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Scriptural References about Joseph and Judah

Many references to Joseph and Judah appear in Jewish and Mormon scriptures, most of them prophesying Israel’s latter-day restoration and the dynamics of the relationship between these two divisions of the original twelve-tribed kingdom of Israel. They include the patriarch Jacob’s blessings upon his sons before his death, the Hebrew prophets’ predictions of Israel’s gathering and reunification, Book of Mormon predictions of Israel’s scattering and restoration, and revelations received by the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith on the role of the tribe of Ephraim.



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“They told him, saying, ‘Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt.’ But Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not. And they told him all the words of Joseph that he had spoken to them. And when he saw the wagons Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived. And Israel said, ‘It is enough. Joseph my son is yet alive. I will go and see him before I die.’” (Genesis 45:26–28)

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“Joseph took both of them, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly. For Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph and said, ‘God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God who fed me all my life long to this day, the angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads, and let my name be named on them and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.’

“And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim it displeased him, and he held up his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said to his father, ‘Not so, my father, for this is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.’ And his father refused and said, ‘I know it, my son, I know it. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great, but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become the fulness of the Gentiles.’ And he blessed them that day, saying, ‘In you shall Israel bless, saying, “God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.”’ And he set Ephraim before Manasseh.” (Genesis 48:13–20)

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“Judah, you are the one your brothers will praise. Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies. Your father’s children will bow down before you. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, he couched like a lion, or like an old lion. Who will rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the gathering of the people—binding his foal to the vine and his ass’s colt to the choice vine. He washed his garments in wine, his clothes in the blood of grapes. His eyes shall be red with wine, his teeth white with milk.” (Genesis 49:8–12)

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“Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall. The archers sorely grieved him and shot at him and hated him. But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel), even by the God of your father, who will help you; by the Almighty, who will bless you with the blessings of heaven above and with the blessings of the deep that lies beneath, and with the blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph and on the crown of the head of him who was separated from his brothers.” (Genesis 49:22–26)

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“This is the blessing of Judah: he said, ‘Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people. Let his hands be sufficient for him, and be a help to him from his enemies.” (Deuteronomy 33:7)

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“Of Joseph he said, ‘Blessed of the Lord be his land for the precious things of heaven, for the dew and for the deep that couches beneath, and for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, and for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the everlasting hills, and for the precious things of the earth and its fulness, and for the goodwill of him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come on the head of Joseph, on top of the head of him who was separated from his brethren. His glory is like the firstling of his bullock and his horns like the horns of bison. With them he shall push the peoples together to the ends of the earth. They are the ten thousands of Ephraim and they are the thousands of Manasseh.’” (Deuteronomy 33:13–17)

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“Judah prevailed above his brothers and of him is the chief ruler. But the birthright is Joseph’s.” (1 Chronicles 5:2)

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“In that day the sprig of Jesse, who stands for an ensign to the peoples, shall be sought by the nations, and his rest shall be glorious. In that day my Lord will again raise his hand to reclaim the remnant of his people—those who shall be left out of Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the islands of the sea. He will raise the ensign to the nations and assemble the exiled of Israel; he will gather the scattered of Judah from the four directions of the earth.

“Ephraim’s jealousy shall pass away and the hostile ones of Judah be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, nor Judah resent Ephraim. But they will swoop on the Philistine flank toward the west, and together plunder those to the east; [they will take] Edom and Moab at hand’s reach, and the Ammonites will obey them.

“The Lord will dry up the tongue of the Egyptian Sea by his mighty wind; he will extend his hand over the River and smite it into seven streams to provide a way on foot. And there shall be a pathway out of Assyria for the remnant of his people who shall be left, as there was for Israel when it came up from the land of Egypt.” (Isaiah 11:10–16)

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“I will extract offspring out of Jacob, and out of Judah heirs of my mountains; my chosen ones shall inherit them, my servants shall dwell there. Sharon shall become pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for the herds of my people who seek me.” (Isaiah 65:9–10)

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“In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together out of the land of the north to the land I gave as an inheritance to your fathers.” (Jeremiah 3:18)

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“‘Woe to the pastors who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!’ says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the pastors who feed my people: ‘You have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not visited them.’

“‘Behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them again to their folds, and they will be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them who shall feed them. And they shall fear no more nor be dismayed, neither will they be lacking,’ says the Lord.

“‘Behold, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will raise up to David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign and prosper and execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely. And this is his name by which he shall be called, The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’

“‘Therefore, behold, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that they shall no more say, “The Lord lives who brought the people of Israel up out of the land of Egypt,” But, “The Lord lives who brought the offspring of the house of Israel up from the north country and who led them out of all the countries where [he] had driven them.” And they shall dwell in their own land.’” (Jeremiah 23:1–8)

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“‘Lo, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will reverse the captivity of my people Israel and Judah,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will cause them to return to the land I gave their fathers, and they will possess it.’ These are the words the Lord spoke concerning Israel and concerning Judah.” (Jeremiah 30:3–4)

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“There shall come a day when the watchmen on Mount Ephraim shall cry, ‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.’ For thus says the Lord: ‘Sing with gladness for Jacob and shout among the chief of the nations. Declare it, praise, and say, ‘O Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel!’ Behold, I will bring them from the north country and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and she who travails with child, together. A great company shall return thither. They shall come with weeping, and with supplications I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters in a straight course that they may not stumble. For I am a father to Israel and Ephraim is my firstborn.

“Hear the word of the Lord, you nations. Declare it in the isles afar off and say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him and keep him as a shepherd does his flock. For the Lord has redeemed Jacob and has ransomed him from the hand of him who was stronger than him. Therefore, they shall come and sing in the height of Zion and flow together to the goodness of the Lord—for the wheat, and for the wine, and for the oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd. And their soul shall be as a watered garden, and they shall not sorrow any more at all.’

“‘Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together, for I will turn their mourning into joy and I will comfort them and make them rejoice from their sorrow. And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,’ says the Lord.

“Thus says the Lord: ‘A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping—Rachel, weeping for her children, refused to be comforted for her children because they were not.’ Thus says the Lord: ‘Refrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work shall be rewarded,’ says the Lord, ‘and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in your end,’ says the Lord, ‘that your children shall come again to their own border.’

“I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus: ‘You have chastised me, and I was chastised. As a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke, turn me and I will be turned, for you are the Lord, my God. Surely, after I was turned I repented, and after I was instructed I smote my thigh. I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I bore the reproach of my youth.’ ‘Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he a pleasant child? For since I spoke against him I do earnestly remember him still. Therefore my bowels are troubled for him. I will surely have mercy on him,’ says the Lord.” (Jeremiah 31:6–20)

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“Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day and the regulations of the moon and stars for a light by night, who divides the sea when its waves roar—the Lord of Hosts is his name: ‘If these ordinances depart from before me,’ says the Lord, ‘then the offspring of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me forever.’ Thus says the Lord: ‘If heaven above can be measured and the foundations of the earth beneath searched out, then will I also cast off all the offspring of Israel for all they have done,’ says the Lord.” (Jeremiah 31:23–37)

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“‘Behold, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not according to the covenant I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, which covenant of mine they broke, although I was an husband to them,’ says the Lord. ‘But this shall be the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days,’ says the Lord: ‘I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. And will be their God and they will be my people. And they will no more teach every man his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, “Know the Lord.” For they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,’ says the Lord. ‘For I will forgive their iniquity and will remember their sin no more.’

“Behold, I will bring it health and healing, and I will heal them. And I will reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to reverse and I will build them as at the first. And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against me. And I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned and by which they have transgressed against me. And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honor before all the nations of the earth, who shall hear all the good I will do for them. And they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I solicit for it.

“Thus says the Lord: ‘Again shall there be heard in this place—which you say shall be desolate, without man and beast, even in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem, which are desolate, without a man and without inhabitant and without beast—the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who shall say, “Praise the Lord of Hosts, for the Lord is good, for his mercy endures for ever,” and [the voice] of those who will bring a sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. For I will cause to reverse the captivity of the land as at the first,’ says the Lord.

“Thus says the Lord of Hosts: ‘Again, in this place, which is desolate without man and beast, and in all its cities, shall there be a habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the valleys, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah shall the flocks pass again under the hands of he who identifies them,’ says the Lord.

“‘Behold, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will perform that good thing which I promised the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a branch of righteousness to grow up to David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days shall Judah be saved and Jerusalem dwell safely. And this is [the name] by which she shall be called, The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 33:6–16)

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“‘In those days and at that time,’ says the Lord, ‘the people of Israel will come, they and the people of Judah together, going and weeping. They will go and seek the Lord their God. They will ask the way to Zion, their faces toward it [saying], “Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.”’” (Jeremiah 50:4–5)

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“I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan and his soul shall be satisfied on Mount Ephraim and Gilead. ‘In those days and in that time,’ says the Lord, ‘the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none, and the sins of Judah, they shall not be found, for I will pardon them whom I reserve.” (Jeremiah 50:19–20)

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“Son of man, take one stick and write on it, ‘For Judah and for the people of Israel his companions.’ Then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions,’ and join them one to another into one stick, and they will become as one in your hand. And when the sons of your people speak to you, saying, ‘Will you not show us what you mean by these?’ Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph that is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and I will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and I will make them one stick, and they will be one in my hand.” And the sticks on which you write shall be in your hand before their eyes.

“And say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will take the people of Israel from among the Gentiles, where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all. And they shall no more be two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. Neither will they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their abominations, nor with any of their transgressions. But I will save them out of all their dwelling places in which they sinned, and I will cleanse them, so that they will be my people and I will be their God.

“And my servant David shall be a king over them, and all shall have one shepherd. They will walk by my precepts and observe my statutes and perform them. And they shall dwell in the land I gave my servant Jacob, in which your fathers dwelt, and they shall dwell there, they and their children and their children’s children forever. And my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace—an everlasting covenant—with them. And I will place them, and multiply them, and set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore.”’” (Ezekiel 37:15–26)

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“The number of the people of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. And it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,’ [there] it shall be said to them, ‘You are the sons of the living God.’ Then shall the people of Judah and the people of Israel be gathered together and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.” (Hosea 1:10–11)

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“Ephraim has assimilated among the nations; Ephraim is a cake unturned.” (Hosea 7:8)

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“Multitudes, multitudes in the Valley of Decision, for the day of the Lord is near in the Valley of Decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The Lord also shall roar out of Zion and utter his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth shall shake. But the Lord will be the hope of his people and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall you know that I am the Lord your God, dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain. Then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

“It shall come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk and all the rivers of Judah flow with waters. And a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord that shall water the Valley of Shittim. Egypt shall be a desolation and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for their violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land. But Judah shall dwell forever and Jerusalem from generation to generation. I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed, for the Lord dwells in Zion.” (Joel 3:14–21)

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“‘Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of you,’ says the Lord. And many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day and shall be my people. And I will dwell in the midst of you and you shall know that the Lord of Hosts hath sent me to you. The Lord shall inherit Judah, his portion, in the holy land and shall again choose Jerusalem. Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has risen up out of his holy habitation.” (Zechariah 2:10–13)

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“Thus says the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: ‘As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah and in its cities when I reverse their captivity: “The Lord bless you, O habitation of justice and mountain of holiness.” And there shall dwell in Judah itself, and in its cities together, husbandmen and those who go forth with flocks. For I will satiate the weary soul and replenish every sorrowful soul.’ Upon this, I awoke and saw that my sleep had been sweet to me.

“‘Behold, the days come,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the offspring of men and with the offspring of beasts. And it shall come to pass that, as I have watched over them to pluck [them] up and to break down and throw down and to destroy and afflict, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,’ says the Lord. ‘In those days they will no more say, “The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge.” But everyone will die for his own iniquity—every man who eats sour grapes, his teeth will be set on edge.’

“And it shall come to pass that, as you were a curse among the gentiles, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Fear not but let your hands be strong. For thus says the Lord of Hosts: ‘As I thought to punish you when your fathers provoked me to wrath,’ says the Lord of Hosts, ‘and I relented not, so have I purposed in these days to again do well to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Fear not.’” (Zechariah 8:13–15)

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“Thus says the Lord of Hosts: ‘There shall come people and inhabitants from many cities. And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord and seek the Lord of Hosts; I will go also.” Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of Hosts in Jerusalem and to pray before the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord of Hosts: ‘In those days, ten men shall take hold out of all the languages of the nations, even take hold of the skirt of he who is a Jew, saying, “We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” (Zechariah 8:20–23)

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“When I have bent Judah for me, and filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and made you as the sword of a mighty man—and [when] the Lord shall be seen over them, and his arrows go forth as the lightning, and [when] the Lord God shall blow the trumpet and go with the whirlwinds of the south—[then] will the Lord of Hosts defend them, and they shall devour and subdue with sling stones. And they shall drink and make a noise as with wine and shall be filled like bowls and as the corners of the altar. And the Lord their God will save them in that day as the flock of his people, for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.” (Zechariah 9:13–16)

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“‘My anger was kindled against the shepherds and I punished the goats. For the Lord of Hosts has visited his flock, the house of Judah, and made them as his goodly horse in the battle. Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every oppressor altogether. And they shall be as mighty men who tread down [their enemies] in the mire of the streets in the battle. And they shall fight because the Lord is with them and the riders on horses shall be confounded. I will strengthen the house of Judah and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them, for I have mercy upon them. And they shall be as though I had not cast them off, for I am the Lord their God, and I will hear them.

“And [those of] Ephraim shall be like a mighty man and their heart shall rejoice as with wine. Yea, their children shall see it and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the Lord. I will hiss for them and gather them, for I have redeemed them. They shall increase as they did increase, and I will sow them among the peoples. They will remember me in far off countries, and they will live with their children and return again. I will also bring them again out of the land of Egypt and gather them out of Assyria. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, and place shall not be found for them.

“He shall pass through the sea with affliction and shall smite the waves of the sea, and all the depths of the River shall dry up. The pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt shall depart away. And I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they will walk up and down in his name,’ says the Lord.” (Zechariah 10:3–12)

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“‘The burden of the word of the Lord for Israel,’ says the Lord who stretches forth the heavens and lays the foundations of the earth and who forms the spirit of man within him: ‘Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling to all the peoples round about when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. In that day I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all peoples. All who burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the peoples of the earth be gathered together against it.’

“‘In that day,’ says the Lord, ‘I will smite every horse with astonishment and his rider with madness, and I will open my eyes on the house of Judah and smite every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their hearts, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of Hosts, their God.’ In that day I will make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood and like a torch of fire in a sheaf, and they will devour all the peoples round about, on the right hand and on the left, and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in its own place, even in Jerusalem.

“The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and he who is feeble among them in that day shall be as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplications, and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him as one mourns for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him as one who is in bitterness for his firstborn.

“In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad Rimmon in the Valley of Megiddo. The land shall mourn, every family apart, the family of the house of David apart and their wives apart, the family of the house of Nathan apart and their wives apart, the family of the house of Levi apart and their wives apart, the family of Shimei apart and their wives apart, and all the families that remain, every family apart and their wives apart.

“In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.” (Zechariah 12:1–13:1)

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“Behold, the day of the Lord comes and your spoil shall be divided in the midst of you. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished. And half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

“Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day on the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley. Half of the mountain shall remove toward the north and half of it toward the south. And you shall flee to the valley of the mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. Yea, you shall flee as you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. And the Lord my God shall come and all the saints with you.

“And it shall come to pass in that day that the light shall not be clear or dark. But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day nor night, for it shall come to pass that at evening time it shall be light.

“And it shall be in that day that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, half of them toward the former sea and half of them toward the hinder sea. In summer and in winter shall this be. And the Lord shall be king over all the earth. In that day shall there be one Lord and his name one. All the land shall be turned into a plain, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem. It shall be lifted up and inhabited in its place, from Benjamin’s gate to the place of the first gate to the corner gate, and from the Tower of Hananeel to the king’s winepresses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited safely.

“And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will smite all the peoples that have fought against Jerusalem: their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongues shall consume away in their mouths. And it shall come to pass in that day that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them, and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbor, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbor.

“And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold and silver and apparel in great abundance. And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, even as this plague.

“And it shall come to pass, that every one who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt goes not up or comes not, it shall have no rain. There shall be the plague with which the Lord will smite the heathen who come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

“In that day there shall be upon the bells of the horses, ‘Holiness to the Lord,’ and the pots in the Lord’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be “Holiness to the Lord of Hosts.’ And all who sacrifice shall come and take of them and seethe therein, and in that day shall the Canaanite no more be in the house of the Lord of Hosts.” (Zechariah 14:1–21)

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“‘Behold, I will send my messenger and he shall prepare the way before me. And the Lord, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom you delight in. Behold, he shall come,’ says the Lord of Hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming, or who shall stand when he appears?  For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver and shall purify the sons of Levi and purge them as gold and silver that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant to the Lord as in days of old and as in former years.” (Malachi 3:1–4)

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“I say then, ‘Has God cast away his people? God forbid!’ For I am also an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not cast away his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah—how he makes intercession to God against Israel, saying, ‘Lord, they have killed your prophets and dug down your altars, and I am left alone; and they seek my life?’ But what says God’s answer to him? ‘I have reserved for myself seven-thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.’

“Even so, at this present time there is also a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then is it no longer by works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, then is it no longer grace, otherwise work is no longer work. What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks, but the election has obtained it, and the rest were blinded (according as it is written, ‘God has given them the spirit of slumber—eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear’) to this day. And David says, ‘Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumbling block, and a reward to them. Let their eyes be darkened that they may not see, and [let them] always bow down their backs.’

“I say, then, ‘Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid! Rather, through their fall salvation has come to the Gentiles in order to provoke them to jealousy.’ Now if their fall is the enriching of the world and the diminishing of them the enriching of the Gentiles, how much more shall their fulness be? For I speak to you, Gentiles—for inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify my office—if by any means I may provoke to emulation those who are of my flesh and save some of them. For if their being cast away is the reconciliation of the world, what shall their being received [back] be but life from the dead?

“For if the firstfruits are holy, the trunk is also [holy], and if the root is holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches are broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, are grafted in among them—and with them you partake of the root and fatness of the olive tree—boast not against the branches. For if you boast, you bear not the root, but the root [bears] you. You wilt say then, ‘The branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.’ Well, because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith.’ Be not high-minded but fear, for if God did not spare the natural branches, [take heed] lest he also does not spare you.

“See, therefore, the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity, but toward you, goodness—if you continue in his goodness, otherwise you also shall be cut off. And they, also, if they continue not more in unbelief, shall be grafted [back] in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you, being cut out of the olive tree that is wild by nature, are grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree, how much more shall these, who are the natural [branches], be grafted [back] into their own olive tree? For I would not, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you become wise in your own conceit, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in. And then all Israel shall be saved, as it is written, ‘There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins.’

“As for the gospel, [they are] enemies for your sake; but as for the election, [they are] beloved for the fathers’ sake. For the gifts and calling of God are without retraction. For as you, in times past, did not believe in God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief, even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. For God has included them all in unbelief so that he may have mercy upon all.” (Romans 11:1–32)

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“After these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, ‘Hurt not the earth, neither the sea nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

“And I heard the number of those who were sealed, and there were sealed a hundred-and-forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. Of the tribe of Judah were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Asher were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Naphtali were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasseh were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Zebulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand” (Revelation 7:1–8)

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“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)

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“My words shall hiss forth unto the ends of the earth for a standard unto my people, which are of the house of Israel. And because my words shall hiss forth, many of the Gentiles shall say, ‘A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible.’ But thus saith the Lord God: ‘O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it shall proceed forth from the Jews, mine ancient covenant people. And what thank they the Jews for the Bible which they receive from them? Yea, what do the Gentiles mean? Do they remember the travails, and the labors, and the pains of the Jews, and their diligence unto me, in bringing forth salvation unto the Gentiles? O ye Gentiles, have ye remembered the Jews, mine ancient covenant people? Nay; but ye have cursed them, and have hated them, and have not sought to recover them. But behold, I will return all these things upon your own heads; for I the Lord have not forgotten my people.’

“Thou fool, that shall say, ‘A Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible.’  Have ye obtained a Bible save it were by the Jews? Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth? Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also.

“And I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and that I speak forth my words according to mine own pleasure. And because that I have spoken one word ye need not suppose that I cannot speak another; for my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be until the end of man, neither from that time henceforth and forever. Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written. For I command all men, both in the east and in the west, and in the north, and in the south, and in the islands of the sea, that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; for out of the books which shall be written I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.

“For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it. 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 29:2–14)

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“Behold, I say unto you that as many of the Gentiles as will repent are the covenant people of the Lord; and as many of the Jews as will not repent shall be cast off; for the Lord covenanteth with none save it be with them that repent and believe in his Son, who is the Holy One of Israel.” (2 Nephi 30:2)

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“It shall come to pass that the Jews which are scattered also shall begin to believe in Christ; and they shall begin to gather in upon the face of the land; and as many as shall believe in Christ shall also become a delightsome people. And it shall come to pass that the Lord God shall commence his work among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, to bring about the restoration of his people upon the earth.” (2 Nephi 30:7–8)

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“We are a remnant of the seed of Jacob; yea, we are a remnant of the seed of Joseph, whose coat was rent by his brethren into many pieces; yea, and now behold, let us remember to keep the commandments of God, or our garments shall be rent by our brethren, and we be cast into prison, or be sold, or be slain. Yea, let us preserve our liberty as a remnant of Joseph; yea, let us remember the words of Jacob, before his death, for behold, he saw that a part of the remnant of the coat of Joseph was preserved and had not decayed. And he said, ‘Even as this remnant of garment of my son hath been preserved, so shall a remnant of the seed of my son be preserved by the hand of God, and be taken unto himself, while the remainder of the seed of Joseph shall perish, even as the remainder of his garment.’” (Alma 46:23–24)

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“Surely he hath blessed the house of Jacob, and hath been merciful unto the seed of Joseph. And insomuch as the children of Lehi have kept his commandments he hath blessed them and prospered them according to his word. Yea, and surely shall he again bring a remnant of the seed of Joseph to the knowledge of the Lord their God. And as surely as the Lord liveth, will he gather in from the four quarters of the earth all the remnant of the seed of Jacob, who are scattered abroad upon all the face of the earth.

“And as he hath covenanted with all the house of Jacob, even so shall the covenant wherewith he hath covenanted with the house of Jacob be fulfilled in his own due time, unto the restoring all the house of Jacob unto the knowledge of the covenant that he hath covenanted with them. And then shall they know their Redeemer, who is Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and then shall they be gathered in from the four quarters of the earth unto their own lands, from whence they have been dispersed; yea, as the Lord liveth so shall it be. Amen.” (3 Nephi 5:21–26)

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“Behold, I say unto you that when the Lord shall see fit, in his wisdom, that these sayings shall come unto the Gentiles according to his word, then ye may know that the covenant which the Father hath made with the children of Israel, concerning their restoration to the lands of their inheritance, is already beginning to be fulfilled. And ye may know that the words of the Lord, which have been spoken by the holy prophets, shall all be fulfilled; and ye need not say that the Lord delays his coming unto the children of Israel. And ye need not imagine in your hearts that the words which have been spoken are vain, for behold, the Lord will remember his covenant which he hath made unto his people of the house of Israel.

“And when ye shall see these sayings coming forth among you, then ye need not any longer spurn at the doings of the Lord, for the sword of his justice is in his right hand; and behold, at that day, if ye shall spurn at his doings he will cause that it shall soon overtake you. Woe unto him that spurneth at the doings of the Lord; yea, woe unto him that shall deny the Christ and his works! Yea, woe unto him that shall deny the revelations of the Lord, and that shall say the Lord no longer worketh by revelation, or by prophecy, or by gifts, or by tongues, or by healings, or by the power of the Holy Ghost! Yea, and woe unto him that shall say at that day, to get gain, that there can be no miracle wrought by Jesus Christ; for he that doeth this shall become like unto the son of perdition, for whom there was no mercy, according to the word of Christ!

Yea, and ye need not any longer hiss, nor spurn, nor make game of the Jews, nor any of the remnant of the house of Israel; for behold, the Lord remembereth his covenant unto them, and he will do unto them according to that which he hath sworn. Therefore ye need not suppose that ye can turn the right hand of the Lord unto the left that he may not execute judgment unto the fulfilling of the covenant which he hath made unto the house of Israel.” (3 Nephi 29:1–9)

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“Now these things are written unto the remnant of the house of Jacob; and they are written after this manner, because it is known of God that wickedness will not bring them forth unto them; and they are to be hid up unto the Lord that they may come forth in his own due time. And this is the commandment which I have received; and behold, they shall come forth according to the commandment of the Lord, when he shall see fit, in his wisdom. And behold, they shall go unto the unbelieving of the Jews; and for this intent shall they go—that they may be persuaded that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God; that the Father may bring about, through his most Beloved, his great and eternal purpose, in restoring the Jews, or all the house of Israel, to the land of their inheritance, which the Lord their God hath given them, unto the fulfilling of his covenant.” (Mormon 5:12–14)

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“The remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord, like unto the Jerusalem of old; and they shall no more be confounded, until the end come when the earth shall pass away. And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old shall have passed away and all things shall have become new.” (Ether 13:8–9)

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“Q. What is to be understood by the two witnesses, in the eleventh chapter of Revelation? A. They are two prophets that are to be raised up to the Jewish nation in the last days, at the time of the restoration, and to prophesy to the Jews after they are gathered and have built the city of Jerusalem in the land of their fathers.” (D&C 77:15)

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“That through your administration they may receive the word, and through their administration the word may go forth unto the ends of the earth, unto the Gentiles first, and then, behold, and lo, they shall turn unto the Jews. And then cometh the day when the arm of the Lord shall be revealed in power in convincing the nations, the heathen nations, the house of Joseph, of the gospel of their salvation. For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue, and in his own language, through those who are ordained unto this power, by the administration of the Comforter, shed forth upon them for the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (D&C 90:9–11)

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“Now these words, O Lord, we have spoken before thee, concerning the revelations and commandments which thou hast given unto us, who are identified with the Gentiles. But thou knowest that thou hast a great love for the children of Jacob, who have been scattered upon the mountains for a long time, in a cloudy and dark day. We therefore ask thee to have mercy upon the children of Jacob, that Jerusalem, from this hour, may begin to be redeemed, and the yoke of bondage may begin to be broken off from the house of David, and the children of Judah may begin to return to the lands which thou didst give to Abraham, their father.” (D&C 109:60–64)

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“Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the Lord your God, and hear the word of the Lord concerning you—the Lord who shall suddenly come to his temple; the Lord who shall come down upon the world with a curse to judgment; yea, upon all the nations that forget God, and upon all the ungodly among you. For he shall make bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of their God. Wherefore, prepare ye, prepare ye, O my people; sanctify yourselves; gather ye together, O ye people of my church, upon the land of Zion, all you that have not been commanded to tarry. Go ye out from Babylon. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord. Call your solemn assemblies, and speak often one to another. And let every man call upon the name of the Lord.

“Yea, verily I say unto you again, the time has come when the voice of the Lord is unto you: Go ye out of Babylon; gather ye out from among the nations, from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Send forth the elders of my church unto the nations which are afar off; unto the islands of the sea; send forth unto foreign lands; call upon all nations, first upon the Gentiles, and then upon the Jews. And behold, and lo, this shall be their cry, and the voice of the Lord unto all people: Go ye forth unto the land of Zion, that the borders of my people may be enlarged, and that her stakes may be strengthened, and that Zion may go forth unto the regions round about.

“Yea, let the cry go forth among all people: Awake and arise and go forth to meet the Bridegroom; behold and lo, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Prepare yourselves for the great day of the Lord. Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour. Let them, therefore, who are among the Gentiles flee unto Zion. And let them who be of Judah flee unto Jerusalem, unto the mountains of the Lord’s house. Go ye out from among the nations, even from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness, which is spiritual Babylon. But verily, thus saith the Lord, let not your flight be in haste, but let all things be prepared before you; and he that goeth, let him not look back lest sudden destruction shall come upon him.

“Hearken and hear, O ye inhabitants of the earth. Listen, ye elders of my church together, and hear the voice of the Lord; for he calleth upon all men, and he commandeth all men everywhere to repent. For behold, the Lord God hath sent forth the angel crying through the midst of heaven, saying: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, and make his paths straight, for the hour of his coming is nigh—When the Lamb shall stand upon Mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having his Father’s name written on their foreheads. Wherefore, prepare ye for the coming of the Bridegroom; go ye, go ye out to meet him.

“For behold, he shall stand upon the mount of Olivet, and upon the mighty ocean, even the great deep, and upon the islands of the sea, and upon the land of Zion. And he shall utter his voice out of Zion, and he shall speak from Jerusalem, and his voice shall be heard among all people; And it shall be a voice as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder, which shall break down the mountains, and the valleys shall not be found. He shall command the great deep, and it shall be driven back into the north countries, and the islands shall become one land; And the land of Jerusalem and the land of Zion shall be turned back into their own place, and the earth shall be like as it was in the days before it was divided. And the Lord, even the Savior, shall stand in the midst of his people, and shall reign over all flesh.

“And they who are in the north countries shall come in remembrance before the Lord; and their prophets shall hear his voice, and shall no longer stay themselves; and they shall smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence. And an highway shall be cast up in the midst of the great deep. Their enemies shall become a prey unto them, and in the barren deserts there shall come forth pools of living water; and the parched ground shall no longer be a thirsty land. And they shall bring forth their rich treasures unto the children of Ephraim, my servants. And the boundaries of the everlasting hills shall tremble at their presence. And there shall they fall down and be crowned with glory, even in Zion, by the hands of the servants of the Lord, even the children of Ephraim. And they shall be filled with songs of everlasting joy.

“Behold, this is the blessing of the everlasting God upon the tribes of Israel, and the richer blessing upon the head of Ephraim and his fellows. And they also of the tribe of Judah, after their pain, shall be sanctified in holiness before the Lord, to dwell in his presence day and night, forever and ever.” (D&C 133:1–35)

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