The final great issue of earth’s history is worship — whether you will keep the commandments
of God and the faith of Jesus, or follow the beast power into apostasy. The hour of God’s
judgment is come. Choose this day whom ye will serve.
“Choose you this day whom ye will serve… but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
— Joshua 24:15 (KJV)
The seventh-day Sabbath is the seal of the living God — the sign between God and His people forever.
The first-day Sunday is the mark of Rome’s authority, exalted above the Word of God.
The Seventh-Day Sabbath
A Memorial of Creation — From Sundown Friday to Sundown Saturday
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
— Exodus 20:8–11 (KJV) — The Fourth Commandment
The Seal of the Living God
The Sabbath: God’s Seal
A seal on a document proves it is real and official — showing the authority behind it with the official’s name, title, and territory. All three appear in the Fourth Commandment:
“the sabbath of the Lord thy God” — His NAME
“Lord made heaven and earth” — His TITLE (Creator)
“heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is” — His TERRITORY
At the end of time, those who keep God’s commandments — including the seventh-day Sabbath — show by their obedience that they are followers of Christ, not of the beast. Revelation calls this the “seal” on their foreheads.
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
Jesus — John 14:15
“The fourth commandment is the only one of all the ten in which are found both the name and the title of the Lawgiver. It is the only one that shows by whose authority the law is given. Thus it contains the seal of God, affixed to His law as evidence of its authenticity and binding force.”
Two marks. Two kingdoms. Two destinies. Every soul in earth’s last generation will receive one or the other.
Seal of the Living God
The Seventh-Day Sabbath
Written by God’s own finger in stone — Exodus 31:18
The sign between God and His people forever — Ezekiel 20:12
Captain Bates’ 1849 tract: A Seal of the Living God
Reveals God as Creator — the memorial of creation
The 4th commandment — the heart of the Decalogue
Those sealed stand on Mt. Zion with the Lamb — Rev. 14:1
Mark of the Beast
Sunday — Man’s Institution
No Bible commandment — tradition of Rome alone
The Papacy claims Sunday as its mark of authority
Enforced by civil law — union of church and state
The image of the beast: U.S. enforcing Rome’s decree
The number 666 identifies the man of sin — Rev. 13:18
Those who receive it drink of God’s wrath — Rev. 14:9–10
Ellen G. White — What It Means to Receive the Mark
“To receive this mark means to come to the same decision as the beast has done, and to advocate the same ideas, in direct opposition to the Word of God.”
— Ellen G. White, Review & Herald, April 27, 1911; SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 979.12; Review & Herald, July 13, 1897
“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them.”
Exodus 20:4–6
3
“Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”
Exodus 20:7
4
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work… For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
Exodus 20:8–11
The Seal of God — The Only Commandment That Begins With “Remember”
5
“Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.”
Exodus 20:12
6
“Thou shalt not kill.”
Exodus 20:13
7
“Thou shalt not commit adultery.”
Exodus 20:14
8
“Thou shalt not steal.”
Exodus 20:15
9
“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.”
Exodus 20:16
10
“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.”
Exodus 20:17
Revelation 14:6–12
The Three Angels’ Messages
The foundational proclamation of the Advent movement — inscribed on the 1843 and 1850 prophetic charts and proclaimed to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
“Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”
— Revelation 14:7 (KJV) — First Angel: Worship the Creator
“Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”
— Revelation 14:8 (KJV) — Second Angel: Babylon is Fallen
“If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God… Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
— Revelation 14:9–12 (KJV) — Third Angel: The Final Warning
Before William Miller, most Christian teachers relied on church tradition, denominational commentary, and the interpretations of educated clergy. Miller did something radical: he went directly to Scripture and applied systematic, logical principles to understand what it plainly said.
The Impact: Using these fourteen rules, William Miller followed the KJV text from Daniel 8:14 to the sanctuary message and the 1844 waymark. The 1843 chart made the sequence visible: prophecy, judgment, the sanctuary, the commandments, the Sabbath, and the soon return of Christ.
Daniel 8:14 — the sanctuary
“And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”
Daniel 8:14, KJV
The Sabbath — God’s command
“The seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work.”
Exodus 20:10, KJV
Christ’s return — the hope
“This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:11, KJV
The judgment — the message
“Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come.”
Daniel gives the period: 2300 days. Miller’s rules apply the Bible’s day-for-a-year principle (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6) and connect the starting point with Daniel 9:25, the command to restore Jerusalem.
1. Start where Daniel 9:25 starts457 BC is the decree to restore and build Jerusalem.
2. Convert prophetic days to years2300 days becomes 2300 years by the Bible year-day rule.
3. Count across the BC/AD line correctlyThere is no year zero. The count goes from 1 BC straight to AD 1, so one year must be subtracted.
457 BC + 2300 years - 1 year for crossing from BC into AD = 1844 AD
Easy count: 457 years reach AD 1, then 1843 more years reach AD 1844. Together, 457 + 1843 = 2300 years.
Daniel 8:14 made plain: the 2300-day prophecy from 457 BC to October 22, 1844, witnessed through the 1843 and 1850 prophecy charts.
“The intellect should be cultivated, the memory taxed. All intellectual laziness is sin, and spiritual lethargy is death.”
— Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 399.1
“I have been shown that many who profess to have a knowledge of present truth know not what they believe. They do not understand the evidences of their faith. They have no just appreciation of the work for the present time. When the time of trial shall come, there are men now preaching to others who will find, upon examining the positions they hold, that there are many things for which they can give no satisfactory reason. Until thus tested they knew not their great ignorance. And there are many in the church who take it for granted that they understand what they believe; but, until controversy arises, they do not know their own weakness. When separated from those of like faith and compelled to stand singly and alone to explain their belief, they will be surprised to see how confused are their ideas of what they had accepted as truth. Certain it is that there has been among us a departure from the living God and a turning to men, putting human in place of divine wisdom.”
— Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 707.2
The Millerite chart then placed the expected cleansing of the sanctuary at the tenth day of the seventh month, corresponding to October 22, 1844. The date is the chart’s historical result; Daniel 8:14 supplies the prophecy and the KJV gives the anchor text.
Miller’s method was a disciplined chain: read the words, compare the passages, follow the symbols through Scripture, and test the historical fulfillment against every prophetic detail. The 1843 chart gave ordinary believers a visual map of that chain. Read the full 1843 chart study and the William Miller biography for the story of the doctor who called Miller a “monomaniac” before discovering how completely his method rested on Scripture.
These rules keep Bible study anchored in the written Word. They lead the reader back to the sanctuary, the law, the Sabbath, the judgment-hour message, and the literal return of Jesus Christ.
Revelation 13:11–17
The Second Beast — The Image of the Beast
A nation rises from the earth — lamb-like, speaking as a dragon. The April 15, 1904 incorporation joins church and state under civil law. Ellen White warned this meant apostasy from the truth.
“And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which
dwell therein to worship the first beast… And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast,
that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image
of the beast should be killed.”
— Revelation 13:12–15 (KJV)
“We cannot now enter into any new organization; for this would mean apostasy from the truth.”
— Ellen G. White, Selected Messages Book 1, p. 204.2
The writings that laid the foundation — books, tracts, sermons, and prophetic charts from the men and women who kept the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus after October 22, 1844.
The United States Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion and prohibits an establishment
of religion. The Advent pioneers — especially Alonzo T. Jones — stood before Congress to oppose
the Blair Bill’s Sunday law in 1888. The same crisis returns. The First Amendment was written precisely
to prevent church-state union — the exact union the Second Beast of Revelation 13 will enforce.
On April 15, 1904, five men signed articles incorporating the General Conference Corporation —
joining church and state under civil law. EIN 52-0643036. Assets over $10 million.
Ellen White warned this meant apostasy from the truth.
The prophetic timeline charts used by the Advent pioneers to proclaim the hour of God’s judgment
from the 2300 days of Daniel 8:14. Habakkuk 2:2–3 — make it plain. Write the vision.
The hour of God’s judgment is come. Come out of Babylon. Keep the commandments of God and
the faith of Jesus. Study the writings of the historic Adventist pioneers. Let the records
speak. The sealing of the 144,000 is in progress.
“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.”
