every time: “The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us, a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle before all the congregation of Israel.” [Numbers 14:7-10.] The manifestation of the Lord’s glory was needed to quell the mad and blasphemous utterances of the people, and to save the lives of His servants from the maddened throng.

14LtMs, Lt 39, 1899, par. 20

It was God’s purpose to destroy the children of Israel because of their rebellion. But Moses would not give Israel up. He said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou, Lord are among this people, that thou, Lord, art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by daytime in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.” [Numbers 14:13, 14.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Ms 69, 1912

25LtMs, Ms 69, 1912, par. 10

Moses, the servant of God, was wearied and perplexed by the continual murmuring of the Israelites. At times his life was in danger. At one time in particular, because their appetite was restricted, they went so far in rebellion that they said, “Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” Numbers 14:4. In order to quiet their rebellion, God was obliged to slay many of them.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 7 (1891-1892)

Ms 6, 1892

7LtMs, Ms 6, 1892, par. 39

This was the language of faith; but the men who had spoken discouragingly were not to be baffled in their attempts to prevent the people from going forward in doing the word of the Lord. They tried to cry down the voice of Caleb, saying, “We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.” [Verse 31.] And they exaggerated the difficulties until all the congregation were crazed with discouragement and fear. The people wept all night, and murmured against the very men in whom they should have had confidence. Then in their exasperation they cast reflections upon God, wishing that they had died in Egypt or in the wilderness; they planned rebellion, proposing to thrust aside their God-appointed leaders. “Let us make a captain,” they said, “and let us return into Egypt.” [Numbers 14:4.]

7LtMs, Ms 6, 1892, par. 40

What sorrow can be brought upon the ones whose hearts are in the work by those who are unconsecrated, stubborn, and rebellious. Amid all the lamentations and bitterness of feeling, Caleb and Joshua spoke to the congregation, “The land which we passed through to search it is an exceeding good land.” See Numbers 14:8-10. But the people wished to believe the worst, and while the ringing voice of Caleb was heard above the tumult, they stood with stones in their hands to batter down the men who bore the right testimony. Then “the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.” See Numbers 14:11, 12.

Gospel Workers (1892/1893 ed.)

Christ’s Followers the Light of the World

GW92 436.1

Those who talk unbelief may have a little enthusiasm when the sky is bright, and everything encouraging; but when the battle goes hard, when we have to hope against hope, and urge our petitions to the throne of grace through deep darkness, then the unbelieving ones will not talk of the good land of Canaan, but will make prominent the dangers to be encountered. They will dwell on the strong walls, and the giants we shall meet, when the language of faithful Caleb should be heard: “The land ... is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us.” [Numbers 14:7, 8.]

Sermons and Talks, vol. 2

Manuscript 3, 1890

2SAT 77.6

Let your voice be heard echoing the words of faithful Caleb concerning the land of promise: “Let us go up at once and possess it.” Caleb and Joshua “spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land that floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not” [Numbers 14:7-9]. This is the spirit that dwelt in Caleb and Joshua.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 6 (1889-1890)

Ms 3, 1890

6LtMs, Ms 3, 1890, par. 26

If you open your minds and hearts to the insinuations and suggestions of Satan, you will be led to act a part similar to that of the unfaithful spies. Instead of trusting in God to bring victory, instead of inspiring hearts with firm faith in the leadings of His Spirit, you will talk and act as did the spies. Can you afford to do this? No, no. Let your voice be heard echoing the words of faithful Caleb concerning the land of promise: “Let us go up at once and possess it.” [Numbers 13:30.] Caleb and Joshua “spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land which we passed through to search it is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land that floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us; their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us, fear them not.” [Numbers 14:7-9.] This is the spirit that dwelt in Caleb and Joshua.

Loma Linda Messages

A Message for Our Time on Medical Missionary Work

LLM 473.7

Shall we not at this time study most carefully the light that has been given upon this important subject that we may understand the mind of the Lord and be able to cooperate in His plan. Is it not time to put away our unbelief and go up and possess the goodly land? If the Lord delight in us, then He will bring us into this land. Numbers 14:8.

The Paulson Collection of Ellen G. White Letters

Unity and Humility Among the Workers

PC 142.2

This was the language of faith; but the men who had spoken discouragingly were not to be baffled in their attempts to prevent the people from going forward in doing the word of the Lord. They tried to cry down the voice of Caleb, saying, “We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.” And they exaggerated the difficulties until all the congregation were crazed with discouragement and fear. The people wept all night, and murmured against the very men in whom they should have had confidence. Then in their exasperation they cast reflections upon God, wishing that they had died in Egypt or in the wilderness; they planned rebellion, proposing to thrust aside their God-appointed leaders. “Let us make a captain,” they said, “and let us return into Egypt.” What sorrow can be brought upon the ones whose hearts are in the work, by those who are unconsecrated, stubborn, and rebellious. Amid all the lamentations and bitterness of feeling, Caleb and Joshua spoke to the congregation, “The land which we passed through to search it is an exceeding good land.” (See Numbers 14:8-10) but the people wished to believe the worst, and while the ringing voice of Caleb was heard above the tumult they stood with stones in their hands to batter down the men who bore the right testimony. Then “the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before the children of Israel. (See Nos. 14:1, 12)

A Sketch of the Christian Experience and Views of Ellen G. White

To the Remnant scattered Abroad

ExV 9.4

As God has shown me the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

Early Writings

My First Vision

EW 13.3

As God has shown me the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, will work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report. (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

To the Little Remnant Scattered Abroad

April 6, 1846

Broadside1 April 6, 1846, par. 1

As God has shown me in holy vision the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

The Day-Star

January 24, 1846

DS January 24, 1846, par. 1

As God has shown me in holy vision the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions which are but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, & a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brother in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it. While praying at the family*The original publication had the spelling “famly.” altar the Holy Ghost fell on me and I seemed to be rising higher and higher, far above the dark world. I turned to look for the Advent people in the world, but could not find them, when a voice said to me, Look again, and look a little higher. At this, I raised my eyes and see a strait and narrow path, cast up high above the world. On this path the Advent people were traveling to the City, which was at the farther end of the path. They had a bright light set up behind them at the first end of the path, which an angel told me was the Midnight Cry. This light shone all along the path and gave light for their feet so they might not stumble. And if they kept their eyes fixed on Jesus, who was just before them, leading them to the City, they were safe. But soon some grew weary, and said the City was a great way off, and they expected to have entered it before. Then Jesus would encourage them by raising his glorious right arm, and from his arm came a glorious light which waved over the Advent band, and they shouted, Hallelujah! Others rashly denied the light behind them, and said that it was not God that had led them out so far. The light behind them went out which left their feet in perfect darkness, and they stumbled and got their eyes off the mark and lost sight of Jesus, and fell off the path down in the dark and wicked world below. It was just as impossible for them to get on the path again & go to the City, as all the wicked world which God had rejected. They fell all the way along the path one after another, until we heard the voice of God like many waters, which gave us the day and hour of Jesus’ coming. The living saints, 144,000, in number, know and understand the voice, while the wicked thought it was thunder & an earthquake. When God spake the time, he poured on us the Holy Ghost, and our faces began to light up and shine with the glory of God as Moses did when he came down from Mount Sinai, (Exodus 34:30-34.) By this time the 144,000 were all sealed and perfectly united. On their foreheads was written, God, New Jerusalem, and a glorious Star containing Jesus’ new name. At our happy, holy state the wicked were enraged, and would rush violently up to lay hands on us to thrust us in prison, when we would stretch forth the hand in the name of the Lord, and the wicked would fall helpless to the ground. Then it was that the synagogue of Satan knew that God had loved us who could wash one another’s feet, and salute the holy brethren with a holy kiss, and they worshipped at our feet. Soon our eyes were drawn to the East, for a small black cloud had appeared about half as large as a man’s hand, which we all knew was the Sign of the Son of Man. We all in solemn silence gazed on the cloud as it drew nearer, lighter, and brighter, glorious, and still more glorious, till it was a great white cloud. The bottom appeared like fire, a rainbow was over it, around the cloud were ten thousand angels singing a most lovely song. And on it sat the Son of Man, on his head were crowns, his hair was white and curly and lay on his shoulders. His feet had the appearance of fire, in his right hand was a sharp sickle, in his left a silver trumpet. His eyes were as a flame of fire, which searched his children through and through. Then all faces gathered paleness, and those that God had rejected gathered blackness. Then we all cried out, who shall be able to stand? Is my robe spotless? Then the angels ceased to sing, and there was some time of awful silence, when Jesus spoke, Those who have clean hands and a pure heart shall be able to stand, my grace is sufficient for you. At this, our faces lighted up, and joy filled every heart. And the angels struck a note higher and sung again while the cloud drew still nearer the earth. Then Jesus’ silver trumpet sounded, as he descended on the cloud, wrapped in flames of fire. He gazed on the graves of the sleeping saints then raised his eyes and hands to heaven & cried out, Awake! Awake! Awake! ye that sleep in the dust, and arise. Then there was a mighty earthquake. The graves opened, and the dead came up clothed with immortality. The 144,000 shouted, Hallelujah! as they recognized their friends who had been torn from them by death, and in the same moment we were changed and caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air. We all entered the cloud together, and were 7 days ascending to the sea of glass, when Jesus brought along the crowns and with his own right hand placed them on our heads. He gave us harps of gold and palms of victory. Here on the sea of glass the 144,000 stood in a perfect square. Some of them had very bright crowns, others not so bright. Some crowns appeared hung [heavy] with stars, while others had but few. All were perfectly satisfied with their crowns. And they were all clothed with a glorious white mantle from their shoulders to their feet. Angels were all about us as we marched over the sea of glass to the gate of the City. Jesus raised his mighty glorious arm, laid hold of the gate and swung it back on its golden hinges, and said to us, You have washed your robes in my blood, stood stiffly for my truth, enter in. We all marched in and felt we had a perfect right in the City. Here we see [saw] the tree of life, & the throne of God. Out of the throne came a pure river of water, and on either side of the river was the tree of life. On one side of the river was a trunk of a tree and a trunk on the other side of the river, both of pure transparent gold. At first I thought I see [saw] two trees. I looked again and see [saw] they were united at the top in one tree. So it was the tree of life on either side of the river of life. Its branches bowed to the place where we stood. And the fruit was glorious, which looked like gold mixed with silver. We all went under the tree, and sat down to look at the glory of the place, when Bro. Fitch, and Stockman, who had preached the gospel of the kingdom, whom God had laid in the grave to save them, came up to us and asked us what we had passed through while they were sleeping. We tried to call up our greatest trials, but they looked so small compared with the far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory that surrounded us, that we could not speak them out, and we all cried out Hallelujah, heaven is cheap enough, and we touched our glorious harps and made heaven’s arches ring. And as we were gazing at the glories of the place, our eyes were attracted upwards to something that had the appearance of silver. I asked Jesus to let me see what was within there. In a moment we were winging our way upward and entering in. Here we saw good old father Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Noah, Daniel, and many like them. And I saw a veil with a heavy fringe of silver, and gold as a border on the bottom. It was very beautiful. I asked Jesus what was within the veil. He raised it with his own right arm, and bade me take heed. I saw there a glorious ark, overlaid with pure gold, and it had a glorious border resembling Jesus’ crowns. On it were two bright angels; their wings were spread over the ark as they sat on each end, with their faces turned towards each other and looking downward. In the ark, beneath where the angels wings were spread, was a golden pot of Manna of a yellowish cast, and I saw a rod, which Jesus said was Aaron’s†The original publication had the spelling “Aarons.”, I saw it bud, blossom, and bear fruit.—And I saw two long golden rods on which hung silver wires, and on the wires most glorious grapes. One cluster was more than a man here can carry. And I saw Jesus step up and take of the manna, almonds, grapes, and pomegranates, and bear them down to the city, and place them on the supper table. I stepped‡The original publication had the spelling “steped.” up to see how much was taken away, and there was just as much left, and we shouted Hallelujah. Amen. We all descended from this place down into the city, and with Jesus at our head we all descended from the city down to this earth, on a great and mighty mountain, which could not bear Jesus up, and it parted asunder, and there was a mighty plain. Then we looked up and saw the great city with twelve foundations, twelve gates, three on each side, and an angel at each gate, and all cried out the city, the great city, it’s coming, it’s coming down from God, out of heaven, and it came and settled on the place where we stood. Then we began to look at the glorious things outside of the city. There I saw most glorious houses, that had the appearance of silver, supported by four pillars, set with pearls most glorious to behold, which were to be inhabited by the saints. In them was a golden shelf, I saw many of the saints go into the houses, take off their glittering crowns and lay them on the shelf, then go out into the field by the houses to do something with the earth, not as we have to do with the earth here; no, no. A glorious light shone all about their heads, and they were continually shouting and offering praises to God. And I saw another field full of all kinds of flowers, and as I plucked them, I cried out, well they will never fade. Next I saw a field of tall grass, most glorious to behold. It was living green, and had a reflection of silver and gold as it waved proudly to the glory of King Jesus. Then we entered a field full of all kinds of beasts; the lion, the lamb, the leopard and the wolf, altogether in perfect union. We passed through the midst of them, and they followed on peaceably after. Then we entered a wood, not like the dark woods we have here, no, no; but light, and all over glorious. The branches of the trees waved to and fro, and we all cried out, we will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in this woods. We passed through the wood, for we were on our way to Mount Zion, as we were traveling along we met a company who were also gazing at the glories of the place: I noticed red as a border on their garments. Their crowns were brilliant—their robes were pure white. As we greeted them, I asked Jesus who they were? He said they were martyrs that had been slain for him. With them was an innumerable company of little ones, they had a hem of red on their garments also. Mount Zion was just before us, and on the Mount sat a glorious temple, and about it were seven other mountains, on which grew roses and lilies, and I saw the little ones climb, or if they chose use their little wings and fly to the top of the mountains, and pluck the never fading flowers. There were all kinds of trees around the temple to beautify the place. The box, the pine, the fir, the oil, the myrtle, the pomegranate§The original publication had the spelling “pomegranet.” and the fig tree, bowed down with the weight of its timely figs that made the place look all over glorious. And as we were about to enter the holy temple, Jesus raised his lovely voice and said, only the 144,000 enter this place, and we shouted Hallelujah. Well bless the Lord, Bro. Jacobs, it is an extra meeting for those who have the seal of the living God. This temple was supported by seven pillars, all of transparent gold, set with pearls most glorious. The glorious things I saw there, I cannot begin to describe. O, that I could talk in the language of Canaan, then could I tell a little of the glory of the upper world; but if faithful you soon will know all about it. I saw there the tables of stone in which the names of the 144,000, were engraved in letters of gold.—After we had beheld the glory of the temple, we went out. Then Jesus left us and went to the city. Soon we heard his lovely voice again, saying: Come my people; you have come out of great tribulation, and done my will, suffered for me; come in to supper, for I will gird myself, and serve you. We shouted Hallelujah, glory, and entered into the city, and I saw a table of pure silver, it was many miles in length, yet our eyes could extend over it. And I saw the fruit of the tree of life, the manna, almonds, figs, pomegranates‖The original publication had the spelling “pomegranets.”, grapes, and many other kinds of fruit. We all reclined at the table. I asked Jesus to let me eat of the fruit. He said, not now. Those who eat of the fruit of this land, go back to earth no more. But in a little while if faithful, you shall both eat of the fruit of the tree of life, and drink of the water of the fountain, and he said, you must go back to the earth again, and relate to others, what I have revealed to you. Then an angel bore me gently down to this dark world. Sometimes I think I cannot stay here any longer, all things of earth look so dreary. I feel very lonely here, for I have seen a better land. O, that I had wings like a dove, then would I fly away, and be at rest.
Ellen G. Harmon.
N.B. This was not written for publication; but for the encouragement of all who may see it, and be encouraged by it.

Ellen G. White: The Early Years: 1827-1862 (vol. 1)

Ellen Harmon Given a Vision—Her First

1BIO 56.4

I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report (Numbers 14:10). But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.—Experience and Views, pp. 9, 10.

The Review and Herald

July 21, 1851

RH July 21, 1851, par. 1

As God has shown me the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

A Word to the Little Flock

To the Remnant Scattered Abroad

WLF 14.1

As God has shown me in holy vision the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Numbers 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

The Ellen G. White Letters and Manuscripts: Volume 1

Lt 1, 1845

As God has shown me in holy vision the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding,4

Although the important concept of “the return of their Lord from the wedding” is inserted here, it does not actually form part of the December 1844 vision, but is part of Ellen Harmon’s introductory remarks to Enoch Jacobs, written one year later, reflecting theological insights gained after the December vision. The wedding imagery is first introduced about two months after the first vision, in the vision of February 1845. See notes under Lt 1, 1846 (Feb. 15).

The Ellen G. White Letters and Manuscripts: Volume 1

Ms 1, 1846

1EGWLM 101.5

As God has shown me in holy vision the travels of the Advent people to the Holy City, and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have got many trials to pass through. But our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory—while we look not at the things which are seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have tried to bring back a good report, and a few grapes from the heavenly Canaan, for which many would stone me, as the congregation bade stone Caleb and Joshua for their report, (Num. 14:10.) But I declare to you, my brethren and sisters in the Lord, it is a goodly land, and we are well able to go up and possess it.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Lt 76, 1898

13LtMs, Lt 76, 1898, par. 12

The Lord is long suffering, and full of compassion and love; but when the boundary lines is passed because the rebellion and obstinacy of man continues, punishment will follow the transgressor. [Deuteronomy 11:13-22; 7:6-15.] “Because sentence against an evil is not executed speedily, therefore the hearts of the sons of men are fully set in them to do evil.” [Ecclesiastes 8:11.] The Lord is soon to come. Wickedness and rebellion and defiance of God, violence and crime are working with a deeper, broader power, until, like the wickedness of the old world, it reaches unto heaven. The cry of the suffering and the oppressed comes up to God for justice. “How long,” says the God of Israel, “will the people provoke me? how long will it be ere they believe me?” [Numbers 14:11.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Lt 34, 1899

14LtMs, Lt 34, 1899, par. 40

“Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers. Neither shall any of them which provoked me see it, but my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it. ... Tomorrow turn ye, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.” [Numbers 14:22-25.] It means just as much to us as it did to the children of Israel whether we obey or disobey God’s message of warning.

14LtMs, Lt 34, 1899, par. 46

“Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. And now, I beseech you, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. Pardon, I beseech you, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now. And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word.” [Numbers 14:11-20.]

14LtMs, Lt 34, 1899, par. 47

Knowing what might have been and the glory God would have revealed in His people had they been obedient, Moses pleaded for the pardon of the Lord. “I have pardoned according to thy word,” the Lord said. [Verse 20.] But He could not work through the transgressors as He had done; for it would have been dishonoring to His name to do great things for those who were in spirit not a whit better than the heathen around them.

From Splendor to Shadow

Chapter 26—Isaiah’s Message: “Behold Your God!”

SS 165.3

At the height of Israel’s rebellion the Lord had proposed to make of the descendants of Moses “a greater nation and mightier than they.” Numbers 14:12. But the prophet pleaded the promises of God in behalf of the chosen nation. And then, as the strongest of all pleas, he urged the love of God for fallen man. See Verses 17-19.

Prophets and Kings

Chapter 26—“Behold Your God!”

PK 312.3

It was upon his knowledge of the long-sufferance of Jehovah and of His infinite love and mercy, that Moses based his wonderful plea for the life of Israel when, on the borders of the Promised Land, they refused to advance in obedience to the command of God. At the height of their rebellion the Lord had declared, “I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them;” and He had proposed to make of the descendants of Moses “a greater nation and mightier than they.” Numbers 14:12. But the prophet pleaded the marvelous providences and promises of God in behalf of the chosen nation. And then, as the strongest of all pleas, he urged the love of God for fallen man. See verses 17-19.

PK 313.1

Graciously the Lord responded, “I have pardoned according to thy word.” And then He imparted to Moses, in the form of a prophecy, a knowledge of His purpose concerning the final triumph of Israel. “As truly as I live,” He declared, “all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” Verses 20, 21. God’s glory, His character, His merciful kindness and tender love—that which Moses had pleaded in behalf of Israel—were to be revealed to all mankind. And this promise of Jehovah was made doubly sure; it was confirmed by an oath. As surely as God lives and reigns, His glory should be declared “among the heathen, His wonders among all people.” Psalm 96:3.

The Review and Herald

March 18, 1915

RH March 18, 1915, par. 7

It was upon this knowledge of the long-sufferance of Jehovah and of his infinite love and mercy, that Moses based his wonderful plea for the life of Israel when, on the borders of the Promised Land, they refused to advance in obedience to the command of God. At the height of their rebellion, the Lord had declared, “I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them;” and he had proposed to make of the descendants of Moses “a greater nation and mightier than they.” Numbers 14:12. But the prophet pleaded the marvelous providences and promises of God in behalf of the chosen nation. And then, as the strongest of all pleas, he urged the love of God for fallen man. “I beseech thee,” he prayed, “let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression.... Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.” Verses 17-19.

RH March 18, 1915, par. 8

Graciously the Lord responded, “I have pardoned according to thy word.” And then he imparted to Moses, in the form of a prophecy, a knowledge of his purpose concerning the final triumph of his chosen people. “As truly as I live,” he declared, “all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” Verses 20, 21. God’s glory, his character, his merciful kindness and tender love,—all that Moses had pleaded in behalf of Israel was to be revealed to all mankind. And this promise of Jehovah was made doubly sure; it was confirmed by an oath. As surely as God lives and reigns, his glory should be declared “among the heathen, his wonders among all people.” Psalm 96:3.

Christ Triumphant

Learning to Trust and Obey, April 24

CTr 121.1

Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations ... will speak, saying, Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land ... therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. Numbers 14:15, 16.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Ms 120, 1906

21LtMs, Ms 120, 1906, par. 15

“The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression.” [Numbers 14:18.] He is “long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9.] “The Lord is slow to anger,” and yet “He will not at all acquit the wicked. ... Who can stand before His indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of His wrath?” [Nahum 1:3, 6.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)

Lt 416, 1907

22LtMs, Lt 416, 1907, par. 9

“As truly as I live, saith the Lord, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” [Numbers 14:21.] The apostle Paul counted it his highest privilege that he could have a part in bringing about that blessed state. He writes: “Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ; to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be made known in the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” [Ephesians 3:8-11.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 23 (1908)

Ms 17, 1908

23LtMs, Ms 17, 1908, par. 33

A knowledge of the truth calls for those who profess to believe in it to take up their appointed work for the arousing of the world. They are to labor to fulfil the Word, “The earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” [Numbers 14:21.] The worker may ask, “Who is sufficient for these things?” [2 Corinthians 2:16.] The only way to enter heaven is by the strait gate and the narrow way. If men would be saved, they must be converted to God’s plans.

Christ Triumphant

When We Face Difficulties and Tests, April 26

CTr 123.1

Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers. Numbers 14:23.

Christ Triumphant

True Moral and Intellectual Power Originates With God, April 27

CTr 124.1

My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it. Numbers 14:24.

The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials

Chapter 92—To O. A. Olsen

1888 717.2

Now, Brother Olsen, find some one else for Nebraska and let Elder Loughborough stand in his right place, as a Caleb, coming to the front and bearing a decided testimony in the face of unbelief and doubts and skepticism. We are well able to go up and possess the goodly land. God said of him, “My servant Caleb...hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land.” [Numbers 14:24.] Calebs are most needed in the churches today.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 6 (1889-1890)

Lt 20, 1890

6LtMs, Lt 20, 1890, par. 11

Now, Brother Olsen, find some one else for Nebraska and let Elder Loughborough stand in his right place, as a Caleb, coming to the front and bearing a decided testimony in the face of unbelief and doubts and skepticism. We are well able to go up and possess the goodly land. God said of him, “My servant Caleb ... hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land.” [Numbers 14:24.] Calebs are most needed in the churches today.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 7 (1891-1892)

Lt 40, 1891

7LtMs, Lt 40, 1891, par. 18

The Health Retreat needs more piety within its walls. The workers in all positions must have an eye single to the glory of God. Calebs must now come to the front. God calls for men who will speak for His honor. It is perilous to stand in the position of the spies who bore a false report, and were ready to encourage the people to stone those who manifested faith in the promises of God. But God honored the faith of His servant. The Lord said, “But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.” Numbers 14:24.

Early Writings

The Reckoning of the Prophetic Periods

EW ix.3

“The prophecy which seemed most clearly to reveal the time of the second advent was that of Daniel 8:14: ‘Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.’ Following his rule of making scripture its own interpreter, Miller learned that a day in symbolic prophecy represents a year [Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6.]; He saw that the period of 2300 prophetic days, or literal years, would extend far beyond the close of the Jewish dispensation, hence itcould not refer to the sanctuary of that dispensation. Miller accepted the generally received view, that in the Christian age the earth is the sanctuary, and he therefore understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary foretold in Daniel 8:14 represented the purification of the earth by fire at the second coming of Christ. If, then, the correct starting-point could be found for the 2300 days, he concluded that the time of the second advent could be readily ascertained. Thus would be revealed the time of that great consummation, the time when the present state, with ‘all its pride and power, pomp and vanity, wickedness and oppression, would come to an end;’ when the curse would be ‘removed from off the earth, death be destroyed, reward be given to the servants of God, the prophets and saints, and them who fear his name, and those be destroyed that destroy the earth.’ [Footnote: Bliss, Memoirs of Wm. Miller, 76.]

The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 4

Appendix

4SP 493.1

Note 1. Page 206.—William Miller’s views as to the exact time of the second advent were based on the prophecy of Daniel 8:14: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” That a day in symbolic prophecy represents a year, see Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6. As the period of 2300 prophetic days, or literal years, extended far beyond the close of the Jewish dispensation, it could not refer to the sanctuary of that dispensation. Mr. Miller held the generally received view that in the Christian age the Earth is the sanctuary, and hence concluded that the cleansing of the sanctuary brought to view in Daniel 8:14 represented the purification of the earth by fire at the second coming of Christ. The point from which to reckon the 2300 days is found in Daniel 9:24-27, which is an explanation of the vision of chapter 8. It is stated that 70 weeks, or 490 years, are determined, literally, cut off, as specially pertaining to the Jews. The only period from which the 70 weeks could be cut off is the 2300 days, that being the only period of time mentioned in the vision of chapter 8. The 70 weeks must therefore be a part of the 2300 days, and the two periods must begin together. The 70 weeks are declared by the angel to date from the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. If, then, we can correctly locate this commandment, we have the starting-point for the great period of the 2300 days. The Bible furnishes us with four tests by which we may determine when the true date is found:—

From Here to Forever

Appendix

HF 413.2

Page 35. Prophetic Dates. An important principle of interpreting time prophecies is the year-day principle—under which a day of prophetic time equals a year of calendar time. Some of the Bible reasons for this principle are as follows: (1) The year-day principle is in harmony with the principle of symbolically interpreting beasts as kingdoms, horns as powers, oceans as peoples, etc. (2) The Lord, speaking in Numbers 14:34 and Ezekiel 4:6, upholds the principle. (3) The 2300 days (years) of Daniel 8:14 cover the history of the Medo-Persian, Grecian, and Roman empires, as the angel explains in verses 19-26 (“at the time of the end shall be the vision”). These empires lasted many times longer than 2300 literal days. Nothing can fit except the year-day principle. (4) Daniel 11 is an expansion of the prophecy of Daniel 8, yet Daniel 11 is not symbolic. Three times it speaks of “years” (verses 6, 8, 13) as a parallel of “days” in Daniel 8:14. (6) The angel explained to Daniel that these prophecies concerned “the time of the end” (8:19, 26; 10:13, 14). If the “days” were literal, the prophecies would not make sense. (7) A day for a year was a common way of speaking in Old Testament Hebrew. See Leviticus 25:8; Genesis 29:27. (8) The book of Revelation unlocks the prophecies of Daniel, showing that their fulfillment was still future in the time of the apostles. Further, the year-day principle has been recognized and accepted as a valid biblical principle by many careful Bible students such as Joachim of Floris, Wycliffe, Joseph Mede, SirIsaac Newton, Bishop Thomas Newton, Alexander Keith and many others.

From Splendor to Shadow

The Time of Christ’s First Coming Specified

SS 360.1

A day in prophecy stands for a year. See Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6. The 70 weeks, or 490 days, represent 490 years. A starting point for this period is given: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore [sixty] and two weeks” (Daniel 9:25)—69 weeks, or 483 years. The commandment to restore and build Jerusalem by the decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus went into effect in the autumn of 457 B.C. See Ezra 6:14; 7:1, 9. From this time, 483 years extend to the autumn of A.D. 27. According to the prophecy, this period was to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One. In A.D. 27, Jesus at His baptism received the anointing of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 4:27; John 1:33), and soon afterward the message was proclaimed, “The time is fulfilled.” Mark 1:15.

Christ in His Sanctuary

The Impact of Bible Chronology

CIHS 79.1

“Another kind of evidence that vitally affected my mind,” he says, “was the chronology of the Scriptures. ... I found that predicted events, which had been fulfilled in the past, often occurred within a given time. The one hundred and twenty years to the flood (Genesis 6:3); the seven days that were to precede it, with forty days of predicted rain (Genesis 7:4); the four hundred years of the sojourn of Abraham’s seed (Genesis 15:13); the three days of the butlers and baker’s dreams (Genesis 40:12-20); the seven years of Pharaoh’s (Genesis 41:28-54); the forty years in the wilderness (Numbers 14:34); the three and a half years of famine (1 Kings 17:1) [see Luke 4:25;]...the seventy years’ captivity (Jeremiah 25:11); Nebuchadnezzar’s seven times (Daniel 4:13-16); and the seven weeks, threescore and two weeks, and the one week, making seventy weeks, determined upon the Jews (Daniel 9:24-27),—the events limited by these times were all once only a matter of prophecy, and were fulfilled in accordance with the predictions.”—Bliss, pages 74, 75.

Christ in His Sanctuary

The Prophecy of Daniel 8:14

CIHS 80.2

The prophecy which seemed most clearly to reveal the time of the second advent was that of Daniel 8:14: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Following his rule of making Scripture its own interpreter, Miller learned that a day in symbolic prophecy represents a year (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6); he saw that the period of 2300 prophetic days, or literal years, would extend far beyond the close of the Jewish dispensation, hence it could not refer to the sanctuary of that dispensation. Miller accepted the generally received view that in the Christian age the earth is the sanctuary, and he therefore understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary foretold in Daniel 8:14 represented the purification of the earth by fire at the second coming of Christ. If, then, the correct starting point could be found for the 2300 days, he concluded that the time of the second advent could be readily ascertained....

Prophets and Kings

Chapter 58—The Coming of a Deliverer

PK 698.1

The time of the first advent and of some of the chief events clustering about the Saviour’s lifework was made known by the angel Gabriel to Daniel. “Seventy weeks,” said the angel, “are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy.” Daniel 9:24. A day in prophecy stands for a year. See Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6. The seventy weeks, or four hundred and ninety days, represent four hundred and ninety years. A starting point for this period is given: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks” (Daniel 9:25), sixty-nine weeks, or four hundred and eighty-three years. The commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, as completed by the decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus, went into effect in the autumn of 457 B.C. See Ezra 6:14; 7:1, 9. From this time four hundred and eighty-three years extend to the autumn of A.D. 27. According to the prophecy, this period was to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One. In A.D. 27, Jesus at His baptism received the anointing of the Holy Spirit and soon afterward began His ministry. Then the message was proclaimed, “The time is fulfilled.” Mark 1:15.

The Desire of Ages

Chapter 23—“The Kingdom of God Is at Hand”

DA 233.1

The burden of Christ’s preaching was, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Thus the gospel message, as given by the Saviour Himself, was based on the prophecies. The “time” which He declared to be fulfilled was the period made known by the angel Gabriel to Daniel. “Seventy weeks,” said the angel, “are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy.” Daniel 9:24. A day in prophecy stands for a year. See Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6. The seventy weeks, or four hundred and ninety days, represent four hundred and ninety years. A starting point for this period is given: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks,” sixty-nine weeks, or four hundred and eighty-three years. Daniel 9:25. The commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, as completed by the decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus (see Ezra 6:14; 7:1, 9, margin), went into effect in the autumn of B. C. 457. From this time four hundred and eighty-three years extend to the autumn of A. D. 27. According to the prophecy, this period was to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One. In A. D. 27, Jesus at His baptism received the anointing of the Holy Spirit, and soon afterward began His ministry. Then the message was proclaimed. “The time is fulfilled.”

The Great Controversy

Chapter 18—An American Reformer

GC 323.2

“Another kind of evidence that vitally affected my mind,” he says, “was the chronology of the Scriptures.... I found that predicted events, which had been fulfilled in the past, often occurred within a given time. The one hundred and twenty years to the flood (Genesis 6:3); the seven days that were to precede it, with forty days of predicted rain (Genesis 7:4); the four hundred years of the sojourn of Abraham’s seed (Genesis 15:13); the three days of the butler’s and baker’s dreams (Genesis 40:12-20); the seven years of Pharaoh’s (Genesis 41:28-54); the forty years in the wilderness (Numbers 14:34); the three and a half years of famine (1 Kings 17:1) [see Luke 4:25;] ... the seventy years’ captivity (Jeremiah 25:11); Nebuchadnezzar’s seven times (Daniel 4:13-16); and the seven weeks, threescore and two weeks, and the one week, making seventy weeks, determined upon the Jews (Daniel 9:24-27),—the events limited by these times were all once only a matter of prophecy, and were fulfilled in accordance with the predictions.”—Bliss, pages 74, 75.

GC 324.3

The prophecy which seemed most clearly to reveal the time of the second advent was that of Daniel 8:14: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Following his rule of making Scripture its own interpreter, Miller learned that a day in symbolic prophecy represents a year (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6); he saw that the period of 2300 prophetic days, or literal years, would extend far beyond the close of the Jewish dispensation, hence it could not refer to the sanctuary of that dispensation. Miller accepted the generally received view that in the Christian age the earth is the sanctuary, and he therefore understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary foretold in Daniel 8:14 represented the purification of the earth by fire at the second coming of Christ. If, then, the correct starting point could be found for the 2300 days, he concluded that the time of the second advent could be readily ascertained. Thus would be revealed the time of that great consummation, the time when the present state, with “all its pride and power, pomp and vanity, wickedness and oppression, would come to an end;” when the curse would be “removed from off the earth, death be destroyed, reward be given to the servants of God, the prophets and saints, and them who fear His name, and those be destroyed that destroy the earth.”—Bliss, page 76.

The Great Controversy

General Notes

GC 681.1

Page 54. Prophetic Dates.—An important principle in prophetic interpretation in connection with time prophecies is the year-day principle, under which a day of prophetic time is counted as a calendar year of historic time. Before the Israelites entered the land of Canaan they sent twelve spies ahead to investigate. The spies were gone forty days, and upon their return the Hebrews, frightened at their report, refused to go up and occupy the promised land. The result was a sentence the Lord passed upon them: “After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years.” Numbers 14:34. A similar method of computing future time is indicated through the prophet Ezekiel. Forty years of punishment for iniquities awaited the kingdom of Judah. The Lord said through the prophet: “Lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.” Ezekiel 4:6. This year-day principle has an important application in interpreting the time of the prophecy of the “two thousand and three hundred evenings and mornings” (Daniel 8:14, R.V.) and the 1260-day period, variously indicated as “a time and times and the dividing of time” (Daniel 7:25), the “forty and two months” (Revelation 11:2; 13:5), and the “thousand two hundred and threescore days” (Revelation 11:3; 12:6).

The Great Controversy (1888 ed.)

Chapter 18—An American Reformer

GC88 323.2

“Another evidence that vitally affected my mind,” he says, “was the chronology of the Scriptures. I found that predicted events, which had been fulfilled in the past, often occurred within a given time. The one hundred and twenty years to the flood, Genesis 6:3; the seven days that were to precede it, with forty days of predicted rain, Genesis 7:4; the four hundred years of the sojourn of Abraham’s seed, Genesis 15:13; the three days of the butler’s and baker’s dreams, Genesis 40:12-20; the seven years of Pharaoh’s, Genesis 41:28-54; the forty years in the wilderness, Numbers 14:34; the three and a half years of famine, 1 Kings 17:1; [See Luke 4:25.] the seventy years’ captivity, Jeremiah 25:11; Nebuchadnezzar’s seven times, Daniel 4:13-16; and the seven weeks, threescore and two weeks, and the one week, making seventy weeks, determined upon the Jews, Daniel 9:24-27; the events limited by these times were all once only a matter of prophecy, and were fulfilled in accordance with the predictions.”

GC88 324.2

The prophecy which seemed most clearly to reveal the time of the second advent was that of Daniel 8:14: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Following his rule of making Scripture its own interpreter, Miller learned that a day in symbolic prophecy represents a year; [Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6.] he saw that the period of 2300 prophetic days, or literal years, would extend far beyond the close of the Jewish dispensation, hence it could not refer to the sanctuary of that dispensation. Miller accepted the generally received view, that in the Christian age the earth is the sanctuary, and he therefore understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary foretold in Daniel 8:14,represented the purification of the earth by fire at the second coming of Christ. If, then, the correct starting-point could be found for the 2300 days, he concluded that the time of the second advent could be readily ascertained. Thus would be revealed the time of that great consummation, “the time when the present state, with all its pride and power, its pomp and vanity, wickedness and oppression, would come to an end; ... when the curse would be removed from off the earth, when death would be destroyed, reward be given to the servants of God, to the prophets and saints, and all them that fear his name, and those be destroyed who destroy the earth.”

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 19, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 19, 1897, par. 12

The Lord manifested His displeasure because of their cowardice and unbelief, and his judgments were visited upon them just in accordance with their unbelief. Forty years they were to wander in the wilderness, and, said God, “ye shall know my breach of promise.” [Numbers 14:34.] The men who brought the evil report died by the plague before the Lord. Caleb and Joshua were the only adults who lived to go into the goodly land.

12LtMs, Lt 19, 1897, par. 13

“And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.” [Verse 39.] When they heard that they were to wander forty years more in the wilderness, those who had refused to go up and possess the land at God’s command were then determined to go to the battle. But while they had been delaying, the people of the land had been preparing to meet and resist their passage.

12LtMs, Lt 19, 1897, par. 14

“And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the Lord hath promised: for we have sinned. And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. Go not up: for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye have turned away from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you. But they presumed to go unto the hill top; nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah.” [Verses 40-45.]