The Bible teaches that we cannot know the exact day and hour of Christ’s return (Matthew 24:36). But the Scriptures describe the condition of affairs at the end of the time in the following passages:
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Capital-labor troubles
“The hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord” “Be … patient; … for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (James 5:4, 8).
Wars and commotions
“But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass” (Luke 21:9).
Unrest, fear, and upheaval
“And there shall be … upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; … Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth” (Luke 21:25, 26).
Increase of knowledge
“Even to the time of the end … knowledge shall be increased” (Daniel 12:4).
It is said that 80 percent of the world’s total knowledge has been brought forth in the last decade and that 90 percent of all the scientists who have ever lived are alive today.
Scoffers and religious skeptics who turn away from Bible truth
“There shall come in the last days scoffers” (2 Peter 3:3). “They will not endure sound doctrine; … And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” (2 Timothy 4:3, 4).
Moral degeneracy–decline of spirituality
“In the last days … men shall be lovers of their own selves, … Without natural affection, … incontinent, … despisers of those that are good, … Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof” (2 Timothy 3:1-5).
Craze for pleasure
“In the last days … men shall be … lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (2 Timothy 3:1-4).
Increasing lawlessness, bloody crimes, and violence
“Iniquity shall abound” (Matthew 24:12). “Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse” (2 Timothy 3:13).
Destructive earthquakes, storms, and famines
“And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences” (Luke 21:11).
A special message to the world in the very last days
“This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). The last warning message of Christ’s second coming is now being presented in more than 900 languages.
A turning to spiritualism
“In the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits” (1 Timothy 4:1). “They are the spirits of devils” (Revelation 16:14).
Sings in the heavenly bodies
1) The Sun Turned into Darkness
Prophecy: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened” (Matthew 24:29).
Fulfillment: This was fulfilled by a day of supernatural darkness on May 19, 1780. It was not an eclipse. Timothy Dwight says, “The 19th of May, 1780, was a remarkable dark day. Candles were lighted in many houses; the birds were silent and disappeared, and the fowls retired to roost. … A very general opinion prevailed, that the day of judgment was at hand.” Connecticut Historical Collections, compiled by John Warner Barber (2nd ed.; New Haven: Durrie & Peck and J.W. Barber, 1836) p. 403.
2) The Moon Turned into Blood
Prophecy: “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come” (Joel 2:31).
Fulfillment: The moon became as red as blood on the night of the “dark day,” May 19, 1780. Milo Bostick in Stone’s History of Massachusetts says, “The moon which was at its full, had the appearance of blood.”
3) The Stars Fall from Heaven
Prophecy: “And the stars shall fall from heaven” (Matthew 24:29).
Fulfillment: The great star shower took place on the night of November 13, 1833. It was so bright that a newspaper could be read on the street. One writer says, “For nearly four hours the sky was literally ablaze” *Men thought the end of the world had come. Look into this. It is most fascinating, and a sign of Christ’s coming. *Peter A. Millman, “The Falling of the Stars,” The Telescope, 7 (May-June, 1940) 57.
Jesus Comes in the Clouds
“And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30).
“Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled” (Matthew 24:32-34).
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
