Sweet In The Mouth/Bitter In The Belly

January 24  Sweet In The Mouth/Bitter In The Belly

 

And I took the little book out of the angel's hands, and ate it up and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. Rev. 10:10.

And how sweet it was!

Writing on October 6, the day he finally accepted the October 22 date, Miller exclaimed in the headline article of The Midnight Cry of October 12, "I see a glory in the seventh month which I never saw before. Although the Lord had shown me the typical bearing of the seventh month, one year and a half ago [the May 1843 article], yet I did not realize the force of the types. . .Thank the Lord, O my soul. Let Brother Snow, Brother Storrs, and others be blessed for their instrumentality in opening my eyes. I am almost home, Glory! Glory!! Glory!!! I see that the time is correct. . .

"My soul is so full I cannot write. . .I see that we are yet right. God's word is true; and my soul is full of joy; my heart is full of gratitude to God. Oh, how I wish I could shout. But I will shout when the 'King of kings comes.' Methinks I hear you say, 'Brother Miller is now a fanatic! Very well, call me what you please; I care not; Christ will come in the seventh month, and will bless us all. Oh! glorious hope. Then I shall see him, and be like him, and be with him forever. Yes, forever and ever."

Nothing was sweeter than the hope of the soon-coming Christ!
Yet He did not come! And bitter was the disappointment.

On October 24 Millerite leader Josiah Litch wrote to Miller and Himes from Philadelphia that "it is dark day here-the sheep are scattered-and the Lord has not come yet."

Hiram Edson reported that "our fondest hopes and expectations were blasted, and such a spirit of weeping came over us as i never experienced before. It seemed that the loss of all earthly friends could have been no comparison. We wept, and wept, and the day dawn."

A young Millerite preacher by the name of Jame White penned that "the disappointment at the passing shared his presence as never before. . .The love of Jesus filled every soul,. . .and with inexpressible desire they prayed, 'Come, Lord Jesus and come quickly.' But he did not come. And now to turn again to the cares and perplexities of life, in full view of the jeers and revilings of unbelievers who now scoffed as neer before, was a terrible trial of faith and patience."

The opening of the little book of Daniel had truly been sweet in the mouth bitter in the belly.

The world that Satan has claimed and has ruled over with cruel tyranny, the Son of God has, by one vast achievement, encircled in His love and connected again with the throne of Jehovah. Cherubim and seraphim, and the unnumbered hosts of all the unfallen worlds, sang anthems of praise to God and the Lamb when this triumph was assured. They rejoiced that the way of salvation had been opened to the fallen race and that the earth would be redeemed from the curse of sin. How much more should those rejoice who are the objects of such amazing love!(TFMB 104).