The Seventh-Day Adventist movement was born out of a failed prophecy by William Miller—a man the SDA Church has sought to rebrand as an “American reformer.” When Jesus didn’t return in 1843, the date then shifted to specifically October 22, 1844—a date that was influenced by Samuel E. Snow.
Accompanying William Miller’s prediction was a chart that was developed in 1842 by Millerites Charles Fitch and Apollos Hale which laid out the supposed biblical timeline to support Miller’s predictions.
Utilizing a concordance and a King James Bible, Miller developed what would later go on to be referred to as “Millers Rules of Bible Interpretation”—something that Seventh-Day Adventist theology is still reliant upon in a number of their core doctrinal conclusions. The 1843 chart was a result of this interpretive methodology applied.
In an alleged vision in 1850, Ellen G. White claimed that God was the one ultimately behind the 1843 chart. This is documented in the November 1850 issue of Present Truth Magazine:
September 23rd, [1850] the Lord showed me that he had stretched out his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering time Israel was smitten and torn; but in the gathering time God will heal and bind up his people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering when God has set his hand to gather his people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work.
I saw that is was a shame for any to refer to the scattering for example to govern us now in the gathering; for if God does no more for us now than he did then, Israel would never be gathered. It is as necessary that the truth should be published in a paper, as preached. The Lord showed me that the 1843 chart was directed by his hand, and that no part of it should be altered; that the figures were as be wanted them. That his hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until his hand was removed.
Ellen G. White, The Present Truth, November 1850, Volume 1, No. 11
God allegedly showed Ellen White that He was the one behind the chart and that no part of it was to be altered. Even though the figures were wrong, they were as God wanted them because His hand was over a mistake in some of the numbers which is supposedly why they were unable to see the error until God removed his hand.
In 1851, she continued with this narrative where, in A Sketch of the Christian Experience and Views of Ellen G. White, she reiterated this same thing:
September 23rd, [1850] the Lord shewed me that he had stretched out his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering, Israel was smitten and torn; but now in the gathering time God will heal and bind up his people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering, when God has set his hand to gather his people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work. I saw that it was wrong for any to refer to the scattering for examples to govern us now in the gathering; for if God does no more for us now than he did then, Israel would never be gathered. I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as he wanted them. That his hand was over, and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until his hand was removed.
A Sketch of the Christian Experience and Views of Ellen G. White, pg. 61 (ExV 61.1)
Again, in 1882, she reiterated the same thing in Early Writings:
September 23, [1850] the Lord showed me that He had stretched out His hand the second time to recover the remnant of His people, and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering, Israel was smitten and torn, but now in the gathering time God will heal and bind up His people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering, when God has set His hand to gather His people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work. I saw that it was wrong for any to refer to the scattering for examples to govern us now in the gathering; for if God should do no more for us now than He did then, Israel would never be gathered. I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed.
Ellen G. White, Early Writings, pg. 74 (EW 74.1)
But regarding this specific citation, the Ellen G. White Estate has added the following note in the digital copy:
[This applies to the chart used during the 1843 movement, and has special reference to the calculation of the prophetic periods as it appeared on that chart. The next sentence explains that there was an inaccuracy which in the providence of God was suffered to exist. But this does not preclude the publication of a chart subsequently which would correct the mistake, after the 1843 movement was past, and the calculation as then made had served its purpose.]
Ellen G. White Estate, Early Writings, pg. 74 (EW 74.1)
So despite Ellen White claiming that God showed her the chart wasn’t to be altered, it went on to be altered numerous times to try and make things work out—something even the Ellen G. White Estate recognizes. The defense given for this is that God wanted it to be inaccurate to serve it’s purpose of testing “His people” so He had his hand over a mistake. But after they went along with it, His hand was supposedly removed, revealing the inaccuracy, which led to updates needing to be made.
But things get more problematic when examining the Ellen G. White Estate’s Letters & Manuscripts with Annotations, a collection of Ellen White’s letters and manuscripts, which was published in 2014:
A vision the Lord gave me October 23, 1850…I saw that the truth should be made plain on tables, that the earth and the fullness thereof is the Lord’s and that necessary means should not be spared to make it plain. I saw that the angels’ messages, made plain, would have effect. I saw that the old chart was directed by the Lord, and that not a peg of it should be altered without inspiration. I saw that the figures on the chart were as God wanted them, and that His hand was over and his a mistake in some of the figures so that none could see it until His hand was removed.
Ellen G. White, “A Vision Given on October 23, 1850,” Letters & Manuscripts with Annotations, pg. 243
Now according to Ellen White’s estate, the date of this alleged vision shifted from September 23, 1850 to October 23, 1850. Which calls into question Ellen White’s own estate and their ability to correctly document information.
But not only did the date of the vision change, we also see the addition of the phrase “without inspiration” added as a clarifier to the chart being updated—something none of the previous three instances included. This gives an escape hatch to the issue of God not saying to alter the chart even though it changed multiple times. It was supposedly done with inspiration from God so that is supposed to eliminate this serious blunder.
Ellen White’s pawning of the error onto God makes Him a deceiver that uses false prophetic dates and prophecies to test people and see if they will believe a lie that He himself is perpetuating by hiding information.
This gives us a perfect example of the confusion that has existed within the SDA movement from its earliest days. When a movement is born out of multiple false prophecies, solutions have to be thought up to keep the lies alive which only leads to more lies and contradictions—including faulting God. This debacle evidences that Ellen G. White was not inspired by God, she fails the biblical test of a prophet and, according to God himself, we are not to listen to her (Deuteronomy 18:22).
