The Bible was written and divinely preserved as an inspired guidebook for us. The stories it contains present countless lessons for our personal lives and the times in which we live. This record of God’s working through the history of nations and of His people encourages us and assures us of His love. And its most precious testimony—the record of the life and message of Jesus—awakens love for God within us, “because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).
One of the fascinating aspects of our God found in the Bible is His foreknowledge—He can see “the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10). This enables Him to use His infinite power to work out “all things . . . together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28). Not only this, but from time to time He chooses to reveal to His people “things which must shortly come to pass” (Revelation 1:1). This gives us confidence in His love and His providence, and is one of the proofs of the divine inspiration of the Bible. The fact that prophecy is consistently fulfilled in the pages of history and the unfolding of current events demonstrates that God’s word is more than a human invention.
Prophecy is vitally important to God’s children. His blessing is pronounced on the one “that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein” (Revelation 1:3).
Among the writings of the prophets, two stand out as containing detailed and systematic predictions of the outlines of history. Daniel and John were entrusted with these special messages, and their books, Daniel and The Revelation, are the focus of this quarter’s edition of the .
For the next three months, Sabbath school students will study the stories of Daniel and John, and some of the essential portions of the prophecies they recorded. These lay a framework for understanding the Advent message and the spiritual and political movements of past and present.
While there is not enough space to cover every part of both books this quarter, students are encouraged to make a deeper study of their entire content, together with their relationship and links to the rest of the Bible.
One of the best resources available to both students and teachers of the Sabbath school in understanding the details of these prophecies is the classic book by Uriah Smith, . We highly recommend it as an aid to study throughout this quarter.
It is our prayer that you will be blessed by your study of these prophecies, for indeed “the time is at hand” (Revelation 1:3).
The General Conference Sabbath School Department
