Thus was displayed the last of those signs of His coming , concerning which Jesus bade His disciples : " When ye shall see all these things , know that it is near , even at the doors ." Matthew 24:33 . After these signs , John beheld , as the great event next impending , the heavens departing as a scroll , while the earth quaked , mountains and islands removed out of their places , and the wicked in terror sought to flee from the presence of the Son of man . Revelation 6:12-17 . Many who witnessed the falling of the stars , looked upon it as a herald of the coming judgment , " an awful type , a sure forerunner , a merciful sign , of that great and dreadful day ." -- " The Old Countryman ," in Portland Evening Advertiser , Nov . 26 , 1833 . Thus the attention of the people was directed to the fulfillment of prophecy , and many were led to give heed to the warning of the second advent .
In the year 1840 another remarkable fulfillment of prophecy excited widespread interest . Two years before , Josiah Litch , one of the leading ministers preaching the second advent , published an exposition of Revelation 9 , predicting the fall of the Ottoman Empire . According to his calculations , this power was to be overthrown " in A . D . 1840 , sometime in the month of August ;" and only a few days previous to its accomplishment he wrote : " Allowing the first period , 150 years , to have been exactly fulfilled before Deacozes ascended the throne by permission of the Turks , and that the 391 years , fifteen days , commenced at the close of the first period , it will end on the 11th of August , 1840 , when the Ottoman power in Constantinople may be expected to be broken . And this , I believe , will be found to be the case ." -Josiah Litch , in Signs of the Times , and Expositor of Prophecy , Aug . 1 , 1840 .
At the very time specified , Turkey , through her ambassadors , accepted the protection of the allied powers of Europe , and thus placed herself under the control of Christian nations . The event exactly fulfilled the prediction . When it became known , multitudes were convinced of the correctness of the principles of prophetic interpretation adopted by Miller and his associates , and a wonderful impetus was given to the advent movement . Men of learning and position united with Miller , both in preaching and in publishing his views , and from 1840 to 1844 the work rapidly extended .
William Miller possessed strong mental powers , disciplined by thought and study ; and he added to these the wisdom of heaven by connecting himself with the Source of wisdom . He was a man of sterling worth , who could not but command respect and esteem wherever integrity of character and moral excellence were valued . Uniting true kindness of heart with Christian humility and the power of self-control , he was attentive and affable to all , ready to listen to the opinions of others and to weigh their arguments . Without passion or excitement he tested all theories and doctrines by the word of God , and his sound reasoning and thorough knowledge of the Scriptures enabled him to refute error and expose falsehood .
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