Sister White identifies the soon-coming Sunday law as the “sign,” that was typified by the armies of Rome encompassing Jerusalem in the year 66, and in doing so, she identifies a class who have eyes that see not, and ears that hear not.
እህት ዋይት በቅርቡ የሚመጣውን የእሑድ ሕግ በዓመተ 66 ኢየሩሳሌምን በከበቡት የሮም ሠራዊት የተመሰለው እንደ “ምልክት” ታመለክታለች፤ በዚህም እያደረገች የሚያዩ ነገር ግን የማያዩ ዓይኖች፣ የሚሰሙ ነገር ግን የማይሰሙ ጆሮዎች ያላቸውን ወገን ትለያለች።
“Eternity stretches before us. The curtain is about to be lifted. We who occupy this solemn, responsible position, what are we doing, what are we thinking about, that we cling to our selfish love of ease, while souls are perishing around us? Have our hearts become utterly callous? Cannot we feel or understand that we have a work to do for the salvation of others? Brethren, are you of the class who having eyes see not, and having ears hear not? Is it in vain that God has given you a knowledge of His will? Is it in vain that He has sent you warning after warning? Do you believe the declarations of eternal truth concerning what is about to come upon the earth, do you believe that God’s judgments are hanging over the people, and can you still sit at ease, indolent, careless, pleasure loving?
“ዘላለም በፊታችን ተዘርግታለች። መጋረጃው ሊገለጥ ነው። እኛ ይህን ጽኑና ኃላፊነት የተሞላበት ስፍራ የያዝን፣ በዙሪያችን ነፍሳት ሲጠፉ ሳሉ፣ ለራሳችን ያለንን የምቾት ፍቅር እየተጣበቅን ምን እየሠራን ነው? ምንስ እያሰብን ነው? ልባችን ፈጽሞ ደንድኖ ስሜት የሌለው ሆኗልን? ለሌሎች መዳን እንድንሠራ የተሰጠን ሥራ እንዳለን ማስተዋል ወይም መሰማት አንችልምን? ወንድሞች ሆይ፣ ዓይን እያላችሁ የማታዩ፣ ጆሮም እያላችሁ የማትሰሙ ከዚያ ወገን ናችሁን? እግዚአብሔር የፈቃዱን እውቀት የሰጣችሁ ከንቱ ነውን? ደጋግሞ ማስጠንቀቂያ የላከላችሁ ከንቱ ነውን? በምድር ላይ ሊመጣ ስላለው ነገር የዘላለም እውነትን መግለጫዎች ታምናላችሁን? የእግዚአብሔርስ ፍርዶች በሕዝቡ ላይ እንደተንጠለጠሉ ታምናላችሁን? እና እንግዲህ አሁንም በምቾት ተቀምጣችሁ፣ ስንፍና የተሞላባችሁ፣ ግዴለሾች፣ ተድላን ወዳጆች ሆናችሁ መቆየት ትችላላችሁን?”
“It is no time now for God’s people to be fixing their affections or laying up their treasure in the world. The time is not far distant, when, like the early disciples, we shall be forced to seek a refuge in desolate and solitary places. As the siege of Jerusalem by the Roman armies was the signal for flight to the Judean Christians, so the assumption of power on the part of our nation in the decree enforcing the papal sabbath will be a warning to us. It will then be time to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains.” Testimonies, volume 5, 464.
“አሁን ለእግዚአብሔር ሕዝብ ልባቸውን በዚህ ዓለም ላይ የሚጣበቁበት ወይም ሀብታቸውን በዚህ ዓለም የሚያከማቹበት ጊዜ አይደለም። እንደ ቀደሙት ደቀ መዛሙርት ሁሉ በተራቆቱና በብቸኝነት ስፍራዎች መሸሸጊያ ለመፈለግ የምንገደድበት ጊዜ እጅግ ሩቅ አይደለም። ኢየሩሳሌምን በሮማውያን ሠራዊት መከበብ ለይሁዳ ክርስቲያኖች የመሸሽ ምልክት እንደነበረ፣ እንዲሁም በጳጳሳዊው ሰንበት ማስከበር የሚያስገድድ ድንጋጌ ውስጥ ሕዝባችን ሥልጣንን መውሰዱ ለእኛ ማስጠንቀቂያ ይሆናል። በዚያን ጊዜ ታላላቅ ከተሞችን ለመተው፣ ከዚያም ትንንሾቹን እንድንተው ለመዘጋጀት፣ በተራሮች መካከል በተገለሉ ስፍራዎች ወደሚገኙ የገለልተኛ መኖሪያዎች መሄድ ጊዜው ይሆናል።” Testimonies, volume 5, 464.
The soon coming Sunday law in the United States is the warning signal (sign), “to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains.” Laodicean Adventism is largely unaware that the Sunday law crisis in the United States, fulfills the “sign” spoken of in The Great Controversy. It is typified by the “sign” at the beginning of the three and a half years. The “sign” which was fulfilled in the first siege of Jerusalem that was brought in the year 66, and it typifies the “ensign” that is lifted up at the soon-coming Sunday law.
በአሜሪካ የሚመጣው በቅርቡ የእሑድ ሕግ፣ “ታላላቅ ከተሞችን ለመተው፣ ከዚያም ትናንሽ ከተሞችን ለመተው እንደ መዘጋጃ ሁኔታ፣ በተራሮች መካከል በተገለሉ ስፍራዎች ወዳሉ ገለልተኛ መኖሪያ ቤቶች ለመሄድ” የሚያስጠነቅቅ ምልክት (ማስጠንቀቂያ ምልክት) ነው። ላኦዴቅያዊ አድቬንቲዝም በአብዛኛው በአሜሪካ ያለው የእሑድ ሕግ ቀውስ፣ በThe Great Controversy ውስጥ የተነገረውን “ምልክት” እንደሚፈጽም አያውቅም። ይህም በሦስት ዓመት ተኩል መጀመሪያ የነበረው በ“ምልክቱ” ተመስሎ ቀርቧል። በ66 ዓ.ም. በመጣው በመጀመሪያው የኢየሩሳሌም ከበባ የተፈጸመው “ምልክት”፣ በቅርቡ በሚመጣው የእሑድ ሕግ ጊዜ የሚነሣውን “ዓርማ” ይወክላል።
The actual destruction of Jerusalem was accomplished by Titus in the year 70 AD, and the siege of Titus had been first typified in the 66 AD siege of Cestius, for Jesus always illustrates the end of a thing with the beginning of a thing. It was the beginning siege of Cestius that was the “sign” to flee that Jesus had given, not the siege of Titus. One was the siege at the beginning, the other was the siege at the end.
የኢየሩሳሌም ትክክለኛ ጥፋት በክ.ዓ. 70 በቲቶስ ተፈጽሞ ሲሆን፣ የቲቶስ ከበባ አስቀድሞ በክ.ዓ. 66 በቄስጢዎስ ከበባ በምሳሌነት ተገልጦ ነበር፤ ምክንያቱም ኢየሱስ ሁልጊዜ የአንድ ነገር መጨረሻ በሌላ ነገር መጀመሪያ ያብራራልና። “ሽሹ” ብሎ ኢየሱስ የሰጠው “ምልክት” የቄስጢዎስ የመጀመሪያው ከበባ ነበር እንጂ የቲቶስ ከበባ አልነበረም። አንዱ በመጀመሪያ የነበረው ከበባ ነበር፤ ሌላው ደግሞ በመጨረሻ የነበረው ከበባ ነበር።
“Not one Christian perished in the destruction of Jerusalem. Christ had given His disciples warning, and all who believed His words watched for the promised sign. ‘When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies,’ said Jesus, ‘then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out.’ Luke 21:20, 21. After the Romans under Cestius had surrounded the city, they unexpectedly abandoned the siege when everything seemed favorable for an immediate attack. The besieged, despairing of successful resistance, were on the point of surrender, when the Roman general withdrew his forces without the least apparent reason. But God’s merciful providence was directing events for the good of His own people. The promised sign had been given to the waiting Christians, and now an opportunity was offered for all who would, to obey the Saviour’s warning. Events were so overruled that neither Jews nor Romans should hinder the flight of the Christians. Upon the retreat of Cestius, the Jews, sallying from Jerusalem, pursued after his retiring army; and while both forces were thus fully engaged, the Christians had an opportunity to leave the city. At this time the country also had been cleared of enemies who might have endeavored to intercept them. At the time of the siege, the Jews were assembled at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, and thus the Christians throughout the land were able to make their escape unmolested. Without delay they fled to a place of safety—the city of Pella, in the land of Perea, beyond Jordan.” The Great Controversy, 30.
በኢየሩሳሌም ጥፋት ውስጥ አንድ እንኳ ክርስቲያን አልጠፋም። ክርስቶስ ለደቀ መዛሙርቱ ማስጠንቀቂያ ሰጥቶ ነበር፤ ቃሉንም የአመኑ ሁሉ የተስፋ ተሰጠውን ምልክት በንቃት ጠብቀው ነበር። “ኢየሩሳሌም በሠራዊት ተከብታ ስታዩአት፥” ሲል ኢየሱስ አለ፥ “በዚያን ጊዜ ጥፋቷ እንደ ቀረበ እወቁ። በዚያን ጊዜ በይሁዳ ያሉ ወደ ተራሮች ይሽሹ፤ በመካከልዋም ያሉ ይውጡ።” ሉቃስ 21፡20, 21። ከዚያም በኋላ በሴስቲየስ መሪነት የነበሩት ሮማውያን ከተማይቱን ከበው ካሉ በኋላ፣ ሁሉም ነገር ወዲያውኑ ጥቃት ለማድረግ በሚያመች ሁኔታ ያለ ሲመስል፣ በድንገት ከበባውን ተዉ። በከተማዪቱ ውስጥ የተከበቡት፣ ድል የሚያመጣ መከላከያ እንደማይቻል ተስፋ ቆርጠው፣ ሊሰጡ በቀረቡበት ጊዜ፣ የሮማውያኑ አዛዥ ምንም የሚታይ ምክንያት ሳይኖር ሠራዊቱን አስመለሰ። ነገር ግን የእግዚአብሔር ርኅሩኅ አምላካዊ አስተዳደር ለራሱ ሕዝብ መልካም እንዲሆን ክስተቶችን እየመራ ነበር። የተስፋው ምልክት ለሚጠባበቁት ክርስቲያኖች ተሰጥቶ ነበር፤ አሁንም የአዳኙን ማስጠንቀቂያ ለመታዘዝ ለሚፈልጉ ሁሉ ዕድል ተሰጠ። ክስተቶች እንዲህ ተቆጣጠሩ ነበር፤ አይሁድም ሆኑ ሮማውያንም የክርስቲያኖቹን ሽሽት እንዳያግዱ። ሴስቲየስ ከተመለሰ በኋላ፣ አይሁድ ከኢየሩሳሌም ወጥተው የሚመለሰውን ሠራዊቱን አሳደዱ፤ እነዚህ ሁለቱ ኃይሎችም እንዲህ ሙሉ በሙሉ በመጠመዳቸው፣ ክርስቲያኖቹ ከከተማዪቱ ለመውጣት ዕድል አገኙ። በዚያን ጊዜ ደግሞ አገሪቱ መንገዳቸውን ለመዝጋት ሊሞክሩ ከሚችሉ ጠላቶች ተነጥቃ ነበር። በከበባው ጊዜ አይሁድ የዳስ በዓልን ለማክበር በኢየሩሳሌም ተሰብስበው ነበር፤ ስለዚህም በምድሪቱ ሁሉ የነበሩት ክርስቲያኖች ሳይከለከሉ ማምለጥ ቻሉ። ሳይዘገዩ ወደ ደኅንነት ቦታ፤ ከዮርዳኖስ ማዶ በጴርያ ምድር ወዳለችው ወደ ጴላ ከተማ ሸሹ።” ታላቁ ተጋድሎ፣ 30።
The siege of Jerusalem by Cestius in the year 66 fulfilled the warning “sign” which Christ had recorded for the Christians of that history, but the siege of Titus in 70 AD provided no “sign” to flee. In that siege there were no Christians left in the city, and that last siege led to the destruction of Jerusalem, and in the destruction of Jerusalem “not one Christian perished,” for the Christians had fled at the beginning of the history.
በ66 ዓ.ም. በሴስቲየስ በኢየሩሳሌም ላይ የተደረገው ከበባ፣ ክርስቶስ ለዚያ ታሪክ ክርስቲያኖች አስቀድሞ የመዘገበውን የማስጠንቀቂያ “ምልክት” ፈጽሞ አሟላ፤ ነገር ግን በ70 ዓ.ም. የቲቶስ ከበባ ለመሸሽ ምንም “ምልክት” አልሰጠም። በዚያ ከበባ ውስጥ በከተማይቱ ውስጥ የቀሩ ክርስቲያኖች አልነበሩም፤ እናም ያ የመጨረሻው ከበባ ወደ ኢየሩሳሌም ጥፋት አመራ፤ በኢየሩሳሌምም ጥፋት ውስጥ “አንድ ክርስቲያን እንኳ አልጠፋም፥” ምክንያቱም ክርስቲያኖቹ በታሪኩ መጀመሪያ ላይ ሸሽተው ነበር።
“The Jewish forces, pursuing after Cestius and his army, fell upon their rear with such fierceness as to threaten them with total destruction. It was with great difficulty that the Romans succeeded in making their retreat. The Jews escaped almost without loss, and with their spoils returned in triumph to Jerusalem. Yet this apparent success brought them only evil. It inspired them with that spirit of stubborn resistance to the Romans which speedily brought unutterable woe upon the doomed city.
“የአይሁድ ኃይሎች ቄስጢዮስንና ሠራዊቱን እያሳደዱ በኋለኛው ክፍላቸው ላይ እጅግ በብርቱ ተጣሉባቸው፤ ይህም ፈጽሞ ሊያጠፋቸው እስኪችል ድረስ አስጊ ሆነባቸው። ሮማውያን ማፈግፈጋቸውን ሊያሳኩ የቻሉት በታላቅ ችግር ነበር። አይሁድ ማለት ይቻላል ያለ ኪሳራ አመለጡ፤ ምርኮአቸውንም ይዘው በድል ወደ ኢየሩሳሌም ተመለሱ። ሆኖም ይህ የተገለጠ ስኬት ክፉ ነገር ብቻ አመጣላቸው። ይህም ፈጥኖ በተፈረደባት ከተማ ላይ የማይነገር መከራ ያመጣውን ያንን ለሮማውያን የማይገዛ ግትር የመቋቋም መንፈስ አሳደረባቸው።”
“Terrible were the calamities that fell upon Jerusalem when the siege was resumed by Titus. The city was invested at the time of the Passover, when millions of Jews were assembled within its walls.” The Great Controversy, 31.
“ቲቶስ ከበባውን እንደ ገና በጀመረ ጊዜ በኢየሩሳሌም ላይ የወረዱት መከራዎች እጅግ አስፈሪ ነበሩ። ከተማይቱም ፋሲካ በሚከበርበት ወቅት፣ በቅጥሮቿ ውስጥ ሚሊዮኖች የሚቆጠሩ አይሁድ በተሰበሰቡበት ጊዜ ተከብባ ነበር።” ታላቁ ተጋድሎ፣ 31።
From the feast of Tabernacles in the year 66 unto the Passover in the year 70 is three and a half years, which prophetically is twelve hundred and sixty days. From the year 66 to the year 70 pagan Rome trampled down the sanctuary and host, just as papal Rome tread down the holy city for forty-two months from the year 538 unto 1798.
ከ66 ዓ.ም. የዳስ በዓል ጀምሮ እስከ 70 ዓ.ም. ፋሲካ ድረስ ሦስት ዓመት ተኩል ነው፤ ይህም በትንቢታዊ መልኩ አንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ቀናት ነው። ከ66 ዓ.ም. እስከ 70 ዓ.ም. ድረስ አረማዊቷ ሮም መቅደሱንና ሰራዊቱን ረገጠች፤ እንዲሁም የጳጳሳዊቷ ሮም ከ538 ዓ.ም. እስከ 1798 ዓ.ም. ድረስ ቅድስቲቱን ከተማ ለአርባ ሁለት ወራት እንደረገጠችው።
But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. Revelation 11:2.
ነገር ግን ከመቅደሱ ውጭ ያለውን አደባባይ ተወው፤ አትለካውም፤ ለአሕዛብ ተሰጥቶአልና፤ ቅድስቲቱንም ከተማ አርባ ሁለት ወር ይረግጡአታል። ራእይ 11፥2
Both pagan Rome and papal Rome trampled down Jerusalem for twelve hundred and sixty days (years), thus identifying that modern Rome would trample down spiritual Jerusalem of the last days for a symbolic period of twelve hundred and sixty days. That symbolic period would commence at the soon-coming Sunday law in the United States, when the deadly wound is healed.
አረማዊቱ ሮምም ሆነ ጳጳሳዊቱ ሮም ኢየሩሳሌምን ለአንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ቀናት (ዓመታት) ረግጠው ጨፍልቀዋታል፤ በዚህም ዘመናዊቱ ሮም በመጨረሻዎቹ ዘመናት መንፈሳዊቱን ኢየሩሳሌም ለምሳሌያዊ የአንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ቀናት ጊዜ እንደምትረግጥ ይለያል። ያ ምሳሌያዊ ጊዜ በአሜሪካ አንድነት ግዛቶች የሚመጣው የእሑድ ሕግ በሚጀምርበት ጊዜ፣ ገዳይ ቁስሉ ሲፈወስ፣ ይጀምራል።
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. Revelation 13:3–5.
ከራሶቹም አንዱ እስከ ሞት የተወጋ እንደ ሆነ አየሁ፤ ነገር ግን ያ የሞት ቍስሉ ተፈወሰ፤ ምድርም ሁሉ እንስሳውን ተከትላ ተደነቀች። ለእንስሳውም ሥልጣን ስለ ሰጠው ዘንዶውን ሰገዱለት፤ እንስሳውንም ሰገዱለት ሲሉ፦ እንደ እንስሳው ያለ ማን ነው? ከእርሱስ ጋር ሊዋጋ የሚችል ማን ነው? ታላላቅ ነገሮችንና ስድቦችን የሚናገር አፍም ተሰጠው፤ አርባ ሁለት ወራትም እንዲቀጥል ሥልጣን ተሰጠው። ራእይ 13፥3-5።
The symbolic forty-two months of papal persecution is the “hour,” of the Sunday law crisis. That “hour” begins with a “sign” (the ensign), and ends with “signs.” The “sign” of the ensign at the Sunday law, will cause any Christians still in Babylon to flee to the glorious holy mountain that has been exalted (lifted up) above the other hills.
ከጳጳሳዊ ስደት ጋር የተያያዘው ምሳሌያዊ አርባ ሁለት ወራት የእሁድ ሕግ ቀውስ “ሰዓት” ነው። ያ “ሰዓት” በ“ምልክት” (ባንዲራ) ይጀምራል፥ በ“ምልክቶችም” ይጠናቀቃል። በእሁድ ሕግ ጊዜ ያለው የባንዲራው “ምልክት” እስካሁን በባቢሎን ውስጥ ያሉ ማንኛዎቹም ክርስቲያኖች ከሌሎች ኮረብቶች በላይ ወደ ከፍ ወዳለችው (ወደ ላይ ወደ ተነሣችው) ወደ ክቡር ቅዱስ ተራራ እንዲሸሹ ያደርጋል።
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Isaiah 2:2, 3.
በመጨረሻዎቹም ዘመኖች እንዲህ ይሆናል፤ የእግዚአብሔር ቤት ተራራ በተራሮች ራስ ላይ ይቆማል፥ ከኮረብቶችም በላይ ከፍ ከፍ ይላል፤ አሕዛብም ሁሉ ወደ እርሱ ይፈስሳሉ። ብዙ ሕዝቦችም ሄደው፦ ኑ፥ ወደ እግዚአብሔር ተራራ፥ ወደ የያዕቆብ አምላክ ቤት እንውጣ፤ እርሱም መንገዶቹን ያስተምረናል፥ እኛም በጎዳናዎቹ እንሄዳለን፤ ሕግ ከጽዮን ይወጣልና፥ የእግዚአብሔርም ቃል ከኢየሩሳሌም። ኢሳይያስ 2፥2, 3።
The flight from the cities at the decree enforcing Sunday worship was typified by both the flight of the Christians in the year 66, and the flight of the church in the year 538 that fled into the wilderness.
መንግሥታቱ የእሁድን አምልኮ የሚያስገድድ አዋጅ ሲያወጡ ከከተሞች የሚኖረው ሽሽት፣ እ.ኤ.አ. በ66 ዓመት የክርስቲያኖች ሽሽትና እ.ኤ.አ. በ538 ዓመት ወደ ምድረ በዳ የሸሸችው ቤተ ክርስቲያን ሽሽት ሁለቱም ቀድመው ያመለከቱት ነበር።
And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. Revelation 12:6.
ሴቲቱም ወደ ምድረ በዳ ሸሸች፤ በዚያም ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስልሳ ቀን እንዲመግቧት ከእግዚአብሔር የተዘጋጀላት ስፍራ ነበራት። ራእይ 12፥6።
The destruction of Jerusalem from the first siege to the last siege lasted three and a half years, but a warning message of the coming destruction was given for seven years, three and a half years before the first siege and three and a half years after.
የኢየሩሳሌም ጥፋት ከመጀመሪያው ከበባ እስከ መጨረሻው ከበባ ድረስ ሶስት ዓመት ተኩል ቆይቷል፤ ነገር ግን ስለሚመጣው ጥፋት የማስጠንቀቂያ መልእክት ለሰባት ዓመታት ተሰጥቶ ነበር፥ ሶስት ዓመት ተኩል ከመጀመሪያው ከበባ በፊት እና ሶስት ዓመት ተኩል ከዚያ በኋላ።
“All the predictions given by Christ concerning the destruction of Jerusalem were fulfilled to the letter. The Jews experienced the truth of His words of warning: ‘With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.’ Matthew 7:2.
“ክርስቶስ ስለ ኢየሩሳሌም ጥፋት የሰጣቸው ትንቢቶች ሁሉ ፍጹም በሆነ መልኩ ተፈጸሙ። አይሁድም የማስጠንቀቂያውን ቃላት እውነት በተሞክሮ አዩ፤ ‘በምትመዝኑበት መስፈርት መልሶ ይመዘንላችኋልና።’ ማቴዎስ 7፥2።”
“Signs and wonders appeared, foreboding disaster and doom. In the midst of the night an unnatural light shone over the temple and the altar. Upon the clouds at sunset were pictured chariots and men of war gathering for battle. The priests ministering by night in the sanctuary were terrified by mysterious sounds; the earth trembled, and a multitude of voices were heard crying: ‘Let us depart hence.’ The great eastern gate, which was so heavy that it could hardly be shut by a score of men, and which was secured by immense bars of iron fastened deep in the pavement of solid stone, opened at midnight, without visible agency.—Milman, The History of the Jews, book 13.
“ምልክቶችና ድንቆች ታዩ፤ ጥፋትንና ውድቀትን እየተነበዩ ነበር። በሌሊት መካከል ላይ በቤተ መቅደሱና በመሠዊያው ላይ ከተፈጥሮ ውጭ የሆነ ብርሃን አበራ። በፀሐይ መጥለቂያ ጊዜ በደመናዎች ላይ ሰረገሎችና ለጦርነት የሚሰበሰቡ የጦር ሰዎች ተስለው ታዩ። በሌሊት በመቅደሱ ውስጥ የሚያገለግሉ ካህናት በምስጢራዊ ድምፆች እጅግ ፈሩ፤ ምድርም ተናወጠች፣ እንዲህም ሲሉ የሚጮኹ የብዙ ሕዝብ ድምፆች ተሰሙ፤ ‘ከዚህ እንውጣ።’ እጅግ ከባድ ስለነበረች በሃያ ያህል ሰዎች እንኳ በቀላሉ ሊዘጉአት ያልቻሉት፣ እና በጠንካራ ድንጋይ ንጣፍ ውስጥ በጥልቅ ተተክለው በነበሩ ግዙፍ የብረት መዝጊያዎች የተጠበቀችው ታላቂቱ የምሥራቅ በር በእኩለ ሌሊት ያለ ሚታይ ምክንያት ተከፈተች።—Milman, The History of the Jews, book 13.
“For seven years a man continued to go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, declaring the woes that were to come upon the city. By day and by night he chanted the wild dirge: ‘A voice from the east! a voice from the west! a voice from the four winds! a voice against Jerusalem and against the temple! a voice against the bridegrooms and the brides! a voice against the whole people!’—Ibid. This strange being was imprisoned and scourged, but no complaint escaped his lips. To insult and abuse he answered only: ‘Woe, woe to Jerusalem!’ ‘woe, woe to the inhabitants thereof!’ His warning cry ceased not until he was slain in the siege he had foretold.” The Great Controversy, 29, 30.
“ሰባት ዓመታት ሙሉ አንድ ሰው በኢየሩሳሌም ጎዳናዎች ላይ ወደዚህና ወደዚያ እየተመላለሰ፣ በከተማይቱ ላይ ሊመጡ ያሉትን ወዮታዎች ሲናገር ቀጠለ። በቀንም ሆነ በሌሊት ይህን እብድ የሐዘን ዜማ ይዘምር ነበር፦ ‘ድምፅ ከምሥራቅ! ድምፅ ከምዕራብ! ድምፅ ከአራቱ ነፋሳት! ድምፅ በኢየሩሳሌምና በመቅደሱ ላይ! ድምፅ በሙሽሮችና በሙሽራዎች ላይ! ድምፅ በሕዝቡ ሁሉ ላይ!’—Ibid. ይህ እንግዳ ፍጡር ታስሮ ተገረፈ፣ ነገር ግን ከከንፈሮቹ ቅሬታ አልወጣም። ለስድብና ለግፍ የሰጠው መልስ ይህ ብቻ ነበር፦ ‘ወዮ፣ ወዮ ለኢየሩሳሌም!’ ‘ወዮ፣ ወዮ ለሚኖሩባት!’ ያስጠነቀቀበት ጩኸት እርሱ አስቀድሞ ተንብዮ በነበረው ከበባ ውስጥ እስኪገደል ድረስ አልቆመም።” The Great Controversy, 29, 30.
The final destruction of literal Jerusalem in the year 70 was preceded by “signs and wonders” which identified “disaster and doom.” The warning “signs” were manifested for three and a half years before the first siege and for the three and a half years that led to the destruction. The “signs” (in the plural) that identified the coming destruction was not the “sign” of warning to flee, but a pronouncement of the imminent close of probation.
የቀጥተኛይቱ ኢየሩሳሌም በ70 ዓ.ም. የመጨረሻ ጥፋት ከ“ምልክቶችና ድንቆች” በፊት ተቀድሞ ነበር፤ እነዚህም “መቅሰፍትንና ጥፋትን” የሚያመለክቱ ነበሩ። የማስጠንቀቂያው “ምልክቶች” ከመጀመሪያው ከበባ በፊት ለሦስት ዓመት ተኩል ተገለጡ፤ እንዲሁም ወደ ጥፋቱ ያመሩትን ሦስት ዓመት ተኩል ሙሉ ቆይተዋል። ሊመጣ ያለውን ጥፋት የሚለዩት “ምልክቶች” (በብዙ ቁጥር) ለመሸሽ የተሰጠው “ምልክት” አልነበሩም፤ ነገር ግን የምሕረት ጊዜ መቃረቡን የሚያውጅ አዋጅ ነበሩ።
In the trampling down of spiritual Jerusalem from 538 to 1798, the “sign” of warning to flee, was when the abomination of desolation was when “that man of sin” was “revealed,” as “the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”
ከ538 እስከ 1798 ድረስ በመንፈሳዊቱ ኢየሩሳሌም ላይ በተፈጸመው ረገጣ፣ ለመሸሽ የሚሰጠው የማስጠንቀቂያ “ምልክት”፣ የጥፋት ርኵሰት ሲታይ፣ “ያ የኃጢአት ሰው” እንደ “የጥፋት ልጅ” “ሲገለጥ” ነበር፤ “በእግዚአብሔር የሚባል ወይም የሚመለክ ሁሉ ላይ የሚቃወምና ራሱን ከፍ ከፍ የሚያደርግ፤ እንዲሁም እርሱ እንደ እግዚአብሔር በእግዚአብሔር ቤተ መቅደስ ተቀምጦ፣ ራሱን እግዚአብሔር እንደሆነ የሚያሳይ።”
When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand.) Matthew 24:15.
ስለዚህ በነቢዩ ዳንኤል የተነገረው የጥፋት እርኩሰት በቅዱስ ስፍራ ቆሞ ባያችሁ ጊዜ፥ (የሚያነብ ያስተውል።) ማቴዎስ 24፥15።
When the Christians of that history recognized that “sign” they fled into the wilderness for twelve hundred and sixty years.
የዚያ ታሪክ ክርስቲያኖች ያንን “ምልክት” ባወቁ ጊዜ ለአንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ዓመታት ወደ ምድረ በዳ ሸሹ።
“It required a desperate struggle for those who would be faithful to stand firm against the deceptions and abominations which were disguised in sacerdotal garments and introduced into the church. The Bible was not accepted as the standard of faith. The doctrine of religious freedom was termed heresy, and its upholders were hated and proscribed.
ለእነዚያ ታማኝ ሊሆኑ የሚፈልጉ ሰዎች፣ በካህናዊ ልብስ ተሸፍነው ወደ ቤተ ክርስቲያን የገቡትን ማታለያዎችና ርኩሰቶች በመቃወም ጽኑ ለመቆም እጅግ ከባድ ትግል ያስፈልጋቸው ነበር። መጽሐፍ ቅዱስ እንደ እምነት መስፈርት አልተቀበለም ነበር። የሃይማኖት ነፃነት ትምህርት መናፍቅነት ተብሎ ይጠራ ነበር፣ የሚደግፉትም ይጠሉና ከሕብረተሰብ ይገለሉ ነበር።
“After a long and severe conflict, the faithful few decided to dissolve all union with the apostate church if she still refused to free herself from falsehood and idolatry. They saw that separation was an absolute necessity if they would obey the word of God. They dared not tolerate errors fatal to their own souls, and set an example which would imperil the faith of their children and children’s children. To secure peace and unity they were ready to make any concession consistent with fidelity to God; but they felt that even peace would be too dearly purchased at the sacrifice of principle. If unity could be secured only by the compromise of truth and righteousness, then let there be difference, and even war.” The Great Controversy, 45.
“ከረዥምና ከባድ ግጭት በኋላ፣ ታማኞቹ ጥቂቶች ከሐሰትና ከጣዖት አምልኮ ራሷን ለማላቀቅ ገና እምቢ ብትል፣ ከከሐዲቱ ቤተ ክርስቲያን ጋር ያላቸውን ማኅበር ሁሉ ለማፍረስ ወሰኑ። የእግዚአብሔርን ቃል ለመታዘዝ ከፈለጉ፣ መለየት ፍጹም አስፈላጊ መሆኑን ተረዱ። ለራሳቸው ነፍሳት ገዳይ የሆኑ ስህተቶችን ሊታገሡ አልደፈሩም፤ ደግሞም የልጆቻቸውንና የልጅ ልጆቻቸውን እምነት የሚያሰጋ ምሳሌ ሊያቆሙ አልፈለጉም። ሰላምንና አንድነትን ለማረጋገጥ ከእግዚአብሔር ታማኝነት ጋር የሚስማማ ማንኛውንም መስማማት ለማድረግ ዝግጁ ነበሩ፤ ነገር ግን ሰላም እንኳ መርህን በመሠዋት ከተገኘ እጅግ ውድ ዋጋ ተከፍሎ የተገዛ እንደሚሆን ተሰማቸው። አንድነት ሊገኝ የሚችለው እውነትንና ጽድቅን በመስማማት ብቻ ከሆነ፣ እንግዲያስ ልዩነት ይሁን፣ እንኳንም ጦርነት ይሁን።” The Great Controversy, 45.
Approaching the conclusion of the twelve hundred and sixty years of papal persecution there were “signs” (in the plural), and as with the “signs” at the end of the twelve hundred and sixty days that pagan Rome trampled down literal Jerusalem; those “signs” were not signs to flee.
የጳጳሳዊ ስደት አንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ዓመታት ወደ ፍጻሜያቸው ሲቀርቡ “ምልክቶች” (በብዙ ቁጥር) ነበሩ፤ እንዲሁም አረማዊቱ ሮም ቀጥተኛይቱን ኢየሩሳሌም የረገጠችባቸው አንድ ሺህ ሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ቀናት መጨረሻ ላይ ከተገለጡት “ምልክቶች” ጋር እንደነበረው፣ እነዚያ “ምልክቶች” ለመሸሽ የሚያስጠነቅቁ ምልክቶች አልነበሩም።
“The Saviour gives signs of His coming, and more than this, He fixes the time when the first of these signs shall appear: ‘Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.’
“መድኃኒቱ ስለ ምጽአቱ ምልክቶችን ይሰጣል፤ ከዚህም በላይ ከእነዚህ ምልክቶች የመጀመሪያው መቼ እንደሚገለጥ ጊዜውን ይወስናል፡- ‘ወዲያውኑም ከዚያች ዘመን መከራ በኋላ ፀሐይ ትጨልማለች፥ ጨረቃም ብርሃኗን አትሰጥም፥ ከዋክብትም ከሰማይ ይወድቃሉ፥ የሰማያትም ኃይላት ይናወጣሉ፤ በዚያን ጊዜም በሰማይ የሰው ልጅ ምልክት ይታያል፤ በዚያን ጊዜም የምድር ነገዶች ሁሉ ያለቅሳሉ፥ የሰውንም ልጅ በኃይልና በታላቅ ክብር በሰማይ ደመናት ላይ ሲመጣ ያያሉ። መላእክቱንም በታላቅ የመለከት ድምፅ ይልካል፥ እነርሱም ምርጦቹን ከአራቱ ነፋሳት፥ ከሰማይ ዳርቻ እስከ ሰማይ ዳርቻ ድረስ ይሰበስባሉ።’”
“At the close of the great papal persecution, Christ declared, the sun should be darkened, and the moon should not give her light. Next, the stars should fall from heaven. And He says, ‘Learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that He is near, even at the doors.’ Matthew 24:32, 33, margin.
“በታላቁ የጳጳሳዊ ስደት ፍጻሜ ጊዜ፣ ክርስቶስ እንደ ተናገረው፣ ፀሐይ ትጨልማለች፣ ጨረቃም ብርሃኗን አትሰጥም። ከዚያም ቀጥሎ ከዋክብት ከሰማይ ይወድቃሉ። እርሱም እንዲህ ይላል፦ ‘ከበለስ ዛፍ ምሳሌን ተማሩ፤ ቅርንጫፉ ገና ለስላሳ ሲሆን ቅጠልም ሲያበቅል፣ በጋ እንደ ቀረበ ታውቃላችሁ፤ እንዲሁም እናንተ፣ እነዚህን ሁሉ ነገሮች በምታዩ ጊዜ፣ እርሱ ቀርቦአል፥ በደጆችም አጠገብ እንዳለ ዕወቁ።’ ማቴዎስ 24፥32, 33፣ margin.”
“Christ has given signs of His coming. He declares that we may know when He is near, even at the doors. He says of those who see these signs, ‘This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.’ These signs have appeared. Now we know of a surety that the Lord’s coming is at hand. ‘Heaven and earth shall pass away,’ He says, ‘but My words shall not pass away.’” The Desire of Ages, 631, 632.
“ክርስቶስ ስለ መምጣቱ ምልክቶችን ሰጥቶአል። እርሱ በቅርብ እንደሆነ፣ እንዲሁም በደጆች እንኳ እንደደረሰ እንድናውቅ ይናገራል። እነዚህን ምልክቶች ስለሚያዩት እንዲህ ይላል፦ ‘ይህ ትውልድ ይህ ሁሉ እስኪፈጸም ድረስ አያልፍም።’ እነዚህ ምልክቶች ታይተዋል። አሁን ጌታ መምጣቱ ቀርቦአል ብለን በእርግጥ እናውቃለን። ‘ሰማይና ምድር ያልፋሉ፤’ ይላል፤ ‘ነገር ግን ቃሌ አያልፍም።’” The Desire of Ages, 631, 632.
When “the three and half years of Jerusalem being trampled down” by papal Rome was ending there was a series of “signs,” which identified the coming of Christ and ushered in the Millerite history. Millerite history is to be repeated to the very letter in the last days. Those “signs,” which appeared at “the close of the great papal persecution,” had been typified by “signs” that appeared as the closing of the three and a half years of the trampling down of Jerusalem from the year 66 to 70 by pagan Rome. Therefore, based upon two witnesses there will be a “sign” of the ensign which is lifted up at the hour of the great earthquake which is the sign of warning to flee in the history of modern Rome, and there will also be “signs” in the plural which occur at the closing of modern Rome’s period of persecution in the last days.
“ኢየሩሳሌም በእግር ተረግጣ የነበረችበት ሦስት ዓመት ተኩል” በጳጳሳዊቷ ሮም ሊያበቃ ሲቀርብ፣ የክርስቶስን መምጣት የለዩ እና የሚለራውያንን ታሪክ ያስገቡ “ምልክቶች” ተከታትለው ተገለጡ። የሚለራውያን ታሪክ በመጨረሻዎቹ ቀኖች በትክክል በፊደሉ ይደገማል። እነዚያ “ምልክቶች” በ“ታላቁ የጳጳሳዊ ስደት ማብቂያ” ላይ የታዩ እንደነበሩ፣ ከ66 ዓ.ም. እስከ 70 ዓ.ም. በአረማዊቷ ሮም ኢየሩሳሌም የተረገጠችበት ሦስት ዓመት ተኩል ሲያበቃ በታዩ “ምልክቶች” አስቀድመው ተምሳሌት ተደርገው ነበር። ስለዚህ፣ በሁለት ምስክሮች መሠረት፣ በዘመናዊቷ ሮም ታሪክ ውስጥ የማምለጥ ማስጠንቀቂያ ምልክት የሆነው ታላቁ የመሬት መንቀጥቀጥ በሚሆንበት ሰዓት የሚነሣው የዓላማው ምልክት ይኖራል፤ እንዲሁም በመጨረሻዎቹ ቀኖች የዘመናዊቷ ሮም የስደት ዘመን ሲያበቃ የሚፈጸሙ “ምልክቶች” በብዙ ቁጥር ይኖራሉ።
We will continue this study in the next article.
ይህን ጥናት በሚቀጥለው ጽሑፍ እንቀጥላለን።
“Read the 21st chapter of Luke. In it Christ gives the warning, ‘Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things, and to stand before the Son of man’ (Luke 21:34–36).
“የሉቃስ ወንጌል 21ኛውን ምዕራፍ አንብቡ። በዚያ ውስጥ ክርስቶስ እንዲህ ያለ ማስጠንቀቂያ ይሰጣል፤ ‘ልባችሁ በመብል ብዛት፣ በስካር፣ በዚህም ሕይወት ጭንቀት እንዳይከብድ፣ ያም ቀን ድንገት እንዳይመጣባችሁ፣ ራሳችሁን ተጠንቀቁ። በወጥመድ እንደሚመጣ እንዲሁ በምድር ገጽ ሁሉ ላይ በሚኖሩ ሁሉ ላይ ይመጣልና። እንግዲህ ከዚህ ሁሉ ለማምለጥና በሰው ልጅ ፊት ለመቆም የሚገባችሁ እንድትሆኑ ሁልጊዜ ትጉ፤ ጸልዩም’ (ሉቃስ 21፥34–36)።”
“The signs of the times are fulfilling in our world, yet the churches generally are represented as slumbering. Shall we not take warning from the experience of the foolish virgins, who when the call came, ‘Behold the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him,’ found that they had no oil in their lamps? And while they went to buy oil, the bridegroom went in to the marriage supper with the wise virgins, and the door was shut. When the foolish virgins reached the banqueting hall, they received an unexpected denial. The master of the feast declared, ‘I know you not.’ They were left standing without in the empty street, in the blackness of the night.” Manuscript Releases, volume 15, 229.
“የዘመኑ ምልክቶች በዓለማችን እየተፈጸሙ ናቸው፤ ነገር ግን ቤተ ክርስቲያናት በአጠቃላይ እንደ ተኙ ተመስለው ተቀርበዋል። ጥሪውም፣ ‘እነሆ ሙሽራው ይመጣል፤ ልትቀበሉት ውጡ’ በተባለ ጊዜ፣ በመብራታቸው ዘይት እንደሌላቸው ያገኙትን የሞኞቹን ደናግል ልምድ እንጂ ማስጠንቀቂያ አንወስድምን? ዘይትም ሊገዙ ሲሄዱ፣ ሙሽራው ከጥበበኞቹ ደናግል ጋር ወደ ሰርጉ ግብዣ ገባ፤ ደጅም ተዘጋ። ሞኞቹ ደናግል ወደ ግብዣው አዳራሽ በደረሱ ጊዜ ያልተጠበቀ እምቢታ ተቀበሉ። የበዓሉ ጌታ፣ ‘አላውቃችሁም’ ብሎ አስታወቀ። በሌሊት ጨለማ ውስጥ፣ በባዶው መንገድ ውጭ ቆመው ቀሩ።” Manuscript Releases, volume 15, 229.