One of my friends just got around to replying to this email that I sent out in Dec. 2008.  I thought my original email was worth posting again.

 

 

I went through and read these talks and made a bigger summary than in the past. It is interesting to note how prophetic these talks really were. In one of the talks he also talked about the US and the constitution which wasn't included here because this was written for a different purpose. There have been many anecdotal comments about apostles mentioning these talks lately, perhaps because it was prophetic?



The first time President Hinckley mentioned Pharoahs dream was in 1998 when he said, I wish to speak to you about temporal matters. As a backdrop for what I wish to say, I read to you a few verses from the 41st chapter of Genesis where Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, dreamed dreams which greatly troubled him...And I saw in my dreamseven ears came up in one stalk, full and good: And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them. Then Josephs interpretation, Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: And there shall arise after them seven years of famine. . . And God will shortly bring it to pass. (Gen. 41:20, 26, 30, 32). Now, brethren, I want to make it very clear that I am not prophesying, that I am not predicting years of famine in the future. But I am suggesting that the time has come to get our houses in orderThere is a portent of stormy weather ahead to which we had better give heed Thats all I have to say about it, but I wish to say it with all the emphasis of which I am capable. A portent means something of prophetic or ominous significance. In this 1998 talk he also spoke about the fragile economy, how people are living off of their borrowings instead of earnings and how paying interest is financial bondage. He said how he hoped that there wouldnt be a depressiontwice, but then said he is concerned about the debt our members are carrying. He talked about how Elder Faust paid off his mortgage, and how happy that has made him.

President Hinckley again referenced Pharoahs dream shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attack in his talk The Times In Which We Live. Pres. Hinckley said The economy is particularly vulnerable. We have been counseled again and again concerning self-reliance, concerning debt, concerning thrift. So many of our people are heavily in debt for things that are not entirely necessary. Then he talked about getting a modest home and paying it off as quickly as possible. He then said, We cannot provide against every contingency. But we can provide against many contingencies. Let the present situation remind us that this we should do. As we have been continuously counseled for more than 60 years, let us have some food set aside that would sustain us for a time in case of need He then referenced Pharoahs dream when he said, I do not know what the future holds. I do not wish to sound negative, but I wish to remind you of the warnings of scripture and the teachings of the prophets which we have had constantly before us. I cannot forget the great lesson of Pharaohs dream of the fat and lean kine and of the full and withered stalks of corn. I cannot dismiss from my mind the grim warnings of the Lord as set forth in the 24th chapter of Matthew. I am familiar, as are you, with the declarations of modern revelation that the time will come when the earth will be cleansed and there will be indescribable distress, with weeping and mourning and lamentation (see D&C 112:24). Now, I do not wish to be an alarmist. I do not wish to be a prophet of doom. When the prophet says that he cannot dismiss from his mind the grim warnings of Lord and that he cannot forget the lesson of Pharaohs dream, we should pay particular heed, especially when he says it in a conference address to the church.


Exactly seven years from the date that President Hinckley first gave (as I call it) his seven years of plenty talk, he again mentioned the dream of Pharaoh in October 2005 in his talk, If ye are Prepared Ye Shall Not Fear. He said, Let us never lose sight of the dream of Pharaoh concerning the fat cattle and the lean, the full ears of corn and the blasted ears, the meaning of which was interpreted by Joseph to indicate years of plenty and years of scarcity. He also said, What (calamities) we have experienced in the past was all foretold, and the end is not yet. Just as there have been calamities in the past, we expect more in the future. What do we do? Someone has said it was not raining when Noah built the ark. But he built it, and the rains cameWe can heed warningsWe are told by seismologists that the Salt Lake Valley is a potential earthquake zoneWe have built grain storage and storehouses and stocked them with the necessities of life in the event of a disaster. But the best storehouse is the family storeroom. In words of revelation the Lord has said, Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing (D&C 109:8). Our people for three-quarters of a century have been counseled and encouraged to make such preparation as will assure survival should a calamity come. We can set aside some water, basic food, medicine, and clothing to keep us warm. We ought to have a little money laid aside in case of a rainy day