Time of Trouble
61
As the decree issued by the various rulers of Christendom against
commandment keepers shall withdraw the protection of government
and abandon them to those who desire their destruction, the people
[43]
of God will flee from the cities and villages and associate together in
companies, dwelling in the most desolate and solitary places. Many
will find refuge in the strongholds of the mountains. Like the Christians
of the Piedmont valleys, they will make the high places of the earth
their sanctuaries and will thank God for “the munitions of rocks.”
Isaiah 33:16
. But many of all nations and of all classes, high and low,
rich and poor, black and white, will be cast into the most unjust and
cruel bondage. The beloved of God pass weary days, bound in chains,
shut in by prison bars, sentenced to be slain, some apparently left to
die of starvation in dark and loathsome dungeons. No human ear is
open to hear their moans; no human hand is ready to lend them help.
Will the Lord forget His people in this trying hour? Did He forget
faithful Noah when judgments were visited upon the antediluvian
world? Did He forget Lot when the fire came down from heaven to
consume the cities of the plain? Did He forget Joseph surrounded by
idolaters in Egypt? Did He forget Elijah when the oath of Jezebel
threatened him with the fate of the prophets of Baal? Did He forget
Jeremiah in the dark and dismal pit of his prison house? Did He forget
the three worthies in the fiery furnace? or Daniel in the den of lions?
“Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten
me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have
compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will
I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My
hands.”
Isaiah 49:14-16
. The Lord of hosts has said: “He that toucheth
you toucheth the apple of His eye.”
Zechariah 2:8
.
The Comforter of His People
Though enemies may thrust them into prison, yet dungeon walls
cannot cut off the communication between their souls and Christ. One
who sees their every weakness, who is acquainted with every trial, is
above all earthly powers; and angels will come to them in lonely cells,
bringing light and peace from heaven. The prison will be as a palace;
for the rich in faith dwell there, and the gloomy walls will be lighted