The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-08-17

poets as an Independent nation, not
withstanding they were subject to the
Roman Empire, refer you to the
conversation between the Jews and
Plate, the governor of Judea, in ref
erence to the trial and condemnation
of Christ After the Saviour was be-
trayed into the hands of the Jews
they delivered him into the hands of
Plate. Plate said unto them: "What
accusation bring ye against this
MANI" They answered and said unto
him, eff he were not malefactor, we
should not have delivered him unto
thee" Then said Plate unto them,
"Take ye him, and Judge him accord
ing to your law" The Jews said
unto him, SIT is not lawful for us to
put any man to death"
From what has now been said we
learn that the Jews as nation had
been in state of death, represented
as valley of dry bones, and in their
graves-that they were brought up
out OF their graves to the enjoyment
again of life, and the blessings of
nation-and that they thus existed
when Christ made his appearance to
put away the law with all its forms
and ceremonies, and to establish in its
stead the Gospel. Be it understood,
then, that the state in which the house
of Israel was then looked upon by the
prophet as valley of dry bones, is to
be considered as the first death, in
contradistinction to the second death
spoken of in our text.
We now come directly to the inquiry,
what shall we understand by the phrase
second DEATH" mentioned in the Scrip
lures under consideration? You will
bear in mind the fact that the flake Of
fire" and the second death" are synon-
ymous expressions. AS have attempted
to show that the natural death OF the
Israelites in Babylon was the first death,
/ will now assume the position and at
tempt to prove that the final overthrow
OF the Jewish nation, the destruction of
the Mosaic institution, and the suffer
ings which came upon the Jews at that
time. are to be considered the second
death.
The Lake of Fire.
The lake OF fire is the second death.
This being the case can we deduce evil
dence from the Scriptures which will
Justify us in the belief that temporal
judgments are ever represented by such
expressions as "lake of fire" which evil
dence is necessary in order to substan-
tiate the position we have taken-viz:
that the judgment which came upon the
Jews, or their final national destruction
was the second death.
1t is necessary in this part of our sub
ject that we proceed with the utmost
caution, for think may safely say that
in most minds the greatest difficulty ex-
lists in relation to correct understand.
ing Of the text, is in the phrase. "lake of
fire. Now, If we find that similar ex
pressions are used in the Scriptures to
set forth Gods temporal judgments
upon the children of men, we shall there
fore be assisted in coming to correct
conclusions in regard to our text.
In Ezekiel, 22nd chapter, we read as
follows: "And the word of the Lord
came unto me saying-Son of Man, the
house of Israel is to me become dross,
all they are brass and tin and iron and
lead in the midst of the furnace; they are
even the dross of silver. Therefore, thus
saith the Lord God, because ye are all
become dross, behold, therefore I will
gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.
AS they gather silver and brass and lead
and iron and tin into the midst of the
furnace, to blow the fire upon it to melt
it; so will l gather you in mine anger
and in my fury, and will leave you there
and melt you. Yea. / will gather you
and blow upon you in the midst thereof
AS silver is melted in the midst of the
furnace. so shall ye be melted in the
midst thereof and ye shall know that l,
the Lord, have poured out my fury upon
you"
Here in this testimony of holy writ we
have highly wrought and figurative
representation of the judgment which
God inflicted upon the Jews in Jerusa-
lem. Jerusalem was the place in which
Gods furnace was said to be; there did
he declare by the mouth of his prophet,
that he would gather the house of Israel,
or the Jews, into the furnace, land blow
upon them and melt Them" No person
will question that this language has di-
rect reference to the punishment which
God inflicted upon the Jews at the time
their nation was destroyed; and is there
not strong similarity existing between
this language of the prophet and that Of
the terms second death" and "lake Of
fire" which occur in our textY In both
cases the language is highly tigurative
and in both cases no doubt the language
refers to the same event.
But there are other Scriptures which
go direct to show that the temporal
judgments of the Almighty upon the