Upon reading the account of man's creation in the first chapters of Genesis we conclude that he enjoyed perfect peace and happiness. From the beautiful description given there of the garden of Eden—man's abode—we understand that God was interested in his felicity. In the nature of created things he could retain this happiness only by obedience to the Creator's laws. By a subtle foe he was induced to transgress those laws and thus became acquainted with sin and sorrow. After the transgression he hid himself among [pg 017] the trees of the garden from the presence of the Lord because a fear rested upon his conscious being.
Man in sweet felicity was made,
But sorrowed when God he disobeyed.
The man was turned out upon the world to earn his support by labor. The ground was cursed for his sake. It brought forth thorns and thistles, and in sorrow he must eat of it all the days of his life. Cherubims and a flaming sword prevented his return to the tree of life, which stood in the midst of the garden. The apostle John in his revelations beheld this sad scene. He saw the book of life—tree of life—to be sealed with seven seals, and he saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon,” and he wept much. Rev. 5:1-4. How sad the scene! Man was created in holiness and happiness. He dwelt in the garden of Eden and had access to the tree of life, the very source of peace. But sin entered his heart. He was driven away to be in sorrow all his days. No man in heaven nor earth could secure his return. God saw his wretchedness and that his “wickedness was great in the earth” and “it grieved him at his heart.” Gen. 6:5, 6. Sin swayed its scepter over the heart of man and he [pg 018] groaned beneath its tyrannical power, but God's mercy was not “clean gone forever.” They cried unto the Lord because of the oppressors and he promised to send them a “Savior, and a great one,” to deliver them. Isa. 19:20. Man was encaged in the prison-house of sin, but God promised to send a deliverer “to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” Isa. 61:1.
The beloved apostle John, in the vision before mentioned, wept because no man was found worthy to open the book; but one of the elders said unto him, “Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.” Praise God! John in his vision saw the man fall from his pure and happy state into sin and the book of life becoming sealed. He also saw that no man in heaven nor earth was able to restore him to his original place and holiness, and it caused him to weep. But in his vision there appeared one who prevailed to open the book and “redeem us unto God out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation.”
In the prophetic days of ancient Israel men who walked with God and trusted in his promises were permitted a visionary look down through the centuries to behold the dawning of a day glorious in the effulgency of its light and the greatness of its power. Even in those dim, remote days the wondrous glory of a day when the “Prince of Peace” should come was [pg 019] foreseen by the prophets, who break forth in beautiful strains of music, expressing their joy and admiration. Isaiah in speaking of that expected day says, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.” Isa. 60:1-3.
It is a day of wonderful light. When the prophet speaks of the Gentiles coming to the light the reader begins to understand the time of the dawning. He further says, “Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.” Isa. 60:18-20.
The prophet by a long stretch of faith passed through the gates of Praise to within the walls of Salvation and beheld a light above the brightness of the sun and the softness of the moon. We quote these texts, and the following, to impress the reader's mind and heart with the greatness of the light and the [pg 020] wonders of that coming day as seen in expectation by those ancient holy men. After a while we will come to the dawning, then the noontide, then the evening of this great day and we will find the glory and the wonders to be as the prophets foresaw and described.
What can the holy seer mean by saying, “Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders”? We have only to turn to the eleventh chapter, where we have this clearly explained. Let us read: “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears; but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reigns. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion [pg 021] shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.”
Who does not know who is referred to by the words “the Root of Jesse,” whom the Gentiles shall seek, “and his rest shall be glorious”? We hear of one saying in the New Testament, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” “Violence shall no more be heard in thy land.” “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb” in the day when the Gentiles shall seek rest in the Root of Jesse. This prophecy will never have a literal fulfilment, as some erroneously teach. It only exalts the salvation of the Branch of Jesse to deliver men from the wolf and lion disposition. It is the peacefulness of Christianity. In the day the prophet is speaking of there shall be peace on the earth. Man can find deliverance from sin and obtain a peaceful rest—not being disturbed by evil and ill dispositions.