1841 William Miller Evidence from Scripture & History - A2Z.org

may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in
through the gatea into the city." By these passages I
show you that all the children of God are included in
this blessing, and not the martym only, as some will
have it The next thing which will claim our attention
will be to explain the resurrection spoken of in our
text, called the first resurrection The word tern*
signifies to revive, or resuscitate, or bring to life again,
one now dead, who was once alive. It nowhere in the
word of God conveye an idea of a new creation, and
the word is nowhere used in the Bible expressing any
thing less or more than a union of soul and body, and
deliverance from natural death. The word median
is nowhere wed in a figurative sense; it in all placerr
has its own simple meaning, unless our text is an exception.
And without the objector can show eome rule
of interpretation by which we shall be warranted to
understand the word in a dxerent sense, we must bog
leave to attach to it the simple meaning, coming to lqe
jbm t7u grave. I know some have su posed that regenerahon
is resnrrection ; but 1 cannot gelieve this unless
the show some rule. 1 know some pretend to show us,
in john v. 25, UVerily, verily, I any unto you, Thr hour
is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the
voice of the Son of God, and they-that hear shall live,l
as a rule; but in order to make this a rule, they must
prove that Christ meant regeneration; until this is shown,
we cannot admit it ss any proof.
We shall, therefore, consider the word mwmctwn
as comt up out of the grave, and pass to the word
fid. uyh e first resurrection" The resurrection of the
saints is first as it respects order and time. Wherever
the word rmrrection is usod in connection with life or
dam&n, the one unto life always comes first; as in
Daniel xii. 2, Some to everlasting life, and some to
shame and everlasting contempt;" John v. 29, "They
that have done good, unto the resurrection of life ; and
they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of
damnation." Here are two samples as it respects order.
One or two as it respects time : 1 Cor. xv. 23, Chriet
fie first fruite, the: atbrwurd thev that am Christ's at
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