The Seventh-day Adventist Church regards the writings of Ellen G. White to be divinely inspired and authoritative in correcting misunderstandings of Scripture. However, few are aware of her claims to have received divine revelations about events in heaven prior to the creation of the earth. Notably, her teachings on the plan of salvation raise serious questions about the validity of her prophetic gifting, as these alleged revelations evolved over time and, in some instances, directly contradicted one another.
1854: The plan of salvation was devised after the fall of Adam and Eve
In Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. 1, in chapter 4, titled Plan of Salvation, Ellen White wrote:
Sorrow filled Heaven, as it was realized that man was lost, and the world that God created was to be filled with mortals doomed to misery, sickness, and death, and there was no way of escape for the offender. The whole family of Adam must die. I saw the lovely Jesus, and beheld an expression of sympathy and sorrow upon his countenance. Soon I saw him approach the exceeding bright light which enshrouded the Father. Said my accompanying angel, He is in close converse with his Father. The anxiety of the angels seemed to be intense while Jesus was communing with his Father. Three times he was shut in by the glorious light about the Father, and the third time he came from the Father his person could be seen. His countenance was calm, free from all perplexity and trouble, and shone with benevolence and loveliness, such as words cannot express. He then made known to the angelic host that a way of escape had been made for lost man. He told them that he had been pleading with his Father, and had offered to give his life a ransom, and take the sentence of death upon himself, that through him man might find pardon; that through the merits of his blood, and obedience to the law of God, they could have the favor of God, and be brought into the beautiful garden, and eat of the fruit of the tree of life.
Ellen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. 1, pg. 45 (1SP 45.1)
She describes being shown in vision that after Satan was successful in bringing about the fall of mankind, Jesus proceeded to plead with God the Father to accept a plan that He presented to save mankind. This plan involved sacrificing himself so that, through his merits, and obedience to the law of God, man could once again have favor with God and be reunited with Him. After three attempts, God the Father accepted this proposed plan.
1888: She reaffirms this in the 3rd-edition of The Great Controversy
34 years later, she reaffirmed this understanding in the 1888 edition of The Great Controversy where she wrote:
The kingdom of grace was instituted immediately after the fall of man, when a plan was devised for the redemption of the guilty race. It then existed in the purpose and by the promise of God; and through faith, men could become its subjects. Yet it was not actually established until the death of Christ.
Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy (1888), pg. 347 (GC88 347.2)
1890: The plan of salvation was devised before the foundation of the world
2 years later, she would go on to modify this belief, at least at a surface level reading, in her famed Patriarchs & Prophets where she wrote:
Before the Father He pleaded in the sinner’s behalf, while the host of heaven awaited the result with an intensity of interest that words cannot express. Long continued was that mysterious communing—“the counsel of peace” (Zechariah 6:13) for the fallen sons of men. The plan of salvation had been laid before the creation of the earth; for Christ is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8); yet it was a struggle, even with the King of the universe, to yield up His Son to die for the guilty race.
Ellen G. White, Patriarchs & Prophets, pg. 63 (PP 63.3)
Bordering on contradicting her 1854 claim, new divine revelation apparently began to shift her thinking on this and the plan of salvation was actually devised before the earth was even created.
1898: She builds upon her 1890 statement
8 years later, with the publishing of Desire of Ages, she got more explicit than her 1890 statement where she wrote:
The plan for our redemption was not an afterthought, a plan formulated after the fall of Adam. It was a revelation of “the mystery which hath been kept in silence through times eternal.” Romans 16:25, R. V. It was an unfolding of the principles that from eternal ages have been the foundation of God’s throne. From the beginning, God and Christ knew of the apostasy of Satan, and of the fall of man through the deceptive power of the apostate. God did not ordain that sin should exist, but He foresaw its existence, and made provision to meet the terrible emergency.
Ellen G. White, Desire of Ages, pg. 22 (DA 22.2)
Here she outright contradicts the previous revelation she allegedly received in 1854 and outright said the plan was not formulated after the fall of Adam.
1911: The 4th-edition of The Great Controversy maintains its 1888 claim
Despite the major change in Desire of Ages in 1898, the 1911, 4th-edition of The Great Controversy retained its 1888 claim verbatim:
The kingdom of grace was instituted immediately after the fall of man, when a plan was devised for the redemption of the guilty race. It then existed in the purpose and by the promise of God; and through faith, men could become its subjects. Yet it was not actually established until the death of Christ.
Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy (1911), pg. 347 (GC 347.2)
Despite all of the factual and historical errors that were changed in this edition to make the book seem more legitimate, this error was obviously missed where it should have been updated to align with the 1898 publishing of Desire of Ages.
Contemporary SDA Scholarship
In the Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, a scholastic work put out by one of the SDA Church’s official publishing arms, SDA theologian Frank Holbrook writes:
God created all intelligent beings as free moral agents with the ability to render loving allegiance to the Creator or to reject His authority. Several New Testament passages indicate God foresaw the defection that would take place among the angels and the insurrection that would follow. He foresaw that mankind would be deceived into joining the rebellion. Before time began (as far as this earth is concerned)—at some point in eternity past—God, that is, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, devised the plan of salvation to meet this foreseen crisis. The apostle Paul refers to that plan as “the mystery which was kept secret for long ages” (Rom. 16:25). This “secret,” or “hidden wisdom,” he asserts, “God decreed before the ages,” before earth time began (1 Cor. 2:7). The secret or mystery is “the mystery of the gospel,” he explains elsewhere (Eph. 6:19). It is evident, then, that the rebellion, which eventually broke out among some of the created intelligences in the universe, did not take God by surprise. The Godhead had already devised a “rescue operation” for deceived human rebels—a plan that would also provide an effective weapon in putting down the rebellion permanently.
Frank Holbrook, Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, pg. 970
The present SDA Church stands by her later statements that the plan of salvation was not devised after the fall of Adam where they simply paraphrase Mrs. White’s claim in Desire of Ages.
The Biblical Teaching
The Bible does not teach that God’s plan of salvation was merely a reaction to His foreknowledge of sin. Instead, Scripture presents salvation as a deliberate and eternal plan rooted in the Triune God’s sovereignty, wisdom, and love.
Ephesians 1:4-5
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
This passage highlights that God’s plan of salvation was established before creation—not as a reaction to sin, but as part of His eternal purpose.
Many groups, including the Seventh-day Adventist Church, struggle with the concept of predestination. Yet, Scripture clearly teaches it, and believers must wrestle with its meaning. Paul explains that before the foundation of the world, God the Father had already chosen and loved a predestined people, adopting them as His sons and daughters through Jesus Christ—the unique Son of God—all according to His own purpose. The reason for this, Paul states, is “to the praise of His glorious grace.”
God’s desire to reveal His multifaceted love and grace to His creation is central to His purpose. Grace, by definition, cannot be earned or demanded; it must be freely given. For grace to be fully realized and demonstrated, humanity had to be in a condition of need—lost and without merit.
Unlike the SDA Church’s emphasis on a detailed pre-earth origin narrative, interpreting the plan as being “before the foundation of the world” focuses on God’s eternal decree. This refers to His purpose being set before any act of creation—before the formation of the earth, heaven, or angels. This perspective allows Scripture to speak for itself without introducing speculative ideas about pre-earth events.
Revelation 13:8 KJV
8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Like Ellen White cited in her later years, this text makes it clear that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was not an afterthought but central to God’s plan from eternity.
Acts 2:23
22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.
In accordance with the rest of scripture, the crucifixion of Christ was part of a definite plan from eternity past. Even though human actions and wills were involved, the crucifixion was a part of God’s own predetermined plan before any humans existed. They were then used by God to ultimately bring about His will without Him overriding their own desires.
1 Timothy 1:8-10
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, 9 who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, 10 and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
This texts complements the teaching that God’s plan of salvation was proactive. Paul explains that the law reveals sin and points to the necessity of Christ’s atoning work, which was central to God’s eternal purpose, not merely a response to sin after it arose.
Conclusion
Contemporary Seventh-day Adventist scholarship upholds Ellen White’s later interpretations of the plan of salvation while simultaneously affirming her earlier statements and “revelations” as equally inspired and divinely sourced. However, these earlier and later accounts contradict one another, creating a significant theological dilemma, as both cannot be correct.
Moreover, the plan of salvation was not a response to events that God foresaw before creation. Rather, it was part of His eternal purpose—rooted in His sovereign will—to exalt His grace and lavish His goodness and blessings upon a people through Christ Jesus, His Son.