The Scattering and Gathering of Adventism as shown in William Miller’s dream.
The meaning of Prophetic symbols depends on the context; for example a lion may be Satan, Christ, Judah, Babylon or just an animal—you know by the context.
As people have analyzed this dream, many times they say the Jewels represent God’s People, James White thought that these jewels represented God’s people—but James White was wrong. Jewels also represent the truths of God’s Word. Many Spirit of Prophecy quotes can back that up.
We take the position that these Jewels represent the truths of God’s Word. What I am suggesting here is that William Millers dream represents the scattering that comes into Adventism that will be swept away at the time period when the 144,000 are raised up, and in this dream correctly understood, you can recognize that the emphasis is that the foundational truths of Adventism are what get scattered and they are to be re-established. Therefore, this is in agreement with what we teach in regard to the raising up of the foundations of many generations, and returning to the old paths.
I want to remind you of one thing before we begin this dream, 1798, when the book of Daniel would be unsealed, Daniel 12 said it would be sealed up to the time of the end. Sister White says the Books of Daniel and Revelation
William Miller’s Prophetic Dream
complement each other—they bring each other to perfection. And the unsealing of the book of Daniel that is also identified in the book of Revelation is identified in Revelation 5 and onward, when Christ, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, begins to unseal the Bible, He is unsealing the Prophetic truths that brought about the Millerite experience. And he did not do that work until John Wept much!
William Miller’s Dream
I dreamed that God, by an unseen hand, sent me a curiously wrought casket about ten inches long by six square, --
Now why in the world do we have to know that it is 10 inches by 6 square? Why do we have to know that? Why didn’t it just say that He sent me a curiously wrought box—why did we have to know that it is 10 X 6 X6? Brothers and sisters, if you multiply 10 X 6 X6 you get 360 and you see that day-year principle—the premier rule of Bible Prophecy has been identified in this casket.
-- made of ebony and pearls curiously inlaid.
Ebony is a black and very hard wood while pearls are bright—to me I see a parallel in this to the ‘sweet in the mouth and bitter in the belly’ thing.
To the casket there was a key attached.
Now when James White comments on this, he says the key is the rules of Biblical prophetic interpretation by William Miller. Here’s the box emphasizing the day-year principle and the key representing the rules used by the one Sister White calls the messenger of the 1st angel. What the Lord used to assemble the foundations of Adventism.
I immediately took the key and opened the casket, when, to my wonder and surprise, I found it filled with all sorts and sizes of jewels, diamonds, precious stones, and gold and silver coin of every dimension and value, beautifully arranged in their several places in the casket; and thus arranged they reflected a light and glory equaled only to the sun.
Wouldn’t you love to see that casket? Look at the 1843 chart—that is the casket! That’s the truths that he saw.
I thought it was not my duty to enjoy this wonderful sight alone, although my heart was overjoyed at the brilliancy, beauty, and value of its contents. I therefore placed it on a center table in my room and gave out word that all who had a desire might come and see the most glorious and brilliant sight ever seen by man in this life.
William Miller’s Prophetic Dream
This was the preaching of the message.
The people began to come in, at first few in number, but increasing to a crowd. When they first looked into the casket, they would wonder and shout for joy. But when the spectators increased, everyone would begin to trouble the jewels, taking them out of the casket and scattering them on the table.
From 1830 – 1840 it was a few, but once the year-day principle was confirmed to the world, then the crowds would come to Miller’s meetings.
I began to think that the owner would require the casket and the jewels again at my hand; and if I suffered them to be scattered, I could never place them in their places in the casket again as before; and felt I should never be able to meet the accountability, for it would be immense. I then began to plead with the people not to handle them, nor to take them out of the casket; but the more I pleaded, the more they scattered; and now they seemed to scatter them all over the room, on the floor and on every piece of furniture in the room.
I then saw that among the genuine jewels and coin they had scattered an innumerable quantity of spurious jewels and counterfeit coin. I was highly incensed at their base conduct and ingratitude, and reproved and reproached them for it; but the more I reproved, the more they scattered the spurious jewels and false coin among the genuine.
These were false doctrines taught after 1844. There was a scattering going on here, Brothers and sisters. It is paralleling the scattering here- it is a prophetic parallel.
I then became vexed in my physical soul and began to use physical force to push them out of the room; but while I was pushing out one, three more would enter and bring in dirt and shavings and sand and all manner of rubbish, until they covered every one of the true jewels, diamonds, and coins, which were all excluded from sight. They also tore in pieces my casket and scattered it among the rubbish. I thought no man regarded my sorrow or my anger. I became wholly discouraged and disheartened, and sat down and wept.
Brothers and sisters, there are very few Seventh-day Adventists who can give Bible studies on the truths that are represented on that chart the way the pioneers understood them. They have been scattered and buried from sight and sealed up. Notice here he sits down and weeps like John who wept much in Revelation 5. Then the Lion of the tribe of Judah appeared to unseal the book. Miller here is describing a scattering, covering up and
William Miller’s Prophetic Dream
burying of the foundational truths of Adventism. And here Miller weeps just like John.
When John wept in chapter 5, then the Lion of the tribe of Judah appears.
While I was thus weeping and mourning for my great loss and accountability, I remembered God, and earnestly prayed that He would send me help.
Immediately the door opened, and a man entered the room, when the people all left it; and He, having a dirt brush in His hand, opened the windows, and began to brush the dirt and rubbish from the room.
I cried to Him to forbear, for there were some precious jewels scattered among the rubbish.
He told me to "fear not," for He would "take care of them."
Who is it that says ‘fear not’? This is Christ; the Man with the dirt brush is Christ.
Then, while He brushed the dirt and rubbish, false jewels and counterfeit coin, all rose and went out of the window like a cloud, and the wind carried them away. In the bustle I closed my eyes for a moment; when I opened them, the rubbish was all gone. The precious jewels, the diamonds, the gold and silver coins, lay scattered in profusion all over the room.
He then placed on the table a casket, much larger and more beautiful than the former, and gathered up the jewels, the diamonds, the coins, by the handful, and cast them into the casket, till not one was left, although some of the diamonds were not bigger than the point of a pin.
Why is the casket now bigger? We now have the Spirit of Prophecy as well as more light on the scriptures and end time prophecies because we have the Millerite message and new light that has been shining on the prophecies.
He then called upon me to "come and see."
I looked into the casket, but my eyes were dazzled with the sight. They shone with ten times their former glory. I thought they had been scoured in the sand by the feet of those wicked persons who had scattered and trod them in the dust. They were arranged in beautiful order in the casket, every one in its place, without any visible pains of the man who
William Miller’s Prophetic Dream
cast them in. I shouted with very joy, and that shout awoke me. — Early Writings, 81-83
That shout represents the Loud Cry—when the seven thunders are unsealed. They are unsealed when it is close to the time when probation is about to close. There was a scattering that took place in Adventism and the Lord is now in the process of gathering the 144,000.
Amen!
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