The Need for Caution
Part II
Daniel 8:14
“And he said unto me,
Unto two thousand and three hundred days;
then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”
In a turbulent world, with conflicts raging in the Middle East, and Russia, there are wars and rumors of war. People want to know if the world is coming to an end. To help guide our thoughts in eschatology, attention is turned to the Bible to help answer some important questions.
“Who is in charge of the world?”
“Does God the Father, Son, and Spirt rule and reign over the affairs of men?”
“Is the reign of Jesus Christ a present reality, or something relegated to the future?”
Our hearts are comforted by the words of Jesus who said,
“All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matt. 28:18). Psalm 103:19 declares, “The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.” That is true now, and that is true always. There is no reign of any king anywhere at any time except by God’s decree.
Now, in order to alleviate concern about the world coming to an end, it is good to remember the past in order not to misunderstand the present. We are suggesting caution must be taken in prophetic matters lest God’s people be misled as they were by William Miller in the 1840’s.
As we have previously noted, William Miller, a Baptist layman, believed God had given him special knowledge about the timing for the Second Advent of Jesus, and the end of the world in a ball of fire. Miller’s main text for his insight into the future was Daniel 8:14. “And he [the angel of the Lord] said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”
Unfortunately, Miller substituted the cleansing of the sanctuary to mean the cleansing of the earth thereby paving the way for the Second Advent of Christ in 1843, or 1844.
Two Mistakes in Interpreting the Bible
If the first mistake of William Miller was to ignore the grammatical, and historical setting of the Biblical text, and assume that Daniel 8:14 referred to the Second Coming of Christ, his second mistake was to arbitrarily insist that the 2,300 days were not literal days of 24-hour period, but were 2,300 years. “And he [the angel of the Lord] said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” William Miller assumed that each “day” really stood for a “year.”
The Idea of a Day for a Year
How did William Miller come up with the idea of a day for a year principle? Part of the answer lies in three other passages of Scripture, where a day for a year principle is declared.
The first passage is Numbers 14:34.
“After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.”
Many centuries later, speaking to the prophet Ezekiel, the Lord told him the following.
“[Ezekiel] I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel (Ezekiel 4:5).
Finally, in Ezekiel 4:6, the Lord said,
“And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.”
An Important Difference
Sometimes, the day for a year principle is valid. But notice something very important. The difference between the three passages in Numbers and Ezekiel, and the passage in Daniel is this. When God wanted to establish the day for a year principle, He said so. In Daniel 8:14, God does not indicate that a day equals a year, and so the commentator of Scripture must be careful not to read into the text what is not warranted.
Two Fixed Thoughts
With two pre-suppositional thoughts firmly fixed in his mind, William Miller returned to Daniel 8:14 and decided that the 2,300 days of years period started in 457 BC with the decree to rebuild Jerusalem by Artaxerxes I of Persia. A simple calculation brought Mr. Miller to the conclusion that 2,300 years later from 457 BC would bring everyone to the year 1843.
Oh, to think in the year 1818 that by 1843 Jesus Christ was coming again!
Just 25 more years and Jesus will come!
That, thought William Miller was the truth of the matter.
Now, he must go and tell others, far and wide, Jesus will return within 25 years.
The Key
William Miller records what he thought about the “key” that had been given to him in 1818, leading to what he was convinced, was a great discovery regarding the time of the Second Advent. I doubt if the recorded thought he left fully conveyed the excitement in his heart.
“I was thus brought… to the solemn conclusion, that in about twenty-five years from that time 1818, all the affairs of our present state would be wound up.”
Reinforcing Error
In 1818 William Miller was convinced of his calculations that Jesus was coming again in 1843.
Nevertheless, he continued to study privately for several more years to ensure the “correctness” of his interpretation. Another practical lesson is learned. Error tends to reinforce itself, especially, if that error has its origin in the world, the flesh, or the devil.
One way to test an idea is to read what others have to say. Many years ago, when I was studying history at Ft. Hays State University, Hays, Kansas, a flickering light bulb came on. It dawned on me that so much of what I believed about the Bible and theology, especially in prophesy, had not been incorporated into any Creed of Christendom, nor discussed in any of the 21 major Church Councils. To know the truth, I had to read and study outside my comfort level. And, I had to go and study the Scriptures afresh, like the Bereans.
A Twenty-one Point Document
In September 1822, William Miller formally stated his conclusions in a twenty-point document, including article 15: “I believe that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ is near, even at the door, even within twenty-one years, – on or before 1843.”
A Public Pronouncement
It was on the first Sunday in August, 1831 in the town of Dresden, New York that William Miller began to publically teach his amazing discovery. Out of the 24 states in America, with a population of 12, 856, 020 (5th Census), he alone had been given the date for the Second Advent of Christ.
His sensational thoughts created a stir within the body of Christ.
To Be Precise
The public response was one of intense excitement. Soon, the pressure was on Miller to be more precise as to the date of the Lord’s return. In response to public pressures, Mr. Miller began to narrow the time-period of the Second Advent to sometime in the Jewish year beginning in the Gregorian year 1843. Said Mr. Miller,
“My principles in brief, are, that Jesus Christ will come again to this earth, cleanse, purify, and take possession of the same, with all the saints, sometime between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844.
Miscalculation in March
Well, March 21, 1843, passed without incident. However, further discussion and study resulted in the brief adoption of a new date, April 18, 1843. This new date was based on the conservative Karaite Jewish calendar which is based on a lunar-solar month. Like the previous date, April 18, 1843 passed without Christ’s return. Soon thereafter, William Miller responded publicly, writing,
“I confess my error, and acknowledge my disappointment; yet I still believe that the day of the Lord is near, even at the door.”
Unfortunately, others would pick up where William Miller left off.
The True Midnight Cry
In August, 1844 at a camp-meeting in Exeter New Hampshire, a Millerite by the name of Samuel S. Snow, presented a message that became known as the “Seventh-Month Message,” or, “The True Midnight Cry.” In a discussion based on scriptural typology, Samuel Snow presented his contorted conclusion, which was also based on the 2,300 day-year principle of the prophecy in Daniel 8:14, that Christ would return on, “the tenth day of the seventh month of the present year, 1844.”
The Tarrying Time
With this pronouncement, a new date was determined for the Lord’s Second Coming: October 22, 1844. All the Millerites had to do was embrace the fact they were in the Tarrying Time. This new terminology of hope was based on the words in Habakkuk 2:3.
“For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry”.
The Great Disappointment
The sun rose on the morning of October 23, 1844 like any other day, and October 22nd, 1844 became the Millerites Day of Great Disappointment, Hiram Edson recorded that,
“Our fondest hopes and expectations were blasted, and such a spirit of weeping came over us as I never experienced before… We wept, and wept, till the day dawn.”
Following the Great Disappointment most Millerites simply gave up their beliefs. However, some did not, leading to new sensational viewpoints. Explanations proliferated to spin the failed prophesies. William Miller initially thought that Christ’s Second Coming was still going to take place. He wrote that
“the year of expectation was according to prophecy; but…that there might be an error in Bible chronology, which was of human origin, that could throw the date off somewhat and account for the discrepancy.”
A Determined Belief
William Miller never gave up his belief in the Second Coming of Christ in his lifetime. He died on December 20, 1849 (age 67), still convinced that the Second Coming was imminent, not impending, but imminent. That word, imminent, is still found in the consciousness of the Christian community and continues to inspire unreasonable expectations, while instilling fear and sensationalism into the hearts of countless millions.
Mr. Miller is buried near his home in Low Hampton, New York and his home is a registered National Historic Landmark and preserved as a museum. May the Lord help us to learn some important, and practical, lessons from the life of William Miller.
First, let the Church remember that Error is bold and it is militant. What begins as a novel idea can gain ascendency through dogmatism, and persistency, to reach a level of credibility and, ultimately, a widespread acceptance. What the erroneous theory of evolution has done in secular society, the erroneous theories of eschatology have done in the Church. The result has been doctrinal havoc, confusion, division, and much falsehood.
Second, the setting of dates is prohibited in principle, and practice, by the word of God, and is unnecessary. In principle trying to discern the future is associated with divination, which is condemned.
“There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch” (Deut. 18:10).
The Law of Moses prohibited every form of divination, because a prying into the future clouds the mind with superstition, and fanciful interpretations of Scripture, and it inclines the heart towards idolatry, specifically the idolatry of an inordinate love of a man and his ideas. For a while, Mr. Miller was idolized, and anyone who spoke against him and his prophetic interpretation of the Scripture was angrily condemned. Go to Utah and you will sense an inordinate worship and idolization of Joseph Smith Jr.In the ancient world people used animal entrails and omens to foretell the future.
Jospeh Smith used “peep stones” and a hat. He bowed his head and saw the future. You can read what he saw in the Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants.
Go to Boston to the Mother Church of Christian Science and you will find idolization of Mary Glover Patterson Eddy.
Go to the Islamic community and you will find an inordinate love for the prophet Mohammed.
To tell the truth about him as a man is to disrespect him and to risk having your throat slashed and your head cut off, literally.
Today, individuals use the television, the internet, modern technology, and four blood moons to foretell the future.
Prophetic pundits read the newspaper and try to match up ancient texts with current events. It is shameful, but financially profitable. This practice is dangerous and it is forbidden. Despite God’s prohibition on the setting of dates and the seeking of signs, individuals in the Church, in every century, have engaged in this practice. Even today, Christian people, who know better, still set dates for the return of Christ, or come so perilously close to doing so, that it is hard to see how they are not guilty of violating the known will of God.
In 1979, in a Baptist church in Daton, Tennessee, I sat in the audience and heard Dr. John Walvoord, former president of Dallas Theological Seminary, declare he fully intended to be alive for the Rapture of the Church, which he called Phase I of the Second Coming of Christ. Dr. Walvoord (b. May 1, 1910) died on December 20, 2002.
Perhaps you have heard of the prophetic writer Hal Lindsey (b. 1929) who wrote a book, published in May, 1970, The Late Great Planet Earth, and another one, The 1980’s: Countdown to Armageddon. None of his predictions have come to pass.
Jesus said in Matthew 12:39 that “an evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign.” This generation must be one of the most evil and adulterous generations based on the current obsessive interest in signs of the time.
A third practical lesson is that the church must be careful what is read, embraced, and taught; ideas have consequences. Every Christian must bring every thought into captivity for Christ.
“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5).
Had Mr. William Miller forgone his “eureka” moment, had he arrested his presuppositional thinking, had he studied what the church has believed down through the centuries, the course of his life would have been far different.
He would not have departed from the faith once delivered to the saints.
A fourth lesson to be reminded of is that we as Christians must be careful of becoming so emotionally attached to a System of belief that there is no room to be taught by the Holy Spirit, and thus to be led into the simple truth of God’s Word. We must not dismiss the voice of the Church down through the centuries. In the matter of eschatology, the church has consistently taught two critical points.
First, Jesus Christ is coming again in the same way He went away. Literally, slowly, bodily, visibly.
“Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).
Second, Jesus Christ is coming again the second time for all who believe.
“So, Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Heb. 9:28).
A fifth lesson to remember is that the good that men do is said to live after them, and so is the harm they do. Estimates of the number of followers of William Miller vary between 50,000, and 500,000. That is a lot of people to mislead and give false hope to. What is worse is that the spiritual legacy of Mr. Miller includes the Advent Christian Church with 61,000 members, the Seventh-day Adventist Church with over 8 million members, and the Jehovah Witnesses numbering 20 million adherents. These denominations have a direct connection with the Millerites and the Great Disappointment of 1844. Beware, so that when your ministry is over, you have done no harm.
On the Positive Side
Though William Miller was wrong in his prophetic understanding of Scripture, he was strong in his love for Christ, and belief, that the Bible is the Word of God. It is possible for good men to have bad theology, and so we must remember to be gracious as we return to the Scriptures for all faith and practice.
Despite the egregious doctrinal errors William Miller promoted, there was much good that came from his ministry. Many souls were converted to Christ. Church attendance increased. Personal Bible study was emphasized. The morals of many communities improved. Multitudes began to ask themselves if they were ready to meet Christ. Local revival often followed the ministry of William Miller.
Finally, whatever divergent eschatological events and activities individuals believe might still happen, the discussion in prophetic matters should be covered by Christian charity.
“But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes” (2 Tim. 2:23).
“In essentials, unity;
in non-essentials, liberty;
in all things, charity.”
Ultimately, this is what I hope the church will learn from the life of William Miller: Let us love Christ, study the Scriptures. remember our spiritual legacy, be humble, be teachable, be careful with lives, and be loving. Amen.
