from Sinai. The wicked cannot look upon them. And when the blessing
is pronounced on those who have honored God by keeping His Sabbath holy,
there is a mighty shout of victory.

Soon there appears in the east a small black cloud, about half the size of
a man's hand. It is the cloud which surrounds the Saviour, and which seems
in the distance to be shrouded in darkness. The people of God know this to
be the sign of the Son of man. In solemn silence they gaze upon it as it
draws nearer the earth, becoming lighter and more glorious, until it is a
great white cloud, its base a glory like consuming fire, and above it the
rainbow of the covenant. Jesus rides forth as a mighty conqueror. Not now
a "man of sorrows," to drink the bitter cup of shame and woe, He comes,
victor in heaven and earth, to judge the living and the dead. "Faithful
and true," "in righteousness He doth judge and make war." And "the armies
which were in heaven follow Him."(1103) With anthems of celestial melody
the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng, attend Him on His way. The
firmament seems filled with radiant forms,--"ten thousand times ten
thousand, and thousands of thousands." No human pen can portray the scene;
no mortal mind is adequate to conceive its splendor. "His glory covered
the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise. And His brightness was
as the light."(1104) As the living cloud comes still nearer, every eye
beholds the Prince of life. No crown of thorns now mars that sacred head,
but a diadem of glory rests on His holy brow. His countenance outshines
the dazzling brightness of the noonday sun. "And He hath on His vesture
and on His thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords."(1105)

Before His presence, "all faces are turned into paleness;" upon the
rejecters of God's mercy falls the terror of eternal despair. "The heart
melteth, and the knees smite together," "and the faces of them all gather
blackness."(1106) The righteous cry with trembling, "Who shall be able to
stand?" The angels' song is hushed, and there is a period of awful
silence. Then the voice of Jesus is heard, saying, "My grace is sufficient
for you." The faces of the righteous are lighted up, and joy fills every
heart. And the angels strike a note higher, and sing again, as they draw
still nearer to the earth.

The King of kings descends upon the cloud, wrapped in flaming fire. The
heavens are rolled together as a scroll, the earth trembles before Him,