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and that the great event represented by the cleansing of the sanctuary
must then take place.
Entering upon the study of the Scriptures as he had done, in order
to prove that they were a revelation from God, Miller had not, at the
outset, the slightest expectation of reaching the conclusion at which
he had now arrived. He himself could hardly credit the results of his
investigation. But the Scripture evidence was too clear and forcible to
be set aside.
He had devoted two years to the study of the Bible, when, in 1818,
he reached the solemn conviction that in about twenty-five years Christ
would appear for the redemption of his people. “I need not speak,” says
Miller, “of the joy that filled my heart in view of the delightful prospect,
nor of the ardent longings of my soul for a participation in the joys of
the redeemed. The Bible was now to me a new book. It was indeed
a feast of reason; all that was dark, mystical, or obscure, to me, in its
teachings, had been dissipated from my mind before the clear light that
now dawned from its sacred pages; and oh, how bright and glorious
the truth appeared! All the contradictions and inconsistencies I had
before found in the Word were gone; and, although there were many
portions of which I was not satisfied that I had a full understanding, yet
so much light had emanated from it to the illumination of my before
darkened mind, that I felt a delight in studying the Scriptures which I
had not before supposed could be derived from its teachings.”
“With the solemn conviction that such momentous events were
predicted in the Scriptures to be fulfilled in so short a space of time,
the question came home to me with mighty power regarding my duty
to the world in view of the evidence that had affected my own mind.”
He could not but feel that it was his duty to impart to others the light
which he had received. He expected to encounter opposition from
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the ungodly, but was confident that all Christians would rejoice in the
hope of meeting the Saviour whom they professed to love. His only
fear was, that in their great joy at the prospect of glorious deliverance,
so soon to be consummated, many would receive the doctrine without
sufficiently examining the Scriptures in demonstration of its truth. He
therefore hesitated to present it, lest he should be in error, and be the
means of misleading others. He was thus led to review the evidences
in support of the conclusions at which he had arrived, and to consider
carefully every difficulty which presented itself to his mind. He found