The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1911-10-18

ilization enjoyed in Europe and Amer
lea, could we claim then that Gods
will was done on earth as 1t is done
| in heaven2 Assuredly not.
Thank God, the second coming of
: Messiah will not delay until the world
Is converted and Gods will fully done
| and the plan of salvation ended.
Quite to the contrary. His coming is
for the very purpose of bringing all
things into subsection to the Fathers
| will. He comes that He may reign as
King of kings and Lord of lords. in
association with His Church. He will
| not reign through n representative or
vice-gerent, but personally. and unto
Him every knee shall bow and every
tongue confess to the glory of God
In His day the righteous shall flour
ish, and the evil-doers shall be cut off
The faithful Church, sharing In her
Lords resurrection, the First Resur-
rection, to glory, honor and immortali-
! ty, will be His associate kings and
priests, to reign for a thousand years
Revelation Xxx, g.
Fire SymboIioaI OF Destruction.
Let us examine some texts which
seem to teach that our earth will be
destroyed by fire, and note that they
are symbolical. Fire" is frequently
used in the Scriptures as symbol Of
destruction. Thus the Church is ex.
horted to mortify or kill the fieshly
nature, and is told that the fiery
work. The opposition of enemies is
to be destroyed by works of mercy
and Kindness, which, guratively, will
be "coals Of fire upon their heads"
ST. Peter mentions special trials and
fluctuations coming upon the Church.
designed to purify her-purge out and
destroy the dross. He says think
1t not strange concerning the fiery
trial which is to try you. as though
some strange thing happened unto
you'll Peter iy, IL.
st. Paul refers to special trials upon
the Church in the end of the Gospel
Age, which will consume false doc
trines, human traditions, etc, and all
false faith, but which will leave I'M
scathed the true Faith and true char
acters. He says: "If any man build
upon this foundation gold, silver. pre-
cious stones, wood, hay, stubble. ev
cry mans work shall be made mani
fest, for the day shall declare it, be-
cause it shall be revealed by fire; and
the fire shall try every mans work Of
what sort it is. If any mans work
abide which he hath built thereupon.
he shall receive a reward. If any
mans work shall be burned, he shall
suffer loss; but he himself shall be
saved, yet so as by fre"-I COrin-
thians iii, 1915.
These various Scriptures do not
prove that the world could not be de-
stroyed by fire in a literal way. but
they do prove that fire" is very fire.
quently mentioned in the Bible in a
figurative or symbolcal manner. We
might multiply the instances: Our
God is a consuming fire"-as regards
everything contrary to righteousness
the symbolical Lake of fire" in the
book of Revelation, is explained to sig
Nifty the Second Death. utter destruc
ton, without hope of recovery.
World Burning Unscriptura.
The supposition that the earth will
be destroyed by fire, either soon or
ever. would he contrary to the state
ment that the earth abideth forever"
and the declaration that God formed it
not in vain. but formed it to be in
habited isaiah xiv. 49, One of the
very strong passages which seems to
teach that the earth will he devoured
by fire is found in Zephaniah iii, s:
wait We upon Me, saith the Lord I'M
til that Day that / rise up to the prey.
for My determination is to gather the
nation. that | may assemble the king
doms, to pour upon them Mine indiG-
nation, even all My fierce anger; for
the whole earth shall be devoured with
the fire of My jealousy '-anger.
That the fire of Gods anger which
will come upon the world will not de-
stroy the physical earth, with all its
inha bitants, but will destroy the evil
of present institutions, is shown by the
succeeding sentence, which declares:
"Then will | turn to the people pure
Message, that they may all call upon
the name of the Lord to serve Him
with one consent" If the fire of this
text were literal, the earth and its peo-
pie would be no more. but as symbol
ical fire 1t is perceived that it is burn
ing against righteousness, iniQuity,
sin, the overthrow of all institutions of
evil. and the awakening of mankind
and preparing them to hear the Voice
of God, the language of the Truth.
the Divine Message.
What we have seen prepares us for
the somewhat more difficult statement
of st. Peter: "The Day OF the Lord
will come as thief in the night, in
the which the heavens shall pass away
with a great noise, and the elements
shall melt with fervent heat; the earth
also, and the works that are therein,
shall be burned up. I" The heavens,
being on fire, shall be dissolved, and
The elements shall melt with fervent
heat. Nevertheless we. according to
His promise look for New Heavens