This verse helps us understand what it means to be called Zion.
18 And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.
Zion
We sing of Zion in many of our hymns, such as “Let Zion in Her Beauty Rise” (Hymns, no. 41). Page 428 of the hymnbook lists many more. What do you learn about Zion from these hymns? How does singing these hymns make you feel about establishing Zion? Write about it in your journal.
In the scriptures, the word Zion has a few different meanings (see Bible Dictionary, “Zion”; and True to the Faith [2004], 189–90):
The city to be built in the latter days near Jackson County, Missouri, to which the tribes of Israel will gather (see D&C 103:11–22; 133:18)
One heart and one mind
To prepare the Saints to become Zion, the Lord told them through the Prophet Joseph Smith, “Let every man esteem his brother as himself.” And then, for emphasis, He repeated Himself in the very next sentence: “And again I say unto you, let every man esteem his brother as himself” (D&C 38:24–25). He then commanded the Saints, “Be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine” (verse 27).
Dwelt in righteousness
Righteousness is “being just, holy, virtuous, upright; acting in obedience to God’s commands; avoiding sin” (Guide to the Scriptures, “Righteous, Righteousness,” scriptures.lds.org).
No poor among them
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Elder Russell M. Nelson
“Every person … baptized who receives the gift of the Holy Ghost, which seals the ordinance, is under solemn covenant with the Lord to obey his commandments. Caring for the poor is one of those commandments.”
Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “In the Lord’s Own Way,” Ensign, May 1986, 26.
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President Henry B. Eyring
“The miracle of unity is being granted to us as we pray and work for it in the Lord’s way. Our hearts will be knit together in unity. …
“… We know from experience that joy comes when we are blessed with unity. We yearn, as spirit children of our Heavenly Father, for that joy which we once had with Him in the life before this one. His desire is to grant us that sacred wish for unity out of His love for us.”
President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, “Our Hearts Knit as One,” Ensign, Nov. 2008, 69.