Moroni 7

(My highlights in orange, my thoughts in blue 12/2020 red type 11/20 orange 8/21 Brown 2022 -23)

CHAPTER 7

An invitation is given to enter into the rest of the Lord—2nd Comforter Pray with real intent—The Spirit of Christ enables men to know good from evil—Satan persuades men to deny Christ and do evil—The prophets manifest the coming of Christ—By faith, miracles are wrought and angels minister—Men should hope for eternal life and cleave unto charity. About A.D. 401–21.

  1 And now I, Moroni, write a few of the words of my father Mormon, which he spake concerning ^afaith, hope, and charity; for after this manner did he speak unto the people, as he taught them in the ^bsynagogue which they had built for the place of worship. The had "church buildings" just like us...
  2 And now I, Mormon, speak unto you, my beloved brethren; and it is by the ^agrace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, and his holy will, because of the gift of his ^bcalling unto me, that I am permitted to speak unto you at this time. Right from the beginning he's telling them he is speaking to them with authority of God.
  3 Wherefore, I would speak unto you that are of the ^achurch, that are the 
^bpeaceable followers of Christ, is this a note of two possible groups within the group, or a more detailed description of the first group. In other words, within the "church" is there another group who are "the peaceable followers of Christ"?  and that have obtained a sufficient ^chope by which ye can enter into the ^drest of the Lord, "sufficient hope" means that you can have some hope, but not enough hope to enter into the "rest" of the Lord. What exactly does that mean? Is it hope such that you "rest" from the cares of this world and are not tossed and buffeted by the temptations of evil? from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven. This reference to "rest" sounds like it is before we die. I think "rest of the Lord" refers to calling and election made sure. 
  4 And now my brethren, I judge these things of you because of your peaceable ^awalk with the children of men. second reference to peace This is a great challenge in our day with so much division. How do you walk with peace when there is so much evil around you? Notice that he is judging them (perhaps as a "judge in Israel" like a Bishop); but my point is that he is making a judgment, so it's not a "sin" to judge (righteously, of course). "peaceable walk" - sounds like it can be "seen" and has to do with how they interact with one another, not just with church members but with others too. How do you stand for truth "peaceably"? Was Captain Moroni an example of this? (This Moroni is not that Captain Moroni, but probably named after him...) 
  5 For I remember the word of God which saith by their ^aworks ye shall know them; for if their works be good, then they are good also. This sounds black and white So what are the works of peace?  This is hard if you take it at face value. I don't believe the church's "works" of distributing the current vax to other nations is "good" and by this scripture that makes the church not "good" either. But...I believe they believe they are doing good, so does that make them good still? I think so, because I am sure I do things that I think are good that may not be and I don't want to be called not good....Does it matter what I "want" to be called if my works are not good, even though they aren't?
  6 For behold, God hath said a man being ^aevil cannot do that which is good; for if he ^boffereth a gift, or ^cprayeth unto God, except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing. Here, works are defined by intentions. Not so easy to see...
  7 For behold, it is not counted unto him for righteousness.
  8 For behold, if a man being ^aevil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly;  wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God. Here's one evil intention
  9 And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with ^areal intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such. Here's another...
 10 Wherefore, a man being evil cannot do that which is good; neither will he give a good gift. An evil man has no good intentions
 11 For behold, a bitter ^afountain cannot bring forth good water; Beware of bitterness. It can poisen the waters of our actions neither can a good fountain bring forth bitter water; wherefore, a man being a servant of the devil cannot follow Christ; and if he ^bfollow Christ he cannot be a ^cservant of the devil. Is this a clue to why people follow Satan - they are bitter?  This sounds a little tricky, because no one is perfect...so do we flip flop between following Satan and Christ every day? "No one can serve 2 masters..." Maybe this is why we are told we must repent daily...because daily we have moments where we serve the devil and not Christ.
 12 Wherefore, all things which are ^agood cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth against him continually, and inviteth and enticeth to ^csin, and to do that which is evil continually.He never rests. Maybe one effect of entering God's rest is that you get to rest from Satan's attacks. 
 13 But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do ^agood continually; wherefore, every thing which inviteth and ^benticeth to do ^cgood, and to love God, and to serve him, is ^dinspired of God. Notice the contrast between the devil fighting 'continually' and God inviting 'continually'. Also 'fight' vs. 'invite'. 
 14 Wherefore, take heed, my beloved brethren, that ye do not judge that which is ^aevil to be of God, or that which is good and of God to be of the devil. This is where we are in politics. Good people can't decide if Trump is good or evil. It's important we judge correctly! It has been hard for me to not judge that which is good (wearing a mask) to be of the devil. But I know the devil corrupts every good thing, so perhaps that is what he did here. Also, I believe the Prophet has called the vax "good" but I believe it to be "evil". Time will tell. I know it's hard to say it because who am I? and who is he? Why would I know it's evil and not him or any of the 15? Some say the prophet has to be right because he's a doctor and God surely preserved his life (he's 96)99! to be our prophet in this time to give us confidence to know what to do. But from what I have heard about doctors...they are the least "open" to looking at science that contradicts their learning, so it doesn't help me personally, that he is a doctor. But...he has been relentless in teaching us to "Hear Him" - God, so I don't think that is a small thing in this confusing time. 
 15 For behold, my brethren, it is given unto you to ^ajudge, that ye may know good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night. We are taught here that we are only to judge to know good from evil, and we can know it perfectly. We are told we are to judge good from evil. 
 16 For behold, the ^aSpirit of Christ is given to every ^bman, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God. We judge by the Spirit of Christ. Conscience. Notice things of God are done by 'invitation' and 'persuasion'. They will support belief in Christ.
 17 But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do ^aevil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him. Notice we have the devil, his angels, and those who subject themselves to him (mortals). In a recent statement by the First Presidency they said the "only" way to end the pandemic is through vaccination. This doesn't persuade men to believe in Christ at all. I think it was made as a open, obvious clue to the saints that the whole statement was a PR stunt to keep the temples open and keep the Church from being targeted. I think we were supposed to easily discern the lies in that statement. Sadly, most took it as God's word because it came from the prophet and they aren't supposed to ever question it. But this is the same prophet that warned we wouldn't survive spiritually if we didn't learn to "Hear Him". Some are not even surviving temporally because they couldn't discern the truth/lies in the statement...
 18 And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know the ^alight by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same ^bjudgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged. This statement is supposed to be a deterrent to judge at all, so we will not be judged the same way we've judged others if it's been wrong. I don't believe that anymore. I think we are to judge, but make the effort and do the work to judge correctly.
 19 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the ^alight of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a ^bchild of Christ. This sounds like an invitation to search the scriptures and the words of the prophets, but do it "in" the light of Christ. Then when you find good "lay hold upon it" and let it drive your actions..."then" you will be called a "child of Christ". Or it is telling us to search diligently, in the light of Christ, to know good from evil (not the scriptures or words of the prophets, although we search them too, but should assume already they are "good"). Once we find good, we are to lay hold on it and not condemn it. Why would we condemn what we know to be true? Perhaps many are struggling with this today. They have judged the gospel to be true and good, but are condemning it now because of the actions of men in the church. Search diligently in the light of Christ, even within the Church, to know good from evil. Lay hold on the good things and don't condemn them because of the evil you find elsewhere.
 20 And now, my brethren, how is it possible that ye can lay hold upon every good thing?
 21 And now I come to that faith, of which I said I would speak; and I will tell you the way whereby ye may lay hold on every good thing.
 22 For behold, God ^aknowing all things, being from ^beverlasting to everlasting, behold, he sent ^cangels to minister unto the children of men, to make manifest concerning the coming of Christ; and in Christ there should come every good thing. These words from angels to man are in the scriptures...
 23 And God also declared unto prophets, by his own mouth, that Christ should come. Also recorded in scripture...
 24 And behold, there were divers ways that he did manifest things unto the children of men, which were good; and all things which are good cometh of Christ; otherwise men were ^afallen, and there could no good thing come unto them. This says there are "other" ways God manifest things to us, which are good...what would these other ways be? (dreams? "sudden strokes of ideas"? inventions? ) Because of our carnal natures...without the light of Christ (which sounds like the vehicle for all good things to come to us) we would do no good because without the light of Christ, we are fallen.
 25 Wherefore, by the ministering of ^aangels, and by every word which proceeded forth out of the mouth of God, men began to exercise faith in Christ; and thus by faith, they did lay hold upon every good thing; and thus it was until the coming of Christ. We have to act on the things that God tells man through the scriptures or prophets or to the mind and heart of man. That demonstrates our faith in Christ. And why is that faith "in Christ"? Because we are acting on words that came from Him, so we are showing Him that we believe in Him and His words.
 26 And after that he came men also were ^asaved by faith in his name; and by faith, they become the ^bsons of God. And as surely as Christ liveth he spake these words unto our fathers, saying: ^cWhatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, behold, it shall be done unto you. This sounds so black and white and simple. If it is, then we have to get a better grasp on what "faith" is, and how to know if something is "good" or we'd get more of what we ask for... We know that we are all children of our Heavenly Father, but we must also become "sons of God". Is this referring to God-Christ? Because we are not His children by birth. But we become so, by the "born again" birth of baptism by water and the Spirit. 
 27 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, have ^amiracles ceased is this phrase used after verse 26 because the "things we ask for" will be "miracles"? because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to ^bclaim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?  Do we see Christ as a God of mercy? Do we understand he claims that "right" because he "answers the ends of the law"? (next verse)
 28 For he hath answered the ends of the law, and he claimeth all those who have faith in him; These words can be seen as supporting statements to the idea that Christ suffered for our sins as the victim of our sins, not in our place as the perpetrator of our sins. As the victim, only He is in the position to offer mercy or to demand justice. What we get will be determined upon our repentance or lack of it. He tells us if we don't repent, we must suffer, even as He did. And what did He suffer? The act or the penalty? Is the worst punishment we could receive the act of knowing experientially what our sins did to others, and not some kind of "prison sentence" or "lashings" where we are still disconnected from the pain we caused others? Hmmm....and they who have faith in him will ^acleave unto every good thing; Which the scriptures and prophets and the Spirit teaches him. and which we have learned to discerned is good and not evil "Cleave" suggests holding close and not letting go of...right now, following the prophet makes me feel like I have to let go of "every good thing" I have been taught about the prophet not being able to lead us astray. It has been a wrestle, but I have landed in a place where I believe that we have to do the work to know if the prophet speaks by the Spirit of Revelation...especially when he does not openly claim to be doing so. Perhaps the prophet who made the statement about not leading astray was not speaking by the spirit? Or perhaps we redefine what "leading astray" means. If it means the prophet cannot make a mistake, does that not make him infallible? They claim they are not infallible, which means they can make mistakes. So maybe not leading astray only means they will never be allowed to teach there is not Christ, or they would be removed. I can make peace with that definition... wherefore he ^badvocateth the cause of the children of men; and he dwelleth eternally in the heavens. What is the "cause" He advocates?
 29 And because he hath done this, Advocated our cause? my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased? Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have ^aangels ceased to minister unto the children of men.
 30 For behold, they are subject unto him, to minister according to the word of his command, showing themselves unto them of strong faith and a firm mind in every form of ^agodliness. We can still see angels today. We just have to have "strong faith" and a "firm mind" in "every" form of godliness. It's a tall order, but must be attainable or it wouldn't be given to us to know. Again we see that we have have "strong" faith, or "not strong faith, but still some faith". It's not all or nothing. We need to pray for strong faith!
 31 And the office of their ministry is to call men unto repentance, and to fulfil and to do the work of the covenants of the Father, which he hath made unto the children of men, to prepare the way among the children of men, by declaring the word of Christ unto the ^achosen vessels of the Lord, that they may bear testimony of him.
 32 And by so doing, the Lord God prepareth the way that the ^aresidue of men may have ^bfaith in Christ, that the Holy Ghost may have place in their hearts,according to the power thereof; and after this manner bringeth to pass the Father, the covenants which he hath made unto the children of men.
 33 And Christ hath said: ^aIf ye will have ^bfaith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is ^cexpedient in me. This hearkens to 1 Nephi 3:7
 34 And he hath said: ^aRepent all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me, and be baptized in my name, and have faith in me, that ye may be saved. This is evidence that God doesn't "select" His "elect", but ALL are invited to come. WE self-select to be His "elect". 
 35 And now, my beloved brethren, if this be the case that these things are true which I have spoken unto you, and God will show unto you, with ^apower and great glory at the last ^bday, How will this be shown to us? We are in the "last days", but what/when is the last "day"? that they are true, and if they are true has the day of miracles ceased?
 36 Or have angels ceased to appear unto the children of men? Or has he ^awithheld the power of the Holy Ghost from them? Or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man upon the face thereof to be saved?
 37 Behold I say unto you, Nay; for it is by faith that ^amiracles are wrought; and it is by faith that angels appear and minister unto men; wherefore, if these things have ceased wo be unto the children of men, for it is because of ^bunbelief, and all is vain. Unbelief is what limits our faith. We must search out all that is "evil" in our beliefs and "lay hold" upon that which is true and good and then our faith will be strong!
 38 For no man can be saved, according to the words of Christ, save they shall have faith in his name; wherefore, if these things have ceased, then has faith ceased also; and awful is the state of man, for they are as though there had been no redemption made. You have to have faith in Christ to partake of the miracle of His Atonement.
 39 But behold, my beloved brethren, I judge better things of you, for I judge that ye have faith in Christ because of your meekness; Meekness is evidence of faith. Why? Because you have submitted all to Christ and there is no ego left in you to sin by pride. for if ye have not faith in him then ye are not ^afit to be numbered among the people of his church. So no meekness...no "people of his church"
 40 And again, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you concerning ^ahope. How is it that ye can attain unto faith, save ye shall have hope? 
 41 And what is it that ye shall ^ahope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have ^bhope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life ^ceternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise.
 42 Wherefore, if a man have ^afaith he ^bmust needs have hope; for without faith there cannot be any hope.
 43 And again, behold I say unto you that he cannot have faith and hope, save he shall be ^ameek, and lowly of heart. It keeps coming back to meekness!
 44 If so, his ^afaith and hope is vain, for none is ^bacceptable before God, save the ^cmeek and lowly in heart; and if a man be meek and lowly in heart, and ^dconfesses by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Christ, he must needs  have charity; for if he have not charity he is nothing; wherefore he must needs have charity. So how do you know if you are meek? You have charity...
 45 And ^acharity suffereth long, and is ^bkind, and ^cenvieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily ^dprovoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
 46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—
 47 But ^acharity is the pure ^blove of Christ, and it endureth ^cforever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.
 48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, ^apray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true ^bfollowers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; Noticing that charity is "bestowed" and then we become sons of God  that when he shall appear we shall ^cbe like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be ^dpurified even as he is pure. Amen.

3 Nephi 5

(Marci-blue; Kathy-green; Liz purple Marci red 2020) orange 2021 brown 2022 2023)

Chapter 5

The Nephites repent and forsake their sins—Mormon writes the history of his people and declares the everlasting word to them—Israel will be gathered in from her long dispersion. About A.D. 22–26. Many tears shed-Mormon is speaking about us and our ministering charge at the end! In this chapter, 7 verses are about the happiness of a converted people, the other 19 are devoted to Mormon's feelings about his ministry.  His life was one of service to his contemporaries, but so importantly, a ministry to the yet-born.

 
  1 And now behold, there was not a living soul among all the people of the Nephites who did ^adoubt in the least the words of all the holy prophets who had spoken; for they knew that it must needs be that they must be fulfilled. The Nephites forsook their sins, all were converted through the ministering of love and the Gospel.  All believed, there was no doubting.  All the things the prophets had foretold had come to pass, and they knew the rest was coming.
  2 And they knew that it must be expedient that Christ had come, because of the many signs which had been given, according to the words of the prophets; and because of the things which had come to pass already they knew that it must needs be that all things should come to pass according to that which had been spoken.
 3 Therefore they did forsake all their sins, and their abominations, and their whoredoms, and did serve God with all diligence day and night. What power there must have been in the unity of belief! Everyone repenting and serving "with all diligence" day and night. Wow! What would happen if we left General Conference with every soul "not doubting in the least" the words that were spoken and immediately repenting where their lives are not in harmony with what they just heard. Notice that belief and true repentance leads one to want to serve!  They served God with diligence, both day and night. This implies that there was much loving and caring in the homes in the evening and beyond, when people are home with their families. vs 1-3 There must have been great ministering among the Nephites from both sides of the veil, that not one of them doubted the words of the holy prophets. Like the power within the Book of Mormon, there is a power within ministering. Go and find the one...again, and again and again. 
 4 And now it came to pass that when they had taken all the robbers prisoners, insomuch that none did escape who were not slain, they did cast their prisoners into prison, and did cause the word of God to be preached unto them; and as many as would repent of their sins and ^aenter into a ^bcovenant that they would murder no more were set at ^cliberty. I love this verse! What a beautiful way to treat their prisoners. Teach them the truth. When they repent and are changed, they go free. Sometimes I wish we could take our rebellious friends/family prisoner and force them to sit and hear truth too:) As they ministered to their prisoners, you can see that many here are in prison - captured by his snares, addictions and unbelief. We must be diligent like the Nephites and minister (preach and teach the words of God) to our brothers and sisters as commanded by God through our living prophet, Pres. Russel M. Nelson and apostles. As I ponder how the Atonement of Jesus Christ works, I wonder if it isn't much like this example. We are the prisoners, but he offers us freedom from the penalty of our crimes if we accept the good word and are converted. And he does that not because he paid the penalty but because he bore the effects of the crime. He, the victim, is the one who has power to forgive if we repent. If we don't repent, we suffer. I'm not sure that he suffered for the penalty of our sins, but instead, only the effects of our sins. If justice requires only that what is the "best good" be done as a consequence, then it would not require He suffer for sins that would be forgiven ever...and unforgiven sinners suffer for their own sins. The suffering he said caused him to bleed at every pore could truly have been from the victim side of the weight and not the penalty side. I'm really leaning towards this view...
 5 But as many as there were who did not enter into a covenant, and who did still continue to have those ^asecret murders in their hearts, God and satan both want your heart! yea, as many as were found breathing out threatenings against their brethren were condemned and punished according to the law. which was what? And so it may also be with us and the Atonement of Christ.
 6 And thus they did put an end to all those wicked, and secret, and abominable combinations, in the which there was so much wickedness, and so many murders committed. They preached the Gospel to the prisoners, endeavoring to bring the light of the Gospel to all.  Those they ministered to, who accepted the Gospel, and made a covenant to change, were released.
 7 And thus had the ^atwenty and second year passed away, and the twenty and third year also, and the twenty and fourth, and the twenty and fifth; and thus had twenty and five years passed away. 25 years since the sign of Christ's birth...25 years has gone by since Christ was born.  At this time, he is growing in his community as a carpenter, and learning and honing those qualities and skills that will serve him well during his ministry in about 5 years.
 8 And there had many things transpired which, in the eyes of some, (those who have "eyes to see") would be great and marvelous; nevertheless, they cannot all be written in this book; yea, this book cannot contain even a ^ahundredth part of what was done so know that what Mormon chose to include was specifically for our day, those things that would repeat among us. Can you see it? Pres. Hinckley said the Book of Mormon was a current as the morning newspaper! among so many people in the space of twenty and five years;
 9 But behold there are ^arecords which do contain ^ball the proceedings of this people; and a ^cshorter but true account was given by Nephi. This book hardly contains 1/100th part of all that was recorded, that Mormon had access to, but he says there are records that have all of it.  We know that many records were made by prophets, and that it was SO time-consuming to write records that would last--metal ore melted and shaped into plates, the painstaking time it took scratching into the metal to create the words, the time and worry in hauling these records around and finding a safe place to store them--this was a labor (ministering) of love.  Keeping records is a special and very important kind of ministering, which can affect generations and multitudes.  As I read this, I thought how easy a time we have in writing and keeping journals.  I also know that I love my ancestors who took the time to write a little about themselves, because time is a precious commodity.  Reading and knowing Mormon's expressions, makes me feel that I should be more diligent in keeping my records for my posterity.  Even if they never got combined into scripture for the Church, they could be like scripture to those I love.
 10 Therefore I have made my ^arecord of these things according to the record of Nephi, which was engraven on the plates which were called the ^bplates of Nephi.
 11 And behold, I do make the record on plates which I have made with mine own hands. Mormon testifies that he made the metal plates from ore and wrote on them.  Another act of love.
 12 And behold, I am called ^aMormon, being called after the ^bland of Mormon, the land in which Alma did establish the church among the people, yea, the first church which was established among them after their transgression. He was named Mormon, and he elaborates on why.  Did his dad ponder on what to name him, and later, told him stories of his namesake--a name he would be humbly proud to bear?  Giving a child a righteous and honorable name, can bless that child all his/her life--another type of ministering.
 13 Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been ^acalled of him to declare his word among his people, this "calling" gave him power and authority to preach with and by the Holy Spirit.  that they might have everlasting life. We are disciples of Jesus Christ too. He has called us to minister to one another and declare His word so that all may have everlasting life. (Ditto)
 14 And it hath become expedient that I, according to the will of God, that the prayers of those who have gone hence, who were the holy ones, should be fulfilled according to their faith, should make a ^arecord of these things which have been done—It seems like this verse is teaching that our prayers of faith have an effect even after we have passed to the other side. He tells how he ministers to "the holy ones" who've gone on before, as an answer to their prayers, and made this record, again, ministering to those beyond the veil.
 15 Yea, a ^asmall record of that which hath taken place from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem, even down until the present time.
 16 Therefore I do make my record from the accounts which have been given by those who were before me, until the commencement of my day;
 17 And then I do make a ^arecord of the things which I have seen with mine own eyes.
 18 And I know the record which I make to be a just and a true record; nevertheless there are many things which, according to our ^alanguage, we are not able to ^bwrite. Mormon explains how he's cared for the records entrusted to him, and has abridged them, along with the things he's seen.  Undoubtedly, there have been some ministering coming also from the other side of the veil, in selecting the most essential things that those "holy ones" wanted to preserve, the most essential things that will help us--ministering again!!!!
 19 And now I make an end of my saying, which is of myself, and proceed to give my account of the things which have been before me. Several verses here on the importance of there being a record. We should record our ministerings as well.
 20 I am Mormon, and a pure ^adescendant of Lehi. He didn't record his direct line, but at least tells us he's a direct descendant. I have reason to bless my God and my Savior Jesus Christ, that he brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem, (and ^bno one knew it save it were himself and those whom he brought out of that land) and that he hath given me and my people so much knowledge unto the salvation of our souls.  He praises Father and the Savior for bringing his ancestors here, and taking care of them (ministering). and "that he hath given me and my people so much knowledge unto the salvation of our souls."
 21 Surely he hath ^ablessed the house of ^bJacob, and hath been ^cmerciful unto the seed of Joseph. We are being reminded that the Nephites and Lamanites are of the House of Israel through Jacob and Joseph. I thought they were Jews? Not through Joseph? I'll have to research that one...
 22 And ^ainsomuch as the children of Lehi have kept his commandments he hath blessed them and prospered them according to his word. He extols the ministering of our God as he continues--they've been blessed, shown mercy, and God has prospered them.  vs 22-26 As I read these verses and came across the word 'gather' and 'gathering', how is this done? How do we gather? Then the Spirit taught me that it is through ministering. This was Jesus' whole life - to gather us as little children and bring us back to our Father. 
 23 Yea, and surely shall he again bring a ^aremnant of the seed of Joseph to the ^bknowledge of the Lord their God. This is part of the gathering. He talks of the future ministering of blessings to the remnant of Joseph's seed, as promised.
 24 And as surely as the Lord liveth, will he ^agather in from the four quarters of the earth all the remnant of the ^bseed of Jacob, who are scattered abroad upon all the face of the earth. THIS is the "marvelous work and a wonder"!
 25 And as he hath ^acovenanted 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 ^brestoring all the house of Jacob unto the knowledge of the covenant that he hath covenanted with them.
 26 And then shall they ^aknow 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. Pres. Nelson just told the youth,
"Would you like to be a big part of the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, and the greatest work on earth today? Would you like to help gather Israel during these precious latter days? Would you, who are the elect, be willing to help find the elect who have not heard the message of the restored gospel? Would you like to be among those “swift messengers” of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke?5  My dear extraordinary youth, you were sent to earth at this precise time, the most crucial time in the history of the world, to help gather Israel. There is nothing  happening on this earth right now that is more important than that. There is nothing of greater consequence. Absolutely nothing. This gathering should mean everything to you. This is the mission for which you were sent to earth. So my question to you is “Are you willing to enlist in the youth battalion of the Lord to help gather Israel?”" 
In light of what President Nelson has challenged and invited the youth (and us!!!) to do these past few weeks, this was so exciting, as I saw our part in this great time! VS. 24-26 - THIS IS OUR CHARGE! And its' not just missionary work. Study Isaiah. Listen to this podcast...(https://isaiahinstitute.com/book-of-mormon-isaiah-prophecy/)  Book of Mormon Prophecy - Isaiah Institute