Daily Thoughts

In the Book of Mormon we read that Nephi prophesied that 600 years after they had left Jerusalem, sicked people would judge the Savior as a thing of naught.  They would scourge Him, smite Him, and spit upon Him  and He would suffer it because of His loving kindness and long-suffering. And the God of Israel who had lead them forth out of Egypt and preserved them, would be lifted up and crucified by the very people He had preserved.  They would bury Him in a sepulchre, and three days of darkness would be a sign of His death t those on the other side of the world. At this time, the righteous would hear His voice and others would be visited with thunderings, lightnings, fire, smoke, vapors of darkness, and the opening up of the earth. Mountains would be carried p, rocks would rend, and the earth would groan. The people in Jerusalem would scourge and crucify the God of Israel and turn their hearts aside, rejecting the signs and wonders, and despising the Holy One of Israel.  1 Nephi 19:8-14 " And behold he cometh, according to the words of the angel, in six hundred years from the time my father left Jerusalem.  And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it, because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men.  And the God of our fathers, who were led out of Egypt, out of bondage, and also were preserved in the wilderness by him, yea, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, yieldeth himself, according to the words of the angel, as a man, into the hands of wicked men, to be lifted up, according to the words of Zenock, and to be crucified, according to the words of Neum, and to be buried in a sepulchre, according to the words of Zenos, which he spake concerning the three days of darkness, which should be a sign given of his death unto those who should inhabit the isles of the sea, more especially given unto those who are of the house of Israel.  For thus spake the prophet: The Lord God surely shall visit all the house of Israel at that day, some with his voice, because of their righteousness, unto their great joy and salvation, and others with the thunderings and the lightnings of his power, by tempest, by fire, and by smoke, and vapor of darkness, and by the opening of the earth, and by mountains which shall be carried up.  And all these things must surely come, saith the prophet Zenos. And the rocks of the earth must rend; and because of the groanings of the earth, many of the kings of the isles of the sea shall be wrought upon by the Spirit of God, to exclaim: The God of nature suffers.  And as for those who are at Jerusalem, saith the prophet, they shall be scourged by all people, because they crucify the God of Israel, and turn their hearts aside, rejecting signs and wonders, and the power and glory of the God of Israel.  And because they turn their hearts aside, saith the prophet, and have despised the Holy One of Israel, they shall wander in the flesh, and perish, and become a hiss and a byword, and be hated among all nations."

In the Old Testament we read about how the people complained that the manner the Lord sent was not good enough--they wanted flesh to eat like they had in Egypt. This is an example of being careful what you pray for because you just might get it. The Lord sent quail in great numbers and they had plenty of meat to eat, so much that it was coming out of their nostrils and became loathsome to them. The wrath of God was kindled against them and He sent a great plague against those who lusted. They were buried in Kibroth-hattaavah. Numbers 11:18-20, 31-34 "And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow, and ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the Lord will give you flesh, and ye shall eat. Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days;  But even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the Lord which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt? And there went forth a wind from the Lord, and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, as it were a day's journey on this side, and as it were a day's journey on the other side, round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth.  And the people stood up all that day, and all that night, and all the next day, and they gathered the quails: he that gathered least gathered ten homers: and they spread them all abroad for themselves round about the camp.  And while the flesh was yet between their teeth, ere it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord smote the people with a very great plague. And he called the name of that place Kibroth-hattaavah: because there they buried the people that lusted."

Some verses with a thought booklet give us the joyous news the after the resurrection of Christ, many others were resurrected as well.  Their graves were open and the bodies of those who had slept arose.  This scene will be repeated when Christ comes again.  Imagine the graves of all your loved ones opening and them arising from the dead!  What a glorious day that will be.  Matthew 27:52-53 "And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,  And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many."