An Open Book With a Message

January 4 – 10, 2026

Key Text

“He had a little book open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the earth.” Revelation 10:2

Study Help: Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 113–115; The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 971

Introduction

“The book that was sealed was not the book of Revelation, but that portion of the prophecy of Daniel which related to the last days.” Selected Messages, Book 2, 105

Sunday

1 THE BOOK OF DANIEL

1.a. What was God’s command concerning the visions given to Daniel? Daniel 12:4

Note: “In the past teachers have declared Daniel and the Revelation to be sealed books, and the people have turned from them. The veil whose apparent mystery has kept many from lifting it, God’s own hand has withdrawn from these portions of His word.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 113

1.b. How does the instruction regarding Daniel’s visions reveal the time in which we are living? Daniel 12:9; Revelation 10:2, first part

Note: “In the Revelation the Lion of the tribe of Judah has opened to the students of prophecy the book of Daniel, and thus is Daniel standing in his place. He bears his testimony, that which the Lord revealed to him in vision of great and solemn events which we must know as we stand on the very threshold of their fulfillment.” Selected Messages, Book 2, 109

“The book of Daniel is now unsealed, and the revelation made by Christ to John is to come to all the inhabitants of the earth. By the increase of knowledge, a people is to be prepared to stand in the latter days.” Ibid., 105

Monday

2 OVER LAND AND SEA

2.a. What is symbolized by the position of Christ in relation to the earth and the sea? Revelation 10:2, last part; Matthew 28:18, last part

Note: “The mighty angel who instructed John was no less a personage than Jesus Christ. Setting His right foot on the sea, and His left upon the dry land, shows the part which He is acting in the closing scenes of the great controversy with Satan. This position denotes His supreme power and authority over the whole earth.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 971

2.b. What else does that position of Christ represent while He is holding the open book in His hand? Romans 10:17, 18

Note: “The angel of Revelation 10 is represented as having one foot on the sea and one foot on the land, showing that the message will be carried to distant lands, the ocean will be crossed, and the islands of the sea will hear the proclamation of the last message of warning to our world.” Selected Messages, Book 2, 107, 108

Tuesday

3 THE LOUD VOICE

a. How is Christ speaking to the world? Revelation 10:3, first part; Isaiah 55:3, 6, 7

Note: “The controversy has waxed stronger and more determined from age to age, and will continue to do so, to the concluding scenes when the masterly working of the powers of darkness shall reach their height. Satan, united with evil men, will deceive the whole world and the churches who receive not the love of the truth. But the mighty angel demands attention. He cries with a loud voice. He is to show the power and authority of His voice to those who have united with Satan to oppose the truth.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 971

3.b. Against what dangers are we warned? Hebrews 3:15; 4:1; 12:25

Note: “It is far more easy to profess and resolve than to perform. Like ancient Israel, many covenant to cleave unto the Lord, and serve Him, and then soon forget their vows, and join with the ungodly in the pursuits of worldly gain or pleasure. We should be jealous of ourselves, lest we depart from God. ‘For if they escaped not who refused Him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven?’ The blessings and privileges which we enjoy place us under the most solemn obligation to improve these gifts to the glory of our Creator. They should inspire in our hearts love to God, and an earnest determination to obey His requirements. Let us not become self-confident or presumptuous.” The Signs of the Times, June 9, 1881

Wednesday

4 THE SEVEN THUNDERS

4.a. What happened after the seven thunders uttered their voices? Revelation 10:4

Note: “After these seven thunders uttered their voices, the injunction comes to John as to Daniel in regard to the little book: ‘Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered.’ These relate to future events which will be disclosed in their order.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 971

“The special light given to John which was expressed in the seven thunders was a delineation of events which would transpire under the first and second angels’ messages. It was not best for the people to know these things, for their faith must necessarily be tested.” Ibid.

4.b. What is the significance of the statement that time will be no longer? Revelation 10:5, 6

Note: “In the order of God most wonderful and advanced truths would be proclaimed. The first and second angels’ messages were to be proclaimed, but no further light was to be revealed before these messages had done their specific work. This is represented by the angel standing with one foot on the sea, proclaiming with a most solemn oath that time should be no longer.

“This time, which the angel declares with a solemn oath, is not the end of this world’s history, neither of probationary time, but of prophetic time, which should precede the advent of our Lord. That is, the people will not have another message upon definite time. After this period of time, reaching from 1842 to 1844, there can be no definite tracing of the prophetic time. The longest reckoning reaches to the autumn of 1844.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 971

“There will never again be a message for the people of God that will be based on time.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 188

“Time has not been a test since 1844, and it will never again be a test.” Early Writings, 75

Thursday

5 A MISTAKEN CONCLUSION

5.a. What prophecy, in the book of Daniel, reached to the autumn of 1844? Daniel 8:14. How are we to calculate prophetic time? Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6

Note: “All felt that upon the events therein foretold depended their brightest expectations and most cherished hopes. These prophetic days had been shown to terminate in the autumn of 1844. In common with the rest of the Christian world, Adventists then held that the earth, or some portion of it, was the sanctuary. They understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary was the purification of the earth by the fires of the last great day, and that this would take place at the second advent. Hence the conclusion that Christ would return to the earth in 1844.” The Great Controversy, 409

“The 2300 days had been found to begin when the commandment of Artaxerxes for the restoration and building of Jerusalem went into effect, in the autumn of 457 B.C. Taking this as the starting point, there was perfect harmony in the application of all the events foretold in the explanation of that period in Daniel 9:25–27. Sixty-nine weeks, the first 483 of the 2300 years, were to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One; and Christ’s baptism and anointing by the Holy Spirit, A.D. 27, exactly fulfilled the specification. In the midst of the seventieth week, Messiah was to be cut off. Three and a half years after His baptism, Christ was crucified, in the spring of A.D. 31. The seventy weeks, or 490 years, were to pertain especially to the Jews. At the expiration of this period the nation sealed its rejection of Christ by the persecution of His disciples, and the apostles turned to the Gentiles, A.D. 34. The first 490 years of the 2300 having then ended, 1810 years would remain. From A.D. 34, 1810 years extend to 1844.

‘Then,’ said the angel, ‘shall the sanctuary be cleansed.’ All the preceding specifications of the prophecy had been unquestionably fulfilled at the time appointed.” Ibid., 410

5.b. What words of Christ have often had an application among the people of God, including in 1844? John 16:12

Note: “The appointed time had passed, and the Lord had not appeared. The believers knew that God’s word could not fail; their interpretation of the prophecy must be at fault; but where was the mistake?” The Great Controversy, 409

“God had led His people in the great advent movement; His power and glory had attended the work, and He would not permit it to end in darkness and disappointment, to be reproached as a false and fanatical excitement. He would not leave His word involved in doubt and uncertainty. Though many abandoned their former reckoning of the prophetic periods, and denied the correctness of the movement based thereon, others were unwilling to renounce points of faith and experience that were sustained by the Scriptures and by the witness of the Spirit of God. They believed that they had adopted sound principles of interpretation in their study of the prophecies, and that it was their duty to hold fast the truths already gained, and to continue the same course of Biblical research. With earnest prayer they reviewed their position and studied the Scriptures to discover their mistake.” Ibid., 410, 411

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

Why is it important for us to study the book of Daniel?
In a practical sense, what should the position of Christ’s two feet in John’s vision mean to us?
What is the significance of Christ’s “loud voice” for each of us personally?
What is meant by the declaration that “there should be time no longer” (Revelation 10:6)?
How are we to calculate the 2300-day prophecy?
What does God want us to realize in our days?