Signs and Wonders

The Lord said this to Moses as he prepared to speak to Pharoah asking to let the Israelites go: “And Pharaoh will harden his heart, as I said unto thee; and thou shalt multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt” (JST Exodus 7:3). The Lord said something similar to us as we prepare for His second coming: “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” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:39-40). We are to watch for “signs and wonders” just as the Egyptians and the children of Israel in the days of Moses. Among the ten plagues that the Lord brought upon Egypt, there are some which have been prophesied for our day too. For example, the fourth plague was flies: “If thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are” (Exodus 8:21). The Lord prophesied a similar sobering plague in our day: “Wherefore, I the Lord God will send forth flies upon the face of the earth, which shall take hold of the inhabitants thereof, and shall eat their flesh, and shall cause maggots to come in upon them; And their tongues shall be stayed that they shall not utter against me; and their flesh shall fall from off their bones, and their eyes from their sockets” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:18-19). That certainly does not sound like something to look forward to! The seventh plague included hail and fire: “So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field” (Exodus 9:24-25). In our dispensation the Lord said this: “And there shall be a great hailstorm sent forth to destroy the crops of the earth.” In addition to hail, there will also be fire: “And the great and abominable church, which is the whore of all the earth, shall be cast down by devouring fire” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:16, 21). The ninth plague for the Egyptians was darkness: “And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days: They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days” (Exodus 10:22-23). The Lord prophesied this about the last days: “But, behold, I say unto you that before this great day shall come the sun shall be darkened” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:14). Another revelation says something similar: “And before the day of the Lord shall come, the sun shall be darkened” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:42). In the Olivet discourse we have another description of the darkness that will come: “The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven” (JSM 1:33). As it was for the Egyptians and at the time of His death, darkness will also be a sign given in the last days in preparation for the Second Coming.

               The first plague for the Egyptians was the water being turned into blood. We read that Aaron “lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood” (Exodus 7:20). While that plague specifically hasn’t been prophesied in scripture for our day (as far as I’m aware), blood is indeed a part of the signs of the last days. The Lord said this: “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 the stars fall from heaven” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:41-42). For the Egyptians the water was turned to blood; for us it will be the moon. Likely that is only figurative, but perhaps the Lord wanted us to associate it with the first Egyptian plague. At any rate, it is clear that there will be plagues and signs in the last days as it was in the days of Moses, and our best defense—as it would have been for Pharoah—is to hearken to the words of the Lord. He gave us this warning which should encourage us to keep His commandments in these last days: “Nevertheless, Zion shall escape if she observe to do all things whatsoever I have commanded her. But if she observe not to do whatsoever I have commanded her, I will visit her according to all her works, with sore affliction, with pestilence, with plague, with sword, with vengeance, with devouring fire” (Doctrine and Covenants 97:25-26).