Yesterday I finished reading the Book of Mormon.  In the past several days, I’ve, therefore, read the accounts of the destructions of two great nations—the Jaredites and the Nephites.  There were actually other great destructions which took place earlier, such as in the days of Akish, when all but 30 people and the house of Omer were killed in a great civil war.  (Ether 9:12).  Before that, in the days of Heth, there was “a great dearth upon the land, and the inhabitants began to be destroyed exceedingly fast because of the dearth, for there was no rain upon the face of the earth.”  (Ether 9:30).

Prior to the final Jaredite war Coriantumr realized that nearly two million men, “and also their wives and their children” (Ether 15:2) had been slain.  As Mormon reported the destruction of the Nephites he enumerated 23 leaders who had fallen with their ten thousand each.  (Mormon 6).  That amounted to 230,000 men plus their wives and their children.  How many millions died even before that final battle?  The magnitude of the casualties in these destructions and wars is staggering.

As I arose from bed this morning I was eager to begin another reading of the Doctrine and Covenants.  I was about to have the privilege of reading section 1 which is the Lord’s preface to the book.  I knew that the Lord gave that book and that preface as a warning to the people of the earth.  As I walked down the hallway from my bedroom, my first waking thought was of a word the Lord used in the preface that I was about to read.  The word was “calamity.”  It’s a word also used by Mormon to describe what happened to his people.  (Mormon 2:27; 5:11).  I realized that I’d just read the accounts of several calamities, and that I was about to be warned of a pending calamity in our own day.

Here are the Lord’s words:

“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.”  (D&C 1:17).

Then I read this:  “For a desolating scourge shall go forth among the inhabitants of the earth…”  (D&C 5:19).

I turned to D&C 45 and read, “And there shall be men standing in that generation, that shall not pass until they shall see an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land…And there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations.”  (D&C 45: 31, 33).  “And calamity (there’s that word again) shall cover the mocker, and the scorner shall be consumed…”  (D&C 45:50).

I’ve been impressed that when Jesus visited the Nephites much of what He taught them was not so much for their benefit, but for ours.  Perhaps it was just the slant that Mormon put upon the account when he wrote it that weighted it so heavily toward the last days.  After all, Mormon was writing for our benefit, not for the Nephites’.  Fully one-third of Jesus’ instructions to the Nephites was about us, and about conditions in our day.

Three times in those short chapters the Lord warns that in our day the remnant of Jacob will go through the Gentiles like a lion among the beasts of the forest or among the flocks of sheep, and tread them down and tear them in pieces.  (3 Ne. 16:5; 20:16; 21:12-18).  In 3 Ne. 21:12-18 Jesus is actually quoting the prophet Micah (Micah 5:8-15).  Mormon picks up the refrain and repeats the prophecy of this coming event in Mormon 5:24.

Thus five times in the scriptures (three times by the Lord Himself) we’re warned about this specific upcoming calamity.  We’re also warned about earthquakes, wars, a great hailstorm, and tsunamis that are in the forecast.

A decade ago the Indonesian Tsunami killed over 200,000 people.  Our Civil War in the 1860s killed 600,000.  World War I saw the deaths of nearly 10 million soldiers.  (World Book Encyclopedia, pgs. 25 and 466).  About 17 million military men lost their lives in World War II.  (Ibid, pg. 498).  As in the Book of Mormon, these numbers only count the fighting men.  Civilian casualties in WWII are impossible to number.  “As many as 20 million Soviet citizens and as many as 10 million Chinese civilians may have died.  Many of the deaths resulted from famine.”  (Ibid, pg. 498).

These calamities are a prelude to the big one that’s coming.  The Lord says, “Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; 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.”  (D&C 1:12-13).

He says, “Search these commandments for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.”  (D&C 1:37)

“Behold, I tell you these things even as I also told the people of the destruction of Jerusalem; and my word shall be verified at this time as it hath hitherto been verified.”  (D&C 5: 20).

How great is the need to warn people, and to make them aware so that they can prepare.

Now lest we become fearful and get caught up in the worry of these impending disasters, it’s important that we couple these warnings with comfort for those who are striving to keep their covenants and to be righteous.

In the Lord’s preface to the Doctrine and Covenants He assures us that “the Lord shall have power over his saints.”  (D&C 1:36).  He promises that the weak things of the world (us) shall break down the mighty and strong ones.  (v. 19).  He calls upon people to repent.

The last chapter of First Nephi is a remarkable promise to those of the last days who are striving to be righteous in the midst of evils and great upheavals.  In the seven verses that comprise the left hand column of page 52 we are promised seven times that we’ll be safe if we’re righteous.

1. “…for he will not suffer that the wicked shall destroy the righteous.”  (1 Ne. 22:16)
2. “Wherefore, he will preserve the righteous by his power.  (v. 17).
3. “…and the righteous be preserved.”  (v. 17).
4. “Wherefore, the righteous need not fear;…for they shall be saved…”  (v. 17).
5. “For behold, the righteous shall not perish…”  (v. 19).
6. “And the Lord will surely prepare a way for his people…”  (v. 20).
7. “And the righteous need not fear…”  (v. 22).

We spend our lives looking forward to great events.  We can’t wait until we graduate from high school, and then from college.  We can’t wait until we get married.  We can’t wait until we get our dream job, or our dream home, or until the kids have all left home, or until the grandkids come, or until we can retire.  The significant thing is that sooner or later all these things happen.  The day arrives.  Anciently, through His prophets, the Lord promised that the world would be destroyed by a flood if the people didn’t repent.  The day arrived.

He promised that the day would come when He would be born.  When it happened, it was so remarkable that the people all fell to the ground in astonishment.  (3 Ne. 1:16).  He promised that the day would come when he would be crucified for the sins of the world.  That day arrived, too, much to the surprise and the eternal sorrow of the wicked.

In our day the Lord has promised that He will come again.  It will be a “great and dreadful day,” according to Malachi.  It will be great for the righteous, and dreadful for the wicked.

My prayer is that we can be in a repentant mode and be counted among the righteous when the day arrives.  My prayer is also that I can do my part to help prepare those around me for the great and dreadful day.

—12 June 2012.