42

CHAPTER 42.

JESUS THE CHRIST TO RETURN.


THE LORD'S SECOND ADVENT PREDICTED IN ANCIENT SCRIPTURE.

"Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus,
which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as
ye have seen him go into heaven."[1551] So spake the white-robed angels
to the eleven apostles as the resurrected Christ ascended from their
midst on Olivet. The scriptures abound in predictions of the Lord's
return.

By the "second advent" we understand not the personal appearing of the
Son of God to a few, such as His visitation to Saul of Tarsus, to Joseph
Smith in 1820, and again in the Kirtland Temple in 1836; nor later
manifestations to His worthy servants as specifically promised;[1552]
but His yet future coming in power and great glory, accompanied by hosts
of resurrected and glorified beings, to execute judgment upon the earth
and to inaugurate a reign of righteousness.

The prophets of both hemispheres, who lived prior to the meridian of
time, said comparatively little concerning the Lord's second coming;
their souls were too full of the merciful plan of redemption associated
with the Savior's birth into mortality to permit them to dwell upon the
yet more distant consummation appointed for the last days. Certain of
them, however, were permitted to behold in vision the working out of the
divine purposes even to the end of time; and these testified with
unsurpassed fervency concerning the glorious coming of Christ in the
final dispensation. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied saying,
"Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute
judgment upon all."[1553] In a more extended account of the Lord's
revelations to Enoch than is included in the Bible, we read that after
this righteous prophet had been shown the scenes of Israel's history,
down to and beyond the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus
Christ, he pleaded with God, saying: "I ask thee if thou wilt not come
again on the earth. And the Lord said unto Enoch: As I live, even so
will I come in the last days, in the days of wickedness and vengeance,
to fulfil the oath which I have made unto you concerning the children of
Noah.... 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."[1554] Isaiah, in rapturous contemplation
of the eventual triumph of righteousness, exclaimed: "Say to them that
are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come
with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you";
and again: "Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm
shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before
him."[1555] The conditions specified were not realized in the earthly
life of the Redeemer; moreover the context clearly shows that the
prophet's words are applicable to the last days only--the time of the
ransomed of the Lord, the time of restitution, and of the triumph of
Zion.

Of all Biblical scriptures relating to our subject, the utterances of
the Christ Himself in the course of His earthly ministry are most direct
and certain. Many of these we have already considered in the narrative
of the Savior's life; the few following are sufficient for present
demonstration. "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father
with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his
works."[1556] To the apostles and the people generally He proclaimed:
"Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this
adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be
ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy
angels."[1557] When a bound prisoner before proud Caiaphas, Jesus
answered the unlawful adjuration of the corrupt high priest, by
affirming: "I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man
sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of
heaven."[1558]

The apostles had been so impressed with the Master's assurance that He
would return to earth in power and glory, that they eagerly questioned
as to the time and signs of His coming.[1559] He stated explicitly,
though at the time they failed to comprehend Him, that many great events
would intervene between His departure and return, including the long era
of darkness associated with the apostasy.[1560] But as to the certainty
of His advent in glory, as Judge, and Lord, and King, Jesus left no
excuse for dubiety in the minds of His apostles. After the ascension,
throughout the course of apostolic administration, the future coming of
the Lord was preached with earnest emphasis.[1561]

Book of Mormon prophecies concerning the advent of the Lord in the last
days are specific and definite. On the occasion of His appearing to the
Nephites on the American continent shortly after His ascension from the
Mount of Olives, Christ preached the gospel to assembled multitudes;
"And he did expound all things, even from the beginning until the time
that he should come in his glory"; and the events to follow, "even unto
the great and last day."[1562] In granting the wish of the three Nephite
disciples who desired to continue their ministry in the flesh throughout
the generations to come, the Lord said unto them:

"Ye shall live to behold all the doings of the Father, unto the
children of men, even until all things shall be fulfilled,
according to the will of the Father, when I shall come in my
glory, with the powers of heaven; And ye shall never endure the
pains of death; but when I shall come in my glory, ye shall be
changed in the twinkling of an eye from mortality to
immortality: and then shall ye be blessed in the kingdom of my
Father."[1563]


THE COMING OF THE LORD PROCLAIMED THROUGH MODERN REVELATION.

To the Church of Jesus Christ, restored and reestablished in these the
last days, the word of the Lord has come repeatedly, declaring the
actuality of His second advent and the nearness of that glorious yet
dreadful event. But a few months after the Church was organized, the
voice of Jesus Christ was heard, admonishing the elders to vigilance and
proclaiming as follows:

"For the hour is nigh, and the day soon at hand when the earth
is ripe: and all the proud, and they that do wickedly, shall be
as stubble, and I will burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts,
that wickedness shall not be upon the earth; for the hour is
nigh, and that which was spoken by mine apostles must be
fulfilled; for as they spoke so shall it come to pass; for I
will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with
all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on
earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand."[1564]

In the month following, the Lord gave instructions to certain elders,
concluding with these portentous words:

"Wherefore, be faithful, praying always, having your lamps
trimmed and burning, and oil with you, that you may be ready at
the coming of the Bridegroom: for behold, verily, verily, I say
unto you, that I come quickly. Even so. Amen."[1565]

Again we read in a later revelation:

"And blessed are you because you have believed; and more blessed
are you because you are called of me to preach my gospel, to
lift 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; 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, and it shall
be a great day at the time of my coming, for all nations shall
tremble."[1566]

The Lord Jesus addressed a general revelation to His Church in March
1831, through which His earlier predictions uttered to the Twelve
shortly before His betrayal were made plain, and the assurances of His
glorious coming were thus reiterated:

"Ye look and behold the fig-trees, and ye see them with your eyes, and
ye say when they begin to shoot forth, and their leaves are yet tender,
that summer is now nigh at hand; even so it shall be in that day when
they shall see all these things, then shall they know that the hour is
nigh. 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: And they shall see signs and wonders, for they
shall be shown forth in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath; and
they shall behold blood, and fire, and vapors of smoke; and before the
day of the Lord shall come, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon be
turned into blood, and stars fall from heaven; and the remnant shall be
gathered unto this place, and then they shall look for me, and, behold,
I will come; and they shall see me in the clouds of heaven, clothed with
power and great glory, with all the holy angels; and he that watches not
for me shall be cut off."[1567]

So near is the consummation that the intervening period is called
"today"; and, in applying this time designation in the year 1831, the
Lord said:

"Behold, now it is called today (until the coming of the Son of man),
and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my
people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned (at his coming); For
after today cometh the burning: this is speaking after the manner of the
Lord; for verily I say, tomorrow all the proud and they that do wickedly
shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of
hosts: and I will not spare any that remain in Babylon. Wherefore, if ye
believe me, ye will labor while it is called today."[1568]


THE TIME AND ACCOMPANIMENTS OF THE LORD'S COMING.

The date of the future advent of Christ has never been revealed to man.
To the inquiring apostles who labored with the Master, He said: "But of
that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my
Father only."[1569] In the present age, a similar declaration has been
made by the Father: "I, the Lord God, have spoken it, but the hour and
the day no man knoweth, neither the angels in heaven, nor shall they
know until he comes."[1570] 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.[1571] But we are not left without definite information as to
precedent signs. Biblical prophecies bearing upon this subject we have
heretofore considered.[1572] As later scriptures affirm: "Before the
great day of the Lord shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the
wilderness, and the Lamanites shall blossom as the rose. Zion shall
flourish upon the hills and rejoice upon the mountains, and shall be
assembled together unto the place which I have appointed."[1573] War
shall become so general that every man who will not take arms against
his neighbor must of necessity flee to the land of Zion for
safety.[1574] Ephraim shall assemble in Zion on the western continent,
and Judah shall be again established in the east; and the cities of Zion
and Jerusalem shall be the capitals of the world empire, over which
Messiah shall reign in undisputed authority. The Lost Tribes shall be
brought forth from the place where God has hidden them through the
centuries and receive their long deferred blessings at the hands of
Ephraim. The people of Israel shall be restored from their scattered
condition.[1575]

In addressing the elders of His Church in 1832, the Lord urged upon them
the imperative need of devoted diligence, and said:

"Abide ye in the liberty wherewith ye are made free; entangle
not yourselves in sin but let your hands be clean, until the
Lord come; 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 exceeding angry, and
shall cast themselves down as a fig that falleth from off a fig
tree. And after your testimony cometh wrath and indignation upon
the people; 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; And
angels shall fly through the midst of heaven, crying with a loud
voice, sounding the trump of God, saying, Prepare ye, prepare
ye, O inhabitants of the earth; for the judgment of our God is
come: behold, and lo! the Bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet
him."[1576]

A characteristic of present-day revelation is the reiteration of the
fact that the event is nigh at hand, "even at the doors." The fateful
time is repeatedly designated in scripture, "the great and dreadful day
of the Lord."[1577] Fearful indeed will it be to individuals, families,
and nations, who have so far sunk into sin as to have forfeited their
claim to mercy. The time is not that of the final judgment--when the
whole race of mankind shall stand in the resurrected state before the
bar of God--nevertheless it shall be a time of unprecedented blessing
unto the righteous and of condemnation and vengeance upon the
wicked.[1578] With Christ shall come those who have already been
resurrected; and His approach shall be the means of inaugurating a
general resurrection of the righteous dead, while the pure and just who
are still in the flesh shall be instantaneously changed from the mortal
to the immortal state and shall be caught up with the newly resurrected
to meet the Lord and His celestial company, and shall descend with Him.
To this effect did Paul prophesy: "Even so them also which sleep in
Jesus will God bring with him.... For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the
trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are
alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to
meet the Lord in the air."[1579] Compare the promise made to the Three
Nephites: "And ye shall never endure the pains of death; but when I
shall come in my glory, ye shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye
from mortality to immortality."[1580] Of the superlative glories
awaiting the righteous when the Lord shall come, we have received in
this day a partial description as follows: "And the face of the Lord
shall be unveiled; and the saints that are upon the earth, who are
alive, shall be quickened, and be caught up to meet him."[1581] The
heathen nations shall be redeemed and have part in the first
resurrection.[1582]


THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN TO COME.

The coming of Christ in the last days, accompanied by the apostles of
old[1583] and by the resurrected saints, is to mark the establishment of
the Kingdom of Heaven upon earth. The faithful apostles who were with
Jesus in His earthly ministry are to be enthroned as judges of the whole
house of Israel;[1584] they will judge the Nephite Twelve, who in turn
will be empowered to judge the descendants of Lehi, or that branch of
the Israelitish nation which was established upon the western
continent.[1585]

While the expressions "Kingdom of God" and "Kingdom of Heaven" are used
in the Bible synonymously or interchangeably, later revelation gives to
each a distinctive meaning. The Kingdom of God is the Church established
by divine authority upon the earth; this institution asserts no claim to
temporal rule over nations; its sceptre of power is that of the Holy
Priesthood, to be used in the preaching of the gospel and in
administering its ordinances for the salvation of mankind living and
dead. The Kingdom of Heaven is the divinely ordained system of
government and dominion in all matters, temporal and spiritual; this
will be established on earth only when its rightful Head, the King of
kings, Jesus the Christ, comes to reign. His administration will be one
of order, operated through the agency of His commissioned
representatives invested with the Holy Priesthood. When Christ appears
in His glory, and not before, will be realized a complete fulfilment of
the supplication: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is
in heaven."

The Kingdom of God has been established among men to prepare them for
the Kingdom of Heaven which shall come; and in the blessed reign of
Christ the King shall the two be made one. The relationship between them
has been revealed to the Church in this wise:

"Hearken, and lo, a voice as of one from on high, who is mighty
and powerful, whose going forth is unto the ends of the earth,
yea, whose voice is unto men--Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight. The keys of the kingdom of God are
committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the
gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which
is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until
it has filled the whole earth; Yea, a voice crying--Prepare ye
the way of the Lord, prepare ye the supper of the Lamb, make
ready for the Bridegroom; Pray unto the Lord, call upon his holy
name, make known his wonderful works among the people; Call upon
the Lord, that his kingdom may go forth upon the earth, that the
inhabitants thereof may receive it, and be prepared for the days
to come, in the which the Son of man shall come down in heaven,
clothed in the brightness of his glory, to meet the kingdom of
God which is set up on the earth; Wherefore may the kingdom of
God go forth, that the kingdom of heaven may come, that thou, O
God, mayest be glorified in heaven so on earth, that thy enemies
may be subdued for thine is the honour, power and glory, for
ever and ever. Amen."[1586]


THE MILLENNIUM.

The inauguration of Christ's reign on earth is to be the beginning of a
period that shall be distinct in many important particulars from all
precedent and subsequent time; and the Lord shall reign with His people
a thousand years. The government of individuals, communities and nations
throughout this Millennium is to be that of a perfect theocracy, with
Jesus the Christ as Lord and King. The more wicked part of the race
shall have been destroyed; and during the period Satan shall be bound
"that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years
should be fulfilled"; while the just shall share with Christ in rightful
rule and dominion. The righteous dead shall have come forth from their
graves, while the wicked shall remain unresurrected until the thousand
years be past.[1587] Men yet in the flesh shall mingle with immortalized
beings; children shall grow to maturity and then die in peace or be
changed to immortality "in the twinkling of an eye."[1588] There shall
be surcease of enmity between man and beast; the venom of serpents and
the ferocity of the brute creation shall be done away, and love shall be
the dominant power of control. Among the earliest revelations on the
subject is that given to Enoch; and in this the return of that prophet
and his righteous people with Christ in the last days was thus assured:

"And the Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and all thy city
meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom, and
they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they
shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other; And
there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall
come forth out of all the creations which I have made; and for
the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest. 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."[1589]

In these latter days the Lord has thus spoken, requiring preparation for
the Millennial era, and describing in part the glories thereof:

"And prepare for the revelation which is to come, when the veil
of the covering of my temple, in my tabernacle, which hideth the
earth, shall be taken off, and all flesh shall see me together.
And every corruptible thing, both of man, or of the beasts of
the field, or of the fowls of the heavens, or of the fish of the
sea, that dwell upon all the face of the earth, shall be
consumed; And also that of element shall melt with fervent heat;
and all things shall become new, that my knowledge and glory may
dwell upon all the earth. And in that day the enmity of man, and
the enmity of beasts, yea, the enmity of all flesh, shall cease
from before my face. And in that day whatsoever any man shall
ask, it shall be given unto him. And in that day Satan shall not
have power to tempt any man. And there shall be no sorrow
because there is no death. In that day an infant shall not die
until he is old, and his life shall be as the age of a tree, and
when he dies he shall not sleep, (that is to say in the earth,)
but shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and shall be
caught up, and his rest shall be glorious. Yea, verily I say
unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal
all things."[1590]

The Millennium is to precede the time designated in scriptural phrase
"the end of the world." When the thousand years are passed, Satan shall
be loosed for a little season, and the final test of man's integrity to
God shall ensue. Such as are prone to impurity of heart shall yield to
temptation while the righteous shall endure to the end.[1591] A
revelation to this effect was given the Church in 1831, in part as
follows:

"For the great Millennium, of which I have spoken by the mouth
of my servants, shall come; For Satan shall be bound, and when
he is loosed again, he shall only reign for a little season, and
then cometh the end of the earth; And he that liveth in
righteousness shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and
the earth shall pass away so as by fire; And the wicked shall go
away into unquenchable fire, and their end no man knoweth on
earth, nor ever shall know, until they come before me in
judgment. Hearken ye to these words: Behold, I am Jesus Christ,
the Saviour of the world. Treasure these things up in your
hearts, and let the solemnities of eternity rest upon your
minds."[1592]


THE CELESTIAL CONSUMMATION.

The vanquishment of Satan and his hosts shall be complete. The dead,
small and great, all who have breathed the breath of life on earth,
shall be resurrected--every soul that has tabernacled in flesh, whether
good or evil--and shall stand before God, to be judged according to the
record as written in the books.[1593] So shall be brought to glorious
consummation the mission of the Christ. "Then cometh the end, when he
shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he
shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must
reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that
shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his
feet."[1594] Then shall the Lord Jesus "deliver up the kingdom, and
present it unto the Father spotless, saying--I have overcome and have
trodden the wine-press alone, even the winepress of the fierceness of
the wrath of Almighty God. Then shall he be crowned with the crown of
his glory, to sit on the throne of his power to reign for ever and
ever."[1595] The earth shall pass to its glorified and celestialized
condition, an eternal abode for the exalted sons and daughters of
God.[1596] Forever shall they reign, kings and priests to the Most High,
redeemed, sanctified, and exalted through their Lord and God

JESUS THE CHRIST.


NOTES TO CHAPTER 42.

1. Enoch, spoken of by Jude as "the seventh from Adam." was the father
of Methuselah. In Genesis 5:24 we read: "And Enoch walked with God; and
he was not; for God took him." From the Lord's revelation to Moses we
learn that Enoch was a mighty man, favored of God because of his
righteousness, and a leader of and revelator to his people. Through his
agency a city was built, the inhabitants of which excelled in righteous
living to such an extent that they were of one heart and one mind and
had no poor among them. It was called the City of Holiness or Zion. The
residue of the race were all corrupt in the sight of the Lord. Enoch and
his people were taken from the earth and are to return with Christ at
His coming. (P. of G.P., Moses 7:12-21, 68, 69; compare Doc. and Cov.
45:11, 12.)

2. Heathen in the First Resurrection.--"And then shall the heathen
nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the
first resurrection; and it shall be tolerable for them." (Doc. and Cov.
45:54.) Such is the word of the Lord with respect to those benighted
peoples who live and die in ignorance of the laws of the gospel. This
affirmation is sustained by other scriptures, and by a consideration of
the principles of true justice according to which humanity is to be
judged. Man shall be accounted blameless or guilty according to his
deeds as interpreted in the light of the law under which he is required
to live. It is inconsistent with our conception of a just God to believe
Him capable of inflicting condemnation upon any one for non-compliance
with a requirement of which the person had no knowledge. Nevertheless,
the laws of the gospel cannot be suspended even in the case of those who
have sinned in darkness and ignorance; but it is reasonable to believe
that the plan of redemption shall afford such benighted ones an
opportunity of learning the laws of God; and, as fast as they so learn,
will obedience be required on pain of the penalty. See _Articles of
Faith_, xxi:33.

3. Regeneration of the Earth.--In speaking of the graded and progressive
glories provided for His creations, and of the laws of regeneration and
sanctification, the Lord has thus spoken through revelation in the
present dispensation: "And again, verily I say unto you, the earth
abideth the law of a celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of
its creation, and transgresseth not the law. Wherefore it shall be
sanctified; yea, notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened
again, and shall abide the power by which it is quickened, and the
righteous shall inherit it." (Doc. and Cov. 88:25, 26.) This appointed
change, by which the earth shall pass to the condition of a
celestialized world, is referred to in numerous scriptures as the
institution of "a new heaven and a new earth" (Rev. 21:1, 3, 4; B. of
M., Ether 13:9; Doc. and Cov. 29:23).