Hope for Dead Loved Ones

“If a man die, shall he live again?” asked the man Job long ago. (Job 14:14, King James Version) Perhaps you, too, have wondered about this. How would you feel if you knew that a reunion with your loved ones was possible right here on earth under the best of conditions?

 

Well, the Bible makes the promise: “Your dead ones will live.…They will rise up.” And the Bible also says: “The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will reside forever upon it.”—Isaiah 26:19; Psalm 37:29.

 

To have real confidence in such promises, we need to answer some basic questions: Why do people die? Where are the dead? And how can we be sure they can live again?

 

 What Happens When We Die

 

The Bible makes it clear that God did not originally intend for humans to die. He created the first human pair Adam and Eve, placed them in an earthly paradise called Eden, and instructed them to have children and extend their Paradise home earth wide. They would die only if they disobeyed his instructions.—Genesis 1:28; 2:15-17.

 

Lacking appreciation for God’s kindness, Adam and Eve did disobey and were made to pay the prescribed penalty. “You [will] return to the ground,” God told Adam, “for out of it you were taken. For dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) Before his creation Adam did not exist; he was dust. And for his disobedience, or sin, Adam was sentenced to return to dust, to a state of nonexistence.

 

Death is thus an absence of life. The Bible draws the contrast: “The wages sin pays is death, but the gift God gives is everlasting life.” (Romans 6:23) Showing that death is a state of total unconsciousness, the Bible says: “For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead, they are conscious of nothing at all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5) When a person dies, the Bible explains: “His spirit goes out, he goes back to his ground; in that day his thoughts do perish.”—Psalm 146:3, 4.

 

However, since only Adam and Eve disobeyed that command in Eden, why do we all die? It is because all of us were born after Adam’s disobedience, and so we all inherited sin and death from him. As the Bible explains: “Through one man [Adam] sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men.”—Romans 5:12; Job 14:4.

 

Yet someone may ask: ‘Don’t humans have an immortal soul that survives death?’ Many have taught this, even saying that death is a doorway to another life. But that idea does not come from the Bible.

 

Rather, God’s Word teaches that you are a soul, that your soul is really you, with all your physical and mental qualities. (Genesis 2:7; Jeremiah 2:34; Proverbs 2:10) Also, the Bible says: “The soul that is sinning—it itself will die.” (Ezekiel 18:4) Nowhere does the Bible teach that man has an immortal soul that survives the death of the body.

 

How Can One Live Again

 

After sin and death entered the world, God revealed that it was his purpose that the dead be restored to life by means of a resurrection. Thus the Bible explains: “Abraham…reckoned that God was able to raise [his son Isaac] up even from the dead.” (Hebrews 11:17-19) Abraham’s confidence was not misplaced, for the Bible says of the Almighty: “He is a God, not of the dead, but of the living, for they are all living to him.”—Luke 20:37, 38.

 

Yes, Almighty God has not only the power but also the desire to resurrect persons whom he chooses. Jesus Christ himself said: “Do not marvel at this, because the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out.”—John 5:28, 29; Acts 24:15.

 

Not long after saying this, Jesus met a funeral procession coming out of the Israelite city of Nain. The dead young man was the only child of a widow. On seeing her extreme grief, Jesus was moved with pity. So, addressing the corpse, he commanded: “Young man, I say to you, Get up!” And the man sat up, and Jesus gave him to his mother.—Luke 7:11-17.

 

As in the case of that widow, there was also great ecstasy when Jesus visited the home of Jairus, a presiding officer of the Jewish synagogue. His 12-year-old daughter had died. But when Jesus arrived at Jairus’ home, he went over to the dead child and said: “Girl, get up!” And she did!—Luke 8:40-56.

 

Later, Jesus’ friend Lazarus died. When Jesus arrived at his home, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Although deeply grieved, his sister Martha expressed hope, saying: “I know he will rise in the resurrection on the last day.” But Jesus went to the tomb, ordered the stone to be removed, and called: “Lazarus, come on out!” And he did! —John 11:11-44.

 

Now think about this: What was Lazarus’ condition during those four days he was dead? Lazarus did not say anything about being in a heaven of bliss or a hell of torment, which surely he would have done if he had been there. No, Lazarus was completely unconscious in death and would have remained so until “the resurrection on the last day” if Jesus had not then restored him to life.

 

It is true that these miracles of Jesus were of only temporary benefit, since those that he resurrected died again. However, he gave proof 1,900 years ago that, with God’s power, the dead really can live again! So by his miracles Jesus showed on a small scale what will take place on earth under the Kingdom of God.

 

When a Loved One Dies

 

When the enemy death strikes, your grief can be great, even though you may hope in the resurrection. Abraham had faith his wife would live again, yet we read that “Abraham came in to bewail Sarah and to weep over her.” (Genesis 23:2) And what about Jesus? When Lazarus died, he “groaned in the spirit and became troubled,” and shortly afterward he “gave way to tears.” (John 11:33, 35) So, when someone you love dies, it does not show weakness to cry.

 

When a child dies, it is particularly hard for the mother. Thus the Bible acknowledges the bitter grief that a mother can feel. (2 Kings 4:27) Of course, it is difficult for the bereaved father as well. “O that I might have died, I myself, instead of you,” lamented King David when his son Absalom died.—2 Samuel 18:33.

 

Yet, because you have confidence in the resurrection, your sorrow will not be unrelenting. As the Bible says, you will “not sorrow just as the rest also do who have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13) Rather, you will draw close to God in prayer, and the Bible promises that “he himself will sustain you.”—Psalm 55:22.

“Clear Light” From Russia’s Oldest Library

TWO scholars are on the hunt for ancient Bible manuscripts. They individually travel through deserts and search caves, monasteries, and ancient cliff dwellings. Years later, their paths cross in Russia’s oldest public library, where some of the most exciting Bible discoveries the world has ever known come together. Who were these men? How did the treasures they discovered end up in Russia?

 

Ancient Manuscripts—Champions of God’s Word

 

To meet one of these two scholars, we must go back to the beginning of the 19th century when Europe was being swept by the winds of an intellectual revolution. It was a time of scientific progress and cultural achievement, which promoted a skeptical view of traditional beliefs. Higher critics sought to undermine the Bible’s authority. In fact, scholars were voicing doubts about the authenticity of the Bible text itself.

 

Certain sincere defenders of the Bible discerned that new champions—as yet undiscovered ancient Bible manuscripts—would undoubtedly uphold the integrity of God’s Word. If manuscripts older than those then extant could be found, they would serve as silent witnesses to the purity of the Bible text, even though repeated attempts had long been made to destroy or distort its message. Such manuscripts could also expose the few places where erroneous renderings had crept into the text.

 

Some of the hottest debates on the authenticity of the Bible raged in Germany. There a young professor slipped away from his comfortable academic life to go on a journey that would lead him to one of the biggest Bible discoveries of all time. His name was Konstantin von Tischendorf, a Bible scholar whose rejection of higher criticism led to notable success in defending the authenticity of Bible text. His first journey to the wilderness of Sinai in 1844 met with unbelievable success. A casual look into a monastery wastebasket revealed an ancient copy of the Septuagint, or Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures—the oldest one that had ever been discovered!

 

Exultant, Tischendorf managed to take away 43 sheets. Although he was convinced that there were more, a return visit in 1853 produced only a fragment. Where were the rest? His funds exhausted, Tischendorf sought the patronage of a wealthy sponsor, and he decided to leave his homeland again in search of ancient manuscripts. Before going on this mission, though, he would appeal to the czar of Russia.

 

The Czar Takes an Interest

 

Tischendorf may well have wondered what kind of reception that he, a Protestant scholar, would get in Russia, a vast land espousing the Russian Orthodox religion. Happily, Russia had entered a favorable era of change and reform. An emphasis on education had led to the founding of St. Petersburg’s Imperial Library in 1795 by Empress Catherine II (also known as Catherine the Great). As Russia’s first public library, it had made a wealth of printed information accessible to millions.

 

Hailed as one of the finest libraries in Europe, The Imperial Library did have one drawback. Fifty years after it was founded, the library contained only six Hebrew manuscripts. It could not keep up with Russia’s rising interest in the study of Bible languages and translations. Catherine II had sent scholars to European universities to study Hebrew. After the scholars returned, Hebrew courses sprang up in major Russian Orthodox seminaries, and for the first time, Russian scholars started work on an accurate translation of the Bible from ancient Hebrew into Russian. But they faced a lack of resources and even opposition from conservative church leaders. True enlightenment had yet to begin for those seeking Bible knowledge.

 

The czar, Alexander II, was quick to appreciate Tischendorf’s mission and extended his patronage. Despite “jealous and fanatical opposition” from some, Tischendorf returned from his mission to Sinai with the rest of the copy of the Septuagint.* Later named the Codex Sinaiticus, it is still one of the oldest Bible manuscripts in existence. Back in St. Petersburg, Tischendorf hastened to the czar’s residence, the Imperial Winter Palace. He proposed that the czar support “one of the greatest undertakings in critical and Biblical study”—a published edition of the newly found manuscript, which was later placed in The Imperial Library. The czar readily agreed, and an elated Tischendorf later wrote: “Providence has given to our age . . . the Sinaitic Bible, to be to us a full and clear light as to what is the real text of God’s Word written, and to assist us in defending the truth by establishing its authentic form.”

*He also brought a complete copy of the Christian Greek Scriptures dating back to the fourth century C.E.

 

Bible Treasures From the Crimea

 

Another scholar searching for Bible treasures was mentioned at the outset. Who was he? A few years before Tischendorf returned to Russia, The Imperial Library received a proposal so unbelievable that it drew the czar’s interest and brought scholars to Russia from all over Europe. They could hardly believe their eyes. Before them was an enormous collection of manuscripts and other material. It numbered a staggering 2,412 items, including 975 manuscripts and scrolls. Among these were 45 Bible manuscripts dating earlier than the tenth century. As incredible as it seemed, all these manuscripts had been collected almost single-handedly by a man named Abraham Firkovich, a Karaite scholar who was then more than 70 years old! But who were the Karaites?*

* For more information on the Karaites, see the article “The Karaites and Their Quest for Truth,” in the July 15, 1995, issue of The Watchtower.

This question was of great interest to the czar. Russia had extended its borders to encompass territory previously held by other states. This had brought new ethnic groups into the empire. The picturesque Crimea region, on the shores of the Black Sea, was populated by a people who seemed to be Jewish but who had Turkish customs and spoke a language related to Tatar. These Karaites traced their descent from Jews exiled to Babylon after the destruction of Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E. Unlike rabbinic Jews, however, they rejected the Talmud and emphasized the reading of the Scriptures. The Crimean Karaites were eager to present to the czar evidence of their distinctness from rabbinic Jews, thereby giving them a separate status. By presenting ancient manuscripts owned by Karaites, they hoped to prove that they had descended from Jews who had immigrated to the Crimea after the Babylonian exile.

 

When Firkovich undertook his search for ancient records and manuscripts, he started with the Crimean cliff dwellings of Chufut-Kale. Generations of Karaites had lived and worshipped in these small houses built from the stones carved out of cliffs. The Karaites never destroyed worn-out copies of the Scriptures where the divine name, Jehovah, appeared because they considered such action sacrilege. The manuscripts were carefully placed in a small storehouse called a genizah, meaning “hiding place” in Hebrew. Because the Karaites had deep respect for the divine name, such parchments were seldom disturbed.

 

Undeterred by the dust of centuries, Firkovich searched the genizah sites carefully. In one, he found the famous manuscript of 916 C.E. Called the Petersburg Codex of the Latter Prophets, it is one of the oldest copies of the Hebrew Scriptures in existence.

 

Firkovich managed to amass great numbers of manuscripts, and in 1859 he decided to offer his vast collection to The Imperial Library. In 1862, Alexander II helped to purchase the collection for the library for the then enormous sum of 125,000 rubles. At that time, the entire library budget was no more than 10,000 rubles a year! This acquisition included the renowned Leningrad Codex (B 19^A). It dates from 1008 and is the world’s oldest complete copy of the Hebrew Scriptures. One scholar noted that it is “probably the single most important manuscript of the Bible, for it established the text of most modern critical editions of the Hebrew Bible.” That same year, 1862, Tischendorf’s Codex Sinaiticus was published, to worldwide acclaim.

 

Spiritual Enlightenment in Modern Times

 

The library now known as The National Library of Russia houses one of the world’s largest collections of ancient manuscripts.* Reflecting Russian history, the name of the library has been changed seven times over the course of two centuries. One well-known name is The State Saltykov-Shchedrin Public Library. Though the turmoil of the 20th century did not leave the library unscathed, its manuscripts survived intact through both world wars and the siege of Leningrad. How do we benefit from such manuscripts?

 *Most of the Codex Sinaiticus was sold to the British Museum. Only fragments remain in The National Library of Russia.

Ancient manuscripts are the reliable basis for many modern Bible translations. They allow sincere truth-seekers to enjoy a clear version of the Holy Scriptures. Both the Sinaiticus and the Leningrad codices have made valuable contributions to the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, published by Jehovah’s Witnesses and released in its complete form in 1961. For example, Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia and Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica, used by the New World Bible Translation Committee, are based on the Leningrad Codex and use the Tetragrammaton, or divine name, 6,828 times in the original text.

 

Relatively few Bible readers are aware of their indebtedness to the quiet library in St. Petersburg and its manuscripts, some bearing the city’s former name, Leningrad. Yet, our greatest debt is to the Bible’s Author, Jehovah, who gives spiritual light. The psalmist therefore petitioned him: “Send out your light and your truth. May these themselves lead me.”—Psalm 43:3.

 

 

THE DIVINE NAME KNOWN AND USED

 

In his wisdom, Jehovah has seen to it that his Word, the Bible, has been preserved until modern times. The diligent work of scribes throughout the ages has been involved in its preservation. The most meticulous of these were the Masoretes, professional Hebrew scribes who worked from the sixth to the tenth century C.E. Ancient Hebrew was written without vowels. Over time, this increased the danger of losing the proper pronunciation as Aramaic replaced Hebrew. The Masoretes developed a system of vowel points to add to the Bible text in order to indicate the correct pronunciation of Hebrew words.

 

Significantly, the Masoretic vowel points in the Leningrad Codex allow for the pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton—the four Hebrew consonants making up the divine name—as Yehwah’, Yehwih’, and Yeho·wah’. “Jehovah” is now the most widely known pronunciation of the name. The divine name was a living, familiar term to Bible writers and others of ancient times. Today, God’s name is known and used by millions who acknowledge that ‘Jehovah alone is the Most High over all the earth.’—Psalm 83:18.

A Peaceful New World?

When you hear the word "Paradise", what feelings do you have? Does not your heart yearn for peace, happiness, and prosperity? Surely it does. But is it just a dream, or fantasy, to believe that these conditions will ever exist on earth? Most people probably think so.

 

Today’s realities are war, crime, hunger, sickness, aging—to mention just a few. Yet there is reason for hope. The Hebrew Scriptures foretell that God will create a “new heavens and a new earth” and that “the former things will not be called to mind, neither will they come up into the heart.”—Isaiah 65:17.

 

These “new heavens” and “new earth,” according to the Scriptures, are not a new material heavens or new literal earth. The physical earth and heavens were made perfect, and the Scriptures show they will remain forever. (Psalm 89:36, 37; 104:5) The “new earth” will be a righteous society of people living on earth, and the “new heavens” will be a perfect heavenly kingdom, or government, that will rule over this earthly society of people. But is it realistic to believe that “a new earth,” or glorious new world, is possible?

 

Well, consider the fact that such ideal conditions were part of God’s original purpose for this earth. He placed the first human couple in the earthly Paradise of Eden and gave them a marvelous assignment: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1:28) Yes, God’s purpose was for them to have children and eventually to spread their Paradise over all the earth. Although they later chose to disobey God, thus proving to be unfit to live forever, God’s original purpose did not change. And it must be fulfilled in a new world!—Isaiah 55:11.

 

In fact, it is the Messiah, promised in the Hebrew Scriptures, who will serve as a divinely appointed king and rule over this new world. (Psalm 2:2, 6-9; Daniel 7:13, 14) The Messiah will rid the earth of all wickedness, and then the psalm will be fulfilled: “The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will reside forever upon it.”—Psalm 37:29.

 

Life in God’s New World

 

The Messiah’s rule will bring earthly benefits beyond compare, accomplishing everything good that God originally purposed for his people to enjoy on earth. Hatreds and prejudices will cease to exist, and eventually everyone on earth will be a true friend of everyone else. In the Scriptures, God promises that he will ‘make wars to cease to the extremity of the earth.’ “Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war anymore.”—Psalm 46:9; Isaiah 2:4.

 

The whole earth will eventually be brought to a gardenlike paradise state. The Scriptures say: “The wilderness and the waterless region will exult, and the desert plain will be joyful and blossom as the saffron.…For in the wilderness waters will have burst out, and torrents in the desert plain. And the heat-parched ground will have become as a reedy pool, and the thirsty ground as springs of water.”—Isaiah 35:1, 6, 7.

 

There will be every reason to be happy in the Paradise earth. Never again will people feel hunger because of lack of food. “The earth itself will certainly give its produce,” the Scriptures say. (Psalm 67:6; 72:16) All will enjoy the fruits of their own labor, as our Creator promises: “They will certainly plant vineyards and eat their fruitage.…They will not plant and someone else do the eating.”—Isaiah 65:21, 22.

 

In God’s new world, no longer will people be crammed into huge apartment buildings or run-down slums, for God has purposed: “They will certainly build houses and have occupancy…They will not build and someone else have occupancy.” The Scriptures also promise: “They will not toil for nothing.”—Isaiah 65:21-23.

 

In time, God’s Kingdom will even restore the peaceful relations that existed in the garden of Eden between animals, and between animals and humans. The Scriptures say: “The wolf will actually reside for a while with the male lamb, and with the kid the leopard itself will lie down, and the calf and the maned young lion and the well-fed animal all together; and a mere little boy will be leader over them.”—Isaiah 11:6-9; Hosea 2:18.

 

Just imagine, in the Paradise earth, all sicknesses and physical infirmities will also be healed! God’s Word assures us: “No resident will say: ‘I am sick.’” (Isaiah 33:24) God’s Word also promises: “He [God] will actually swallow up death forever.”—Isaiah 25:8.

 

How It Is Possible for You

 

This is certainly a wonderful hope, and it is not too good to be true because God always fulfills his promises. (Isaiah 46:9, 10) Of course, there are requirements to be met if we are to live forever in this coming Paradise on earth. What are they?

 

These requirements can be found, in part, in the Tanakh and are emphasized in the Christian Greek Scriptures, which give specific details about the Messiah. These later writings, known to most people as the “New Testament,” were written under the same inspiration as was the Tanakh. The two writings together form the Holy Scriptures, or the Bible. They contain the wonderful promise that God “will wipe out every tear from [people’s] eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”—Revelation 21:4; see also Hosea 13:14.

 

The authors of this information, are no part of Christendom or Jewry. Rather, they accept these Holy Scriptures as the only basis for accurate knowledge of God’s will. These True Servants of Jehovah are diligently working in all parts of the earth to help people learn about Jehovah, the true God, so that they can live forever in peace in his new world.—Micah 4:1-4.

Russians Treasure Freedom of Worship

“FROM the sun’s rising even to its setting my name will be great among the nations.” (Mal. 1:11)

 

Within Russia today, we see the truthfulness of that stunning prophecy spoken by Jehovah some 2,450 years ago. As the sun sets on Jehovah’s loyal ones in the western city of Kaliningrad, it is already rising 11 time zones to the east on the publishers on the Chukchi Peninsula, just across the Bering Strait from Alaska. Yes, the sun never sets on the Kingdom-preaching and disciple-making work in Russia. The tireless work of courageous man and woman servants of Jehovah during the Soviet era has been richly blessed. They withstood fierce persecution and, in so doing, opened the way for the more than 150,000 publishers serving in Russia today.

 

Russia, officially termed the “Russian Federation,” is not a country of one nation or one people. As the name suggests, it is a federation of nations, a mosaic of tribes, tongues, and peoples, each with its unique culture.

 

SINCE THE DISSOLUTION OF THE SOVIET UNION IN 1991, PEOPLE LIVING THERE HAVE ENJOYED GREATER FREEDOM TO WORSHIP GOD. SUCH FREEDOM HAS ALSO BEEN TREASURED BY THOSE WHO HAVE EMIGRATED TO OTHER COUNTRIES.

 

FOR many who live in the former Soviet Union, the freedom to assemble openly to worship God is a cherished delight—one that they were deprived of for many decades.

 

After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, it became dangerous in Russia to read the Bible, and few people risked their freedom to do so. And the International Brotherhood were an exception. In fact, Newsweek magazine of April 16, 1956 quoted a youth in East Germany as saying: “Nobody but these individuals truly read the Bible.” Yet, for holding Bible study meetings and for preaching the Bible’s message, they were put in prisons and labor camps. Wherever they went, however, they focused attention on their Bible-based hope.

 

When the Soviet Union began to dissolve in 1991, they held seven conventions featuring a program of Bible instruction. Altogether, 74,252 attended. In 1993, just two years later, 112,326 assembled at eight such conventions in 4 of the 15 former republics of the Soviet Union.*Many of those thousands had spent long years in Soviet prisons and labor camps. These faithful Christians were extremely grateful for their freedom to worship God without hindrance.

 

*The following are the 15 republics, which are now independent countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

 

Every year since 1993, people from the former Soviet republics have treasured the privilege of meeting freely at Christian gatherings in their homeland. Last year, for example, a total of 282,333 of these True Worshipers of Jehovah and their friends were delighted to get together at 80 “God’s Prophetic Word” District Conventions held in former Soviet republics. And a total of 13,452 were baptized.

 

Surprising as it may seem, last year there were also Russian-language conventions in other countries in the world. A total of 6,336 persons attended four such gatherings in countries outside the former Soviet Union! Where were these held? And why do so many Russian-speaking people have an intense interest in the Bible? Let us first briefly consider the latter question.

 

They Recognize a Spiritual Need

 

Russia has a rich religious history. Its ornate cathedrals, built centuries ago, are among the most famous in Christendom. Yet, the Russian Orthodox Church, like the Roman Catholic Church, has kept people in ignorance of the Bible.

 

“The Bible,” explains the recent book The Russian Tragedy—The Burden of History, “has never been a principal part of Russian Orthodoxy.” The result, according to Russian religious scholar Sergei Ivanenko, is that “the lack of Bible knowledge of Orthodox believers has led to the fact that many parishioners of Orthodox churches are more susceptible to the influence of superstitions, occultism, and magic than unbelievers.”

 

The famous Russian writer Tolstoy made a similar observation. He wrote: “I convinced myself that the doctrine of the [Russian Orthodox] church was in theory a cunning and harmful deceit, and in practice a collection of the grossest superstitions and sorcery, which completely conceals the whole meaning of the Christian teaching.”

 

This situation proved to be a fertile ground for the rise of Soviet Communism with its atheistic propaganda and well-known refrain: “Religion is the opium of the people.” Yet, Communism itself soon became a form of religion, often called the Red Religion. But the Red Religion did not last. When the Soviet State collapsed in 1991, millions of people were confused and wondered where to turn. With the encouragement of Jehovah’s True Worshipers, many thousands of Russians looked for answers in The Bible.

 

As a result of a fine educational system, Russians had come to be among the most literate people in the world. Thus, many Russians became not only Bible readers but also lovers of its teachings. At the same time, especially during the decade of the 1990’s, hundreds of thousands of people from the former Soviet Union migrated to other countries, such as Germany, Greece, and the United States. With what results?

 

Free to Worship in Germany

 

In the 18th and 19th centuries, many Germans moved to Russia. The most famous was 15-year-old Sophie, who in 1762 succeeded her husband as ruler of Russia. During her long reign, Sophie, later known as Catherine the Great, invited German farmers to live in Russia. Then, when Germany attacked the Soviet Union during World War II, most of those of German descent were transported to Siberia and to such Soviet republics as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. Recently many Russian-speaking Germans, as well as others from the former Soviet Union, moved to Germany to enjoy better economic conditions.

 

In December 1992 the first Russian-speaking congregation in Germany was formed in Berlin. Now over, 52 congregations and 43 smaller groups had been formed into three Russian-speaking circuits in Germany. There was a peak attendance of 4,920 at the Russian-language “God’s Prophetic Word” District Convention in Cologne, 164 were baptized to symbolize their dedication to Jehovah. Earlier, that same year in Germany’s Russian-language congregations, 6,175 were present for the celebration of the Memorial of Jesus’ death.

 

Russians in the United States

 

The United States too has experienced an influx of Russian-speaking people from the former Soviet Union. The New York Times reported: “Between 1991 and 1996, Russians were Brooklyn’s fastest-growing immigrant group. During the same period, the Immigration and Naturalization Service admitted more than 339,000 immigrants to the United States from the former Soviet Union.”

 

Later, the Times of January 1999 said that during the previous decade, some 400,000 Jews from the former Soviet Union had immigrated to New York City and the surrounding area. In addition, Russians by the thousands have settled in other parts of the United States in recent years. For example, northern California has had an influx of some 35,000 new Russian immigrants, making it the third-largest center of immigrants from the former Soviet Union after New York and Los Angeles. These Russian-speaking people have also responded to the opportunity to study the Bible, and hundreds of them have become worshipers of the true God, Jehovah.

 

On April 1, 1994, the first Russian-language congregation in recent times was formed in Brooklyn, New York. Eventually, Russian congregations were started in Pennsylvania, California, and Washington. Study groups were begun in many other parts of the country.

 

A First in the United States

 

A peak attendance of 670 from throughout the United States and Canada were thrilled to attend the first Russian-language district convention held in New York City. All the talks were delivered in Russian, and a full-costume drama, featuring the Bible account of Jacob and Esau, was presented by members of the Russian Congregation of Los Angeles, California. It was truly a highlight of the convention.

 

Another convention highlight was the baptism of 14 persons, all of whom appear in the accompanying photograph. Several traveled some 2,500 miles from Portland, Oregon, and from Los Angeles and San Francisco, California, to be baptized at the convention in New York City. Previously, these 14 had lived in the former Soviet republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. Their experiences reveal how much they treasure the knowledge of God and the freedom to worship him.

 

Happening in Moscow

 

On July 21, 1999, a contract for the use of the Olympic Stadium located near the center of Moscow and right next to a large Russian Orthodox church, was signed. But a week before the convention was to begin, it was clear that there was going to be opposition. By Wednesday, August 18, permission to use the stadium had still not been granted, even though the rental fee had already been paid. It was emphasized to officials that, these True worshipers of Jehovah are a legally recognized religious organization in Russia.

 

Because about 15,000 convention delegates were preparing to attend on Friday morning, representatives were becoming anxious. Some delegates were traveling to Moscow from cities and towns many miles away. Finally, after some hours of discussion, about 8:00 p.m., on Thursday, August 19, the stadium management was delighted to inform representatives that the convention could proceed. The city administration had advised that they had no objection to the convention.

 

The next morning thousands flooded into the stadium. Volunteers had worked all night to prepare for their arrival. Also present that first morning were members of the press, who had been notified earlier about the opposition to holding the convention. “Congratulations!” one of them exclaimed. “We’re glad to hear that your convention is going ahead.”

 

Orderly Conduct

 

The stadium management felt that it would be prudent to take security measures. Thus, security people with metal detection equipment such as is used to screen passengers at airports were stationed at all entrances. Policemen were also stationed throughout the inside of the stadium. The convention proceeded in an orderly manner despite a serious threat.

 

On Saturday afternoon someone made a phone call indicating that a bomb had been planted in the stadium. The threat was received shortly before the end of the next-to-last talk of the day. So, at the request of the stadium management, a brief announcement was made to evacuate the stadium immediately. When everyone did so in an orderly fashion, stadium officials and the police were amazed. They had never seen anything like it! They asked whether it had been rehearsed.

 

No bomb was found, and the following day the program was extended to include what had not been presented on Saturday. The stadium management was pleased with the convention.

 

In Greece and Elsewhere

 

During the last weekend of August and the first one in September, Russian-language district conventions were also held in Greece—in Athens first and then in Thessalonica. A total of 746 attended, and 34 were baptized. There are 8 Russian-speaking congregations in Greece and 17 smaller groups made up of immigrants from former southern republics of the Soviet Union. These have their meetings in Russian and in other languages spoken by the immigrants.

 

Russian-speaking people have immigrated to a number of other countries in the world that we have not mentioned. Many of these people too rejoice in their freedom to study the Bible and to assemble openly to worship Jehovah God. To them this privilege is a cherished delight!

 

Russians Who Love the Bible

 

Professor Sergei Ivanenko, a respected Russian religious scholar, described these faithful servants of Jehovah as people truly devoted to Bible study. In his recent book in Russian, O lyudyakh, nikogda nye rasstayushchikhsya s bibliey (The People Who Are Never Without Their Bibles), he wrote of their early history in the Soviet Union: “Even when they ended up in prison for their faithfulness to their beliefs, these servants of Jehovah found ways to make use of the Bible.” To illustrate this, he related the following experience.

 

“It was forbidden for prisoners to have a Bible. Bibles were confiscated during searches. In one of the northern camps, one of these worshipers of Jehovah was an electrician and he kept Bible books in a transformer unit where there was very high voltage. Each part of the Bible was tied with a string to a particular wire, and only that man knew which string had to be pulled to pull it out—for example, the Gospel of Matthew—without getting a deadly shock. Of course no search, no matter how hard the guards looked, yielded results, and so this unique Bible was not discovered.”

 

Reregistered in Russia

 

These God fearing people  have been actively proclaiming God’s Kingdom in Russia for more than a century. Because of governmental restrictions, however, they did not first receive legal recognition until March 27, 1991.

 

On September 26, 1997, a law entitled “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Association” was enacted. This new law received extensive press coverage worldwide. Why? Because many viewed the passage of this law as an attempt to restrict the religious activities of minority religions in Russia.

 

Thus, in spite of the hard-won registration in 1991, Russia’s new Freedom of Conscience law required them, as well as all other religious organizations, to reregister. This raised a number of questions. Did this indicate that Russian authorities were returning to a policy of oppressing Jehovah True worshipers? Or would religious tolerance and freedom of worship that is guaranteed under the Constitution of the Russian Federation be upheld?

 

The answer eventually came. How happy they were to receive legal recognition once again when Russia’s Ministry of Justice issued a certificate of registration, on April 29, 1999!

Divinely Commissioned Prophets or Seers

When it is remembered that the prophets were mainly laymen, drawing no support from the tithes of the priestly tribe, and when, added to this, is the fact that they were frequently not only the reprovers of kings and judges, but also of priests (though they reproved not the office, but the personal sins of the men who filled it), it becomes evident that we could not reasonably decide that these prophets were parties to any league of priests, or others, to fabricate falsehood in the name of God. Reason in the light of facts contradicts such a suspicion.

If, then, we find no reason to impeach the motives of the various writers of the Bible, but find that the spirit of its various parts is righteousness and truth, let us next proceed to inquire whether there exists any link, or bond of union, between the records of Moses, those of the other prophets, and those of the New Testament writers.

If we shall find one common line of thought interwoven throughout the Law and the Prophets and the New Testament writings, which cover a period of fifteen hundred years, this, taken in connection with the character of the writers, will be a good reason for admitting their claim—that they are divinely inspired —particularly if the theme common to all of them is a grand and noble one, comporting well with what sanctified common sense teaches regarding the character and attributes of God.

This we do find: One plan, spirit, aim and purpose pervades the entire book. Its opening pages record the creation and fall of man; its closing pages tell of man's recovery from that fall; and its intervening pages show the successive steps of the plan of God for the accomplishment of this purpose. The harmony, yet contrast, of the first three and the last three chapters of the Bible is striking.

The one describes the first creation, the other the renewed or restored creation, with sin and its penal-curse removed; the one shows Satan and evil entering the world to deceive and destroy, the other shows his work undone, the destroyed ones restored, evil extinguished and Satan destroyed; the one shows the dominion lost by Adam, the other shows it restored and forever established by Christ, and God's will done in earth as in heaven; the one shows sin the producing cause of degradation, shame and death, the other shows the reward of righteousness to be glory, honor and life.

Though written by many pens, at various times, under different circumstances, the Bible is not merely a collection of moral precepts, wise maxims and words of comfort. It is more: it is a reasonable, philosophical and harmonious statement of the causes of present evil in the world, its only remedy and the final results as seen by divine wisdom, which saw the end of the plan from before its beginning, marking as well the pathway of God's people, and upholding and strengthening them with exceeding great and precious promises to be realized in due time.

The teaching of Genesis, that man was tried in a state of original perfection in one representative, that he failed, and that the present imperfection, sickness and death are the results, but that God has not forsaken him, and will ultimately recover him through a redeemer, born of a woman (Gen. 3: 15), is kept up and elaborated all the way through. The necessity of the death of a redeemer as a sacrifice for sins, and of his righteousness as a covering for our sin, is pointed out in the clothing of skins for Adam and Eve; in the acceptance of Abel's offerings; in Isaac on the altar; in the death of the various sacrifices by which the patriarchs had access to God, and of those instituted under the law and perpetuated throughout the Jewish age.

The prophets, though credited with understanding but slightly the significance of some of their utterances (1 Pet. 1: 12), mention the laying of the sins upon a person instead of a dumb animal, and in prophetic vision they see him who is to redeem and to deliver the race led "as a lamb to the slaughter," that "the chastisement of our peace was upon him," and that "by his stripes we are healed." They pictured him as "despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief," and declared that "The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." (Isa. 53: 3-6) They told where this deliverer would be born (Micah 5: 2), and when he should die, assuring us that it would be "not for himself." (Dan. 9: 26)

They mention various peculiarities concerning him—that he would be "righteous," and free from "deceit," "violence," or any just cause of death (Isa. 53: 8,9,11); that he would be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver (Zech. 11: 12); that he would be numbered among transgressors in his death (Isa. 53: 12); that not a bone of him should be broken (Psa. 34: 20; John 19: 36); and that though he should die and be buried, his flesh would not corrupt, neither would he remain in the grave. Psa. 16: 10; Acts 2: 31

The New Testament writers clearly and forcibly, yet simply, record the fulfilment of all these predictions in Jesus of Nazareth, and by logical reasonings show that such a ransom price as he gave was needful, as already predicted in the Law and the Prophets, before the sins of the world could be blotted out. (Isa. 1: 18) They trace the entire plan in a most logical and forcible manner, appealing neither to the prejudices nor to the passions of their hearers, but to their enlightened reason alone, furnishing some of the most remarkably close and cogent reasoning to be found anywhere on any subject. Please Read Rom. 5: 17-19, and onward to the 12th chapter.

Moses, in the Law, pointed not alone to a sacrifice, but also to a blotting out of sins and a blessing of the people under this great deliverer, whose power and authority he declares shall vastly exceed his own, though it should be "like unto" it. (Deut. 18: 15, 19) The promised deliverer is to bless not only Israel, but through Israel "all the families of the earth." (Gen. 12: 3; 18: 18; 22: 18; 26: 4)

 

 

And notwithstanding the prejudices of the Jewish people to the contrary, the prophets continue the same strain, declaring that Messiah shall be also "for a light to lighten the Gentiles" (Isa. 49: 6; Luke 2: 32); that the Gentiles should come to him "from the ends of the earth" (Jer. 16: 19); that his name "shall be great among the Gentiles" (Mal. 1: 11); and that "the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together." Isa. 40: 5. See also Isa. 42: 1-7.

The New Testament writers claim a divine anointing which enabled them to realize the fulfilment of the prophecies concerning the sacrifice of Christ. They, though prejudiced as Jews to think of every blessing as limited to their own people (Acts 11: 1-18), were enabled to see that while their nation would be blessed, all the families of the earth should be blessed also, with and through them.

 

They saw also that, before the blessing of either Israel or the world, a selection would be made of a "little flock" from both Jews and Gentiles, who, being tried, would be found worthy to be made joint-heirs of the glory and honor of the Great Deliverer, and sharers with him of the honor of blessing Israel and all the nations. Rom. 8: 17

These writers point out the harmony of this view with what is written in the Law and the Prophets; and the grandeur and breadth of the plan they present more than meets the most exalted conception of what it purports to be— "Good tidings of great joy, which shall be unto all people."

 

The thought of Messiah as a ruler of not only Israel, but also of the world, suggested in the books of Moses, is the theme of all the prophets. The thought of the kingdom was uppermost also in the teaching of the apostles; and Jesus taught that we should pray, "Thy Kingdom come," and promised those a share in it who would first suffer for the truth, and thus prove themselves worthy.

 

This hope of the coming glorious kingdom gave all the faithful ones courage to endure persecution and to suffer reproach, deprivation and loss, even unto death. And in the grand allegorical prophecy which closes the New Testament, the worthy "Lamb that was slain" (Rev. 5: 12), the worthy "overcomers" whom he will make kings and priests in his kingdom, and the trials and obstacles which they must overcome to be worthy to share that kingdom, are all faithfully portrayed.

 

Then are introduced symbolic representations of the blessings to accrue to the world under that Millennial reign, when Satan shall be bound and Adamic death and sorrow wiped out, and when all the nations of earth shall walk in the light of the heavenly kingdom—the new Jerusalem.

 

The Bible, from first to last, holds out a doctrine found nowhere else, and in opposition to the theories of all the heathen religions—that a future life for the dead will come through a RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD. All the inspired writers expressed their confidence in a redeemer, and one declares that "in the morning," when God shall call them from the tomb, and they shall come forth, the wicked shall no longer hold the rulership of earth; for "The upright shall have dominion over them, in the morning." (Psa. 49: 14)

 

The resurrection of the dead is taught by the prophets; and the writers of the New Testament base all their hopes of future life and blessing upon it. Paul expresses it thus: "If there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen; and if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain and your faith is also vain;...then they which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept;...for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." 1 Cor. 15: 13-22

 

Like a watch, whose many wheels might at first seem superfluous, but whose slowest moving wheels are essential, so the Bible, composed of many parts, and prepared by many pens, is one complete and harmonious whole. Not a single part is superfluous, and though some parts take a more active and prominent place than others, all are useful and necessary. It is becoming popular among the so-called "advanced thinkers" and "great theologians" of the present day to treat lightly, or to ignore if they do not deny, many of the "miracles" of the Old Testament, calling them "old wives' fables."

 

Of these are the accounts of Jonah and the great fish, Noah and the ark, Eve and the serpent, the standing still of the sun at the command of Joshua, and Balaam's speaking ass. Seemingly these wise men overlook the fact that the Bible is so interwoven and united in its various parts that to tear from it these miracles, or to discredit them, is to destroy or discredit the whole. For if the original accounts are false, those who repeated them were either falsifiers or dupes, and in either case it would be impossible for us to accept their testimony as divinely inspired.

 

To eliminate from the Bible the miracles mentioned would invalidate the testimony of its principal writers, besides that of our Lord Jesus. The story of the fall is attested by Paul (Rom. 5: 17); also Eve's beguilement by the serpent (2 Cor. 11: 3; 1 Tim. 2: 14). See also our Lord's reference to the latter in Rev. 12: 9 and 20: 2. The standing of the sun at the overthrow of the Amorites, as an evidence of the Lord's power, was evidently typical of the power to be displayed in the future, in "the day of the Lord," at the hand of him whom Joshua typified.

 

This is attested by three prophets. (Isa. 28: 21; Habak. 2: 1-3, 13, 14 and 3: 2-11; Zech. 14: 1, 6, 7) The account of the speaking ass is confirmed by Jude (verse 11), and by Peter (2 Pet. 2: 16). And the great teacher, Jesus, confirms the narratives of Jonah and the great fish and of Noah and the flood. (Matt. 12: 40; 24: 38, 39; Luke 17: 26. See also 1 Pet. 3: 20.) Really these are no greater miracles than those performed by Jesus and the apostles, such as the turning of water into wine, the healing of diseases, etc.; and as a miracle, the awakening of the dead is most wonderful of all.

These miracles, not common to our experience, find parallels about us every day, which, being more common, are passed by unnoticed. The reproduction of living organisms, either animal or vegetable, is beyond our comprehension, as well as beyond our power—hence miraculous. We can see the exercise of life principle, but can neither understand nor produce it. We plant two seeds side by side; the conditions, air, water, and soil, are alike; they grow, we cannot tell how, nor can the wisest philosopher explain this miracle.

These seeds develop organisms of opposite tendencies; one creeps, the other stands erect; form, flower, coloring, everything differs, though the conditions were the same. Such miracles grow common to us, and we cease to remember them as such as we leave the wonderment of childhood; yet they manifest a power as much beyond our own, and beyond our limited intelligence, as the few miracles recorded in the Bible for special purposes, and as intended illustrations of omnipotence, and of the ability of the great Creator to overcome every obstacle and to accomplish all his will, even to our promised resurrection from the dead, the extermination of evil, and the ultimate reign of everlasting righteousness.

 

Here we rest the case. Every step has been tested by reason. We have found that there is a God, a supreme, intelligent Creator, in whom wisdom, justice, love and power exist in perfect harmony. We have found it reasonable to expect a revelation of his plans to his creatures capable of appreciating and having an interest in them. We have found the Bible, claiming to be that revelation, worthy of consideration. We have examined its writers, and their possible objects, in the light of what they taught; we have been astonished; and our reason has told us that such wisdom, combined with such purity of motive, was not the cunning device of crafty men for selfish ends.

 

Reason has urged that it is far more probable that such righteous and benevolent sentiments and laws must be of God and not of men, and has insisted that they could not be the work of knavish priests. We have seen the harmony of testimony concerning Jesus, his ransom-sacrifice, and the resurrection and blessing of all as the outcome, in his glorious kingdom to come; and reason has told us that a scheme so grand and comprehensive, beyond all we could otherwise have reason to expect, yet built upon such reasonable deductions, must be the plan of God for which we seek. It cannot be the mere device of men, for even when revealed, it is almost too grand to be believed by men.

When Columbus discovered the Orinoco river, some one said he had found an island. He replied: "No such river as that flows from an island. That mighty torrent must drain the waters of a continent." So the depth and power and wisdom and scope of the Bible's testimony convince us that not man, but the Almighty God, is the author of its plans and revelations. We have taken but a hasty glance at the surface claims of the Scriptures to be of divine origin, and have found them reasonable.

Succeeding  articles will unfold the various parts of the plan of God, and will, we trust, give ample evidence to every candid mind that the Bible is a divinely inspired revelation, and that the length and breadth and height and depth of the plan it unfolds gloriously reflect the divine character, hitherto but dimly comprehended, but now more clearly seen in the light of the dawning Millennial Day.

The Books of Moses and the Laws Therein Promulgated

The first five books of the Bible are known as the Five Books of Moses, though they nowhere mention his name as their author. That they were written by Moses, or under his supervision, is a reasonable inference; the account of his death and burial being properly added by his secretary. The omission of the positive statement that these books were written by Moses is no proof against the thought; for had another written them to deceive and commit a fraud, he would surely have claimed that they were written by the great leader and statesman of Israel, in order to make good his imposition. (Please Read Deut. 31: 9-27.)

Of one thing we are certain, Moses did lead out of Egypt the Hebrew nation. He did organize them as a nation under the laws set forth in these books; and the Hebrew nation, by common consent, for over three thousand years, has claimed these books as a gift to them from Moses, and has held them so sacred that a jot or tittle must not be altered—thus giving assurance of the purity of the text.

These writings of Moses contain the only credible history extant, of the epoch which it traverses. Chinese history affects to begin at creation, telling how God went out on the water in a skiff, and, taking in his hand a lump of earth, cast it into the water. That lump of earth, it claims, became this world, etc. But the entire story is so devoid of reason that the merest child of intelligence would not be deceived by it. On the contrary, the account given in Genesis starts with the reasonable assumption that a God, a Creator, an intelligent First Cause, already existed.

It treats not of God's having a beginning, but of his work and of its beginning and its systematic orderly progress—"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Then stepping over the origin of the earth without detail or explanation, the narrative of the six days [epochs] of preparing it for man proceeds. That account is substantially corroborated by the accumulating light of science for four thousand years; hence it is far more reasonable to accept the claim that its author, Moses, was divinely inspired, than to assume that the intelligence of one man was superior to the combined intelligence and research of the rest of the race in three thousand years since, aided by modern implements and millions of money.

Look next at the system of laws laid down in these writings. They certainly were without an equal, either in their day or since, until this twentieth century; and the laws of this century are based upon the principles laid down in the Mosaic Law, and framed in the main by men who acknowledged the Mosaic Law as of divine origin.

The Decalogue is a brief synopsis of the whole law. Those Ten Commandments enjoin a code of worship and morals that must strike every student as remarkable; and if never before known, and now found among the ruins and relics of Greece, Rome, or Babylon (nations which have risen and fallen again, long since those laws were given), they would be regarded as marvelous if not supernatural. But familiarity with them and their claims has begotten measurable indifference, so that their real greatness is unnoticed except by the few.

True, those commandments do not teach of Christ; but they were given, not to Christians, but to Hebrews; not to teach faith in a ransom, but to convince men of their sinful state, and need of a ransom. And the substance of those commandments was grandly epitomized by the illustrious founder of Christianity, in the words: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength"; and "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Mark 12: 30, 31

The government instituted by Moses differed from all others, ancient and modern, in that it claimed to be that of the Creator himself, and the people were held accountable to him; their laws and institutions, civil and religious, claimed to emanate from God, and, as we shall presently see, were in perfect harmony with what reason teaches us to be God's character. The Tabernacle, in the center of the camp, had in its "Most Holy" apartment a manifestation of Jehovah's presence as their King, whence by supernatural means they received instruction for the proper administration of their affairs as a nation.

An order of priests was established, which had complete charge of the Tabernacle, and through them alone access and communion with Jehovah was permitted. The first thought of some in this connection would perhaps be: "Ah! there we have the object of their organization: with them, as with other nations, the priests ruled the people, imposing upon their credulity and exciting their fears for their own honor and profit."

But hold, friend; let us not too hastily assume anything. Where there is such good opportunity for testing this matter by the facts, it would not be reasonable to jump to conclusions without the facts. The unanswerable evidences are contrary to such suppositions. The rights and the privileges of the priests were limited; they were given no civil power whatever, and wholly lacked opportunity for using their office to impose upon the rights or consciences of the people; and this arrangement was made by Moses, a member of the priestly line.

As God's representative in bringing Israel out of Egyptian bondage, the force of circumstances had centralized the government in his hand, and made the meek Moses an autocrat in power and authority, though from the meekness of his disposition he was in fact the overworked servant of the people, whose very life was being exhausted by the onerous cares of his position. At this juncture a civil government was established, which was virtually a democracy.

Let us not be misunderstood: Regarded as unbelievers would esteem it, Israel's government was a democracy, but regarded in the light of its own claims, it was a theocracy, i.e., a divine government; for the laws given by God, through Moses, permitted of no amendments: they must neither add to nor take from their code of laws. Thus seen, Israel's government was different from any other civil government, either before or since. "The Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be elders of the people and officers over them; and bring them unto the Tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. And I will come down and talk with thee there, and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee and will put it upon them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not alone." (Num. 11: 16, 17. See also verses 24 to 30 for an example of true and guileless statesmanship and meekness.)

Moses, rehearsing this matter, says: "So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known [of influence], and made them heads over you: captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes." Deut. 1: 15; Exod. 18: 13-26

Thus it appears that this distinguished lawgiver, so far from seeking to perpetuate or increase his own power by placing the government of the people under the control of his direct relatives, of the priestly tribe, to use their religious authority to fetter the rights and liberties of the people, on the contrary introduced to the people a form of government calculated to cultivate the spirit of liberty. The histories of other nations and rulers show no parallel to this. In every case the ruler has sought his own aggrandizement and greater power.

Even in instances where such have aided in establishing republics, it has appeared from subsequent events that they did it through policy, to obtain favor with the people, and to perpetuate their own power. Circumstanced as Moses was, any ambitious man, governed by policy and attempting to perpetuate a fraud upon the people, would have worked for greater centralization of power in himself and his family; especially as this would have seemed an easy task from the religious authority being already in that tribe, and from the claim of this nation to be governed by God, from the Tabernacle. 

 

Nor is it supposable that a man capable of forming such laws, and of ruling such a people, would be so dull of comprehension as not to see what the tendency of his course would be. So completely was the government of the people put into their own hands, that though it was stipulated that the weightier cases which those governors could not decide were to be brought unto Moses, yet they themselves were the judges as to what cases went before Moses: "The cause which is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it." Deut. 1: 17

Thus seen, Israel was a republic whose officers acted under a divine commission. And to the confusion of those who ignorantly claim that the Bible sanctions an established empire rule over the people, instead of "a government of the people by the people," be it noted that this republican form of civil government continued for over four hundred years. And it was then changed for that of a kingdom at the request of "The Elders," without the Lord's approval, who said to Samuel, then acting as a sort of informal president, "Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they shall say unto thee, for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them."

At God's instance Samuel explained to the people how their rights and liberties would be disregarded, and how they would become servants by such a change; yet they had become infatuated with the popular idea, illustrated all around them in other nations. (1 Sam. 8: 6-22) In considering this account of their desire for a king, who is not impressed with the thought that Moses could have firmly established himself at the head of a great empire without difficulty?

 

While Israel as a whole constituted one nation, the tribal division was never recognized after Jacob's death. Each family, or tribe, by common consent, elected or recognized certain members as its representatives, or chiefs. This custom was continued even through their long slavery in Egypt. These were called chiefs or elders, and it was to these that Moses delivered the honor and power of civil government; whereas, had he desired to centralize power in himself and his own family, these would have been the last men to honor with power and office.

The instructions given those appointed to civil rulership as from God are a model of simplicity and purity. Moses declares to the people, in the hearing of these judges: "I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger [foreigner] that is with him. Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's; and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it." (Deut. 1: 16, 17)

Such hard cases were, after Moses' death, brought directly to the Lord through the High Priest, the answer being Yes or No, by the Urim and Thummim.

In view of these facts, what shall we say of the theory which suggests that these books were written by knavish priests to secure to themselves influence and power over the people? Would such men for such a purpose forge records destructive to the very aims they sought to advance—records which prove conclusively that the great Chief of Israel, and one of their own tribe, at the instance of God, cut off the priesthood from civil power by placing that power in the hands of the people? Does any one consider such a conclusion reasonable?

 

Again, it is worthy of note that the laws of the most advanced civilization, in this twentieth century, do not more carefully provide that rich and poor shall stand on a common level in accountability before the civil law. Absolutely no distinction was made by Moses' laws. And as for the protection of the people from the dangers incident to some becoming very poor and others excessively wealthy and powerful, no other national law has ever been enacted which so carefully guarded this point.

Moses' law provided for a restitution every fiftieth year—their Jubilee year. This law, by preventing the absolute alienation of property, thereby prevented its accumulation in the hands of a few. (Lev. 25: 9, 13-23, 27-30) In fact, they were taught to consider themselves brethren, and to act accordingly; to assist each other without compensation, and to take no usury of one another. See Exod. 22: 25; Lev. 25: 36, 37; Num. 26: 52-56.

All the laws were made public, thus preventing designing men from successfully tampering with the rights of the people. The laws were exposed in such a manner that any who chose might copy them; and, in order that the poorest and most unlearned might not be ignorant of them, it was made the duty of the priests to read them to the people at their septennial festivals. (Deut. 31: 10-13) Is it reasonable to suppose that such laws and arrangements were designed by bad men, or by men scheming to defraud the people of their liberties and happiness? Such an assumption would be unreasonable.

In its regard for the rights and interests of foreigners, and of enemies, the Mosaic law was thirty-two centuries ahead of its times—if indeed the laws of the most civilized of today equal it in fairness and benevolence. We read: "Ye shall have one manner of law as well for the stranger [foreigner] as for one of your own country; for I am the Lord your God." Exod. 12: 49; Lev. 24: 22

"And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him; but the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt." Lev. 19: 33, 34

 

"If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, wouldst thou cease to leave thy business and help him? Thou shalt surely leave it, to join with [assist] him." Exod. 23: 4,5

 

Even the dumb animals were not forgotten. Cruelty to these as well as to human beings was prohibited strictly. An ox must not be muzzled while threshing the grain; for the good reason that any laborer is worthy of his food. Even the ox and the ass must not plow together, because so unequal in strength and tread: it would be cruelty. Their rest was also provided for. (Deut. 25: 4; 22: 10; Exod. 23: 12)The priesthood may be claimed by some to have been a selfish institution, because the tribe of Levites was supported by the annual tenth, or tithe, of the individual produce of their brethren of the other tribes.

This fact, stated thus, is an unfair presentation too common to skeptics, who, possibly ignorantly, thereby misrepresent one of the most remarkable evidences of God's part in the organization of that system, and that it was not the work of a selfish and scheming priesthood. Indeed, it is not infrequently misrepresented by a modern priesthood, which urges a similar system now, using that as a precedent, without mentioning the condition of things upon which it was founded, or its method of payment.

It was, in fact, founded upon the strictest equity. When Israel came into possession of the land of Canaan, the Levites certainly had as much right to a share of the land as the other tribes; yet, by God's express command, they got none of it, except certain cities or villages for residence, scattered among the various tribes, whom they were to serve in religious things. Nine times is this prohibition given, before the division of the land. Instead of the land, some equivalent should surely be provided them, and the tithe was therefore this reasonable and just provision.

Nor is this all: the tithe, though, as we have seen, a just debt, was not enforced as a tax, but was to be paid as a voluntary contribution. And no threat bound them to make those contributions: all depended upon their conscientiousness. The only exhortations to the people on the subject are as follows:

 

"Take heed to thyself that thou forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon the earth." (Deut. 12: 19) "And the Levite that is within thy gates, thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee" [in the land]. (Deut. 14: 27)

 

Is it, we ask, reasonable to suppose that this order of things would have been thus arranged by selfish and ambitious priests?—an arrangement to disinherit themselves and to make them dependent for support upon their brethren? Does not reason teach us to the contrary?

In harmony with this, and equally inexplicable on any other grounds than those claimed—that God is the author of those laws—is the fact that no special provision was made for honoring the priesthood. In nothing would imposters be more careful than to provide reverence and respect for themselves, and severest penalties and curses upon those who misused them.

But nothing of the kind appears: no special honor, or reverence, or immunity from violence or insult, is provided. The common law, which made no distinction between classes, and was no respecter of persons, was their only protection. This is the more remarkable because the treatment of servants, and strangers, and the aged, was the subject of special legislation.

For instance: Thou shalt not vex nor oppress a stranger, or widow, or fatherless child; for if they cry at all unto me [to God] I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall be widows and your children fatherless. (Exod. 22: 21-24; 23: 9; Lev. 19: 33, 34) "Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of strangers that are in thy land, within thy gates. At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it, for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it; lest he cry against thee unto the Lord and it be sin unto thee." (Lev. 19: 13; Deut. 24: 14, 15; Exod. 21: 26, 27) "Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head and honor the face of the old man." (Lev. 19: 32. See also Lev. 19: 14.) All this, yet nothing special for Priests, or Levites, or their tithes.

 

The sanitary arrangements of the law, so needful to a poor and long-oppressed people, together with the arrangements and limitations respecting clean and unclean animals which might or might not be eaten, are remarkable, and would, with other features, be of interest if space permitted their examination, as showing that law to have been abreast with, if not in advance of, the latest conclusions of medical science on the subject.

The law of Moses had also a typical character, which we must leave for future consideration; but even our hasty glance has furnished overwhelming evidence that this law, which constitutes the very framework of the entire system of revealed religion, which the remainder of the Bible elaborates, is truly a marvelous display of wisdom and justice, especially when its date is taken into consideration.

In the light of reason, all must admit that it bears no evidence of being the work of wicked, designing men, but that it corresponds exactly with what nature teaches to be the character of God. It gives evidence of his Wisdom, Justice and Love. And further, the evidently pious and noble lawgiver, Moses, denies that the laws were his own, and attributes them to God. (Exod. 24: 12; Deut. 9: 9-11; Exod. 26: 30; Lev. 1: 1)

In view of his general character, and his commands to the people not to bear false witness, and to avoid hypocrisy and lying, is it reasonable to suppose that such a man bore false witness and palmed off his own views and laws for those of God? It should be remembered also that we are examining the present copies of the Bible, and that therefore the integrity for which it is so marked applies equally to the successors of Moses; for though bad men were among those successors, who did seek their own and not the people's good, it is evident that they did not tamper with the Sacred Writings, which are pure to this day.