38 . The Final Warning
" I saw another angel come down from heaven , having great power ; and the earth was lightened with his glory . And he cried mightily with a strong voice , saying , Babylon the great is fallen , is fallen , and is become the habitation of devils , and the hold of every foul spirit , and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird ." " And I heard another voice from heaven , saying , Come out of her , My people , that ye be not partakers of her sins , and that ye receive not of her plagues ." Revelation 18:1 , 2 , 4 .
This scripture points forward to a time when the announcement of the fall of Babylon , as made by the second angel of Revelation 14 ( verse 8 ), is to be repeated , with the additional mention of the corruptions which have been entering the various organizations that constitute Babylon , since that message was first given , in the summer of 1844 . A terrible condition of the religious world is here described . With every rejection of truth the minds of the people will become darker , their hearts more stubborn , until they are entrenched in an infidel hardihood . In defiance of the warnings which God has given , they will continue to trample upon one of the precepts of the Decalogue , until they are led to persecute those who hold it sacred . Christ is set at nought in the contempt placed upon His word and His people . As the teachings of spiritualism are accepted by the churches , the restraint imposed upon the carnal heart is removed , and the profession of religion will become a cloak to conceal the basest iniquity . A belief in spiritual manifestations opens the door to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils , and thus the influence of evil angels will be felt in the churches .
Of Babylon , at the time brought to view in this prophecy , it is declared : " Her sins have reached unto heaven , and God hath remembered her iniquities ." Revelation 18:5 . She has filled up the measure of her guilt , and destruction is about to fall upon her . But God still has a people in Babylon ; and before the visitation of His judgments these faithful ones must be called out , that they partake not of her sins and " receive not of her plagues ." Hence the movement symbolized by the angel coming down from heaven , lightening the earth with his glory and crying mightily with a strong voice , announcing the sins of Babylon . In connection with his message the call is heard : " Come out of her , My people ." These announcements , uniting with the third angel ' s message , constitute the final warning to be given to the inhabitants of the earth .
Fearful is the issue to which the world is to be brought . The powers of earth , uniting to war against the commandments of God , will decree that " all , both small and great , rich and poor , free and bond " ( Revelation 13:16 ), shall conform to the customs of the church by the
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