The Signs of the Times Events Preceeding the Second Coming
Author's Note: The Signs of The Times defined by Bruce R. McConkie: "Signs are the recognizable events or occurrences which identify present and which portend future events. They are omens, prodigies, wonders, and marvels of abnormal occurrence. Time means the age, era, period, or dispensation involved. Thus the signs of the times for our age or dispensation are the marvelous events—differing in kind, extent, or magnitude from events of past times—which identify the dispensation of the fulness of times and presage the Second Advent of our Lord." [Italics added.] (DGSM:94)
394. We are to look for the signs preceding the Second Coming of the Lord.
398. In the last days there shall be wars and rumors of wars.
399. Desolating plagues and sicknesses shall cover the land in the last days.
402. The righteous will be preserved from the calamities and judgments of the Lord in the last days.
405. The gospel shall be preached to all nations before the Second Coming of Christ.
406. In the last days false Christs and false prophets shall emerge showing great signs and wonders.
407. In the last days iniquity will abound.
408. Before the Lord comes in judgment the Lamanites will blossom as the rose.
409. The time will come when the wicked will be cleansed from the earth by fire.
394. We are to look for the signs preceding the Second Coming of the Lord.
But behold, the righteous that hearken unto the words of the prophets, and destroy them not, but look forward unto Christ with steadfastness for the signs which are given, notwithstanding all persecution—behold, they are they which shall not perish. (Nephi foresees the destruction of his people, about 559-545 B.C.) 2 Nephi 26:8
receiving the Word of the Lord
And it shall come to pass that he that feareth me shall be looking forth for the great day of the Lord to come, even for the signs of the coming of the Son of Man. (Revelation March 7, 1831; signs, wonders, and the resurrection are to attend the Second Coming) D&C 45:39
Ours is the dispensation of desolation and war that will be climaxed by a worldwide Armageddon of butchery and blood at the very hour of the coming of the Son of Man. Jesus speaks thus for the elect's sake: none others can read the signs of the times. Carnal men will consider war as a way of life and a norm of society, not as a scourge sent of God to cleanse the earth preparatory to the return of his Son. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:440-41) TLDP:345
Only through watchfulness and prayer may the signs of the times be correctly interpreted and the imminence of the Lord's appearing be apprehended. To the unwatchful and the wicked the event will be as sudden and unexpected as the coming of a thief in the night. But we are not left without definite information as to precedent signs. JTC:785-86
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
I will prophesy that the signs of the coming of the Son of man are already commenced. One pestilence will desolate after another. We shall soon have war and bloodshed. The moon will be turned to blood. I testify of these things, and that the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, even at your doors. If our souls and our bodies are not looking forth for the coming of the Son of Man; and after we are dead, if we are not looking forth, we shall be among those who are calling for the rocks to fall upon them. (The Prophet instructs the Twelve on priesthood, in the vicinity of Commerce, Ill., July 2, 1839) HC3:390; TPJS:160; DGSM:95; TLDP:351
Related Witnesses:
It is the proud and they who do wickedly who close their eyes and their ears and their hearts to the signs of the times, to the word of the Gospel and to the testimony of the Christ. It has long been a favorite excuse of men who were not ready for the advent of the Lord, to say, "The Lord delayeth his coming." CR1916Apr:130
While I was president of the Southern States Mission, one of our missionaries wrote in from Florida and said, "President Richards, I have been reading about the signs of the coming of the Lord." He said, "When the sun darkens and the moon ceases to give its light and the stars fall from heaven, everybody will know that he is coming."
And I wrote back and said, "Probably they will know. The newspapers might announce some great phenomenon in the heavens, misplacement of planets, that have caused this consternation, and scientists will have their explanation to make of it, and unless they have faith in the Living God, unless as Jesus said, they can read the signs of the times, they may not know anything about what is going on in the world.
" 'Why,' I said, 'if the inhabitants of this earth had the ability and the power to read the signs of the times, they would know that already the Lord has given far more than the darkening of the sun or obscuring the light of the moon or causing the stars to fall from heaven, for what he has accomplished in the establishment of his kingdom in the earth in these latter days, and the unseen power operating in the world for the accomplishment of his purposes, are greater signs than any of these phenomena that we read about—the signs of his coming'." CR1951:Apr:40-41
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
5. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. (Letter to the Church at Thessalonica, comprising Jews and many pagan converts, A.D. 50) 1Thess. 5:4-5
Our souls cry out: "God hasten the day of the coming of thy Son," and yet we know that such cannot be. The day is fixed and the hour is set. The signs have been, are now, and will hereafter be shown forth. Our obligation is to discern the signs of the times lest we, with the world, be taken unawares. (The Millennial Messiah, p. 405) DGSM:96
395. After the testimony of the elders of the Church in the last days shall come the testimony of the elements in commotion.
J. Reuben Clark, Jr., David O. McKay
You will find it recorded in one of the revelations to the Prophet Joseph Smith and the elders of this Church, that after the testimony of the elders should come the testimony of lightnings, of thunder, of earthquakes, of the sea heaving itself beyond its bounds, and of destruction, the elements being engaged in bearing testimony—the thunder would cry repentance. CR1923Oct:31-32
receiving the Word of the Lord
And after your testimony cometh wrath and indignation upon the people.
89. For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand.
90. And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds. (Revelation Dec. 27/28, 1832; the "olive leaf message of peace") D&C 88:88-90
(First Presidency)
At present the message of peace is being heralded to the world by more than 5000 duly commissioned servants of the Lord, representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The mission of these ambassadors is to cry repentance unto this generation as well as to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its fulness. Should this message be rejected, the Lord has warned the people as follows:
"For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand.
"And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds.
"And all things shall be in commotion; and surely, men's hearts shall fail them; for fear shall come upon all people." (D&C 88:89-91
As the representatives of our Heavenly Father, we admonish people everywhere to turn unto the Lord and forsake evil, lest His judgments overtake them. Only through a return to the teachings of the Master can peace come to the world and the kingdom of God be made ready for the return of the Prince of Peace to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. (Christmas message in Church News) MOFP6:283
quoted by John A. Widtsoe
All we have heard and we have experienced is scarcely a preface to the sermon that is going to be preached. When the testimony of the Elders ceases to be given, and the Lord says to them, "Come home: I will now preach my own sermons to the nations of the earth," all you now know can scarcely be called a preface to the sermon that will be preached with fire and sword, tempests, earthquakes, hail, rain, thunders and lightnings, and fearful destruction. What matters the destruction of a few railway cars? You will hear of magnificent cities, now idolized by the people, sinking in the earth, entombing the inhabitants. The sea will heave itself beyond its bounds, engulfing mighty cities. Famine will spread over the nations and nation will rise up against nation, kingdom against kingdom and states against states, in our own country and in foreign lands; and they will destroy each other, caring not for blood and lives of their neighbors, of their families, or for their own lives. (In Bowery, July 1860; JD8:123) DBY:111-12; DGSM:95
Before the Lord destroyed the old world, he directed Noah to prepare an ark; before the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, he told Lot to "flee to the mountains;" before Jerusalem was destroyed Jesus gave his disciples warning, and told them to "flee out of it;" and before the destruction of the world, a message is sent; after this, the nations will be judged, for God is now preparing his own kingdom for his own reign, and will not be thwarted by any conflicting influence, or opposing power. The testimony of God is first to be made known, the standard is to be raised; the gospel of the kingdom is to be preached to all nations, the world is to be warned, and then come the troubles. (The Government of God, p. 101) TLDP:328-29
Related Witnesses:
receiving the Word of the Lord
Call ye, therefore, upon them with loud proclamation, and with your testimony, fearing them not, for they are as grass, and all their glory as the flower thereof which soon falleth, that they may be left also without excuse—
8. And that I may visit them in the day of visitation, when I shall unveil the face of my covering, to appoint the portion of the oppressor among hypocrites, where there is gnashing of teeth, if they reject my servants and my testimony which I have revealed unto them.
9. And again, I will visit and soften their hearts, many of them for your good, that ye may find grace in their eyes, that they may come to the light of truth, and the Gentiles to the exaltation or lifting up of Zion.
10. For the day of my visitation cometh speedily, in an hour when ye think not of; and where shall be the safety of my people, and refuge for those who shall be left of them? (Revelation received Jan. 19, 1841) D&C 124:7-10
396. The calamities and judgments predicted for the last days shall come because of sin—the wickedness and disobedience of mankind.
also quoting James E. Talmage
These forecasts are discomfiting. They come as no surprise, however, to Latter-day Saints, because we know that nearly a hundred and fifty years ago the Lord said that the conduct of the inhabitants of the earth, unless reformed, would bring disaster. [D&C 1:8-17. . . .
Calamities will come as a matter of cause and effect. They follow naturally "and inevitably the sins of mankind and the unregenerate state of the race." (Talmage, Improvement Era, June, 1921, p. 739) CR1977Apr:74,76
For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. (The prophet Malachi to the people, about 430 B.C.) Malachi 4:1
The people themselves are responsible for the calamities that befall them, but when they repent and turn unto the Lord, he hears their prayers. CR1938Oct:23
receiving the Word of the Lord
For a desolating scourge shall go forth among the inhabitants of the earth, and shall continue to be poured out from time to time, if they repent not, until the earth is empty, and the inhabitants thereof are consumed away and utterly destroyed by the brightness of my coming. (Revelation received at the request of Martin Harris, March 1829) D&C 5:19
I fear the time is coming . . . unless we can call the people of this world to repent of their sins and turn from the error of their ways, that the great war that has just passed will be an insignificant thing, as far as calamity is concerned, compared to that which is before us. CR1946Oct:149
We are living in a period of time when upheavals in the world are daily, almost momentary. Marvelous things are occurring. The map of the world is changing. The order of government is being modified. In our own nation we are almost helpless before the problems that confront us, notwithstanding we are probably the wealthiest and most powerful nation in all the world. What is our difficulty, brethren and sisters? It is that men refuse to hear what the Lord has said. They refuse to pay attention to His wise counsel. They absolutely neglect to give credence to the things that He teaches us, and He will not be mocked. He gives us the advice and the counsel that we need, but He will not compel us. But if we refuse we lose our opportunity and it passes away from us, in many cases to return again no more forever. CR1933Apr:71
receiving the Word of the Lord
And verily I say unto you, that they who go forth, bearing these tidings unto the inhabitants of the earth, to them is power given to seal both on earth and in heaven, the unbelieving and rebellious;
9. Yea, verily, to seal them up unto the day when the wrath of God shall be poured out upon the wicked without measure—10. Unto the day when the Lord shall come to recompense unto every man according to his work, and measure to every man according to the measure which he has measured to his fellow man.
11. Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear:
12. Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh;
13. And the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth.
14. And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people;
15. For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant;
16. They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.
17. Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments; (Revelation received during conference of elders of the Church, Nov. 1, 1831; preface to the doctrines given to the Church) D&C 1:8-17
quoted by Mormon
And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land. (Mosiah tells the people unrighteous kings lead the people to sin, about 92 B.C.) Mosiah 29:27
For behold, saith the prophet, the time cometh speedily that Satan shall have no more power over the hearts of the children of men; for the day soon cometh that all the proud and they who do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day cometh that they must be burned.
16. For the time soon cometh that the fulness of the wrath of God shall be poured out upon all the children of men; for he will not suffer that the wicked shall destroy the righteous.
17. Wherefore, he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore, the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire. . . .
22. And the righteous need not fear, for they are those who shall not be confounded. But it is the kingdom of the devil, which shall be built up among the children of men, which kingdom is established among them which are in the flesh—
23. For the time speedily shall come that all churches which are built up to get gain, and all those who are built up to get power over the flesh, and those who are built up to become popular in the eyes of the world, and those who seek the lusts of the flesh and the things of the world, and to do all manner of iniquity; yea, in fine, all those who belong to the kingdom of the devil are they who need fear, and tremble, and quake; they are those who must be brought low in the dust; they are those who must be consumed as stubble; and this is according to the words of the prophet. (Nephi explains the prophecies written on the plates of brass, 588-570 B.C.) 1 Nephi 22:15-17,22-23
The great trouble with the world today, as I understand it, is that it has become idolatrous . . . defying the commandment written by the finger of God—"Thou shalt have no other Gods before me." . . . . Men are praising the gods of silver and of gold and of all the other valuable commodities that make up wealth, and the God in whose hand their breath is . . . they will not recognize. Do you wonder that wickedness and crime have increased to terrifying proportions under those conditions? The prophets of old foresaw it. They spoke of the days of wickedness and vengeance immediately precedent to the second coming of the Lord. . . . CR1930Oct:71
Related Witnesses:
translating Matthew
Tell us when shall these things be which thou hast said concerning the destruction of the temple, and the Jews; and what is the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world, or the destruction of the wicked, which is the end of the world? (The disciples of Jesus come to Jesus privately to ask regarding the sign of his second coming) JS-M 1:4
translating the Book of Moses
And it came to pass that Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, in the last days, to dwell on the earth in righteousness for the space of a thousand years;
66. But before that day he saw great tribulations among the wicked; and he also saw the sea, that it was troubled, and men's hearts failing them, looking forth with fear for the judgments of the Almighty God, which should come upon the wicked. (The record of Moses : the word of the Lord to Enoch) Moses 7:65-66
receiving the Word of the Lord
O, ye nations of the earth, how often would I have gathered you together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, but ye would not 25. How oft have I called upon you by the mouth of my servants, and by the ministering of angels, and by mine own voice, and by the voice of thunderings, and by the voice of lightnings, and by the voice of tempests, and by the voice of earthquakes, and great hailstorms, and by the voice of famines and pestilences of every kind, and by the great sound of a trump, and by the voice of judgment, and by the voice of mercy all the day long, and by the voice of glory and honor and the riches of eternal life, and would have saved you with an everlasting salvation, but ye would not (Revelation: message for the nations of the earth, Feb. 1831) D&C 43:24-25
receiving the Word of the Lord
And my people must needs be chastened until they learn obedience, if it must needs be, by the things which they suffer. (Revelation for Zion's Camp, June 22, 1834) D&C 105:6
quoted by Mormon
And ye shall hear my words, for, for this intent have I come up upon the walls of this city, that ye might hear and know of the judgments of God which do await you because of your iniquities, and also that ye might know the conditions of repentance; (Samuel prophesies the destruction of the Nephites unless they repent, 6 B.C.) Helaman 14:11
397. The Church is charged with the responsibility to warn the people of God's impending judgments upon the wicked.
receiving the Word of the Lord
Behold, I sent you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.
82. Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads. . . .
85. That their souls may escape the wrath of God, the desolation of abomination which awaits the wicked, both in this world and in the world to come. Verily, I say unto you, let those who are not the first elders continue in the vineyard until the mouth of the Lord shall call them, for their time is not yet come; their garments are not clean from the blood of this generation. (Revelation Dec. 27/28, 1832; the "olive leaf message of peace.") D&C 88:81-82,85
The Lord has never sent judgments upon any generation which we have any knowledge of until he has raised up prophets and inspired men to warn the inhabitants of the earth. This is the course the Lord has dealt with all men from the days of Father Adam to the present time. (Salt Lake Stake Conference, Jan. 9, 1881, JD22:206) TLDP:329
receiving the Word of the Lord
I will that my saints should be assembled upon the land of Zion;
37. And that every man should take righteousness in his hands and faithfulness upon his loins, and lift a warning voice unto the inhabitants of the earth; and declare both by word and by flight that desolation shall come upon the wicked. (Revelation Aug. 1831) D&C 63:36-37
In regard to the future, it has been a duty devolving upon me, in connection with hundreds of others, to declare not only the Gospel, but to portray before the people future events. There are great things in the future, and we are sometimes apt to forget them. We have been looking, for some time past, for the Lord to accomplish and fulfill the times of the Gentiles; or the times allotted to them, during which the testimonies of his servants should go forth among them, or in other words, the times of the warning of the Gentile nations. . . . These things have been sounded so long in the ears of the Latter-day Saints that I have sometimes thought they have become like a pleasing song, or like a dream, and that they scarcely realize that these great events are at hand, even at the doors. But if we can depend upon the word of the Lord, if we can depend upon modern revelation which God has given—there is a time of tribulations, of sorrow, of great judgment, of great wrath and indignation, to come upon the nations of the earth, such as has not been since the foundation of the world. And these things are not far off, but are near at hand. . . . CR1880Apr:86
Related Witnesses:
God will hasten his work by opening the heavens and sending heavenly messengers to his prophets to warn his children to prepare themselves to receive their Lord at his second coming. CR1975Oct:71
The Lord has placed upon us the responsibility to preach the gospel, but there is another great responsibility. I think some of our missionaries have had an idea that all we had to do was to make friends, and if they wanted to come in the church, well and good, and the missionaries have not realized that they were under the obligation to leave a warning, and it is just as necessary that we warn the world as it is to declare the way of eternal life. . . .
Every missionary who goes out should see to it that he leaves his testimony, so that he will be free as the Lord has declared he should be in section four of the Doctrine and Covenants; and so that every man with whom he comes in contact should be warned and left without excuse, and thus the blood of every man be upon his own head. CR1946Apr:158
The Lord has raised up prophets and apostles who have cried aloud to this generation, with the proclamation of the Gospel for half a century, and warned them of the judgments which were to come, and the inhabitants of the earth have rejected this testimony, and shed the blood of the Lord's anointed, and persecuted the Saints of God, and the consequence of this, "Darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the people," and the Lord is withholding his spirit from the inhabitants of the earth, and the devil is ruling over his own kingdom, and wickedness and abominations of every kind have increased a hundred fold within the last few years, until the whole earth is filled with murders, whoredoms, blasphemies, and every crime in the black catalogue that was manifest in the antediluvian world, or Sodom and Gomorrah, until the whole earth groans under its abominations, and the heavens weep, and all eternity is pained, and the angels are waiting the great command to go forth and reap down the earth. This testimony I bear to all nations under heaven, and I know it is true by the inspiration of Almighty God. ("Epistle of Wilford Woodruff," Millennial Star, April 21, 1879, pp. 241, 245-46) TLDP:346
398. In the last days there shall be wars and rumors of wars.
receiving the Word of the Lord
And in that day shall be heard of wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion, and men's hearts shall fail them, and they shall say that Christ delayeth his coming until the end of the earth. . . .
33. . . . [Y]et men will harden their hearts against me, and they will take up the sword, one against another, and they will kill one another. (Revelation March 7, 1831 regarding the day of Christ's second coming) D&C 45:26,33
quoted by Joseph Smith,
translating Matthew
And they shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars.
29. Behold I speak for mine elect's sake; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (Jesus discourses on his second coming) JS-M 1:28-29
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
There will be wars and rumors of wars. . . . (General conference talk regarding the judgments to come before the Second Coming of Christ, April 1843) HC5:337; TPJS:286; DGSM:95
In the latter-day age of restoration, when once again the glorious wonders of the gospel are available to men, and when Israel is gathering again round the ancient standard, the powers of evil will be unleashed as never before in all history. Satan will then fight the truth and stir up the hearts of man to do evil and work wickedness to an extent and with an intensity never before known. . . .
. . . . But when those of us who live in the day of restoration hear of wars; when voices of contention and conspiracy among us threaten to use the sword in this eventuality or that; when we hear reports and rumors about the use of atomic bombs, poisonous gases, and other weapons of unbelievable power and cruelty; when these things happen in our day, it is quite another thing. Such things are among the signs of the times, and the wars and desolations of our day will make the hostilities of the past seem like feeble skirmishes among childish combatants.
Ours is the dispensation of desolation and war that will be climaxed by a worldwide Armageddon of butchery and blood at the very hour of the coming of the Son of Man. Jesus speaks thus for the elect's sake: none others can read the signs of the times. Carnal men will consider war as a way of life and a norm of society, not as a scourge sent of God to cleanse the earth preparatory to the return of his Son. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:440-41) TLDP:345
The coming event of great importance, toward which the attention of the world is directed by the preaching of the gospel, is the second and glorious coming of our Lord and Savior, for whose coming all good Christians are anxiously awaiting. . . .
Signs of the Lord's coming are seen in the wars and rumors of wars, famine, pestilence, the seas heaving themselves beyond their bounds, infidelity, apostasy, and wickedness of every conceivable character.
They have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances and broken the everlasting covenant, and sin and wickedness prevail throughout the earth. CR1947Oct:58
The world will soon be devastated with war and carnage, with plague and all the distresses that the Lord has promised unless they repent; but he has indicated that they will not repent, and distress must come. CR1937Apr:36
Related Witnesses:
I fear the time is coming . . . unless we can call the people of this world to repent of their sins and turn from the error of their ways, that the great war that has just passed will be an insignificant thing, as far as calamity is concerned, compared to that which is before us. CR1946Oct:149
Before this earth becomes a fit habitat for the Holy One, it must be cleansed and purified. The wicked must be destroyed; peace must replace war, and the evil imaginations in the hearts of men must give way to desires for righteousness. How shall this be brought to pass? There are two ways: [one of which is] by plagues and pestilence and wars and desolation. The wicked shall slay the wicked, as did the Nephites and the Lamanites in the day of the extinction of the Nephites as a nation. . . . (The Millennial Messiah, p. 378) DGSM:95
399. Desolating plagues and sicknesses shall cover the land in the last days.
Heber C. Kimball, Willard Richards
[F]or a desolating sickness shall cover the land. (Revelation March 7, 1831; signs and wonders to attend the Second Coming) D&C 45:31
(First Presidency)
[T]he overflowing scourges of God's wrath shall destroy the nations, and depopulate the earth on account of the multiplied infidelity and abominations of the inhabitants thereof. . . .
. . . [T]he increasing plagues and sickness in new and diversified forms, baffling the skill of the ablest physicians, and causing the wisdom of their wisest to perish . . . all these signs, and . . . many more like things [are the fulfillment of prophecies which] should come to pass in this generation, as signs of the second coming of the Son of Man, which is near at hand. . . . ("Fifth General Epistle" to the Saints, April 7, 1851) MOFP2:63-64
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
I will prophesy that the signs of the coming of the Son of Man are already commenced. One pestilence will desolate after another. (Address to the Twelve, July 1839) HC3:390; TPJS:160 DGSM:95
quoted by Joseph Smith,
translating Matthew
Behold I speak for mine elect's sake; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (Jesus discourses on his second coming) JS-M 1:29
Before this earth becomes a fit habitat for the Holy One, it must be cleansed and purified. The wicked must be destroyed; peace must replace war, and the evil imaginations in the hearts of men must give way to desires for righteousness. How shall this be brought to pass? There are two ways: (1) By plagues and pestilence and wars and desolation. . . . Plagues will sweep the earth, as the Black Death ravaged Asia and Europe in the fourteenth century. . . . (2) Then, at his coming, the vineyard will be burned. The residue of the wicked will be consumed. (The Millennial Messiah, p. 378) DGSM:95
Speaking to His apostles concerning our day, Jesus said: "They shall see an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land.
"But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved; but among the wicked, men shall lift up their voices and curse God and die." [D&C 45:31-32CR1977Apr:76-77
400. Before the Second Coming of the Lord, the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon will appear as blood.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
Thus, the work of the Lord is advancing and all these things are signs of the near approach of our Lord. The words of the prophets are rapidly being fulfilled, but it is done on such natural principles that most of us fail to see it. Wonders in heaven and in the earth should be seen, and there should be fire, blood and pillars of smoke. Eventually the sun is to be turned into darkness and the moon as blood, and then shall come the great and dreadful day of the Lord. Some of these signs have been given; some are yet to come. The sun has not yet been darkened. We are informed that this will be one of the last acts just preceding the coming of the Lord. One wonders if we are not now seeing some of the signs in heaven. (Quoted by Albert L. Zobell, Jr.,"A Modern Prophet at Ninety-Five," EN1971Jul:33) TLDP:352-53
And before the day of the Lord shall come, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon be turned into blood, and the stars fall from heaven. (Revelation March 7, 1831; signs, wonders, and the resurrection are to attend the Second Coming) D&C 45:42
receiving the Word of the Lord
[L]ift up your voice as with the sound of a trump, both long and loud, and cry repentance unto a crooked and perverse generation; preparing the way of the Lord for his second coming.
7. For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, the time is soon at hand that I shall come in a cloud with power and great glory.
8. And it shall be a great day at the time of my coming, for all nations shall tremble.
9. But before that great day shall come, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon be turned into blood; and the stars shall refuse their shining, and some shall fall, and great destructions await the wicked. (Jesus Christ in a revelation for Orson Pratt [age 19] Nov. 4, 1830, at Peter Whitmer, Sr., home) D&C 34:6-9
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea be healed. It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, etc.; and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make his appearance. There will be wars and rumors of wars, signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven. But what will the world do? They will say it is a planet, a comet, etc. But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east. (In General conference, convened on the floor of the Nauvoo Temple, April 6, 1843) HC5:337; TPJS:286-87
And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
31. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come. (Joel, a prophet of Judah, prophesies) Joel 2:30-31
Author's Note: The prophecy of Joel (Joel 2:28-32was quoted by Peter on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:17) and by the angel Moroni to Joseph Smith (JS-H 1:41).
Related Witnesses:
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
I will prophesy that the signs of the coming of the Son of Man are already commenced. One pestilence will desolate after another. We shall soon have war and bloodshed. The moon will be turned to blood. I testify of these things, and that the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, even at your doors. If our souls and our bodies are not looking forth for the coming of the Son of Man; and after we are dead, if we are not looking forth, we shall be among those who are calling for the rocks to fall upon them. (Address to the Twelve, July 1839) HC3:390; TPJS:160; DGSM:95; TLDP:351
401. In the last days great physical calamities will occur and the whole earth shall be in commotion.
Nor is war all we face; as the crusades of carnage increase, so will the plagues and pestilence. Famine and disease will stalk the earth. And for some reason, as yet undiscovered by modern geologists, earthquakes will increase in number and intensity. These are the last days, and the judgments of God are at hand.
All this shall be because iniquity abounds. Sin is the father of all the ills poured out upon mankind. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:440-41) TLDP:345
For not many days hence and the earth shall tremble and reel to and fro as a drunken man; and the sun shall hide his face, and shall refuse to give light; and the moon shall be bathed in blood; and the stars shall become exceedingly angry, and shall cast themselves down as a fig that falleth from off a fig-tree. (Revelation Dec. 27/28, 1832) D&C 88:87
receiving the Word of the Lord
And there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations; yet men will harden their hearts against me, and they will take up the sword, one against another, and they will kill one another. . . .
40. And they shall see signs and wonders, for they shall be shown forth in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath.
41. And they shall behold blood, and fire, and vapors of smoke.
42. And before the day of the Lord shall come, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon be turned into blood, and the stars fall from heaven. (Revelation March 7, 1831; signs and wonders to attend the Second Coming) D&C 45:33,40-42
I believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was just geologist enough to know the time when this earth would quake, when the processes of nature should go forth to cause great upheavals, and knew the hour, just as an astronomer can predict the time of eclipse. The Lord Jesus knew when that would happen, and he knew it was coincident and immediately preceding the wonderful events that would happen in preparation of his coming.
These are the last days spoken of by the prophets of old. These are the signs. CR1923Oct:32
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
8. And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9. And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. (John sees desolation poured out preceding the Second Coming) Revelation 8:7-9
And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
13. And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. (John sees the signs of the times) Revelation 6:12-13
quoted by John A. Widtsoe
All we have heard and we have experienced is scarcely a preface to the sermon that is going to be preached. When the testimony of the Elders ceases to be given, and the Lord says to them, "Come home: I will now preach my own sermons to the nations of the earth," all you now know can scarcely be called a preface to the sermon that will be preached with fire and sword, tempests, earthquakes, hail, rain, thunders and lightnings, and fearful destruction. What matters the destruction of a few railway cars? You will hear of magnificent cities, now idolized by the people, sinking in the earth, entombing the inhabitants. The sea will heave itself beyond its bounds, engulfing mighty cities. Famine will spread over the nations and nation will rise up against nation, kingdom against kingdom and states against states, in our own country and in foreign lands; and they will destroy each other, caring not for blood and lives of their neighbors, of their families, or for their own lives. (In Bowery, July 1860, JD8:123) DBY:111-12; DGSM:95
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
The coming of the Son of Man never will be—never can be till the judgments spoken of for this hour are poured out: which judgments are commenced. Paul says, "Ye are the children of the light, and not of the darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief in the night." It is not the design of the Almighty to come upon the earth and crush it and grind it to powder, but he will reveal it to His servants the prophets.
Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea be healed. It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, and etc.; and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make His appearance. There will be wars and rumors of wars, signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven. But what will the world do? They will say it is a planet, a comet, etc. But the Son of man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east. (General conference talk regarding the judgments to come before the second coming of Christ, April 1843) HC5:336-37; TPJS:286; DGSM:95
402. The righteous will be preserved from the calamities and judgments of the Lord in the last days.
For the time soon cometh that the fulness of the wrath of God shall be poured out upon all the children of men; for he will not suffer that the wicked shall destroy the righteous.
17. Wherefore, he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore, the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire. . . .
22. And the righteous need not fear, for they are those who shall not be confounded. (Nephi explains the prophecies written on the plates of brass, 588-570 B.C.) 1 Nephi 22:16-17,22
also quoting James E. Talmage
Through Malachi the Lord promised "Israel that by faithfulness the seasons should be made propitious, that nurturing rains should come, bringing such harvests that the people would lack room to store their products." (Talmage, Improvement Era, June 1921, p. 738; see Malachi 3:8-12.) Like assurances have been given in these latter days.
Nephi, envisioning and speaking of our day, said that God "will preserve the righteous by his power, . . . even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore, the righteous need not fear." (1 Nephi 22:17)
Speaking to His apostles concerning our day, Jesus said: "They shall see an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land.
"But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved; but among the wicked, men shall lift up their voices and curse God and die." [D&C 45:31-32CR1977Apr:76-77
To men and likewise to nations the promises and threatenings of God are always conditional. In the wisdom and goodness of God good behavior, sorrowful repentance and conversion can stay the approach of judgment, or at least secure a respite. People are given time by the Almighty to return to him through repentance. There is forgiveness with Him. Thus the Lord turns aside his judgments for a while at least. Nineveh's people were rescued. They were granted an extension of time. Judgments are conditional. The people themselves are responsible for the calamities that befall them, but when they repent and turn unto the Lord, he hears their prayers. CR1938Oct:23
Do you not know . . . that God knew what was coming; that he brought this people into these mountain valleys as a place of refuge when the storm shall come. We only hear the beginning of that storm. Dismal and distressful as has been its approach, while its thunders and its flashings have filled our hearts with terror, it is but the beginning of the storm. Oh, that it were passed, and that it were gone; but it is not, it is not . . . . The storm in its fury shall rage; and all the powers of man cannot avert it. Only one thing can save them: their humiliation, their repentance will save them and nothing else can. CR1922Oct:59
receiving the Word of the Lord
For I am no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion.
36. And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world. (Revelation received during conference of elders of the Church, Nov. 1, 1831; preface to the doctrines given to the Church) D&C 1:35-36
And then we should understand that the Lord has provided, when the days of trouble come upon the nations, a place for you and me, and we will be preserved as Noah was preserved, not in an ark, but we will be preserved by going into these principles of union by which we can accomplish the work of the Lord and surround ourselves with those things that will preserve us from the difficulties that are now coming upon the world, the judgments of the Lord. We can see, as we read in the newspapers, that they are coming upon the nations of the ungodly; and they would have been upon us if we had stayed among the nations, if the Lord had not inclined our ears and brought salvation to us, we would have been as they are. CR1900Oct:4
We must return to worship the God of this land, who is Jesus Christ. He has promised that the righteous will be preserved by His power (see 1 Ne. 22:17). But we must keep the commandments of God. We must pay our tithes and offerings, keep the Sabbath day a holy day, stay morally clean, be honest in all our dealings, and have our family and personal prayers. We must live the gospel. (CR 1979Oct; A Witness and a Warning, Ensign, November 1979, p.31)
Related Witnesses:
receiving the Word of the Lord
Wherefore, I command you again to repent, lest I humble you with my almighty power; and that you confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken, of which in the smallest, yea, even in the least degree you have tasted at the time I withdrew my Spirit. (A commandment of God for Martin Harris, March 1830) D&C 19:20
So far as our temporal matters are concerned, we have got to go to work and provide for ourselves. The day will come when, as we have been told, we shall all see the necessity of making our own shoes and clothing and raising our own food, and uniting together to carry out the purposes of the Lord. We will be preserved in the mountains of Israel in the day of God's judgment. I therefore say to you, my brethren and sisters, prepare for that which is to come. ("Address given to Weber Stake," Millennial Star, Oct. 8, 1894, p. 644) TLDP:354
Author's Note: That the righteous will be preserved seems to be a general statement, for according to the prophet Joseph Smith, the righteous shall hardly escape all the judgments for all flesh is subject to suffer:
"Sunday,
29.—Held meeting at my own house. After others had spoken I spoke and explained concerning the uselessness of preaching to the world about great judgments, but rather to preach the simple Gospel. Explained concerning the coming of the Son of Man; also that it is a false idea that the Saints will escape all the judgments, whilst the wicked suffer; for all flesh is subject to suffer, and 'the righteous shall hardly escape;' still many of the Saints will escape, for the just shall live by faith; yet many of the righteous shall fall a prey to disease, to pestilence, etc., by reason of the weakness of the flesh, and yet be saved in the Kingdom of God. So that it is an unhallowed principle to say that such and such have transgressed because they have been preyed upon by disease or death, for all flesh is subject to death; and the Savior has said, 'judge not, lest ye be judged'." (HC4:11)
403. The judgments and calamities prophesied to come in the last days will first come upon the disobedient and sinful within the Church.
For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? (Letter to the churches in modern Asia Minor, about A.D. 60) 1 Peter 4:17
The judgments will begin at the house of God. We have to pass through some of these things, but it will only be a very little compared with the terrible destruction, the misery and suffering that will overtake the world who are doomed to suffer the wrath of God. It behooves us, as the Saints of God, to stand firm and faithful in the observance of his laws, that we may be worthy of his preserving care and blessing. (At Ephraim, Utah, April 13, 1879, JD21:100) TLDP:353
receiving the Word of the Lord
Behold, vengeance cometh speedily upon the inhabitants of the earth, a day of wrath, a day of burning, a day of desolation, of weeping, of mourning, and of lamentation; and as a whirlwind it shall come upon all the face of the earth, saith the Lord.
25. And upon my house shall it begin, and from my house shall it go forth, saith the Lord;
26. First among those among you, saith the Lord, who have professed to know my name and have not known me, and have blasphemed against me in the midst of my house, saith the Lord. (Revelation for Thomas B. Marsh concerning the Twelve Apostles; received on the day on which the gospel was first preached in England, July 23, 1837) D&C 112:24-26
Related Witnesses:
The parable of the ten virgins is intended to represent the second coming of the Son of man, the coming of the Bridegroom to meet the bride, the Church, the Lamb's wife, in the last days; and I expect that the Savior was about right when he said, in reference to the members of the Church, that five of them were wise and five were foolish; for when the Lord of heaven comes in power and great glory to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body, if he finds one-half of those professing to be members of his Church prepared for salvation, it will be as many as can be expected, judging by the course that many are pursuing. (In new Tabernacle, Sept. 12, 1875, JD18:110) TLDP:623
Do you not know . . . that God knew what was coming; that he brought this people into these mountain valleys as a place of refuge when the storm shall come. We only hear the beginning of that storm. Dismal and distressful as has been its approach, while its thunders and its flashings have filled our hearts with terror, it is but the beginning of the storm. Oh, that it were passed, and that it were gone; but it is not, it is not . . . The storm in its fury shall rage; and all the powers of man cannot avert it. Only one thing can save them: their humiliation, their repentance will save them and nothing else can. Therefore we stand in peril, many of us For do you think that the Lord who has given us greater light and greater knowledge than the world, will pass us by in our sins and our transgressions? I say to you that if we do not live better than the world, if our standard of morality is not in excess of theirs, if we do not observe the law and maintain it better than any other people we ought to be ashamed of ourselves, and we shall stand under great condemnation before the Lord, because we know more than anybody else. The light and knowledge that the Lord has given to us place us in a very peculiar position, and if we are not careful the judgment of the Lord shall begin at the house of the Lord. CR1922Oct:59
404. In the last days the fulness of the gospel is to be given first to the Gentiles (non-Jews) and thereafter to the Jews.
No man knows the day or the hour when Christ will come, yet the generation has been pointed out by Jesus himself. He told his disciples when they passed by the temple as they walked out of Jerusalem that that generation should not pass away before not one stone of that magnificent temple should be left standing upon another and the Jews should be scattered among the nations; and history tells how remarkably that prediction was fulfilled. Moses and the prophets also prophesied of this as well as Jesus. The Savior, when speaking to his disciples of his second coming and the establishment of his kingdom on the earth, said the Jews should be scattered and trodden under foot until the times of the Gentiles were fulfilled. But, said he, when you see light breaking forth among the Gentiles, referring to the preaching of his gospel amongst them; when you see salvation offered to the Gentiles, and the Jews—the seed of Israel—passed by, the last first and the first last; when you see this you may know that the time of my second coming is at hand as surely as you know that summer is nigh when the fig tree puts forth its leaves; and when these things commence that generation shall not pass away until all are fulfilled. (In Tabernacle, Jan. 1, 1871, JD14:5) TLDP:620
They are the Twelve Apostles, who are called to the office of the Traveling High Council, who are to preside over the churches of the Saints, among the Gentiles, where there is a presidency established; and they are to travel and preach among the Gentiles, until the Lord shall command them to go to the Jews. They are to hold the keys of this ministry, to unlock the door of the Kingdom of heaven unto all nations, and to preach the Gospel to every creature. This is the power, authority, and virtue of their apostleship. ("Items of Instruction to the Twelve," Feb. 27, 1835; reported by Oliver Cowdery, clerk; "President Smith proposed the following question: 'What importance is there attached to the calling of these Twelve Apostles, different from the other callings or officers of the Church?' After the question was discussed by Councilors Patten, Young, Smith, and M'Lellin, President Joseph Smith, Jun., gave the foregoing decision.") HC2:2
Sometimes our neighbors and friends think hard of us because we call them Gentiles; but, bless your souls, we are all Gentiles. The Latter-day Saints are all Gentiles in a national capacity. The Gospel came to us among the Gentiles. We are not Jews, and the Gentile nations have got to hear the Gospel first. The whole Christian world have got to hear the Gospel, and when they reject it, the law will be bound and the testimony sealed, and it will turn to the house of Israel. Up to the present day we have been called to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, and we have had to do it. For the last time we have been warning the world. . . . (In new Tabernacle, Sept. 12, 1875, JD18:112) DCSM:30
[A]nd many generations after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto the children of men, then shall the fulness of the gospel of the Messiah come unto the Gentiles, and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed. (Nephi interprets his father Lehi's dream to his brothers, between 600-592 B.C.) 1 Nephi 15:13
There is a question with some as to when the times of the gentiles shall be fulfilled. The gospel came first to the Jews in the Meridian of Time, and then to the gentiles, and the promise was that in the latter days it would come first to the gentiles and then unto the Jews. (CR 1956Oct; Afternoon Meeting, p.26)
Related Witnesses:
The Lord has caused Israel to mix with the nations and bring the Gentiles within the blessings of the seed of Abraham. We are preaching the gospel now in all parts of the world, and for what purpose? To gather out from the Gentile nations the lost sheep of the house of Israel. It is by this scattering that the Gentile nations have been blessed, and if they will truly repent they are entitled to all the blessings promised to Israel, "which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal." (Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:57) TLDP:210
receiving the Word of the Lord
Wherefore it behooveth me that he should be ordained by you, Oliver Cowdery mine apostle;
11. This being an ordinance unto you, that you are an elder under his hand, he being the first unto you, that you might be an elder unto this church of Christ, bearing my name—
12. And the first preacher of this church unto the church, and before the world, yea, before the Gentiles; yea, and thus saith the Lord God, lo, lo to the Jews also. Amen. (Revelation to Joseph Smith given at the organization of the church, April 6, 1830) D&C 21:10-12
And he further stated that the fulness of the Gentiles was soon to come in. (Joseph Smith relates the angel Moroni's visit to him, Sept. 21, 1823) JS-H 1:41
405. The gospel shall be preached to all nations before the Second Coming of Christ.
President Joseph Fielding Smith
Heber C. Kimball, Willard Richards
The Gospel of Jesus Christ must be preached to all nations for witness and a testimony; for a sign that the day has come, the set time for the Lord to redeem Zion, and gather Israel, preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. (In Tabernacle, Aug. 8, 1853, JD3:91) TLDP:352
We have attained the stature and strength that are enabling us to fulfill the commission given us by the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith that we should carry the glad tidings of the restoration to every nation and to all people.
And not only shall we preach the gospel in every nation before the second coming of the Son of Man, but we shall make converts and establish congregations of Saints among them. ACR(Manchester)1971:5
recorded in Matthew
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Jesus discourses on his second coming) Matthew 24:14
For if this gospel that Jesus referred to was to be preached in all the world, it had to be done by his children. And hundreds of thousands of Latter-day Saint missionaries since that time have been all over the world—some 25,000 of them at the present time—to declare the restoration of the gospel as one of the steps in the preparation for the return of the Savior, for he so indicated that it must be preached in all the world. CR1978Apr:113
(First Presidency)
The unparalleled spread of the Gospel, in so short a space of time [twenty-one years at this writing], and the rapid gathering of the saints, is another token of Messiah's near approach. ("Fifth General Epistle" to the Saints, April 7, 1851) MOFP2:63-64
Related Witnesses:
receiving the Word of the Lord
And the poor and the meek shall have the gospel preached unto them, and they shall be looking forth for the time of my coming, for it is nigh at hand— (Revelation to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, Dec. 1830) D&C 35:15
Before the Lord destroyed the old world, he directed Noah to prepare an ark; before the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, he told Lot to "flee to the mountains;" before Jerusalem was destroyed Jesus gave his disciples warning, and told them to "flee out of it;" and before the destruction of the world, a message is sent; after this, the nations will be judged, for God is now preparing his own kingdom for his own reign, and will not be thwarted by any conflicting influence, or opposing power. The testimony of God is first to be made known, the standard is to be raised; the gospel of the kingdom is to be preached to all nations, the world is to be warned, and then come the troubles. (The Government of God, p. 101) TLDP:328-29
He will come with the body of flesh and bones in which His Spirit was tabernacled when he ascended from Mount Olivet. One of the characteristic features of the Church concerning that great, and in the language of the scripture, both glorious and terrible event, is its nearness. It is close at hand. The mission of the Church is to prepare the earth for the coming of the Lord. CR1916Apr:126
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been brought forth and established by the power of God and dedicated to the mission of preparing the way for the glorious coming of the Son of God to reign in the earth in truth and righteousness and peace.
Would to God this glorious second coming of the Messiah might be in our day, but let it be sooner or later, in it we will rejoice.
Truly, God will descend from the heavens in incomparable power and glory with all His holy angels, and He will stand upon the earth at the latter day. Then heaven and earth will meet. (Fundamentals of Religion: A Series of Radio Addresses [Independence, Missouri: Zion's Printing and Publishing Co., 1945], p. 40) TLDP:623
Author's Note: Reference is made to "the end of the world," which is the end of, or destruction of, the wicked. This, however, does not mean the end of the earth. End of the "world" is not end of the "earth:"
4. . . . Tell us when shall these things be which thou hast said concerning the destruction of the temple, and the Jews; and what is the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world, or the destruction of the wicked, which is the end of the world? (The disciples of Jesus come to Jesus privately to ask regarding the sign of his second coming) (JS-M 1:4)
406. In the last days false Christs and false prophets shall emerge showing great signs and wonders.
Heber C. Kimball, Willard Richards
recorded in Matthew
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. (Jesus answers his disciples regarding his second coming and the last days) Matthew 24:24
(First Presidency)
[T]he increase of seers, and wizards, and diviners, and familiar spirits, and soothsayers, and astrologers, who are charming the nations with their magic arts, lulling the foolish to sleep with their magnetic influence, deceiving priests and people by their necromancy, calling rain, snow, and fire from heaven, and scattering abroad hoar frost like a winter's night . . . all these signs, and . . . many more like things [are the fulfillment of prophecies which] should come to pass in this generation, as signs of the second coming of the Son of Man, which is near at hand. . . . ("Fifth General Epistle" to the Saints, April 7,1851) MOFP2:63-64
In the day preceding our Lord's return, false religions will cover the earth. Each will be, as it were, a false Christ, inviting men to this or that system of salvation; each will have its own ministers and evangelists who, as false prophets, will propound its doctrines and extol its wonder. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:436-37) TLDP:30
False prophets and Christs, as foretold by the Savior, may come to deceive us not alone in the name of religion, but if we can believe the history of Italy and Germany and Russia, they may come under the label of politicians or of social planners or so-called economists, deceitful in their offerings of a kind of salvation which may come under such guise. CR1950Oct:131
True, there may be those deranged persons who suppose they are God, or Christ, or the Holy Ghost, or almost anything. None but the lunatic fringe among men, however, will give them a second serious thought. The promise of false Christs who will deceive, if it were possible, even the very elect, who will lead astray those who have made eternal covenant with the Lord, is a far more subtle and insidious evil.
A false Christ is not a person. It is a false system of worship, a false church, a false cult that says: "Lo, here is salvation; here is the doctrine of Christ. Come and believe thus and so, and ye shall be saved." It is any concept or philosophy that says that redemption, salvation, sanctification, justification, and all of the promised rewards can be gained in any way except that set forth by the apostles and prophets. . . .
We hear the voice of a false Christ when we hear the divines of the day preach that salvation comes by the grace of God, not of works lest any man should boast, but simply by believing in and confessing the Lord Jesus with one's lips; or that signs and gifts and miracles are done away; or that ministers have power to represent the Lord and preach his gospel because they have a feeling in their heart that such is the course they should pursue.
We hear the voice of one false Christ, echoing from the camps of communism, expounding the devil-devised declaration that religion is the opiate of the people. We hear another such voice when races alien to Israel acclaim that the one God has no need for a Son to mediate between himself and fallen man.
We see the works of false Christs when women and homosexuals are ordained to the priesthood, as it is supposed; or when elaborate rituals pervert and twist and add to the sacrament of the Lord's supper; or when sins are forgiven through the doing of penance and the paying of money, as it is supposed.
Indeed, false Christs are everywhere. (The Millennial Messiah, pp. 48-50) TLDP:30-31
Related Witnesses:
We are not justified in regarding miracles as infallible testimony of Divine power and authority, for powers of the baser sort work wonders, to the deceiving of many. The magicians of Egypt were able to imitate in small measure the miracles of Moses . [See Exodus 7:8-25; 8:1-7John the Revelator told of evil powers deceiving men by what seemed to be supernatural achievements, and he saw unclean spirits, whom he knew to be "the spirits of devils working miracles." (See Revelation 13:13-14; 16:13-14And the Savior Himself by this solemn warning armed the disciples against deception: "For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." (Matthew 24:24)
The distinguishing feature of a miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit, as contrasted with a wonder wrought through other agencies, lies in the fact that the former is always done in the name of Jesus Christ, and had for its object the fostering of faith and the furthering of Divine purposes. (The Vitality of Mormonism, pp. 123-24) TLDP:650
Now, the only safe course for you and all mankind to pursue is to obey the Priesthood, to listen to the teachings of the servants of God and never murmur against them. Then God's power will increase with you, and you will add knowledge to knowledge, light to light, and be brought back into the presence of God. Then, when false prophets arise and wonderful works are performed by them through the power of the evil one, you will not be deceived; for you will know that they are not of God. Though they may call fire down from Heaven, you will still cling to the Priesthood of God. (Gospel Truth, 2:297-98) TLDP:667
407. In the last days iniquity will abound.
In the latter-day age of restoration, when once again the glorious wonders of the gospel are available to men, and when Israel is gathering again round the ancient standard, the powers of evil will be unleashed as never before in all history. Satan will then fight the truth and stir up the hearts of man to do evil and work wickedness to an extent and with an intensity never before known. . . .
. . . . Such things are among the signs of the times, and the wars and desolations of our day will make the hostilities of the past seem like feeble skirmishes among childish combatants.
Ours is the dispensation of desolation and war that will be climaxed by a worldwide Armageddon of butchery and blood at the very hour of the coming of the Son of Man. Jesus speaks thus for the elect's sake: none others can read the signs of the times. Carnal men will consider war as a way of life and a norm of society, not as a scourge sent of God to cleanse the earth preparatory to the return of his Son.
Nor is war all we face; as the crusades of carnage increase, so will the plagues and pestilence. Famine and disease will stalk the earth. And for some reason, as yet undiscovered by modern geologists, earthquakes will increase in number and intensity. These are the last days, and the judgments of God are at hand.
All this shall be because iniquity abounds. Sin is the father of all the ills poured out upon mankind. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:440-41) TLDP:345
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3. Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4. Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
6. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
7. Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (Paul writes to his assistant Timothy, about A.D. 64) 2 Timothy 3:1-7
quoted by Joseph Smith,
translating Matthew
And now I show unto you a parable. Behold, wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together; so likewise shall mine elect be gathered from the four quarters of the earth.
28. And they shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars.
29. Behold I speak for mine elect's sake; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
30. And again, because iniquity shall abound, the love of men shall wax cold; but he that shall not be overcome, the same shall be saved.
31. And again, this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come, or the destruction of the wicked;
32. And again shall the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, be fulfilled. (An extract from the translation of the Bible as revealed to Joseph Smith, about Sept. 1831; Christ speaks of his second coming) JS-M 1:27-32
And the love of men shall wax cold, and iniquity shall abound.
28. And when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel;
29. But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men. . . .
33. And there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations; yet men will harden their hearts against me, and they will take up the sword, one against another, and they will kill one another. (Revelation, March 7, 1831; signs and wonders to attend the Second Coming) D&C 45:27-29,33
The question may be asked why these judgments are coming upon the world in the last days? I answer because of the wickedness of the inhabitants thereof. . . . The Lord has raised up prophets and apostles who have cried aloud to this generation, with the proclamation of the Gospel for half a century, and warned them of the judgments which were to come, and the inhabitants of the earth have rejected this testimony, and shed the blood of the Lord's anointed, and persecuted the Saints of God, and the consequence of this, "Darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the people," and the Lord is withholding his spirit from the inhabitants of the earth, and the devil is ruling over his own kingdom, and wickedness and abominations of every kind have increased a hundred fold within the last few years, until the whole earth is filled with murders, whoredoms, blasphemies, and every crime in the black catalogue that was manifest in the antediluvian world, or Sodom and Gomorrah, until the whole earth groans under its abominations, and the heavens weep, and all eternity is pained, and the angels are waiting the great command to go forth and reap down the earth. This testimony I bear to all nations under heaven, and I know it is true by the inspiration of Almighty God. ("Epistle of Wilford Woodruff," Millennial Star, April 21, 1879, pp. 241, 245-46) TLDP:345-46
Related Witnesses:
recorded in Matthew
But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39. And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. (Signs of the Second Coming are spoken of by the Savior) Matthew 24:37-39
I prophesy, in the name of the Lord God of Israel, anguish and wrath and tribulation and the withdrawing of the Spirit of God from the earth await this generation, until they are visited with utter desolation. This generation is as corrupt as the generation of the Jews that crucified Christ; and if He were here today, and should preach the same doctrine He did then, they would put Him to death. (At the Stand east of the Nauvoo Temple, Oct. 15, 1843) HC6:58
408. Before the Lord comes in judgment the Lamanites will blossom as the rose.
But before the great day of the Lord shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the wilderness, and the Lamanites shall blossom as the rose. (Revelation, March 1831, refuting Shaker doctrines and elaborating on the Second Coming) D&C 49:24
I am looking for the fulfillment of all things that the Lord has spoken, and they will come to pass as the Lord God lives. Zion is bound to rise and flourish. The Lamanites will blossom as the rose on the mountains. I am willing to say here that, though I believe this, when I see the power of the nation destroying them from the face of the earth, the fulfilment of that prophecy is perhaps harder for me to believe than any revelation of God that I ever read. It looks as though there would not be enough left to receive the gospel; but notwithstanding this dark picture, every word that God has ever said of them will have its fulfilment, and they, by and by, will receive the gospel. It will be a day of God's power among them, and a nation will be born in a day. Their chiefs will be filled with the power of God and receive the gospel, and they will go forth and build the new Jerusalem, and we shall help them. (In 13th Ward, Jan. 12, 1873, JD15:282) TLDP:115
The Lamanites must rise in majesty and power. We must look forward to the day when they will be "white and delightsome" ["pure and delightsome," 2 Nephi 30:6], sharing the freedoms and blessings which we enjoy; when they shall have economic security, culture, refinement, and education; when they shall be operating farms and businesses and industries and shall be occupied in the professions and in teaching; when they shall be organized into wards and stakes of Zion, furnishing much of their own leadership; when they shall build and occupy and fill the temples, and serve in them as the natives are now serving in the Hawaiian Temple where I found last year the entire service conducted by them and done perfectly. And in the day when their prophet shall come, one shall rise . . . "mighty among them . . . being an instrument in the hands of God, with exceeding faith, to work mighty wonders. . . ." (2 Nephi 3:24)
Brothers and sisters, the florescence of the Lamanites is in our hands. CR1947Oct:22
[The Lamanites] are our brethren, being of the house of Israel and containing a purer strain of Israelitish blood than many members of the Church. It has been predicted, and the word of the Lord will no more fail in this respect than in any other, that they will yet become a white and delightsome people ["pure and delightsome" 2 Nephi 30:6], possessed of a very high degree of cultivation.
They are to build the New Jerusalem, and we, who are of the Gentile nations, are to assist them in the work. The prospect of such a condition of things may humble our pride, but we may as well look squarely at the destiny which is before [them] . . . in the due time of the Lord they will be redeemed. (Gospel Truth, 2:98) TLDP:115
These Lamanites, are heirs to the promises, and God has said, without qualification, that He will give this land to them for an everlasting inheritance [3 Nephi 20:13-14, that they shall be, with us, the builders of the New Jerusalem [3 Nephi 21:20-25; the powers of heaven shall be among them, and they shall know the record of their fathers which has been brought to us through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith. CR1915Apr:112
God gave us the Book of Mormon and the chief reason, as set forth in one of the revelations, is that it shall be the means of bringing to the descendants of Father Lehi the knowledge of the Redeemer of the world, and to establish them in the faith of their fathers. I bear witness to you that nothing on earth shall ever bring them out of their thraldom save the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I rejoice, therefore, that the day dawn is breaking, the night is dispelling, and the day of their redemption cometh. CR1926Oct:40
Related Witnesses:
And it came to pass that those Lamanites who had united with the Nephites were numbered among the Nephites;
15. And their curse was taken from them, and their skin became white like unto the Nephites;
16. And their young men and their daughters became exceedingly fair, and they were numbered among the Nephites, and were called Nephites. And thus ended the thirteenth year. (Converted Lamanites become white and are called Nephites, about A.D. 3-9) 3 Nephi 2:14-16
Author's Note: Whether or not the Lamanites eventually become white skinned, it is clear from scripture that one of the signs of the last days will be that the Lamanites will blossom in the gospel sense. It will make no difference as to the color of their skin because the Lord " . . . inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile." (See 2 Nephi 26:33.) Those who accept Christ and are valiant can become spotless, pure, fair, and white because of being cleansed by the Redeemer. "O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day." (See Mormon 9:6.)
The Lamanites first received their dark skin "that they might not be enticing" to the Nephites who were living the gospel: "And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them." (See 2 Nephi 5:21.)
409. The time will come when the wicked will be cleansed from the earth by fire.
The cleansing of the earth of much of its iniquity, by blood, fire, earthquake, pestilence, and the display of angry elements, was to assist in preparing the way for the return of the lost tribes of Israel. . . . The great day of the coming of the lost tribes would be after the preparatory work had been accomplished in the destruction of wickedness in very great measure, and the way prepared in part for the coming of the Lord also and the building of his Holy City and Temple. CHMR1:378
For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. (The prophet Malachi to the people, about 430 B.C.) Malachi 4:1
Then [in the days of Noah] the world was destroyed by flood, now it is to be destroyed by war, pestilence, famine, earthquake, storms and tempest, the sea rolling beyond its bounds, malarious vapors, vermin, disease and by fire and the lightnings of God's wrath poured out for destruction upon Babylon. The cry of the angel unto the righteous of this dispensation is, "Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues" (Revelation 18:4). (Improvement Era, Vol. 14, p. 266; Gospel Doctrine, p. 104.) TLDP:327-28
receiving the Word of the Lord
And the great and abominable church, which is the whore of all the earth, shall be cast down by devouring fire, according as it is spoken by the mouth of Ezekiel the prophet, who spoke of these things, which have not come to pass but surely must, as I live, for abominations shall not reign. (Revelation received Sept. 1830) D&C 29:21
Related Witnesses:
Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. (Babylon falls, lamented by her supporters) Revelation 18:8
It is also the concurrent testimony of all the Prophets, that this gathering together of all the Saints, must take place before the Lord comes to "take vengeance upon the ungodly," and "to be glorified and admired by all those who obey the Gospel." The fiftieth Psalm, from the first to the fifth verse inclusive, describes the glory and majesty of that event.
"The mighty God, and even the Lord hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth (that He may judge the people). Gather my Saints together unto me; those that have made covenant with me by sacrifice." (From "A Proclamation of the Presidency of the Church to the Saints," Jan. 8, 1841) HC4:272
The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
2. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.
3. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. Psalms 50:1-3
