Transcription
All right. Hello everyone and welcome to Rise Zion. My name is Seth and I hope you're all having a very terrific Thursday. Welcome back, you guys.
Today, I have something absolutely fascinating to share with you. Something very provocative is happening in the church right now as we lead up to general conference in April 2026. Today, we're diving into something that honestly gave me chills when I started to connect the dots. You're not going to want to miss this episode today.
It all began when the church published its first general conference trailer 53 days in advance. That immediately sparked my suspicions that something extraordinary might be coming our way at this upcoming general conference. To my knowledge, the church has never released a general conference advertisement this far ahead of the event itself. But what struck me the most was the title of this trailer. "He is near." "He is near." Right. That certainly caught my attention as we were preparing for the second coming of Jesus Christ.
This general conference will be special for several other reasons as well. First of all, it falls on Easter Sunday. And Elder Gong specifically pointed out back in 2023 that when conference aligns with Easter, it's not merely coincidence, but something by divine design. And second, this will be the general conference where President Don H. Oaks delivers his first address in general conference as the sustained prophet of the church, and when we will hold a solemn assembly. That alone makes this conference truly historic.
But just recently, something else was brought to my attention. Something truly astonishing. Astronomers have detected a brand new comet that is scheduled to reach its closest point to the sun around April 4th and 5th, 2026, Easter weekend. Okay? And you might be saying, "Okay, we've heard this before. There's been tons of different comets this past year." This comet is different. This comet's official designation is C2026A1. Now, unlike these other comets and unlike interstellar object 3i Atlas, which caused quite a bit of commotion in the second coming community, C2026A1 has a striking characteristic that sets it apart from most other cosmic events and from other possible celestial signs of the times. This comet has the potential to become very, very bright. Some scientists are even speculating that it could become visible to the naked eye, even during the daytime. There is speculation that it could even rival the brightness of the moon during the nighttime. That is a remarkable statement. The moon is the second brightest object in the sky after the sun. If this comet were to become that luminous, bright enough to light up the sky at night, that would certainly seem extraordinarily significant, especially if the night were to become light. If the comet reaches perihelion, the closest point in its orbit to the sun, without disintegrating or breaking apart as it could very well do, it is very possible that a bright new object could be visible even during daylight hours on general conference weekend. Okay, its peak brightness is expected right around April 4th and 5th.
Now, what many people wondered about 3 Atlas was whether it might have been the sign of the coming of the Son of Man. And in my opinion, it would seem far more applicable to something like C2026A1 if all of these possibilities scientists are discussing actually come to pass. Could this comet actually be the sign of the coming of the Son of Man? And another provocative question, you guys, why did the church recently just sell off billions of dollars worth of stocks? Let's dive right into this fascinating topic together, you guys. I'm very excited to share this with you.
From the teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pages 286 and 287, we read, "There will be wars and rumors of war, signs in the heavens above and in the earth beneath, the sun turned to darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in diverse places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds. Then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven. But what will the world do? They will say it is a planet, a comet, etc. But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east." Okay, so let that sink in. Joseph didn't say maybe. He said they will believe it is a comet. But in reality, he says it will be the sign of the coming of the Son of Man.
Now, that phrase right there is extremely important. It's actually a key phrase, "sign of the coming of the Son of Man." That exact wording, or very close variations of it, appear throughout the scriptures. The prophets use almost identical language when describing a great sign that will appear in the heavens just prior to the second coming of Jesus Christ. Just as there was a sign in the sky at his birth, there will be a sign in the sky before he returns. And the repetition of that phrase in scripture signals that they are all referring to the same specific event. Not just general signs of the times, but one grand, unmistakable sign that he is coming.
Now, here's where it becomes very fascinating. What exactly is the sign of the coming of the Son of Man? That question has been discussed and debated for years. We know many of its characteristics. We know it will appear in the heavens. We know it will grow in brightness. We know it will be misunderstood by the world. We know it will be visible to all people. But there are differing opinions as to what that thing in the sky actually is.
And just reading Joseph Smith's statements carefully, one possible interpretation is that the sign of the coming of the Son of Man is not merely a celestial object at all, but it could be Jesus Christ himself appearing in glory. And Bruce R. McConkie also seemed to express this exact same opinion in his book *Millennial Messiah*, which is very interesting. We will read that passage here. He says, "All people shall see it together. It shall spread over the earth as the morning light. For as the light of the morning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west and covereth the whole earth, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. Surely this is that of which Isaiah said, 'And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.'" Okay, this is very interesting. This was part of President Nelson's talk about the second coming, right? We continue, "Surely this is that of which our revelations speak. 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. Surely this is that day of which Zechariah prophesied. The Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. And it shall come to pass in that day that the light shall not be clear nor dark, but it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day nor night, but it shall come to pass that at evening time it shall be light, and the Lord shall be king over the earth." Zechariah 14:5-9. "And thus all the promised signs shall come to pass, and the great God who is Lord of all shall come and reign on earth, and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest." Okay, very interesting.
However, other quotes by Joseph Smith muddy the waters a little bit. Okay, from *The Words of Joseph Smith*, page 181, we read, he says, "Then shall they see the sign of the coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven. How are we to see it? Answer: As the lighting up of the morning, or as the dawning of the morning cometh from the east and shineth unto the west, so also is the coming of the Son of Man. The dawning of the morning makes its appearance in the east and moves along gradually. So also will the coming of the Son of Man be. It will be small at its first appearance and gradually becomes larger until every eye shall see it. Shall the saints understand it? Oh yes. Paul says so. Shall the wicked understand it? Oh no. They attribute it to a natural cause. They will probably suppose it's two great comets coming in contact with each other. It will be small at first and grow larger and larger until it will be all ablaze so that every eye shall see it." Okay, very fascinating.
All right. Now, in this version of the statement, Joseph Smith says it will probably be attributed to two comets coming into contact with one another or colliding. But in other recordings of this very same discourse, other notetakers who jotted down notes about what Joseph Smith said recorded it as two planets. Okay. Now, in either case, the idea is very much the same. Two celestial bodies, which raises a very interesting thought. He could have simply meant two celestial objects, something seen in the heavens that the world would attempt to explain naturally. After all, in the 19th century, "comet" was often used broadly to describe unusual or dramatic heavenly phenomena. And if people were to see something extraordinary in the sky, their instinct would be to categorize it according to whatever natural explanation made the most sense at the time. The key point Joseph seems to be making here is not the scientific label, but the reaction of the world. They will assign it a natural cause.
Now, here's where it gets even more fascinating. If it were attributed to two celestial objects, could one of those objects be something that we already see every day? Could it be an object like the sun, for example? We don't know how specific Joseph was being when he used the word "comet." He may simply have been describing the way that these two objects would come into contact with one another and people would perceive it as a natural phenomenon.
And that brings us to something very interesting recorded by Wendell Mace, who is a close associate of Joseph Smith, who recalled additional teachings that opened up even more possibilities. He said, "Joseph addressed the congregation and, as if for special benefit, touched upon this subject which opened a new field for reflection to me. His subject was the restitution of all things spoken of by the holy prophets since the world began." Quoting the 21st verse of the third chapter of Acts of the Apostles. "In the course of his remarks, he spoke of the earth being divided at various times. He said when Enoch and his city were taken away, a portion of earth was taken and would again be restored." Okay.
Now, this suggests that Joseph Smith may have believed that one of the objects in the sky at the coming of the Son of Man might actually be the City of Enoch, while the other object might be Jesus Christ himself. It's fascinating to consider that a part of the restoration of all things doesn't just include the restoration of lost doctrine, but also the restoration of lost land masses and the restoration of Zion itself as a city. Of that glorious meeting, the Lord uses prodigal son imagery when the lost son is reunited with his father in Moses 7:63. "And the Lord said unto Enoch, 'Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom.'" Okay, two of them. You notice how the Lord is saying to Enoch, "We both are going to meet them and take them into our bosom, and they shall see us, and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon their necks, and we will kiss each other." Okay, that's very prodigal son imagery that's happening. We're in this case, the prodigal sons. Okay?
And then we continue. Um, oh well, let's go back and read verse 62 as well. "And righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten, his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men. And righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth unto a place which I shall prepare, a holy city, that my people may gird up their loins and be looking forth for the time of my coming. For there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem." Okay, interesting, right? This verse is so rich in different symbolism here, in different associations that come to my mind. So, first, we have the association of Zion coming out from heaven. And then we have the association of the gospel, you know, the Book of Mormon coming out from the earth, and the possibility of new scriptures as well. We have the possibility of the resurrection of the dead as well, which it specifically mentions here.
It's fascinating to speculate about what the sign of the coming of the Son of Man could actually physically be, but what we do know for certain are its specific visual qualities and how it will behave. And this is crucial to understanding if we are to not be deceived and if we are to recognize the sign of the coming of the Son of Man when it happens. Okay. Uh, so the first sign, so the first thing is, is we know that it will be faint at first and grow and become very bright. Second, we know that it will move in the sky from the east to the west. And third, we know that secularists will likely call it a comet or other natural phenomenon. Number four, we know that it will cause the night to become light. We know that the entire world will see it, regardless of their access to technology. And these characteristics were the reason why I didn't believe that 3 Atlas was the sign of the coming of the Son of Man. It didn't conform to any of these characteristics in any obvious way. But if C20261A follows this pattern, there is a very good possibility that it could very well be the sign in the heavens before the second coming.
Now, let's connect some more dots that I found absolutely fascinating. We already mentioned that the church released their general conference ad with the title "He is near." Now, that specific phrase, "He is near," is only used, according to the citation index, in reference to the second coming. It is a very specific scripture. It's only been used twice. Once in that general conference trailer, the second time it was used by President Oaks in his April 2004 talk, "Preparation for the Second Coming." "The Lord has declared, '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, signs that will be shown in the heavens above and in the earth beneath.' The Savior taught this in the parable of the fig tree, whose tender new branches give a sign of the coming of summer. So likewise, when the elect shall see the signs of his coming, they shall know that he is near, even at the doors. He is near, even at the doors." It's a very interesting phrase, right?
The reference that President Oaks uses is actually from Joseph Smith—Matthew 1:38-39. Earlier in that chapter, we read in verse 26, "For as the light of the morning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west and covereth the whole earth, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be." Now, very interestingly, we only get the phrase "He is near" from the Joseph Smith Translation. In the King James Bible version, on the other hand, in verse 33 of Matthew 24, it only says "it is near." So, it's much more specific, that phrase. We get a much clearer vision of second coming prophecy when we study restored scripture from the prophets of God.
In Doctrine and Covenants section 88, for instance, we get a good view of what is supposed to happen before and after that great sign in the heavens is revealed. This great sign in the heavens is very important because it's the key to understanding where we are in the prophetic timeline and what comes next. Before the sign appears, we see earthquakes, tempests, waves heaving themselves beyond their bounds, men's hearts failing them, and angelic proclamations. And all of these things, I believe, that we have seen already. We skip down to verse 92 to read more. "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 your God is come. Behold, and lo, the Bridegroom cometh. Go ye out to meet him.'"
This verse is very interesting because of what President Nelson said in his conference talk, "Confidence in the Presence of God." >> "I testify that Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of Israel, leads this his Church. He is preparing to come again. May we likewise prepare to receive him. For this I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen." >> Now, as you know, President Nelson's ministry was so laser-focused on preparing for the Lord's return. He very well may have fulfilled verse 92. He may have been that angelic proclamation saying, "Prepare ye, the Bridegroom cometh. Go ye out to meet him." That seems very significant to me.
Let's continue reading in verse 93, which says, "And immediately there shall appear a great sign in heaven, and all people shall see it together." Okay, so soon after that proclamation, we see that the sign of the coming of the Son of Man appears, and everyone sees it. We continue in 94. "And another angel shall sound his trump, saying, 'That great church, the mother of abominations, that made all nations drink of the wrath, the wine of the wrath of her fornication, that persecuteth the saints of God, that shed their blood. She who sitteth upon many waters, and who upon the islands of the sea, behold, she is the tears of the earth. She is bound in bundles, her bands are made strong. No man can loose them. Therefore, she is ready to be burned. And he shall sound his trump both long and loud, and all nations shall hear it.'"
Okay, so here we see in this verse the great division taking place mentioned in 2 Nephi chapter 30. Okay, this was a verse that Nephi inserted into Isaiah between verses 4 and 5. Very important to pay attention to those verses that are different from the original Isaiah that Nephi added before the second coming. We are to learn from these verses that there will be a great division amongst the people. The wheat will be divided from the tares. The wise and humble virgins are separated from the foolish virgins. We've been talking about this a lot on the channel recently. It's so interesting that President Oaks's first official talk as president, delivered at BYU recently on February 10th, was so heavily focused on humility and the parable of the 10 virgins. Okay. The foolish are bound by pride, and they're ready to be burned. But interestingly, they are not burned yet. There is still a time to repent and to become humble. Right?
This is very interesting because if the sign of the coming of the Son of Man were, in fact, Jesus Christ's coming himself, if it were the great and dreadful day, in other words, the wicked would be burned at his coming. This is why it's important to remember that there are four different appearances of Jesus Christ's second coming. When Bruce R. McConkie says that the sign of the coming of the Son of Man is Jesus himself appearing in the sky, it can very well be one of his appearances, but not the great and terrible day, like the second appearance at Zion, for example, as Ezra Taft Benson describes that Jesus will come to his temple at New Jerusalem. It is my belief that after the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, that the Savior is with his saints in some capacity, along with Zion, as we're building Zion together with him, and possibly the City of Enoch itself as well, because they know what is coming next. And the righteous will need protection against the tribulations that will continue to grow in intensity. And I believe that Christ will be helping us to build Zion, and the inhabitants of Enoch will be helping as well.
Now, it is after this great sign in heaven that there is silence in the heavens for the space of half an hour. We read in verse 95, "And there shall be silence in heaven for the space of half an hour; and immediately after shall the curtains of heaven be unfolded as a scroll is unfolded after it is rolled up, and the face of the Lord shall be revealed." Okay, there's a lot of speculation here, um, about the space of half an hour. If a day unto the Lord is a thousand years, then half an hour would be roughly 21.5 years, or it could literally mean half an hour. Many believe that it is during this time that the worst of the tribulations will occur. Okay, so that is why Zion is built. We are informed that after this period of time, that this is when the face of the Lord is revealed, and the wicked are finally burned.
In verse 96, we read, "And the saints that are upon the earth who are alive shall be quickened and be caught up to meet him." We are informed that after this period of time, that this is when the face of the Lord is revealed, and the wicked are finally burned. This verse is very interesting and very important. We've been studying this verse a lot in our recent episodes on this channel. We don't believe in a pre-tribulation rapture as Latter-day Saints. However, we do believe that the Lord will quicken us and sustain us through the tribulations and protect us in different ways. We should pause for a moment, however, and turn to the book of Revelation chapter 8 for some additional context. Okay, we read in verse one, "And when he had opened the seventh seal, so this is the point when the seventh seal is opened, then there was space, there was silence in the heaven for the space of about half an hour." Okay, so we learn here that by this point in time, the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, the seventh seal, has been opened, because immediately after the sign occurs is the half an hour of silence, and that begins. Okay, so this is all very fascinating to consider.
I love these verses of scripture so much, and you can read them again and again and find new things each time. Now, if this new comet in the sky actually is the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, this will be a momentous and a very joyful occasion. I don't want people to be afraid or feel fearful of the signs and the tribulations that are to come. Like President Nelson said, we have every reason to be joyful and optimistic about the future because it could be a signal that Jesus Christ will be with us, and that we are in the process of establishing Zion in preparation for these other intensifications of tribulations that will be coming. Okay? And Jesus Christ, I truly and I firmly believe this, that as he comes at the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, that he will be with us in some greater capacity, some event like a great outpouring of the Spirit or something. He will be with us in some capacity to enable us to endure these things and to joyfully endure them as well. And I believe that the City of Enoch will be with us in some capacity as well. I'm not sure exactly how, but we will see. This is all very exciting.
The Salt Lake Tribune recently reported that the church has been selling off billions of dollars of its stocks and other assets. On February 18th of 2026, Tony Samaroo writes, "The huge investment fund of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been on an unprecedented selling spree. The church sold nearly $5.6 billion in stock and other equities in the final quarter of 2025, representing about 9% of its overall value. That unloading followed the quarter before, in which the church liquidated $2.1 billion of its holdings for a total of $7.7 billion within 6 months. Those numbers, and especially the final quarterly sales, have far exceeded any prior selling pattern since 2020." The Widows Might, which is a website devoted to research and analysis of the faith's finances via public documents, said that the selling pattern was a historic departure over the past six years for Ensign Peak. A co-founder of the site, whose contributions include unnamed current and former Latter-day Saints with professional backgrounds in finance, business, real estate, and law, said that "something is going on that is not routine. The key question is why? Perhaps the most intriguing explanation for the sell is that the faith may need sizable amounts of cash for a large purchase, new initiatives, or other urgent use." The Widows Might said, "Okay, isn't that fascinating?"
Whatever the case might be, I have a feeling that it has to do with the establishment of Zion. And I have a feeling that we will learn more about what the church is planning for this general conference coming up. Emily Belle Freeman recently talked in the youth devotional, uh, where they introduced the new topic, "Walk with Me." She told one of her favorite stories from the Old Testament, which has to do with a story that I believe is associated with the establishment of New Jerusalem and the people being defended by the Lord there. I think that that was very significant, you guys. This very well might be a part of the Lord's next phase in his preparation for us to receive him at his second coming.
Now, whether or not this new comet C2026 turns out to be the sign of the coming of the Son of Man or not, we need to remember that as we listen to the words of the prophets at general conference, we will be prepared for whatever might be coming our way. And I know that Jesus Christ is the head of his church. And I know that as we become active in the gospel of Jesus Christ and in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we will not be deceived, and he will indeed be with us. He will quicken us. He will make us so that we can endure all things. I have a feeling that things are about to get even more interesting. When I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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