(This is the first publication of the addendum, to be followed by a downloadable PDF version and then it will be added to the original book.)
In 1986, then President of the Church, Ezra Taft Benson, told a group of seminary and institute students in California:
“While our generation will be comparable in wickedness to the days of Noah when the Lord cleansed the earth by flood, there is a major difference this time: God has saved for the final inning some of His stronger and most valiant children, who will help bear off the kingdom triumphantly… You are the generation that must be prepared to meet your God.” (Ensign, May 1986, p. 78.)
Just last year, President Russell M. Nelson, speaking to students at Brigham Young University said:
“You are the children whom God chose to be part of His battalion during this great climax in the longstanding battle between good and evil—between truth and error. I would not be surprised if… you promised to defend His name and gospel during this world’s tumultuous winding-up scenes.”
And in April conference just passed (2020), Elder Ronald A. Rasband stated:
“We live in that time prophesied; we are the people charged with ushering in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ; we are to gather God’s children, those who will hear and embrace the truths, covenants, and promises of the everlasting gospel. President Nelson calls it “the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, and the greatest work on [the] earth today.” Of that miracle I bear my witness.”
Brothers and sisters, we are, from the youngest to the oldest among us, the generation that will usher in the Lord’s second coming! And because of that truth, we stand today as witnesses to long-awaited signs and the fulfilling of prophecies that no previous generation was privileged to experience and understand.
We have been witnesses to all but the very last portion of the prophecy of the 42 months leading up to the coming of the Bridegroom, which leads us to the reason or the need for this addendum. It is three-fold…
1- To explain why I’ve made some adjustments to the timeline.
2- To add what was previously a blog post to the record of this book.
3- To expound upon events and signs that have manifest themselves since release 1.30 of The Bridegroom Cometh.
A new and adjusted interpretation of Isaiah 18:5 and it’s affect on the timeline.
I’ve been saying for a long time that I thought the abomination of desolation upon the Gentiles would unfold in the spring of this year based on the prophecy of the 42 months and Isaiah 18. I also said that Passover could very likely bring this to pass, but since it didn’t happen at Passover, I decided that it was time to take a closer look at what Isaiah says in the 18th chapter concerning when destruction would come upon “the land shadowing with wings”. (America)
If you’re unfamiliar with Isaiah 18, what Orson Pratt said about it, and how I interpreted it at the time I wrote it, please read chapter 14 of The Bridegroom Cometh.
Feeling that there might be more to Isaiah”s prophecy than I had previously understood, I concluded that it might be a good idea to look at verse 5 in a number of different translations.. We start with the King James version from which I reached my original conclusions.
King James
5 For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches.
So in the King James version, this happens when “the sour grape is ripening in the flower” and to me, that meant when the grape was flowering. However, when we reference other translations we get a very different story. Let us read what a few other translations have to say about the timing…
New Revised Standard
5 For before the harvest, when the blossom is over and the flower becomes a ripening grape, he will cut off the shoots with pruning hooks, and the spreading branches he will hew away.
New International Version
5 For, before the harvest, when the blossom is gone and the flower becomes a ripening grape, he will cut off the shoots with pruning knives, and cut down and take away the spreading branches.
New Century Version
5 The time will come, after the flowers have bloomed and before the harvest, when new grapes will be budding and growing. The enemy will cut the plants with knives; he will cut down the vines and take them away.
Holman Christian Standard Bible
5 For before the harvest, when the blossoming is over and the blossom becomes a ripening grape, He will cut off the shoots with a pruning knife, and tear away and remove the branches.
So, when we take into consideration what these other translations say, we must conclude that this pruning of the wicked in “the land shadowing with wings” is “when the blossom is over and the flower becomes a ripening grape” or “after the flowers have bloomed and before the harvest, when new grapes will be budding and growing”… which could be as late as early summer, right?
I say early summer because we need to also keep in mind that it occurs “before the harvest” and that “the fowls shall summer upon them” according to verse six. (Isaiah 18:6)
Now, for the reasons stated above, I had held the view for quite some time that the abomination of desolation would unfold in the spring of the year and likely in conjunction with Passover. And for that reason, I had felt that later dates such as inauguration day as the start of the 42 months was too late to work with Isaiah 18:5. However, that is no longer the case… inauguration day which was Jan 20, 2017, could indeed have been the start of the 42 months or 1260 days. And if we add 1260 days to inauguration day, we come up with July 3, 2020, or thereabouts and that’s a date that appears to satisfy the conditions of the prophecy in my humble opinion. We shall see…
I am still very much convinced that we are in the 42 months of which Daniel and John spoke, John wrote in Rev. 13:
5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
As of this writing, we find ourselves in unprecedented circumstances, missionary activity has been drastically encroached upon, temple functions are very limited, far from capacity and we are just starting to think about attending meetings again. All of this was abruptly brought about by something we call the COVID…
Is this what John saw seeing when he said, “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them”? Has the COVID not given the globalists unprecedented “power.. over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations”? Is this what the end of the 42 months looks like?
And we need only look back to verse 5 to see the association all of this has with the “forty and two months”, right? In verse 10 John says. “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”
Be patient ye saints, exercise your faith… for “he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword”, Daniels, speaking of the 42 months says it this way, “and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” (Daniel 12:1)
Brigham Young, Heber Kimball, and Wiford Woodruff via President Nelson
As mentioned above, we find ourselves in a curious and very interesting condition. That is, the condition of missionary work as mentioned above, the limitations on church meetings and the condition of temples being largely closed. Concerning missionary work Brigham Young said:
“Do you think there is calamity abroad now among the people? Not much. All we have yet heard and all 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,” (In Bowery, July 15, 1860, JD8:123) TLDP:344-45
Concerning church meetings, Heber C. Kimball said:
“the time would come whan the government would stop the Saints from holding meetings. When this was done, the Lord would pour out His judgments.” (Life of Heber C. Kimball, Pg. 453)
And concerning temples, President Nelson, via an edited quote from Willford Woodruff said:
“More than a century ago, President Wilford Woodruff foresaw conditions such as ours today, as recorded in his dedicatory prayer of the Salt Lake Temple, given in 1893. Some of you may have recently seen excerpts from this remarkable prayer on social media.
“Hear these pleadings from a mighty prophet of God: “When Thy people shall not have the opportunity of entering this holy house … and they are oppressed and in trouble, surrounded by difficulties … and shall turn their faces towards this Thy holy house and ask Thee for deliverance, for help, for Thy power to be extended in their behalf, we beseech Thee, to look down from Thy holy habitation in mercy … and listen to their cries. Or when the children of Thy people, in years to come, shall be separated, through any cause, from this place, … and they shall cry unto Thee from the depths of their affliction and sorrow to extend relief and deliverance to them, we humbly entreat Thee to … hearken to their cries, and grant unto them the blessings for which they ask.” (April conference 2020)
So when we consider the combined witness of these three statements, it serves as evidence to me that we are in a situation or at a crossroad where we may expect both judgments on the wicked and deliverance for the saints. You of course are free to come to your own conclusions.
Obama and the 42 months
In the original release of The Bridegroom Cometh there was much said about the prophecy of the 42 months but no names were mentioned, however on Oct. 18, 2019, I posted a blog entitled “Obama and the 42 months”. It is hoped that including this version the 42 months story will help the reader see how the 42 months is being fulfilled in our day…
I’m going to start by giving the reader a bit of personal history going clear back to 2008 and the presidential election. I remember listening to a talk given by Cleon Skousen where he mentioned Rev. 13 and the 42 months. Let’s read three verses:
5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
Because the election was underway and Obama was on TV and in the news, I wondered if the phrase “there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies” might apply. Of course, I needed to wait and see if he would go on to fulfill all of the other conditions which John mentions. It was later that I discovered that Daniel had said something very similar in chapter 7, we read:
25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
Can you see the obvious common threads here?
John says, “there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies”.
Daniel says, “he shall speak great words against the most High”.
John says, “it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them”.
Daniel says, he “shall wear out the saints of the most High”.
John says, “and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.”
Daniel says, “and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” (42 months)
John says something that Daniel does not, “and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations” showing that he is a globalist. Is Obama a globalist?
Daniel says something that John does not, “But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end” showing us that when “the judgment shall sit” or when “the Ancient of days” or Adam comes “the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High”. (verse 27) This, of course, is a reference to the meeting which shall soon unfold at Adam Ondi Ahman.
One very important point that we want to stress here is that the trial of the saints, whatever it may be, (we’ll get to that in a moment) brings us to the tipping point. In the end, “He” has just 3 1/2 years or 42 months to do his thing because “the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy”.
This is why I say that Latter-Day Saints especially need to understand what this is all about. This person is a globalist and so his deeds affect people everywhere but it’s only the Lord’s elect who are invited to gather to Adam Ondi Ahman and witness the coming of the Bridegroom, which saves them form so much of the destruction and carnage which shall follow! Daniel connects for us the 42 months and the events to unfold when “the judgment shall sit”, he does this for the edification and benefit of the Latter Day Saints!
So I’ve been watching this situation develop now for over ten years, here are a few points to consider…
As stated above, John says, “there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies”. If you were John and wanted to describe Obama, wouldn’t you mention his oratorical ability and his power to persuade and corrupt?
Daniel says, “he shall… think to change times and laws”. Do you remember what the theme of Obama’s first presidential campaign was? It was “Change”! And looking retrospectively, we know he wanted to change the “laws” or corrupt the system, misconstrue and disavow the constitution and bring us more fully under the powers of globalism, right?
John says, “and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.” So this individual was not only to achieve great power but would “continue forty and two months”. You can only “continue” something that you had previously commenced, right? I waited for several years knowing that this “continue” thing was going to unfold around election time of 2016, though I did not know exactly what it would look like but I always knew that Obama would not just step aside as was the tradition and he surely hasn’t disappointed in that respect.
How can he step aside, how can he or any of the cascade of co-conspirators, those who are up to there necks in corruption and treasonous acts just step aside? If they ultimately fail and justice prevails, they are all going to be toast, right?
So what is the 42 months all about and how would we characterize it? I think Daniel gave us the key when he said, “And he shall… think to change times and laws”! The 42 months is the final push of the globalists, it’s their final desperate attempt to throw out the constitution and the rule of law here in America. Likewise, they are doing all they can to maintain their power in the EU by attempting to stifle Brexit by any means possible. The unvarnished truth is that the globalist elite doesn’t care how un-democratic and lawless they have to be to accomplish their objective, it’s just whatever it takes, right?
In the end, globalism is a Satanic counterfeit of Christ’s soon to come millennial kingdom and the 42 months serves as a prophetic countdown to its demise. Have you noticed the similarities between the globalist agenda and the King men of the Book of Mormon? They just refuse to be bound by the vote or the voice of the people!
This ongoing conflict between freedom and the globalist elite escalated to what we might call fever pitch back in the fall of 2016, just as I knew it would and it is around this time that I believe the 42 months began. With the failure of their corrupt globalist candidate and the election of Donald Trump, the globalist abandoned any pretense that they believe in or are supportive of any kind of democratic process. Further, with the exposure of the globalist’s agenda worldwide, we see a great awakening of people all around the globe and with the awakening, we see a great division and the choosing of sides.
On the one hand, we have those who care for freedom, liberty, agency and the rights of the people. On the other hand, we have those who are anti-free agency, anti-freedom, anti-constitution, anti-borders, and anti-Christ. When the Lord comes, the line separating the sheep and the goats will be very sharply drawn!
Now, this whole idea that the wicked would eventually pull out all the stops in their attempts to gain ultimate power was understood by more than just Daniel and John. Modern-day prophets have understood it as well.
Ezra Taft Benson didn’t label this conflict as “the 42 months”, but he did understand what would happen and where this would all lead, said he:
“if the gentiles on this land reject the word of God and conspire to overthrow liberty and the Constitution, then their doom is fixed, and they “. . . shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant”. (1 Nephi 14:6; 3 Nephi 21:11, 14, 21; D&C 84:114-115, 117)
“The great destructive force which was to be turned loose on the earth and which the prophets for centuries have been calling the “abomination of desolation” is vividly described by those who saw it in vision. Ours is the first generation to realize how literally these prophecies can be fulfilled now that God, through science, has unlocked the secret to thermonuclear reaction.’
“In the light of these prophecies there should be no doubt in the mind of any priesthood holder that the human family is headed for trouble. There are rugged days ahead. It is time for every man who wishes to do his duty to get himself prepared—physically, spiritually, and psychologically—for the task which may come at any time, as suddenly as the whirlwind”…. (Oct. general conference, 1961)
Nephi saw the fiery nature of the “abomination of desolation” as well, he reveals that it is a plot to destroy the righteous and says “they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord”. In 1 Nephi 22 we read:
14 And every nation which shall war against thee, O house of Israel, shall be turned one against another, and they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord. And all that fight against Zion shall be destroyed, and that great whore, who hath perverted the right ways of the Lord, yea, that great and abominable church, shall tumble to the dust and great shall be the fall of it.
15 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.
18 Behold, my brethren, I say unto you, that these things must shortly come; yea, even blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke must come; and it must needs be upon the face of this earth; and it cometh unto men according to the flesh if it so be that they will harden their hearts against the Holy One of Israel.
The 42 months is the best scriptural evidence we have as to when the abomination of desolation will unfold, provided that we recognize when it begins. And shortly after it occurs, the saints will trek back to Zion and Christ will make his appearance to them as the Bridegroom. In Daniel chapter 12 we get yet another view of the circumstances surrounding the 42 months and the abomination of desolation, Daniel says:
1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book…
5 ¶ Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river.
6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth forever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
So associated with a time when Michael (Adam) shall “stand up… for the children of thy people… there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time” and it is at this unprecedented “time of trouble” that “thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book”.
Of course, Daniel wants us to know what the sign will be when “thy people shall be delivered” and he makes it quite clear. There are three messengers that appear to him, he says, “there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river”. One of those who “stood” on “the bank of the river” asks a question of the third messenger or “the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river” and the question is, “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?” The answer given points us once again to the 42 months which serves as a countdown. Daniel says:
“he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”
So, when the globalist manage to “scatter the power of the holy people” via a destructive force that will bring on “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time”, the whole thing will backfire according to Nephi for “they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord… for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire.”
Now, let me be perfectly clear about this, if we are in the 42 months and have been since around election time of 2016, the abomination of desolation should unfold in the spring or early summer of 2020 and given the fact that President Nelson just announced that we are going to have a “unique… memorable” and “unforgettable” general conference next spring, it should give us pause, to say the least.
Now, I’m going to say that anyone who is paying the least little bit of attention to what’s going on in the world can easily see that the gentiles are seeking to “overthrow liberty and the Constitution” as Ezra Taft Benson said they would, and that it can’t be long before “their doom is fixed, and they “. . . shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant”. Realistically it could come at any time, right?
However, it’s not going to come at just any time, it’s going to come in the Lord’s time, which according to Daniel and John is going to be at the end of the 42 months.
As I said at the beginning of this post, I’ve seen this coming for quite a long time and I’ve written about the 42 months on many occasions but this will be the first time where I’ve named names and posted it on my blog. It is hoped that I’ve presented the material in a manner that is simple and straight forward enough that all can grasp what I’m saying.
Change is in the air and great things are coming, while in Rome Italy President Nelson said:
“This is a hinge point in the history of the Church. Things are going to move forward at an accelerated pace of which this is a part. We think the Church is an old Church. It’s 189 years old. But it’s only the beginning. Just project out what the next future will be and the Church is going to have an unprecedented future. Unparalleled. We’re just building up to what’s ahead now.”
And did you notice what Elder Quentin L. Cook said in conference:
“These efforts, together with those announced during the last two years, are not isolated changes. Each of the adjustments is an integral part of an interlocking pattern to bless the Saints and prepare them to meet God.”
You, of course, are free to draw your own conclusions…
Conclusion
In this addendum, I’ve tried to explain why I felt the need to adjust my interpretation of Isaiah 18:5, make the more personalized version of the 42 months story a part of this record and show how the circumstances we find ourselves in relates to the winding up of the 42 months. So far as I’m able to discern, the only thing left is the taking down of the wicked Gentiles via the abomination of desolation as Ezra Taft Benson explained it.
You can find the PDF download of this addendum here.