The Dual Plan

II. THE DUAL PLAN

The plan of God revealed in the Scripture, is of a dual character. It is a system founded on a double principle. Every subject and event, developed according to the plan, is dual—two and two, or a pair of each and every development and movement. The prophetic signs, figures and symbols hang together in a perfect chain, and that chain reveals the duality of the system, by its dual character. The duality of the plan develops first one part cf the dual event as a historical fact which substantiates the development and indicates the manner of development of the other or the corresponding part. The first unfolding of a dual event stands as an example and indicates how the corresponding prophetic symbol will bring forth its reality. The entire prophetic chain is really the history of the human family given beforehand, but it is systematically arranged so it cannot be misunderstood, when its duality is followed up and rightly applied.

When we open the book and read the first chapters of Genesis, we read of the creation. If we then turn to the last chapters of Revelation, we read again of the creation of God. Now let us compare a few texts:

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them" (Gen. 1: 1; 2:1.)

"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away." (Rev. 21: 1.)

"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden." (Gen. 2: 8-10.)

"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month." (Rev. 22: 1, 2.)

If we follow up this comparison we find that every subject has its mate in the prophetic language. We shall try it once more.

"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." (Gen. 3: 15.)

"And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed." (Rev. 12: 15-17.)

Anyone whose mind is not controlled by an adopted theory, sees at once that these objects are related and symbolize one and the same condition. It is the serpent, the woman and her seed that both texts in each case refer to. Both contain prophetic language, and the historical portion connected with the first, the shadow, indicates what the second, the reality, signifies. It is a dual event or two parts of an incident that develop at different times. The inquiring mind raises the question: When and under what circumstances will this and that happen?

The book itself consists of two distinct parts, the Old and the New Testaments. If we take up the subjects one by one and follow the citations, we find that all of them are presented in pairs. For example, we read of two Covenants—the old and the new. We read of the Sanctuary—the earthly and the heavenly; Zion—the natural and the spiritual; Jerusalem—the old and the new; the coming of Christ—the first and the second; two Babylons—the old and the mystical; two deaths—the first and the second; two resurrections—the first and the second, etc.

Thus we see that the plan of God is a system founded on a double principle. When we understand how to use this prophetic key of dual construction, we can unlock the prophetic storehouse and dissolve all the mystical signs, figures and symbols, and get a .clear and comprehensive understanding of the entire chain; every event or movement designated by the symbols, can be placed in the order of the plan where it really belongs. Thus the book of God becomes an intelligible and interesting book, which spreads light on all great historical events within both the political and the religious world. It is from the development or unfolding of God's plan that such events occur.

When the entire chain of Biblical truths is revealed to the mind, it also is easy to detect where the professors of Christianity have erred from the doctrine of Christ and to see about how far they deviate from the standard of truth.