arments." "God will visit thine iniquity,
he will discover thy sins."

The sins of Protestantism are sufficient cause to wring tears and prayers
and fastings from every Christian heart. Who will not consecrate his time,
talent, and means for the deliverance of God's beloved from their
captivity?

The Prophecies Of Peter.

"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall
be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies,
even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift
destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of
whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness
shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now
of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not." 2 Pet.
2:1-3.

Here the inspired apostle foretells the coming of false teachers, who
shall bring in damnable heresies. Heresy is translated from the Greek word
_hairesis_. The word "sect" is translated from the same Greek word. The
word "damnable" is from the Greek _apoleia_, and means destruction. So the
rendering of Rotherham, "parties of destruction," and of the German,
"destructive sects," corresponds with the original. Protestant teachers
will readily tell you that these "false teachers" and "destructive sects"
refer to the heresies that sprang up in the first few centuries of this
Christian era. We admit that sects and parties arose in those primitive
days. We see something of this spirit in 1 Cor. 3:1-5.

But are sects damnable in one age of the world and commendable in another?
We conclude that if partyism, sectarianism, schisms, divisions, and
heresies were destructive and brought destruction upon their adherents in
the first centuries, it will do likewise in the last centuries. Paul says,
"I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you
all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions [schisms, margin]
among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and
in the same judgment." 1 Cor. 1:10.

Many shall follow in the pernicious ways of these heresies. Is not this
true at this present time? By them the way of truth shall be evil spoken
of. There is scarcely a sectarian in the universe but will speak evil of
some portion of the truth. These false teachers shall with feigned words
make merchandise of their followers, because of their covet