As the gospel goes forward, it will be of worth to both the
gentiles and the house of Israel. Nephi
would later write, “And the things which shall be written out of the book shall
be of great worth unto the children of men, and especially unto our seed, which
is a remnant of the house of Israel” (2 Nephi 28:2).
“And it shall come to pass that the Jews shall have the
words of the Nephites, and the Nephites shall have the words of the Jews; and
the Nephites and the Jews shall have the words of the lost tribes of Israel;
and the lost tribes of Israel shall have the words of the Nephites and the
Jews.
“And it shall come to pass that my people, which are of the
house of Israel, shall be gathered home unto the lands of their possessions;
and my word also shall be gathered in one.
And I will show unto them that fight against my word and against my
people, who are of the house of Israel, that I am God, and that I covenanted
with Abraham that I would remember his seed forever” (2 Nephi 29:13-14).
The covenants made with God and Abraham will also be known
to all. When speaking to the Nephites,
the Savior said:
“And behold, ye are the children of the prophets; and ye are
of the house of Israel; and ye are of the covenant which the Father made with
your fathers, saying unto Abraham: And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of
the earth be blessed…
“And after that ye were blessed then fulfilleth the Father
the covenant which he made with Abraham, saying: In thy seed shall all the
kindreds of the earth be blessed—unto the pouring out of the Holy Ghost through
me upon the Gentiles, which blessing upon the Gentiles shall make them mighty
above all, unto the scattering of my people, O house of Israel” (3 Nephi 20:25,
27).
Victor Ludlow explains Nephi’s powerful words.
“One powerful example illustrates Nephi's teachings about
covenants. In 1 Nephi 22, Nephi is teaching his older brothers after having
just quoted Isaiah (chapters 48 and 49). The brothers of Nephi then pose
some hard questions, asking essentially, ‘What is the meaning of these Isaiah
scriptures you have just read to us?’ Answering, Nephi describes how these
passages contain promises for their descendants. Starting in 1 Nephi 22:7, he
tells them ‘that after all the house of Israel have been scattered and confounded,
that the Lord God will raise up . . . Gentiles . . . upon the face of this
land,’ who would scatter their seed. Then the Lord would proceed to do a
marvelous work among the Gentiles, yea, which would be of great worth unto them
and all the house of Israel, ‘unto the making known of the covenants of the
Father of heaven unto Abraham’ (1 Nephi 22:9).
Nephi tries to help his brothers appreciate that the future
work of the gentiles would bless not only their own descendants in America, but
also the whole house of Israel, through whom all the peoples of the earth could
be blessed.[1]
Nephi explains, “all the kindreds of the earth cannot be
blessed unless he shall make bare his arm in the eyes of the nations” (1 Nephi
22:10). Noel Reynolds explains what is meant
when the Lord says He will “make bare his arm.”
“What does it mean to ‘make bare his arm’? Is it a strange
kind of statement? Does Nephi mean like on the beach, kind of to show off his
muscles? Why is it not already bare? Is God not there? Does he not already have
his power? Well, I think His power will become more visible. The truthfulness
of this gospel will become more evident as God unveils His arm, as He makes His
arm bare, and His mighty work will become more convincing, more clearly the work
of God in these last days. Nephi returns to this many times. He says, ‘Wherefore,
the Lord God will proceed to make bare his arm in the eyes of all the nations’
(v. 11). God is going to show everybody who he is and that this is his work, in
bringing about his covenants and his gospel unto those who are of the house of
Israel.”[2]
When the Lord bares His arm, he will do it to bring “his
covenants and his gospel unto those who are of the house of Israel” (1 Nephi
22:11).
“[Nephi] develops the accounts that are given him, to his
father Lehi, to Isaiah, and to other prophets, which accounts talk about a
future day in which the Lord will ‘[make] bare his arm in the eyes of all the
nations’ (1 Nephi 22:10—11). Until that time, the Lord is working through
people, and people can say, as Laman and Lemuel say, ‘You are not inspired.’ ‘The
Lord is not speaking unto you.’ ‘You are making this up.’ ‘Joseph Smith did not
receive revelation’—whatever you want to say. But the day will come, according to
these prophecies of Nephi, Lehi, and others, that the whole world will be able
to see that these claims are valid. The Lord will ‘make bare his arms in the
eyes of all the nations,’ for though the nations of the world may combine
against the saints of God who are scattered throughout the earth, as Nephi
reports in his vision, the power of God will at that time descend on His
faithful people, and they will be protected by His power. They will be saved,
even if necessary, as by fire.”[3]
Richard Dilworth Rust further explains:
“Just as the brass plates had been essential to the cultural
and spiritual preservation of the Nephites, so the Book of Mormon finally is
necessary to the spiritual preservation of Lehi's living descendants. They are
brought ‘out of captivity" and "out of obscurity" by being given
the Lord's "covenants and his gospel’ (1 Nephi 22:11–12) as promised in
the title page of the Book of Mormon.”[4]
The house of Israel will be brought out of captivity and
gathered again in the “lands of their inheritance” (1 Nephi 22:12). They will be “brought out of obscurity and
out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their
Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel” (1 Nephi 22:12).
“Nephi not only answered his brothers' questions, but also
gave the New Testament student a definitive statement of interpretation to
Paul's reference. In the latter days, the fulness of the gospel would come to
the Gentiles, and the Gentiles would then take it to the house of Israel. This
would cure the blindness, for as Nephi further taught, ‘They shall be brought
out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is the
Savior and their Redeemer, the mighty One of Israel’ (1 Nephi 22:12). Nephi not
only answered his brothers' questions, but also gave the New Testament student
a definitive statement of interpretation to Paul's reference. In the latter
days, the fulness of the gospel would come to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles
would then take it to the house of Israel. This would cure the blindness, for
as Nephi further taught, ‘They shall be brought out of obscurity and out of
darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is the Savior and their Redeemer,
the mighty One of Israel’ (1 Nephi 22:12).[5]
[4] "Great Things the Lord Hath Done" -
Epic Elements, Richard Dilworth Rust, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
[5] The Book of Mormon, An Interpretive Guide to
the New Testament, Dennis Largey, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
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