262 ASTRONOMYANDTHEBIBLE
research, atthehourof a mountainmidnight,is so
completelyoverpoweringasthevisionofanabyssin
the stellar floor. Round and about these blackened
wastes,there are cases where the stars are piled in
heaps,rakedintowindrows,orstrewnoutintowisps,
streamers, filaments, and spray. Yet of all these
stellarhosts,thetiniestpointmaybeawhite-hotsun,
andlargerthanourlittle star—thesun. Thegiant
nebulaof Orion is a mass of starry lace, a fabric
loadedwithglitteringpoints."
The statementis made in Scripture, thatone day,
thisveilwillbedrawn back. Wecannotattemptto
sayjusthowthisobscuringveilistoberemoved. Evi-
dentlyenough,however,itwillbebythepowerofthe
Creator. Thedescriptionisthatofsomethingwhich
occurswith greatsuddenness. Theheavens will be
rolledback"asascroll,"or,asthewriterquotedputs
it,theywillbe"partedandrolledback."
Letususeanillustration: Supposeyouhavea roll
oftoughpaper. Thishasbeenrolleduntil,ifstretched
out,itwill,uponbeingreleasedquickly,rollbackinto
itsoldposition. Nowimaginethissheetofpaperheld
out flatbyahand ateach end. Imaginethat asthe
paper is thus held, it is suddenly split through the
middle. Weknow thatthe two halves will quickly
roll apart, leavingan openingbetween. This is the
picturedrawnforusbytheWord—apictureofwhat
istotakeplaceonthefinalday.
WhenGodsaid,"Lettherebelight,"instantlythere
waslight. He spoke, and itwas. When the Lord
commands nature,itinstantly obeys Him. Thereis