Young and old, God is now testing you. You are deciding your own eternal destiny. Your pride, your love to follow the fashions of the world, your vain and empty conversation, your selfishness, are all put in the scale, and the weight of evil is fearfully against you. You are poor, and miserable, and blind, and naked. While evil is increasing and taking deep root, it is choking the good seed which has been sown in the heart; and soon the word that was given concerning Eli’s house will be spoken to the angels of God concerning you: Your sins “shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering forever.” Many, I saw, were flattering themselves that they were good Christians, who have not a single ray of light from Jesus. They know not what it is to be renewed by the grace of God. They have no living experience for themselves in the things of God. And I saw that the Lord was whetting His sword in heaven to cut them down. Oh, that every lukewarm professor could realize the clean work that God is about to make among His professed people! Dear friends, do not deceive yourselves concerning your condition. You cannot deceive God. Says the True Witness: “I know thy works.” The third angel is leading up a people, step by step, higher and higher. At every step they will be tested. {1T 189.2}

Unge og gamle, Gud prøver jer nu. I afgør jeres egen evige skæbne. Jeres stolthed, jeres trang til at følge verdens skikke, jeres forfængelige og tomme tale, jeres selviskhed, sættes alt på vægten og det ondes byrde er (190) skrækkelig mod jer. I er fattige og elendige og blinde og nøgne. Medens ondt forøges og tager dybe rødder, kvæler det den gode sæd som er blevet vist i hjertet; og snart vil det ord der er givet om Elis hus blive sagt af Guds engle om jer: Jeres synder »skal aldrig i evighed sones ved slagtofre eller afgrødeofre!« Jeg så at mange, som ikke har en enkel stråle fra Jesu lys, smigrede sig selv med at de var gode kristne. De ved ikke hvad det vil sige at blive belønnet med Guds nåde. De har ingen levende erfaring for dem selv i Guds sager. Og jeg så at Herren hvæssede sit sværd i himlen for at skære dem fra. [Oh, måtte enhver lunken kristendomsbekender indse den grundige gerning, Gud er i begreb med at ville udføre iblandt dem, der bekender sig til at være hans folk! Kære venner, lad jer ikke bedrage med hensyn til jeres tilstand. I kan ikke bedrage Gud. Det sanddru vidne siger: »Jeg kender dine gerninger.« Den tredje engel leder et folk frem, skridt for skridt, højere og højere op. Ved hvert skridt vil de blive prøvet. Vejl f menigh bd 1 side 57]