The Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Excerpts from the Authentic Shaker Publication

ALL Souls are Equal; God does NOT elect Some and reprobate Others.

5. And now unto you, O ye people, hear and understand my word, while I speak to you concerning my manner of dealing with the works of my hands; that ye may know that I the Lord am just and equal in all my goings forth. And with Me there is no unrighteousness; for with an equal hand will I measure unto each and every soul; and all shall yet be satisfied with my goodness, whoever shall obtain the victory over the nature of enmity which rests in man.

6. And, saith the Holy and Eternal One, Where would be the equality of a natural parent, who designed a part of his natural offspring to honor, and the remainder to dishonor! This is not of Me.

7. Where then is the propriety of my saying, "Jacob have I loved; but Esau have I hated?" Had they not both of them living souls, created by one God? Did not one natural father beget them both? Did not one natural mother conceive and bring them forth? Truly they did. Where then is the case of this distinction? Was not the hand of the Lord in this? Truly it was; for this was a type, to show forth what was to come.

8. I the Lord, designed, from the beginning, to bring forth natural things for a shadow, to resemble the inward and spiritual work, which I designed, in the latter day, to accomplish the final work of redemption.

9. As man, by the fall, had become in possession of two opposite spirits, the one good and the other evil; so it seems good in my sight to prefigure both spirits , and show the opposition in outward things: and thus was it accomplished.

10. And so it was, that I caused "the elder to serve the younger," and by Esau the hunter, the wild man of the forest, did I prefigure the wild vine, brought forth by the seed of the serpent, which he had sown in the hearts of the first parents, in opposition to the true and rightful spirit which I placed in man, to be his lord and head, to rule and govern him in all his goings forth.

11. But this good spirit became captive to the spirit of evil, and was trodden under foot by the spirit of the wild vine, which was an evil spirit; insomuch that evil did bear rule, and became man's dictator. Therefore, as I the Lord designed Esau, the first-born of Isaac, to represent the natural and outward figure of the man of sin, who had become lord and ruler in the hearts of the children of men;

12. So in like manner did I cause Jacob, the second son of Isaac, the tame man, who delighted to dwell at home, in tents, to prefigure the mild and peaceable spirit, which I designed should break loose the yoke of bondage, and rise and reign as lord over that wild and furious spirit, which had taken the dominion, and usurped the power over the rights and liberties of the soul.

13. And for this reason, did I cause a distinction to be made in the posterity of the seed of Abraham, wherein I designed to bring forth the seed of promise, which should inherit the blessing, and become rightful heirs of the covenant which I made with him, by casting out the seed of the bond woman, who had no part in the promised blessing, and who sought to usurp authority over the true and rightful heir, the son of promise.

14. And now, saith the Holy and Eternal One, Was not Ishmael, Abraham’s son also? Was not Abraham the natural father of them both? Why then was one driven out from his presence, to wander in a strange land, while the other was nourished and cherished at home? Was not the hand of the Lord in this? What saith the scripture? "Cast out the bond woman and her son: for the son of the bond woman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman."

15. And why was it that Ishmael, the son of Abraham, with his posterity, should have their hands against every man, and every man’s hand against them? Why so, if not to show forth and prefigure that nature of war and enmity which rested in the heart of man, and warred against every thing that was of God?

16. Yet, saith the Lord, will I visit the seed of Ishmael, and I will turn their weapons wherewith they have warred against every man; yea, I will turn their enmity within their own borders, and they shall war, one with another, until they have beaten each other in pieces, and have become humbled in my presence, by the mighty power of my wrath, which I will cause to fall upon them, that they may know there is a overruling hand who ruleth in judgment, and knoweth all the works of the children of men.

17. Yea, and I will cause them to know that I the Lord am mighty in subduing the strong holds of their passions, for I will cause them to melt beneath my mighty power; and it shall no more be said, their hands are against every man, and every man’s hand against them; for the time is at an end that I the Lord will make use of types and shadows of this kind. Know ye, these effected neither the salvation nor damnation of any soul.

18. For the time hath now commenced in which it shall be fully known, that the souls of the children of men are all equal in my sight; and I will never cease my work on earth, until all souls have heard the sound of the gospel of free salvation, without money and without price, "and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of their God."

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 3

Exposing that false Christianity has twisted Bible truths to make God seem unfair.

19. In that day will all souls be held in remembrance, by Him who knoweth no injustice, in his dealings towards the children of men; although much hath been written and spoken to prove the Lord Almighty to be a hard master, reaping where He did not sow, and gathering where He hath not strewed. Yea, volumes have been written to show forth the partiality of a holy and righteous God who knoweth no fraud.

20. O ye children of men! How have ye abused and defamed the name of the Almighty, and set Him forth to be as a man, only far more barbarous and inhuman! When, O when will ye repent of your slanders and know the Lord aright?

21. For lo, I say unto you, Ye have set light for darkness, and darkness for light; and ye have taken the shadow for the substance, and the substance for the shadow; because ye were carnally minded, and saw not the things of God aright. Ye have verily twisted and shapen the record of my holy word, to suit your own natural and carnal desires, until according to your expositions, there remaineth neither form nor comeliness therein.

22. Therefore, I the Lord, for my holy name’s sake, and because of the crooks and windings of Satan, who hath sought to turn the word of God upside down, and shape it to the natural and perverse ways of man, have stretched forth my mighty power, and with my own hand, have I written and caused the truth to be conveyed to mortal hands, by my mighty Angels, that man might again have knowledge of the things of God aright.

23. And unto you, O ye people! who hold the truth in unrighteousness, and have labored to span my holy way, and set bounds to my never ending mercy and charity; and to say, "As the tree falleth, so it must lie; and as death leaves us, so judgment must find us." My word is, O wicked and perverse generation, ye that have perverted the scriptures, and handed forth such doctrines as these, in my name, limiting my holy power as though it could not reach beyond the grave!

24. O vile and abominable doctrine! Who hath been the author of this seed of heresy? What would have been the end of man, had my power been limited to this? Where would have been the room for all souls to obtain an equal chance for salvation, so long as a large portion of mankind never know the name of the true and living God, nor of his Christ, while here in time.

25. O ye people! how have ye erred for the want of a true knowledge of the work of God, and of his divine nature! How have ye defamed my most holy name among the heathen, and caused them to rail against that God of whom ye taught them, because of your abominable practices! O man! how art thou fallen in the pit of error, and thy own evil devices, how have they swallowed thee up!

26. Ye who profess to live in the full blaze of gospel light, and to feel for the interest of the heathen, that they might come to the knowledge of God and be saved while here in time; that their souls might not be forever and eternally miserable, in consequence of their not being favored with the call of the gospel, while they remained in tenements of mortal clay. I say unto you, ye blind leaders of the blind, ye are far more detestable in my sight than they.

27. O ye wretched and abominable teachers, who dare teach errors and mock God in this way! I say, far more tolerable will it be for the heathen, who know not God, than for you. Ye hypocrites! going forth in my name, and in the name of my beloved son, to convert the heathen!

28. Ye wolves in sheep's clothing, who go for hire; but have not the souls of the heathen uppermost in all your thought; for ye practice abominations among them, which will weigh far more with Me, an holy and just God, than the most heinous crimes which are practiced by them, for they profess nought but to act according to the dictates of their own natural inclinations.

29. But vengeance is mine, saith the Lord Almighty, and I will repay it upon these abominable deceivers, who go forth in my name, and in the name of my beloved Son, and say, "Lo here is Christ, and lo there,"— "Follow me and ye shall be saved."

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 3

Against False Preachers & False Christianity.

30. O ye vile deceivers! hear ye my word, and know it to be the word of Almighty God. I will cause those whom ye go forth to save in my name, to become kings and priests unto you, in my kingdom of peace. Truly ye have sought to build yourselves upon that rotten foundation, which supports anti-christian creeds and doctrines, forged by secret devices of men, planned according to their own natural wisdom, and shaped to their own vile cravings and appetites.

31. But know ye, O inhabitants of earth! that when the floods of my wrath shall roll, which shall sweep the earth from all the false inventions of man, this refuge of lies will also crumble into dust. And those who have build thereon, will suffer great loss, and find themselves in a more deplorable state than those who have built upon no such foundation; but have openly walked according to the dictates of their own natural propensities and have not called upon the name of God to sanctify their secret and abominable works of darkness.

32. But to these great professors of christianity, I say, their case is far more wretched, because they trust in a cloak which will be rent asunder, and their nakedness will appear in the eyes of those whom they have sought to deceive, by carrying a face of sanctity, an outward form of holiness, which hath never, in the least, weakened the force of their evil nature, or caused the branches thereof to wither.

33. But in my judgments, I will distinguish between the honest and the dishonest soul: for many there are under the clouds of anti-christian darkness; yet acting, in these things, with sincerity and honesty of heart. All such souls I will notice; and in the day of my wrath, I will cover them with my power, from the judgments that shall overwhelm the deceitful hypocrite.

34. And now hearken to my word, O ye people! Look and behold your foundation, and see whereon ye stand. For I will ask, where is the ax which ye have laid at the root of the tree, which hath caused its branches to wither? Will the branches of a tree when hewn from the body, or will the body of a tree when severed from the root and from the earth, remain green and flourishing? Will they not gradually wither and die? Surely they will, and finally perish from the earth.

35. Why then do you, who pretend to be ministers of the gospel, and of the word of God, bring forth no fruits as evidence of your high calling? In all your great professions of being the ambassadors of Christ, I behold in you no evidence of your having subdued the natural man, the man of sin, the inbred propensities of your own carnal natures, which is enmity against God, and not subject to his law.

36. Is there no power in the coming of the Son of man, to save souls? Or have ye mistaken the power, and instead of following Christ in the regeneration, subduing all worldly lusts, do ye not under a cloak of anti-christian darkness, follow the first man in the work of generation, fulfilling the lusts thereof? Examine, O ye people! and see if this be not the case. And if so, wherein have ye been made partakers of the saving power of my beloved Son?

37. Christ came not only to destroy death, but also "him that had the power of death, that is, the Devil;" that opposite spirit in man whom I sent my son to subdue, that he should no longer have dominion and usurp power over the souls of the children of men, that the yoke of bondage might be broken, and souls act at liberty, and become heirs of the covenant of life, by casting off the seed of the bond woman, the man of sin, with his deeds.

38. O ye people! saith the voice of God, how have ye become so depraved and darkened as to hope for salvation and acceptance with Me, through by beloved Son, while ye are halting between the spirit of good and the spirit of evil, one warring against the other! O man! how art thou deceived, and how hast thou become blinded, because of thy iniquities!

39. O ye depraved children of men! ye have chosen darkness rather than light, knowing your deeds were not calculated to bear the searching light of an Almighty God, who will yet strip the deceitful covering from heaven-daring hypocrites, and their nakedness shall appear. Yea, and their deeds of hypocrisy will I proclaim upon the house top; for no soul shall be able to hide in the day of my vengeance, wherein I will take vengeance upon that nature against which I have set my face to destroy.

40. According to the declaration of Christ the Son of God; "There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known."

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 3

The great day of the Lord foretold. He reproveth Infidelity, and the hypocrisy of carnal professors, and declareth his judgments against them. Christ hath come in his glory, as a refiner, to sit in Judgment and purify his people.

1. Thus saith the Lord, Let all the mighty trees of the forest, yea, and the tall cedars of Lebanon bow low before Me; for the great and notable day of the Lord is near, when He will stretch forth his hand, and the earth shall be shaken in his grasp, and reel from her foundation; for the hand of the Lord is mighty and terrible, and in wrath will He plead with the nations of the earth, until they shall know that the Most High ruleth in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath.

2. Yea, saith the Holy One, will I vex them; yea, I will lift up sword and spear against them, and consume them in the day of my coming; for they say in their hearts, "There is no God; for all things came into existence by chance, and there is nought to be feared." Therefore do they glory in their shame, and in their own nakedness, and say in their hearts;

3. "Who is there in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, who seeth us, or knoweth our secret inventions? For man is as the beasts that perish; his breath is in his nostrils, and when it goeth out he is no more. So let us eat, drink and be merry; for tomorrow shall be like as to day, only more abundant. Let us rejoice in the works of our hands, and in the inventions of our own hearts; for man is lord of the earth, and who is there to be feared besides him?

4. As for the God of heaven, we know Him not, neither do we believe in his report; for natural reasoning shall be our guide, and by this will we be dictated in all our goings forth: for man came forth with that capacity which will enable him to be his own dictator."

5. But hear ye, O inhabitants of the earth! hear ye the word of God. Howl, howl, O ye sons and daughters of iniquity! Weep ye, for your desolation draweth near; for I, the Lord of hosts, will deal with you according to your doings. Yea, with wrath and with the sword will I humble the gentiles, until they shall know that the Lord, the Holy and Terrible One ruleth in the earth, to break down and to crush and to bring to nought all the foundations and inventions of men, wherein they have invented and laid foundations on which to build and frame their evil designs, to supplant the work of a holy and just God.

6. Yea, they have hewn out cisterns, broken cisterns, which hold no water, except the waters of sensual pleasure and vain delight. And they say, "Come, let us drink at these celestial fountains; for the waters thereof are good and pleasant to the taste, and that which was designed from the beginning for man to partake."

7. O ye carnal ones, that dare take the name of the Almighty in feigned lips, and with an outward sanctity, call upon the name of his blessed Son, professing to be clothed with his merit; yea, with your polluted hands and eyes of deceit extended towards heaven, breathing out feigned sanctity, with a visage of feigned sorrow and repentance; while your hearts are a cage of all manner of uncleanness, base and foul in my sight.

8. Yea, like ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing, feigning to minister the gospel of free salvation for hire! making merchandise of the pretended merits of my beloved Son! saying unto the flock; "Be ye clothed in the merits of Christ your Redeemer; for he hath redeemed you on the cross, and by his sufferings ye shall be justified; for he came not so save the righteous, but that sinners, through his sufferings, might be justified! Cast your cares on him; " "For as sin abounds, grace shall much more abound." "Therefore by ye reconciled by the merits of Christ, the blessed Son of God."

9. O ye blind leaders of the blind! How shall ye escape the wrath of an angry God? Who hath called you to be ministers of the gospel of my blessed son? Can a man give that which he doth not possess? Can ye minister the power of salvation from sin, when ye daily live in known disobedience to my holy law, made known to man by my servant Moses? Are ye not daily polluting yourselves with that which is forbidden therein?

10. And why say ye, that Christ, the Son of God, came to do away the law, that souls by his merits might be saved, and not by keeping the law?—that salvation came by free grace, and not by merit?—that it is not of him that willeth or of him that runneth; but of God that showeth mercy, through his beloved Son for his elect’s sake?

11. O ye wicked inventors of damnable heresies! How long will ye, with foul mouths, utter forth perverse things? Ye whited sepulchers, carrying sanctity without, and within are full of all manner of uncleanness and dead men’s bones! For ye eat up my people, in that ye preach for hire and exact wages, and grind the faces of the poor and needy, and him that fainteth for the want of bread.

12. But the poor and needy of this world have I chosen, and I will hear them when they cry to Me, under oppression, and I will defend their cause.

13. O ye blind guides, leaders of the blind! how will ye escape the pit of desolation and the wrath of God? Your iniquities have come up before Me like clouds of blackness, and the cries of the needy and oppressed have I heard.

14. Howl, O ye workers of iniquity; for your covering shall be taken off, and your nakedness shall appear in the eyes of those before whom ye have walked in hypocrisy, speaking forth great swelling words of feigned godliness.

15. Hear, O ye vile, saith the Holy One, Did I send forth my well beloved and first begotten Son into this world to set at nought and destroy the works of my right hand’s planting; to set at nought my holy law, given by the Holy and Eternal One in Mount Sinai, written by his immortal hand, on tables of stone, to signify the firmness with which they were to be retained and kept;

16. Yea, to signify the solidness of their foundation, as being the outward figure of the Rock of full and final salvation, which should be laid in Zion, in the latter day, wherein the law of righteousness should be revealed, through the second heir of the new and spiritual Kingdom;

17. Yea, that law which will subdue all sin, and bring in an everlasting righteousness, of which the law given on Mount Sinai bore the outward resemblance, by cutting off and subduing, in a measure, the natural and base inclinations of fallen man, fallen by transgression, below the beasts of the field?

18. Hear, O ye mistaken souls, that dream of hope in the Son of God, and by his merits alone, expect to find acceptance with Me, in my holy Kingdom of righteousness and peace, where nought can enter save that which is holy: for as I the Lord am holy; so shall all be holy that ever reign with Me in my Kingdom.

19. Hear, O ye inhabitants of the earth, the words of my beloved Son: Thus saith the Son of God; I came not to do my own will, but to do the will of my heavenly Father who sent me. Neither came I to undo or set at nought that which was established and planted by his right hand; nay, in no wise.

20. I came not to throw off the yoke of restraint upon the base and carnal passions of man, which are, of themselves subject to no law, neither indeed can be. But the law being weak of itself, could not bring salvation, but was designed for the outward figure of the ushering in of the law of righteousness, which should effect the final subduing of the man of sin, root and branch, wherein the ax should be laid to the root of the tree, to strike a death blow to the very foundation of evil, the base and carnal lusts of man, introduced to the first parents by the serpent of sin.

21. O ye base and uncircumcised in heart, and ye that sound forth in my name, as being born of me, and called of me to preach the gospel of peace and salvation, revealed by the Son of god to fallen man, hear my words, saith the Savior.

22. O ye hypocrites! compare your lives with that of the Savior. Did I preach for hire? Did I array myself in splendid attire? Did I follow the fashions of this vain and wicked world, and seek the favor and applause of the great ones of the earth? Did I seek to gather an earthly substance, where moths could corrupt and thieves break through and steal?

23. Did I seek, in any manner, to please or gratify that selfish and fallen nature which I took upon me to subdue, which was not of the nature of Angels, but of the seed of Abraham, (See Heb. ii. 16 to 18.) that I might be tempted in all points like unto those whom I cam to redeem, and thus bear their infirmities, and know the depth of their loss from God?

24. O ye mistaken ones! look at this; do ye think that I bore the sins of the whole world, that they through my merits, and not by their own works might be justified? Ye mistaken souls, that dream of hope in me, while following the first man Adam, being led by the man of sin, and thus rejecting the works of the second Adam, the Lord from heaven a quickening spirit: yea, reject them, I say, for ye do them not.

25. Ye follow the works of the first Adam, and trust in the merits of Christ, the second Adam, for salvation. But I say unto you, "the hope of the hypocrite shall perish" and vanish like a shadow. Where, O where, saith the Son of God, is the foundation of your hope? for ye keep not the law neither in figure nor in substance. Therefore ye stand as monuments in likeness and imitation of the first natural and sinful parents, on whom the saving power of God had no effect.

26. For ye have put out the light of the coming of the Son of God. Like unto the sun, which riseth clear in the horizon, and soon goeth under a cloud: so is the first appearing of the Son of man: for with a cloud of antichristian darkness hath the light of my coming been covered for many ages.

27. Yea, like the first tables of the testimony, given on Mount Sinai, because of the wickedness and transgressions of my people, and for their idolatry, were they broken and trampled under foot; so hath the law of the covenant of life, revealed by the son of God, been broken and trampled under foot.

28. For ye have fashioned and made unto yourselves gods to go before you, which are no gods, but gods of this world, the lusts of man; and these be your gods, and in them do ye walk, and in them do ye trust.

29. Yea, like the heathen nations which were driven out before the figurative Israel; so are ye, trusting in gods of your own invention, of which the Lord of hosts did strictly forbid his figurative people to do: but commanded them to spare not the gods of the heathen, but to hew them down, and leave them not for a temptation to his people.

30. Yet how prone, saith the Savior, were they to seek the gods of the heathen, and to worship them, polluting themselves with idolatry; which caused the wrath of God to be kindled against them, and in his fury did he scatter them.

31. Know ye not, O ye children of men, that ye are idolaters in the sight of God; for ye adore the works of your own hands and the fruits of your own base and carnal lusts, unrestrained even by the law of God given to Moses in the Mount.

32. O ye wicked and perverse generation! ye seed of vipers! trusting in the merits of the Son of God, while living in the vile pollutions of the heathen, who know not God, neither believe in his holy name; yet they stand far more justified in his sight that ye do.

33. Hear, O ye inhabitants of the earth, hearken and understand the word of God, in the name of his blessed Son, revealed through an Instrument of human clay, by the holy Angel of everlasting LOVE; One of the Seven, an holy Archangel of God, who standeth before Him to make known his will to mortals, in this last and final dispensation of his power and mercy.

34. Hearken O ye people, ye that are laden with sin and weary thereof; hear ye this voice, and know ye that it is no other than the voice of the holy Son of God, sounded forth through an Instrument who knoweth not of the words whereof she speaketh; unlearned and illiterate, —base in the eyes of the wise of this world. She who is nought of herself, that no flesh may glory in the presence of God, or say this is the work of man.

35. For by the mouth of babes and sucklings will the Lord sound forth his word to man, in this day, wherein He hath in substance, renewed the tables of stone, and revealed the second heir of the covenant of life, by revealing the Christ, the Holy Anointing Power, the second time, without sin unto salvation, through a female, prepared by God himself, to be the adorned Bride, clothed in fine linen, white and clean; fitted and prepared through sufferings, to receive the second heirship of the new covenant of life everlasting.

36. Yea, that covenant of life which will stand through the endless ages of eternity, which altereth not from generation to generation, and which is as firm as the foundation of heaven, which cannot be shaken; for it is founded upon the Rock of ages, which remaineth immovable henceforth and forever.

37. Therefore, O ye people, nations, kindreds and tongues, hear ye the voice of the Son of God, and know ye that I have come, and in my glory have I descended upon the earth, with ten thousands of the saints and Angels of God, to reign upon the earth, until I have subdued all things under by feet.

38. Yea, I have come in the mighty power of God, my Heavenly Father, to sit as a refiner of silver, purifying the sons of Levi. Yea, my judgment seat is already set, and the books are opened, "some men’s sins going beforehand to judgment, and some following after to condemnation." "But blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection, on whom the second death hath no power."

39. Write, Holy is the Lamb who standeth on Mount Zion, with his company, singing a new song before the throne of God; a song which no one can learn but those who are marked in their foreheads with the mark of the New Covenant of life; those who are redeemed from the earth, from among men, being the first ripe fruits unto God and unto the Lamb; those who have become virgins for the Kingdom of heaven's sake, in whose mouths there is found no guile, being without fault before the throne of God.

40. Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord; henceforth shall they rest from their labors, and their works do follow them. Yea, saith the Son of God, blessed are they who die unto sin, and live unto righteousness; for their works shall follow them, not unto condemnation, but to life everlasting in the kingdom of my God; henceforth they shall rest with me, in my kingdom of peace.

41. Holy is the word of God, saith the holy Archangel, wherein he sounds forth the name of his beloved Son, and holy shall it be, from generation to generation. Yea, saith the holy Angel, holy was this work ushered forth from the throne of God, and holy and undefiled hath it been conveyed to mortal hands.

42. Let no one add nor diminish the substance and true meaning of these words, wherein is contained the mind and will of god, designed by him to be revealed to mortals; and holy so let them be. Yea, saith the Holy Savior, receive ye these words, and know that it is I.

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 6

About Wars and the Twisted Justification for them by False Christianity.

Judgments denounced upon the ships of the sea, and upon those engaged in unrighteous traffic. The blood shed by warring nations recompensed upon themselves. The humble and penitent shall find blessing and mercy.

1. Howl, O ye ships of Tarshish! and weep, because destruction is near at hand, when the thunders and tempests of the wrath of God shall roll and sweep over the mighty waters, and cause their dashing waves and foaming tides to roll, till the arm of the Almighty is stayed, and his fury abated: "For vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord."

2. O ye seas and ye waters, Will I not make you desolate? How shall I recompense you, O ye ships of the sea, because of the abominations which rest in you; yea, because of your fraud and deception, working hypocrisy and deceit, with lying tongues, uttering forth railings, mocking the name of the Holy and Eternal One, who is able in a moment’s time to dash you in the midst of the foaming billows, and cause your souls to sink in the lake of fire, prepared for Satan and his servants.

3. O ye base corrupters of the sea! How will ye escape the sea of my wrath and displeasure? Ye who have sold yourselves to work iniquity upon these waters, which I the Lord, in mercy, did cause to roll for the good of man, and for a blessing to him; but how have ye turned them into a curse! O ye wicked and abominable ones, who have sold yourselves into the service of Satan, his servants to be!

4. Therefore I now say, wo, wo, wo to the shipmasters and those who traffic upon the seas; because of the desolation which is near, when the ships and shipping-craft which go out of their harbors, shall never more return to them: for I the Lord will cause my vials of wrath to be poured out upon the waters, which will cause them to become as blood; and the fish that are therein shall perish because of my wrath which I pour upon the waters.

5. For great have been the abominations which have been committed thereon, and great shall be the wrath which I will pour upon them. For as the children of men have warred, one against another, and have shed much blood upon these waters, to gratify a spirit of revenge, which never came from Me, neither was it ever sanctioned by Me; so I the Lord will recompense it upon them; for vengeance belongeth to Me, and to Me only. Therefore will I recompense all who have taken vengeance into their hands, and have executed it one upon another.

6. And unto the nation which hath risen against nation, —(without the special command of God through his Prophets,) and have shed man’s blood, to gratify a spirit of revenge, or to obtain unjust dominion, know ye for this I the Lord will recompense it, upon them.

7. Yea, all nations which have done this, will I reward, and their recompense shall be this: According to the law which I gave to my servant Noah; and again renewed and established with my own right hand, in my law to my servant Moses, to be an abiding statute for generations to come; that, "Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed."

8. And this shall be the recompense to those nations who have warred one against another, both by sea and by land, who have caused the earth to be drenched with man's blood; and the sea also, have I beheld reddened with the blood of the slain of the children of men.

9. O ye murderers! How shall ye escape my righteous laws, and also my righteous judgments? Ye that have gone forth with the spirit of murder in your hearts, and have slain each other, as though ye were nought but beasts that perish! How shall I recompense thee, O man, for thy murders, and cause the earth to cease her mourning, wherein she crieth unto Me, day and night, for the blood which resteth thereon, which hath not, as yet been avenged.

10. And wherein the seas do utter forth their lamentations because of the slain in them, whose blood hath not, as yet been avenged. Ye that have gone forth to war, and have made use of my holy name for a cloak to your carnal and murderous spirit, know that I will meet you in wrath; for ye went forth in a spirit which never came from Me, neither can it ever return to Me, nor the soul that possesses it, until washed and cleansed therefrom: for the offspring of Satan it is, and to Satan it shall go; for I the Lord, will own no such spirit in man.

11. And ye that presume to say that war and bloodshed was sanctioned by God in Heaven, and was according to his most holy will, producing as evidence, my command to the children of Israel to go forth and slay their enemies, that inhabited the land of promise, which was but a type to prefigure the work of subduing the enemies of the soul, which was to take place in due time. But this is no excuse for warring nations under the gospel dispensation, who go forth in their pride and ambition, without regard to any command of God.

12. But how did the Israelites go forth to war? Was it to gratify a spirit of revenge? If so, did I ever fail to punish them, by causing my blessing to depart from them? Did they prosper when they went forth in their own strength, without my special command or approbation, through my holy prophets? Surely, saith the Lord, they never failed to lose by blessing, and often fell before their enemies and suffered great loss.

13. Again I ask, in what manner did they go forth? Did they go forth with a spirit to seize upon the spoil, to enrich themselves therewith, and also to expand their borders and obtain unjust dominion, beyond what I the Lord had marked for them to possess? If they did this, they thereby brought a curse upon themselves, instead of a blessing.

14. Did I not cause my wrath to fall upon the tribes of Israel because of the sin of Achan, who reserved of the spoil of the enemy to gratify a selfish spirit, in disobedience to my holy commands? And what was the penalty of his crime? Did I not cause him, with all his kindred to be stoned to death, and then burnt, with all his goods? Truly I did. And why was it that I was so severe with him? Was it because I knew no mercy nor forgiveness? Was this the case?

15. Nay, in no wise; else would I have destroyed my figurative Israel, long before the time was accomplished for the fulfillment of the figurative work, which I the Lord had called them to perform. Why then was it done? Truly it was to manifest my mighty power and vengeance against the spirit of disobedience, which I the Lord had set my face to destroy, in my own time and in my own way: and I had already called a people to bear the shadow of the substance by keeping of the outward law.

16. But under the law there could be no mercy nor forgiveness that could accomplish the final taking away of sins: "for the law made nothing perfect;" (Heb.vii.19.) but as the sin of witchcraft, so was the sin of rebellion; and death to the natural part, under the law, was the penalty for such crimes. So shall it be spiritually under the law of Christ, wherein is both mercy and forgiveness, by confession and repentance.

17. The soul that is willfully disobedient under the law of Christ, and seeks to reserve that which has been forbidden by the laws of Mount Zion, is destined to be hewn down by the gospel sword, and consumed by the gospel fire. Know ye, as the sin of Achan was punished with the death and destruction of the natural body; so shall the disobedient and willfully rebellious under the gospel law, be punishable with the death and destruction of the divine life in that soul.

18. And now unto you, O ye children of men! let none among you dare presume to sanction the spirit of war under a cloak of divine approbation, because of my commands to the children of Israel: ye too, who profess faith in my beloved Son, who came to do away all war and contention, and to establish a spirit of peace and quietness upon the earth.

19. O ye warring nations, when will ye learn war no more? When will ye be constrained to beat your swords into ploughshares and your spears into pruning hooks? I the Lord will answer: When the time of my vengeance is accomplished, and I recompense the nations of the earth with the recompense of their own doings, which will humble their pride, and lay low their haughtiness, and cause their iniquities to be their accusers.

20. Then will they know that I the Lord am God, and besides Me there is none who can deliver them. Then will they be able to cry unto Me with an acceptable cry, when death and hell shall compass them about, and no arm stretched forth for their deliverance. Then will they cry unto Me, and I will deliver them, saith the Lord, and I will heal them of their stripes.

21. Then will they be willing to learn war no more; and their weapons of warfare will serve them no longer, as implements of death, but will be converted into implements of life, for tilling the ground, that man may obtain a just livelihood by the sweat of his face, instead of spending his precious time in learning to kill and slay his fellow beings, and grinding the faces of the poor to support and build up the arts and the science of war and bloodshed.

22. Then will they learn to "use the things of this world as not abusing them," when the high and the low shall be brought upon a level, and he that possesses much shall be as though he possessed nought, and he that hath nought shall find no lack. Then will they be willing to turn the weapons of their warfare within, and slay their own worst enemy, by using the sword of self-denial and a daily cross against that vile nature of enmity within.

23. Then will man find his worst enemies to be those of his own household; and these will be the enemies he will most desire to conquer. Then will man begin to see eye to eye: and the deserts shall smile and begin to bud forth and blossom; and the seed of the true vine shall flourish and spring up.

24. Then shall the nations of the earth begin to learn righteousness and seek to become the nations of the Lord, and the kingdoms of his Christ, by entering in at the door of salvation, and seeking mercy in the lowly valley of humiliation and repentance, in tears of sorrow, bathing in the flowing stream of the waters of life, and eating of the fruit of the trees of life, that their souls may become healed and cleansed from all their iniquities and transgressions.

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 4

That Christians who participate in Wars are Murderers!

1. Thus saith the prophesying Angel of God; The time hath commenced when the veil of the covering, which hath been spread over the face of all nations, shall be taken off. For under this veil they have claimed their justification to shed the blood of their fellow men, and fill the earth with violence, rapine and destruction. But it shall be removed in the Holy Mount of God, and be destroyed by the law that goeth forth from Zion, and by the divine light and mighty power of God which will attend it, and shine forth to the ends of the earth.

2. O ye warring nations! ye profess to receive a sanction for wars, (waged according to your own wills,) from the commands of the Almighty, given to his typical Israel, to make war. But is this any justification to you, O ye deceived people? Does it sanction your wars to gratify malice and revenge, to feed your ambition and pride, and feast your insatiable avarice and vain glory?

3. Know ye not that the Israelites were the chosen executors of divine judgments, to cut off from the earth those wicked people who were ripe for destruction; that they might not corrupt the whole earth, so that it must again spew out all its inhabitants, before the time of the end should come, like as it did in the deluge? Yea, saith the Angel, This was truly the case. And these wars were typical of the destruction of the old world of wickedness, by the spiritual wars of the true Israel of God, in the last days.

4. And were not the Israelites, in their first war, wherein they took the spoil of their enemies, required of God to offer firstly, a tribute thereof to the Lord, to acknowledge that they were sent of God, and protected by his power? Yea, they voluntarily made an offering for their souls, to acknowledge his protecting hand.

5. Also in their first conquest in the land of Canaan, were they not commanded to destroy every living creature in Jericho, and all things therein? "But all the silver and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, " were to be consecrated and brought into the treasury of the Lord.And a heavy curse followed disobedience to this command.

6. These things were to prove them, and to make known that they had no right to make war nor take spoil without divine direction. And the curse which followed the disobedience thereof, was to show them to all generations, that whenever they made war and took spoil in their own wills, to gratify an avaricious thirst for gain, a like curse would follow.

7. And I testify, saith the Angel, who knows all their goings forth, that they never failed to reap the full measure of this curse, in divine judgments, according to their motives and deeds, whenever they went forth in this manner, whether it appeared visible at the time or not; yet they, in the end, received an overflowing measure of the curse for all their wars of revenge, ambition and avarice, until by their own bloody principles, as their just reward, they were overthrown and scattered to the four winds of heaven.

8. But know all ye inhabitants of the earth, that had Israel never made war, except by divine direction, they would have remained as a nation to this day, saith that Almighty Power that holdeth the destiny of all nations in his hands: For it was the same inimical spirit that excited their unrighteous wars, which finally led them to crucify the Lord of glory, and thereby consummate their own ruin.

9. Therefore be warned, O ye warring nations of the earth, by the fate of warring Israel; and know that "all they that take the sword, shall perish with the sword," as the Son of God declared; and that not one drop of blood was ever shed in unjust wars, but it shall, in due time, be required in righteous judgments, and be visited upon those who caused it to be shed. For have ye received such divine commands to make war as Israel did? And do ye acknowledge and obey God therein as they were required to do? Dare ye declare this before the searcher of hearts?

10. Therefore, O ye blood-thirsty nations, see ye not that the command of God to his ancient people to make war, so far from justifying yours wars of ambition and avarice, —stand directly to condemn you, and cut you off from all justification.

11. And all ye nations, who profess the name of the merciful Son of God, consider this; did he ever lead you forth, either by precept or example, to slay your enemies, and enrich yourselves with their spoil? He who prayed for forgiveness towards his most bitter enemies, who had nought of the things of this world, nor even where to lay his head, gave no such precepts, nor set any such example.

12. Nay in no wise; ye know that all his precepts and examples breathed peace on earth and good will to man; agreeably to the song sung by the Angels at his birth. So he taught and so he conducted through time, until he who had the power to strike all his enemies dead with his word, disarmed those who would have fought for him, and gave up his life in the hands of his cruel persecutors.

13. Therefore hear and understand, saith the wisdom of God, that, from that day, when the Angels sung the song of peace, no divine command to make war and shed blood, hath ever been given to any people on earth, even to this day, and never will be to the end of time. For the spiritual warfare then began, and Christ is known in no other. And I the holy Angel, testify that no soul, while possessing the spirit of Christ, can engage in war and bloodshed.

14. Although God hath suffered wars to take place, in which the wicked might punish the wicked, and each, in the end, receive the just reward of their doings: And he hath also, in the order of his providence, overruled them, to bring about his purposes, which, in the corrupt state of the world, could not be otherwise accomplished; Yet all who have acted therein will be called to a just account of their motives and of their deeds in these wars.

15. For the actual existence of war cannot take away the guilt of murder. God looketh at the heart; and millions of souls, especially under the christian name, have ascended from fields of battle, reeking with murder in their hearts; and must answer for murder at the bar of divine justice, as really as required of any class of murderers that ever existed.

16. The precepts and example of the Son of God plainly declared him to be the Prince of Peace, and not of war, and clearly proved that the principles of peace formed the law of his kingdom, agreeable to the word of God by the holy prophet Isaiah.

17. For this cause, all the warring nations who profess the christian name, and have the sacred scriptures before them, must answer in judgment for all the blood they have ever shed under this name, in a seven-fold greater degree than those nations who have never had any knowledge of Christ and his doctrines.

18. Therefore beware, O ye professors of the christian name! for the day cometh that all such people as persist in the practice of war and bloodshed, shall be utterly destroyed, and their names shall be blotted out from under heaven.

19. This communication is inserted by the will of the Most High, for a confirmation of what hath been before written, and that all people may see the false and rotten foundation upon which they attempt to support their deeds of war and bloodshed, saith the holy Angel of Prophetic light, SALVATOR REGIA

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 5

Exposing the False Gospel of Counterfeit Christianity.

7. O ye carnal ones, that dare take the name of the Almighty in feigned lips, and with an outward sanctity, call upon the name of his blessed Son, professing to be clothed with his merit; yea, with your polluted hands and eyes of deceit extended towards heaven, breathing out feigned sanctity, with a visage of feigned sorrow and repentance; while your hearts are a cage of all manner of uncleanness, base and foul in my sight.

8. Yea, like ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing, feigning to minister the gospel of free salvation for hire! making merchandise of the pretended merits of my beloved Son! saying unto the flock; "Be ye clothed in the merits of Christ your Redeemer; for he hath redeemed you on the cross, and by his sufferings ye shall be justified; for he came not so save the righteous, but that sinners, through his sufferings, might be justified! Cast your cares on him; " "For as sin abounds, grace shall much more abound." "Therefore by ye reconciled by the merits of Christ, the blessed Son of God."

9. O ye blind leaders of the blind! How shall ye escape the wrath of an angry God? Who hath called you to be ministers of the gospel of my blessed son? Can a man give that which he doth not possess? Can ye minister the power of salvation from sin, when ye daily live in known disobedience to my holy law, made known to man by my servant Moses? Are ye not daily polluting yourselves with that which is forbidden therein?

10. And why say ye, that Christ, the Son of God, came to do away the law, that souls by his merits might be saved, and not by keeping the law?—that salvation came by free grace, and not by merit?—that it is not of him that willeth or of him that runneth; but of God that showeth mercy, through his beloved Son for his elect’s sake?

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 6

Proclamation of the salvation of God by the holy Archangel. He declareth the overthrow of the antichristian power. The Son of God declareth the manner of his second coming. He reproveth the slothfulness and darkness of the professors of Christianity. God will judge the great whore of Babylon, &c.

1. Arise, O thou worm of the dust, arise and sound the words of the Eternal God; for his word shall not cease until his designs are accomplished: for holy is the word of God, which is given in this day, and holy shall it be through time— henceforth and evermore.

2. Hear, O ye Islands, and give ear ye solitary places; for the word of the Lord is made known unto you: let all the ends of the earth hear the salvation of God.

3. Thus saith the holy Archangel of everlasting Love, who standeth before the throne of God; yea, and for ages and ages hath stood before his throne of everlasting Love, Truth and Mercy. Even before time was, I am. Holy, holy is the Lord God of heaven and earth; and holy and eternal is his word.

4. Sound, O sound the trumpet of salvation, and let it echo through the gloomy wilds of sin; for the great and notable day of the Lord is near, even at the door, when the vials of his wrath shall be poured out, and every face shall gather blackness, when they see their desolation is come, and their foundation on which they stand is turned upside down.

5. Yea, soon will the Lord Almighty shake, with a terrible hand, the vile inventions of man; and He will soon crumble into dust their antichristian creeds and false doctrines, and overthrow their mighty towers which they have built, whereon to climb to heaven some other way than that which was laid out by Christ the Son of God, the Lord's Anointed, to lay the foundation for salvation, for all souls to build thereon.

6. Yea, and to open the door of hope, the door of self-denial and a daily cross against all evil, whereby souls may hope for salvation, and in no other way; saying, I am the way, the truth and the life, and no soul cometh to the Father but by me. He that seeketh to climb up some other way, is a thief and a robber.

7. Write, saith the Archangel of Love, write, Holy is the Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world; holy is his name, and holy shall it be, henceforth and forever.

8. Hear, O ye inhabitants of the earth and all ye children of men, hear ye the word of God, in the name of his beloved Son. Thus saith the holy Son of God; Lo! I have come and my reward is with me, to give unto every man according as his works shall be.

9. Hearken, O ye children of wrath, and ye generation of vipers! Hearken and hear my words; for lo, I say unto you, I have come; yea, I have come like a thief in the night, and ye know it not. Truly I have come in the night of antichristian darkness; and who have I found waiting for the coming of the Son of man?

10. Who have I found waiting, lest your houses be broken open, and ye be robbed of your goods? Yea, who have I found waiting in hope, in prayer and supplication, watching the day and the hour of the coming of the Bridegroom, with your lamps trimmed and burning, and oil in your vessels?

11. O ye slothful generation, and ye that settle down in ease and carnal security, and say in your hearts, "The Lord delayeth his coming, and all things will remain as they were; therefore will we retire to rest, for nought shall disturb us."

12. Because of this, saith the Son of God, I will come upon you like a thief; yea, I will enter your castles, and your goods I will spoil; for I found you not waiting with your lamps trimmed and burning, ready to come forth to meet me, that I might come in and sup with you, and you with me. But because I found you asleep, with your houses unguarded, and unprepared to receive me, will I break in like a thief and spoil your goods.

13. Again I say unto you, I have come; and whereunto shall I liken the day of my coming? It is like unto the days of Noah. For lo, I say unto you, The Ark is preparing; the warning voice of God hath already gone forth; and his covenant people are gathering into the gospel Ark of safety, and ye know it not; for ye eat and drink, marry and are given in marriage, and know not that I have come, neither will ye believe, although my witnesses declare it unto you.

14. Therefore, shall ye perish in the floods of the wrath of God, which is shortly to be poured upon the earth, wherein no flesh shall be able to stand, save those who have safely embarked in the gospel Ark, by casting from them all that is unprofitable. These, and these only, shall be wafted over the billows of wrath and indignation, and find a quiet resting place, when the storms of anguish shall cease to roll and her waters abate.

15. Sound, O sound, saith the holy Archangel of Love, sound my selone trumpet, and let it echo and re-echo to the utmost parts of the inhabited earth. Yea, let this truth which is written, be wafted from generation to generation; let the gentiles hear thereof and be glad, and give honor unto him who sitteth upon the throne of his righteousness.

16. Write, Holy, holy is the Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the New Creation, to receive honor and glory and dominion and power, henceforth and forevermore.

17. Yea, give glory and honor to him that is counted worthy to loose the seals of the book of indignation and wrath of a righteous God, and to cause his just and righteous judgments to roll and conquer the lofty inventions of man; and even to crumble into dust, to break down and trample under foot their lofty imaginations.

18. Hear, O ye people, ye children of Zion, who are accounted worthy to stand before the throne of his righteousness; ye who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, and have become kings and priests, to stand before him, to reign with him on earth, to be workers together with him, in the conquering of the evils in man, the seed of the serpent of iniquity.

19. O ye redeemed of Mount Zion! give honor, praise and thanksgiving unto your Redeemer; for he is worthy to receive honor and praise henceforth and forevermore. Bow low, all ye inhabitants of Zion, bow low, and let the crown of your rejoicing be at the feet of your Redeemer.

20. For lo, I say unto you, peace hath and shall be taken from the earth, and the sword, pestilence, fire, earthquakes and famines shall be in the place thereof; for the cup of the wrath of God shall be poured out, heaped up and running over.

21. Holy is the Lamb who is counted worthy to judge the world in righteousness; and his righteous judgments will cause the inhabitants of the earth of all grades, to tremble in his presence. The high, the low, the rich, the poor, the bond, the free, shall tremble beneath his wrath, and call for the rocks and mountains to fall upon them, and hide them from the face of Him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.

22. Hear O Zion and rejoice; hear O earth and be glad; for the day of the judgments of the Lord God Almighty is come. Give praise and honor unto Him who is able to judge the whore of antichristian Babel, the Mother of harlots: for she is playing the harlot with the inhabitants of the earth, and all nations have drank of the wine of her fornication, and have become corrupted by her base and vile pollutions.

23. And from this corrupt source, saith the holy Archangel, proceed all the wars, and rumors of wars, all shedding of blood, persecution, strife, envyings, railings, revelings, vile affections, and all the evils which were entailed upon man by the fall. Do they not proceed from this source of abomination, the root of all evil, the vile lusts of men warring in their members?

24. And for this cause shall the wine-press of the wrath of God be trodden; yea, without the city shall it be trodden, without the walls of Mount Zion, the City of the living God, shall the wine-press of his wrath be trodden. For lo, the inhabitants of Zion have come out from thence; neither do they touch, taste nor handle any more the unclean things; but do rejoice before the throne of God and the Lamb, that they are redeemed from the earth, and from all these earthly pollutions.

25. Holy is this word, and holy shall it be henceforth and forevermore.

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 7

False Christians Called to Account; The Discipline of God to the Disobedient.

God will reward the workers of iniquity according to their deeds. Salvation can only be obtained through Christ, in the order of his Second Coming in his glory. The only door of entrance into Christ’s Kingdom made manifest.

1. Thus saith the holy Angel, Howl, O earth! because of thy desolation, and because of the wrath which is upon thee, and because of the stubble where thou hast heaped up fuel for the fire of the wrath of God, which is kindled as a devouring flame against the unrighteousness of man.

2. Wo! wo! be unto them who have treasured up wrath against the day of wrath, and have heaped up fuel for the consuming fire; for as their works shall be, so shall judgments be measured unto them; and each shall receive according to the deeds done in the body, whether they be good or whether they be evil: for a book of record is kept, and out of those books shall they receive the just reward of their doings.

3. According as they have treasured up iniquity; so in proportion have they treasured up my wrath, which will be as a consuming fire and a devouring flame; and who shall be able to escape? And where is the man that is able to stand in justification before Me? For do ye not read, "Our God is a consuming fire?"

4. How think ye to approach the Most High, except ye become purified by passing through the refining fire of Christ? Think ye to climb up some other way and approach Me, except by that which I, the Lord, have laid out? that by which all souls may approach Me in safety?

5. Think ye to walk through time, fulfilling the lusts of your own depraved natures, deceitfully calling upon the name of my beloved Son to sanctify you in your iniquity? Or praying that through his merits, the Holy and Eternal One may become reconciled to you, while ye are daily wading in sin and transgression, fulfilling the desires of your own evil and corrupt natures, wandering still farther and farther from Me, by rebellion to my known will to you, bearing no likeness nor image of my beloved Son, unwilling in any wise, to take his yoke upon you.

6. O man, how are thou mistaken! And all ye that dream of hope and acceptance with Me, through the righteousness and mercy of my beloved Son, wholly depending upon his merits for justification and acceptance with Me! But know, O ye people, that dare dream of salvation in this way, ye are under a delusion, and by it ye shall perish; for ye are not in Christ, neither has his saving power had any place in your hearts; therefore ye are not in him, neither is he in you.

7. And how think ye to meet Me, the Eternal Fire! Ye never can approach Me, but through my Anointed, my Christ, whom I have placed as a refiner, to purify the souls of the children of men. And by this medium, through the medium of my Christ, the Anointing, the Saving Power, may ye become cleansed and purified from that nature in which souls can never approach Me, saith the Lord.

8. And vain is the hope of man, who shall dream of any other plan save this which I have laid out, eternally to stand. And one side of this order, which I the Lord have established in my wisdom, and in my discretion, will I meet no fallen being, except in wrath, and by the fire of my jealousy, which will consume and banish them from my presence.

9. But in Christ may souls find a hiding-place, a shelter from the storm and a covert from the tempest. And blessed and holy are they who seek this door, and enter this one only door into my sheep-fold. For men in their great wisdom, have sought out many ways whereby to obtain acceptance with Me, and have opened many doors of entrance for my Kingdom; but I, the Lord, have laid out but one way, neither have I opened but one door, by which any soul may enter into the narrow way, which leadeth into my Kingdom.

10. And this one door have I opened unto all; the high, the low, the rich, the poor, have all an equal right; and no other door will I ever open to man than this: "He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."

11. Again I would ask, What is man required to believe? Is a mere belief in the Son of God, that there is, or ever was, such a being, and an outward ceremony of the sprinkling of water, and laying on of the hands sufficient to ensure salvation, or even the immersion of the whole body, is this sufficient to ensure salvation?

12. How, saith the Lord, are souls to be brought to a point, in relation to their belief in Christ, and in the baptism, seeing that by their believing and being baptized they merit salvation? For man hath many beliefs concerning Christ, and concerning baptism. Some believe in immersion, some believe in sprinkling and laying on of hands, and some believe in neither, and hold it all an outward form, each denomination (so called) contending for their own belief, and the righteousness of their own creed and doctrine.

13. And how is the matter to be decided, so long as the children of men have in possession so many different beliefs? Christ is not divided, neither did he teach division in his little flock. From whence then proceedeth these divisions and diversities of opinions?

14. Thus saith the Lord God, the Beginning and the Ending; Ye have become your own accusers, and by your works ye are known; for ye are all blind leaders of the blind. Ye are divided and your building cannot stand; for it hath no foundation. Ye have not built upon the rock, and ye have not believed unto confession and been baptized unto repentance; ye have not confessed and brought your deeds to light, and repented of the same; therefore ye have not obtained mercy and forgiveness.

15. And ye have sought out many ways and inventions of your own, to climb up to heaven, some easier way than that one way which I, the Lord, have laid out for all souls; and in this ye have greatly deceived yourselves. In pursuing this course, ye never can find the kingdom of heaven.

16. My one and only way is this: He that believeth with his whole heart, that Christ is the Son of God, and that he came into the world to save sinners from their sins, (not in their sins,) and is awakened by the power of the coming of the Son of man in his glory, to a sense of his loss and his need of salvation, is in a fair way to receive it by complying with its terms.

17. Yea, in this state, if he is willing to come to the order which I have appointed, and to the witnesses whom I have anointed, and there make confession of every known sin, and seek the baptism of true repentance, and bathe in its flowing stream; in complying with these terms, in humiliation and repentance, he shall receive that saving power which will enable him to cease from sin, so that the wicked one touch him not.

18. Therefore, by this belief and this baptism, is he saved; and by so doing he hath entered in at the door, the one only door; and thus hath he placed his feet into the narrow path, the one only path. And by strict obedience and a daily cross of self-denial, he shall travel, day after day, step by step, until the victory he gains.

19. And this is the only way which I, the Lord, have marked out for the restoration of man. For by the path of self-denial and a daily cross, did my beloved Son obtain the victory over an evil nature in himself, and triumphed over the fallen nature of man. And he has left the same way for all that would become heirs with him, in my Kingdom of peace and righteousness.

20. Thus it is decreed, and thus it shall stand, that man shall work out his redemption "with fear and trembling;" and by a gradual growth, shall he grow up, and become of perfect stature in the new man. And no soul need to harbor the vain imagination of suddenly becoming regenerated and renewed unto righteousness, and instantly becoming the heir of the promise.

21. For the old man cannot be converted into the new man, and become sanctified; but the new man must arise by the new birth, and gradually grow up, "as calves of the stall," trampling under foot the man of sin, with his deeds, until he becomes consumed. And this must be a gradual work; for he cannot be slain at a blow, else where would be the warfare and daily conflict?

22. Many have been the inventions to save the life of the old man, the man of sin, and cloak him up with many fine schemes, thinking to find admittance into my Kingdom of peace. But vain are all the inventions of men to save the life of the man of sin!

23. Cursed be the fallen race of man, who strive to shelter themselves under a cloak of grace; who seek to hide beneath the wings of faith, and say the victory is gained by faith alone, saying... "Have faith in Christ and all will be safe; by works nothing is gained; by faith alone ye shall be saved; by Christ the debt was paid. All that is required of man, is to believe that Christ is able in might and power, to save all who receive faith in him".

24. In their hypocritical prayers they daily acknowledge that they are sinners; that they daily commit sin enough to damn their souls to hell, and all they can do is to acknowledge their inability to live without sin, and to plead the merits of Christ and rely upon his mercy for salvation, and this, their daily confession, is the ground work of their dependence, their hope and their trust.

25. Yea, saith the Lord, man had much rather crook and wind and plead thus, and confess his own nothingness, than to come forth and plainly show his deeds in open light, and have them fairly seen by his fellow mortals.

26. But, saith the man of sin, "It never was decreed that man should stoop so low as to confess his wicked deeds with his own tongue. This surely must be a plan of man's own invention, to expose the fallen race to shame. Surely the wisdom of God could never decree a work so base, so humiliating, so far beneath all human skill, and so grinding to the nature of man. Who can ever believe that such doctrines as these ever came from God? Or that they are not the inventions of man, designed to expose his fellow creatures to disgrace?"

27. But saith the Lord, the Mighty One of Israel, Man in his fallen state, never would have invented a plan of this kind, to crucify the carnal life of fallen man. But God in his infinite wisdom, hath devised and decreed this way, though out of the sight of mortal man.

28. And this is the way which I, the Lord, have chosen to "stain the pride of all flesh, and bring the haughtiness of man low." And who among the great and lofty of this world, could frame a more sure way to humble the pride of the lost children of men, and cause them to feel their own unworthiness and nothingness, and to bow in spirit to those whom they, in nature, considered as their inferiors?

29. And there, in the presence of those my witnesses, honestly confess to Me, and truly expose every filthy word and work which they have ever committed since their remembrance; yea expose their whole lives, and hide nothing, not even the smallest crime which they could imagine, and in truth lay naked and bare, before my witnesses, all the crooked windings of a filthy and beastly nature, and expose it in every act and in every word and way.

30. Where is there a fallen being that would have framed such a way? Nay, saith the Lord Almighty, man hath never been the author of this; and all the ends of the earth shall yet know that I, the Lord, have framed this way, and in wisdom it is firmly established, unalterable and immovable as the heavens are immovable.

31. And through this door, this only door, all must enter to become true heirs of heaven. And in this order which I have established in my name, the order of my anointing, which composes my witnesses, shall all souls be divested of sin by honest confession, ere they can enter the narrow path, which admitteth neither of sin nor sinners.

32. And ye that wish to find acceptance with Me, through my beloved Son, enter ye in at the door, and cast off the old man with his deeds, and become ye as innocent children in Christ, and be willing to lose your natural life, the life of sin, to obtain that life in Christ which hath no end.

33. What would not a man be willing to give, to obtain eternal life? Would he not be willing to give up all in his possession, yea and his own life also? Truly, saith the Lord, all this do I require of every soul, in this day, that would become the true and rightful heirs of my Kingdom, through my beloved Son.

Divine Book of Holy and Eternal Wisdom; Part I; Chapter 14

THE DIVINE BOOK OF HOLY AND ETERNAL WISDOM AUTHENTIC EXCERPTS — SEGMENT 1 Revelations and Prophecies from God's Eternal Virgin Wisdom given through Shaker Instrument, Paulina Bates, 1841.	COPYRIGHT NOTICE This E-Text © 1998, 1999, 2000, 2005, 2013 Pass the WORD Services. E-Text Copyright renews with each published update. On-line at PTW: September 30, 1998 Last update: April 12, 2013