15 Nevertheless, when that day cometh, saith the prophet, that they no more turn aside their hearts against the Holy One of Israel, then will he remember the covenants which he made to their fathers.
The day will come when the house of Israel will be restored
to its former place of glory: being privileged to be the Lord’s people. Has
that time come with the restoration of the Gospel? Paul teaches that, “they
which are of faith [in Christ]…are the children of Abraham” (Galatians 3:7).
Does that mean that because my patriarchal blessing says that I was born into
the “lineage of Ephraim in the house of Joseph,” and I am of faith in Christ,
that I am literally part of the gathering of Israel? That I am one who has been
gathered? I know that if not by blood descent, at least in the way that Paul
described above, that I am part of that gathering, but what about the bloodline
Jews? We sure don’t see them coming to Christ in great numbers yet, but if I
understand these last few verses correctly, Nephi is talking specifically about
the Jews, they being the ones behind Christ’s crucifixion. They must be the
ones who turn no more from the Lord. They have, as a general population, over
the years and generations invested so much into maintaining their non-Christian
identity that it truly will be a miracle for them to lay that aside and accept
Christ as the Savior they have been watching for all these years. I’m anxious
to see how it all unfolds.
- Galatians 3: 7
- 1 Nephi 15: 19
- 1 Nephi 22: 12 (11–12)
