Moroni, referring to Joseph, reminded us he brought his
father to the land of Egypt, where he died.
“And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and
said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I.
“And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to
go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:
“I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely
bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.
“And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of Israel
carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the
wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him.
“And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had
gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed with
him:
“His sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and
his sons’ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt” (Genesis
46:2-7).
He did this to show His mercy towards the descants of
Joseph. Through his mercy to Jacob, they would not perish.
“Wherefore, Joseph truly saw our day. And he obtained a
promise of the Lord, that out of the fruit of his loins the Lord God would
raise up a righteous branch unto the house of Israel; not the Messiah, but a
branch which was to be broken off, nevertheless, to be remembered in the
covenants of the Lord that the Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the
latter days, in the spirit of power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness
unto light—yea, out of hidden darkness and out of captivity unto freedom” (2
Nephi 3:5).
A remnant of Joseph will be built in this promised land.
This will also be a land of their inheritance. The promises made to Joseph
would apply to those who inhabit this land in righteousness. “And inasmuch as
ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of
promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is
choice above all other lands” (1 Nephi 2:20).
“And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall
hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto
them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their
stumbling blocks—
“And harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they
shall be numbered among the seed of thy father; yea, they shall be numbered
among the house of Israel; and they shall be a blessed people upon the promised
land forever; they shall be no more brought down into captivity; and the house
of Israel shall no more be confounded” (1 Nephi 14:1-2).
“And then shall the remnants, which shall be scattered
abroad upon the face of the earth, be gathered in from the east and from the
west, and from the south and from the north; and they shall be brought to the
knowledge of the Lord their God, who hath redeemed them.
“And the Father hath commanded me that I should give unto
you this land, for your inheritance” (3 Nephi 20:13-14).
“And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond
the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto
the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands, which the Lord God
had preserved for a righteous people” (Ether 2:7).
They will build a holy city like the Jerusalem of old (see 3 Ne.
20:22, Ether 13:3–6, 10). “[T]hey shall no more be confounded, until the end
come when the earth shall pass away” (Ether 13:8). “And awake, and arise from
the dust, O Jerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of
Zion; and strengthen thy stakes and enlarge thy borders forever, that thou
mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he
hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled” (Moroni 10:31).
“Anciently, the Lord blessed Father Abraham with a promise
to make his posterity a chosen people.1 References to this covenant occur
throughout the scriptures. Included were promises that the Son of God would
come through Abraham’s lineage, that certain lands would be inherited, that
nations and kindreds of the earth would be blessed through his seed, and more.
While some aspects of that covenant have already been fulfilled, the Book of
Mormon teaches that this Abrahamic covenant will be fulfilled only in these
latter days! It also emphasizes that we are among the covenant people of the
Lord.4 Ours is the privilege to participate personally in the fulfillment of
these promises. What an exciting time to live!”[1]
When the covenant is fulfilled, there will be a new heaven
and new earth. “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens
and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13).
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first
heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea” (Revelation
21:1).
“Therefore those things which were of old time, which were
under the law, in me are all fulfilled.
“Old things are done away, and all things have become new” (3
Nephi 12:46-47).
Those that live in the New Jerusalem are blessed, Their
garments are white through Christ’s atonement. “And I said unto him, Sir, thou
knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation,
and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation
7:14). They will be numbered among the remnant of Joseph.
[1] The
Gathering of Scattered Israel, President Russell M. Nelson, October 2006
General Conference.
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