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The Great Controversy
implements of war. Military leaders, famed for their success, marshal
the throngs of warlike men into companies and divisions.
At last the order to advance is given, and the countless host moves
on—an army such as was never summoned by earthly conquerors,
such as the combined forces of all ages since war began on earth could
never equal. Satan, the mightiest of warriors, leads the van, and his
angels unite their forces for this final struggle. Kings and warriors are
in his train, and the multitudes follow in vast companies, each under
its appointed leader. With military precision the serried ranks advance
over the earth’s broken and uneven surface to the City of God. By
command of Jesus, the gates of the New Jerusalem are closed, and the
armies of Satan surround the city and make ready for the onset.
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Now Christ again appears to the view of His enemies. Far above
the city, upon a foundation of burnished gold, is a throne, high and
lifted up. Upon this throne sits the Son of God, and around Him are
the subjects of His kingdom. The power and majesty of Christ no
language can describe, no pen portray. The glory of the Eternal Father
is enshrouding His Son. The brightness of His presence fills the City
of God, and flows out beyond the gates, flooding the whole earth with
its radiance.
Nearest the throne are those who were once zealous in the cause
of Satan, but who, plucked as brands from the burning, have followed
their Saviour with deep, intense devotion. Next are those who perfected
Christian characters in the midst of falsehood and infidelity, those who
honored the law of God when the Christian world declared it void,
and the millions, of all ages, who were martyred for their faith. And
beyond is the “great multitude, which no man could number, of all
nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, ... before the throne,
and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their
hands.”
Revelation 7:9
. Their warfare is ended, their victory won.
They have run the race and reached the prize. The palm branch in their
hands is a symbol of their triumph, the white robe an emblem of the
spotless righteousness of Christ which now is theirs.
The redeemed raise a song of praise that echoes and re-echoes
through the vaults of heaven: “Salvation to our God which sitteth upon
the throne, and unto the Lamb.”
Verse 10
. And angel and seraph unite
their voices in adoration. As the redeemed have beheld the power and
malignity of Satan, they have seen, as never before, that no power but