The Great Second Advent Movement: Its Rise and Progress

Wonders in the Heavens

The Lord through the prophet Joel says: “I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.” ⁴ The Adventists believed and taught that the aurora borealis of the last centuries (commonly called northern lights) was the “fire and pillars of smoke” that meets the specification of the prophet; and from the best information to be obtained from history (we refer to the Edinburg Encyclopedia as testimony), it had rarely been seen previous to this period. GSAM 111.5

So, while the message of the Lord’s speedy coming was going to the remotest parts of the earth, signs were hung out in the heavens which gave edge to the truth, and arrested the attention of the people. GSAM 112.1

On Jan. 25, 1837, there was a most magnificent display of the fiery aurora borealis, which seemed to lead the minds of many directly to the prophet Joel’s prediction of what was to precede the great day of the Lord. The following description of the scene is from the New York Commercial Advertiser of Oct. 22, 1839. It agrees exactly with the scene as the writer witnessed it in Victor, Ontario County, N.Y. GSAM 112.2