Ethan Smith

“ Look at the origin of those degraded natives of your continent, and fly to their relief.—Send them the heralds of salvation. Send them the word, the bread of life. You received that book from the seed of Abraham. All your volume of salvation was written by the sons of Jacob. And by them it was transferred from Jerusalem to the lost heathen world, and to you; otherwise you had now been heathen, and eternally undone. Remember then your debt of gratitude to God's ancient people for the word of life. Restore it to them, and thus double your own rich inheritance in its blessings. ”

“ But let us hear the testimony of Christopher Columbus, as given in Edwards' West Indies, relative to the peaceable and hospitable temper of the natives of our land when he first discovered this continent. Writing to his royal Master and Mistress in Spain, he says; "I swear to your majesties, that there is not a better people in the world than these (natives of America;) more affectionate, affable, or mild. They love their neighbors as themselves. Their language is the sweetest, the softest, and most cheerful; for they always speak smiling." ”

“ The Romans slew of the Jews all before them; sparing neither age, sex or rank. They seemed determined to annihilate the Jewish race on the spot. Priests and common people; those who surrendered, and those who still fought; all were alike subjects of an indiscriminate slaughter. The fire of the temple at length completely enveloped the stupendous pile of building. The fury of the flames exceeded description. It impressed on distant spectators an idea that the whole city was in flames. The ensuing disorder and tumult, Josephus pronounces to have been such as to baffle all description. ”

“ He finds presented in vision, away over the Mediterranean, and the Atlantic, far in the west, or going down of the sun, the continent of their long banishment. He also beholds in vision a great nation arising there in the last days; a land of freedom and religion. He hears the whisper of the Spirit of inspiration, directing him to address that far sequestered and happy land, and call their attention to the final restoration of his people. ”

“ The Jews, long after, were dispersed among the nations; but have ever been known as Jews. But not so with Israel. They have seemed strangely to disappear from the world; and for 2500 years to have been utterly lost.
What are we to believe concerning the ten tribes! Are they ever again to be restored and known as the natural seed of Abraham? Are they now in existence as a distinct people? If so, where are they to be found? All parts of the world are now so well known; that one would conceive the commonwealth of Israel cannot now be found among the civilized nations. ”

“ Who knows but such traditions and religious customs, as are said to be found among the natives of America, may not be found among all or most of heathen nations? Let such be asked in their turn; Who knows but much of the rites of the christian religion may not be found among all or most of the heathen nations? Who knows that these rites are from heaven, and are not of heathen origin? This is a more glaring case; but is perhaps upon the same scale of reasoning. The objection must be too loose and general, if not uncandid. ”

“ This I venture to say (on the supposition the Indians are of Israel) is by no means so improbable, as that some modern Jew left it there in the situation in which it was found. The style of the preservation of these parchments appears to be Indian; but not Jewish. No modern Jew would be likely to hide his precious leaves of phylacteries in a roll of raw hide, sewed with the sinews of an animal. Nor would he leave them, had he done it, on Indian Hill under ground. Sooner would he sacrifice his life than thus rudely to profane the most sacred symbols of religion! It is incredible. ”

“ Give not sleep to your eyes, till a house be builded to your God, from those ancient and venerable materials.—Were not your fathers sent into that far distant world, not only to be (in their posterity) built up a great protecting nation; but also to be the instruments of gathering, or recovering the miserable remnant of my outcasts there, in the last days?* Rejoice, then, ye distinguished people in your birth-right, and engage in the work by Heaven assigned. Let not those tribes of my ancient people, whom I have borne as on eagles' wings for so many ages ”

“ Before the temple was wrapped in flames, an impostor appeared among the Jews, asserting a divine commission; and that if the people would follow him to the temple, they would see signs, wonders and deliverance. About six thousand (mostly women and children) followed him, and were in the galleries of the temple, waiting for this promised deliverance, when fire was set to that building. Not one
escaped. All were consumed in the conflagration of the sacred edifice! What multitudes are by false prophets plunged in eternal fire!
The place of the temple now presented a vast pile of ruins. ”

“ That people have never, as yet, possessed all the land promised to them; nor have they possessed any part of it so long as promised. Hence their restoration to that land is essential to the complete fulfilment of those ancient promises. They were to possess the land to the river Euphrates, and forever, or to the end of the world. God promised to Abraham, Gen. xv. 18—"Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt, unto the great river, the river Euphrates." ”

“ Divine judgments then, may be proportionably greater against all who withstand the final restoration. "I will undo all that afflict thee" [Zeph 3:19] . Wo will be to them, who shall have the unbelief or temerity to place themselves before the wheels of divine providence when Christ shall ride forth in the chariot of salvation to bring the dispersed Jews, and outcast Israel to himself. God will arise, and his enemies will be scattered. As smoke is driven away; and as the wax melteth before the fire; so God will drive away and melt the enemies of his ancient people. ”

“ Men, seriously to adopt this alternative, must be far more wild, and fond of miracles, than ought to be admitted at this day of light and improvement!
And it must be extraordinary, to hear men of letters, and of Christian improvements, when so many distinct Indian traditions, manifestly from the ceremonial law of Israel, have been ascertained from a great variety of unimpeached witnesses,—indulging in the vague objection, Who knows but such things exist among all heathen nations? ”

“ When the wits of men have done their best upon this subject; and we see many strong men, of different schemes in it, have been in times past cast down wounded; shall we not, with adoring humility, submit to the divine interrogation, "Canst thou by searching, find out God?" May we not be convinced, that neither human philosophy, nor analogy, can afford much aid, relative to this mysterious doctrine? For probably nothing in creation resembles the Triune God. ”

“ The river Nile periodically overflowed its banks, and swept away the boundaries of every man's inheritance on its interval. Every man, then, had to depend on a noted line, to measure anew and find his land. So the Hebrews, having by their sins, and expulsion from Canaan, and from the covenant of Abraham, lost all the visible boundaries of their inheritance, have no ground of hope of regaining their standing either in Palestine, or in the covenant of grace, but the line of the mere and sovereign promise of God, for their restoration. ”