"The Age to Come"
BY JOSEPH MARSH
ROCHESTER, N. Y., PUBLISHED AT THE ADVENT HARBINGER OFFICE 1851
PROBATIONARY AGE
Psa. xxii. 27. "All the ends of the world shall remember, and turn unto the Lord; and all the kindreds of
the nations shall worship before thee."
This promise never has been fulfilled. It cannot have its fulfillment in the gospel age; for it is to terminate
in the time of a great departing from God. Consequently, it must be fulfilled in the Age to come. The
same truth is taught in Psa. lxxii. 11; lxxxvi. 9.
Isa. xi. 10. "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," in glory, as the margin reads.
In what day will the Gentiles seek this rest of glory? The previous verses give the answer, that it will be in
that day of Restitution, when the wolf, lion and the lamb shall dwell together, &c, and "the earth shall be
full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." In this day of millennial glory, the
Gentiles will seek the rest of glory.
Isa. lxvi. 15-19. "For behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots, like a whirlwind, to
render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the Lord
plead with all flesh; and the slain of the Lord shall be many. They that sanctify themselves, and purify
themselves in the gardens, behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the
mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall
come, that I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory. And I will set a
sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and
Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the Isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have
seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles."
This prophecy has never had its fulfillment, and cannot until Christ shall come in his glory, and be seated
on the throne of his glory. (Matt. xxv. 31, 32.) And just as certain as he will thus come, and the "slain of
the Lord will be many," just so surely will some "escape" that destruction. And some nations, or
remnants, who have not heard the fame of the Lord, nor seen his glory, will also remain, to whom will be
sent those who escape, to declare the glory of the Lord. Thus the word of the Lord reads, and thus it will
be most literally fulfilled. And who art thou, O vain man, who raisest thy puny arm against his will?
Ezek. xxxvi. 35, 36. "And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden:
and the waste, and desolate, and ruined cities, are become fenced, and are inhabited. Then the heathen
that are left round about you, shall know that I, the Lord, build the ruined places, and plant that that was
desolate. I, the Lord, have spoken it, and I will do it."
The Lord has "spoken," and he "WILL DO IT." Then, after the land of Palestine "is become like the
garden of Eden," there will be "left" some "heathen round about," who shall know the Lord. The same
truth is taught in the next two chapters, which the reader is requested to examine.
Dan. vii. 14. "And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and
languages, should serve him."
These nations who serve Christ after he receives his kingdom, cannot be the "saints," for the kingdom is
given to them. (Verse 27) It must therefore be the nations in the flesh, who escape the destruction of that
day.
Zech. xiv. 16, 17. "And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came
against Jerusalem, shall even go up from year to year, to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep
the feast of tabernacles, and it shall be, that whoso will not come up, of all the families of the earth, unto
Jerusalem, to worship the King, the Lord of hosts even upon them shall be no rain."
By reading the chapter, it will be seen that this transpires after the Lord comes. His feet stand on Mount
Olives, it cleaves asunder, the land is lifted up, the Lord has become King over all the earth, and a most
terrible destruction of the enemies of the Lord has taken place. After all this, some are "left," who go up
to Jerusalem yearly to worship.
Acts. xv. 16, 17. "After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen
down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up. That the residue of men might seek after
the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things."
Mark the strength of this apostolic testimony. The Lord RETURNS. What does he do then? He builds
AGAIN the tabernacle of David. What for? The RESIDUE (the left) of men might SEEK after the Lord.
Amos (ix. 13) testifies to the same truths.
Rev. xx. 1-3. Here we are taught that the devil is bound at the commencement of the millennial reign of
Christ, that he may deceive the NATIONS no more during that reign.
The immortal saints cannot be these nations, unless they are to be deceived by Satan at the end of the
thousand years; for the same nations he is bound that he should not deceive, he finally deceives. (See
verse 8.) It is too absurd to admit for a moment, that the immortal saints will be liable to deception, and
especially after having reigned with Christ a thousand years.
It cannot be the dead nations he is bound that he should not deceive; for "the dead know not any thing,"
and therefore are incapable of being deceived.
But admitting the wicked dead have knowledge, where are they during the thousand years? In the
bottomless pit, of course, where the devil will be. Consequently, he is not bound so as not to deceive
them; for he would be immediately with them, all the time of the thousand years.
The only reasonable hypothesis in the case, is, that it is the living nations in the flesh, or remnants, that
will escape the destruction of that great day, that the devil will be bound that he shall not deceive for a
thousand years; and the plain letter of prophecy, under consideration, justifies this conclusion.
From this chain of evidence, it is clear that some of the Gentiles, or heathen, will be "left," or "escape"
the great and general destruction that will fall upon the beast, the false prophets, the kings of the earth and
their armies, at the commencement of the millennial reign of Christ. And from another chain of equally
clear and positive testimony, we learn that a remnant of . . .