1917_The_Finished_Mystery_Text

wide drought of the water of the Word of God,the old system of sophistries will soon be in thewilderness condition, in a state of completeostracism.Ezekiel 19:14.And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches,which hath devoured her fruit, so that shehath no strong rod to be a sceptre to rule.This is a lamentation, and shall be for alamentation.— The savage application in theworld-wide war of the rod of the Divineauthority of rulers will cause revolt, revolutionand anarchy to spring up, like a fire, which willbring to an utter end the denominational clusters,the fruit of the vine of the earth.456EZEKIEL 20THE HYPOCRITICALECCLESIASTICSEzekiel 20:1.And it came to pass in the seventh year, in thefifth month, the tenth day of the month, thatcertain of the elders of Israel came to inquireof the Lord, and sat before me.— The elders ofIsrael came to confer with Ezekiel, but he wouldnot be interviewed by them, because of theiridolatrous tendencies. The Hebrews had alwayshad such propensities. God had refrained fromdestroying them in order to preserve His owngood name among the heathen peoples; but nowHe was about to punish them, until the appointedtime should come when He would regather them.The destruction of Judaism is here pictured as afire in a forest. This chapter introduces anothergroup of prophecies against Christendom, endingwith Chapter 24. Some of the prominentecclesiastics will read up or consult PastorRussell and his writings, and the "Truth people,"ostensibly to learn what they can.Ezekiel 20:2, 3.Then came the Word of the Lord unto me,saying, Son of man, speak unto the elders of