Editions of Great Controversy--

THE WRITING OF THE BOOK

'THE GREAT CONTROVERSY'

 Vance Ferrell

3 — THE 1848—1849 VISIONS

That which she had seen "ten years before" had been shown her in November and December of 1848. Here is a brief overview of those revelations:

On Sabbath, November 18, she was shown in vision that the message of the Third Angel needed to be published and widely circulated.

(It is of interest that, as you read the story of her life, you will find that these specific-information visions which she received came more frequently when they would, as a result, be printed and circulated. That is significant! God wanted that information printed, circulated, and read! All of her writings should be kept in print and distributed to­day; none are unimportant, for all are from Heaven.)

On Saturday night, December 16, at Rocky Hill, Connecticut, another vision was given. At the time, many were suggesting that the massive turmoil occurring just then in Europe was the signal for the end of time. But in this vision, Ellen White was shown that a far greater upheaval was yet in the future.

In that vision, she was also shown that Jesus would return to earth through that region of the sky we call the Orion constellation.

"December 16, 1848, the Lord gave me a view of the shaking of the powers of the heavens. I saw that when the Lord said 'heaven: in giving the signs recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, He meant heaven, and when He said 'earth' He meant earth. The powers of the heavens are the sun, moon, and stars. They rule in the heavens. The powers of the earth are those that rule on the earth. The powers of heaven will be shaken at the voice of God. The sun, moon, and stars will be moved out of their places. They will not pass away, but be shaken by the voice of God.

"Dark, heavy clouds came up and clashed against each other. The atmosphere parted and rolled back; then we could look up through the open space in Orion, whence came the voice of God. The Holy City will come down through that open space.

"I saw that the powers of earth are now being shaken and that events come in order. War, and rumors of war, sword, famine, and pestilence are first to shake the pow­ers of earth, then the voice of God will shake the sun, moon, and stars, and this earth also. I saw that the shaking of the powers in Europe is not, as some teach, the shaking of the powers of heaven, but it is the shaking of the angry nations." —Letter 2, 1848, addressed to The Scattered Remnant (see also Early Writings, p. 41).

Shortly after that, on Friday evening January 5, 1849, the ministry of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, the sealing time, the death decree, the seven last plagues, and Jacob's trouble were partially explained to her:

"At the commencement of the holy Sabbath, January 5, 1849, we engaged in prayer with Brother Belden's family at Rocky Hill, Connecticut, and the Holy Ghost fell upon us. I was taken off in vision to the most holy place, where I saw Jesus still interceding for Israel. . Then I saw that Jesus would not leave the most holy place until every case was decided either for salvation or destruction."—Early Writings, p. 36.

As Daniel sought for a further explanation of a vision in Daniel 8, and received it later in Daniel 9, so Ellen White asked for further information and later received it.

'I asked my attending angel for an explanation of what I saw. He told me that I could see no more then, but he would shortly show me what those things that I then saw meant." —Early Writings, p. 37.

The next afternoon (January 6), additional light was given in regard to the intercessory ministry of Christ in the sanctuary in heaven, and how this related to the sealing of God's people.

"I saw four angels who had a work to do on the earth, and were on their way to accomplish it. Jesus was clothed with priestly garments. He gazed in pity on the remnant, then raised His hands, and with a voice of deep pity cried, 'My blood, Father, My blood, My blood, My blood"

"Then I saw an exceeding bright light come from God, who sat upon the great white throne, and was shed all about Jesus. Then I saw an angel with a commission from Jesus, swiftly flying to the four angels who had a work to do on the earth, and waving something up and down in his hand, and crying with a loud voice, 'Hold! Hold! Hold! Hold! until the servants of God are sealed in their fore­heads.' "—Early Writings, p. 38.

Still uncertain as to the full significance of this, she asked for additional information, and it was then given.

 "I asked my accompanying angel the meaning of what I heard, and what the four angels were about to do. He said to me that it was God that restrained the powers, and that He gave His angels charge over things on earth; that the four angels had power from God to hold the four winds, and they were about to let them go; but while their hands were loosening, and the four winds were about to blow, the merciful eye of Jesus gazed on the remnant that were not sealed, and He raised His hands to the Father and pleaded with Him that He had spilled His blood for them. "Then another angel was commissioned to fly swiftly to the four angels and bid them hold, until the servants of God were sealed with the seal of the living God in their foreheads."—Early Writings, p. 38.

These two visions of January 5 and 6 are discussed in Early Writings, pages 36-38.

In an undated vision received soon after, she was shown God's care over His people, and also the glorious inheritance in heaven awaiting each one of them. It is de­scribed in Early Writings, pages 39-40. In this vision, she was also taken to other worlds.

It is thus clear that ten years prior to Ellen White's very important "Great Controversy vision," she had received several introductory views of many of the closing-scenes events described in that book. Ellen had just turned 21 when she received them.

These 1848-1849 visions of final events were written out and later included in her first three books: Christian Ex­perience and Views of Mrs. E.G. White, (which was printed in 1851; today available in Early Writings, pages 11-83); A Supplement to Experience and Views (printed in 1854; today in Early Writings, pages 85-127); and Spiritual Gifts, Volume 1; now in Early Writings, pages 133-295).

But it was not until her 1858 vision that she was ex­plicitly told that the closing-scenes visions must be pub­lished in far greater detail. She was also told at that time that —above all else —Satan did not want that information made available to the people!

Before concluding this section, it would be well to note that, in 1848, Ellen White was also used of God in formulating another major area of Adventism: several of our basic doctrines.

Three powerful blessings were given to the remnant just following the passage of Jesus from the first to the second apartment of the heavenly sanctuary in 1844:

(1)The Spirit of Prophecy was again in the church, after an absence of about 1750 years.

(2) The Sabbath truth was discovered by the Advent people, after being almost wholly extinguished by the apostasy of the Dark Ages.

(3) The truth about Jesus' ministry in the sanctuary opened up before His people.

Yes, those were indeed blessings. But it was not until 1848 that the first major outline of basic Seventh-day Ad­ventist beliefs was produced during what was called the "Sabbath Conferences." These were meetings held in several locations in New England, some of them in barns. Men, holding to a wide variety of beliefs, attended those gatherings. Because most held to a variety of peculiar theories, and because most believed their own to be correct, theological pandemonium appeared certain. Yet each meeting concluded with a single, unified clear-cut set of teachings! How could that possibly happen?

Our kind Father worked it out in a very definite way: Throughout the time that the meetings were held, the mind of Ellen White was locked so that she could understand neither the reasoning nor the conclusions of the brethren. The men were clearly on their own, but they could go nowhere; too many differences and varied views divided them.

A topic would be selected for prayerful study; it would be investigated; the brethren would then arrive at that point where they knew not how to proceed. Before them lay several doctrinal paths, and they were not clear regarding which one to pursue.

Then Ellen White would be taken off in vision and, while they prayerfully waited, would be given the correct answer. Coming out of vision, she would relate what she had been shown to the assembled group. They would accept the light given, noting that, again, her mind was locked to an understanding of the conversation and issues involved.

4 — FROM 1848 TO 1858

Since the great controversy vision was so very important, why did the Lord wait until 1858 to give it to His messenger in detail? If you will scan through early Advent history, you will note that our publishing work hardly got started until the mid—1850s. Volume One of the Testimonies was not printed until 1855. Prior to that time, only three small books had been released. Each of those three (named earlier, which were in 1882 reprinted in Early Writings) contained data related to the 1848 great controversy visions. Although James White began the publishing work in July 1849, for several years it only consisted of the mailing out of small papers. In November 1850, as a result of overwork, James had a partial nervous breakdown. By early 1852 he was coughing constantly. That summer, their first printing press equipment was purchased, but about all it was used for was the printing of small papers. The great controversy vision needed to go to the people, and the time was drawing near when this would happen. Satan was angry. On May 23, James and Ellen boarded a train in Michigan, but Ellen was convicted they must move to a rear car. After two such moves, she was satisfied. Shortly thereafter, a terrible train wreck occurred. The lead cars had left the tracks, but the railroad inspectors were amazed to find that the car carrying Ellen and James had been unhooked from the forward cars. As a result, it, and the few cars behind it, were perfectly preserved.

A large bolt normally went through the coupling, and in this way connected cars. Their lives were saved by the interworking of several miracles:

 (1) This bolt had been taken out just before the crash.

(2) Ellen and James' car had been held back somewhat to separate it, and the cars behind it, from the forward momentum of the lead cars.

 (3) Then the bolt had been reinserted into their car.

(4) When the crash came, their car and the ones behind it were mysteriously and immediately slowed and brought to a quiet stop, so they did not crash into the forward cars. The accident is mentioned in Life Sketches, pages 153­154 (1 Testimonies, pp. 94-95).

In 1855 James was in better health, but much of his and Ellen's time continued to be filled with visits to churches and campmeetings. However, by June 1856 the publishing house debts were paid, it was operating on a much firmer footing, and a board of several men were now managing it.

At last Ellen White could write a major book, her first larger book. Of course, we can know what it was about: the great controversy between Christ and Satan. The Lovett's Grove vision was given at exactly the right time. That initial larger book would be the first edition of Great Controversy.

5 — THE 1858 VISION

In the spring of 1858, Ellen was 30 years old. Accompanied by her husband, she was visiting conference meetings in several locations in Ohio. They had already visited Green Springs and Gilboa.

"It is our design to be at the conference at Green Springs the twenty-sixth, and to meet in conference with the brethren in Gilboa, March 6 and 7. We may spend three or four weeks in Ohio."—Review, February 18, 1858. Arriving the next weekend at Lovett's Grove (a small town near Bowling Green), they spoke during Sabbath and Sunday, March 13 and 14. The meetings were held in a public schoolhouse. On Sunday, the 14th, a funeral service was held in the building where the meetings were being held. The house was packed and not everyone could get in. Asked to speak, James White conducted the funeral service. As he ended, Ellen rose to express a few words of comfort to the mourners.

"When he had closed his remarks, I felt urged by the Spirit of the Lord to bear my testimony. As I was led to speak upon the coming of Christ, and the resurrection, and the cheering hope of the Christian, my soul triumphed in God; I drank in rich draughts of salvation. Heaven, sweet heaven, was the magnet to draw my soul upward, and I was wrapped in a vision of God's glory. Many important matters were there revealed to me for the church."—Life Sketches, pp. 161-162.

“ A broad, panoramic view of the entire great controversy between Christ and Satan—covering more than 7,000 years from the fall of Lucifer to the close of the millennium—was given to Ellen White during those two hours while she lay in vision in that small, one-room schoolhouse in Lovett's Grove, Ohio.

As the years passed, additional information was given as she needed it for her writing work, and slowly the books Patriarchs and Prophets, Prophets and Kings, Desire of Ages, Acts of the Apostles, and Great Controversy were written, and then enlarged upon.

The gathered assembly watched with deep interest throughout that vision, and, when it was ended, the relatives of the deceased bore the casket to the cemetery. But many of the people remained behind to hear Ellen relate what she had been shown in vision. Commenting later on their reaction to what she told them, she said: "a great solemnity rested upon those who remained" (2 Spiritual Gifts, p. 270).

Equally concerned with personal problems of the bel­ievers in tiny Wood County as with the history of the inter­galactic feud of Satan with Christ, God alotted part of that vision to matters relative to the spiritual welfare of these new converts living in northwest Ohio. So, after Ellen discussed those matters, she then proceeded to tell them portions of the great controversy vision.

And it was that part of this vision, which was of crucial importance to all of us!

(1) It provided the people of God living in these last days with a comprehensive view of trans-world history in its true reality. Instead of the history written by men, with its preoccupation with the actions and interplay of influential men, Ellen White was shown the history of the warfare between Christ and Satan in heaven and on earth—from the beginning of sin all the way down to its end, plus a glimpse beyond!

(2) This view of history is not only true; it fills the remnant with hope. Not only does it draw back the curtain so that we may behold the controversy fought over every soul, but it points us to the final victory of the armies of Heaven over the forces of the evil one.

(3) This vision was accompanied by the command to write it all out—so that the people could have it! It was not enough that the prophet personally know these things; the rest of us must be told also! The great controversy story must be printed and widely circulated!

"In this vision at Lovett’s Grove, most of the matter of the great controversy which I had seen ten years before was repeated, and I was shown that I must write it out."­2 Spiritual Gifts, p. 270.

6 - THE ATTEMPT ON ELLEN WHITE'S LIFE

But there was more: a most solemn warning was also given:

"I was instructed to write it out. I was shown that while I should have to contend with the powers of darkness, for Satan would make strong efforts to hinder me, yet I must put my trust in God, and angels would not leave me in the conflict."—Life Sketches, p. 162.

On Monday morning, the 15th, the Tillotsons drove the Whites in their carriage to the railroad station at Freemont, and the next day they boarded a train for Jackson, Michigan, in route to Battle Creek. As they journeyed, Ellen and James earnestly discussed details of the forth­coming writing work. Much must be done, and she was determined to immediately set to work. Arriving at Jackson, they went to the home of Brother Daniel R. Palmer and his wife.

Satan was determined that this work be stopped.

"Two days afterward, while journeying on the cars to Jackson, Michigan, we arranged our plans for writing and publishing, immediately on our return home, the book entitled, The Great Controversy between Christ and His Angels, and Satan and His Angels, commonly known as Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 1. I was then as well as usual.

"On the arrival of the train at Jackson, we went to Brother Palmer's. We had been in the house but a short time, when, as I was conversing with Sister Palmer, my tongue refused to utter what I wished to say. and seemed large and numb. A strange, cold sensation struck my heart, passed over my head, and down my right side. For a time I was insensible, but was aroused by the voice of earnest prayer.

"I tried to use my left limbs (left arm and limb, 2 Spiritual Gifts, p. 271), but they were perfectly useless. For a short time I did not expect to live. It was my third shock of paralysis; and although within fifty miles of home, I did not expect to see my children again. I called to mind the triumphant season I had enjoyed at Lovett’s Grove, and thought it was my last testimony, and felt reconciled to die."—Life Sketches, pp. 162-163.

Her friends pled with God to spare her life, and, by God's grace, the healing process began.

"The earnest prayer of my friends were ascending to heaven for me, and soon a prickling sensation was felt in my limbs, and I praised the lord that I could use them a little. The lord heard and answered the faithful prayers of His children, and the power of Satan was broken. That night I suffered much, but the next day I was sufficiently strengthened to return home."—Life Sketches, p. 163.

The pain was especially intense throughout the first night after the stroke occurred. But she felt sufficiently well the next day to continue by train on to Battle Creek. Arriving there, she was taken by carriage to their Wood Street home, where she was carried up the stairs to the front bedroom on the second floor.

One reason God chose Ellen White to be His messenger is because she was determined to stand loyal to Him. No matter how hard Satan might press the battle against her, she would obey, serve, and work for God! Whether it might result in life or death, she would write that book!

"For several weeks I could not feel the pressure of the hand or the coldest water poured upon my head. In rising to walk, I often staggered, and sometimes fell to the floor. In this afflicted condition I began to write on the great controversy. At first I could write but one page a day, and then rest three days; but as I progressed, my strength increased. The numbness in my head did not seem to becloud my mind, and before I closed that work the effect of the shock had entirely left me. "—Life Sketches, p. 163 (Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 1).

Three months later, in a vision given to her in Battle Creek, Ellen was shown that the information in that vision was of such overarching importance that Satan would use every means possible to keep it from the people.

"At the time of the conference at Battle Creek, in June, 1858, I was shown in vision that, in the sudden attack at Jackson, Satan intended to take my life, in order to hinder the work I was about to write; but angels of God were sent to my rescue. I also saw, among other things, that I should be blessed with better health than before the attack."­Life Sketches, p. 163. (This section is also found, with slight variation, in 2 Spiritual Gifts, pp. 270—272.) 

 This experience has profound implications.

(1) To our knowledge, there has been only one divinely­inspired prophet in the last eighteen centuries, and only one message was given to that prophet which resulted in a direct attack by Satan on the life of that prophet. The attack was made to keep very important information from going to the people.

(2) That message must be very, very important. It must be of utmost importance, not only for her to write it out but for us to share it today!

(3) Ellen White, herself, surely thought so. Pain or no pain, she immediately set to work, putting it down on paper.

(4) Satan actually tried to kill her, just as she had been warned he would.

An intriguing question is why God permitted this attack to occur. It was clearly permitted in His providence. Satan could go so far, but no further. For a split second he was permitted to put forth his hand, but then, almost as instantly, the hand was barred from further access. Why? The answer is very obvious. God was not only trying to show Ellen White the importance of getting those messages to the people; He was trying to tell us also!

In His providential mercy, that attack was permitted because God foresaw what was coming: a seemingly endless variety of ways by which Satan would try to keep that book from reaching those who most needed it. Repeatedly, Ellen was to witness the efforts of fellow believers to slander her and the book, and try to forbid its wide­spread publication.

Even the very location where the attack occurred was significant. The attack came while Ellen was speaking with Sister Palmer in their home. Her husband, Daniel R. Palmer, was one of the three-man publishing committee of the Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, our church paper. Thus, he would be able to carry back an urgent report to the Battle Creek publishing house about the importance of that vision and the books she would be writing about it.

Repeatedly, over the years since 1858, Satan has worked to eliminate that book. At Jackson, he tried a physical attack, but since then he has worked through men to accomplish the same effect:

√' There would be so many meetings to attend that she would not have time to write the book (1860-1870s).

√' Scorn, insults, and false accusations would be poured upon her, to force her to give up trying to write the 1884 edition or later enlarge it into the 1888 edition (1880s).

√' "The book is too long, we want shorter books at the Review; make it shorter," she was told (1885-1887).

√' Because she would not return royalties to the Review, that was used as an excuse for not circulating the book (1888­1890).

√' "There are other books which would sell better, so we'll leave that one on the publishing house shelves," was the policy decided on (1888—1890, and later).

√' "Some other people probably wrote the later editions, so have nothing to do with the 1888 or 1911 editions" (1970s onward).

√‘ "The earlier editions are not officially approved today, so do not circulate them; and we'll keep the current edition so highly priced you cannot afford it" (1950s onward).

√' "Everything in that book was copied from someone else, so the book is worthless" (1970s onward).

√' "The book could get us in trouble with the Sunday keeping churches, so do not distribute it" (1950s onward).

√' "That book should never be distributed first; always later, much later" (19505 onward).

√' "It's too hard a book to sell; the children's books are better" (1950s onward)

√' "Yes, I have the book at home on my bookshelf. No, I am so busy with other things, that I haven't read in it for years. But, yes, I do think it is very important."

Seeing the onslaught which would face that book over the next century and more, God permitted Satan to attack its author, so that we might KNOW of a certainty that THAT volume contained the most important messages for people living in the end-time.

Do not underrate the importance of this book in your own life or in the lives of those around you. Along with the Bible, it is the most important book in our world to­day. Determine that you will read in it frequently, and that you will give it the widest possible circulation.

7 — THE 1858 EDITION: SPIRITUAL GIFTS, VOL. 1 THE FIRST EDITION OF GREAT CONTROVERSY

As result of having received the sweeping vision of 1858 at Lovett's Grove, Ellen immediately began work on Spiritual Gifts, Volume 1, containing the basic view she had been given of the great controversy of the ages between Christ and Satan.

As mentioned above, when she had nearly completed the writing of the manuscript for that book, she received a vision confirming Satan's intense hatred of the entire project. In later reference to the Lovett's Grove vision, she said this:

"I was taken off in vision. In that vision I was shown that in the sudden attack at Jackson, Satan designed to take my life to hinder the work I was about to write; but angels of God were sent to my rescue, to raise me above the effects of Satan's attack. I saw, among other things, that I should be blest with better health than before the attack at Jackson."—2 Spiritual Gifts, p. 272 (Life Sketches, p. 163).

A month prior to writing the above statement, in May 1858, she told about 400 believers (assembled in the Battle Creek Dime Tabernacle for a General Conference Session) about the vision and the book she was writing. The session itself met from May 21 to 24, and she spoke to them on Sunday, May 23:

"During the forenoon, Sister White related a portion of the views she has had concerning the fall of Satan, the plan of salvation, and the great controversy between Christ and His angels, and Satan and his. It abounded in startling facts and vivid descriptions. And when the course of the narration had brought us down to the days of the first advent, the humiliation, the suffering, and finally the crucifixion of the Saviour, especially then did the silent tear and the audible sobs of many in the congregation announce that their hearts were touched by the sufferings of the Son of God for rebellious man.

"When we view the great controversy as now going forward—its field the world, its subject man—we see not how anyone can long hesitate upon which side to enroll himself. And at least the justice of that sentence is very apparent, which condemns those who will persist to the end on the side of the power of darkness, to the same ruin which overwhelms the first rebel and his worthy sympathizers. "—Review, May 27, 1858.

The above description clearly reveals the immense breadth of what she had been shown in the Lovett's Grove vision: from the fall of Lucifer to the earth made new. After speaking all morning to the congregation, she then returned to the lectern early that evening and spoke till 10 p.m. Deeply stirred by this panoramic view, the people rose one by one and gave testimonies of praise and dedication.

Would you wish that you yourself might have been in that auditorium that day? We all do! Do you wish you could have heard that message by Ellen White? Oh, yes, I am sure you do! Do you wish you could experience what they experienced on May 23, 1858? You can; this evening open Great Controversy—any edition—and read in it. You might begin with the Origin of Evil chapter, which presents such a sweeping view of history. And as you read, thank God for this great gift of light to mankind.

In June, the Review reported that it was beginning to typeset copy for the initial chapters of this new book. In mid-August, she completed the writing of the book, and printing began. In September, it was ready for circulation. The book had a lengthy title: Spiritual Gifts: The Great Controversy between Christ and His Angels and Satan and His Angels. We today call it Spiritual Gifts, Volume I, or the first (1858) edition of Great Controversy.

The following notice of publication appeared in a June 1858 Review:

“The Great Controversy,—This is the title of a work now in the press, written by Mrs. White. It is a sketch of her views of the great controversy between Christ and His angels, and the devil and his angels, from the fall of Satan until the controversy shall close at the end of the one thousand years of Revelation xx, by the destruction of sin and sinners out of the universe of God. It will contain between two and three hundred pages. Price, neatly bound in muslin, 50 cents."—Review, June 24, 1858.

After a 12-page introduction, written by Roswell F. Cottrell, the text by Ellen White begins. Here is the first paragraph of what she wrote:

"The Lord has shown me that Satan was once an honored angel in heaven, next to Jesus Christ. His countenance was mild, expressive of happiness like the other angels. His forehead was high and broad, and showed great intelligence. His form was perfect. He had a noble, majestic bearing."—1 Spiritual Gifts, p. 17.

This small book of 41 chapters and 224 pages was the first edition of Great Controversy. Some will want to know how they can obtain a copy for themselves. It is reprinted in full in the third section of Early Writings (pages 145­-295). Never underrate Early Writings; it is a most marvelous little book! Read it all —and frequently! It contains many very important truths that we need to keep in mind. This 1858 edition is also available in reprint from your local ABC. It is Volume 1 of the four-volume, two-book set of Spiritual Gifts.

(Volume 2 of Spiritual Gifts was later enlarged to become Life Sketches. Volume 3 and the first half of Volume 4 was eventually expanded into Patriarchs and Prophets. The last half of Volume 4 is now found in Testimonies, Volume I, pages 113-455.)

Throughout our study, it should be kept in mind that in­formation from that Lovett's Grove vision is to be found not only in Great Controversy but also in Patriarchs and Prophets, Prophets and Kings, Desire of Ages, and Acts of the Apostles. In 1864, Volumes 3 and 4 of Spiritual Gifts came off the press, and provided the remnant with a more comprehensive understanding of the fall of Lucifer, the Creation, the fall of man, the lives of the patriarchs, and the experience of Israel. Those two volumes bore the subtitle, Important Facts of Faith in Connection with the History of Holy Men of Old.

Throughout the 1858 edition of Great Controversy, the words, "I was shown" and "I saw," are to be found as many times, in fact, as there are pages in the book! From Creation, the story takes us down through the Old Testament, into the life of Christ and the apostles, and then to the apostasy of later ages, the Reformation, and the Final Crisis.

Before concluding this section on the 1858 edition of Great Controversy, we might mention that it was not written to bring earthly wealth to its author.

"What little profit there was on it was all solemnly dedicated to the Lord, and $25 out of it had already been given to one of the Lord's needy servants (M.B. Czechowski)."—Review, November 25, 1858.

M.B. Czechowski was a converted Catholic priest who was fluent in seven languages. In the spring of 1858, he had been sent as a missionary from Battle Creek to up­state New York to work among French Catholics.

Are you thankful that the first edition of Great Controversy was not the last? It was so very small! In the providence of God, it was to be enlarged two times: first in 1884, and again in 1888.

Just as we can be thankful that the first edition of Great Controversy was not the last, so we should be thankful that the second edition of that book was not the last, either! Just as the 1858 edition was made larger in the 1884 edition, so that edition was made larger in the publication of the 1888 edition.

Be thankful for all the editions; they are all of great benefit to you and to others. Resist the whispered temptations of the evil one that any of those editions should not be read or shared.

Four years after publication of that book, in July 1872, Ellen and James were vacationing high in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. They spent the afternoon outdoors reading this book with friends. What a pleasant way to spend a Sabbath afternoon!

"We arose this beautiful morning with some sense of the goodness and mercy of God to us.

"In the afternoon our niece, Mary Clough, Willie, and myself walked out and sat beneath poplar trees. We read about sixty pages of Great Controversy, or Spiritual Gifts [Volume 1 ]. Mary was deeply interested. We were happily disappointed [that is, happily surprised) in the earnest manner in which she listened. We see no prejudice with her. We hope she will yet see and receive the truth. She is a pure, simple-hearted, yet intellectual girl. We closed the Sabbath of the Lord with prayer. Mary united with us in prayer. Wrote letters upon religious subjects to Louise Walling and Elder Loughborough." —Manuscript 4, 1872.   

8 — PREPARATION FOR THE 1884 EDITION

Due to the urgent importance of the 1858 Lovett's Grove vision, Ellen immediately began work on writing it out; and, that same year, it was printed. But, with the passing of years, she was instructed to produce a greatly enlarged edition.

A letter by James reveals that, in mid-January 1879, El­len began work on the enlarged Great Controversy. This work was primarily done in two ways: (1) She was shown in brief flashbacks, while writing, portions of the 1858 vision which were not as clear in her mind and had therefore not been included in earlier presentations. (2) She was given additional material in new visions. She was also instructed that, as she searched other biographical accounts—especially on the life of Christ—she would recognize worthwhile ways to express her ideas in a fuller, pleasing variety; and, as she read through the writings of church historians, she would locate and date scenes she had been shown in vision. This she did.

As additional light was given regarding the great controversy, she was instructed that she should write it out. This she faithfully did. That is how the 1884 edition came to be. Later still, the same procedure produced the 1888 edition. Each one was an enlargement of the one before it; each one was therefore important. Yet the publication of a new edition did not negate the importance of the previous one. All of it is invaluable food. Remember the words of Jesus: "gather up the fragments, that nothing be lost."

"In the Great Controversy, the last message of warning for the world is given more distinctly than in any of my other books. "—1905.

All the Inspired writings are important! Value them all, read them all, share them all. Throughout Inspired Scripture, there is not one later writing that is more important than the earliest one, and vice-versa.

Some people will suggest to you that Ellen White did not write the second (1884) or later editions of that book, but instead just sat back, content to let others do the writing for her. That is not true. This woman was clearly willing to die rather than not go forward with the writing of that book. Her determination to obey God did not change in later years. As with all the other charges, accusations, and slander against Great Controversy and its author, these attacks on her character and authorship are instigated by the evil one. I would urgently warn you: let no man steal your crown. Believe not the lying rumors and vicious accusations. It is only as you remain close to God and in childlike obedience to His Inspired Word that you will be guarded by holy angels in the days ahead.

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